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Tomim Tih'yeh [countering New Age influences internationally]:
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Heard weekly on New Jersey's WSNR Radio 620AM, on the renowned LevinAt11 program, every Thursday evening, 11pm to midnight (Eastern Time).
Igros Moshe (YD iV #2|) Concerning the small bugs which are found in a number of types of vegetables
I have heard that a number of people have said in my name a certain view regarding the small worms that are known to be found in many types of vegetables. In fact I did not say any ruling in this matter. On the contrary, I am in fact more inclined to be lenient and as you and my son wrote that something which is not visible to the naked eye is not prohibited and is at least not considered an entity that is not nullified in a mixture. This in addition to the justification mentioned in Shulchan Aruch. Or it is possible to rely on the view that an entity is nullified in a mixture of 1 to a thousand. Or the view that an entity that doesn’t survive forever separately in its original state but is attached to a mixture and can’t be separated becomes nullified or that the Rabbis did not decree that an entity is not nullified in something disgusting that a person views as repellent Also as I wrote to you and to many others that as a general rule there is great importance given in halacha to minhag (custom) of what people typically do and have done. It is prohibited to cast aspersion on the previous generations who were not concerned with these things because they didn’t know about them. Therefore I say without investigating the matter thoroughly since because of my health it is difficult at present. it is impossible to rule strictly and publicize that the matter is prohibited And of greater importance I don’t want my name associated with those who rule that it is prohibited.
As a result, health websites like those run by the CDC and the National Institute of Health took down pages about HIV, AIDS, and COVID-19. This included guidance on topics such as how doctors should treat sexually transmitted diseases and vaccinate adults.
The Infectious Diseases Society of America similarly described the move to take down HIV- and LGBTQ-related resources from federal health websites as a “deeply concerning” move that “creates a dangerous gap in scientific information and data to monitor and respond to disease outbreaks.”
“This is especially important as diseases such as HIV, mpox, sexually transmitted infections and other illnesses threaten public health and impact the entire population,” IDSA President Tina Tan and Chair Colleen Kelley said in a statement.
Since at least the Reagan era, Republicans have generally been proponents of free trade, but that started to shift under Trump. Very few Republican pols want to cross Trump right now.
Perhaps his most vocal GOP critic on tariffs inside Congress is Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.)
“Tariffs are simply taxes,” Paul vented on X. “We won the last election by complaining about Democrats’ policies, which gave us high prices. Tariff lovers will be forced to explain the persistence of high prices.”
The editorial board, often viewed as a mouthpiece of owner Rupert Murdoch, has condemned many of Trump’s policies since he took office last month. It said Trump’s pardon of the Jan. 6 rioters sent “a rotten message from a president about political violence done on his behalf” and called his decision to strip his political enemies of their security details part of “some vindictive whim.”
While it has defended some of Trump’s decisions, its critical tone has put the traditionally conservative newspaper’s editorial board on the same plane as the more liberal voices of The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Paul Gigot, the editor of the Journal‘s editorial pages, told the Associated Press last week: “We are covering Trump like we do every president, and that means supporting his decisions when they warrant it, and criticizing them when that is deserved. It’s no more complicated than that.”
https://www.newsweek.com/fact-check-have-us-taxpayers-sent-200-billion-ukraine-1796322
This figure has been repeated by a number of right-leaning politicians and public figures in the past two months including Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ), former Trump advisor Steve Bannon, and former Republican candidate for Arizona governor Kari Lake.
In total, Congress has allocated $113 billion in a combination of mostly military, government, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine since last year, according to the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General.
This strongly suggests that the U.S. has not spent anywhere close to $200 billion. Furthermore, Newsweek has so far been unable to find any statement from the presidential office of Ukraine which supports that higher number—the office has been contacted via email for comment.
André Frank, Project Lead for the Ukraine Support Tracker, told Newsweek that the $200 billion claim was "wrong" and suspected it may have been a misinterpretation of the tracker's data, perhaps by using information from a since-updated database.
In any case, there is no evidence to support the notion that the U.S. has spent $200 billion, with expert research indicating that total direct spending has not even reached the $100 billion mark, let alone double that number.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/02/02/trump-tariffs-baffling-trade-war/
Trump knows the United States has more leverage over its neighbors than they do over his country. But exploiting that position of strength could cause a historic rupture. “The U.S. willingness to ignore its treaty obligations, even with friends, won’t make other countries eager to do deals,” noted the right-wing Wall Street Journal editorial board. “Maybe Mr. Trump will claim victory and pull back if he wins some token concessions. But if a North American trade war persists, it will qualify as one of the dumbest in history.”
https://www.axios.com/2025/02/02/trump-tariffs-republicans-applaud-trade-war
As trade war fears circulate, lawmakers are manning their posts: Democrats are warning prices will skyrocket — while Republicans say the potential discomfort will be worth it in the end.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on NBC News' "Meet the Press" that if "prices go up, it's because of other people's reactions to America's laws."
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) characterized Trump's tariffs as a border tool, telling NBC's Kristen Welker they "are meant to bring Canada and Mexico the table for the fentanyl that is streaming into our communities."
His fellow Virginian, Sen. Tim Kaine (D), said Trump's first-term tariffs were "a tax on Virginia consumers," predicting Americans will see "higher prices for energy, higher prices for groceries."
Kaine said he was struck by what he saw as the "irony" of Trump's executive order declaring an "energy emergency" followed by 10% tariffs on Canadian energy.
"The emergency is self-created," Kaine said.
In reversal, Amman said to give Hamas one day to find Ahlam Tamimi another home or it will send her stateside, where she is wanted over 2001 attack that killed 16, including 2 Americans
President Trump on Sunday ripped The Wall Street Journal for criticizing his recent tariffs.
“The ‘Tariff Lobby,’ headed by the Globalist, and always wrong, Wall Street Journal, is working hard to justify Countries like Canada, Mexico, China, and too many others to name, continue the decades long RIPOFF OF AMERICA, both with regard to TRADE, CRIME, AND POISONOUS DRUGS that are allowed to so freely flow into AMERICA,” said the president on his Truth Social platform.
A Saturday op-ed from the Journal’s editorial board criticized Trump’s tariff plan and predicted a declining trend in trade and manufacturing capability in the wake of signed sanctions.
“Mr. Trump sometimes sounds as if the U.S. shouldn’t import anything at all, that America can be a perfectly closed economy making everything at home. This is called autarky, and it isn’t the world we live in, or one that we should want to live in, as Mr. Trump may soon find out,” said the op-ed.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/musk-spews-crazy-claims-after-seizing-federal-payment-system/
Elon Musk took aim at a pair of federal agencies Sunday, shortly after his Department of Government Efficiency team received access to the massive system that manages government payments.
Specifically, Musk targeted the U.S. Treasury Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), alleging with little evidence that both were “breaking the law” by approving “fraudulent” payments.
“Career Treasury officials are breaking the law every hour of every day by approving payments that are fraudulent or do not match the funding laws passed by Congress,” Musk wrote on X Sunday. “This needs to stop NOW!”
To back up his claim, Musk shared a summation of a relevant statute compiled by Grok, an artificial intelligence service run by his social media app, X.
The explosive claims come just hours after the billionaire and his DOGE team were reportedly granted full access to a federal payment system by President Donald Trump’s newly confirmed treasury secretary, Scott Bessent.
President Trump conceded Sunday that there may be “some pain” from his sweeping tariffs on Mexico and Canada, but they will eventually lead to a new “GOLDEN AGE.” Nice of him to promise a glorious future because the pain is already unfolding, and the tariffs won’t even take effect until Tuesday.
We appreciate Mr. Trump’s attention, though we’re anti-tariff and not lobbyists. But bad policy has damaging consequences, whether or not Mr. Trump chooses to admit it. Mr. Trump can’t repeal the laws of economics any more than Joe Biden could on inflation.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/02/business/trump-economy-tariff-mexico-canada-china/index.html
The Wall Street Journal went a step further, publishing a scathing op-ed on Saturday titled: “The Dumbest Trade War in History.”
The op-ed argued that Trump’s justification for an “economic assault” on Canada and Mexico “makes no sense” and warned the strategy could end in disaster.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/02/politics/us-tariffs-americans-pay-imports/index.html
A day after signing steep new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China, President Donald Trump acknowledged what economists, members of Congress and even some of his own aides — in their previous lives — have been saying all along: Americans may find themselves paying the costs.
“THIS WILL BE THE GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA! WILL THERE BE SOME PAIN? YES, MAYBE (AND MAYBE NOT!),” Trump posted, in all capital letters, on his Truth Social platform.
“WE WILL MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, AND IT WILL ALL BE WORTH THE PRICE THAT MUST BE PAID,” Trump wrote. “WE ARE A COUNTRY THAT IS NOW BEING RUN WITH COMMON SENSE — AND THE RESULTS WILL BE SPECTACULAR!!!”
