Havdala - Standing or Sitting

Igros Moshe (OC V #20.17) Question Should Havdala be said standing or sitting?Answer The most widespread custom is to say havdala standing. Because this is not viewed as merely a beracha on eating or drinking. This seems reasonable because in fact it is prohibited to eat and drink before saying Havdalah and itself it is not a type of eating. In fact even if you don’t eat at all you still need to say havdala and according to Rashi you don’t even need to drink the wine of havdala and it is not considered a vain beracha. So the beracha said on the wine is clearly not viewed as a beracha on pleasure and therefore there is no requirement to sit. It would follow from this that havdala should only be said standing. However many sit for havdala since one person says for others and that requires sitting. Thus it is a dispute among the poskim whether sitting or standing is better. Therefore it is best to follow the custom of one’s father. I personally say havdala sitting as this was my father’s custom.

Igros Moshe (OC V #16.5) Question: Regardings those who say Kiddush standing what do they do for Pesach? Answer  The custom to stand even in the home is not based on halacha.  The Rema indicates (271:10) that it is best not to stand for kiddush because it is not so much the place of the meal however if a person really wants he can stand. Thus he clearly gives preference to sitting. Thus those who insist on standing for kiddush are going against the Remah and thus the custom. Even for Havdalah where the common practice is to stand, the Remah says there are those who stand for havdala and this is the prevailing custom. Tosfos also notes that the prevailing custom is to stand and notes that there is a problem when it is said for others since kevius is required which requires sitting. Tosfos also doesn’t say that one must stand because of custom and indicates it is best to sit for Havdalah.  . Consequently  everyone agrees that for kiddush it is best to sit even if it means that for saying vayechulu it is necessary to stand and the Remah adds that one can remain standing for the rest of kiddush. Nevertheless he concludes it is best to sit. Thus vayechulu is said standing  and then one should sit for the rest of kiddush . He even says there are those who sit also for vayechulu since vayechulu was already said standing in ynagogue. . 

Megyn Kelly and Ben Shapiro Debate Whether Epstein Was an Intelligence Asset for America or Israel

Evidence of Epstein's Ties to Israeli Intelligence EXPLAINED

Tucker Carlson suggests Jeffrey Epstein was working for Mossad

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/tucker-carlson-suggests-jeffrey-epstein-was-working-for-israels-mossad-spy-agency/

Addressing the conservative conference, Carlson said that the real question that needed to be asked about Epstein was not “was Jeffrey Epstein a weirdo who was abusing girls?” but rather, “why was he doing this, on whose behalf, and where was the money coming from?”

“And I think the real answer is Jeffrey Epstein was working on behalf of intel services, probably not American,” he said. “And we have every right to ask, ‘On whose behalf was he working?'”

He answered his own question a moment later, declaring it “extremely obvious to anyone who watches” that Epstein “had direct connections to a foreign government.”

“Now, no one’s allowed to say that foreign government is Israel, because we’ve been somehow cowed into thinking that that’s naughty,” he said, raising his voice as the crowd erupted into applause and cheers of support.

“There is nothing wrong with saying that, there’s nothing hateful about saying that, there’s nothing antisemitic about saying that — there’s nothing even anti-Israel about saying that!”

Havdala Over a Telephone for a woman in Hospital

Shulchan Aruch (OC #296.8) Women are obligated to say Havdalah just as they are obligated to say Kiddush. And there are those who argue. RAMA: Therefore, they should not recite Havdalah for themselves, rather they should hear Havdalah from men.

Igros Moshe (OC IV #100) There is a view that women are exempt from havdala (OC #296.8)

Igros Moshe (OC IV #91.4)  Question : Can a women in the hospital hear havdala over the phone Answer If it is impossible for her to hear havdala at home, she should certainly listen to it over the phone. I am more inclined that she fulfills her obligation than what I said regarding hearing the Megila over the phone. That is because all mitzvos involving speech are like reading the megila except for Shma and Grace after the Meal. Thus it is necessary to protest against those who want to use a microphone in the latter two cases. Since it is impossible for her to hear havdala in the hospital she needs to listen to it on the tephone. Furthermore she needs to answer amen to the beracha that she heard on the telephone or from a microphone because of  a sofek (doubt). 

Don't expect Tel Aviv-New York return fares under $1,600

 https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-dont-expect-tel-aviv-new-york-return-fares-under-1600-1001516040

In contrast, the tickets for the flights that will now be added following the early return are brand new - and therefore are sold at introductory pricing, and not at "last minute" prices that characterize limited availability. As a result, it is still possible to find individual tickets for a limited time window for the end of July at prices of about $1,200-1,300. In August, prices are already returning to higher levels (according to the pricing method in the industry).

The bottom line: The presence of American companies is critical to lowering ticket prices. The high prices of Israeli companies reflect the enormous demand, which outweighs supply.

‘This is why people don’t trust government’: Nikki Haley pushes for Epstein files

 https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/15/nikki-haley-epstein-files-00454270?utm_content=politico/magazine/Politics&utm_source=flipboard

Former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley is the latest Republican to pile onto the MAGA rebellion over the Trump administration’s handling of the files related to the criminal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.

“Release the Epstein files and let the chips fall where they may,” Haley wrote in a social media post Tuesday. “This is why people don’t trust government. You can never go wrong with being transparent. Redact victims’ names but release the rest.”

Arab bus driver injured in assault by group of young men in Jerusalem; 1 arrested

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/arab-bus-driver-injured-in-assault-by-group-of-teens-in-jerusalem/

Three young men assaulted and robbed an Arab bus driver overnight in Jerusalem’s Neve Yaakov neighborhood.

Ahmad Shehadeh, who works for the Extra bus company, was hospitalized with a broken nose after he was attacked at around 1 a.m. Tuesday morning. The assailants choked, punched and kicked the driver, then stole his phone after disembarking, the Bus Drivers Association said in a statement.

“I don’t get how we’ve reached this point where we [bus drivers] have to be everyone’s punching bag,” said the attacked driver in an official statement from the Bus Drivers Association. “When will they wake up? Only when one of us dies?”

Trump Tariffs Hit Consumer Prices

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/june-inflation-cpi-labor-department-prices-tariffs-donald-trump-economy-e09d0d7d?mod=hp_opin_pos_1

President Trump insists there is “no inflation” as he bludgeons the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. But denying inflation reality won’t make it go away. His tariffs are making it harder for the central bank to do what he wants, as last month’s rise in the consumer-price index shows.

The Labor Department’s consumer-price report Tuesday showed inflation ticked up in June to 0.3% or 2.7% in the last year. Real average hourly earnings fell 0.1% as inflation eroded wage gains. Real average weekly earnings fell 0.4% and 0.6% for production-level workers as hours of work declined, perhaps because of a slowing economy and labor market.

Trump Effect Starts to Show Up in Economy

 https://www.wsj.com/economy/trump-effect-starts-to-show-up-in-economy-45c83c7a?mod=hp_lead_pos1

New data reflect that president’s tariff and immigration policies are boosting inflation and weighing on jobs

A chaotic rollout of tariffs is starting to filter through to price tags on store shelves. An immigration crackdown is beginning to weigh on jobs growth, measured by federal surveys. Taken together, the impact of President Trump’s whirlwind six months back in office is showing up in the economy.

Syrian regime forces celebrate capture of Druze stronghold

 https://www.israelhayom.com/

Syrian regime troops have taken control of most of Suwayda, the capital of the Druze Mountain region, in a brutal assault marked by mass executions, humiliations, and house-to-house killings targeting the Druze minority.

Who are the Druze and why is Israel bombing Syria to protect them?

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/15/middleeast/israel-strikes-syria-sectarian-clashes-druze-intl 

Syria’s military entered a stronghold for the Druze community in the country’s south on Tuesday, the government said, reigniting fears of attacks against minorities and triggering renewed Israeli strikes on the forces dispatched by Damascus.

Clashes broke out over the weekend between Druze forces and Bedouin tribes in the southern city of Suwayda, leaving 30 people dead and injuring dozens more. The violence prompted an intervention by the Syrian government, which lost eighteen of its soldiers in the clashes.

Islamist forces allied with the Syrian government joined the fight this week, heightening concern among the Druze and prompting a key community figure to call for international protection.

Trump offers MAGA a third option on Epstein

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5400620-trump-epstein-files-release-scandal/

That was the world as we knew it on Friday: Either the Trump Justice Department was caught in a politically motivated lie or it was involved in an ongoing cover-up on behalf of Trump, or the “deep state” or to keep a blackmail scheme going or … anything, really. That’s the thing about cover-ups: If their existence is revealed, but allowed to stay in place, the imagination is the only limit to conjecture about what might be underneath. 

Then on Saturday, Trump introduced a third possibility: That there was a cover-up, but it was a virtuous cover-up, because what was being concealed was itself fake. 

He announced: “Why are we giving publicity to Files written by Obama, Crooked Hillary, [Former FBI Director James] Comey, [former CIA Director John] Brennan, and the Losers and Criminals of the Biden Administration. … They created the Epstein Files, just like they created the FAKE Hillary Clinton/Christopher Steele Dossier that they used on me, and now my so-called ‘friends’ are playing right into their hands.

Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republicans break with Trump on Epstein

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/07/15/mike-johnson-epstein-files-democrats-house-vote/

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) told right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson that he supported the release of the Epstein files days after Trump’s Justice Department said the matter was effectively closed. Johnson is a close Trump ally and has never broken so publicly with the president on an issue.

Earlier Tuesday, President Donald Trump said Bondi gave him “a very quick briefing” on the Epstein documents before baselessly blaming previous Democratic administrations for creating the files.