Sunday, December 19, 2021
Jim Jordan, Once Tapped to Serve on 1/6 Committee, Now Identified in Mark Meadows Text
Representative Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who was once tapped as a possibility to serve on the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack, was one of the Congress members who texted former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows the day before the insurrection, it was revealed on Wednesday.
Originally attributed by the January 6 committee only to an unnamed "lawmaker," Jordan's office confirmed in a statement that he had sent at least one text to Meadows, the former top aide to ex-President Donald Trump who was charged with obstruction of Congress on Tuesday.
The text was not an original composition by Jordan, according to the statement, but was a forwarded message containing a legal argument from former Pentagon Inspector General Joseph Schmitz.
DeSantis shares stage with activist who posted QAnon-related conspiracy theories on social media
A Miami activist Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office handpicked to amplify his criticism of critical race theory has espoused views aligned with QAnon conspiracy theories and appears to support those who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
Eulalia Maria Jimenez, the chair of the Miami chapter of Moms for Liberty, stood with DeSantis earlier this week as he touted legislation to combat critical race theory. During the press conference, Jimenez described last year’s demonstrations after George Floyd’s killing as “race wars” and railed against critical race theory teachings.
But on Instagram, Jimenez echoed QAnon conspiracy theories by writing about “children being smuggled through underground tunnels for the enjoyment of demons” and posting a picture from the Jan. 6 riots with a caption that said “the storm is upon us. Trust the process.” She also called Covid vaccines “poison.”
Israeli forces arrest Palestinian terrorists behind Homesh attack
The IDF, Border Police and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) arrested the two Palestinian terrorists behind Thursday's shooting attack in Homesh early Sunday morning, just two days after they killed 25-year-old Yehuda Dimentman and injured two other yeshiva students.
Saturday, December 18, 2021
DeSantis, Social Media Posts Mislead on COVID-19’s Toll in Florida
According to data compiled by the New York Times, Florida — the third largest state — has the third most COVID-19 deaths and cases in the nation, with more than 3.6 million cases and more than 59,000 deaths since February 2020. When adjusted for population, Florida’s COVID-19 death rate also ranks 10th among the 50 states, with 278 deaths per 100,000 people.
The steady decline in cases has led to sunny social media posts proclaiming Florida has the “lowest Covid rates in the country without having to institute communist mandates & lockdowns.”
Florida’s recent rise and decline of cases fit a pattern that health experts have seen with other variants, where cases peak and decline over a two-month cycle.
“There’s this weird two-month thing that goes on. We all picked it up,” Michael Sweat, a professor at the Medical University of South Carolina and a leader of its COVID-19 tracking team, said in a university blog post. “I mean, it’s like every time when you get a wave, it goes up, peaks and declines in about two months.”
21,000 deaths later, do-nothing DeSantis takes a COVID victory lap | Editorial
Florida’s summer of suffering was also a summer of silence for Ron DeSantis.
The governor had nearly nothing to say about his state’s lengthy run as No. 1 in the nation in COVID cases, No. 1 in hospitalizations and No. 1 in deaths.
Instead, the governor held almost daily news conferences intended to burnish his presidential bona fides among the MAGA crowd, and boost his presidential ambitions.
Through it all, the governor pointedly ignored the elephant in the room: That Florida — his state, his responsibility — was the epicenter for a deadly new COVID outbreak caused by the delta variant.
Florida led the nation in case rates for much of the summer, and our governor was silent. Well, not totally silent. He did rail against mask and vaccine mandates, measures intended to prevent people from falling ill.
As others have already noted, it’s like a firefighter tossing a bucket of water on a house that’s already been burned to the ground and then declaring victory.
What a fraud. What a phony.
It’s so transparent, but far too many gullible Floridians and complicit politicians are going to buy and echo DeSantis’ savior rubbish. Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez already has.
COVID-19 Data Misrepresented by Florida Governor
https://climate.law.columbia.edu/content/covid-19-data-misrepresented-florida-governor
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported that the Florida Department of Health had commenced an inquiry into the state’s reporting of COVID-19 deaths, after Governor Ron DeSantis suggested that the official reports overstate the number of deaths. According to the report, Governor DeSantis and members of his staff repeatedly questioned the accuracy of the COVID-19 death rates, with his press secretary Fred Piccolo Jr. tweeting: "we can tell you definitively that Florida is counting deaths that were not directly caused by COVID-19.” Mr. Piccolo has also sought to downplay the COVID-19 pandemic in other ways. On one occasion, he erroneously tweeted: “we had one COVID death in Florida yesterday . . yes you read that right. One.” In fact, on the day in question, there were 47 deaths.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and other independent public health experts suggest that Florida’s total death toll from the pandemic is actually understated. Experts noted that Governor DeSantis’ administration has used a COVID-19 infection rate that gives “more weight to negative test” results, and thus skews the results. Governor DeSantis has used the skewed rate to justify reopening schools and businesses. In response to criticism, Mr. Piccolo denied that Governor was attempting to question the official death toll, stating “[n]o one in the administration is trying to cast doubt on the number of COVID deaths, we are trying to get to the facts.”
Florida Sees COVID Cases Triple as 27 Percent of Those Eligible Have Booster Shot
Florida is experiencing a spike in COVID-19 cases ahead of the holidays.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that the number of daily new cases the state is reporting has tripled over the last week or so.
The CDC reported that Florida saw 6,846 new cases on Wednesday, December 15. On December 7, the state reported just over 1,900 new cases, and over the last few days new case numbers had generally hovered between two and three thousand.
Donald Trump’s Megaphone
https://gfile.thedispatch.com/p/donald-trumps-megaphone
During the Trump years a lot of people found safe harbor in changing the subject or playing tu quoque games. It only makes sense. If you can’t defend something indefensible, bring up something the other side did that’s not defensible either and talk about that. To any inconvenient charge or fact about Trump, his defenders would respond, “What about …?” the Democrats, Antifa, Hillary, the New York Times, Barack Obama, Hunter Biden, the designated hitter rule, whatever.
There are three chief advantages to such rhetorical tactics. First, we live in an idiotic age where people believe that the alleged hypocrisy of a critic nullifies the merit of criticism. A parent who smokes is a hypocrite for telling his kid not to smoke—but that doesn’t mean the kid should therefore smoke.
Second, it’s what the audience wants to hear. And no “principle” explains cable news opinion shows more than “the customer is always right.” The Fox audience craved permission to be saved from its own cognitive dissonance and whataboutism as an exit ramp from having to confront the actual facts.
Finally, it lets you avoid explicitly lying. You just don’t answer the question that matters by pointing out the flaws of the other team.
The problem, at least for me, is that if you follow this approach too long you’ll eventually become complicit in a larger deceit. And that’s where the lie by omission comes in.
Anti-5G necklaces found to be radioactive
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-59703523
The Dutch authority for nuclear safety and radiation protection (ANVS) issued a warning about ten products it found gave off harmful ionising radiation.
It urged people not to use the products, which could cause harm with long-term wear.
There is no evidence that 5G networks are harmful to health.
The World Health Organization says 5G mobile networks are safe, and not fundamentally different from existing 3G and 4G signals.
Mobile networks use non-ionising radio waves that do not damage DNA.
Jewish groups pan Trump antisemitic tropes after remarks on Israeli, Jewish control
Jewish organizations slammed former United States president Donald Trump’s remarks published Thursday, in which he said American Jews don’t love Israel and charged that Israel used to have “absolute power over Congress.”
“Insinuating that Israel or the Jews control Congress or the media is antisemitic, plain and simple,” Jonathan Greenblatt, the chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, wrote on Twitter Friday.
Trump’s comments from an interview in July with Israeli journalist Barak Ravid, were broadcast Thursday on the Unholy Podcast, hosted by Yonit Levi of Israel’s Channel 12 news and Jonathan Freedland of The Guardian.
Compared to Polio and Smallpox, America's COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign Is Going Great
https://time.com/6126442/covid-vaccine-hesitancy-polio-smallpox/
These examples suggest that sometimes, dramatically reducing the incidence of a disease requires only adequate, not absolute, compliance with a public-health regimen. In addition, the more insistently a vaccination campaign is pursued, the more doubt it raises in the minds of the hesitant about its true aims. This is especially so where authorities seem otherwise unconcerned about the public’s well-being: where basic medical care is inaccessible and living or working conditions foster ill health.
Shiva for Rabbi Yehoram Max
https://www.misaskim.org/aveilim
860 East 16th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11230, USA
To'aiva BGTLQ "marriage" bill alert
Please urge your State Senator & BOTH assemblymen to actively vote NO, against redefinition of Marriage A5367/ S3416*
{* NOT 342«6}
Especially important are:
Sen.Singer,Asm Thomson,&Kean/ LW:
7329875669
Even though NJ Courts recognize To'aiva marriage, the Legislature must not; it would lead to MANY more such antireligious edicts.
It's critical - by tomorrow, Friday Dec. 17th - to urge your state Senator and BOTH of your state Assemblymen to actively vote NO on the Marriage De-definition bill (S3416/ A5367) scheduled for a full floor vote in BOTH houses on this coming Monday Dec. 20th.
NJ Legislative Contact Info for Senate & Assembly:
v: 609-847-3905 or (800) 792-8630
email: LegInfo@NJLeg.org
w: www.NJLeg.state.nj.us Silence of our legislators threatens to allow our irreconcilable opposition to To'aiva "marriage" (e.g. see Chullin 92b, Maharal) to be "cancelled" from even being considered a "shitah" fit for public discourse. We and our institutions would eventually be targeted and ostracized, R"L.
Please follow the guidance of our Gedolim and make a Kiddush HaShem - call TODAY.
Fox News Deletes Soros ‘Puppet Master’ Cartoon After ADL Calls Out Antisemitism
After the Anti-Defamation League called out Fox News on Wednesday, the cable giant deleted its social-media posts portraying Jewish philanthropist George Soros as a “puppet master”—a common antisemitic trope.
Posted to both the network’s Instagram and Facebook pages this week, the cartoon by conservative illustrator A.F. Branco features the liberal billionaire Soros—who has long been a right-wing catch-all bogeyman—controlling local prosecutors and attorneys general.
Just last month, ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt denounced Fox Nation host Lara Logan after she compared Dr. Anthony Fauci to notorious Nazi war criminal Josef Mengele, calling it an “outlandish and offensive” analogy. The group has also repeatedly called for the network to fire star Tucker Carlson for relentlessly promoting the white supremacist “Great Replacement” theory on air.
The network, meanwhile, eventually stopped booking pro-Trump lawyer Joe diGenova—once a frequent guest—after he peddled an antisemitic conspiracy theory about Soros on the Fox Business Network in late 2019. (Greenblatt called it “disturbing” after diGenova made a brief return a month later, saying it showed a lack of “remorse” on Fox’s part. The attorney hasn’t been back and has since said Fox is beholden to Soros.)
Friday, December 17, 2021
One Israeli family causes mass Omicron outbreak - here’s how
A family of four may have caused the country’s largest Omicron outbreak to date because they chose not to quarantine after returning from a trip to South Africa.
The Vaccine Scientist Spreading Vaccine Misinformation
Wherever he appears, Malone is billed as the inventor of mRNA vaccines. It’s in his Twitter bio. “I literally invented mRNA technology when I was 28,” says Malone, who is now 61. If that’s true—or, more to the point, if Malone believes it to be true—then you might expect him to be championing a very different message in his media appearances. According to one recent study, the innovation for which he claims to be responsible has already saved hundreds of thousands of lives in the United States alone; there’s talk that it may soon lead to a round of Nobel Prizes. It’s the kind of validation that few scientists in history have ever received. Yet instead of taking a victory lap, Malone has emerged as one of the most vocal critics of his own alleged accomplishment. He’s sowed doubt about the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines on pretty much any podcast or YouTube channel that will have him.
Karikó replied that she hadn’t told anyone that she is the inventor of mRNA vaccines and that “many many scientists” contributed to their success. “I have never claimed more than discovering a way to make RNA less inflammatory,” she wrote to him. She told me that Malone referred to himself in an email as her “mentor” and “coach,” though she says they’ve met in person only once, in 1997, when he invited her to give a talk. It’s Malone, according to Karikó, who has been overstating his accomplishments. There are “hundreds of scientists who contributed more to mRNA vaccines than he did.”
The irony is that, to the audiences who tune in to those shows, the vaccines are seen as a scourge rather than a godsend. No matter how nuanced Malone might try to be, or how many qualifiers he appends to his opinions, he is egging on vaccine hesitancy at a time when hospitals in the least-vaccinated parts of the country are struggling to cope with an influx of new COVID-19 patients. If you want proof of that, scroll through the many comments from his followers thanking him for confirming their fears. Malone has finally made his mark, by undermining confidence in the very vaccine he says wouldn’t be possible without his genius. It’s a victory, of sorts, but one that he and the rest of us may come to regret.
The Jan. 6 puzzle piece that's going largely ignored
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/16/jan-6-gohmert-lawsuit-pence-524839
As Donald Trump and his allies squeezed then-Vice President Mike Pence to single-handedly stop Joe Biden’s presidency in the weeks ahead of Jan. 6, they used one particular tool that’s been largely ignored ever since.
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) sued Pence on Dec. 27, just as Trump was ratcheting up his pressure campaign against his vice president. Backed by a squad of lawyers associated with Trump ally and conspiracy theorist Sidney Powell, Gohmert argued Pence should assert unilateral control over certification, governed only by the vague wording of the Twelfth Amendment.
Pence allies have long believed that Trump played a role in Gohmert’s legal strategy, and they've indicated that Trump was frustrated that the Justice Department intervened to defend his vice president against Gohmert’s suit. But what remains unknown is just how involved Trump was in Gohmert’s legal strategy. A spokesperson for the former president did not respond to a request for comment.
Hundreds gather for the funeral of terror victim Yehuda Dimentman
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/318797
Hundreds of people arrived Friday morning to the funeral procession of Yehuda Dimentman, who was shot and murdered last night in a terror attack whilst leaving the town of Homesh.
Hundreds of civilians, Knesset members, rabbis and public figures are expected to attend the funeral. Among the MKs attending are Itamar Ben Gvir (Otzma Yehudit), Orit Strock (Religious Zionism), Simcha Rothman (Religious ZIonism), and Nir Barkat (Likud).
1/6 Rioter Thomas Caldwell, Who Used to Work for FBI, Told Crowd to 'Hang the Traitors': DOJ
A January 6 rioter who used to work for the FBI allegedly incited the crowd by telling them to "hang the traitors," according to court filings released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
Thomas Caldwell, 65, of Virginia, is facing felony conspiracy and obstruction charges for his role in the riot at the U.S. Capitol. Caldwell is a member of the far-right, anti-government group the Oath Keepers and is considered by some to have been one of the attack's leaders at the Capitol that day.
Caldwell is reportedly known as "Commander Tom" to other members of the Oath Keepers. A former Navy officer, Caldwell is also a former FBI employee and at one point had "top secret" level security clearance.
Senator Paul blocks another unanimous vote to replenish Iron Dome
WASHINGTON – US Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) voted on Wednesday to block another attempt to provide Israel with $1 billion to replenish its Iron Dome system, citing the need to find a financial source to the bill. The vote took place as Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) asked for unanimous consent for the Senate to proceed with the House version of the bill.
Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, said, “The House passed the bill overwhelmingly 83 days ago, and Senate Democrats unanimously support its passage. The one thing standing in its way is complete Republican apathy toward the intransigence of Senator Rand Paul.”
Brooklyn community college targeted Jewish professor
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/318764
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has ruled that Jeffrey Lax, a Jewish professor at the Brooklyn Community College in New York, was discriminated against on the basis of his identity as an observant Jew and a supporter of Israel.
According to the ruling, Lax, a professor of business administration at New York University and Kingsborough Community College, was deliberately excommunicated from staff meetings, which were scheduled on Saturday to prevent him and other observant Jews from attending.
Thursday, December 16, 2021
AP FACT CHECK: Yes, Trump lost election despite what he says
Seeking to shame Republicans who are disloyal to him, former President Donald Trump distorted the Constitution’s meaning in asserting widespread voter fraud and insisting that state legislatures could overturn Joe Biden’s presidential win.
He’s wrong on all those fronts.
TRUMP:
“Had Mike Pence referred the information on six states (only need two)
back to State Legislatures ... we would have had a far different
Presidential result.” — statement Wednesday urging Republicans to push
out Rep. Liz Cheney as the No. 3 House Republican in favor of Rep. Elise Stefanik, who voted to overturn Biden’s victory in key states.
The Divorce Crisis
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/318734
As I stated above, a 10% divorce rate is still too high. Dr. Yitzchak Schechter has done landmark studies on divorce among the Orthodox. He presented data in 2015 obtained from 310 divorced respondents. He found that 57% of Orthodox divorces were acrimonious. This is extraordinarily disturbing. It is no doubt why thousands of women become Agunot (“chained” women-unable to marry). The male in Orthodox circles must provide a Get to his wife in order for her to remarry. In America various Get laws especially if a pre-nup agreement is signed have helped somewhat to lessen the Agunah Crisis. It is another major crisis facing Jewish Society. It is unfortunately another by-product of the divorce crisis.
Dr. Schechter lists the ten factors leading to divorce in the Orthodox community. They include: 1.verbal and emotional abuse, 2.demeaning or feeling put down,3.communication problems, 4.unmet emotional needs, 5.sexual issues, 6.mental illness, 7.religious differences, 8.undisclosed information, 9.financial difficulties, 10.different life goals.
Wednesday, December 15, 2021
Dr. Oz Shouldn’t Be a Senator—or a Doctor
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/dr-oz-shouldnt-be-a-senator-or-a-doctor/
He’s built a tremendous following around his lucrative but
evidence-free advice. So, are we surprised that Oz is running as a
Republican for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania? No, we are not.
Misinformation-spouting celebrities seem to be a GOP favorite. This move
is very on brand for both Oz and the Republican Party.
Levaya Rabbi Yehoram Max
In front of Yeshiva Chaim Berlin- Coney Island Avenue Brooklyn
Ex-Capitol Police Chief Says Requests For National Guard Denied 6 Times In Riots
Sund says he requested assistance six times ahead of and during the attack on the Capitol. Each of those requests was denied or delayed, he says.
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser also wanted a light police presence at the Capitol. She reportedly wanted to avoid a similar scenario as last summer, when federal forces responded to demonstrators opposed to police abuses who assembled near the White House.
During Wednesday's violence, Bowser requested, and received, a limited force of 340 from the D.C. National Guard. Those troops were unarmed and their job was to help with traffic flow — not law enforcement, which was meant to be handled by D.C. police.
When the mob reached the Capitol complex at about 12:40 p.m. ET on Wednesday, it took about 15 minutes for the west side perimeter of the building to be breached, he says. The Capitol Police contingent, which numbered around 1,400 that day, was quickly overrun by the estimated 8,000 rioters.
"If we would have had the National Guard we could have held them at bay longer, until more officers from our partner agencies could arrive," he says.
Sund says during a conference call with several law enforcement officials at about 2:26 p.m., he asked the Pentagon to provide backup.
Senior Army official Lt. Gen. Walter E. Piatt, director of the Army Staff, said on the call he couldn't recommend that Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy authorize deployment, Sund and others on the call told the Post. Piatt reportedly said, "I don't like the visual of the National Guard standing a police line with the Capitol in the background," the Post reported.
It would be more than three hours before any National Guard troops arrived, well after the damage at the Capitol had been done.
In the interview, Sund also issued a warning to federal officials, saying "if they don't get their act together with physical security, it's going to happen again."
GOP still spinning falsehood that Pelosi turned down National Guard before Jan. 6 attack
“It is a fact that … in December of 2020, Nancy Pelosi was made aware of potential security threats to the Capitol and she failed to act. It is a fact that the U.S. Capitol Police raised concerns and rather than providing them with the support and resources they needed and they deserved, she prioritized her partisan political optics over their safety.”
— House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., at the news conference, July 27, 2021
— — —
Republicans accused House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., of failing to protect the U.S. Capitol from the attack on Jan. 6, claiming she ignored warnings about potential threats and denied a request to bring in reinforcements from the National Guard.
Many fact-checkers have rated these claims false. In March, we gave Four Pinocchios to Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a close ally of former president Donald Trump, for leveling the same accusation at Pelosi without proof.
Donald Trump stated on February 28, 2021 in an interview: Says he requested “10,000 National Guardsmen” for his Jan. 6 rally, but Nancy Pelosi “rejected it.”
Asked in an interview about the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, former President Donald Trump claimed that he had made a request for 10,000 National Guard troops to be deployed for the rally he led that preceded the attack, and that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected it.
His claim was widely repeated on social media.
There is no clear evidence that Trump made such a request, and no evidence that Pelosi denied one.
Pelosi did not block the National Guard from the Capitol on Jan. 6
https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-235651652542
CLAIM: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi blocked the National Guard from coming to the Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. As Speaker of the House, Pelosi does not direct the National Guard. Further, as the Capitol came under attack, she and the Senate Majority leader called for military assistance, including the National Guard.
THE FACTS: On Tuesday, a false claim about the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol resurfaced suggesting that Pelosi blocked the National Guard from coming to lawmakers’ defense during the insurrection at the Capitol.
“@SpeakerPelosi, why did you block the National Guard from protecting the Capitol?” Indiana Rep. Jim Banks tweeted.
Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy posed a similar question on Fox News saying, “Was there a decision by the Speaker not to have the National Guard at the Capitol that day?”
The answer is no.
Granted early release, Berland leaves prison after a month and a half
https://www.timesofisrael.com/granted-early-release-berland-leaves-prison-after-a-month-and-a-half/
Convicted sex offender Rabbi Eliezer Berland, head of the controversial Shuvu Bonim sect, was granted early release from prison Wednesday after serving a tumultuous month and a half behind bard on a fraud conviction for swindling sick and elderly followers out of millions of shekels.
COVID-19 Can Kill Months After Infection
https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20210423/covid-study-deaths-months-after-infection
Long-haul COVID-19 patients face many health threats -- including a higher chance of dying -- up to 6 months after they catch the virus, according to a massive study published in the journal Nature.
A second study, released by the CDC on Friday, also found lingering symptoms months later among COVID-19 patients who originally had mild symptoms.
For the Nature study, researchers examined more than 87,000 COVID-19 patients and nearly 5 million control patients in a federal database. They found COVID-19 patients had a 59% higher risk of death up to 6 months after infection, compared to non-infected people.
COVID-19 survivors have an increased risk of death 12 months post infection
The total number of recorded COVID-19 deaths has passed 5 million globally, with over 750,000 deaths in the United States alone. However, these figures are unlikely to reveal the true impact of COVID-19 on the population.
Scientists have now shown an increased risk of death among COVID-19 survivors 12 months after the infection.
For people younger than 65 who were hospitalized with COVID-19, the risk of death in the 12 months after the infection was 233% higher than it was for people who did not have the disease, results published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine have shown.
Rabbi Kaminetsky-Rabbi Greenblatt Heter: Summary: Does a gadol have to give permission to protest against Rav Shmuel Kaminetky's heter
November 2015 letterNovember 2015 parsha sheet
January 2016 letter
2) However even without Rav Sternbuch's explicit statement as well as the many public letters of major rabbis attacking this heter - there is no halachic source which requires a person to ask a person viewed as a gadol or even ask a rabbi. Obviously if the determination that something wrong has been done comes from a single individual it is a good idea to confirm with a competent rabbi that his evaluation is correct. But in the case of this "heter" there are many strong letters of condemnation from major rabbis and there are no dissenting voice that the heter is valid - that is simply not an issue. The consensus is that Tamar is an eishis ish who is living with a man who is not her husband.
phony seruv against Aharon Friedman by R Shmuel Kaminetsky
R Herschel Schachter:Beat Aharon Friedman with baseball bat - rely on authority of R Kaminetsky
R Shalom Kaminetsky asking for heter in name of his father
R Shalom Kaminetsky asking for heter and Rav Greenblatt's reply
Summary of the facts regarding the Heter
Rav Herschel Schacter: Mekach ta'os - making a farce of the halacha
Rav Shmuel Feurst revealed as signer on heter
How Tamar destroyed her marriage with the assistance of the Kaminetskys
Wohlmark gang false seruv and Epstein lawyer Goldfein
Therapists that met with Aharon Friedman - deny discussing him with others
R Shmuel Kaminetsky to Rav Weiss - agrees to psak of Rav Dovid Feinstein
Who should be honored with Sandek for the mamzer?
Kaminetsky-Greenblatt Heter: Rav Eliahu Rominek's teshuva explaining why it is worthless
==============================================
Tamar's diary clearly showing Aharon has no mental illness
Tamar's own words refute psychiatric claims of mental illness
psychologist says the psychiatrist report used is invalid
lawyer in family law : even if psychiatric report was accurate - the conclusion of mekach ta'us are not
Dr. Baruch Shulem - illegal and invalid to write report about someone therapist didn't meet
Pamphlet with most of the protest letters
Rav Gestetner English translation
Baltimore Beis Din first letter with Israeli gedolim agreement
R Shalom Kaminetsky's letter asking for the heter and Rav Nota Greenblatt's teshuva giving the heter
Baltimore Beis Din revised letter Nov 2015
Baltimore beis din apologizes to Aharon Friedman + Rav Reuven Feinstein and Rav Miller jan 2016
Rav Aharon Feldman English translation of Rav Feldman's letter
Rav Aharon Feldman Only talmidei chachomim can decide this issue
Letter to Rav Aharon Feldman
Rav Malinowitz criticzing Rav Feldman for indicating this a macholes haposkim
Rav Landesman
Open letter to Rav Aharon Schechter regarding his attempt to save Rav Kaminetsky
Rav Shmuel Auerbach
Rav A C Sherman
Rav Avraham Yehoshua Solveitchik can not learn by Rav Kaminetsky
Open letter to the Moetzes of the Aguda
Washington area rabbis shun Aharon Friedman with feminist justification
Rav Herschel Schacter recording - heter no good
Rav Sternbuch letter November
Rav Sternbuch parasha sheet
Rav Sternbuch letter
Rav Sternbuch criticized by R Brodsky for calling for protests
Assertion that layman can't criticize crimes of rabbis
Rav Pinchus Rabinowitz
Hisachdus HaRabbonim of USA and Canada
Hisachdus letter posuling Rav Greenblatt
Rav Shlomo Miller Rav Wachtfoget et al
Refutation of support of heter from Yevamos
Rav Chaim Kanievsky and other Israeli gedolim
Eidah Chareidis
Rav Rominek's teshuva
Rav Feivel Cohen and Rav Shlomo Miller
R Sholom letter saying he and his father accept Rav Dovid Feinstein's psak
=============================Critical of those who made the heter ------------
Rav Shlomo Miller - Rav Greenblatt is referred to as "rav"
Rav Sternbuch criticized by R Brodsky for calling for protests by the masses
Hisachdus letter posuling Rav Greenblatt
Rav Avraham Yehoshua Solveitchik can not learn by Rav Kaminetsky
3) An additional question is whether a gadol is different and that a gadol can never be publicly condemned.
Rav Moshe Feinstein says it is permitted to publicly disagree with a gadol even as big as the Chazon Ish - and even in his community
Diasgreeing with the Chazon Ish in Bnei Brak
Disagree with Gadol Hador
https://daattorah.blogspot.com/2024/12/disagree-with-gadol-hador.html
From one of the letters (2:133) of the Chazon Ish it is clear that he permits criticizing gadolim because they are influential - but not people who no one pays attention to.Criticizing GedolimMo'd Koton (17a) is clear that one can publicize the misdeeds of gedolim. We in fact pasken like this gemora.
if a disciple ‘separates’ someone in [defence of] his personal dignity his ‘separation’ is an [effective] . For it is taught: ‘One who has been "separated" [as under a ban] by the Master is [deemed] "separated" from the disciple; but one who has been "separated" by the disciple is not [deemed] "separated" from the Master’.1 [That means], not ‘separated’ from the Master; but in regard to everybody else he is [‘separated’]. [Now let us see; ‘separated’] for what [offence]? If [it was imposed] for some offence towards Heaven, then there is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the Lord!2 Therefore [presumably] it is only so3 [where a disciple had pronounced it] in [defence of] his personal dignity. R. Joseph said that a Collegiate4 may enforce his own rights in a matter where he is perfectly certain [as to the law]. There was once a certain Collegiate whose reputation was objectionable. Said Rab Judah, How is one to act? To put the shammetha on him [we cannot], as the Rabbis have need of him [as an able teacher]. Not to put the shammetha on him [we cannot afford] as the name of Heaven is being profaned. Said he to Rabbah b. Bar Hana, Have you heard alight on that point? He replied: ‘Thus said R. Johanan: What means the text, For the priest's lips should keep knowledge and they should seek the law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of the Lord of Hosts?5 [It means, that] if the Master is like unto a messenger of the Lord of Hosts, they should seek the law at his mouth; but if [he be] not , they should not seek the law at his mouth’. [Thereupon] Rab Judah pronounced the shammetha on him. In the end Rab Judah became indisposed. The Rabbis came to enquire about him and that man came along with them. When Rab Judah beheld him he laughed. Said the man to him: Not enough for him that he put upon that man [me] the shammetha, but he even laughs at me! Replied he [Rab Judah]: I was not laughing at you: but as I am departing to that World [beyond] I am glad to think that even towards such a personage as you I showed no indulgence. Rab Judah's soul came to rest.6 The man [then] came to the College [and] said, ‘Absolve me’. Said the Rabbis to him, There is no man here of the standing of Rab Judah who could absolve you; but go to R. Judah Nesi'ah7 that he may absolve you. He went and presented himself to him. Said he to R. Ammi: ‘Go forth and look into his case; if it be necessary to absolve him, absolve him’. R. Ammi looked into his case and had a mind to absolve him. Then R. Samuel b. Nahmani got up on his feet and said: ‘Why, even a ‘separation" imposed by one of the domestics in Rabbi's house was not lightly treated by the Rabbis for three years; how much more so one imposed by our colleague, Rab Judah!’ Said R. Zera, From the fact that this venerable scholar8 should just now have turned up at this College after not having come here for many years, you must take it that it is not desirable to absolve that man. He [R. Judah Nesi'ah]9 did not absolve him. He went away weeping. A wasp then came and stung him in the privy member and he died. They brought him into ‘The Grotto of the Pious’, but they admitted him not.10 They brought him into ‘The Grotto of the Judges’ and they received him.11 Why was he admitted there? — Because he had acted according to the dictum of R. Il'ai. For R. Il'ai says, If one sees that his [evil] yezer12 is gaining sway over him, let him go away where he is not known; let him put on sordid13 clothes, don a sordid wrap and do the sordid deed that his heart desires rather than profane the name of Heaven openly.14
R. Judah said in the name of Rab: If one finds mixed kinds in his garment, he takes it off even in the street. What is the reason? [It says]: There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the Lord;4 wherever a profanation of God's name is involved no respect is paid to a teacher.
4) Finally the Rambam is very clear about what to do. He makes no stipulation that his psak is dependent upon going to a rav or gadol to get permission to protest. He clearly indicates that if private protest doesn't work then protests should be escalated to public degradation of the person sinning.
Rambam(Hilchos De'os 6:8):At first, a person who admonishes a colleague should not speak to him harshly until he becomes embarrassed as [Leviticus 19:17] states: "[You should]... not bear a sin because of him." This is what our Sages said: Should you rebuke him to the point that his face changes [color]? The Torah states: "[You should]... not bear a sin because of him."
From this, [we learn that] it is forbidden for a person to embarrass a [fellow] Jew. How much more so [is it forbidden to embarrass him] in public. Even though a person who embarrasses a colleague is not [liable for] lashes on account of him, it is a great sin. Our Sages said: "A person who embarrasses a colleague in public does not have a share in the world to come."
Therefore, a person should be careful not to embarrass a colleague - whether of great or lesser stature - in public, and not to call him a name which embarrasses him or to relate a matter that brings him shame in his presence.
When does the above apply? In regard to matters between one man and another. However, in regard to spiritual matters, if [a transgressor] does not repent [after being admonished] in private, he may be put to shame in public and his sin may be publicized. He may be subjected to abuse, scorn, and curses until he repents, as was the practice of all the prophets of Israel.
Tuesday, December 14, 2021
No, it’s not a coup — It’s a failed ‘self-coup’ that will undermine US leadership and democracy worldwide
Latin America has a history of autogolpes, or “self-coups.” This is the term for efforts by sitting executives to enhance or retain power by overturning electoral outcomes or by unconstitutionally gutting the power of other branches of government. Trump’s measures to overturn the elections since November 3 constitute a “coup,” as they involve illegal usurpation of state power, even when it may not involve the use of force. Yet it is a “self”-coup because it is perpetrated by the head of government rather than military officers or others against that chief executive.
Trump says he would not have attempted coup after defeat
https://www.theday.com/article/20210716/NWS21/210719605
Former President Donald Trump insisted Thursday that he wouldn’t have used the military to illegally seize control of the government after his election loss. But he suggested that if he had tried to carry out a coup, it wouldn’t have been with his top military adviser.
Meanwhile, Republicans who are eyeing White House bids of their own aren't crossing Trump, who remains popular with many GOP voters.
GOP Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, a potential 2024 presidential contender, said "no comment,” when asked if he thought Trump’s statement was appropriate for a former president. A member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and an Army veteran of two combat tours in Iraq, Cotton declined to comment again when asked if he wanted to criticize Trump’s remark.
“I think he has the right to say what he wants to say,” said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, when asked if he was comfortable with a former president even hypothetically entertaining the idea of a coup.
“You know, Donald Trump speaks for himself and he always has,” said Cruz, another potential White House candidate in 2024.
Update on Trump’s Coup: Do Not Think That This Is Guaranteed to End Well
What we are witnessing is not a “tantrum.” Donald Trump is not in denial, nor is he going through “a process” to make peace with losing the election. He is trying to do what he has clearly intended to do all along, which is to stay in office no matter what. He would have liked to have won the election fair and square, but he never had any intention not to engage in a coup d’état if necessary.
There are, as I have acknowledged all along, reasons not to be entirely pessimistic about the survival of America’s system of government. Indeed, there are no non-brazen ways in which Trump could pull off his coup. But brazenness is a feature of coups, not a bug. We have seen again and again that what momentarily looks like the end of the road for Trump ends up merely being a pit stop, allowing Republicans to refill their tanks with the fuel necessary to follow Trump wherever he leads.
I wouldn't 'do a coup' with Milley, Trump says of top U.S. general
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/i-wouldnt-do-coup-with-milley-trump-says-top-us-general-2021-07-15/
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday slammed the top U.S. general he had appointed after allegations in a new book that senior uniformed military leaders were deeply concerned about the potential for a coup after the November election and had discussed a plan to resign.According to excerpts obtained by CNN from the upcoming book "I Alone Can Fix It," written by two Washington Post journalists, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley and other senior U.S. military leaders discussed resigning in the event they received orders they considered illegal or dangerous
"I never threatened, or spoke about, to anyone, a coup of our Government ... If I was going to do a coup, one of the last people I would want to do it with is General Mark Milley," Trump said in a statement.\
Here's what 'insurrection,' 'coup' and 'sedition' mean
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/13/politics/insurrection-sedition-coup-january-6/index.html
Coup
Coup attempt by Trump is fake news?
Please. There was no coup attempt. Trump never called for a violent overthrow of the government. Read his actual words, not what the liberal media distorted and claimed he said.
However a simple google search however indicates a coup does not have to be violent
wikepedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coup_d%27%C3%A9tat
A coup d'état (/ˌkuːdeɪˈtɑː/ (
listen); French for "blow of state"), usually shortened to coup,[1] (also known as an overthrow)
is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it
is an illegal, unconstitutional seizure of power by a political faction,
military, or a dictator.[2] Many scholars consider a coup successful when the usurpers seize and hold power for at least seven days.[2]
Britannica
The chief prerequisite for a coup is control of all or part of the armed forces, the police, and other military elements. Unlike a revolution, which is usually achieved by large numbers of people working for basic social, economic, and political change, a coup is a change in power from the top that merely results in the abrupt replacement of leading government personnel.
Cambridge Dictionary
A sudden illegal, often violent, taking of government power, especially by part of an army:
Vaccines, variants leave US ultra-Orthodox women confused and afraid
https://www.timesofisrael.com/vaccines-variants-leave-us-ultra-orthodox-women-confused-and-afraid/
“I’ve definitely heard from doctors that one should not get pregnant immediately after getting the vaccine,” she said. “You don’t say that about a flu shot.” (The Center for Disease Control has said that “women who are trying to become pregnant do not need to avoid pregnancy after receiving an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine.”)
Right slams police minister for condemning ‘settler violence’ to US envoy
Public Security Minister Omer Barlev said he discussed rising violence by West Bank settlers against Palestinians with a senior American diplomat, drawing rebukes from pro-settlement ministers and right-wing opposition lawmakers.
Barlev, a member of the center-left Labor party, met Monday with Victoria Nuland, the US undersecretary for political affairs. He tweeted that the two discussed “settler violence and how to reduce tensions in the area and strengthen the Palestinian Authority.”
His comment came after Nuland told him that the US State Department was keeping track of settler violence, according to the Haaretz daily. Barlev told Nuland his ministry and the Defense Ministry were working together to address the matter and said he was working to deploy more police in the West Bank.
Beitar Illit mayor named as suspect detained, then released, over cold case murder
Beitar Illit Mayor Meir Rubinstein was named Tuesday as one of the suspects arrested and later released as part of a murder investigation tied to sex offender rabbi Eliezer Berland’s Shuvu Bonim sect.
Nobody has been indicted in the 1990 murder of 41-year-old Avi Edri, who was found beaten to death in the Ramot Forest in the north of Jerusalem.
Rubinstein has denied involvement in the killing and tried to prevent the publication of his name on the grounds that he was 17 years old at the time of his alleged involvement, and was therefore a minor.
Temi Kaminetsky is anti-vaxxer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kIxzek0bLQ
Rebbetzin Kamenetsky: Did you ever hear of Amalek? Hashem told to get rid of them because they're not good. They tried to destroy b'nei yisroel. And they're still trying. Merck is a German company, and they produce MMR. Worldwide a lot of terrible things have been happening. Autism is all over the world.
I know personally two babies who died, they were three months old. Right after, two and a half weeks after the shots. But the doctors don't believe it. They're taught, they don't know that they're taught by professors who are apikorsim or representatives of the medical, of the pharmaceutical companies.
Vaccination: A Halachic Perspective
https://mishpacha.com/vaccination-a-halachic-perspective/
Other poskim seem to have different views. Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky (in a letter printed in Bigdei Chamudos Yoreh Deiah 42) describes vaccinating as permitted but not required. Rav Moshe Sternbuch (in a responsum dated 18 Kislev 5779), however, addresses a case in which an area was experiencing a measles epidemic. He rules that one must follow the overwhelming majority of medical authorities who mandate vaccinations. He may not choose to follow the minority opinion who advise against taking measles vaccine, since by abstaining he is endangering others. Obviously, all of the above are just general pointers, and for halachic guidance in our present situation concerning the COVID-19 vaccine, we look to our contemporary poskim.