Sins of gedolim and Amalek

 Rav Tzadok has an interesting explanation of the mitzva of remembering Amalek

He notes the apparent strange condition that it applies after you no longer fear your enemies

He explains that Amalek is the Yetzer Harah and once you reach a very high level you think you are free. 

That is when you need to be extra careful and he cites the gemora where a number of gedolim -e,g., Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Akiva ridiculed those who sinned and as a result Satan would have gotten them to sin except for the special protection they had from G-d

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A similar drasha is found in the sefer Daas Torah by the mashgiach of Mir.

He notes the statement in the medrash that only a hair's width separates Gan Eden from Gehinnom. And thus even after reaching a high level you need to not be lulled in feeling you are out of reach of sinning as we see from the constant fear of the Avos

Pro-Palestinian nurses eject Jewish boy from hospital bed, UK trust to probe

 https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-793306

A British National Health Service (NHS) Trust is investigating allegations that nurses, while brandishing pro-Palestinian stickers on their uniform, forcibly ejected a nine-year-old Jewish boy with a blood disease from his bed, according to multiple media reports from Friday.

The boy, who was being treated at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, was allegedly “kicked out of his bay,” according to the boy’s Israeli-British uncle, Elliott Smus.

U.S. Warned Russia Before Moscow Attack That Killed at Least 60

https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/russia-moscow-concert-hall-shooting-attack-1a009cc4?mod=hp_trending_now_article_pos1 

The U.S. passed a secret warning to Russia earlier this month of a plot to target large crowds ahead of an attack that killed at least 60 people and injured over 145 at a concert hall outside of Moscow, according to U.S. officials.

Explosions rocked the site and gunmen opened fire on concertgoers Friday evening, Russian authorities said, less than a week after Vladimir Putin was elected for a sixth term as the country’s president.

U.S. officials said they believed Islamic State was responsible for the attack. The group claimed responsibility in a statement issued by the Islamic State-affiliated news agency Amaq on Telegram, without providing evidence.

On March 7, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow issued a cryptic warning to American citizens to avoid concert venues. The U.S. had information about a planned terrorist attack in Moscow potentially targeting large gatherings—including concerts—which prompted the State Department to issue a public advisory, White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement Friday night. “The U.S. government also shared this information with Russian authorities in accordance with its longstanding ‘duty to warn’ policy,” Watson added.

Four Moscow Massacre Suspects Caught Fleeing to Ukraine, Russia Claims

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/russian-officials-rush-to-blame-ukraine-us-for-moscow-concert-massacre?ref=home?ref=home

While the terror group ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack—a claim the U.S. has called “credible”—the FSB alleged that “after the terrorist attack, the criminals tried to escape by car towards the Russian-Ukrainian border.” Kyiv has denied any involvement in the attack.

Suspended spokesman Eylon Levy will continue fighting the media war

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-793117

Levy rattled off a long list of contributors that included not only people in the Directorate for Public Diplomacy, but also Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, the Army Spokesman’s Office, the Police Spokesman’s Office, and many others.

Israel is currently doing a much better job in putting out information than during any previous war, said Levy.Even so, he conceded, “It’s a war of David and Goliath. It’s not an easy war.”

In the early days of the conflict, Levy recalled, the BBC, Fox and Sky News interrupted regular broadcasts to cover Israeli press conferences. That is seldom the case today.

Among the difficulties that have confronted Hoffman and Levy are proving that statements emanating from UNRWA, the World Health Organization and even from the Red Cross, are misleading.

Love Work

 Magen Avos (01:10) Love work. In this way the world will exist and His Torah will be fulfilled because if he does not have a job he will have to be a dependent on others  and come to be a thief. And they said in Yerushalmi, (01 Peah) Choose life  refers to a profession they also said in the Midrash Koheles, See life with the woman you love, acquire a profession with the Torah you love, and they also said in Kiddushin (Chap 01) anyone who does not teach his son a profession is in effect teaching him to be a thief. In Bava Metzia it said and you told them the way they should walk, this is the house of their lives, that is, to teach them a profession to earn a living from it, and this is a mitzvah from the Torah and even if he has sources of wealth he should still work since the Torah says for six days you should work since idleness causes mental illness. There are many statements in the gemora praising those who work. 

Overcharging is prohibited only to Jews

 Maharal Baer HaGolah 07) And also what was said in the tractate of Baba Metziya, that overcharging a non Jew is permissible, as in the text "And no man shall give to his fellow," because this means that when a person sells something to his friend and it is found that he gave it to his friend in exchange for something that must be returned to him, even if the seller himself did not know at the time of the sale, this is an extreme position which is not found in the law of the nations, and the Torah is stricter, and but only if he is his fellow in the Torah and mitzvos 

Honesty in Business

 Menoras HaMeor (08) The greed of men and their pursuit of the pleasures of the world causes them to oppress their fellows in all their business, and in their work and in their goods. And perhaps they think that this oppression, since it is not theft  is not prohibited therefore the Torah warns us  by saying, "No one should oppress his brother", to teach us that a person must conduct business honestly, even though everyone who engages in business has no intention but to profit from it Nevertheless  the Torah commands that he neither take nor sell for more or less than its worth

Genetically Modified Pig Kidney Is Transplanted Into Living Patient

 Genetically Modified Pig Kidney Is Transplanted Into Living Patient

A 62-year-old man suffering from end-stage kidney disease received a genetically modified pig kidney in an unprecedented transplant at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, a step forward in the effort to help people waiting for organs.

Comer Keeps Stepping In It as Impeachment Witness Dishes Dirt on Giuliani

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/comer-keeps-stepping-in-it-as-impeachment-witness-dishes-dirt-on-giuliani?ref=home

Committee chair Rep. James Comer (R-KY) stepped on rake after rake during the hearing, consistently undermining his own conference’s case. Star witness Lev Parnas was largely responsible for disseminating the mistruths about Biden to Republican lawmakers, working with the ex-New York City mayor-turned-Trump crony to dig up damaging dirt in advance of the 2020 presidential election. The two traveled to Ukraine for the job, and came back with eye-popping tales of corruption involving Biden and his son Hunter.

But on Wednesday, Parnas said, “The only information ever pushed on the Bidens and Ukraine has come from one source and one source only: Russia and Russian agents.”

Was America Safer Under Donald Trump Than Joe Biden?

 https://www.newsweek.com/was-america-safer-under-donald-trump-joe-biden-1881831

President Joe Biden this week touted a "record decrease in crime" after the FBI released its quarterly crime data, sparking criticism from Donald Trump's campaign as he seeks to quell concerns about crime ahead of the November presidential election.

The FBI crime data released on Tuesday showed a drop in nearly every type of crime from the fourth quarter of 2022 to 2023, a victory touted by the White House, which attributed the decline to legislation signed into law by Biden, such as the American Rescue Plan.

Diaspora Jews rally around Eylon Levy, demand his reinstatement

 https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-792984

The group We Are Tov (the Hebrew word for good) launched a petition on Wednesday, calling for the reinstatement of the suspended Government Spokesperson Eylon Levy. 

The petition, made on Change.org, has a goal of 10,000 signatories and has already accumulated over 8,000. 

We Are Tov, addressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, wrote, “We, the undersigned, urge the Prime Minister's Office to lift the suspension imposed on Eylon Levy, the Israeli Government's spokesman. 

Hostage families blast plans for first Jerusalem Purim parade in 40 years

 https://allisrael.com/hostage-families-blast-plans-for-first-jerusalem-purim-parade-in-40-years

However, the Jerusalem Municipality defended its decision, arguing that this year’s Purim parade would reflect the mood of a nation at war:

“The decision to hold the Adloyada was made with understanding and sensitivity to public discourse, especially the feelings of the families of the hostages, fallen and wounded. Unlike routine Adloyada parades, this event will reflect the current spirit and period. The Adloyada represents the legacy of the fallen, including many from Jerusalem who, in their bravery, instructed us to continue living our lives, which entail both sorrow and joy.

“The event will be dedicated to children, showcasing the courage of our military personnel, evacuees and heroes of the Gaza enclave, while raising awareness about the plight of the hostages."

Fox, Newsmax Losing Patience With GOP’s Biden Hearings

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-newsmax-losing-patience-with-gops-biden-hearings?ref=home

Wednesday’s hearing included testimony from Lev Parnas, a former associate of Rudy Giuliani, who said Republicans’ impeachment push is “predicated on a bunch of false information that is being spread by the Kremlin.”

“Eventually you’ve brainwashed yourself [in]to believing certain things that are not true,” Parnas said of his work with the longtime Trump ally ahead of the 2020 election. “I started thinking [to] myself that this can’t be true. And we were doing something wrong.”

Last month, one of the GOP’s key impeachment witnesses—who said he has ties to Russian intelligence assets—was arrested by the FBI for allegedly lying to the bureau about Biden and his son, Hunter. Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) then tried to claim—despite his past comments—that Alexander Smirnov actually “wasn’t an important part” of his investigation.