November 10, 2020 - 23 Cheshvan 5781
News from the Agudah:
We are disappointed to report that the U.S. Court of Appeals did not grant a preliminary injunction in the Agudah's ongoing litigation in New York State.20-3572-CV IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT AGUDATH ISRAEL OF AMERICA, AGUDATH ISRAEL OF KEW GARDEN HILLS, AGUDATH ISRAEL OF MADISON, RABBI YISROEL REISMAN
file:///C:/Users/Owner/AppData/Local/Temp/appeal.pdf
Waiting for another ludicrous piece in the Low Klass Jewish Press where Avi BullSchick spins it as a "victory".
ReplyDeleteA Democrat in a decisive Senate run-off election is pushing back against accusations of anti-Israel bias after footage of a sermon he gave 2 years ago criticizing Israel surfaced online.
ReplyDelete“I unabashedly echo Dr. King’s declaration that ‘Israel’s right to exist is incontestable,'” Rev Raphael Warnock wrote in an op-ed Monday, referring to civil rights figure Martin Luther King Jr.
The editorial was published by Jewish Insider hours after his sermon was flagged.
Warnock gave the speech as pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, King’s old congregation. He's running to replace Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler, who was appointed to the seat after Johnny Isakson resigned. A special election will be held Jan 5 & is expected to be closely contested.
In the speech, Warnock lamented the “tough week” in which the US opened its embassy in Jerusalem as Palestinians in Gaza marched to the border in protest.
“Standing there were the president’s family & a few mealy-mouthed evangelical preachers who are responsible for the mess we find ourselves in, both there & here — misquoting & misinterpreting Scripture, talking peace.”
“Meanwhile, young Palestinian sisters & brothers, who struggle for their very lives, for water & for their human dignity stood up in non-violent (sic) protest, saying, ‘If we’re gonna die, we’re gonna die strugglin’ And yes, there've been some folk who were violent, but we oughta know how that works out. We know what it’s like to stand up peacefully & have the media focus on a few violent uprisings. But you have to look at those Palestinian sisters & brothers, who struggle for their human dignity & have a right to self-determination, a right to breathe free.”
“We need a two-state solution,” Warnock continued. “We saw Israel shoot down unarmed Palestinian sisters & brothers like birds of prey.”
“It's wrong to shoot down God’s children like they don’t matter at all. It’s no more anti-Semitic for me to say that than it's anti-white for me to say Black lives matter. Palestinian lives matter.”
Asked for comment on the video, Warnock’s campaign told Jewish Insider that its opponents were “going thru 1000s of hours of footage trying to find a way to misrepresent who Reverend Warnock is & scare Georgians.”
In the op-ed, Warnock acknowledged he's “deeply concerned about settlements,” calling it a “threat to the two-state solution.” He vowed to advocate for Palestinians as senator, “because I want to see a Palestinian state.”
The sermon resurfaced days after a letter he signed in 2019 likening Israeli control of the West Bank to “previous oppressive regimes” was picked up by Jewish Insider.
Published by the National Council of Churches, says Israel’s “heavy militarization of the West Bank is reminiscent of military occupation of Namibia by apartheid South Africa.”
“We felt Palestinian fear that gives rise to a paradoxical combination of despair & hopeful resolve in a grinding & dehumanizing existence,” the letter read.
In his op-ed, Warnock rejects accusations he likened Israel to South Africa.
Warnock’s opponent, Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler, accused the reverend of having “a long history of anti-Israel extremism.”
“He embraced anti-Zionist Black Lives Matter. And he thinks Israel is an ‘oppressive regime’ for fighting back against terrorism,” she tweeted.
The Warnock campaign didn't immediately respond to a request for further comment
Woohoo!
ReplyDeleteThe US hit a record number of virus hospitalizations Tues & surpassed 1 million new cases just the 1st 10 days of Nov amid a nationwide surge of infections that shows no signs of slowing.
The US on Tues far exceeded its previous daily record of new infections, adding 201,961 cases in 24 hours, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The high number took total cases to 10,238,243, with 239,588 deaths.
For a week now, new infections trend at 100,000+ each day. There are 61,964 hospitalized.
The new wave is bigger & more widespread than surges in the spring & summer & threatens to be worse.
Several states posted records Tues, including 12,600+ new cases in Illinois, 10,800+ in Texas & 7,000+ in Wisconsin.
Deaths — a lagging indicator, as it takes time for people to get sick & die — are climbing again, to an average 930+ a day.
Hospitals are getting slammed. Unlike the earlier outbreaks, it's not confined to a region or two.
“The virus is spreading largely uncontrolled across the vast majority of the country,” said Dr. William Schaffner, infectious-disease expert @ Vanderbilt University.
Governors made increasingly desperate pleas for people to take the virus seriously.
In an unusual prime-time speech, Democrat Gov Tony Evers advised people to stay in their homes, businesses to allow working remotely, require masks & limit people in stores + offices.
Minnesota Democrat Gov Tim Walz ordered bars & restaurants to close 10 pm & Iowa GOP Gov Kim Reynolds required masks at indoor gatherings of 25+, inching to stringent measures after months of holding out.
Researchers estimate deaths will hit 400,000 by Feb 1, up from 240,000 now.
Even in parts of the country that have been thru virus surges before, people let their guard down, Schaffner said.
“There really is COVID fatigue,” he said.
Short-term outlook's grim, with cold weather, Thanksgiving, Xmas & New Year’s. Generations of family members gathering indoors for extended meals “is no recipe for anything good,” Hanage said.
Other factors can contribute virus spread in coming weeks: Last weekend's big street celebrations & protests over the election. On Sat night, an upset victory by Notre Dame sent 1000s of students swarming on the field without masks.
Experts are increasingly alarmed about virus resurgence in places like Massachusetts, which sees a dramatic rise in cases since Labor Day, blamed largely on socializing.
GOP Gov Charlie Baker warns the health care system will be overwhelmed this winter. He ordered restaurants stop table service, required many businesses to close by 9:30 pm & imposed curfew from 10 pm-5 am.
Brooke Nichols, professor & infectious-disease math modeler @ Boston University, said the gov’s actions don’t go far enough.
“With exponential growth, throw the kitchen sink at it,” Nichols said.
Meanwhile, leaders in new virus hot spots do less. In hard-hit S Dakota, Gov Kristi Noem's clear she won't institute a mask requirement & voiced doubt in experts who say masks prevent infections.
Even higher case & death rates are seen in N Dakota, where many refuse to wear masks. Gov Doug Burgum pleads to do so & praised towns & cities mandating masks. But he avoids requiring masks himself.
“It goes along lines if people try to prevent it, vs those who say, ‘Let it rip,’” said Dr. Howard Markel, public health historian @ University of Michigan.
Jewish Press: Yellow Journalism with Blue Ink!
ReplyDeletehttps://nypost.com/2020/11/10/pope-john-paul-ii-promoted-theodore-mccarrick-despite-abuse-claims-vatican-says/
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to rub shoulders with this Mick!
The bigger the tzeylem slung around these galochim, the better!
It's about time the Londoner Fressers started producing more than just nominal results. They were acting until now like they don't have to pull their own weight when most Fressers have been mamash shteiging in this parsha. And what took so long with Vanuatu? What are the Chabadskers waiting for with all these yehupitzes? Every kranker helps!
ReplyDeleteAFP
More than 50,000 people who tested positive for coronavirus in Britain have now died, official figures showed Wednesday, with another 595 fatalities recorded in the last 24 hours.
Britain’s death toll now stands at 50,365, the highest in Europe, with another 22,950 testing positive for the disease over the last day, according to govt data.
A 2nd wave of the pandemic prompted the UK govt to impose a 4-week national shutdown this month, ordering people to stay at home & most businesses to close. It's due to end Dec 2.
The virus caseload is also soaring in the US, where a record 200,000+ new COVID cases were registered Tues & another 1,535 people lost their lives in 24 hours.
Texas has become the first US state with 1+ million COVID cases, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The 2nd-most populous state recorded 1,010,364 cases with 19,337 deaths since the pandemic began.
On Tues, 6,867 new deaths were recorded worldwide, with the highest daily tolls in France, Spain & the US.
The US remains the hardest-hit nation at 10+ million cases & nearly 240,000 deaths, with shocking new data now including a record 60,000+ current hospitalizations.
The virus is reaching the farthest corners of the earth, with the tiny Pacific Ocean state of Vanuatu reporting its 1st case, ending its status as one of the few remaining virus-free countries.
In Europe, which suffered 317,525 deaths from 13,330,000 infections, many countries are struggling with a surging 2nd wave.
The virus has claimed at least 1,275,113 lives worldwide, according to AFP, with 51+ million cases across the globe.
Italy’s trailblazing rapid tests, roughly 90% accurate, have done little to stop an outbreak that rocketed from 500 cases a day in Aug, when they were rolled out, to 35,000+ now - with infections set to top 1 million on Wed.
Former Health Ministry director-general Moshe Bar Siman-Tov warns govt policy exiting lockdown to curb virus spread is misguided & will lead to another wave of infections, the 3rd since the start.
ReplyDelete“Morbidity is on the rise & we're making the same mistakes as last time,” Bar Siman-Tov said, referring to the exit from a previous lockdown that was followed by a 2nd, larger wave of infections.
Bar Siman-Tov resigned as Ministry DG in May after leading the nation’s response to the 1st wave. His resignation came days after the cabinet voted against his recommendation to significantly ease restrictions thru the country, a move widely seen now as a mistake.
In an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth, Bar Siman-Tov said an effective strategy to prevent spread in schools is key to success & predicted despite encouraging trials, there will be no vaccine before the end of winter.
There are “signs that indicate a 3rd wave” is coming, Bar Siman-Tov said & advised officials to keep the spread at a controllable level.
“The vector was & remains education,” Bar Siman-Tov said, criticizing the current arrangement in which children grades 1-4 study in pods of students who are kept separate during studies, but in afterschool care programs members of as many as three pods are permitted to mingle.
“It's as though we're doing nothing to keep students separated,” he said.
“Aftercare's the weak point, because that's where they mingle,” he continued. “That's the most significant thing in my opinion.”
The education system's blamed as a major contributor to the spike in infections that followed the previous lockdown.
Any further opening of the education system should only be done with separated pods, Bar Siman-Tov advised.
Regarding virus czar Ronni Gamzu’s so-called traffic light plan to divide the country into color-coded areas based on local infections, Bar Siman-Tov said the method can only ever be partially effective because restrictions are never hermetic.
“In Jerusalem, many workers in green areas come from red areas. It can't be prevented. Israel is one epidemiological cell. If tomorrow the govt approves a wedding with 50 people, they'll come from all regions.”
With winter approaching, flu, which has been serious the last 2 years, could burden the system, impacting “very good to excellent” level of care that virus patients have.
“Is hospital inefficiency a possibility? If there's serious flu alongside the virus, it could happen,” Bar Siman-Tov said.
“Winter's the biggest challenge for the health system,” predicting there'll be no vaccine available until after the coldest season of the year.
“It's important to understand we'll spend the coming winter without the vaccine.”
There have been 320,849 cases in Israel since the start of the outbreak and 2,683 people have died.
Just when the current virus surge is twice as bad as the original at Pesach time, yeshivos & Bais Yaakovs are doubling up with their Agudah Fresser-mandated harassment of remote learners, trying even harder to force them back into the classrooms.
ReplyDeleteBecause of certain dynamics, the situation is worse in the Bais Yaakovs over boys yeshivos. Some of the yenta Morahs who are lazy & selfish types to begin with and got wind of the Fresser scheme are being "mehader" by making it even worse than whatever achzoriyus they were already asked to do. When the Hanhalos get complaints about the machmirim they do nothing about it, chalking it up as the machshayfos just doing the retzoin haFressers anyway.
The heartless Hanhalos are now telling mishpochos that yes we are fully aware that we are setting up the remote learners to fail exams. But too bad, veil azoy darft es zein al pi tzavoas Fressers. The Hanhalos were already demanding full tuition for the kids at home who have no video AND no phone hook ups to classes - this fraud is a direct order from Shmuel Kaminetzky. Now they are suggesting the parents also splurge for tutors if they want their kids to pass! And they are hinting if you temporarily switch to another yeshiva who gedolim told to use Zoom or an online yeshiva, you won't be accepted back after the pandemic.