Bowing to a tzadik

 Kedushas Levi(Shoftim)

ספר קדושת לוי - פרשת שופטים

לא תקים לך מצבה. נראה לפרש על פי שאמרו רבותינו ז"ל (אבות ד,כא) התקן עצמך בפרוזדור כדי שתכנס לטרקלין, כי העולם הזה הוא הכנה לעולם הבא ומה שאדם אוכל ושותה הוא כדי להיות בריא וחזק לעבודת השם יתברך ולא להנאת עצמו חס ושלום. והנה מה שאדם אוכל ומתהנה בעולם הזה נקרא לך כמאמר חכמינו ז"ל (פסחים סח ע"ב) חציו לכם. וזהו הרמז לא תקים לך, פירוש תענוגי עולם הזה הנקרא לך. מצבה, פירוש מעמד ומצבה לקיום רק הכנה לעולם הבא:

לשמש או לירח אשר לא צויתי. עיין רש"י אשר לא צויתי לעבדם. וכן שינו הע"ב זקנים לתלמי המלך בהעתיקם התורה לו. והנראה, כי מצינו בתורה שהשתחוו לצדיק כגון עובדיה לאליהו, כי הצדיקים יש להם תורת ה' ומצינו שקרא הקדוש ברוך הוא ליעקב אבינו אל (מגילה יח.) רוצה לומר מחמת שקיים כל התורה היה בבחינת אל כמו כן כל הצדיקים מחמת ציווי התורה יש להם בחינה זו ומותר להשתחוות להם. אבל השמש והירח אשר אין להם ציווי תורתו הקדושה אסור להשתחוות להם. וזהו לשמש או לירח אשר לא צויתי, כלומר שאין להם הציווי שלי, היינו התורה שניתנה לישראל:

Anger over synagogue exemptions as cabinet OKs new Green Pass virus restrictions

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/amid-synagogue-exception-row-cabinet-oks-new-green-pass-virus-restrictions/

 Ministers gave the final go-ahead Thursday night to a plan that will significantly expand restrictions on gatherings under the Green Pass system meant to tamp down runaway coronavirus case numbers, despite misgivings over an 11th-hour decision to exempt places of worship.

Starting Sunday, gatherings of any size, indoors and out, will be limited to those who have been vaccinated, recovered from the virus, or who present a negative COVID test, under the Green Pass system, which will also extend to hotels, restaurants and gyms.

While the plan originally included synagogues and other houses of worship, the plan presented to ministers for a vote Thursday night exempted prayer services with fewer than 50 participants, drawing furious criticism from some cabinet members.

Brooks and Dionne on vaccine hesitancy, Capitol Police testimony, infrastructure

You shouldn't miss this massive bombshell in Trump's ongoing election fraud lie

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/05/politics/donald-trump-jeffrey-rosen-election-fraud-cnn/index.html 

 Unless you have been living on another planet for the past six months, you know by now that Donald Trump leaned on state and national officials in the final days of his presidency to force investigations into made-up claims of widespread election fraud in the 2020 race.

 But the story keeps getting worse -- as we learn more and more about the extremes that Trump-loyal officials were willing to go to in an attempt to overturn the election, with zero proof or evidence to do so.

The latest bombshell came Wednesday with the revelation that Jeffrey Clark, a top official at the Justice Department, composed a draft letter -- which he urged acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen and acting deputy Attorney General Richard Donoghue to sign onto -- that said the DOJ had "significant concerns that may have impacted of the outcome of the election in multiple States, including the State of Georgia."

Fact check: Joe Biden has condemned violent protests in the last three months

 https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-factcheck-biden-condemn-violence-idUSKBN25V2O1

 Tens of thousands of social media users are posting memes that claim that Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, has been silent for over three months on the issues of rioting and violence and has only just denounced them because of a dip in the polls. This claim is false: Joe Biden has denounced riots since protests after the death, just over three months ago, of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who was killed after a white police officer knelt on his neck.

Trump Begs Federal Judge Not to Turn Over His Tax Returns to Congressional Investigators

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/08/donald-trump-taxes-judge 

 While the continued legal battle means Congress is unlikely to see Trump’s tax returns anytime soon, if ever, history, at the moment, is not on his side. Earlier this year, a Supreme Court ruling paved the way for Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. to obtain his tax returns, a turn of events Trump responded to by screaming at whatever poor soul had to dictate his words: “These are attacks by Democrats willing to do anything to stop the almost 75 million people (the most votes, by far, ever gotten by a sitting president) who voted for me in the election—an election which many people, and experts, feel that I won.… In the meantime, murders and violent crime are up in New York City by record numbers, and nothing is done about it. Our elected officials don’t care. All they focus on is the persecution of President Donald J. Trump.”

A Trump bombshell quietly dropped last week. And it should shock us all

 https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/aug/03/donald-trump-memo-election-corrupt-justice-department

We’ve become so inured to Donald Trump’s proto-fascism that we barely blink an eye when we learn that he tried to manipulate the 2020 election. Yet the most recent revelation should frighten every American to their core.

On Friday, the House oversight committee released notes of a 27 December telephone call from Trump to then acting attorney general Jeffrey Rosen, in which Trump told Rosen: “Just say the election was corrupt + leave the rest to me and the R congressmen.” The notes were taken by Richard Donoghue, Rosen’s deputy, who was also on the call.

 For the first time in the history of the United States we did not have a peaceful transition of power. For the first time in American history, a president refused – still refuses – to concede, and continues to claim, with no basis in fact, that the election was “stolen” from him. For the first time in history, a president actively plotted a coup.

‘This Is Some Insane Stuff’: Trump Loyalist Reportedly Pressured DOJ On Election

Black Lives Matter protesters make Palestinian struggle their own

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jun/16/black-lives-matter-palestinian-struggle-us-left

 Black Lives Matter, the US-based movement, recently came out in support of Palestinians’ fight for liberation.

The Complicated History Behind BLM's Solidarity With The Pro-Palestinian Movement

 https://www.npr.org/2021/06/07/1003872848/the-complicated-history-behind-blms-solidarity-with-the-pro-palestinian-movement

 Nonetheless, in the decades since then, support for Israel has remained strong among many Black people. "The number of African Americans in solidarity with Palestine still represented a minority," Kelley says. "It was never the majority."

Israelis traveling to US experiencing 'mass hysteria'

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israelis-traveling-to-us-experiencing-mass-hysteria-675813

 Travelers are angry that Israel has adopted stricter laws than other countries, he said. “Why are they requiring a full seven-day quarantine? Why do they demand a third PCR test on day three after they arrive? Why are our health professionals the only ones in the world putting these draconian conditions on honest citizens? Why is the US allowing anyone to enter the country with a negative test and nothing else? Why is the UK succeeding in reducing its numbers without any quarantine?

 Where is there left for Israelis to go? “The only destinations that have any interest at all for Israelis are places like Switzerland and Austria, which are not yet red, as well as Thailand for some long-term travelers,” Feldman said.

Black Lives Matter tweeted in support of Palestinians, not Hamas

 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2021/05/23/fact-check-black-lives-matter-supports-palestinians-not-hamas/5206977001/

After 11 days of military confrontation that left hundreds dead, Israel and Hamas agreed to a cease-fire following a unanimous vote from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet to end the assault in the Gaza Strip. 

Activist groups and politicians in the United States and abroad have been weighing in on the conflict, with more progressive Democrats urging the Biden administration to be tougher on Israel and Netanyahu. The official Black Lives Matter Twitter account showed support for Palestinians in a May 17 tweet.

"Black Lives Matter stands in solidarity with Palestinians," the tweet says. "We are a movement committed to ending settler colonialism in all forms and will continue to advocate for Palestinian liberation."

 The Black Lives Matter tweet indicates the organization's support for Palestinians, not Hamas. Several websites have corrected their stories to reflect that fact.

One Facebook post shows a screenshot of a Daily Wire story with a headline that reads, "Black Lives Matter Declares 'Solidarity' With Hamas In Israel Conflict." The headline has since been updated to say "Palestinians" instead of "Hamas."

 

Here’s How Fox News Spread A False Narrative Black Lives Matter Is Standing With Hamas

 https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2021/05/19/heres-how-fox-news-spread-a-false-narrative-black-lives-matter-is-standing-with-hamas/?sh=9ce40c551140

 Topline

A Tuesday article from Fox News has kicked off a budding online misinformation campaign buoying the false claim that activist group Black Lives Matter has come out in support of Gaza’s militant Hamas leaders amid the ongoing conflict with Israel.

Fox News Host Who Called BLM 'Poison’ Says Pro-Trump Mob Made Up Of ‘Solid Americans’

 https://www.forbes.com/sites/tommybeer/2021/01/07/fox-news-host-who-called-blm-poison-says-pro-trump-mob-made-up-of-solid-americans/?sh=648afc1e6829

Topline

Fox News Host Tucker Carlson was one of several popular conservative media pundits who condemned the violence that took place Wednesday, but he also expressed sympathy for many of the "deeply frustrated" Trump supporters who engaged in a siege on the U.S. Capitol, explaining that "millions of Americans sincerely believe the last election was fake," striking a sharp contrast to how Carlson and others have characterized protesters affiliated with the Black Lives Matters movement.