Thursday, August 1, 2019
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
This ultra-Orthodox rabbi just took a job at an LGBT synagogue
In many ways, Mike Moskowitz is a typical ultra-Orthodox rabbi.
He wears a black suit and black hat. He sports a thick, curly beard beneath a closely shaved head. He peppers his speech with liturgical Hebrew and Yiddish words. He quotes from Jewish legal texts.
Moskowitz sometimes closes his eyes when he talks, swaying back and forth and rubbing his fingers together as if he’s engaged in deep Talmud study. He spent years upon years studying at traditional haredi yeshivas. Today he lives in Lakewood, a New Jersey shore town of some 100,000 residents well known for its largely haredi population.
rabbi Moskowitz has three ultra-orthodox rabbinic ordinations. He spent a decade in the largest yeshivas in the world and studied the entire Babylonian Talmud. He founded and headed a kollel - a sacred think tank, served as a rabbi at Columbia University, and of a congregation in Harlem. Rabbi Moskowitz explored academic Talmud at Yale and at Jewish Theological Seminary, where he is currently completing a Doctorate in Hebrew Literature. As one of the leading thinkers at the intersection of trans issues and Jewish thought, he is a sought after lecturer, educator, and researcher.
Donald Trump says he spent a lot time with 9/11 responders. Here are the facts
https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2019/jul/30/donald-trump-says-he-spent-lot-time-911-responders/
President Donald Trump suggested that he spent "a lot of time" with first responders after Sept. 11 as he signed an extension of the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.
"Many of those affected were firefighters, police officers, and other first responders. And I was down there also, but I’m not considering myself a first responder. But I was down there. I spent a lot of time down there with you," Trump said July 29 in the Rose Garden.
Trump’s comment, which appeared ad-libbed compared to the rest of his speech, didn’t go as far as some previous ones he made about his role in helping clear the rubble or supplying workers to help. But it still raised eyebrows. Some critics took his comment to mean Trump was taking credit for helping in the rescue and cleanup effort at Ground Zero (inspiring #LostTrumpHistory).
On the campaign trail in 2016 Trump said he helped with clearing the rubble.
"Everyone who helped clear the rubble — and I was there, and I watched, and I helped a little bit — but I want to tell you: Those people were amazing," Trump said at a rally in Buffalo. "Clearing the rubble. Trying to find additional lives. You didn't know what was going to come down on all of us — and they handled it."
The Washington Post and the Associated Press sought information from the Trump campaign in 2016 about how he helped, and they didn’t receive responses. We also tried to verify his claim and could not.
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Don’t Get Mad if a Doctor Says They Need to Screen Your Child for Abuse
https://time.com/5637675/child-abuse-screening-doctor-office/
If a doctor notices bruising on your child, you might be surprised to find yourself accused of abuse. The real-life drama that ensues from such encounters is playing out in doctors’ offices and emergency rooms across the country. Here are some of the things we’ve heard from our patients:
TRUMP FRIEND AIMED TO PROFIT FROM MIDEAST NUCLEAR DEAL -DEMOCRATS
https://www.jpost.com/American-Politics/Trump-friend-aimed-to-profit-from-Mideast-nuclear-deal-Democrats-597113
Tom Barrack, a billionaire friend of US President Donald Trump, pursued a plan to buy Westinghouse Electric Corp even as he lobbied Trump to become a special envoy to promote the building by the firm of nuclear power plants in Saudi Arabia, said a congressional report released on Monday.
While Barrack failed in both efforts, the report provides fresh evidence of the ease with which some corporate and foreign interests have gained access to Trump and other senior members of his administration.
UK woman who accused Israelis of rape in Cyprus indicted
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/266689
A British teenager was remanded in custody in Cyprus on Tuesday after she was arrested last week on suspicion of falsely accusing 12 Israeli tourists of gang rape.
The 19-year-old was indicted the Famagusta District Court in Paralimni in southeast Cyprus Tuesday, and now faces "public mischief".
If found guilty, she could potentially face a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a fine of around 1,700 euros ($1,900).
The young woman, who was not named, stood grim-faced during the court session Tuesday morning without speaking. Her mother was also present.
She covered her face with the hood of her sweatshirt as she left the court and was put into a police van.
Her lawyer, Andreas Pittadjis, said she is expected to enter a plea when she appears again on August 7. He asked the court for time to "collect videotapes and statements" gathered by the Cypriot police during the investigation.
Initially, the teenager had alleged that 12 Israelis gang raped her at the hotel where she was staying in the popular resort of Ayia Napa on July 17.
The Israeli tourists aged 15 to 18 were arrested shortly after the complaint was filed.
After five of the 12 Israeli teens were proven to have not been present at the time of the alleged rape, including some who had clear alibis placing them elsewhere during the incident, Cyprus authorities freed the five, who returned to Israel last Thursday and Friday.
WHY VOTE FOR TRUMP IN 2020 - new poll
I just added a new poll to the blog regarding voting for Trump in 2020
Senate Fails to Override President Trump's Vetoes, Allowing Saudi Arms Sales
https://time.com/5638324/trump-senate-veto-saudi-arabia-arms/
The Senate votes came as the House Oversight Committee released a report criticizing the Trump administration over its apparent willingness to allow the president’s friends and allies undue influence over U.S. policy toward Saudi Arabia.
New documents obtained by the committee “raise serious questions about whether the White House is willing to place the potential profits of the president’s friends above the national security of the American people and the universal objective of preventing the spread of nuclear weapons,” the report said.
The report “exposes how corporate and foreign interests are using their unique access to advocate for the transfer of U.S. nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the panel’s Democratic chairman.
The 50-page Oversight report, released Monday, says Trump’s longtime personal friend, campaign donor and inaugural chairman, Tom Barrack, negotiated directly with Trump and other White House officials to seek positions within the administration, including special envoy to the Middle East and ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.
At the same time, Barrack was promoting the interests of U.S. corporations seeking to profit from the transfer of nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia; advocating on behalf of foreign interests seeking to obtain U.S. nuclear technology; and taking steps for his own company, Colony NorthStar, to profit from the proposals, the report said.
One of the companies leading an effort to build nuclear plants in Saudi Arabia, IP3 International, repeatedly pressed the Trump administration not to require Saudi Arabia to commit to a rigorous “gold standard” in any agreement with the U.S., complaining it would lock them out of lucrative nuclear contracts, the report said.
IP3 officials had “unprecedented access” to the highest levels of the Trump administration, including meetings with Trump, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and Cabinet Secretaries Rick Perry, Steven Mnuchin, Mike Pompeo, Rex Tillerson, James Mattis and Wilbur Ross, the report said.
The report also criticized the White House for refusing to produce any documents in the investigation and said communications obtained from outside sources indicate that Kushner and other officials used personal email or text accounts to communicate about Saudi-related deals.
FOX NEWS ANALYST WARNS TRUMP IS 'LOCKING DOWN THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY FOR HIS PURPOSES'
https://www.newsweek.com/fox-news-analyst-trump-locking-down-intelligence-community-1451620
Mary Anne Marsh, a political analyst for Fox News, raised concerns on Monday that President Donald Trump appeared to be consolidating his control over the U.S. intelligence community with the nomination of GOP Representative John Ratcliffe to replace Dan Coats as director of national intelligence.
"It's more about protecting Trump than America," Marsh, who previously served as a senior adviser to Democratic Senator John Kerry, warned during a segment of Fox News' America's Newsroom on Monday. "John Ratcliffe has been all over the investigate the investigators [probe], who's doing that right now? [Attorney General] Bill Barr, so Donald Trump has consolidated his control over the intelligence committees at a time when he's given Barr unprecedented access and control over all the intelligence information, which we've never seen by an attorney general before," she said.
Monday, July 29, 2019
TRUMP ENDORSES FOX NEWS HOST JEANINE PIRRO'S CLAIM PRESIDENT HAS EXPOSED DEMOCRATIC AND 'DEEP STATE' CORRUPTION
https://www.newsweek.com/trump-endorses-fox-news-host-jeanine-pirros-claim-president-has-exposed-democratic-deep-state-1451462
Fox News host Jeanine Pirro got a public endorsement from President Donald Trump Sunday morning after the Justice with Judge Jeanine host claimed the president had unearthed corruption among Democrats and the so-called "Deep State."
Former New York City mayor and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani appeared on Justice with Judge Jeanine this weekend to chat with Pirro about the recent testimony of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
The meandering and conspiracy-laced conversation touched on a large number of conservative talking points around Mueller's Russia investigation and even drew the praise of the president, who quoted Pirro in one of his early morning Sunday tweets.
'I promise you, you're wrong': Fox News' Wallace shuts down Mulvaney claim Mueller vindicated Trump
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/07/28/chris-wallace-refutes-mick-mulvaney-meuller-testimony-exoneration-claim/1851843001/
Mulvaney, like Trump, claimed Mueller's testimony about his investigation into Russian election meddling had cleared the president of any wrongdoing, and falsely said Mueller had testified that he would "absolutely not" have indicted Trump if he weren't the president.
"No, that's not what he said," said host Chris Wallace.
"He said we didn't because of the OLC, the Office of Legal Counsel guidelines," Wallace said, referring to a 2000 Justice Department determination that "a sitting President is constitutionally immune from indictment and criminal prosecution."
"I actually just think you're wrong on that," Mulvaney said.
"The record will show what it shows. I promise you, you're wrong," Wallace replied.
Fact check: Trump falsely claims Mueller exonerated him
Sunday, July 28, 2019
FOX NEWS ANCHOR CONFRONTS TRUMP CHIEF OF STAFF MULVANEY OVER BALLOONING DEFICIT, POINTING OUT IT BEGAN DECREASING UNDER OBAMA
Although then-candidate Donald Trump promised in 2016 to eliminate the national deficit if he was elected president, the deficit has actually ballooned significantly since he took office and is projected to grow substantially moving forward. Fox News anchor Chris Wallace confronted acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney about this fact Sunday, pointing out that the deficit had begun decreasing under former President Barack Obama before Trump took over.
"After dealing with the Great Recession in his first term, the deficit under Obama dropped by an average of 11 percent a year in his second term," Wallace pointed out to Mulvaney — who also serves as Trump's director of the Office of Management and Budget — on Fox News Sunday.
"The deficit has increased by 15 percent a year in President Trump's first two years. Under President Trump, our national debt has increased by more than $2 trillion," Wallace continued. He pointed out that estimates project that the amount will "top $4 trillion," if a bipartisan budget supported by the president goes through.
Gedolim are to be blamed for sins if they don't protest against those sins
And Moses was angry with the officers of the army, with the captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, who came from the battle.
תורה תמימה במדבר פרק לא פסוק יד
ל פקודי החיל - מגיד שאין הסרחון תלוי אלא בגדוליםטז) [ספרי]:
רש"י פרשת מטות
(יד) ויקצף משה על פקודי החיל - ממונים על החיל, ללמדך שכל סרחון הדור תלוי בגדולים שיש כח בידם למחות:
[רבינו] בחיי במדבר פרק לא פסוק יד
(יד) ויקצוף משה על פקודי החיל. באור "פקודי" מלשון: (ישעיה כד, כא) "יפקוד ה'":
שרי האלפים ושרי המאות. הם קל"ב. ולמדנו שכל סרחון הדור תלוי בגדולים שיש כח בידם למחות ואינם מוחים.
רש"ר הירש במדבר פרק לא פסוק יד
(יד) פקודי החיל הם המנהיגים שכוח הצבא הופקד בידיהם, הוה אומר: אלה שהיה עליהם להנהיג את פעולות הצבא והם היו אחראים לכך.
משך חכמה במדבר פרק לא פסוק יד
(יד) ויקצף משה על פקודי החיל, שרי האלפים ושרי המאות וכו'. הא דלא קצף על פנחס! נראה דסרחון הדור תלוי בגדולים, שיש כוח בידם למחות.
If the Gedolim do not protest sinning than the sins are attributed to them
If Rav Kaminetsky Feinstein and Greenblatt and others do not protest adultery than they are to be blamed for it
GOP GROUP WILL RUN AD ON 'FOX & FRIENDS' HIGHLIGHTING TRUMP'S 'EXONERATION' LIE AFTER MUELLER TESTIMONY
https://www.newsweek.com/gop-group-will-run-ad-fox-friends-highlighting-trumps-exoneration-lie-after-mueller-1451452
In response, RRL will air a clip next week on Fox News' Fox & Friends, the president's preferred network, that will disprove Trump's "total exoneration" claims. The video, shared with Newsweek, opens on a tweet posted by Trump after Mueller's testimony, which reads: "TRUTH IS A FORCE OF NATURE!," before cutting to the former special counsel answering questions from House Judiciary committee chairman Jerrold Nadler and House Intelligence committee chairman Adam Schiff.
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