EVERY SIGNATURE MATTERS - THIS BILL MUST PASS!
CLICK - GOAL - 100,000 NEW SIGNATURES! 75,000 SIGNATURES HAVE ALREADY BEEN SUBMITTED TO GOVERNOR CUOMO!
EFF Urges Court to Block Dragnet Subpoenas Targeting Online Commenters
CLICK! For the full motion to quash: http://www.eff.org/files/filenode/hersh_v_cohen/UOJ-motiontoquashmemo.pdf
Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Chief Rabbi --- What's Next? - I Never Even Heard of Meron? I heard of Moron, but not Meron!
Rabbi of holy sites tells Meron probe: I had no authority over Lag B’Omer events
Shmuel Rabinovitch testifies before commission into Israel’s worst peacetime disaster: ‘They didn’t tell us there was an issue with the passageway. Nobody brought it up to us’
Western
Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch testifies before the Meron Disaster
Inquiry Committee in Jerusalem, on August 23, 2021
For the second consecutive day on Monday, the government commission investigating a deadly accident at a Jewish pilgrimage site in April heard testimony from officials involved in the oversight of Mount Meron in Israel’s north.
Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, the rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites, told the three-member panel that he didn’t know the narrow passageway that was the site of the crush was dangerous. “We didn’t know there was a problem,” he said on Monday. “They didn’t tell us there was an issue with the ‘Dov Bridge.’ Nobody brought it up to us.”
Rabinovitch spoke to the panel, headed by former Supreme Court justice Miriam Naor, almost four months after the crush at Mount Meron left 45 people dead. The April 29 incident at a Jewish festival in northern Israel was the deadliest civilian disaster in the country’s history. Around 100,000 worshipers, mostly ultra-Orthodox Jews, attended festivities despite longstanding warnings about the safety of the site and the dangers of overcrowding.
In June, the government approved the formation of an independent state commission of inquiry — composed of Naor, former Bnei Brak mayor Rabbi Mordechai Karelitz and former Israel Defense Forces planning chief Maj. Gen. (res.) Shlomo Yanai — to investigate safety shortcomings at the site.
Rabinovitch served as the head of the Committee of Five charged with overseeing the Mount Meron site, which draws enormous crowds each year on Lag B’Omer of those seeking to visit the grave of second-century sage Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. Rabinovitch repeatedly claimed that the committee was not involved with the planning of events at the site on Lag B’Omer, and did not have the authority to intervene. “If the state had told me that I was responsible for the events of Lag B’Omer, I would have immediately resigned,” he said on Monday.
He also told the panel that when the committee was established in 2008, the site was in much worse shape. “The situation there in 2008 was awful — there was no infrastructure, there was illegal building, electric cables everywhere, and every brick we tried to move set off a war,” he told the three-member panel, which is holding hearings in the Malha neighborhood of Jerusalem.
“I decided that I couldn’t give in [to demands] because the place was so dangerous. And for three years there were major changes,” Rabinovitch added, saying that the situation now is vastly improved over 2008. “Then, any child could touch an electric cable and get electrocuted.”
Victims of the April 30, 2021, Mount
Meron disaster: Top row (L-R): Chen Doron, Haim Rock, Ariel Tzadik,
Yossi Kohn, Yisrael Anakvah, Yishai Mualem, Yosef Mastorov, Elkana
Shiloh and Moshe Levy; 2nd row (L-R): Shlomo Zalman Leibowitz, Shmuel
Zvi Klagsbald, Mordechai Fakata, Dubi Steinmetz, Abraham Daniel Ambon,
Eliezer Gafner, Yosef Greenbaum, Yehuda Leib Rubin and Yaakov Elchanan
Starkovsky; 3rd row (L-R): Haim Seler, Yehoshua Englard, Moshe Natan
Neta Englard, Yedidia Hayut, Moshe Ben Shalom, David Krauss, Eliezer
Tzvi Joseph, Yosef Yehuda Levy and Yosef Amram Tauber; 4th row (L-R):
Menachem Knoblowitz, Elazar Yitzchok Koltai, Yosef David Elhadad, Shraga
Gestetner, Yonatan Hebroni, Shimon Matalon, Elazar Mordechai Goldberg,
Moshe Bergman and Daniel Morris; 5th row (L-R): Ariel Achdut, Moshe
Mordechai Elhadad, Hanoch Slod, Yedidya Fogel, Menahem Zakbah, Simcha
Diskind, Moshe Tzarfati, Nahman Kirshbaum and Eliyahu Cohen.
Naor pressed Rabinovitch to answer questions about the narrow passageway where the tragedy unfurled, as hundreds of people pressed their way to the exit and, as some began to slip and fall, leading to the deaths of 45 men and children.
“We didn’t know there was a problem. The security advisers we consulted in 2008 and after that didn’t bring up any problems with the Dov Bridge, they didn’t mention it,” said Rabinovitch on Monday. He claimed that it was possible there were no issues with the bridge throughout the majority of the year, and said that on Lag B’Omer, “I don’t really spend much time at the site.”
Rabinovitch reiterated that he had never heard of any concerns with the specific passageway, “but I thought that the entire area looks like the third world. We asked to plan and build everything from scratch,” he added. “We started work on a plan that was supposed to renovate the entire area. I didn’t know there were any problems with that bridge. Nobody brought it to my attention.”
The members of the panel further pressed the rabbi about the specific area of the Meron site where the tragedy occurred, where the Toldot Aharon sect lights a bonfire each year. Rabinovitch claimed that the lighting occurs each year without any particular oversight or approval. “I don’t approve anything — nobody even asks us,” he said.
Rabinovitch said he believed authorities should considering canceling or moving the satellite bonfire lightings at the site. “The committee was opposed to the Toldot Aharon lighting… we told them to go to a different area, but they rejected it.”
Former chief of the Supreme Court Miriam
Naor (center) heads the Meron Disaster Inquiry Committee in Jerusalem,
on August 23, 2021
He told the panel that he welcomed the state commission of inquiry, and noted that it was unfortunate that such a tragedy had to occur to establish an investigation.
“There are many different interests at play. I am also part of the bereaved families, I lost a nephew during the incident,” said Rabinovitch. “It’s a horrible tragedy, my heart is hurting.”
The commission’s proceedings kicked off on Sunday with testimony from Northern District police chief Shimon Lavi, the officer who was in charge of managing the event.
Lavi said the Mount Meron festivities were the Israel Police’s most significant annual event, requiring extensive resources, planning and preparation. He said that out of safety concerns “there has been no limitation on attendance at Meron — that’s how it has been done for the last 30 years.”
Any attempt to limit entry and put up barricades could result in “bottlenecks and much greater disasters,” he said.
Israeli rescue forces and police at the
scene of the fatal crush during Lag B’Omer celebrations on Mt. Meron, in
northern Israel, on April 30, 2021
Lavi said there had been “neglect for many years” and “a lack of understanding that the event grew over time and that the infrastructure was not adequate, but rather a kind of Band-Aid.”
In addition to Lavi and Rabinovitch, witnesses summoned by the panel include former Israel Police deputy commissioner Alon Asur; Yosef Schwinger, head of the National Center for the Development of Holy Places; Yisrael Deri, the head of the northern branch of the National Center for the Development of Holy Places; and Eli Friend, manager of the gravesite of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai.
The panel has been granted a budget of NIS 6 million ($1.83 million) to investigate how the disaster unfolded and probe the decision-making processes that authorized the event.
Monday, August 23, 2021
Not just Afghanistan or Brooklyn; you can find Taliban wherever people reject science!
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| The Chief Taliban Scientist Explaining His Law of Gravity | |
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| What medical and scientific researchers have not done is explain, in ways that the average yutz can understand, how science has always worked. |
Anti-vaxxer causes mass-infection in special needs kindergarten
An anti-vaxxer got infected with COVID-19 and sent her twins to their special needs kindergarten, sparking a mass-infection.
 |
| Anti Covid-19 vaccine injection activists protest outside a vaccination center of Magen David Adom, in Jerusalem, |
An anti-vaxxer was the source of a mass-infection of
COVID-19 in a special needs kindergarten in Ra’anana last week, Ynet
reported.
The
infection was discovered when the kindergarten teacher wrote in the
parents' WhatsApp group that one of the staff had been infected, and so
all the children needed to be put in isolation.
"It
was the last week of kindergarten in any case, so we all immediately
got tested and went into isolation," one of the mothers told Ynet.
But another mother, who has twins in the kindergarten, refused to isolate her kids.
"I
refuse to put the children into isolation, and I won't get them
tested," she wrote in the WhatsApp group. "I won't take part in this
madness, I'm sorry, it's enough."
After
a short argument with her ex-husband in the WhatsApp group, the
ex-husband wrote: "Get well soon, Nurit. I hope you're recovering well
from COVID-19." The woman immediately left the group.
The next day, the parents received the results of their kids' tests, and many of them were positive.
"We
went back through the messages and realized that she was the one who
infected them," a different mother told Ynet. "We went into her Facebook
and discovered that she clearly wrote there that she has been sick
since the 9th. She still sent her twins to kindergarten. They're also
infected now."
| Jerusalem’s new Shalva National Center for children with disabilities |
The
other parents were outraged. "The kids in this kindergarten are taught
that their lives will be tangled with difficult experiences," a mother
told Ynet.
"One
moment before they are meant to go on holiday, this woman ruins it for
everyone. How can a person do that? To endanger the kids, their families
and the staff that gives their heart and soul to these children?
There's a teacher there who is over 70 [years old]."
The mother added that she also blames the ex-husband. "It doesn't matter that they're separated. He cooperated with her."
The
mother filed a complaint with the police against the infected woman,
who she says constantly posts anti-vaxxer posts on Facebook and has
called the coronavirus pandemic a scam.
The kindergarten teacher reported the infected woman and filed a complaint against her to the Education Ministry.
Another parent at the kindergarten told Ynet that they didn't sleep that night because of their anger and frustration.
"More
than we worried about the kids, we worried about the staff," the father
said. "There are elderly people there, and a pregnant woman. Throughout
the pandemic, they worked for the kids because they need a routine.
This kindergarten has no masks because of its unique nature, and no
social distancing and the staff agreed to take the risk. It's a staff of
angels."
The
father added that the staff took it very hard because they could not
believe they were put in this position after everything they do for the
kids.
He also told
Ynet that there were other incidents with the infected woman where she
did not heed the restrictions and was told off many times.
In
a statement to Ynet, the infected woman said that she was infected by a
vaccinated woman and reported it to the Health Ministry.
"I've
been sitting at home for two weeks. I got seriously ill, and I haven't
seen my kids," she said. "They've been with their father, not me.
"The
Israeli people have become a people of snitches. I have no connection
to the outbreak in the kindergarten. My kids have a carer, and he's also
sick. He's a vaccinated person who infected my mother and my kids. I am
not vaccinated, and I got to the point where I was on the verge of
death."
The woman
added that her kids "were part of a vaccination experiment conducted by
pharmaceutical companies. That's why they have autism. It's true about
all the kids in the kindergarten."
The kindergartens do not yet have a date for reopening and are expected to be kept closed until after Rosh Hashana.
The
Education Ministry meanwhile reported that any teacher who is
unvaccinated and untested will not be allowed to enter the schools.
Sunday, August 22, 2021
Rabbi Yaakov David Klar allegedly carried out his abuse while he was a social worker at Chai Lifeline, a national Jewish social services provider, and as a teacher at the Yeshiva Kehillath Yaakov in Monsey, N.Y., also known as Cheder Chabad
Lawsuit: Monsey rabbi sexually assaulted children — and his bosses covered it up
 | ||
| Rabbi Yaakov David Klar speaking at a 2011 Chai Lifeline event in Boro Park about coping with trauma. |
A New York rabbi sexually assaulted children while he was supposed to be treating them for mental health issues, and the prominent Jewish institutions he worked for covered it up, claims a lawsuit filed August 13 in New York.
Rabbi Yaakov David Klar allegedly carried out his abuse while he was a social worker at Chai Lifeline, a national Jewish social services provider, and as a teacher at the Yeshiva Kehillath Yaakov in Monsey, N.Y., also known as Cheder Chabad, Yeshiva Tzion Yosef or Pupa.
Klar allegedly began years of abuse of the plaintiff in 2002, when the lawsuit alleges the yeshiva already knew or should have known of the rabbi’s predatory history.
After other people at those institutions reported earlier assaults, the lawsuit alleges, the defendants continued to allow Klar to be around children.
Only later did they enter a “secret arrangement” to allow Klar to leave quietly — and they never reported his suspected actions to the authorities, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit says the plaintiff, identified as John Doe, has suffered physical, emotional, and psychological damage as a result of Klar’s actions, and seeks monetary compensation from Klar, Chai Lifeline and the yeshiva.
The lawsuit was filed under the Child Victims Act, which extends the statute of limitations for child sex crimes and established a look-back window for survivors whose statute of limitations had previously expired. The window for filing on CVA cases closed Aug. 14.
While the lawsuit does not say when the institutions parted with Klar, a 2016 article in the New York Jewish Week identifies Klar as the co-associate director of Project C.H.A.I., Chai Lifeline’s crisis intervention, trauma and bereavement hotline.
The lawsuit says Klar used his position of trust to take advantage of children he knew were especially vulnerable.
Doe had “serious mental health issues” at the time, according to the lawsuit, which is why he was receiving treatment from Chai Lifeline.
“Despite [Klar]’s full knowledge and awareness that the Plaintiff had serious mental health issues, [Klar] criminally sexually assaulted the Plaintiff, and exposed the Plaintiff and other children and personnel to an increased risk of harm, all in a wanton and reckless disregard of the child’s, students, and/or patients’ safety,” the lawsuit says.
While the school’s willful ignorance of prior assaults has not been demonstrated the way it might with a full discovery process, the plaintiff’s attorney, Darren J. Epstein, said that abusers in other cases frequently receive such shelter from their institutions.
“Not just in yeshivas — we’re talking about Catholic churches, Episcopal churches, public schools,” Epstein said. “In all these scenarios, we have found that there have been complaints that have been made about individual perpetrators and nothing was done about it.”
When the Forward called Klar at his home for comment, the person answering the phone said he was unavailable. Calls to Chai Lifeline and the yeshiva on Friday afternoon went to voicemail.
With the lawsuit filed, the defendants now have time to put in an answer or a motion. If the case is not settled or dismissed during that period, it will proceed to the discovery phase.
Thursday, August 19, 2021
Women and girls are the first victims of fundamentalism. When you see a movement that represses women, know that it is an unhealthy one. It will prove to be repressive for society as a whole, not just women. It will maintain itself on the backs of others and at all costs, for the rules of fundamentalism mean that nothing — not even human freedom — is as valuable as the cause itself. Fight extremism the moment you see it...
Fundamentalism never dies (In Any Cult)
Fight extremism the moment you see it, for unless you are as fervent
in your beliefs as the fundamentalists are in theirs, they will
eventually come for you too
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| POSTED SIGN IN JERUSALEM - IT IS FORBIDDEN TO HAVE A FEMALE EMT RESCUE YOU - RATHER DIE OR KILL YOURSELF FIRST - IT IS TANTAMOUNT TO SLEEPING WITH SOMEONE ELSE'S WIFE (LOOSELY TRANSLATED) |
Taliban
fighters take control of the Afghan presidential palace, after the
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, in Kabul, Afghanistan,
on August 15, 2021. The man standing second from left is a former
bodyguard for Ghani
Those of us who remember the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 1996 likely recall it as a nightmare. The images that reached us were horrific, suited to a dystopia movie set in a world where extremists and misogynists ruled.
Immediately, women and girls were subject to intense oppression. The Taliban prohibited women from working, shuttered girls’ schools, made the burqa mandatory, and leaving home without a male escort illegal. Breaking these rules meant public whipping or even execution. Minorities were persecuted. Cultural treasures were destroyed.
Now, 25 years later, while we watched, city after city fell to their hordes.
Again, our hearts break for the Afghan people.
Tragically, we at home can only wait to be told how we might possibly help those in Afghanistan. But we can — and must — learn from what is happening.
1- Fundamentalism does not go away. We ignore it at our peril. Fundamentalism follows a strict interpretation of religion or ideals and sacrifices everything — and everyone — at its altar.
Fundamentalism may be briefly beaten back, but without intense education to counter deep-seated extremist beliefs, and prevent them from taking root in each generation, it won’t be defeated. It is patient and feeds on itself and others’ dismissal of it. Extremism will resurge when we are least prepared, mainly because we think we have done away with it.
2 – When someone says they want to destroy your way of life, believe them. The Western mind still refuses to understand Middle Eastern culture. The rules are different. For many in this part of the world, culture and enlightenment aren’t values — neither to appreciate nor to strive to achieve. More often, might makes right. And the one with the might makes the rules. Add to this the fundamentalist belief that the ends always justify the means, and you have a holy war. And holy wars only end one way — with the “infidels'” total defeat.
3 – Women and girls are the first victims of fundamentalism. When you see a movement that represses women, know that it is an unhealthy one. It will prove to be repressive for society as a whole, not just women. It will maintain itself on the backs of others and at all costs, for the rules of fundamentalism mean that nothing — not even human freedom — is as valuable as the cause itself. Fight extremism the moment you see it, even if it doesn’t affect you. Even if you may benefit from it…for unless you are as fervent in your belief as the fundamentalists are in theirs, they will eventually come for you too.
4 – Where women and girls are secondary to men, have value only in relation to men, when men restrict women’s movement, deny girls and women education, and dictate their dress — this is not culture, this is control. The noble Western call for “cultural sensitivity” cannot be applied when it comes to abuse. There can be no tolerance for abuse in the name of culture. When a society cannot make room for women at the helm, when it chafes at women’s accomplishments, when it removes their rights and freedoms, it is deeply, deeply flawed.
5- Do not analyze conflicts, issues, and situations solely from your own lens. Understand that the way that you see something, from your perspective, with your history — individual and collective — with your education and experience, is not the way others will. Listen to the people affected by the issues and help if you can, but don’t dictate your solution to the people who live the problem. This applies just as much to your local community as it does to the global one.
6 – Recognize the stakes. Understand your opponents and what will happen if they win. People are shocked at the Taliban’s success, and at the speed with which they achieved it. But, recall #1, fundamentalism doesn’t die on its own. They have waited, stockpiling both weapons and fervor for decades, for the moment they could strike. In a power vacuum, the strongest, most ruthless, most committed will win. Remember that when someone screams, “End the occupation” or “Free, free Palestine.” What is the plan for this demand that Israel withdraw on its own? Who comes in to fill the breech if Israel moves out, as it did in Gaza…? Slogans are great for protests and the ego of the social justice warrior. But real change needs real planning, as well as a reality check– see #7.
7- Understand reality. Accept what *is* and not what you wish would be. Policies and decisions cannot be made on ideals alone. They must be grounded in fact. No matter how much we might want things to be different, we need to deal with what is — and plan for when things go wrong.
What does this mean for us, for those of us who are lucky enough to be far from Afghanistan? To what extent, if at all, we will be able to help the Afghanis remains to be seen. But we can learn from their experience of the past weeks, on the heels of the past 20 years. We can identify areas of our own worlds that need improvement, recognize when we are up against a version of fundamentalism (as above), and focus our energies on the change we want to see.
Ask:
- What do we see — what is the problem we want to solve?
- What are the policies that bring harm?
- Who needs help and what do they need?
- How can we suggest changes that will be accepted?
- Who are our allies in this struggle?
- Who are our opponents and what are their goals?
- What are the challenges in our path?
- How do we set goals we can actually achieve?
- What does change look like practically — and how do we get there?
Whether fighting antisemtism, advocating for peace, championing minority rights, or even fighting the Taliban — whatever your cause, these questions are the foundation of what must be asked and answered.
If we want to do something with the pain we feel for the people of Afghanistan, we should choose something local to sink our teeth into. While we may not be able to help the Afghanis right now, we can make a difference for the people around us.
Turn off the news. Look up. Go change your world.
Wednesday, August 18, 2021
Tuesday, August 17, 2021
Cry Me A River ---- "He also said vaccines had been developed “through the use of the cell lines of aborted fetuses” and that “a kind of microchip needs to be placed under the skin of every person, so that any moment he or she can be controlled by the state regarding health and about other matters which we can only imagine”.
Vaccine skeptic US cardinal on ventilator after Covid diagnosis
Cardinal Raymond Burke: ‘Please pray for me’
Maya Yang in New York
Last modified on Mon 16 Aug 2021 11.19 EDT
Cardinal Raymond Burke, a staunch conservative in the US Catholic church who has emerged as a leading critic of Pope Francis and a vaccine skeptic, was placed on a ventilator just days after testing positive for Covid-19.“Doctors are encouraged by his progress,” the cardinal’s official Twitter account announced. Supporters were asked to “pray the Rosary for him”.
The 73-year-old, who has frequently been seen maskless in Rome, where he lives, tested positive last Wednesday while visiting Wisconsin.
Burke said then: “Thanks be to God, I am resting comfortably and receiving excellent medical care. Please pray for me as I begin my recovery. Let us trust in Divine Providence. God bless you.”
Last May, Burke spoke out forcefully against Covid-19 vaccines, saying: “It must be clear that vaccination itself cannot be imposed, in a totalitarian manner, on citizens.”
He also said vaccines had been developed “through the use of the cell lines of aborted fetuses” and that “a kind of microchip needs to be placed under the skin of every person, so that any moment he or she can be controlled by the state regarding health and about other matters which we can only imagine”.
Experts on health and misinformation have repeatedly debunked such conspiracy theories.
Cardinal Burke has not said if he has been vaccinated.
The former archbishop of St Louis was made a cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010 but demoted from a senior Vatican position by Pope Francis in 2014.
Burke is often seen as the ringleader of a faction opposed to Francis, whom he has publicly challenged on issues including abortion and homosexuality.
In an interview with Buzzfeed in 2014, for example, Burke criticised Francis’s liberal beliefs on homosexuality, claiming he had “done a lot of harm”.
In 2015, Burke said the Catholic church had developed an increasingly “feminized environment”, saying: “Men are often reluctant to become active in the Church. The … lack of the Church’s effort to engage men has led many men to simply opt out.”
The cardinal, who has had strong ties with the former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, has also spoken out against immigration, saying: “To resist large-scale Muslim immigration in my judgement is to be responsible.”
Monday, August 16, 2021
These radicals have no place within the ultra-Orthodox community; they have no place in Judaism; and they have no place in Israel. They need to be isolated and excommunicated.
We Must Uproot Religious Extremism From Israel
by Eli Beer
Candles are seen during a vigil for the people killed and injured in a stampede
On July 14, unidentified ultra-Orthodox extremists vandalized and destroyed a memorial that was set up to commemorate the deaths of 45 people, most of whom were from the ultra-Orthodox community, at the site of the deadly stampede in Meron.
The memorial had been erected on the outside wall of United Hatzalah’s medical clinic, which was a few meters away from where the tragedy occurred during the Lag Ba’Omer festival. This desecration is a terrible insult to the families of those who perished. And it represents an extremism that, unfortunately, has continued to fester inside some communities in Israel.
Meron was the worst civilian tragedy in Israel’s history, and every Jew in Israel — religious and secular alike — took it to heart. People all over the country lined up for hours to donate blood after the tragedy. Everyone wanted to do what they could to help in the face of this horrible disaster.
It seems that the only ones who didn’t connect to the tragedy were the extremist radicals in the ultra-Orthodox community, who comprise a very small group of people who are making a chilul Hashem and giving the rest of the ultra-Orthodox community a bad name.
Groups like Neturei Karta and similar extremists are destroying the upstanding reputation of the Orthodox community in Israel, which birthed an overwhelming number of chessed organizations that help everyone in Israel, ultra-Orthodox and non-Orthodox, Jewish and non-Jewish alike. These organizations include Yedidim, Ezer MIzion, Yad Sarah, our organization, and many others. The amount of volunteering that takes place in Israel by people who simply want to help others is unmatched anywhere else in the world.
These small groups of extremists, who are really akin to idol worshipers, care more about controlling the site of Meron than they do about people’s lives. When they saw the faces of those who were killed in the tragedy and heard that the government was planning an investigation, they took matters into their own hands and lashed out by desecrating the memorial that had been set up for the fallen.
They had no remorse or kindness for the families of the victims — no qualms about disgracing the memory of 45 holy Jews who died celebrating a Jewish festival; one that the ultra-Orthodox community, in particular, celebrates widely.
Video footage showing these radicals tearing down the memorial was sent to me by a very special person, Aryeh Morris, the father of Donny Morris, a beloved boy who was one of the 45 people who died in the tragedy. I was so angry when I saw it that I had no words. I was devastated, but not nearly as devastated as Donny’s family was. I was embarrassed to no end by the actions of others who claim to have a Jewish heart. I don’t understand how someone with a Jewish heart, who comes from a community that upholds the Jewish ideals of kindness and chessed, could do such a thing. What’s worse, the incident occurred during the nine days before Tisha B’Av.
Until we eradicate such people from within our society, we need to look no further to understand why the third temple has not been built. These radicals have no place within the ultra-Orthodox community; they have no place in Judaism; and they have no place in Israel. They need to be isolated and excommunicated.
We really don’t want to get to where other countries are, having to fight radicalism among our own populations. We are a peaceful country with a people who are filled with loving-kindness. Therefore, it is imperative that each of us weed out radicalism wherever we find it, in all of its forms. We must be successful, or we will bear the consequences for generations to come.
Eli Beer is the father of five children, a social entrepreneur, and president and founder of United Hatzalah of Israel, an independent, non-profit, fully volunteer EMS organization that provides fast and free emergency first response throughout Israel. Last year he almost lost his life to Covid-19 while in Miami.
https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/08/15/we-must-uproot-religious-extremism-from-israel/
Sunday, August 15, 2021
Some people are complaining, “Well, my freedom is being kind of disturbed here.” Well, I told them, “Screw your freedom.” You have the freedom to wear no mask. But if you exercise that freedom, you’re a schmuck—because you’re supposed to protect your fellow Americans.
Don’t Be a Schmuck. Put on a Mask.
Generations of Americans made incredible sacrifices, and we’re going to throw fits about putting a mask over our mouth and nose?
Earlier this week, I delivered a simple message: There is a virus here. It kills people. The only way you can prevent it is to get vaccinated, wear masks, and do social distancing.
Some people are complaining, “Well, my freedom is being kind of disturbed here.” Well, I told them, “Screw your freedom.” You have the freedom to wear no mask. But if you exercise that freedom, you’re a schmuck—because you’re supposed to protect your fellow Americans.
I’ll admit, calling people schmucks and saying “Screw your freedom” was a little much, even if I stand by the sentiment. But there is nothing that I’m more passionate about than keeping America great, and it’s the only subject that can make me lose my temper.
I knew I’d be called a RINO, but that doesn’t bother me. Honestly, rhinos are beautiful, powerful animals, so I take that as a compliment. I anticipated being called a Nazi and a Communist. But I’ve got thick skin stretched over my metal endoskeleton, so I knew I could take it.
But some of the responses really worried me. Many people told me that the Constitution gives them rights, but not responsibilities. They feel no duty to protect their fellow citizens.
That’s when I realized we all need a civics lesson. I can’t help but wonder how much better off we’d be if Americans took a step back from politics and spent a minute thinking about how lucky we are to call this country home. Instead of tweeting, we could think about what we owe to the patriots who came before us and those who will follow us.
I am not an academic, but I can tell you that selfishness and dereliction of duty did not make this country great. The Constitution aimed to “promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity.” It’s right there in our founding document. We need to think beyond our selfish interests.
I am an immigrant. This country gave me everything. I often tell people not to call me self-made; I prefer to call myself American-made. My success would have been impossible without the principles of the United States and the generosity of Americans.
I could just keep making more money, but that would be selfish. I feel a responsibility to do everything I can to help this country remain great. That’s why I traveled to all 50 states as the chair of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports on my own dime, that’s why I accept every invitation to visit our troops, that’s why I’ve invested millions to create a nationwide after-school program, and that’s why I walked away from $30 million movie deals to serve as governor of California for no salary. And even after all that, I’ll be paying down the debt I owe America for the rest of my life.
It’s up to all of us to recognize that the great privilege we have of being Americans comes with the great responsibility to keep this country No. 1.
I often think about how many Americans sacrificed to make this country great. John Adams wrote that “it was the Duty of a good Citizen to sacrifice all to his Country.” Or, as the classic film Team America taught us: “Freedom isn’t free.”
Every generation has heroes who have put the country ahead of themselves. From the men who left their families at home to fight for independence to the teenagers who shipped over to Europe and the Pacific to fight fascism, our history is defined by sacrifice. From the fields of Gettysburg to the beaches of Normandy, our country’s greatness is steeped in duty. From women’s suffrage to the civil-rights movement, our nonstop efforts at creating a more perfect union are underwritten by the men and women who were willing to give up everything for the United States.
Our country began with a willingness to make personal sacrifices for the collective good. It’s right there in the closing line of the Declaration of Independence: “We mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” Almost two centuries later, John F. Kennedy posed his famous challenge: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” Our country became great because every generation before us knew that liberty and duty go hand in hand. I am worried that many of my fellow Americans have now lost sight of that.
When I look at the response to this pandemic, I really worry about the future of our country. We have lost more than 600,000 Americans to COVID-19. Are we really this selfish and angry? Are we this partisan?
George Washington wrote, “Every post is honorable in which a man can serve his country.” When we wear a mask or get a vaccine, we are serving our country and our fellow citizens.
When people call this fascism, I can’t stand it. Just a few generations ago, this country stood up to real fascism. (And yes, I know that my father was on the wrong side of that conflict.) And we didn’t win just because of our love of freedom. We won because Americans came together and did their duty.
Americans accepted the rationing of food and gasoline to win that war. Mothers and fathers sent their kids off knowing it could be the last time they saw them. Women worked tirelessly in factories to make the weapons our troops needed. Americans lived through four years of brutal sacrifice, and we’re going to throw fits about putting a mask over our mouth and nose?
“Wearing a mask is nothing compared with what we were going through then,” one member of that generation, Bill Platts, recently told the Idaho Statesman. “It’s so comical nowadays to think that somebody won’t wear a mask when in those days they would do anything for the United States.”
We are fighting a war against what President Donald Trump correctly called an “invisible enemy.” Hospitals are once again filling up in some states. Deaths are rising.
Some people want to create an alternative America, where we have no responsibility to one another. That America has never existed. They may tell you that what we are doing to fight the war against the coronavirus is unprecedented. They’re full of crap. They are lying to you because they make money from your anger.
As Americans, we have agreed to vaccinations to eradicate diseases since George Washington mandated the smallpox inoculation for his troops. “Upon the principle of self-defense, of paramount necessity, a community has the right to protect itself against an epidemic of disease which threatens the safety of its members,” the Supreme Court said in 1905, in a ruling supporting vaccine mandates.
We need to protect ourselves and win this war. We don’t need to close our economies again. We just need to come together like the generations of Americans who came before us, and to give just a tiny fraction of what they gave.
We need to prove to ourselves and to the world that we can unite to defeat a common enemy, because, trust me, the coronavirus is not the biggest challenge we will face this century.
What will you do for your country?
Arnold Schwarzenegger was the 38th governor of California.
Thursday, August 12, 2021
Get Vaccinated or Face Severe Consequences Here and in Israel!
Health officials predict thousands of seriously ill COVID patients within month
Bennett reportedly agrees to expand hospital capacity after being presented with numbers showing hospitalizations quadrupling by mid-September; funding for plan unclear
Shaare
Zedek hospital team members wearing safety gear as they work in the
coronavirus ward
Israeli hospitals have to prepare for an influx of nearly 5,000 coronavirus patients within weeks, half of whom will need acute care to deal with severe bouts of COVID-19, health officials have warned Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, according to reports Wednesday.
The dire predictions came during a Tuesday meeting between Bennett and senior health experts amid a major influx of new cases, prompting the premier to back a plan to expand hospital capacity, a signal that the government will look to absorb the crush of severe cases head-on rather than attempt to swerve out of its way.
Senior Health Ministry officials and other experts presented Bennett with data forecasting some 4,800 coronavirus patients requiring hospitalization by September 10. The experts expect half of the patients to be seriously ill, putting a major strain on Israel’s health system, according to Hebrew-language media reports on the closed-door meeting.
Israel has seen new case numbers skyrocket in recent weeks from a few dozen a day to over 6,000 on Monday. Another 5,755 were diagnosed on Tuesday, the Health Ministry said Wednesday morning, bringing the number of active cases to 38,942.
Ministry numbers showed 694 patients hospitalized as of Wednesday morning, 400 of whom were listed in serious condition. Sixty-two people were being treated on ventilators.
The predictions from the health experts were based on a doubling of the number of hospitalizations and serious illnesses every 10 days.
Bennett and Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz agreed to pump money into the health system to bring in 100 more doctors, 500 nurses and 200 paramedical and support staff every 10 days to keep up with growing demand, according to a summary of the meeting drafted by the Prime Minister’s Office and published by the Ynet news site.
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Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, center,
watches a resident of the Migdal Nofim retirement home in Jerusalem be
tested for the coronavirus on July 27, 2021
Some 3,000 students will also be hired and paramedics and military medics will be brought in to carry out home visits and assist in home treatment for coronavirus patients.
Special summer camps and afterschool care will be provided for the children of health workers to free up their time.
The plan will also increase the capabilities of the geriatric care system and boost the ability of HMOs to treat patients at home in order to ease the load on hospitals.
During the third wave of the virus, which crested in January with some 10,000 new daily cases, health officials warned that the health system would be unable to cope if the number of seriously ill patients rose above 800. At the pandemic’s peak, nearly 1,200 patients were listed in serious condition, and some 50 people died each day.
Hospital internal ward heads told Health Ministry Director Nachman Ash Wednesday that they were already dealing with “heavy crowding,” and feared beds in their units would be moved to coronavirus wards, worsening the pressure, the Health Ministry said in a statement.
A health care worker tests Israelis for
coronavirus at a drive-through complex in Rehovot
The proposal is estimated to cost between NIS 1.5 billion to NIS 2 billion ($465 million to $620 million), Channel 12 reported. Bennett was to meet later Wednesday with the heads of the country’s hospitals to present them with the plan, Ynet reported.
While the source of the money has yet to be determined, Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman has promised on numerous occasions to fund hospitals in order to increase capacity and deal with the rising case numbers.
Liberman, who has likened COVID-19 to the flu, and other government officials see expanding the ability of the health system to deal with thousands more patients as key to pursuing its policy of avoiding lockdowns or strict restrictions that could harm the economy, seeking to “live with” the virus and vaccinate where possible rather than attempt to eradicate it from public life.
Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked came under fire Tuesday after appearing to brush aside the pandemic’s human toll while defending the government’s stance, telling Channel 13 news that “we have to to know how to accept severe cases and also to accept deaths, because this is a pandemic and in a pandemic people die.”
Ministers were to convene later Wednesday to discuss broadening the scope of the so-called Green Pass system to apply to most events and leisure activities. Under the system, Israelis seeking to enter most venues aside from stores will have to show proof they are vaccinated, have recovered from COVID-19, or tested negative for the virus in the past 72 hours.
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| KUDOS TO RAV YANKEL BENDER SHLITA |
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