Massad Boulos, Trump’s new Middle East adviser, touts roadmap to Palestinian state

 https://www.jpost.com/international/article-832900

Massad Boulos, President-elect Donald Trump’s advisor on Middle Eastern and Arab affairs, said that the United States would have to discuss laying out a “roadmap” to Palestinian statehood if it hopes to establish relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi officials have long made it known that they would not establish ties with Israel absent progress toward a Palestinian state. But for Boulos — a Lebanese-American billionaire and the father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Tiffany — to emphasize the point is significant because other Trump appointees, in addition to Trump himself, are seen as close to the Israeli right, which rejects Palestinian statehood.

Kash Patel Doesn’t Belong at the FBI

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/kash-patel-doesnt-belong-at-the-fbi-cabinet-nominee-5ef655eb?mod=opinion_trendingnow_article_pos1

These are but a few of many cases that touch directly on Mr. Patel’s character and his consistent approach of placing obedience to Mr. Trump above other, higher considerations—most important, loyalty to the Constitution. His conduct in Mr. Trump’s first term and thereafter indicates that as FBI director he would operate according to Lavrenty Beria’s reported comment to Joseph Stalin: “Show me the man, and I’ll show you the crime.”

Psak and Truth

 Igros Moshe (O.H. 1 Introduction): It is correct and obligatory for the sages of the latter generations to decide halacha - even if they are not qualified according to the standards of the sages of the gemora. Therefore there is definitely a concern that their halachic determinations are not in accord with the view of Heaven. However in truth we are guided by the principle that Torah is not in Heaven. Rather it is determined according to what appears correct to the rabbi after proper study of the issue to clarify the halacha according to the Talmud, and the writings of poskim. He is to use his full abilities to seriously deliberate with fear of Heaven - in order to determine what appears to be the correct halacha. Such a psak is viewed as true and he is obligated to issue his conclusion. This obligation exists even if in fact his ruling is contrary to the halacha in Heaven. His ruling is also considered the “word of the living G‑d as long as he is convinced he is correct and it is internally consistent. He will receive reward for his rulings even if the truth is not in accord with his position.This obligation and receiving of reward exists even if the ruling is not in accord with the truth. This is the nature of all disputes of the rishonim and achronim concerning what is permitted and what if prohibited. As long as a universal ruling has not been determined - each rabbi can make decisions for his followers according to that which he thinks is correct - even though the objective halacha is only in accord with one of them. Both will also receive reward for their rulings. Because of this we find much dispute also in the most severe prohibitions - with variations between places that rule like the Rambam and Beis Yosef and those that rule like Tosfos and the Rema. Both of the opposing views are “the words of the living G‑d even though the actual truth as understood by Heaven is only like one of them.

Why Putin Is The Biggest Loser of Assad's Downfall in Syria

 https://www.newsweek.com/putin-russia-syria-assad-ouster-1997617

Russia's military assets in Syria are now under threat, such as its naval base in the port city of Tartus, which gave the Kremlin a presence near NATO's southern flank in the Mediterranean Sea.

"This was their foothold in the Mediterranean, and from there out into the Atlantic—it will be a big blow to lose that," Edward Lucas, senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CPA) told Newsweek.

Without access to an air force base and a port that were linchpins for Moscow in the region, Murrett said: "Russia will not be in nearly as strong a position."

Also at risk are tactical outposts like Qamishli Airport in the northeast, while reports of thousands of stranded Russian personnel in Syria and equipment left abandoned point to the military cost for Putin. Russian troops have requested Ankara's help for for their safe exit, according to CNN Turk.

Cohen marry a giyores

 I was just informed of a major dispute in America concerning a person from an established family of cohanim who wants to marry a giyores.

There are major rabbis on both sides

Rav Moshe wrote a number of tsuvos on the matter 

E.H I # 11, E.H, IV #16, OH V  #3,EH I #25, EH IV 47, YD I #158

Why Can't a Convert Marry a Kohen?

 https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4045946/jewish/Why-Cant-a-Convert-Marry-a-Kohen.htm

When the Torah forbids a marriage, it is never because one party is not good enough for the other. It is because the parties are not matched to each other. They are simply not soulmates. In the case of the Kohen and the convert, their soul dynamics clash, their spiritual energies contradict, and so they can't marry.

Sleeping facing north: fake myth or proven reality?

 https://ostrichpillow.com/blogs/self-care-magazine/sleeping-facing-north-fake-myth-or-proven-reality?srsltid=AfmBOopJ8vsbkLkR1NFblb1fFqvGM-mSGF3HbXL2xYS_rXN2BS6diVGc

Traditions as old as Feng Shui or Vastu Shastra ensure that the geographical direction in which we sleep affects our health. Is this possible?

Invitation to Greatness

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/400504

The gleam in Rav Tzvi Yehuda Kook's eyes sparkled with extra warmth when he met with students from abroad who he hoped would move to Israel. When a Jew lives in Israel, his whole life is a mitzvah. A mitzvah which is equal in weight to all of the mitzvot of the Torah.

Murdoch loses bid to change trust in real-life 'Succession' battle

 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2ld084z8jjo

Lachan is thought to be more conservative than his siblings and would preserve the legacy of his media brands.

From the 1960s, Mr Murdoch built a global media giant with major political and public influence.

His two companies are News Corporation, which owns newspapers including the Times and the Sun in the UK and the Wall Street Journal in the US, and Fox, which broadcasts Fox News.

The Position of the Bed

 https://outorah.org/p/49936/

Berachos (5b)  Abba Binyamin would say: All of my life I have taken great pains with regard to two things: That my prayer should be before my bed and that my bed should be placed north to south.

Mishneh Torah (The Chosen Temple 7:9)  At all times, a person may not defecate or sleep [with his body positioned] between the east and the west. It is superfluous to state that one should not place a toilet between the east and the west in any place [throughout the world,] for the Temple is in the west. Therefore, one should not defecate to the west nor to the east, for it is opposite the west. Rather, we should always defecate and sleep [with our bodies] to the north and south.

Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 3:6) Likewise, it is forbidden to sleep from west to east, if one's wife is with him. And it is proper to be cautious even when one's wife is not with him.

Tur,(Orach Chaim 3)And when he sits he should orient himself so that he faces to the south with his behind to the north, but should not sit between the east and west.  However, this is specifically where he relieves himself in an open area, but in a place in which there are barriers, such as a bathroom which is in a house, he need not be so exacting. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 According to kabbala, it is actually the width of the bed which should be positioned from north to south and the length of the bed which should be positioned from east to west.[12] This arrangement is based on kabbalistic considerations relating to the placements of the "sefirot."[13] Although a number of authorities have attempted to resolve this blatant contradiction,[14] it is simply irreconcilable.[15] Even though as a general rule, whenever there is a dispute between halacha and kabbala we are to follow halacha,[16] a number of authorities feel that in this particular situation the kabbalistic approach should be followed.[17] Some authorities suggest that the whole issue of how one should position one's bed all depends on one's geographical location in the world in relation to Jerusalem.[18]

Rabbi Freifeld told me that for the bed in a room in a house it doesn't matter

Israeli military enters Golan Heights as Netanyahu warns off Syrian militants

 https://www.politico.eu/article/israeli-military-golan-heights-benjamin-netanyahu-militants-damascus-border-idf-airstrikes/

Israel’s military entered a demilitarized buffer zone in the Syrian-controlled Golan Heights on Sunday aiming to head off any threat from the insurgency that has toppled Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated.

“We will not allow any hostile force to establish itself on our border,” Netanyahu said.

Daniel Penny found not guilty of criminally negligent homicide

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/12/09/daniel-penny-trial-verdict-not-guilty/

Penny, a 26-year-old White man, was not immediately charged in the death of Neely, a 30-year-old Black man who had been struggling with drug addiction, mental illness and homelessness. Protesters and lawmakers called for his arrest after a video of him holding Neely in a minutes-long chokehold was widely disseminated. Penny turned himself in 11 days after Neely was killed.

The case sparked discussions on public safety, race relations and New York’s handling of homelessness and mental health problems. Penny’s defense centered on the claim that he acted to protect other subway passengers from Neely, leading him to become a conservative symbol for citizen crime fighting.

Marine Veteran Daniel Penny Acquitted in Subway Chokehold Case

 https://www.wsj.com/us-news/daniel-penny-acquitted-jordan-neely-subway-trial-232d500f?mod=hp_lead_pos5

Former Marine Daniel Penny was acquitted Monday of a homicide charge for choking a homeless man on a New York City subway in a case that prompted a national debate over the line between self defense and vigilantism.

A Manhattan jury found Penny, 26 years old, not guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the killing of Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old Michael Jackson impersonator with a history of mental illness.  

After several days of deliberation last week, jurors were deadlocked on second-degree manslaughter, a more serious charge that would have required they find he acted recklessly—as opposed to with negligence—and caused Neely’s death.  A judge granted prosecutors’ request to dismiss that charge so that jurors could move on to deliberations on the lesser offense. 

Disagree with Achronim or Rishonim?

 Igros Moshe (Y.D. 1:101): My dear friend you ask how is it possible to rely on new views such as I have expressed, in particular when they are against certain Achronim? Do you think that there is an end and limitation – G‑d forbid! – to Torah? Do you think that contemporary halachic decisors can only express the views that have previously been published? Do you feel that if a question comes up that has not been previously discussed and published in a book - that we should not issue an opinion - even though we understand the issue and are capable of expressing an opinion? In my humble opinion it is prohibited to say such a thing. There is no question that it is still possible for Torah to expand and develop even in our times. Therefore there is an obligation for all those who are competent to make halachic decisions, to rule on all matters that come to them to the best of their ability after solid research in the Talmud and poskim with the use of clear reasoning and proper proof. Even if this results in something new which has not been previously been discussed in the halachic works. Furthermore even if this has been previously been discussed, there is no question that a posek needs to understand it fully and to clarify it in his mind before he issues a ruling. He should not issue a ruling simply because he saw an authoritative source expressing such an opinion. This is the same as poskening mechanically from one’s notes that the gemora (Sotah 22a) condemns: Tanaim who teach halacha from their notes [without paying attention to the reasons behind them] destroy the world (see Rashi). Even if these rulings are occasionally against the views of Achronim - so what? There is no question that we have the right to disagree with Achronim and also sometimes against particular views of certain Rishonim when we have clear-cut analysis and especially also correct reasons. On such matters our Sages (Bava Basra 131a) say, “A judge can only rely on what he sees” [see the gemora with the Rashbam]. This ability to disagree is in those situations where the ruling doesn’t go against the well known decisors of the Shulchan Aruch whose views have been accepted everywhere. On a related matter it is said, “They have left us room to be creative.” This is in fact the approach of the majority of the responsa literature of the Achronim when they decide practical halachic issues. However one should not be arrogant in making halachic rulings and it is necessary to show restraint as much as possible. However in a situation of great need and surely in a situation where a woman is an agunah as in our present case – there is no question that we are obligated to make ruling when it seems that we have the basis for a permissive judgment. Furthermore it is prohibited for us to have humility and cause a Jewish woman to remain an agunah or to cause someone to violate a prohibition or even to cause someone to lose money. Study Gittin (56a) where it says that the humility of R’ Zechariya ben Avkulas caused the Temple to be destroyed. Why does the gemora blame his humility? What does this have to do with his humility? Study the Mahretz Chajes who gives a proper explanation to the matter. This is truly in agreement with what I have said. Therefore we are forced to make halachic rulings in practice when we have convincing proofs and clear understanding and especially in cases of agunah such as this. We need to remove the pitfalls.