White House Tries to Build Coalition on Iran to Address Energy Crisis

https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/white-house-tries-to-build-coalition-on-iran-to-address-energy-crisis-803e2f32

The Trump administration is asking other countries to help escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, but a deal isn’t set

 President Trump and top aides spent the weekend framing their Iran operation as a resounding military success while imploring other countries to join their effort to resolve a worsening energy crisis related to the Strait of Hormuz.

The Trump administration as soon as this week plans to announce that multiple countries have agreed to form a coalition that will escort ships through the waterway, which runs along the Iranian coast, U.S. officials said. The U.S. and potential coalition countries are still discussing whether those operations would begin before or after the war ends.

Allies hold back on Hormuz mission as Trump urges coalition amid Iran war turmoil - Trump fails to get help

 https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-890072

Japan and Australia said on Monday they were not planning to send navy vessels to the Middle East to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, after US President Donald Trump called on allies to create a coalition to reopen the vital waterway.

Trump said his administration has already contacted seven countries, but did not identify the countries. In a weekend social media post, he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate.

Despite repeated claims from US authorities to have destroyed Iran's military capabilities, drone attacks continued to threaten Gulf states on Monday

Trump says he’s not ready to declare victory in Iran

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5785853-donald-trump-not-ready-declare-victory-iran/

President Trump  said late Sunday that he is not ready to declare victory against Iran despite saying the U.S. has decimated the country militarily and economically. 

“No, I’m not going to do that. There’s no reason to,” Trump told The Hill while speaking with reporters on Air Force One. 

 “I just say they’re decimated. I think that we’ve done damage to them,” he said. 

“If we left right now, it would take them 10 years and more to rebuild but I’m still not declaring it,” he added. 

Sinning for Good

 Avoda Zara (04b) The Israelites made the golden calf only in order to place a good argument in the mouth of the penitents, as it is said, O that they had such a heart as this alway, to fear Me and keep all My commandments etc.This last statement accords with what R. Johanan said in the name of R. Simeon b. Yohai: David was not the kind of man to do that act, nor was Israel the kind of people to do that act. David was not the kind of man to do that act, as it is written, My heart is slain within me; nor were the Israelites the kind of people to commit that act, for it is said, O that they had such a heart as this alway etc. Why, then, did they act thus? God predestined it so in order to teach thee that if an individual hath sinned and hesitates about the effect of repentance he could be referred to the individual David, and if a community commit a sin they should be told: Go to the community.

Bribing Satan

 Sifra (Shemini Introduction) "And he said to Aaron: Take for yourself a bull-calf for a sin-offering": We are hereby taught that Moses said to Aaron: Aaron, my brother, even though G-d has consented to forgive your sins in the episode of the golden calf, you must "place something in Satan's mouth." Send your gift before you before entering the sanctuary lest he condemn you upon your entering the sanctuary. And lest you say: Is it only I who need atonement? Israel, too, needs atonement, "And to the children of Israel shall you speak, saying: Take a kid of goats for a sin-offering, and a calf, etc." And why was it Israel's lot to bring more than Aaron? He said to them: You are culpable in the beginning and culpable in the end. In the beginning at the sale of Yosef  "And they slaughtered a kid of goats, etc."; in the end "They have made for themselves a molten calf." Let a kid of goats come and atone for the "act" of goats, let a calf come and atone for the "act" of the calf. 

Kodshim was prohibited because of Golden Calf

 Mechilta (Yisro  Bachodesh 2) From "a kingdom of Cohanim" it is derived that all of Israel were fit to eat of the offerings — until they made the golden calf. Once they made the golden calf, the status of Cohanim was taken from them and given to the official Cohanim, as it is written  "A scattered sheep is Israel, harried by lions … first it was devoured by Nevuchadnezzar, king of Bavel, etc." It (Israel) is compared to a sheep. Just as a sheep, when one of its lambs is smitten, all of its lambs feel it, so, Israel, if one of them is smitten, all of them feel it. As opposed to the nations of the world. If one of them is killed, all of them rejoice in his downfall.

America Is Getting Sicker, Not Healthier, Under Trump and RFK Jr.

 https://www.newsweek.com/america-is-getting-sicker-not-healthier-under-trump-and-rfk-jr-opinion-11675454

Americans entered 2026 facing a terrifying reality: we are more at risk for illness today than we were a year ago. Why? Not because diseases have become more contagious or dangerous in one year. Rather, it's because President Donald Trump and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., are systematically dismantling the public health infrastructure that helps keep Americans safe. 

The evidence is stunning. In 2025, measles crossed 2,200 cases nationwide—the highest number in 34 years. Cases continue to rise, with over 1,280 cases so far in 2026. The United States is even at risk of losing the measles elimination status we earned in 2000. Seasonal flu also continues to rise across nearly half of our states, causing an estimated 340,000 hospitalizations and over 21,000 deaths so far this season as of the first week of March. In Massachusetts alone, flu has already killed over 300 people this season, including eight children.

Amid these dangerous outbreaks, President Trump and Secretary Kennedy are relentless in their anti-science crusade. Last September, we held a press conference the day after Secretary Kennedy promoted his anti-vaccine views, which reject decades of science supporting the safety and efficacy of vaccines, in front of the Senate Finance Committee. In January, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced sweeping, unvetted and unprecedented changes to children’s vaccine recommendations, eliminating six vaccines from the list routinely recommended for all children.

Pete Hegseth's dumbfounding comment about the Strait of Hormuz

Pete Hegseth attacks media for not being positive enough about US attacks on Iran

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/13/pete-hegseth-iran-was-us-press

Despite assertions of near-total battlefield dominance, the Pentagon has acknowledged that the strait of Hormuz – a key shipping route for Gulf oil, not least Iran’s own – remains partly closed to commercial shipping, and that it has yet to begin naval escort operations.

Addressing the issue of the strait, Hegseth disparaged reporting that the US had not been prepared for Iran’s effective closure of shipping route. “The only thing prohibiting transit in [Hormuz] right now is Iran shooting at shipping,” Hegseth said. “It is open for transit should Iran not do that.”

Pete Hegseth BIZARRE Strait of Hormuz quote SPARKS OUTRAGE - genius military leader

Measles patient identified at major synagogue in Bnei Brak

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/423994

The Health Ministry issued a public warning after a person carrying the measles virus attended the central synagogue in the Shikun Heh neighborhood on Zevulun Hammer Street in Bnei Brak.

According to the ministry, the individual was present at the synagogue during his infectious period, raising concerns that worshippers and others who were present at the location may have been exposed to the highly contagious disease.

Health officials urged anyone who was at the synagogue at the relevant time to monitor for symptoms and verify their vaccination status. Individuals who develop symptoms such as fever, cough, runny nose, or rash were advised to contact medical services and avoid public places to prevent further spread.

Young men shouldn’t wait to think about heart health, study suggests

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2026/03/15/age-heart-attack-risk-increases/

Most people don’t spend their 20s, 30s or even 40s worrying about heart disease. You might think it’s something you can safely ignore until midlife and beyond. But new research suggests that for many men, the risk of heart disease may begin rising sooner than they — or even their doctors — realize.

A decades-long study led by Northwestern Medicine researchers, published this year in the Journal of the American Heart Association, revealed that men start developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) years earlier than women, with cardiac risk differences beginning as early as their mid-30s.

“Our findings show that differences in cardiovascular disease risk between men and women emerge by age 35,” Freedman said, suggesting that young adulthood is a critical time to start taking cardiovascular risk seriously — and implementing prevention strategies into your life.

If Trump has already won the Iran war, why does he need foreign ships to help him end it?

 https://edition.cnn.com/2026/03/16/politics/trump-iran-war-israel-strikes-strait-of-hormuz-analysis

A week ago, President Donald Trump told Britain not to bother sending ships to the Middle East because he’d already won the Iran war.

Now, he’s calling on America’s “special relationship” ally; fellow NATO states; and even China to dispatch vessels to open the Strait of Hormuz. He implied that if help didn’t arrive, Europe’s US defense umbrella and his planned summit this month with Chinese leader Xi Jinping could be at risk.

Trump’s salvo, in an interview with the Financial Times, was a fresh sign that despite his multiple Iran victory laps, the war is far from over.

US intelligence says Iranian regime not at risk of collapse

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/423793

US intelligence assessments indicate that Iran’s leadership remains largely intact and is not at risk of collapse following nearly two weeks of sustained US and Israeli bombardment, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing three sources familiar with the findings.

One of the sources said a “multitude" of intelligence reports provide “consistent analysis that the regime is not in danger" of collapse and “retains control of the Iranian public." The sources spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss classified intelligence assessments.

The most recent report was completed within the last few days, the source said.