Tuesday, July 14, 2020
How Pandemics Wreak Havoc—and Open Minds
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/07/20/how-pandemics-wreak-havoc-and-open-minds
The plague marked the end of
the Middle Ages and the start of a great cultural renewal. Could
the coronavirus, for all its destruction, offer a similar opportunity
for radical change?
1 – The Mitzvah of Settling the Land of Israel
https://ph.yhb.org.il/en/05-04-01/
The reason the Rambam does not include this mitzvah in his count of the 613 is that it is beyond the regular “value” of mitzvot; therefore, it is not included in their detailed enumeration. This coincides with the rules the Rambam lays down at the beginning of Sefer HaMitzvot,
stating it is inappropriate to reckon commandments that encompass the
entire Torah, as he writes in Mitzvah #153 [that settling the Land of
Israel is all-inclusive]. Besides which, it is implausible to say that
the mitzvah of Yishuv HaAretz is only rabbinically ordained today [and that that is why the Rambam leaves it out of the count]. After all, Chazal’s statement that settling the Land is equal to all the mitzvot
of the Torah was made after the destruction of the Second Temple. Now,
it is unlikely that they would say such a thing about a rabbinic mitzvah. Moreover, it is improbable that the Rabbis would dismantle a family (see above regarding divorce), and allow one to violate a shevut, merely for the sake of a rabbinic mitzvah (see Rabbi Zisberg’s Nachalat Ya’akov, Vol. 1, pp. 201-249).
Where we went wrong: Expert says these 3 blunders caused new Israeli COVID chaos
https://www.timesofisrael.com/where-we-went-wrong-expert-says-these-3-blunders-caused-new-israeli-covid-chaos/
When schools reopened in early May, children studied in small groups,
smaller than regular classes, as a measure to stop the spread of the
virus. But this so-called capsule arrangement was quickly stopped, and
regular class sizes were restored.
According to Barbash this was a major mistake. “Schools should have
either stayed closed or allowed only 15 kids in classes,” he said. “Kids
who are above nine should be treated like adults, and shouldn’t gather
in groups of more than 10 to 15.”
How did Florida get so badly hit by Covid-19?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-53357742
"There's a lot of misinformation all over the web about the
seriousness of this outbreak," says Dr Aileen Marty, a Florida
International University infectious disease expert who has been working
with state officials on the pandemic response. She says this is partly
why Florida is now among the worst-hit regions.
"Since we don't have a consistent message in our state, let alone our country, there's even more confusion."
The Republican governor has also downplayed the severity of Florida's
outbreak by pointing to the increase in testing and younger Floridians
being infected - particularly those aged 25 to 34 - as well as a lower
death rate.
"Generally, deaths follow about two weeks behind when
we get the positive tests," Dr Marty explains. She pushes back against
the notion that America is doing well with deaths from this virus,
saying even looking at just the raw data shows the nationwide rate -
around 5.6% - is concerning.
"That's considering the fact that
we're better at it now than we were," she adds. "We're getting people in
beds sooner, moving people to ICUs sooner."
Testing, despite
delays in getting results, has also aided mitigation. Medication is
helping, though Florida has run out of the Remdesivir antiviral drug and
is awaiting new shipments.
"I just don't understand people who say our death rate is great," Dr Marty says.
The median age of infections in Miami-Dade County, the state's most
populous region, is 40. In Tallahassee, the median recently hit a low of
25 years old.
Monday, July 13, 2020
Los Angeles, San Diego schools to resume online classes in fall due to jump in coronavirus cases
https://www.foxnews.com/us/los-angeles-san-diego-schools-wont-reopen
California's two largest school districts announced Monday that they would not be opening its facilities to students in the fall but will resume classes online.
In a letter to parents, Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent
Austin Beutner said the nation’s second-largest school district had
decided to resume online classes due to a resurgence of the novel coronavirus.
“We
made the decision to close school facilities before there was any
occurrence of the virus at our schools, and this proved to be the right
call,” Beutner said. “Science was our guide then, and it will continue
to be. Unfortunately, Covid-19 continues to spread in the Los Angeles
area and the virus is going to impact how we start the new school year.”
Trump Predicts ‘Beginning of the End’ for Fox News
https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-predicts-beginning-of-the-end-for-fox-news
President Donald Trump lashed out Tuesday morning at Fox News even as the network continued to defend him
at every turn of the ongoing impeachment trial. “Really pathetic how
@FoxNews is trying to be so politically correct by loading the airwaves
with Democrats like Chris Van Hollen, the no name Senator from
Maryland,” Trump tweeted, equating political correctness with any
attempt to hear from the “other” side.
“So, what the hell has happened to @FoxNews,” he continued. “Only I
know! Chris Wallace and others should be on Fake News CNN or MSDNC.
How’s Shep Smith doing? Watch, this will be the beginning of the end for
Fox, just like the other two which are dying in the ratings. Social
Media is great!”
Judge asks if Trump ally Roger Stone must serve probation after prison sentence commuted
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/13/judge-asks-if-roger-stones-probation-still-applies-after-trumps-commutation.html
A
federal judge ordered the parties in Roger Stone’s criminal case to
clarify the “scope” of President Donald Trump’s executive action
commuting the prison sentence of his longtime ally.
- U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson asked those parties to address whether Trump’s clemency applies only to Stone’s prison term or also to the two-year probation period included in his sentence.
- Jackson also asked for a copy of Trump’s executive order.
Trump retweets game show host Chuck Woolery’s baseless claim that ‘everyone is lying’ about coronavirus
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/13/coronavirus-trump-cites-chuck-woolery-questioning-covid-19-on-twitter.html
Soon after Trump shared the post, the president retweeted another comment by Woolery about the coronavirus outbreak in the United States.
“There is so much evidence, yes scientific evidence, that schools should open this fall. It’s worldwide and it’s overwhelming. BUT NO,” wrote Woolery, whose game show resume also includes acting as the first host of “Wheel of Fortune,” and hosting “Scrabble,” “Greed” and “Lingo.”
President Donald Trump retweeted a post by game show host Chuck Woolery that baselessly claimed “everyone is lying” about the coronavirus pandemic in a possible effort to thwart Trump’s reelection by harming the economy.
The
conservative Woolery, who hosted shows such as “Love Connection,” wrote
on Sunday evening, “The most outrageous lies are the ones about Covid
19.”
“Everyone
is lying. The CDC [federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention],
Media, Democrats, our Doctors, not all but most, that we are told to
trust,” Woolery wrote.
Soon after Trump shared the post, the president retweeted another comment by Woolery about the coronavirus outbreak in the United States.
“There is so much evidence, yes scientific evidence, that schools should open this fall. It’s worldwide and it’s overwhelming. BUT NO,” wrote Woolery, whose game show resume also includes acting as the first host of “Wheel of Fortune,” and hosting “Scrabble,” “Greed” and “Lingo.”
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