Ignoring ban, hundreds of ultra-Orthodox crowd Lag B’Omer fires in Jerusalem

https://www.timesofisrael.com/hundreds-of-haredim-crowd-jerusalem-streets-to-illegally-mark-lag-bomer/

Prime minister orders police to crack down on gatherings in capital and Beit Shemesh amid warnings that incidents could lead to fresh outbreak of coronavirus

317 ultra-Orthodox men freed after breaking into holy site, defying virus rules

https://www.timesofisrael.com/317-ultra-orthodox-men-freed-after-breaking-into-holy-site-defying-virus-rules/

Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox men arrested Tuesday evening after breaking into a shuttered holy site at Mount Meron were released Wednesday morning to their homes.

Each of the 317 detainees received a fine for violating coronavirus regulations designed to prevent mass gatherings.

 

Israeli doctors using ventilators on virus patients sparingly, but split on why

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-doctors-using-ventilators-on-virus-patients-sparingly-but-split-on-why/

Some experts maintain the machines can cause damage to a certain type of COVID-19 sufferers, while others say noninvasive measures were preferred all along

 Israeli doctors are increasingly sparing in the use of ventilators for coronavirus treatment, with some expressing fears that the breathing machines can cause harm. “There’s a sentiment that we’re trying to delay ventilation unless we really have to,” Eyal Zimlichman, chief medical officer at Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, told The Times of Israel, adding that this has been the case since mid-April.

 

 

‘A pretty scary thing’: NY on edge over mystery child illness tied to virus

https://www.timesofisrael.com/a-pretty-scary-thing-ny-on-edge-over-mystery-child-illness-tied-to-virus/

Some 100 kids in state are suffering inflammatory syndrome believed to be related to COVID-19; governor says parents ‘are very concerned about this, and they should be’

 

קורונה נדירה בארץ פגעה בילדים, אחד נפטר; 'כולם חרדים'

https://www.kikar.co.il/359724.html

התפתחות נדירה מאוד של נגיף הקורונה, הפוגעת דווקא בבני נוער, הגיעה לאחרונה לישראל; עד כה היא התגלתה בגופם של שישה ילדים - כולם חרדים - אחד מהם למרבה הצער אף נפטר (אקטואליה)

 

Breaking down 'Obamagate,' Trump's latest theory about the 'deep state' and Obama's role in the Russia investigation

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/13/politics/trump-obama-obamagate-russia/index.html

President Donald Trump and his allies added a new dimension this week to their "deep state" conspiracy theory, directly accusing former President Barack Obama of leading a supposed "coup" to sabotage the Trump presidency.

 

Seizing on a viral hashtag, Trump dubbed the alleged scandal "Obamagate" and has been flooding the zone promoting exaggerated theories and false claims since the weekend. In the President's view, he was the victim of the "biggest political crime in American history" and the Obama appointees who he claims tried to undermine his administration deserve jail time for their misdeeds.

Trump ramped up his rhetoric over the weekend after Obama criticized the Justice Department for dropping its criminal case against former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn. Trump's new focus on Obama also served as a diversion from the coronavirus pandemic, as the nationwide death toll passed 80,000 and the unemployment rate tripled to a staggering 14.7%.

Conspiracy theorists are falsely claiming that the coronavirus pandemic is an elaborate hoax

https://theconversation.com/conspiracy-theorists-are-falsely-claiming-that-the-coronavirus-pandemic-is-an-elaborate-hoax-135985

Since March 28, conspiracy theorists — “coronavirus deniers” — have been using the hashtag #FilmYourHospital to encourage people to visit local hospitals to take pictures and videos to prove that the COVID-19 pandemic is an elaborate hoax.

The premise for this conspiracy theory rests on the baseless assumption that if hospital parking lots and waiting rooms are empty then the pandemic must not be real or is not as severe as reported by health authorities and the media.

 

Why a Second Wave of Covid-19 Is Already a Worry

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-24/why-a-second-wave-of-covid-19-is-already-a-worry-quicktake

3. So how does a virus come back?

There are a number of possibilities. In the case of influenza, there’s the onset of cool weather, a factor that may affect the coronavirus, too. Or the pathogen can mutate. This is another feature of flu, which mutates more or less constantly. In the fall of 1918, a second wave of the historic influenza outbreak occurred and caused most of the deaths in the pandemic. Some researchers believe it was brought about by a mutation that made the virus again unrecognizable to most people’s immune systems. Another important variable is the movement of the virus to populations that haven’t been exposed before and don’t have immunity. In addition, the World Health Organization said on April 24 that there’s no evidence yet that people who have recovered from Covid-19 and have antibodies are protected from a second infection.

 

1918 Pandemic Influenza: Three Waves

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-commemoration/three-waves.htm

 There were 3 different waves of illness during the pandemic, starting in March 1918 and subsiding by summer of  1919. The pandemic peaked in the U.S. during the second wave, in the fall of 1918. This highly fatal second wave was responsible for most of the U.S. deaths attributed to the pandemic.

Are the Jews racist?

אמת ליעקב בראשית פרק ט פסוק כה
(כה) ויאמר ארור כנען עבד עבדים יהיה לאחיו51.
הנה ישנן משונאינו מאומות העולם הטוענים שכלל ישראל היא אומה גזענית, שהרי התורה אומרת שכנען ארור והוא יהיה עבד עבדים לאחיו, הרי שהשפילה התורה את גזע כנען למדרגת עבד. אבל האמת ודאי היא לא כן, דהא זה ברור שדעת התורה היא כנגד גזענות, וכבר הוכחתי זה בחידושי לעיל בפרשת בראשית [א' פכ"ב] מלשון המשנה בסנהדרין [דף ל"ז ע"א]: מפני מה נברא האדם יחידי שלא יאמר אדם לחבירו אבא גדול מאביך, הרי שבדוקא שינה הקדוש ברוך הוא במין האדם משאר המינים וברא רק אדם יחידי כדי שלא יבואו בני האדם לידי מדה מגונה זו. אלא שלפ"ז צריכים לבאר את פעולתו של נח במה שהוריד את כנען למדרגת עבד והשפילו משאר מין האדם, והרי זה לכאורה פעולה גזענית טהורה.
אבל באמת אין לזה שום שייכות עם גזענות, דגזענות פירושה שגזע אחד מתנשא מעל גזע אחר בגלל מוצאו ויחוסו וכאילו שהוא נוצר "מחומר" עילאי וטוב יותר וכדומה, אבל כאן הטעם שחילק ביניהם נח היה משום מדותיו המושחתות של חם ובנו כנען, ומדות אלו הנחיל הוא לבניו אחריו וכמו שאמרו חז"ל [פסחים דף קי"ג ע"ב]: חמשה דברים צוה כנען את בניו כו' אהבו את הגזל ואהבו את הזימה ושנאו את אדוניכם ואל תדברו אמת, ומכיון שראה נח מדות כאלו אצל משפחת כנען, מאז קילל אותם שישארו עבדים כל ימי חייהם ולא יבואו בקהל ישראל.
וכמו כן הוא מה שאנו אומרים "אתה בחרתנו מכל העמים", ששונאי ישראל טענו שמזה אנו מראים כאילו אנו חושבים את עצמנו למיוחסים יותר מאומות העולם, ודאי אין זה משום שדת ישראל גזענית היא חס ושלום, אלא שאנו אומרים שמכיון שאנו ירשנו מדות מהוגנות וישרות מאבירי דעה כאלו כמו אברהם יצחק ויעקב, ואנו עמדנו בהר סיני וקבלנו תורת ה' מפי משה רבינו, ממילא אנו בני מעלה יותר משאר העמים, כי הרי אנו שיפרנו את עצמנו במדות טובות ובהתקרבות להשי"ת, אבל הרי כל מי שרוצה יכול להתגייר ולהצטרף אלינו ואז גם הוא יכול לומר על עצמו "אתה בחרתנו מכל העמים", מה שאין זה אמת בשאר האומות הגזעניות שלא מרשים לאחד מן החוץ להצטרף אליהם.

Homosexuality - a heter?

Taz  (Bereishis 2:24):And therefore a man leaves…… The Holy spirit said this because if you say that Adam said it together with “This time …” .That can’t be since it serves no purpose to finish off his statement in that manner. .In contrast if it were said by the Holy spirit and then it is understood as a warning as Rashi explains. And they become one flesh – the Rambam asks “even animals become one flesh  in their offspring?”And in truth this is not really a problem at all because this verse is stated only to prohibit certain sexual relations such as bestiality as is stated in Sanhedrin 58a),”Rabbi Akiva said and cleave to his wife and not another male or the wife of another man and they shall become one flesh means only those sexual relations that result in one flesh through the offspring which excludes with animals because intercourse with them does not produce offspring. And this is what Rashi meant when he was explain the phrase “one flesh” teaches that intercourse with animals is prohibited But we rely on the gemora that “cleave” excludes homosexual relations  because the recipient gets no pleasure as Rashi notes. But why not learn this from “one flesh”because it cant produce offspring but then why is  the word cleave (davak) needed if everything is learned from “one flesh”? it appears to me that without the word “cleave” I would have explained the prohibition of bestiality as because it is lacking in unity. In other words with an animal there is a lack of constant togetherness and that is the reason that they are not one flesh  being together today but tomorrow the animal is with someone else. The Ramban says something a little bit similar concerning cleaving. Therefore I would have mistakenly thought that homosexual relation would be permitted because exclusive loyalty is possible between two males. Something similar is alluded to in the gemora noting that the Persians don’t write a Kesubah for a homosexual couple. Therefore the Torah states and cleaves to exclude homosexuality since the recipient does not get pleasure. But I might mistakenly think that if the prohibition is because of the lack of pleasue and the animal does get pleasure it  is therefore permitted! Therefore we learn from “one flesh” that it is prohibited. And this appears to me to be correct

Flynn judge to allow 'amicus' submissions, delaying immediate resolution and drawing planned ethics complaint

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/judge-in-flynn-case-to-open-up-case-for-amicus-submissions

D.C. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan issued an order Tuesday indicating he'll soon accept "amicus curiae," or "friend of the court" submissions, in the case of former national security adviser Michael Flynn -- drawing immediate scrutiny and a planned ethics complaint against Sullivan, who had previously refused to hear amicus briefs in the case.

Sullivan's order indicated that an upcoming scheduling order would clarify the parameters of who specifically could submit the amicus briefs, which are submissions by non-parties that claim an interest in the case. Sullivan specifically said he anticipated that "individuals and organizations" will file briefs "for the benefit of the court," as he prepares his response to the government's motion to dismiss the case.

"Judge Sullivan, who denied leave to file amicus briefs when he knew third parties would have spoken favorably of Flynn, now solicits briefs critical of Flynn," independent journalist Michael Cernovich wrote on Twitter Tuesday evening. "This is a violation of the judicial oath and applicable ethical rules. We will be filing a complaint against Sullivan. ... [He] is acting as a politician, not a judge."

 

Judge slows down effort to drop Flynn case

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/12/judge-slows-effort-drop-flynn-case-252725

Judge Emmet Sullivan said he’ll receive written arguments that are likely to oppose Justice’s bid to abandon the high-profile prosecution.

 

Somber warnings temper hopes about a fall return to school -- and normalcy

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/13/politics/coronavirus-schools-education-donald-trump-fauci/index.html

The contentious nature of school closures -- effective in 48 states and the District of Columbia, according to a CNN count -- exploded in a Senate hearing Tuesday after Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul warned Fauci he wasn't the "end-all" authority on issues like when kids should go back to class.

Paul pointed out that mortality rates for young people were comparatively low and misleadingly suggested that outside New England, the virus had been relatively "benign."

"I think the one-size-fits-all -- that we're going to have a national strategy and nobody's going to go to school -- is kind of ridiculous," Paul said. "We really ought to be doing it school district by school district. And the power needs to be dispersed because people make wrong predictions.

"If we keep kids out of school for another year, what's going to happen is the poor and underprivileged kids who don't have a parent that's able to teach them at home are not going to learn for a full year ... I think it's a huge mistake if we don't open the schools in the fall."

Fauci warned Paul that the country needed to be "very careful" about underestimating the effect of Covid-19 on young people, specifically citing the inflammatory syndrome that has killed a number of children in the United States and Europe.