Hassidic couple on cruise- documentary

YNet  Bedroom. An ultra-Orthodox couple belonging to the Hassidic Gur dynasty is packing for a two-week cruise in the Mediterranean. She complains he is squishing her wig; he chides her for taking too many hangers. The shtreimel fur hat, still carefully wrapped ahead of a romantic stroll in Venice, is proudly displayed on its new owner's head. All this takes place in front of a filmmaker who is, in any way, an "ultimate stranger."

That is the opening scene of the fascinating British documentary "Kosher Cruise," which aired on Israel's Yes Doco channel for the first time last week. As the film unfolds, that intimate scene will signify the beginning of an in-depth look into the relationship of an ultra-Orthodox couple – Gaby and Tikwah Lock, who have been married for 40 years.

תקדים: ראב"ד העדה החרדית תוקף בחריפות את 'אתרא קדישא

KikarShabbat

ראב"ד 'העדה החרדית' הגאון רבי משה שטרנבוך תוקף בחריפות את ארגון "אתרא קדישא", שמארגן הפגנות סתמיות ומיותרות נגד חילולי קברים כביכול, ואף רומז כי אנשי הארגון שיקרו את מרן הגר"ש וואזנר וגרמו להוצאת נפטרים יהודים ממנוחתם. המכתב המלא (חדשות, חרדים)

Is the paiche fish kosher?

Time Magazine   The paiche, also known as pirarucu or by its scientific name, arapaima gigas, can grow up to 10 feet and weigh up to 500 pounds.  It is sought out for its tasty white meat. Barely changed from the Miocene era (which ended more than 5 million years ago), the living fossil is easy to catch with a harpoon or net because it has to come to the surface to breath. Other fish breathe underwater, taking oxygen from water through their gills.

The combination of taste and the ease with which it is landed nearly led to the demise of the paiche, which is included on a list of controlled species by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Antipsychotic Prescriptions in Children Have Skyrocketed

Time Magazine  There is much evidence that the vast increases in atypical antipsychotic prescribing in recent decades were fueled by the aggressive marketing tactics of drug companies. In recent years, every major manufacturer of atypical antipsychotics has been involved in the illegal marketing of the drugs (while doctors can prescribe drugs off label, it is against the law for drug makers to market them for off-label uses), each ultimately paying hundreds of millions to billions of dollars in fines for their sales and marketing tactics. The settlements with the U.S. government were among the largest in history.

The new study, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, found that in 2005-09 nearly two thirds of all antipsychotic prescriptions for youth were written for ADHD and other disruptive behavior disorders; these conditions accounted for 34% of all antipsychotic prescriptions for teens. Yet there is little data supporting the safety or efficacy of the drugs for those conditions. The drugs’ effect on children’s brain development is also not known, but their side effect profile is clear: aytpical antipsychotics are known to cause weight gain and diabetes, side effects to which children seem particularly prone.

“As the actual evidence base that would support [such off-label prescriptions of antipsychotics] is scant to non-existent, and the evidence of permeating undue influence of pharma on prescribing practices in psychiatry is abundant, one is led to the conclusion that this is another example of irrational prescribing that can be traced to both the overt and tacit influence of [drug companies] on practitioners,” says Dr. Bruce Perry, a senior fellow at the ChildTrauma Academy. [Full disclosure: Perry and I have co-authored two books.]

Perry testified for the state of Texas in a case that resulted in a $158 million settlement with Johnson and Johnson in January to resolve claims that it fraudulently marketed Risperdal and swindled the state’s Medicaid program. One aspect of the case involved misleading claims about the drug’s effectiveness for behavior disorders in children.

First indictment in police pedophile sting operation

 YNet  Last month, police arrested more than 30 suspects as part of an extensive undercover investigation, headed by the National Fraud Unit, and described as the first and largest of its kind to ever take place in the country. 

The majority of the suspects have no criminal record; and include students, civil servants, a defense establishment official, a former police officer and an agronomist – to name a few.

According to the police, they range in age from 20-57 and reside all over Israel. "We can't put our finger on anything specific and say 'this is the profile,''" a source privy to the investigation said.  

A first indictment was filed in the pedophile affair which was exposed through a police sting. A 57-year-old Jerusalem resident was accused of speaking to a police agent masquerading as a 12-year-old boy and setting up a meeting with the intention of having sexual intercourse.

Aharon Friedman beaten when returning child to wife

Washington Jewish Week by Suzanne Pollak  Aharon Friedman, the target of much criticism and ostracism for not giving his former wife a get, a Jewish religious divorce, was allegedly beaten up last Sunday as he returned their daughter to her mother's Pennsylvania home, according to several sources. 

A spokeswoman for the Lower Merion police department said the matter "was under investigation. There is a report out there, but we are unable to release it."

According to two people who telephoned Washington Jewish Week as well as a posting on the blog Daas Torah, Friedman went to the home of Cheryl Epstein, where his former wife, Tamar, and their child currently live. As he was leaving the property, Friedman was assaulted by two or three people, one of whom was wearing a mask.

Friedman, who lives in Silver Spring, is said to have been hit on the head and knocked to the ground, causing his glasses to be smashed.

Following the incident, Friedman went to the police department and to the hospital where he underwent a CT scan.

Rabbi David Eidensohn of Monsey, N.Y., who has written about Epstein's quest for a get, called WJW after learning of the incident. He stressed that a forced get is invalid. He called on those involved in the incident, in which he included anyone who egged people on to violence, to refrain.

He specifically pointed to Rabbi Hershel Schachter, one of the leading rabbis of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) at Yeshiva University in New York. Rabbi Schachter has come out strongly against men who refuse to give a get in letters, videos and audio tapes posted on the Internet.[...]

Livni to CNN: Netanyahu sold Israel to haredim

YNet  In the interview , Livni attacked the Likud party for "surrendering to the haredim" and granting them a monopoly on the Jewishness of the State of Israel.

"Politically speaking, Israel is being sold to the ultra-Orthodox," Livni told Amanpour, adding that "the ultra-Orthodox represent a small portion of the Israeli society. They represent part of our history and tradition, but unfortunately they now have more power than they should."

“Netanyahu said himself, that for him politically, the ultra-Orthodox are his natural partners. And I believe that the raison d’etre of the State of Israel is to be the homeland of the Jewish People," she said adding that "for me being a Jewish state means something from a national perspective, not a religious one.”

Addressing the issue of the haredi military draft, Livni said that "each and every Israeli citizen needs to contribute to the society in which we live in. Unfortunately, because of political reasons, the State gives them (haredim) the monopoly, and this must be changed."