R Jonathan Rosenblum - Tiger Woods has no counterpart in Judaism

This is the most astounding statement that this wise, intelligent perceptive person has ever said.

Jewish Media Resources/Jerusalem Post  December 24, 2009  Jerusalem Post Comments section

I wish I could say that self-destructive behavior, like that of Tiger Woods, is unknown among Orthodox Jews, or at least among Orthodox rabbis. But I have no particular desire to make a fool of myself.

I am not aware, however, of any figure revered by a large cross-section of Torah Jewry whose private behavior ever stood revealed to be wildly dissonant from his public image. Vast Torah knowledge is usually one aspect of that reverence, but only when it is accompanied by a lifetime of work on self-mastery of one's drives and desires, the subtle as well as the commonplace.

Constant, intense efforts at character development, including knowledge of one's weaknesses and the ability to anticipate the consequences of one's actions, is, at the end of the day, the only protection of against making a terrible botch of our lives.

Proselytising? I

Who is really to blame?
by Jonathan Rosenblum
Jerusalem Post
June 1, 2007
http://www.jewishmediaresources.com/article/1094/

[This is the second half of the article]

"IT IS NOT those who uphold strict standards for conversion who show a lack of love and concern for the convert, but rather those who ignore the halachic requirement of a sincere commitment to mitzva observance. The latter expose those "converted" under their auspices to the danger of a painful shock many years later when they discover that their conversion is not universally recognized.

A universally recognized standard is the greatest protection for the sincere convert, and the implementation of such a standard by responsible rabbinical courts is the key to the complete integration of the sincere convert into the Jewish people, without any concern that someone will someday question his or her conversion.

Two weeks ago, I participated in a three-day seminar sponsored by the Eternal Jewish Family (EJF) organization in Phoenix, Arizona. The participants were 32 intermarried couples in each of which the non-Jewish spouse is contemplating conversion. (The leading contemporary halachic decisors have ruled that in the case of intermarried couples, the general rule that "the right hand pushes away" the would-be convert does not apply.)

The Phoenix seminar was the second of its kind. Of the 32 couples who participated in the first, 28 are on track to a full halachic conversion for the gentile spouse. One couple from the first seminar was halachically married at the Phoenix seminar. Another seven seminars sponsored by EJF are scheduled around the world for the coming year, each at a cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Working with intermarried couples is only part of what EJF does. The organization also promotes a universally accepted standard for conversion. It has already sponsored numerous conferences for rabbinical court judges in the United States and Israel, and one is scheduled in the near future for Europe.

The two-fold efforts of EJF provide irrefutable proof that concern for universally recognized standards of conversion goes hand-in-hand with the greatest love and respect for the convert."

Authority is indispensable

 Chinuch (71) It is impossible for the settlement of people without their making one of them head over the others, to do his command and fulfill his decrees. As the opinions of people are different and they will never all agree to one opinion - to do one thing from among the many things. And from this, the result will be idleness and a cessation of actions. And therefore they need to accept the opinion of one of them - whether it is good or whether it is bad - so that they will be successful and be involved in the business of the world, sometimes finding great benefit from his will and counsel and sometimes finding the opposite. And all of this is better than disagreement which causes complete idleness. And since the one appointed as head is the cause for the benefit that we said - whether he is big in leading us in the ways of religion or whether he is big in the kingdom to guard a man from his neighbor that is more powerful than he - the matter is fitting and proper that we not treat his honor lightly, and also that we not curse him. 

FOX News Media, Dominion Voting Systems reach agreement over defamation lawsuit

 https://www.foxnews.com/media/fox-news-media-dominion-voting-systems-reach-agreement-over-defamation-lawsuit

The lawsuit, which stemmed from coverage of the post-2020 presidential election, had become media fodder with news outlets closely watching the outcome of the highly publicized legal battle.

Then-President Donald Trump and his allies fiercely challenged Joe Biden's victory in the weeks following the election. Some of them, including members of his legal team, made false and unsubstantiated claims against Dominion Voting Systems and are the subject of separate defamation lawsuits.

Fox News Media Host Refuses to Report Dominion Settlement Amount

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-news-media-host-howard-kurtz-refuses-to-report-dominion-settlement-amount?ref=home

Fox News media host Howard Kurtz couldn’t bring himself to repeat the hefty $787.5 million settlement his employer paid to Dominion Voting Systems on Tuesday, claiming he was unable to “independently confirm” the amount. Kurtz, whom Fox forbade from covering the Dominion lawsuit before easing that restriction last month, made several on-air appearances to discuss the shocking settlement on Tuesday. 

Is This a Real Fox News Ad Published in the NY Times?

 https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/fox-news-ad-ny-times/

An image authentically showed an advertisement by Fox News in The New York Times, featuring survey data about "TV networks most trusted for news."

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Fox News and NY Post fail to report on Dominion settlement

 Murdoch's papers are so committed to accurate reporting they failed to report that Fox News is giving Dominion almost a billion dollars for damaging the company with false claims. Instead they placed an ad in NY Times claiming they are widely believed 

Israeli society doesn't actually want haredim in the IDF

 https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-729182

What does Israeli society actually want?

The answer is that we, the general Israeli society, don’t really want haredi soldiers serving in the IDF. Meaning we want haredim to serve but we want them to be less haredi. If you’re already in the army, we think, then what’s the problem with having female soldiers around? And why not a Druze worker in the kitchen? And why special kashrut standards, prayer services and Torah study?

IDF opposes draft exemption for Haredim, presents new outline for mandatory service

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-presents-new-outline-for-mandatory-service-says-will-keep-drafting-haredim/

The Israel Defense Forces on Tuesday presented a new outline for military service, amid plans by the government to grant ultra-Orthodox men earlier exemptions from drafting to the army.

The IDF indicated that it was opposed to the plans discussed by the government earlier this week that would essentially give Haredim a blanket ban from army service, stating that drafting Israelis from all parts of society is of utmost importance.

IDF: Women can't serve in combat units due to physiological differences

 https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-739447

The integration of female soldiers into Israel’s combat infantry units, some elite Special Forces and certain armored units has been postponed due to the physiological difference between men and women, the IDF told the High Court of Justice on Monday in response to petitions by women seeking to join Special Forces.

Fox News' Legal Battles Aren't Over Yet

 https://www.newsweek.com/fox-news-legal-battles-arent-over-yet-1795193

"Dominion's litigation exposed some of the misconduct and damage caused by Fox's disinformation campaign. Smartmatic will expose the rest," Connolly said in a statement that was tweeted by Semafor editor-in-chief Ben Smith on Tuesday afternoon. "Smartmatic remains committed to clearing its name, recouping the significant damage done to the company, and holding Fox accountable for undermining democracy."

Don’t Worry! The $2.7 Billion Sequel to the Dominion Case Is Already Coming.

 https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/04/smartmatic-fox-news-lawsuit-dominion-settlement-complaint.html

So what is Smartmatic exactly? Based in London, Smartmatic is another voting-tech company that got wrapped up in Donald’s Trump’s election misinformation campaign and ended up on Fox News. The company is seeking a whopping $2.7 billion in damages from Fox, $1 billion more than Dominion. The lawsuit specifically names Fox News hosts Maria Bartiromo, Jeanine Pirro, and Lou Dobbs, though Pirro managed to dodge the suit and was removed because she only indirectly blamed Smartmatic on her show. (Meanwhile, Dobbs’ program was yanked off the air shortly after the suit was filed.)

Tapper: Fox News' $787M settlement 'one of the ugliest' moments in the history of journalism

Rupert Wins Again

 https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2023/04/18/rupert-murdoch-dominion-settlement-00092694

A hundred million here, a hundred million there, might crimp your finances. But in the Murdoch universe, paying such settlements is just the cost of doing business Murdoch-style. The alternative to settling with Dominion for telling a series of lies about voting fraud would have been a painful and long courtroom drama. A stream of ugly would have been on the Fox image, day after day, as Dominion made its case. Even after the case concluded and went to appeals, the Fox brand would have been further stigmatized, and shame and disparagement would have been leveled at Murdoch, Fox executives and Fox hosts Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Maria Bartiromo, Laura Ingraham and Bret Baier, all of whom Dominion planned to put on the witness stand. Getting out from under all of that hurt for $787.5 million is a kind of bargain for a company with a market cap of $17.3 billion. Fox has $4.1 billion in cash and warrants on hand, says the New York Times.