Why you should care about JD Vance's real agenda

Kamala Harris, Joe Biden React to Yahya Sinwar's Killing: 'Good Day'

 https://www.newsweek.com/yahya-sinwar-dead-hamas-leader-israel-biden-harris-1970852

Harris hailed Israel's killing of Sinwar and said that "Hamas is decimated and its leadership is eliminated" during a Thursday campaign speech at a Wisconsin college campus.

"Justice has been served," Harris said. "And the United States, Israel and the entire world are better off as a result. Sinwar was responsible for the killing of thousands of innocent people, including the victims of October 7 and hostages in Gaza. He had American blood on his hands."

She went on: "This moment gives us an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza. And it must end such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, freedom and self-determination."

Six days of Trump lies about the Hurricane Helene response

 https://edition.cnn.com/2024/10/06/politics/fact-check-trump-helene-response-north-carolina/index.html

While various misinformation about the response has spread widely without Trump’s involvement, the Republican presidential nominee has been one of the country’s leading deceivers on the subject. Over a span of six days, in public comments and social media posts, Trump has used his powerful megaphone to endorse or invent false or unsubstantiated claims.

IDF confirms: Yahya Sinwar eliminated

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/397749

The Hamas leader was eliminated after a tank fired at a building in Rafah which was thought to contain terrorists.

After that, infantry from the 450th Battalion raided and searched the building. During the searches, the forces found Sinwar's body.

In the building where he was eliminated, there were no signs of the presence of hostages in the area. On the terrorists' bodies, the forces found cash and false ID cards.

It was reported that the confrontation with Sinwar was by chance.

Alternative Medicine and Frum Community

 https://mishpacha.com/the-guru-will-see-you-now/

Stories of people trusting in quasi-medical “practitioners” are, unfortunately, not an anomaly in our frum circles. There’s a growing receptivity to alternative medical approaches — much of which has little to no scientific backing — and conventional doctors are noticing the shift.

Republicans grapple with storm misinformation from their own party

https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4935039-hurricane-misinformation-republicans/

 Republicans representing states hit by hurricanes Helene and Milton are grappling with the spread of storm misinformation, much of which has stemmed from prominent figures in their own party — including sitting lawmakers and former President Trump.

The false claims have run rampant on social media since the deadly pair of storms made their way through parts of the Southeast — most notably Florida and North Carolina — with Republicans floating inaccurate allegations about the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), disaster relief and the weather.

Zohar and Rambam

Contrary to what a certain reader of this blog claims - the issue of the Zohar its origin and relationship to Rambam is neither a new issue or one easily answered. Simply do a google search and you will see many discussions regarding all aspects and including the claim that Rambam knew the Zohar and ruled with it in a number of issues to the view he learned about it only at the end of his life and wanted to retract his works because of his new knowledge. Others claim Rambam was always a kabbalist and the Moreh Nevuchim is not philosophy but kabbala. No one has succeeded in satisfying everyone

For earlier sources than Rabbi Moshe de Leon (e.g. the Gaonim) who quote or rely on Zohar, see Rabbi David Luria's Kadmut Sefer HaZohar. In addition, see Dr. Chaim David Chavel's article Sefer HaZohar k'makor Chashuv l'Pirush HaRamban and Rabbi Reuven Margolis's article HaRambam v'HaZohar.

Death of Tzadik atones for Our Sins is a Jewish belief

page 640-641 in my sefger on parnossa and bitachon

Berachos (62b) 'And He said to the angel who was destroying the many people….' Said Rabbi Eleazar: 'G-d, Blessed is He, said to the angel, "Take for me the greatest man  among them, who is able to pay back their many debts.’ At that moment there died Abishai son of Zeruiah, who alone was equal to the majority of the Sanhedrin.

Kli Yakar (Bamidbar 20:02) ...and the importance of the atonement brought about by the death of righteous men is brought up in the midrashim in 4 places, 1, the juxtaposition of the death of the sons of Aaron to the Day of Atonement, 2, the juxtaposition of the death of Miriam to the red heifer. 3, the juxtaposition of Aaron's death to the sacrificial priestly garments, 4, the juxtaposition of Aaron's death to the breaking of the tablets. 

Moed Koton (28a) Wherefore is the account of Aaron's death closely followed by the account of the disposal of the priestly vestments? To inform you that just as the priest's vestments were means to effect atonement, so is the death of the righteous conducive to procuring atonement.

Moed Koton (28a) Wherefore is the account of Miriam's death placed next to the laws of the red heifer? To inform you that even as the red heifer afforded atonement by the ritual use of its ashes, so does the death of the tzadikim afford atonement [for the living they have left behind.

Shabbos (33b)  When there are tzadikim in the generation, the tzadikim are seized by death for the sins of the generation; when there are no tzadikim in a generation, school-children are seized for the generation. 

Torah Temima (Vayikra 16:1.1): The Yerushalmi (Yoma 1:1) states that just as Yom Kippur atones for the Jewish people so does the death of tzadikim. This gemora does not explain the significance or the reason why the death of tzadikim atones for the Jewish people. It appears that an answer can be found in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (Chapter 17) concerning the death of Shaul. In Shmuel (2 Chapter 21) it mentioned that the bones of Shaul were buried. This indicates that when G d saw how they cried and mourned for Shaul that this aroused the attribute of Mercy. We see then that it is not the death per se of the tzadik that brings about atonement but rather the honor and mourning for the tzadik, because the honor of the tzadik is in fact the honor of G d.

Vayikra Rabbah (20:12) For what reason was the section recording the death of Miriam placed in close proximity to that dealing with the ashes of the Red Heifer? Simply this, to teach that as the ashes of the Heifer effect atonement, so the death of the tzadikim effects atonement. R. Judan asked: For what reason was the death of Aaron recorded in close proximity to the breaking of the Tables? Simply this, to teach that Aaron's death was as grievous to G-d, as the breaking of the Tables. 

Vayikra Rabbah (20:12) The sons of Aaron died on the first of Nisan. Why then is their death mentioned in connection with the Day of Atonement? It must be to teach that as the Day of Atonement effects atonement, so the death of the tzadikim effects atonement. Whence do we know that the Day of Atonement effects atonement? From the fact that it says, For on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you. And whence that the death of the tzadikim effects atonement? From the fact that it is written, And they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son, and it is also written, After that God was entreated for the land.

The Mishnah Berurah’s Treatment of Kabbalistic Sources

 https://www.kolhamevaser.com/2017/11/the-mishnah-berurahs-treatment-of-kabbalistic-sources/

However, the exact appropriation of this methodology of the Mishnah Berurah is understood by modern halakhic experts in different ways. Many, such as the Sdei Chemed, think that the methodology the Mishna Berurah spells out applies not only to the Zohar, but also to practices found in the writings of the Arizal.[9][10] However, the more likely opinion is that of R. Moshe Feinstein, who maintains that Kabbalistic sources used in this fashion are only those from the Zohar. Since the Arizal is a 16th century figure, R. Feinstein argues that he does not have the status of a Tanna that the Zohar has, and simply represents another Acharon who has an opinion in a given case. [11] Thus, it is only because the Zohar is considered a Tannaic source, that the Mishna Berurah must acknowledge its views, and decide between those and other earlier opinions. Stemming from this argument, the Sdei Chemed views the Mishnah Berurah’s words of “divrei kabbalah” as referring to both the Zohar and the Arizal, while R. Feinstein interprets them as only referring to the Zohar.

Kabbala vs. Halacha

 https://theshc.org/kabbala-vs-halacha/#_ftn11

The Kenesset HaGedola’s Doctrine

Ribbi Hayim Benveniste in Kenesset HaGedola[11], cited by the Mishna Berura[12], issues a detailed guideline as to when we follow the opinion of the Mekubalim and when we follow the opinion of the Poskim:

Regarding any matter that there is a dispute between the Mekubalim and the Zohar and the Gemara and Poskim, we must follow the Gemara and the Poskim. If the Mekubalim assume a stricter position, we must be strict as well. If the matter is not mentioned in the Gemara and Poskim, even if it is mentioned in the [writings of] Kabbala, we cannot enforce the Kabbala’s position. If the Halacha is not contradicted in the Talmud or Poskim, we must follow the Kabbala. Similarly, if there is a dispute among the Poskim, the Kabbala will decide”

Trump's Selling a Nearly $1 Million 'MAGA Experience' Amid New York Rally

 https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-exclusive-fundraising-event-new-york-city-1968992

It seems Donald is poor so he spends all his time selling junk or begging for money!

Former President Donald Trump is set to host a high-priced RSVP-only fundraising event in New York City, offering MAGA (Make America Great Again) loyalists a chance to attend a "Special Evening" with him for up to $924,600 per person.

Good deeds with Bad Motivation

 Netziv (Devarim 32:5): It is known that the destruction of the First Temple was because of idolatry, sexual immorality and murder which angered G‑d. The destruction of the Second Temple was because of sinas chinom. We have explained in Bamidbar (35:34) that they were involved in the study of Torah and serving G‑d nevertheless most of the killing was done for the sake of G‑d. In other words they would label as a Sadducee (heretic) anyone who transgressed any of the commandments. They would then have them punished as a heretic and thus their conduct was very destructive – even though they thought they were motivated by concern for the honor of heaven. … Thus the problem of the Second Temple was that ostensibly good deeds were now mixed with bad motivation. Thus it was hard to separate the good from the bad since the bad was done for the sake of heaven.

On one of your posts someone asked where Rambam got his idea that moon is different

Avraham Broide

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sublunary_sphere

In Aristotelian physics and Greek astronomy, the sublunary sphere is the region of the geocentric cosmos below the Moon, consisting of the four classical elements: earth, water, air, and fire.^[1][2]

The sublunary sphere was the realm of changing nature. Beginning with the Moon, up to the limits of the universe, everything (to classical astronomy) was permanent, regular and unchanging—the region of aether where the planets and stars are located. Only in the sublunary sphere did the powers of physics hold sway.^[3]

Evolution of concept

[edit]

The seven heavens and the sublunar spheres, from an engraving of Albertus Magnus' Philosophia naturalis.

Plato and Aristotle helped to formulate the original theory of a sublunary sphere in antiquity,^[4] the idea usually going hand in hand with geocentrism and the concept of a spherical Earth.

Avicenna carried forward into the Middle Ages the Aristotelian idea of generation and corruption being limited to the sublunary sphere.^[5] Medieval scholastics like Thomas Aquinas, who charted the division between celestial and sublunary spheres in his work Summa Theologica, also drew on Cicero and Lucan for an awareness of the great frontier between Nature and Sky, sublunary and aetheric spheres.^[6] The result for medieval/Renaissance mentalities was a pervasive awareness of the existence, at the Moon, of what C. S. Lewis called 'this "great divide"...from aether to air, from 'heaven' to 'nature', from the realm of gods (or angels) to that of daemons, from the realm of necessity to that of contingence, from the incorruptible to the corruptible"

However, the theories of Copernicus began to challenge the sublunary/aether distinction. In their wake, Tycho Brahe's observations of a new star (nova) and of comets in the supposedly unchanging heavens further undermined the Aristotelian view.^[7] Thomas Kuhn saw scientists' new ability to see change in the 'incorruptible' heavens as a classic example of the new possibilities opened up by a paradigm shift.^[8]

US intervention points to growing concerns over Israel’s air defences

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/14/attacks-by-hezbollah-and-iran-showed-a-degree-of-israeli-vulnerability-what-now

Drones may fly more slowly than missiles, but the Iranian-designed carbon-fibre models used by Hezbollah are hard to see and difficult for radar to pick up, a task made more complicated because they are flown deliberately low. Manoeuvrable, this drone, said to be Sayyad 107, resisted GPS guidance jamming, possibly because it used Russian or Chinese alternatives.

Kids and teens who get covid more prone to diabetes, study finds

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2024/10/14/kids-teens-covid-diabetes/

Children were 50 percent more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes at the six-month mark if they had endured a coronavirus infection compared with children who had another respiratory infection, according to findings published in JAMA Network Open.

Hezbollah’s drones are a fierce and evasive threat to Israel

 https://thehill.com/homenews/ap/ap-international/ap-israel-faces-a-fierce-and-evasive-foe-in-hezbollahs-drones/?amp_js_v=0.1&amp_gsa=1&tbref=hp

Over the years, Israel has built up its aerial defense array to provide broad protection against short-range rocket fire and medium- and long-range missiles, although experts caution it is not airtight. While the system has taken down drones repeatedly, many have penetrated Israel’s airspace and sidestepped its defenses, in some cases with deadly results.

GOP Internal Poll Showing Donald Trump Struggling Leaves Pollsters Stunned

 https://www.newsweek.com/gop-internal-poll-showing-donald-trump-struggling-leaves-pollsters-stunned-1968589

Pollsters and analysts were left stunned after an internal polling memo circulated by the Senate Leadership Fund, a Republican super PAC, showed former President Donald Trump struggling in key battleground states.

The memo, dated October 8 and obtained by Politico, included polling where Trump trailed Vice President Kamala Harris by 3 points in Michigan and by 1 point in Pennsylvania. The candidates were tied in Nevada and Arizona, while Trump led in Wisconsin by 1 point.

Columbus probably Spanish and Jewish, study says

 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg2049ezpko

Famed explorer Christopher Columbus was likely Spanish and Jewish, according to a new genetic study conducted by Spanish scientists that aimed to shed light on a centuries-old mystery.

Scientists believe the explorer, whose expedition across the Atlantic in 1492 changed the course of world history, was probably born in western Europe, possibly in the city of Valencia.

They think he concealed his Jewish identity, or converted to Catholicism, to escape religious persecution.

Trump calls Aurora a ‘war zone.’ Even its Republican mayor disagrees

 https://www.politico.com/news/2024/10/11/trump-aurora-colorado-immigration-gangs-00183533

Aurora city spokesperson Ryan Luby told POLITICO in a statement that local police identified 10 members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, and nine had been arrested. The city’s Republican mayor, former five-term congressman Mike Coffman, has repeatedly tried to tamp down fears that his city has been taken over by migrant gangs.

“Former President Trump’s visit to Aurora is an opportunity to show him and the nation that Aurora is a considerably safe city – not a city overrun by Venezuelan gangs,” Coffman said in a statement.

Iranian plot exposed: Terror cell led by Ramat Gan couple foiled

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/397611

In the framework of the aforementioned relationship, Victorson, who was aware that the individual on the other side was an Iranian agent, followed the agent's instructions and carried out various tasks, including spraying graffiti, hanging flyers, hiding money, and even torching cars near Yarkon Park in Tel Aviv. Later, Vladislav was asked to sabotage communication networks and ATMs and to set fire to forests.

Arizal and Halacha

 Igros Moshe (OC 4:3) –While normally in a matter disputed by poskim we rely on the view of Kabbala but this means the views of the Zohar as it is the view of Tannaim but not the Arizal who in spite of his greatness  is viewed as only one of the poskim 

The Controversy over Rabbi Feinstein

 https://en.yhb.org.il/revivim1003/

In the previous column I brought the story of Rabbi Shlomo Riskin shlita about Rabbi Soloveitchik ztz”l, who responded to Rebbetzin Feinstein’s request to ask her husband Rabbi Moshe Feinstein to withdraw his heter (halachic permission) for artificial insemination, so that the zealots would stop harassing them. Rabbi Soloveitchik agreed, even though he told Rabbi Riskin that Rabbi Feinstein would not back down, because he was “courageous like a lion.” Following this I was asked, how is it possible that Rabbi Soloveitchik agreed to ask Rabbi Feinstein to retract a ruling that he believed was the truth according to the Torah?!

Head Covering for Women - needed for Beracha?

 https://ph.yhb.org.il/en/03-10-06/

Reciting berakhot is not considered to be standing before the King, so a woman in private, when the laws of tzni’ut do not require her to cover her hair, there is no need for her to cover her head while reciting a berakha. However, Yabi’a Omer 6:15 and Halikhot Bat Yisrael 5:3 state that married women must cover their heads when mentioning God’s name, even when in complete privacy. Still, in practice, many married women normally recite the bedtime Shema and Ha-mapil without a head covering. It seems that the reason for this is what I wrote above, that the obligation to wear a yarmulke when reciting berakhot is based on the pious custom to cover one’s head throughout the entire day. Since the yarmulke inspires fear of God all day, it follows that one must also wear it while invoking God’s name. However, women, who do not customarily wear a yarmulke to inspire fear of God, need not wear one when mentioning God’s name either. There is proof for this in m. Ĥalla 23: “A woman may sit and separate the ĥalla while nude.” Nude here obviously means bareheaded, for it would not make sense that she is required to cover her head but allowed to recite the berakha while nude. R. Shlomo Zalman Auerbach rules this way too, saying that women’s custom to cover their heads in the mikveh while making the berakha on immersion does not obligate them in this practice for all other berakhot (Halikhot Bat Yisrael 5 n. 6). Therefore, a woman who wakes up in the middle of the night to relieve herself is not obligated to cover her head while reciting Asher Yatzar. Likewise, a woman who walks around her house bareheaded (when there are no strangers around) and wants to drink something is allowed to recite She-hakol and Borei Nefashot without a head-covering. 

Biden sends antimissile system and 100 troops to Israel, deepening U.S. role

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/10/13/biden-thaad-missile-defense-israel/

The United States is sending one of its most advanced missile defense systems and about 100 U.S. troops to Israel, deepening U.S. involvement in the escalating war in the Middle East amid U.S. expectations of an imminent Israeli assault on Iran.

Netanyahu: UN must withdraw south Lebanon peacekeepers from combat zones

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-un-must-withdraw-south-lebanon-peacekeepers-from-combat-zones/

PM accuses Hezbollah of using UNIFIL as ‘human shields,’ urges Guterres to get take the forces ‘out of harm’s way,’ far from terror group’s strongholds

Genetic Study Reveals Christopher Columbus Was Possibly Jewish

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/genetic-study-reveals-christopher-columbus-was-possibly-jewish?ref=home

One day before Indigenous Peoples’ Day, a decades-long genetic study revealed that explorer Christopher Columbus may have Jewish and Spanish heritage. The report, which says the explorer was born in Valencia, contradicts long-held beliefs that Columbus was Italian and from Genoa. According to the BBC, scientists in Spain are responsible for cracking the genetic bombshell and have been working on it since 2003. They theorize that Columbus hid his Jewish “background to avoid religious persecution.” In 1492, 300,000 Jewish people living in Spain were forced to convert to Catholicism, or else they would be booted from the country. The outlet reports that prior to this DNA discovery, Columbus’s origins have been debated for years, with different theories linking his birth to countries like Poland, Greece, and Scandinavia, to name a few. Researchers used DNA from Columbus’ tomb in Seville, as well as the graves of his son and brother, to conduct their research.

Unprecedented Lebanese drone attack wounds 67 near Binyamina, four in critical condition

 https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-824417

Two drones were launched toward Israel, but one of the UAVs penetrated deep into Israel, crashing in the Binyamina area. No alarms were activated.

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein on What Makes America Great

 https://thelehrhaus.com/timely-thoughts/rabbi-moshe-feinstein-on-what-makes-america-great/

Therefore, the United States, which established in its Constitution 150 years ago that it will not uphold any faith or any ideology, rather, that each person shall do as he desires, and the regime will see that people do not molest one another, is carrying out God’s will. It is for that reason that they have succeeded and become great in our times.

Captured documents reveal Hamas’s broader ambition to wreak havoc on Israel

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/10/12/exclusive-hamas-documents-sinwar-planning-iran/

Dozens of pages found by Israeli troops in Gaza detail a potential Hamas plan far bigger than the Oct. 7, 2023, attack, and show how militant leaders wanted Iranian funds and training.

They Came to Florida for a Slice of Paradise. Now They Are Packing Their Bags

 https://www.wsj.com/us-news/they-came-to-florida-for-a-slice-of-paradise-now-they-are-packing-their-bags-41d7275a?mod=hp_lead_pos2

Some Floridians are reaching a breaking point. For decades, the state has beckoned as something of a magical destination—a sunny escape for retirees and others seeking affordable waterfront living. But the parade of climate disasters, along with soaring home costs, skyrocketing home-insurance premiums and some of the highest inflation rates in the nation, is undermining that appeal. On Friday night, close to two million people were still without power and the state was just beginning to dig out of a wide swath of damage.

We watched 20 Trump rallies. His racist, anti-immigrant messaging is getting darker.

 https://www.politico.com/news/2024/10/12/trump-racist-rhetoric-immigrants-00183537

His rhetoric has veered more than ever into conspiracy theories and rumors, like when he amplified false claims about Haitian immigrants in Ohio eating pets. And Trump has demonized minority groups and used increasingly dark, graphic imagery to talk about migrants in every one of his speeches since the Sept. 10 presidential debate, according to a POLITICO review of more than 20 campaign events. It’s a stark escalation over the last month of what some experts in political rhetoric, fascism, and immigration say is a strong echo of authoritarians and Nazi ideology.

Trump Campaign Responds to Mark Milley Reportedly Calling Him 'Fascist'

 https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-campaign-responds-mark-milley-calling-him-fascist-1968056

"He is the most dangerous person ever. I had suspicions when I talked to you about his mental decline and so forth, but now I realize he's a total fascist. He is now the most dangerous person to this country," Milley, who was nominated by Trump to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2018 and served in the role from 2019 to 2023, reportedly told Woodward.

When It is Medically Required to Eat on Yom Kippur

 https://vinnews.com/2022/10/03/when-it-is-medically-required-to-eat-on-yom-kippur/

FOODS

Ideally, one should try to space them every nine minutes.

The view of Rav Chaim Na-eh for food is 8 minutes (See Shiurei Torah 3:15).

Rav Moshe Feinstein zt”l writes (Igros Moshe OC IV #41) that b’dieved – in a case of need, they should have a gap of 4 minutes between them.

LIQUIDS

In regard to liquids one should shoot for a nine minute gap, but if not – a four minute gap.

If this is not possible, then, for liquids, one should try to fulfill the view of the Chasam Sofer (Responsa Volume VI #23) of a gap of at least two minutes.

The timing is based on the concept of the eating of a Pras – four eggs. The Mishna Brurah writes 618:20 that the shiur for this is nine minutes. These are the main views