Thursday, November 21, 2019
A Pentagon official unexpectedly blew up Trump's defense in the Ukraine scandal and Gordon Sondland threw everyone under the bus. Here are the biggest takeaways from Wednesday's impeachment hearings.
Sondland was initially believed to be the key witness on Wednesday, but Cooper took the spotlight when she revealed damning new information that undermined President Donald Trump's entire defense in the snowballing Ukraine scandal.
Here are the biggest takeaways from Wednesday's hearings:
Cooper revealed that her staff received two emails from the State Department on July 25 asking about US military aid to Ukraine.
Petur Nafshi At Risk?
BS"D
By Binyomin Feinberg, Contributor to The Jewish Press*
FeinbergBinyomin@gmail.com
* The perspectives and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the ownership or management of The Jewish Press.
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To check for updates throughout the week please visit ("Updates for Cheshvan" at: )
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We received late word of the incarceration of yet another innocent Orthodox girl, Adel bas Ilana Naavah, a 19 y/o languishing in Military Prison number 6. We hope to provide more details as confirmation becomes available.
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Parshas Chayei-Soroh, 5780 °° Nov. 21, '19 (ver.2)
Major News Relevant to IDF Female Draft: Psychological Military Exemptions Under Fire
Just about a week after Maariv reported on the IDF goal of targeting 40% of national religious high school girls for military service (see https://daattorah.blogspot.com/2019/11/online-updates-in-culture-wars-parshas.html ) -- Maariv reported (Fri., Nov.11) on another major development that could have a massive impact on religious girls of all sectors seeking IDF service exemptions. In the wake of the recent difficulties in obtaining Religious Exemptions (Petur Dat), many girls have been advised by some organizations (like Bnos Melech) to seek the primary alternative legal avenue - heretofore more acceptable to the IDF - a "Petur Nafshi," an exemption for psychological reasons. The IDF has been particularly accommodating of this type of exemption. That government policy has encouraged many, many religious girls, via many of the activists helping them, to avail themselves of this legal provision, especially where the alternative is a frequently uncomfortable dispute with the government over a Religious Exemption.
However, as repeatedly warned about by a leading Giyus Banos opponent, Rabbi Laizer Yehuda Weiss, the government accommodation of a Petur Nafshi (PN) may be short lived, and, worse, serve as a trojan-horse method of calling into question the exemptions already granted to hundreds of religious girls, girls who were unwilling or unable to fight for their Religious Exemptions, or, in many cases advised not to bother.
The IDF claims that in 2018CE, applications for PN rose 30% from 2017, from about 3,500 to 4,500. According to the Army numbers, over 53% of those 4,500 [total] PN 2018 exemptions were for religious youth.
Moreover, over a TWO year period, in the secular community, PN exemptions rose about 30%, while among religious boys they rose about 50% (from 262 to 391 religious boys) in just one year. Interestingly, the statistics for religious girls weren't provided in that report. (If indeed the IDF plans on targeting past exemptions of girls en masse, R"L, it is feared that they may now opt to draw public attention to the boys, and away from girls.)
The article indicated that the IDF plans on vigorously investigating this PN phenomenon, a trend which until now they've actively encouraged, while sometimes illegally denying Religious Exemptions to girls seeking that conventional path. The government now may likey crack down on the PN exemptions, not only going forward, but even retroactively. Such a policy shift could potentially endanger the status of many, many hundreds of girls who were advised or compelled by circumstances to seek a PN exemption. This could spell disastrous for untold numbers of families. (We're informed that roughly about 45 years ago the IDF had disqualified a large number of IDF exemptions retroactively, and required their recipients to redo the exemption process. If that would recur nowadays, given recent human and religious rights abuses perpetrated under the "rightwing" government of Netanyahu in their forced enlistment of girls, the scenario could become one of bedlam.)
At this point, it's imperative for any draft-age girl in Israel, including dual citizens from Chutz La'Aretz visiting Eretz Yisroel, to ensure that she obtain sound advice in securing her IDF exemption, if at all possible by securing her legal rights to a religious - rather than psychological - exemption. (She should also ensure she obtain her permanent exemption, not just a temporary deferment).
The "Chomosaich" volunteer network has been providing advice on such an approach, recently attaining a 95% success rate of obtaining Religious Exemptions. Call them 24/6 (in Israel: ) 03-545-6770 for free expert assistance anytime day or night. Chomosaich provides information for girls regardless of their religious affiliation or background.
Israel May Hold New Elections After Netanyahu's Rival Fails To Form Government
https://www.npr.org/2019/11/20/781260650/israel-may-hold-new-elections-after-netanyahus-rival-fails-to-form-government
Israel is set to continue without a government and may be heading to new elections after Benny Gantz, rival of longtime Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said Wednesday that he missed a deadline to form a government.
Netanyahu, who is facing the possibility of imminent indictment on corruption charges, also failed to form a coalition following the hotly contested election in September.
Gantz's announcement that he could not meet the deadline set by President Reuven Rivlin doesn't automatically trigger new elections. Rather, it kicks off another wave of political haggling — Israel's parliament has 21 days to nominate another lawmaker to try to form a majority government. If no other lawmakers are successful, it could usher in a third and unprecedented election this year, which Netanyahu has described as "institutional insanity."
Gantz, a longtime military leader and relative political newcomer, said his Blue and White party did everything it could.
Get Me'usa explicit threat only?
On Mon, Nov 18, 2019 at 11:39 PM Rav Shalom Chaim Spira ; wrote:
Shalom Aleikhem Ha-Rav ha-Ga'on R. Daniel Eidensohn, shlit"a,Thank you for the honour of the question. In response, I am enclosing a scan of Be-Netivot ha-Halakhah Vol. 1 (KTAV Publishing, 1996), pp. 47-52, where R. J. David Bleich answers your question [in the specific context of the 1992 New York Get Law] by arguing that even an implicit threat of financial coercion - if understood as such by a typical husband - will disqualify the resulting get. Of special interest is footnote 16, where Rav Bleich raises a havah amina that perhaps his "implicit coercion" thesis is at odds with Chazon Ish, but then answers Chazon Ish in such a manner to be consistent with his thesis. To this student, it seems intuitive that Chazon Ish is in harmony with Rav Bleich's thesis; see Section L of my prenup essay <http://www.scribd.com/doc/176990434/Prenuptial- Agreements> where I present Chazon Ish as such. Now, although you did not specifically ask me about the South African Get Law identified by Iggerot Mosheh, Even ha-Ezer IV, no. 106, I see that in your post you raised the issue, so allow me to refer you to Section J of my aforementioned where I offer different approaches to that South African responsum.[N.B. My prenup essay assumes that Vol. 7 of Iggerot Mosheh (which includes the South African Get Law responsum) represents the considered ruling of R. Moshe Feinstein - delivered while he was in good health - and therefore needs to be carefully studied-and-applied like the first six volumes of the same work. However, after I already published my prenup essay (which I am no longer at liberty to modify since it is now being studied by a secular Canadian court, and be-Ezrat Ha-Shem Yitbarakh this will result in a very positive blessing for Canadian Jewry), this student discovered that Rav Bleich has issued contradictory indications on whether he accepts the provenance of Vol. 7 of Iggerot Mosheh. I refer to this concept in footnote 239 of my brain death essay at <http://www.scribd.com/document/375175373/Halakhic- Bioethic >. In any event, I don't think this will result in a practical halakhic difference: neither for coerced gittin nor for brain death. It's more of an academic fascination. And, of course, Kevod Torato ha-Rav has publicized this academic fascination at http://daattorah.blogspot. com/2019/01/who-wrote-late- volumes-of-igrot-moshe.html ]
Wednesday, November 20, 2019
‘It was no secret’: Sondland says Trump ordered Ukraine pressure campaign
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/20/gordon-sondland-impeachment-testimony-071708
President Donald Trump’s top Europe envoy Gordon Sondland told House impeachment investigators Wednesday that Trump conditioned a valuable White House meeting for Ukraine's new president on his willingness to launch investigations into Trump’s Democratic adversaries, including former Vice President Joe Biden.
“Was there a ‘quid pro quo?’” Sondland — a close Trump ally and longtime GOP donor — said in his opening remarks to the House Intelligence Committee. “The answer is yes.”
New Haven rabbi convicted of 4 felonies wants new trial, claims witnesses intimidated
https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/New-Haven-rabbi-convicted-of-4-felonies-wants-new-14846214.php
Lawyers for Rabbi Daniel Greer, who was convicted on four counts of risk of injury to a minor and is due to be sentenced Wednesday, have filed a motion asking for a new trial because, the attorneys allege, “an admitted agent of the state harassed and attempted to intimidate” two defense witnesses.
Attorneys David Grudberg and William Dow III have charged that Lawrence Dressler, whose blog, www.larrynoodles.com, has contained “hundreds of negative items regarding Daniel Greer,” confronted witnesses Jean Ledbury and Thomas DeRosa near the courtroom and at DeRosa’s home in Southbury.
Utah nanny convicted of all counts in childhood abuse of rabbi
https://www.deseret.com/2019/11/15/20965657/utah-nanny-convicted-of-all-counts-in-childhood-abuse-of-rabbi
His decision to come forward publicly in a February Deseret News article set off a #MeToo movement within the Orthodox Jewish world. He received an outpouring of messages of support and encouragement, including from over 20 people who said they were also survivors of sexual abuse.
Among those cheering the guilty verdicts Friday were Elizabeth Smart and Rabbi Peretz Chein, the co-founder of the Chabad House at Brandeis University in Massachusetts. Rabbi Zippel’s disclosure inspired Chein to come forward forward as a survivor of sexual abuse earlier this year.
Smart, who was kidnapped at age 14 and sexually abused, said Friday she is “so happy to hear justice was served today.” She has advised Rabbi Zippel throughout the case and attended a February preliminary hearing.
“It takes a great deal of courage for a victim to share their story to anyone. It takes even more to take the witness stand to testify and be cross examined,” Smart continued.
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