Rav Yaakov Kaminetzky on Sherlok Holmes

 https://mishpacha.com/lead-like-a-lion/

He tells me about his entrance to the world of practical halachah; the Chullin shiur given by the rosh yeshivah, Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky. “He came in the first day of the zeman and asked “Did anyone here ever read mysteries?”

The bochurim nodded.

“How come Sherlock Holmes was always able to crack the mystery and Watson, nebach, was always oblivious? It’s because Sherlock Holmes knew how to look for clues; he noticed things, not only what was there, but what wasn’t there.”

The bochurim were captivated. “Now, you have to realize that every word in Torah is a mystery. There are clues everywhere; a hashmata, an extra word, a change in lashon. That’s how we reach a conclusion.”

“That,” Rabbi Levene concludes, “is greatness. A litvish rosh yeshivah, a tzaddik, a gaon, who discovered a means of connecting with American bochurim and wasn’t afraid to use it.”

Tiffany Trump’s father-in-law Massad Boulos to become senior presidential adviser on Arab affairs

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5016398-president-elect-trump-appoints-massad-boulos/

Massad Boulos is just the latest family figure in Trump’s orbit to land a post with the administration. On Saturday, Trump said he would nominate Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law Jared Kushner, as ambassador to France.

Bombshell Report Exposes Trump’s Mar-a-Lago GOP Grift

 https://newrepublic.com/post/183655/bombshell-report-trump-mar-a-lago-gop-grift

According to an analysis of evidentiary records in New York’s fraud case against the Trump Organization, Mar-a-Lago pulled in a net profit of $22 million in 2022. While the remainder of Trump’s clubs and properties also saw an increase in profits through and after Trump’s presidency, Mar-a-Lago—where Trump spends most of his time and to which conservatives flock, hoping for a glimpse of their dear leader—has seen more than double in profits, according to an analysis by the Times.

Smell like Trump: ‘victory cologne’ for sale as president-elect hawks his wares

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/30/trump-merchandise-for-sale

The shoes and the scents pale in comparison to the controversy created by Trump’s God Bless the USA Bible, which the president-elect endorsed and started hawking in March. Priced at $59.99 – $83.37 after tax and shipping – it was described by the Guardian as “a blasphemous, sticky nightmare”, and described by religious leaders as an example of “bankrupt Christianity” and in violation of one of the Ten Commandments.

Trump's new grift: Secret foreign money could be fueling Trump’s transition fund

Trump promised Jan. 6 pardons. His post-election silence is making loyalists nervous.

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/11/30/trump-january-6-pardons-00192036

Donald Trump campaigned on a pledge to pardon a vast swath of supporters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But his silence on the matter since winning the election has begun unsettling some fervent allies awaiting even the slightest signal from Trump about how he intends to turn his campaign rhetoric into reality.

Adding to the anxiety expressed by some Jan. 6 defendants is a statement from Trump’s transition team that hinted at a far more limited approach than the sweeping pardons that many in Trump’s base have demanded.

Why don't some countries vaccinate against chickenpox?

 https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240229-why-dont-some-countries-vaccinate-against-chickenpox

However, the decision not to vaccinate children against chickenpox is down to more than budget constraints – in many parts of the world, it's a calculated risk that aims to prevent disease in a different group: older adults.   

In the last five years, opinions has begun to shift following large-scale epidemiological studies which have shown that the US and other countries have not actually seen the feared increase in shingles cases over the last three decades. One UK study even estimated that the supposed immunity boosting effect of adults exposed to infected children might be less impactful than previously thought.

"What has changed in the last few years is that we now have very clear evidence from the US that shingles rates did not increase any faster after the vaccine was introduced and if anything, have somewhat levelled off in recent years," says Pollard. "The improved certainty about this has really made the cost-effectiveness modelling more robust." 

There are signs that other countries are also beginning to shift their mindset on the vaccine. Marie Studahl, a professor at the University of Gothenberg in Sweden, said that she welcomed the UK recommendation, and expressed hope that Norway, Denmark and Sweden will soon implement varicella vaccination. "In Sweden we have been waiting a very long time for this… I am convinced that doctors are mostly positive to implementation," she says.

Yikes! Industries warn of devastating effects of Trump's tariffs; Trump ignores his own poor record

Saudi Arabia Has Its Own 'Deal of the Century' for Trump

 https://www.newsweek.com/saudi-arabia-has-its-own-deal-century-trump-1989311

"There is one crucial thing the Trump administration must understand well: it is wishful thinking on their part to assume that Saudi Arabia will join the Abraham Accords for free," Salman al-Ansari, a prominent Saudi political analyst, told Newsweek. "A Palestinian state is a must and an absolute prerequisite for normalization with Israel."

"Navel Pulling": Does Putting Castor Oil In Your Belly Button Benefit You?

 "Navel Pulling": Does Putting Castor Oil In Your Belly Button Benefit You?

The practice is nothing new. It’s actually based on Ayurvedic methods, a historic medical system from India that involves applying different kinds of oils — like caster, peppermint, and ginger oil — to the belly button and surrounding abdomen.

However, it’s recently taken off on TikTok with the hashtag navel oiling amassing over 11.5 million views.

Pete Hegseth’s Mom Said He Abused ‘Many’ Women in Bombshell Email

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/pete-hegseths-mom-said-he-abused-many-women-in-bombshell-email/

“On behalf of all the women (and I know it’s many) you have abused in some way, I say… get some help and take an honest look at yourself,” she wrote on April 30, 2018.

“I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego.

“You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother, it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth.”

The GOP Barely Won the House

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-gop-barely-won-the-house-9d5e1bb5?mod=hp_opin_pos_3#cxrecs_s

Republicans boasting about their great election mandate may want to hold the euphoria. As the final results trickle in from the late state of California, the GOP looks set to have the narrowest House majority in more than a century.

In the latest race to be called, Republican Rep. Michelle Steel lost her Orange County seat, while Rep. John Duarte now trails his Democratic challenger in his Fresno-area district. If Mr. Duarte loses, Republicans would hold nine of 52 House seats in the Golden State. The Democratic gerrymander in California, plus those in New York (19-7 Democratic to GOP seats), Illinois (14-3) and Massachusetts (9-0), mean four states will deliver 85 of the Democratic total of 215 seats. The GOP could have as few as 220.

Overdose deaths are dropping. So why is Trump applying tariffs which will devastate economy?

Donald Trump's Tariff Threat Could Devastate Texas

 https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trumps-tariff-threat-could-devastate-texas-1993250

Economists have warned Donald Trump's plan to impose a 25 percent tariff on all products entering the United States from Mexico and Canada could have a dramatic impact on the economy of Texas, with one predicting it would cost 370,000 jobs in the Lone Star State.