Death: Halachic definition

Igros Moshe (YD III #132) The definition of when a person is dead is stated explicitly in the gemora (Yoma 85a) in the case where a person is buried under a pile of rubble. It says he can be dug out even on Shabbos and then his nostrils are examined to determine if he is still breathing. Rambam and Shulchan Aruch rule that  if breathing is not detected he is considered dead. Thus we determine death by the absence of breathing. Even if the breathing is very slight he is considered alive. This can readily be determined with the aid of a feather placed near the nostrils. If the feather or a small piece of paper doesn’t move at all, he is presumed dead. Nevertheless he should be examined a number of times as I have explained previously to ensure he hasn’t just fainted because it is impossible to live without breathing. This test is valid only if the person is under constant watching. However since this is not realistic and it is possible he regained his strength a bit and was able to briefly get a few weak breathes it is impossible to properly determine death except by repeated testing. If these tests reveal there is no breathing at all than that is a sign the person is dead. This is more fully discussed by the Chasam Sofer. This is also relevant with the typical sick person who is close to dying, but is not dependent on a respirator. However there are many sick people who can not breathe without a respirator. Thus it is possible with a respirator to continue breathing even after death and these people are not considered alive.  If it is not clear that he is alive from other indicators e.,g. he doesn’t respond even if stabbed with a needle such as being in a state known as a coma. Then as long as the respirator is working it is prohibited to remove it from his mouth because he might be alive and by the removal he is being killed. However when the respirator stops working for example when the oxygen tanks are depleted, it is not required to put him back on the respirator when it starts working for a period of 15 minutes. If he is no longer alive as seen by the absence of breathing then it means he has died. IKn contrast if he is living as can be seen from the fact that he is breathing even without the respirator even if it is with difficulty and interruptions then he should be returned to the respirator immediately. This should be done a number of times until his condition improves or it is apparent that he can’t breathe on his own  and is dead.

You say that now there is a test that allows the great doctors to determine by the injection of a special fluid into the veins that can show whether the connection of the body to the brain has been stopped If this fluid does not go to the brain it is clear that the brain is no longer attached to the body and it also indicates the brain  is already completely rotted and the patient is considered functionally decapitated. If this is true then we should be strict with those, especially if they don’t feel anything anymore  and don’t respond if stuck with a needle  and they no longer can breathe independently .to not declare them dead without doing this test.  . That means if we see that the brain is still connected to the body even though they can’t  breathe without a respirator to keep them on the respirator even for a long time. Thus we should say that the test of independent breathing should be done in conjunction with this test to determine death. This might be relevant also for those who have taken an overdose of sleeping pills or other medication. Until all the medication gets out of the body they can not breathe. In such cases the respirator needs to be connected for longer periods in order to clarify if they are dead since death can not be determined readily as long as the drugs remain in the body. 

MAGA Makes Racist Attacks Against JD Vance's Wife

 https://www.newsweek.com/jd-vance-wife-attacks-maga-trump-running-mate-1926194

In the wake of Trump's vice presidential announcement on Monday, numerous conservative and far-right figures have taken to social media to launch racist attacks against Usha Vance because of her Indian heritage and the assumption that her influence on her husband's political career means the Republican Party will be softer on immigration.

Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist who visited Trump at his Mar-a-Lago home along with rapper Kanye West in November 2022, suggested that Vance would not be a "defender of white identity" because of his wife's Indian heritage.

"Who is this guy, really?" Fuentes said on his podcast. "Do we really expect that the guy who has an Indian wife and named their kid Vivek is going to support white identity?"

Death: Hospital declares death not according to halacha and orders doctor to stop treatment what does doctor do?

Igros Moshe  (YD IV #54.2) Question If hospital or government declare a patient dead though according to halacha he is still living and demands that the doctors stop treatment and take him off the respirator, should the doctor refuse to comply and not tell the nurses? Answer  In reality telling the nurses to disconnect the respirator which involves them sinning, is not prohibited because of lifnei Iveir since there are other doctors (non Jews and irreligious Jews) who will tell them to disconnect the respirator. Nevertheless it is best if the religious doctors should no longer be involved in this patients treatment. .However if it is a case that it is a Jewish patient then he has an obligation to do everything in his power to save the patient even if it is only for a few days as the patient is now considered a gosais even though he is not actually dead. This means even if it costs the religious doctor a lot of money to pay to have the treatment continued according to what I wrote (YD I #223; YD II #174.4)  If following this causes aivah (hatred) because he only seems concerned with Jew, then he is obligated to try and save non Jews also. 

US stocks and dollar plunge as Trump attacks Fed chair Powell

 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce92y3j9v34o

US stocks and the dollar plunged again as President Donald Trump intensified his attacks on the US central bank boss calling him "a major loser" for not lowering interest rates.

In a social media post, Trump called on Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell to cut interest rates "pre-emptively" to help boost the economy, saying Powell had been consistently too slow to respond to economic developments.

"There can be a SLOWING of the economy unless Mr. Too Late, a major loser, lowers interest rates, NOW," he wrote.

Trump's criticism of Powell's handling of the US economy comes as his own plans for tariffs have driven a stock market sell-off and raised fears of economic recession.

The Hegseth Pentagon Chronicles

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/pete-hegseth-pentagon-leaks-dismissals-signal-chat-b296e38e?mod=hp_opin_pos_5#cxrecs_s

The Defense secretary is validating the concerns of his critics.

No doubt the Beltway press would love to knock Pete Hegseth out as Defense secretary, but that doesn’t come close to explaining the mess at the Pentagon. The staff infighting, dismissals, and leaks over Signal app chats look to be the self-inflicted mistakes of a management neophyte.

Three advisers were dismissed last week and hit social media to claim ill-treatment. Another departed adviser published an account of what he called “a month of total chaos at the Pentagon” in Politico. According to multiple media accounts, Mr. Hegseth ran a chat on the Signal messaging app that discussed a military strike and included his wife and other associates.

Dow Headed for Worst April Since 1932 as Investors Send ‘No Confidence’ Signal

 https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/dow-jones-stocks-worst-april-1932-74fe82ac?mod=hp_lead_pos1

Few think administration’s negotiations with trade partners will yield results soon enough to ease the strain

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed almost 1,000 points on Monday and is headed for its worst April performance since 1932, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The S&P 500’s performance since Inauguration Day is now the worst for any president up to this point in data going back to 1928, according to Bespoke Investment Group.

Trump Administration Sued by Harvard in Federal Court Over Frozen Funds

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-administration-sued-harvard-federal-court-over-frozen-funds-2062300 

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump's administration sent a letter to Harvard outlining its demands, which included increased disciplinary actions against campus protesters, screening international students for "hostility to American values," and requiring audits to assess ideological diversity among faculty and students. The letter also called for broad leadership changes and the derecognition of some student clubs. Harvard President Alan Garber pushed back strongly, declaring that the university would not "bend to the government's demands."

In its 51-page complaint, filed in U.S. district court in Boston, Harvard accuses the Trump administration of retaliatory overreach, stating, "The Government has not — and cannot — identify any rational connection between antisemitism concerns and the medical, scientific, technological, and other research it has frozen that aims to save American lives, foster American success, preserve American security, and maintain America's position as a global leader in innovation."

Cremation

Igros Moshe (YD III #147.2)  Question Is it permitted to bury the ashes of someone cremated in a Jewish cemeyery?Answer A person who was cremated either because of the evil request of the children  or his own sinfulness it is not allowed that the ashes are to be buried in a Jewish cemetary and in fact the ashes of a corpse do not need to be buried 

Igros Moshe (YD IV #56.1) Question A  Jewish man died and was buried in Russia in a cemetary which is for all Russians including non Jews since the Soviets do not allow a cemetary exclusively for Jews.Later the family was allowed to leave Russia to go to America and the family doesn’t want to leave him buried in the public cemetary with non Jews but the Russians don’t want him to be taken from the cemetary. Therefore the family disinterred the body and cremated it and took the ashes to America with them. And they want to bury the ashes in a Jewish cemetary.  Should the ashes of a cremated corpse be buried even though this is not required by the children to show respect for their father. Answer The ashes from cremation do not require burial. However if they want to bury the ashes to honor his memory, they should not be stopped and it even might be good to do.especially for their father even though the halacha does not require it since the world considers this the respectful thing to do. And there is no actual prohibition. From the aspect of those buried in the Jewish cemetary there is no problem to bury the ashes even if the cremated person was wicked, so that even if he were not cremated he would not be buried next to a pious person. That is because the ashes are not the same as a corpse. However the relatives of those buried in the cemetary can  try and prevent the burial by claiming that this might give the rest of the Russian’s family the right to be to be buried there and that in general Russians are not pious Jews. If that happens the family of the Russian should give a document saying they are not assuming the right to be buried there by the burial of the ashes. 

Igros Moshe (YD IV #56.3) Question: Does the family need to ask forgiveness from the deceased for disinterring the body and cremating it? Answer  It seems that that according to halacha the family has done something improper enen though that was the only way to take him from the public cemetary. and to take the deceased to America . However while what they did was prohibited they only did it out of respect for the deceased and there were no rabbinic authority to ask.  Since most people would consider that they acted to show respect to the deceased and what they did was they mistakenly viewed as a mitzva and this is considered more lenient than a sin done by mistake. It would seem that the children do not need to ask for forgiveness while if non children were involved they do need to ask forgiveness.  

Clothing – Modern permitted?

Igros Moshe (YD I #81) Question Concerning  modern clothing in which there is no difference in America between Jewish and non Jewish clothing. Does a person coming from Poland which has distinctive Jewish clothing and his children born in America have an obligation to wear the clothing that was worn in Poland because of the prohibition of wearing non Jewish clothing? What if the father already has changed to modern clothing even though that was prohibited? The universal practice is to wear modern clothing, even very pious individuals. Is this permitted?Answer The Maharik says that there is not any obligation to wear different clothing than non Jews unless their clothing is immodest or arrogant.  Similarly it is prohibited if the modern clothing is worn soley in order to appear more like non Jews or there is a concern for idolatry. .  This is also the view of the Remah. The Maharik indicates it is permitted even for the slightest benefit or honor That is why doctors typically wear a special garment and it is not consider prohibited as a non Jewish garmemt since there is a benefit. In conclusion there is not the slightest prohibition wearing normal contemporary clothing in America. . Furthermore who says that the Non Jews wore these garments originally and only later were they worn by Jews? Perhaps initially everyonre wore them and thus even the Gra would permit them and it would be permitted also for those that came from Poland as they would not be considered non Jewish clothing

What’s the Truth About . . . the Jews in Egypt Keeping Their Jewish Names, Language and Dress?

 https://jewishaction.com/religion/jewish-law/whats-the-truth-about-the-jewish-in-egypt-keeping-their-jewish-names-language-and-dress/

Misconception: The Midrash states that after centuries of servitude, G-d redeemed the Jews from Egypt in the merit of the rigorous preservation of their own names, language and mode of dress.

Fact: While these three factors certainly would have contributed to the Jews maintaining an independent identity, and some of them are mentioned in various midrashim, there is no known classical midrash that presents a list of exclusively these three points of merit.

Mishnayos for girls?

Igros Moshe (YD III #87) Question Can girls be taught Mishnayos?Answer It is stated in the gemora and the Rambam cleaerly rules that women are not to be taught the Orah Torah which includes the Mishna and that this is like teaching them tiflos. Consequently the schools should not be teaching girls mishnayos. Only Avos since it is primarily ethical issues and proper behavior can be taught to them. 

Former Pentagon official warns department’s dysfunction could topple Hegseth

 https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/20/ullyot-pentagon-hegseth-chaos-00300695

“The last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon,” John Ullyot, the former top Defense Department spokesperson, wrote in a POLITICO Magazine opinion piece.

The Pentagon is in “total chaos” and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is unlikely to remain in his role, according to its former top spokesperson, who painted a scene of dysfunction, backstabbing and continuous missteps at the highest levels of the department.

“The building is in disarray under Hegseth’s leadership,” John Ullyot wrote Sunday in a POLITICO Magazine opinion piece. “The dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president — who deserves better from his senior leadership.”

Health Ministry warns that individual in Tel Aviv has been diagnosed with measles

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/health-ministry-warns-that-individual-in-tel-aviv-has-been-diagnosed-with-measles/

The Health Ministry warns that a person has been diagnosed with the measles in Tel Aviv.

The person in question arrived on an El Al flight Friday morning from London, took the train to the Tel Aviv University stop and spent time on Saturday at an escape room and a restaurant in Herzliya, the ministry says.

The ministry warns anyone who may have come in contact with the individual to ensure that they are fully vaccinated for measles.

Torah lesson at mixed meeting- Women can stay?

Igros Moshe (YD II:109) Question  An secular organization  has a mixed meeting of men and women. A rule they made was that every meeting someone needs to give a Torah lesson. Can the women remain for the lesson Answer  The rule is a good idea. As to whether the women can remain for the Torah lesson, it is not worse than the secular topics they talk about at the meeting. While it seems accepted in America to have mixed meetings and I don’t know the reason for the leniency. Nevertheless there is no reason why the woman should leave during the Torah lesson since they also need to know Torah. However if Mincha is prayed at the meeting  than the woman need to leave the room