Five Towns Jewish Home 04.04.24

Years ago, I sent my daughter to a playgroup in someone’s home. The woman who ran the playgroup was a gem of a person. She was calm. She was pleasant. She taught the children beginner concepts with such joy. My daughter came home each day so happy. One day, when I was picking up my daughter, I noticed the teacher speaking with one of the kids in the group. The child had done something that was not so nice. “That’s not very menschlech,” she told him. “Let’s do that another way,” she suggested.

I loved how she used that phrase to persuade the child to fix his ways. After hearing that, I tried to use that concept at home, to use the word “menschlech” when teaching my kids about how to become better people.

Lots have been written about Sen. Joe Lieberman, a”h, who passed away last week. Most articles spoke about his role in the Senate, his parting with the Democrat Party on certain issues, and his adherence to conservative values. Some listed his accolades and his degrees, his voting record and his famous quotes. But the articles that were written by people who knew him and had a personal relationship with him reinforced the impression that he was known as a “mensch.”

Few politicians can be associated with that term. In fact, I would say that politics is the antithesis of menschlechkeit. It’s

more about backstabbing and backroom deals. But Joe Lieberman rose above those stereotypes, working to ensure that his politics fit into the wrappings of being mensch.

I would say that being a mensch in Washington and maintaining that honor requires extreme fortitude and determination. With the winds of deceitfulness, corruption and immorality blowing fiercely, you need to stay strong to buffet those powerful forces. But Joe Lieberman managed to preserve those values despite the whirlpool of depravity he was in.

According to the dictionary, a mensch is “a person of integrity and honor.” But Yiddish terms don’t generally translate well into English. A mensch is way more than someone who acts with integrity and honor. It’s a person whose values are synonymous with thinking of others, a person whose principles are aligned with Torah values, a person who has a keen sense of what is right and acts upon those beliefs.

When we ask our children to “act like a mensch,” we’re asking them to display the Torah values and the sense of ethics that we have taught them by example. We’re asking them to be the face of a kiddush Hashem to the world. We’re asking them to be the beacon of light for the nations.

We’re asking them to be a mensch. Wishing you a wonderful week, Shoshana

Dear Editor,

I remember when someone once came over to me and told me that they had an incredible occurrence of hashgachah pratis.

The notion of telling over our miracles to others was just mentioned in Tzav by the Korban Todah. One unique characteristic of the Todah was that it had to be consumed in a shorter time period than the normal Shelamim.

The Abarbanel explains this by the fact that the Todah is about thanking and for telling over miracles that occurred, something appropriate for a large gathering. With a shorter time to consume, more people must come. True thanks to G-d is a communal affair that inculcates how the divine is with us continuously.

The other unique characteristics of the Todah is that it’s a combination of loaves of chametz and matzah. A possible message is that a high level of self-esteem, represented by the chametz, is necessary to appreciate G-d’s ways, but it must be ensconced within a humble framework.

Telling over and chametz and matzah are soon themes that will be thrust upon us. These all point to the grandeur of man within a humble underpinning using all his facilities to speak over the wonders of G-d with others.

Steven Genack

Dear Editor,

It’s unbelievable to me that at a time when Israel is at war, fighting for its life, the left feels that it’s the perfect time to cut down the charedim learning in yeshivas in Israel. This war broke out at a very difficult time in Israel, when there were

protests and fights between the right and the left, and it seemed like there was no way out. Maybe our enemies saw how embroiled we were in those fights and decided to attack us at that time, when our divisions were so sharp. But right after October 7, when it was obvious that the right and the left need to band together as one, there were no divisions. 180 days later, is the left so bored with this war that it feels it’s the right time to start up again with the charedim in yeshivas?! Do they have nothing better to do than cut off funding from the thousands of yeshiva boys?

The Jewish state was established with the understanding that the yeshiva boys and men will be able to learn in yeshiva and that the other boys and men will be going into the army. That’s how it was established – and for good reason. Do they want to upend this whole country? Now? At this time?

I only hope that the mesirus nefesh that has become even more heightened for the yungerman learning in yeshiva will help to bring Moshiach, a time when it is clear that the Jewish nation is b’yachad. We need Hashem to send Moshiach more than ever.

Shlomo Ferber

Dear Editor,

I was very moved by Sarah Chana Silverman’s piece in this week’s issue of The Jewish Home. So many people suffered during Covid from the grief and guilt that Sarah Chana describes, the pain of not being able to be there for a loved one in their time of need. It wasn’t just that people died during Covid; it was that

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When something is less than $20, do you generally pay with cash or credit card?

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their loved ones hadn’t been able to help. So many thoughts go through their minds – if I was there could I have talked to the doctors, given them their food or medicine, davened harder, cheered them on, pulled them through?? The list of “what ifs” could fill a room. And still, their loved one is no longer alive.

I, for one, have found that it had helped me to be able to talk to other people who went through a similar scenario as myself. When my brother passed away during that terrible time, all alone in the hospital, without a phone call until a day later, I was broken. Shiva wasn’t normal. It was me alone with a few Zooms and phone calls that I didn’t have the energy to do. It was a horrible time in my life, and I honestly don’t know how I got through it without being completely broken. But, looking back, what helped me was eventually speaking with people who understood me and cared for me. They were the ones who brought me to the understanding that there was nothing more I could have done for Hershel and that it was meant to be to have this awful situation. I relied on their thoughts and their gestures of courage to move past the guilt

and grief that were so painful.

I hope that this is helpful to others. I hope that we are all able to move on from that terrible time. But for those who are struggling with other hard situations in life, when people reach out to help you, grab their hands. They can help lead you out of your pain.

Sincerely,

Leah T.

Dear Editor,

Just wanted to let you know that I appreciate your Purim “album” each year! It helps to extend the Purim spirit a bit, which is definitely helpful during this time!

And your pre-Purim spoofs were great! Mooseknuckle gemachs? I’m in!! I’m only wondering why the gemach doesn’t have a Moncler section. The community can definitely use that. And for those on the lower end, a section for Alo and Lululemon is a must. I can certainly help whoever is opening the gemach with some ideas. And my kids can, too – they are very, very aware of the trends in town! A Fan

Milei Unplugged

During an interview with CNN, Javier Milei, the president of Argentina, called Colombian president Gustavo Petro a “terrorist murderer.”

Following Milei’s statement, the government of Colombia issued a decision to throw all Argentine officials out of the embassy in Bogotá.

In response to Milei’s statement, the Colombian Foreign Ministry said, “The Argentine president’s expressions have deteriorated the trust of our na -

tion and offended the dignity of President (Gustavo) Petro, who was elected democratically.”

During the interview, which was released on Sunday, Milei, in reference to the left-wing Colombian president, said, “You can’t expect much from someone who was a terrorist murderer.”

As part of the same interview, Milei spoke of his country’s economic challenges and his support for Israel amidst the Jewish state’s war against the Hamas terrorist organization. Additionally, the Argentine president called Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador “ignorant.” Milei’s criticism of López Obrador comes in response to past statements issued by the Mexican president, in which López Obrador likened Milei to a dictator. On Thursday, López Obrador, on social media, spoke of his confusion as to why the people of Argentina would vote “for someone who is not right, who despises the people.”

The interview took place in Buenos Aires and went on for almost an hour. During the interview, Milei set himself apart from other world leaders, primarily by insisting that Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip are

“within the rule of law.”

“Israel was the target of a brutal attack, and this type of thing requires a response that sets the example. Israel is not committing any excess,” said Milei, who has, in the past, publicly discussed his desire to convert to Judaism.

Milei also added that he would like to see former U.S. President Donald Trump become the United States’ commander-in-chief again. However, Milei said that Argentina would continue to be an ally to the U.S. regardless of who wins the upcoming presidential election.

“Argentina’s allies are the United States and Israel; it’s not a secret my ideas are more akin to those of the Republican party, but we have an excellent relationship with the Democrats too,” Milei asserted.

Milei, an eccentric television personality turned right-wing politician, became the president of Argentina in December 2023 after campaigning for a range of changes to Argentina’s economic system, including shutting down the Central Bank, an institution that he blames for many of his country’s financial issues.

Bus Falls Off S. African Bridge

Forty-five passengers were killed following a fiery bus crash in the Limpopo province of South Africa on Thursday. According to the South African Broadcasting Corporation, the only survivor of the accident was an eight-year-old girl who, after sustaining serious injuries, was transported by air to a hospital.

The victims, who were traveling by bus from Gaborone, Botswana, to the Zion Christian Church in Moria, South Africa, to attend a conference for an upcoming holiday, were killed after the vehicle fell off a bridge while driving past the Mamatlakala mountain pass between Mokopane and Marken. Authorities are currently investigating the incident and are working to recover the bodies of those killed in the accident.

“According to reports, the driver lost control, and the bus fell onto a rocky surface, some 50 meters under the bridge, and caught fire,” the Limpopo transportation department said. “Some bodies [are] burned beyond recognition. [Others are] trapped inside the debris and others [are] scattered on the scene.”

As of now, only twelve bodies have been recovered, said Florence Radzilani, a member of the Limpopo province’s Executive Council for Transport and Community Safety.

Loved ones of those who died in the accident were brought to the area of the crash and to the hospital, where the eight-year-old survivor was being treated, on Friday by minibus. According to Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga, the South African government will return the remains of the deceased to Botswana, their country of origin.

“I am sending my heartfelt condolences to the families affected by the tragic bus crash near Mamatlakala. Our thoughts and prayers are with you during this difficult time. We continue to urge responsible driving at all times with heightened alertness as more people are on our roads this Easter weekend,” Chikunga said, with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa issuing a similar statement,

extending condolences to the loved ones of those killed in the bus crash.

Erdogan’s Party Loses Big in Elections

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development (AK) Party suffered a string of local election losses on Sunday, with opposition leaders from the Republican People’s Party (CHP) scoring a number of wins in major cities such as Istanbul and Ankara.

Despite the fact that Erdogan used the state’s resources to promote his party, the AK Party, on Sunday, lost the popular vote for the first time since 2002, when it initially came to power.

According to the country’s High Electoral Council, the CHP won 35 out of 81

municipalities, winning 14 out of 30 urban areas in Turkey. Ekrem Imamoglu, a CHP member and Erdogan’s main competitor, won another term as mayor of Istanbul, winning 51.1% of the votes. In all, the CHP secured 37.7% of the vote, which is more votes than any other party in the race. Mansur Yavas, another CHP member, was reelected as mayor of Ankara after winning 60.4% of the vote, while Cemil Tugay of the CHP, with 48.9% of the vote, won Izmir.

“The period of one-man rule is over today,” declared Imamoglu on Sunday night. “As we celebrate our victory, we send a resounding message to the world: the decline of democracy ends now… Istanbul stands as a beacon of hope, a testament to the resilience of democratic values in the face of rising authoritarianism.”

Unlike the AK Party, the CHP is not affiliated with Islam or any particular religion. The CHP won Istanbul in 2019, before which the key city had been ruled by religious parties for twenty-five years. In Istanbul, the AK Party lost ten districts, while the CHP lost one: Beyoglu, which is the district where Erdogan was born.

The AK Party’s failure in Sunday’s vote represents a threat to Erdogan himself, even though he wasn’t on the ballot. Experts have pointed to Imamoglu as a candidate who may have a good chance of beating Erdogan in the next Turkish presidential election.

“Unfortunately, we could not get the result we wanted and hoped for in the local election test,” Erdogan admitted on Monday, following news of his party’s election losses. “The winner of this election is primarily our democracy, the national will, and all 85 million people, regardless of their political views.”

Scottish Hate Crime Law

A sweeping law targeting hate speech went into effect in Scotland on Monday, promising protection against threats and abuse but drawing criticism that it could have a chilling effect on free speech.

The law, passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2021, expands protections for

marginalized groups and creates a new charge of “stirring up hatred,” which makes it a criminal offense to communicate or behave in a way that “a reasonable person would consider to be threatening, abusive or insulting.”

A conviction could lead to a fine and a prison sentence of up to seven years.

The protected classes as defined in the law include age, disability, religion, and gender. Racial hatred was omitted because it is already covered by a law from 1986. The new law also does not include women among the protected groups; a government task force has recommended that misogyny be addressed in separate legislation.

J.K. Rowling, the “Harry Potter” author who has been criticized by those on the left, said the law was “wide-open to abuse by activists” and took issue with its omission of women.

Rowling, who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, said in a lengthy social media post on Monday that Scotland’s Parliament had placed “higher value on the feelings of men performing their idea of femaleness, however misogynistically or opportunistically, than on the rights and freedoms of actual women and girls.”

“I’m currently out of the country, but if what I’ve written here qualifies as an offense under the terms of the new act,” she added, “I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment.”

The new law has long had the support of Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, but it has raised concerns about the effect it might have on free speech. Yousaf, who was Scotland’s justice secretary when the bill was passed, was asked directly on Monday about the criticism from Rowling and others who oppose the law.

“It is not Twitter police. It is not activists; it is not the media. It is not, thank goodness, even politicians who decide ultimately whether or not crime has been committed,” Yousaf told Sky News. He said it would be up to “the police to investigate and the crown, and the threshold for criminality is incredibly high.” (© The New York Times)

Iranian Journalist Stabbed in UK

Pouria Zeraati, a prominent exiled Iranian journalist, was stabbed outside his home in London on Friday by a group of men who then fled in a car. Police say that Zeraati’s injuries are not life threatening. They are launching a counterterrorism investigation into the incident.

While Tehran has not been implicated in the attack, the incident has already fueled concerns it could be involved. Iran has designated the ITV television station a “terrorist entity.” Iranian state media has repeatedly accused the channel of fomenting unrest.

Zeraati’s stabbing comes after an investigation by Britain’s ITV last year revealed that Iranian spies had attempted to pay a people smuggler $200,000 to assassinate two Iran International journalists. The probe prompted the British government in January to sanction seven members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite paramilitary organization established in the aftermath of the country’s revolution in 1979.

The chair of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Alicia Kearns, and the general secretary of the British Na -

tional Union of Journalists, Michelle Stanistreet, both issued carefully worded statements that avoided pinning blame on Iran but called for more to be done to protect journalists.

“This brutal stabbing will inevitably raise fears amongst the many journalists targeted at Iran International and the BBC Persian Service that they are not safe at home or going about their work,” Stanistreet said.

“The international community needs to up the pressure on Iran, and the UN needs to hold Iran accountable for its actions,” she added.

Kearns noted on Twitter that Iran International had only recently returned to the air from London after having to shut down in the UK.

Iran’s charge d’affaires in the UK, Seyed Mehdi Hosseini Matin, denied “any link to this story of this so called journalist” on X.

Police Raid Home of Peruvian Pres.

Police and prosecutors in Peru carried out a surprise raid at the home of President Dina Boluarte and the pres-

idential palace early Saturday as part of an “unlawful enrichment” investigation into news reports that she had been seen wearing Rolex watches since taking office.

Police used a battering ram to force their way into Boluarte’s home in Lima, according to live coverage on Latina Noticias. Prosecutors and police then searched Boluarte’s office and residence in the presidential palace.

The president had failed to appear this past week for a scheduled appointment with prosecutors to show them three Rolex watches she has worn and to explain how she obtained them. She also refused to allow them into her house to execute a search warrant, according to Attorney General Juan Villena, who told lawmakers that her refusal was “a clear indicator of rebellion.”

The investigation into Boluarte began March 18, after the online news program

“La Encerrona” revealed that she had started wearing increasingly expensive watches, including at least one Rolex, since taking office in December 2022. Prosecutors suspect her of violating the country’s laws against unlawful enrichment and failing to declare assets. In Peru, elected authorities must report to the government any assets worth more than 10,300 soles (about $2,774) and disclose any gifts received from third parties.

Local news outlets have since reported that Boluarte has worn three other Rolex watches, as well as a $50,000 Cartier bracelet, and that banking authorities have detected about $300,000 in deposits of unknown origin made to her personal accounts before she took office.

Boluarte has denied wrongdoing, but she has also declined to explain the origin of the Rolexes publicly, saying only that the first Rolex watch that drew attention was an item “from long ago.”

“It’s in my DNA to not be corrupt,” she told journalists March 15. “What I have is the fruit of my efforts and my work.”

In a televised address Saturday, Boluarte, flanked by ministers in her Cabinet, blamed news outlets for creating “smoke screens” that fuel “chaos and uncertainty.”

“I’m an honest woman. I entered the

Earthquake Rocks Taiwan

At least nine people died and dozens were trapped in highway tunnels when Taiwan was struck by its strongest earthquake in 25 years. More than 900 others were injured in the quake.

The powerful 7.4 magnitude tremor shook the island’s east coast, hitting at 7:58 a.m. local time on Wednesday morning 11 miles south of Hualien city and at a depth of 21 miles, according to the US Geological Survey. It was followed by several strong aftershocks with tremors felt across the island.

Buildings collapsed in Hualien County, and thousands of homes were left without power.

Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration spokesperson warned that powerful aftershocks as high as magnitude 7 are expected to occur until the end of the week.

The quake prompted initial tsunami warnings in Taiwan, southern Japan and the Philippines, with waves less than half a meter observed along some coasts, and prompting airlines to suspend flights.

Taiwan, a self-ruled island east of mainland China, is home to about 23 million people, most of whom live in the industrialized cities of its west coast, including the capital.

The island is regularly rocked by earthquakes due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, which runs around the edge of the Pacific Ocean and causes massive seismic and volcanic activity from Indonesia to Chile.

Wednesday’s quake is the strongest to hit Taiwan since 1999, according to the Central Weather Administration. That year, a 7.7 magnitude quake hit south of Taipei, killing 2,400 people and injuring 10,000 others.

Hualien County, parts of which are mountainous and remote, is home to about 300,000 people on the island’s sparsely populated east coast. A magni-

tude 6.2 quake hit near the area in 2018, killing at least 17 people and injuring more than 300 others.

Supreme Court Targets Yeshivas

On Thursday, the High Court of Justice, in a politically and socially significant ruling, decided to put an end to conscription exemptions for charedi yeshiva students, blocking the government from funding yeshivas whose students aren’t drafted.

In June 2023, the government issued a temporary order, asking the IDF not to recruit charedi students. However, the resolution expired at midnight on March 31, with the high court issuing a ruling that was implemented into law on April 1.

The issue of charedi conscription has been in the political spotlight for some time, with those in favor of drafting yeshiva students asserting that charedi exemptions constitute discrimination, and with opponents noting that Torah learning is essential to defending Israel.

Aryeh Deri, the leader of the Shas party, said that the ruling is an “unprecedented maltreatment for Torah study in the Jewish state.” Yitzhak Goldknopf, the housing and construction minister and head of United Torah Judaism, added that the decision is “a stain and a disgrace” that will cause “severe harm to those who toil in Torah.”

On the other side of the political issue, Benny Gantz, a member of the National Unity party and a minister in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war-time coalition, has, in the past, threatened to leave the government if blanket charedi conscription exemptions are allowed. The Movement for Quality Government in Israel asserted that the court ruling “signifies the end of the illegitimate discrimination between different types of blood,” thus making it so that there will “no longer [be] support for those who are

not partners in the burden [of military service].”

A 2017 court ruling illegalized charedi service exemptions, and March 31 was the deadline for the Israeli government to find a way to follow the decision. However, because of the Jewish state’s war against Hamas and Hezbollah, which broke out in the wake of the October 7th massacre, the government has been unable to deal with the issue of charedi recruitment.

As per Thursday’s ruling, the government will be banned from funding charedi yeshivas whose students are obligated to report for conscription. This will impact 1,257 yeshivas, as well as 49,485 yeshiva students who have been, up until now, given yearly service deferrals. According to the State Attorney’s Office, 371 yeshivas will see funding cuts of 30 to 70 percent, with some seeing even bigger cuts.

“From the outset, Government Resolution 682 [which was passed in June 2023] was based on the premise of promoting legislation. Therefore, with the expiration of the resolution, and in the absence of an alternative framework, as of April 1, 2024, no source of authority will exist that allows for the continued blanket avoidance of drafting yeshiva students,” the Attorney General’s Office said. “In such circumstances, all authorized state officials will be legally obligated to act on conscription procedures for yeshiva students starting on April 1, 2024.”

IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari has said the IDF will “act in accordance with the law.” The military police probably won’t begin enforcing draft orders on April 1. However, a charedi man who dodged the draft and subsequently violated a traffic rule or attempted to leave Israel may be arrested.

Prime Minister Netanyahu’s request for a thirty-day postponement to come up with a proposal on the conscription issue was rejected by the court.

Shifa Operation Ends

The Israeli military’s two-week operation in Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital came to an end on Monday, following 900 arrests

and the elimination of 200 terrorists. Of the 900 detained suspects, 500 have been officially identified as terrorists.

On the same day as the IDF’s withdrawal from Shifa, Staff Sergeant Nadav Cohen, a twenty-year-old from Haifa, was murdered in southern Gaza while fighting in the IDF’s 7th Armored Brigade’s 77th Battalion. Cohen is the 600th Israeli soldier to have been killed since the October 7th massacre, including those soldiers who were murdered on October 7. He is the 256th soldier to have been killed in the war.

Hamas continues to lie to the world about its use of hospitals and civilian areas for terrorist activities, although evidence of the terror group’s military actions in Shifa is abundant. On Sunday, the Israeli army published video showing a collection of weapons, which included mortars, explosives, sniper and assault rifles, and more, that were stored in Shifa’s maternity ward.

“No hospital in the world looks like this. This is what a house of terrorists looks like,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared.

Around 350 hospital patients and staff were evacuated from Shifa Hospital and were brought to a “designated compound” within the hospital’s complex,

where the civilians were given humanitarian aid and supplies. Another 6,200 sheltering Gazans were evacuated from the hospital.

Almost 180 days ago, on October 7, thousands of Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and taking 253 hostages, triggering a war in the Gaza Strip.

Iranian General Killed in Israeli Strike

At least three senior commanders and four officers overseeing Iran’s covert operations in the Middle East were killed on Monday when Israeli warplanes struck a building in Damascus, Syria, that is part of the Iranian Embassy complex, according to Iranian and Syri-

an officials.

The strike in Damascus, the Syrian capital, appeared to be among the deadliest attacks in a years-long shadow war between Israel and Iran that has included the assassinations of Iranian military leaders and nuclear scientists.

That covert war has moved into the open as tensions between the countries have intensified over Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip against Hamas, the Iranian-backed militia that led the October 7 attack on Israel.

Four Israeli officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence matters, confirmed that Israel had been behind the strike in Damascus but denied that the building had diplomatic status.

But the Syrian ambassador to Iran, Shafiq Dayoub, said the strike had targeted a diplomatic building and was a “clear and complete violation of all international conventions and norms.”

Video circulating on social media after the strike showed a destroyed building next to the embassy, and photographs showed an entrance gate with a sign identifying it as the consular section. The embassy said on X, formerly Twitter, that the building housed a consular section and the ambassador’s res-

idence.

The dead included Gen. Ali Reza Zahdi, 65, who oversaw Iran’s covert military operations in Syria and Lebanon, two other generals, and four officers in the Quds Force, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said in a statement.

Israeli officials and a member of the Revolutionary Guard, which oversees the Quds Force, said the Damascus strike on Monday had targeted a meeting in which Iranian intelligence officials and Palestinian militants were to discuss the war in Gaza. Among them were leaders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a group armed and funded by Iran.

Syria’s defense ministry said the Israeli strike occurred about 5 p.m. local time, when fighter jets entered Syria from the Golan Heights. (© The New York Times)

The “Al Jazeera” Law

The Knesset passed a law on Monday that temporarily empowers the government to ban foreign media networks that threaten national security from the country. The law was passed, with seventy-one

voting in favor and ten voting against.

The directive will allow Israel to shut down Al Jazeera, a Qatar-based media company that has, according to Israeli officials, incited terrorism and harmed the Israeli military.

“We have brought to fruition an effective and swift tool against those who use freedom of the press to harm Israel’s security and IDF soldiers, and who incite terrorism during a time of war,” said Communications Minister Shlomo

Karhi, promising that Al Jazeera would be banned from operating in Israel “in the coming days.”

The White House responded, criticizing the new law.

“We believe in the freedom of the press. It is critically important. The United States supports the critically important work journalists around the world do, and that includes those who are reporting on the conflict in Gaza. If those reports are true, it is concerning to

wrongdoing. As per the law, the government will be able to block access to a banned media company’s website, shut down media offices in Israel, and confiscate the company’s equipment that is in Israel.

Immediately following the law’s passing, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu banned Al Jazeera from operating in Israel.

In October, Kahri’s office said that there is proof that Al Jazeera “is assisting the enemy, broadcasting propaganda in the service of Hamas, in Arabic and English, to viewers around the world, and even passing sensitive information to the enemy” and asserted that Al Jazeera has, in the past, helped Hamas ambush IDF troops.

Three Wounded In Terror Stabbing

Three men, aged 25, 20, and 17, were seriously injured on Sunday in Gan Yavne after being repeatedly stabbed by a 19-year-old West Bank Palestinian. The attack took place at the Friendly Mall.

us,” said Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary.

Bans instituted under the new law are only effective for 45-day periods which can subsequently be renewed. The law will only remain in effect until July 31.

Karhi will have the power to institute bans on media networks that threaten Israel, provided that his order is first approved by the prime minister and the security cabinet, who must each be presented with evidence of the network’s

All three victims were taken to Ashdod’s Assuta Medical Center, with the 25-year-old victim nearly dying on the way there. A day after the attack, the hospital announced that the 25-year-old and the 20-year-old were taken to Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital and Petah Tikva’s Beilinson Hospital for neurosurgery due to severe head trauma. The 17-yearold boy was moderately wounded and underwent surgery in Assuta.

Security officers killed the assailant after he attempted to stab a police officer. The terrorist, who attacked with two knives, was from Dura, a town in the southern West Bank.

36 Amir Cohen, the southern district police commander, stated that the terrorist came into Israel through a security barrier hole. As of now, it is unclear if the terrorist was an illegal employee at the mall, although Cohen has said that the knifeman had previously had an Israeli work permit. However, the permit, which expired in August, only permitted him to work in areas of the West Bank controlled by Israel but nowhere else.

After the terrorist attack, Itamar Ben Gvir, the national security minister, visited the scene of the crime and spoke of the importance of boosting police presence amid a rise in terror threats.

“We’re at war, and certainly the enemy has more motivation to harm us,” Ben Gvir said.

On the same day, an off-duty IDF soldier sustained minor injuries after being stabbed by a 28-year-old resident of Rahat named Naji Abu Freh. The terrorist was shot dead by another officer.

Haniyeh’s Sister Arrested

On Monday, the Israel Police said that a sister of Hamas leader Ismail

Haniyeh had been arrested on suspicion of contact with operatives from the terror group and supporting acts of terror.

The 57-year-old woman, who is “a relative of a senior member of Hamas,” was arrested in a joint raid with the Shin Bet that was dubbed “Early Dawn.” Sabah Avad al-Salam Haniyeh was living in Tel Sheva.

Police said that during a raid on the suspect’s home, officers found documents, media, telephones, and other evidence linking her to “serious security offenses.” Among the evidence reportedly uncovered was material that showed support for the October 7 massacre and encouraged terror operatives in the Gaza Strip to continue their activities.

Police also found hundreds of thousands of shekels in cash at the premises.

Southern District commander Superintendent Amir Cohen vowed that

his forces “will use all the means and tools at its disposal, everywhere, in order to create deterrence at the same time as thwarting terrorist attacks, with the aim of ensuring the safety and security of the citizens of Israel,” according to the statement.

Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas political leader, lives in exile in Doha, Qatar. His three sisters live in Tel Sheva and were married to Arab Israelis. Two are now widowed and had made illegal trips into Gaza in 2013 via Egypt. They were both given eight-month suspended sentences for the visits in 2015. Later that year, Israel denied Haniyeh’s request that his sisters be permitted to attend his son’s wedding in Gaza.

The three sisters all have Israeli citizenship. Some of Haniyeh’s relatives –including a niece, mother-in-law, daughter, and granddaughter – have all been treated at Israeli hospitals.

Spain Will Recognize Palestinian State

During a Middle East tour this week, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told

the media that Spain will recognize Palestinian statehood by July. He had made the comments on Monday in the Jordanian capital, Amman, on the first day of visits to Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

According to the reports, Sanchez said he expected events to unfold in the conflict ahead of the European Parliament elections in early June and highlighted ongoing debates at the United Nations. Sanchez noted that he believed there would soon be a “critical mass” within the European Union to push several member states to recognize a Palestinian state as well.

Sanchez’s statement comes as Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Authority’s envoy to the UN, said on Monday that the Palestinian Authority planned to apply for full UN membership at the body’s Security Council, where the United States, Israel’s staunch ally, has veto

power. A 2011 PA application for full membership is still pending because the 15-member council never made a formal decision.

Malta is president of the Security Council for April. Malta’s UN ambassador, Vanessa Frazier, said she had yet to receive a formal request for action from the PA.

Malta, along with Slovenia and Ireland, was said by Sanchez at a March 22 European Council meeting

to have agreed to “take the first steps” toward recognizing statehood declared by Palestinians in the Israeli-controlled West Bank and Gaza Strip. At the time, Sanchez said he expected the recognition to happen during the current four-year legislature, which began in 2023.

Israel subsequently accused the four countries of offering a “prize for terrorism” that would reduce the chances of a negotiated resolution to the Gaza conflict.

$20/Hr. for CA Fast Food Workers

Fast food workers in California are eating lots of happy meals. As of Monday of this week, about half a million fast food workers in The Golden State are making at least $20 per hour, $4 higher than the overall state minimum wage.

The new rate applies to restaurant chains with more than 60 nationwide locations and is a result of a yearslong fight by workers to establish better wages and working conditions, specifically in California’s fast-food industry.

The law also creates a fast-food council, a first of its kind in the U.S., with representatives from both the restaurant industry and workers, to increase the wage annually for the rest of the decade, in pace with inflation or up to 3.5%, whichever is higher.

But consumers may be eating the results of this new law – by way of higher prices. Many owners of these fast food franchise locations have said that they have already increased menu prices in the past few months or have cut worker hours in anticipation of the higher costs.

Arab states and the EU had agreed at a meeting in Spain in November that a two-state solution, establishing an independent Palestinian state, was the solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Since 1988, 139 out of 193 UN member states have recognized Palestinian statehood.

Michaela Mendelsohn, a franchisee who has been appointed to the new council, said, “There’s talk about showing both sides of this. I think it’s all one side. I think to be successful, we need to be successful, and our employees need to be successful together.”

Mendelsohn said her menu items have increased about 3% to 4% in price since February in preparation for the higher wages. She plans not to replace workers who have quit and have self-serve kiosks in place by next week. She may also implement artificial intelligence in the drive-thrus next year.

Sen. Joe Lieberman Dies

Last Wednesday, Sen. Joe Lieberman, the first Jewish vice presidential nominee of a major party, passed away at the age of 82.

Lieberman was a refreshing, steady voice in the Democratic Party, never veering from his morals and conscience.

The peak of Lieberman’s political career came when he was chosen by Democratic presidential nominee Al Gore in 2000 as his running mate. The election was eventually won by George W. Bush.

In his farewell speech to the Senate in 2012, Lieberman bemoaned what politics had become.

“It is the partisan polarization of our politics which prevents us from making the principled compromises on which

progress in a democracy depends, and right now, which prevents us from restoring our fiscal solvency as a nation,” Lieberman said. “We need bipartisan leadership to break the gridlock in Washington that will unleash all the potential that is in the American people.”

Lieberman was in lockstep with his party on many issues. But after the 9/11 attacks, Lieberman parted with many in his party by supporting war and became a strong supporter of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.

At one point, Lieberman, a longstanding senator in Connecticut, lost the Democratic primary for his own seat in 2006. He subsequently ran as an independent and won the election, returning to the Senate. That was the last time an independent won a seat in the U.S. senate.

Lieberman also angered his party by supporting the Republican nomination for Arizona Senator John McCain and criticized Sen. Barack Obama as someone who would be too inexperienced to be president.

McCain, who died in 2018 and was eulogized by Lieberman, later admitted that he wished he had chosen Lieberman as the vice presidential nominee on his ticket instead of Alaska Gov.

Sarah Palin.

But Lieberman also spoke up years before, when he rebuked President Bill Clinton in 1998 for his “immoral” and “disgraceful” behavior. His speech from the Senate floor was seen by many Democrats at the time as an act of disloyalty. Still, Lieberman later voted after a Senate trial not to convict Clinton for high crimes and misdemeanors after he was impeached by the House of Representatives.

Lieberman will also be remembered for his proud observance of his Orthodox Jewish faith, declining to work on Shabbos. In 2009, he famously walked five miles from Georgetown to the U.S. Capitol to vote against a Republican attempt to cut Medicare spending.

Lieberman was born in Stamford, Connecticut, on February 24, 1942. He went to Yale University — where it was clear a political career beckoned as he was nicknamed “Senator.” He later attended Yale Law School, and in 1968, he ran the Connecticut presidential campaign of former Attorney General Robert Kennedy, until the candidate was assassinated.

Lieberman was elected to the Connecticut Senate in 1970 and rose to the position of majority leader. After a stint as attorney general of his home state, he became the first Orthodox Jew elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1988.

Thousands Honor Fallen Officer

Last Monday, New York City Police Officer Jonathan Diller was fatally shot by a criminal during a routine traffic stop in Far Rockaway, New York. He was the first New York City police officer killed in the line of duty in two years.

Thousands of people lined up to attend Officer Diller’s two-day wake, including former President Donald Trump. “It’s happening all too often and we’re just not going to let it happen,” Trump said outside the funeral home. “We have to get back to law and order. The

only thing we can say is, maybe something is going to be learned. We’ve gotta toughen it up, we’ve gotta strengthen it up. This should never be allowed.”

Office Diller’s funeral took place on Saturday in a Catholic church in Massapequa, the same church in which he was married just a few years ago.

Hundreds of police officers lined the streets in his honor. An honor guard stood by as a bagpiper played at the church’s entrance. When the hearse arrived, it was led by hundreds of police motorcycles and a pipe and drum corps laying down a slow, solemn drumbeat. Uniformed officers carried the coffin into the church.

Officer Diller’s wife, Stephanie, 29, spoke at the funeral. Their one-yearold son, Ryan, attended the funeral as well. Stephanie said that Jonathan “was absolutely my soulmate.”

“It’s been two years and two months since Detective Rivera and Detective Mora made the ultimate sacrifice — just like my husband Jonathan Diller. Dominque Rivera stood before all the elected officials present today pleading for change,” Stephanie said, referring to Jason Rivera, 22, and Wilbert Mora, 27, NYPD officers who were murdered responding to an East Harlem domestic call involving a career criminal.

“That change never came. And now my son will grow up without his father, and I will grow old without my husband. And his parents have to say goodbye to their child,” she continued. “How many more police officers and how many families need to make the ultimate sacrifice before we start protecting them?”

Diller, 31, graduated from the State University of New York Maritime College in 2014. He joined the Police Department in February 2021, and had been recognized three times for “excellent police duty” since then.

More than $2 million has been raised so far for the Diller family.

“I think people are starting to get angry,” said Gristedes and D’Agostino supermarkets CEO John Catsimatidis, who chairs the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation that gave $10,000 directly to the Diller family. “They’re starting to realize the legislators are not doing their jobs to protect the people. And that’s why we’re seeing so much money for the Diller family.”

Dave Portnoy matched the $750,000 raised for Stephanie and Ryan, for a total of $1.5 million. A GoFundMe set up by the NYPD Scuba Team brought in $700,000 in just four days. The New

York Police and Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund will provide an initial $50,000 to Stephanie Diller plus an annual stipend of $10,000 for the rest of her life. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation paid off the mortgage on the family’s home.

Guy Rivera, 34, the criminal who killed Officer Diller, had 21 prior arrests. He is facing murder, attempted murder, and weapons possession charges for Diller’s killing. Lindy

Jones, 41, who was behind the wheel of the illegally parked car in which Rivera was sitting, was arrested and is also facing weapon possession charges.

Person Positive for Avian Flu

A person who worked on a dairy farm and had “direct contact with dairy

birds had bird flu in 2022.

There is no risk to the commercial milk supply, the Department of State Health Services said.

“Dairies are required to destroy or divert milk from any sick cows, plus pasteurization kills avian flu viruses,” it said in the statement.

Avian flu is a type A influenza virus that originated in birds and has been detected in more than a hundred species like seagulls, owls and ducks in the U.S. since 2022. Many mammals in the U.S., mostly in the West and Midwest, have been infected with the virus in this latest outbreak. Some bears, foxes, possums and seals also had the virus. They were probably infected because they ate or interacted with birds that were infected.

Pearl Harbor Survivor Dies

On December 7, 1941, Lou Conter was a quartermaster on the USS Arizona when the Pearl Harbor attacks began. Standing on the ship’s main deck, Conter managed to survive the attack, despite the Arizona exploding and sinking during the Japanese bombing. This week, Conter, the last living Pearl Harbor survivor, died at the age of 102.

cattle” tested positive for avian flu in Texas late last week, the state’s Department of State Health Services said.

The CDC said the person who has the H5N1 virus is recovering and was told to isolate. Their only symptom was eye inflammation.

This is the first case of H5N1 flu in a person linked to dairy cattle and the second case in a person in the U.S.

A Colorado man who had direct exposure to poultry and the culling of

The Arizona lost 1,177 sailors and Marines in the 1941 attack that launched the United States into World War II. The battleship’s dead account for nearly half of those killed in the surprise attack.

Conter was a quartermaster, standing on the main deck of the Arizona as Japanese planes flew overhead at 7:55 a.m. on that infamous day. Sailors were just beginning to hoist colors or raise the flag when the assault began.

Conter recalled how one bomb penetrated steel decks 13 minutes into the battle and set off more than 1 million pounds of gunpowder stored below. The explosion lifted the battleship 30 to 40 feet out of the water, he said during a 2008 oral history interview stored at the Library of Congress. Everything was on fire from the mainmast forward, he recalled.

“Guys were running out of the fire and trying to jump over the sides,” Conter said. “Oil all over the sea was burning.”

He recounted how he joined other survivors in tending to those who were injured – many of them blind and badly burned. The sailors only abandoned ship when their senior surviving officer was sure they had rescued all those still alive.

The rusting wreckage of the Arizona still lies in waters where it sank. More than 900 sailors and Marines remain entombed inside.

Conter went to flight school after Pearl Harbor, earning his wings to fly PBY patrol bombers, which the Navy used to look for submarines and bomb enemy targets. He flew 200 combat missions in the Pacific with a “Black Cats” squadron, which conducted dive bombing at night in planes painted black.

In 1943, he and his crew were shot down in waters near New Guinea and

had to avoid a dozen sharks. A sailor expressed doubt they would survive, to which Conter replied, “Baloney.”

“Don’t ever panic in any situation.

Survive is the first thing you tell them.

Don’t panic or you’re dead,” he said. They were quiet and treaded water until another plane came hours later and dropped them a lifeboat.

In the late 1950s, Conter was made the Navy’s first SERE officer — an acronym for survival, evasion, resistance and escape. He spent the next decade training Navy pilots and crew on how to survive if they’re shot down in the jungle and captured as a prisoner of war.

Conter retired in 1967 after 28 years in the Navy.

The attack on Pearl Harbor killed 2,403 U.S. personnel, including sailors, soldiers and civilians. 1,178 others were wounded.

Oregon Recriminalizes Small Drugs

This week, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek signed a bill restoring criminal penalties for possessing small amounts of

hard drugs, reversing a first-in-thenation law that advocates had hoped would help quell a deepening addiction and overdose crisis. But those laws didn’t help to control the drug problem in the state; in fact, many say it even contributed to the soaring drug epidemic.

Under the new law, the possession of small amounts of drugs such as heroin or methamphetamine will be classified as a misdemeanor and punishable by up to six months in jail. Drug treatment will be offered as an alternative to criminal penalties.

Last month, legislators overwhelmingly passed House Bill 4002, undoing a key part of a voter-approved initiative that decriminalized small amounts of drugs.

Opponents of the bill, including treatment service providers and public defenders, said the new law marks a return to the failed war on drugs, which filled jails but did little to curb drug addiction.

Oregon voters overwhelmingly passed the decriminalization measure, known as Measure 110, in 2020. It reduced penalties for possessing small amounts of hard drugs and established a framework to help people access treatment services.

“We were too progressive,” Jovannis Velez, an outreach worker with Recovery Works Northwest, which operates treatment centers throughout Oregon, confessed. “Society wasn’t ready for it.”

Advocates of the original measure touted it as an opportunity to help people struggling with addiction get the help they need rather than face jail time.

Opponents of the decriminalization bill argued that the pilot program had not achieved its intended results and had only worsened open-air drug abuse.

“Combatting a problem by decriminalizing the problem is bad policy,” Oregon Senate Republicans said in a statement last month. “Never again.”

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber, of Portland, one of the bill’s authors, said its passage would “be the start of real and transformative change for our justice system.”

“With this bill, we are doubling down on our commitment to make sure Oregonians have access to the treatment and care that they need,” she said in a statement.

Daniel Kahneman Dies at 90

Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Prize winner, psychologist, and author of bestselling book Thinking, Fast and Slow, died last week at the age of 90.

Kahneman’s research, which focused on the ways human psychology can warp rational thinking, was recognized with a Nobel Prize in 2002 and helped give rise to the burgeoning field known as “behavioral economics.”

Kahneman also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013. He credited much of his success to “sheer luck” that enabled him to find a partner with whom he was able to conduct his research.

Kahneman’s longtime collaborator was Amos Tversky, who died in 1996. They were both trained as psychologists, and together they challenged the academic orthodoxy that people’s economic behavior is strictly guided by rational thought. They identified many examples where decisions are shaped in ways that are irrational, but understandable — such as judges who grant parole more often after lunch than when they’re hungry.

Another Nobel laureate, Richard Thaler, says Kahneman and Tversky broadened our understanding by asking a different question than most economists, who were steeped in mathematics, not psychology. Rather than asking what’s the best or most efficient way to do something, and assuming that’s what people do, they asked how people really behave. Much of those findings were put into Kahneman’s book, Thinking, Fast and Slow.

Thaler noted that Kahneman was an “avid pessimist.”

“He always thought the worst would happen,” Thaler recalls. “He claimed this was rational because he would not be disappointed as much with the outcomes of life.”

Thaler, a self-described optimist, says he tried in vain to convince Kahneman to spend less time worrying.

“The fact that he lived to 90 in reasonably good health should have proven me

Kahneman was born in Tel Aviv in 1934, when his mother was visiting relatives there. The Kahnemans lived in Paris; his father was the chief of research for a cosmetics firm. During World War II, he was forced to wear a Star of David after the Nazis occupied the city in 1940.

Kahneman’s father narrowly escaped deportation to a death camp, and the family fled to still-unoccupied Vichy France, where they eventually found refuge in a chicken coop in the seaside town of Cagnes-sur-Mer. In November 1942, the Germans took control of Vichy France. Kahneman was able to attend school, but limited his contact with schoolmates, attempting to hide in plain sight. Kahneman’s father died before the war ended.

After the war, Kahneman moved with his mother and sister to what soon became the state of Israel. At 15, he took a vocational test that said he had the makings of a psychologist. He graduated from Hebrew University in 1954 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and mathematics. He fulfilled part of his military service requirement by devising character assessment tests for recruits.

Trump Gets Bond Deal

Former President Donald Trump averted a financial disaster on Monday, reaching a deal that will spare him from paying a $454 million judgment in his civil fraud case while he appeals the penalty.

The lifeline came in the form of a bond that will prevent New York’s attorney general, who brought the lawsuit that led to the judgment, from collecting the $454 million until Trump’s appeal is resolved. The attorney general, Letitia James, accused Trump of fraudulently inflating his net worth by as much as $2 billion, and a judge ruled in her favor.

Trump secured the bond after an appeals court last week granted his request to lower the bond amount to $175 million, staving off a financial crisis for Trump. He

otherwise would have had to post a bond for the full $454 million, which his lawyers declared a “practical impossibility.”

Had he failed to do so, James could have frozen his bank accounts.

The clock had been ticking. When the appeals court ruled last week, it gave him 10 days to line up the bond, making Thursday the deadline.

The $175 million bond came from Knight Specialty Insurance Co., a California company that handles such deals. In providing the bond, which is a legal document, not an actual transfer of money, the firm essentially promised New York’s court system that it would cover the judgment against Trump if he loses his appeal and fails to pay.

Many details of the deal are private, but the former president most likely had to pay the company a fee and pledge cash and other liquid investments as collateral.

It was the collateral that prevented Trump from securing a bond for the full $454 million. While Trump had more than $350 million in cash and other liquid investments as of early this year, a New York Times analysis found, that was short of what he needed to secure the bigger bond.

Trump had recently posted a separate $91.6 million bond in a defamation case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll. Few people, even wealthy ones like Trump, need to come up with bonds this big, let alone two at once, and it was unclear whether he would be able to secure both before time ran out. (© The New York Times)

FTX Founder Gets 25 Years

On Thursday, Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, was sentenced to twenty-five years in prison for fraud.

Bankman-Fried was once valued at over $20 billion, with FTX, at one point, being worth over $30 billion. In November 2022, FTX went bankrupt, following news of the company’s major cash shortage.

Bankman-Fried, once regarded as a

crypto prodigy, was convicted in November 2023 on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy, after prosecutors charged him with stealing up to $8 billion from FTX customers. Prosecutors hoped to sentence the defendant to up to 50 years in prison; Bankman-Fried’s defense team wanted a sentence of 6½ years or less.

During the trial, which took place at a federal courtroom in lower Manhattan, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said that the defense’s argument was riddled with flaws and that the defendant was guilty of interfering with the legal process.

According to Southern District of New York attorney Damian Williams, Bankman-Fried is guilty of carrying out one of the biggest frauds ever seen.

“Today’s sentence will prevent the defendant from ever again committing fraud, and is an important message to others who might be tempted to engage in financial crimes that justice will be swift and the consequences will be severe,” Williams stated.

“Anyone who believes they can hide their financial crimes behind wealth and power, or behind a shiny new thing they claim no one else is smart enough to understand, should think twice,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Bankman-Fried will likely appeal the conviction and sentence, with his parents, both of whom are Stanford law professors, promising to continue fighting for him. The FTX founder’s legal team requested a lenient sentencing on several grounds, including the fact that Bankman-Fried has autism and depression. His lawyers also argued that Bankman-Fried’s actions did not significantly impact FTX customers – a claim that has been refuted by FTX administrator John Ray.

The defendant has admitted that he “made a number of small mistakes and a number of larger mistakes” and was “selfish” in his actions but claims that he wasn’t aware that he was doing anything explicitly wrong in “borrowing” money from his users to fund other projects.

The story of Bankman-Fried’s downfall reminds many of other influential figures who were convicted of fraud, including Bernie Madoff, a fraudster who was responsible for the largest Ponzi scheme in history and was sentenced to 150 years in prison, and Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of Theranos, a company that falsely claimed to have created groundbreaking medical technologies, which were, in fact, virtually useless. Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison. Madoff died in prison on April 14, 2021.

NYC Congestion Pricing

In an effort to reduce traffic congestion in New York City, the MTA has approved plans to implement a congestion pricing system wherein most drivers will have to pay a once-daily $15 fee before going into the “congestion relief zone,” an area located below 60th Street in Manhattan.

The plan will likely go into effect somewhere around June 15, after which New York City will have joined the ranks of London, Stockholm, Singapore, and other major cities that have congestion pricing.

“New York has more traffic than anywhere in the United States and now we’re doing something about it,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber following the vote to approve the plan.

As for those driving during overnight hours, the fee will decrease to $3.75. Trucks and certain buses will have to pay $24 or $36 during the day, and $6 or $9 at night, depending on the size of the vehicle, while yellow taxis, green cabs, and black passenger cars will have a toll of $1.25. Vehicles driving as part of Uber or Lyft will be charged $2.50 a customer.

Exemptions will be granted to emergency vehicles, vehicles transporting disabled individuals, NYC Department of Education school buses, specialized government vehicles, the Taxi and Limousine Commission’s commuter vans, and commuter buses available to the public.

The MTA will use the revenue gained from the tolls “to invest more in transit,” according to Lieber. For example, the money will be used to build elevators in subway stations in order to make stations more accessible to those who have disabilities. The MTA has also promised to fix signals and boost train capacity and reliability.

“We can do a lot of things, and we can keep this very old system in decent shape so that it doesn’t fall apart like it did in 2017,” Lieber said, in reference to a time when New York struggled with subway overcrowding and service interruptions. “We have better service because of the

investments we made. We want to make more like that.”

In anticipation of the congestion pricing initiative’s start, the MTA plans to expand service on 12 subway lines, overhaul the bus network, and execute the most significant service increase in the history of the Long Island Rail Road, as stated in a press release.

The plan, which is expected to discourage drivers from going on the road, is currently up against several lawsuits, including one that is being led by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, meant to stop the plan from becoming a reality.

“We’re confident we’re going to have the right outcome,” Lieber said of the lawsuits.

Dealing with the Baltimore Bridge Catastrophe

Six construction workers on the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, died after a 213-million-pound cargo ship crashed into the bridge, causing the structure to collapse into the water. Now, officials are beginning to clean up the debris in order to open up a temporary channel for boats to cross and recover the missing remains of four victims.

“At this time, pieces of the bridge trusses have started being cut and removed,” said U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson Petty Officer Kimberly Reaves. “The top part of a northern section of the bridge has been removed.”

According to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, authorities do not yet know when the channel will be reopened or when the bridge will be rebuilt.

“I can tell you the original bridge took about five years to build, but that doesn’t necessarily inform us about the timeline on the reconstruction,” the transportation security official explained. “We don’t fully know everything we need to know about the condition of the portions of the bridge that did not collapse.”

Buttigieg added that a lift crane capable of carrying 1,000 tons and a 600-ton crane are at the scene and are assisting in the process of eliminating pieces and debris of the fallen bridge from the water.

“This is going to be a very complex process,” Buttigieg said. “There are, even now, forces acting on that steel, so it takes a lot to make sure that it can be dismantled safely, to make sure that the vessel stays where it is supposed to be and doesn’t swing out into the channel.”

Commander and District Engineer Estee Pinchasin of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers explained that the debris from the bridge would be removed piece by piece. Following each removal, the area will be scanned and surveyed, and divers will then enter the water to conduct further examinations.

“We are not just looking at how we’re going to engineer this,” Pinchasin said. “We’re scanning to make sure that if we identify any vehicles or any of the fallen, that we are able to react.”

With the opening of a temporary channel, more vessels will be able to help clear the water of debris and retrieve the trapped bodies. The bridge’s collapse will likely negatively affect the economy, noted Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland.

The port of Baltimore “handles more cars and more farm equipment than any other port inside this country,” Moore explained, adding that the collapse will directly affect the jobs of “at least 8,000 workers on the docks.”

The Department of Transportation has provided $60 million in funds towards addressing the emergency, according to Buttigieg.

“We are continuing to do diving just for the purposes of evaluating how we can actually potentially cut up portions of the bridge, how we can rig for future lifts with the cranes, and how we can figure out exactly how to do this as safely as possible so that we can get that channel reopened,” U.S. Coast Guard Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath explained.

She’s So Write

Zita Miller is, hands down, a real champion. The ten-year-old is the winner of the Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest, which announced its winners on Monday.

“I like handwriting because it’s like art, drawing swirls and vines and curls,” Miller, who took top honors in the fifth grade category, said, adding that she enjoys penning original mystery stories by hand.

Her winning submission was one of the contest’s 80,000 entries.

Namuun Baasanbold, from Carmel, Indiana, was named grand champion in the first grade category and said she likes to give handwritten “love notes” to family and friends.

“Writing by hand makes me feel special,” she enthused.

Experts say that writing by hand –whether in print or in cursive – is helpful for learning, benefiting memory, cognitive development, reading comprehension and fine motor skills.

Judges in the handwriting contest analyzed the mechanics and precision of the letters students wrote, including their shapes, sizes, slant and spacing.

Contestants were asked to write the sentence, “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog,” because it includes the entire alphabet, as well as a sentence explaining why handwriting makes them a better reader and writer.

Baasanbold said she was “over the moon” to find out she won.

“I screamed and celebrated with friends at a restaurant with pizza and an appetizer and a sundae for dessert,” she said.

Her prizes include a trophy and $500 plus bragging rights.

“I like to use my handwriting to impress people,” she said.

Write on!

A Human Fountain

A Chinese man drank 1.1 gallons of water and brought it back up to serve as a human fountain for a record-breaking 5 minutes and 51.88 seconds.

Ma Hui, 35, downed the water and used his muscle control to regurgitate the liquid and spray a stream of water from his mouth for almost six minutes. The previous record holder, Ethiopian Kirubel Yilma, was only able to do it for

56.36 seconds.

Guinness World Records said the rules for the longest time to spray water from the mouth category required the water from Hui’s mouth to be spurted or sprayed, with no dribbling allowed. The record attempt ends when the stream breaks or stops.

Water spouting is a trick involving precise muscle control and has been performed since at least the 17th century.

Magician David Blaine has studied the trick. When he learned that a Liberian man was able to do it, he spent five years tracking the man down. It turned out that the man was a 35-year-old security guard named Winston Carter.

“[He] learned how to do it for survival,” Blaine recalled. “Because they were so poor where he grew up and lived in Liberia, so that when they went to the well they could only bring back a certain amount of water. But if he could put the water inside [his stomach] and fill the bucket up he could go back with more.

“I flew there immediately and convinced Winston to show me how to do it. I came back and started playing with this concept that water can be stored in your stomach, you empty out the system, then I realized you can put a gallon of water in your stomach. He could put out fires with it or whatever.”

Sounds like this trick really holds water.

Hot Dog!

Junk food isn’t allowed to be advertised on the London Underground, and it isn’t a laughing matter for Ed Gamble, a comedian.

The jokester was told to change a subway station poster for his new standup show because the image of a hot dog violated the transit network’s ban on junk food advertising.

Since 2019, Transport for London has banned ads for foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt from the city’s subway trains and stations, buses and bus shelters. It also bars advertisements that promote unhealthy or unrealistic body shapes.

The poster for the show, “Hot Diggity Dog,” showed a mustard- and ketchup-smeared Gamble beside a half-eaten

hot dog on a plate.

Gamble complied with the directive and changed the hot dog on the poster to something a bit more healthy – a cucumber.

Gamble, who is diabetic and co-hosts the “Off Menu” food podcast, said he could see the point of the ad rules, which are intended to help curb obesity in children.

“But the new posters promote something way more harmful — the idea that cucumbers pair well with ketchup and mustard,” he quipped. Woof!

Bridging the Gap

Planning a chol hamoed trip? This is not for the faint of heart.

Italy recently opened its highest pedestrian footbridge – soaring 574 feet above a ravine in the region of Umbria.

It connects two picture-perfect locations: Sellano, a medieval village about an hour southeast of the regional capital Perugia, and Montesanto, a hamlet on the other side of the Vigi river in the Valnerina valley.

The walk – just under half a mile long –takes around 30-45 minutes to complete.

If you’re afraid of heights, this trip is not for you. There is a 223-foot incline rising up towards Montesanto. The socalled “ponte tibetano” (“Tibetan bridge”) adds extra thrills with its paving slats set apart – known as a “discontinuous tread.”

With around 1,000 steps to cross the nearly half-mile bridge, set down your foot in the wrong position and you can go sliding. But harnesses are worn to keep visitors attached to the bridge and ensure that the journey is not their last.

Mayor of Sellano Attilio Gubbiotti told Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper that the idea behind the bridge was to “revitalize the area and stave off depopulation.” Eastern Umbria, where the bridge is located, was at the heart of a series of devastating earthquakes in central Italy in 2016. He is hoping the bridge will bring business to the area.

Interested in taking the leap? Only 90 visitors are able to be on the bridge at a time. Reservations are currently open until May 5. Visitors must wear suitable footwear and must be around 4 feet tall.

Hold on tight.

Around the Community

45th Annual HAFTR Dinner

The 45th Annual HAFTR Dinner held this past Sunday proved to be a success as the school community gathered to celebrate outstanding individuals who have dedicated themselves to embodying the values of education, Judaism, and Zionism.

The evening commenced with a moving Tehilim recitation led by Rabbi Asher Klein, followed by a heartfelt dvar Torah delivered by Rabbi Ira Wallach, setting the tone for an evening of reflection and appreciation.

Among the honorees was Lauren Weinrib, who was awarded the Hakarat HaTov Award for her invaluable contri-

butions as HAFTR PTA Co-President. Weinrib’s unwavering commitment to enhancing school events with her unique flair has left an indelible mark on the community, enriching student experiences and elevating school programming.

Debra Haft, a beloved first-grade teacher with a 29-year tenure at HAFTR, was honored with the Faculty of the Year Award. Haft’s dedication to her students, coupled with her role as Head of the Sunshine Fund, where she has provided support to faculty during both joyous and challenging times, exemplifies her impact on the HAFTR community.

The evening reached an emotion-

al pinnacle with the presentation of the Alumni of the Year Award to HAFTR alumni currently serving in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Barry Gurvitch, a HAFTR and IDF soldier parent, delivered a stirring speech. A poignant video tribute left the audience in tears and in silence. As the parents of the honored IDF soldiers were presented with awards on behalf of their children, there was a large standing ovation.

In a fitting conclusion to the evening, attendees were gifted with a book of Tehilim, providing a tangible reminder of the spiritual significance of the event.

Reflecting on the evening’s events,

attendees expressed gratitude for the opportunity to honor and celebrate individuals who embody the core values of the HAFTR community. With catering centralized around an Israeli shuk and centerpieces designed by our high school, Israel was on the forefront of the festivities. The 45th Annual HAFTR Dinner served as a meaningful reminder of the school’s unwavering commitment to fostering a love of learning, Judaism, and Zionism among its students and alumni, ensuring a bright future for generations to come.

The Power of One—One Day, One Idea, One Priority, One Person

Priority 1 Launches One Brand New Identity

It all began one day thirty-seven years ago. That’s the power of one—one day can change every day, one vision can illuminate the brightest future, one priority can motivate infinite potential, one spark can ignite brilliant flames, one person can impact countless worlds.

Back then, in 1987, the great need of the moment was empowering students whose melody went unsung by the mainstream Yeshiva system. Priority 1, the heartbeat and brainchild of Rav Shaya Cohen Shlit”a, was born to develop enhanced methods for maximizing the effectiveness Jewish education.

One thing led to another. That’s the power of one. Soon a classic Yeshiva grew almost organically from the ground up. The Yeshiva, Yeshiva Zichron Aryeh, classic in its mesorah, hashkafa, and structure, was trailblazing in its mission to matriculate talmidim that would bring emunah and bitachon into every nuance of existence and produce our community’s leaders.

The next natural step is parenting. How to reintroduce Hashem into our relationships with our children? How to reinvigorate

our children’s relationships with Hashem? How to revitalize our own connection with our Creator? Prioritize Parenting materialized out of the spiritual necessity to address these essential questions.

Teaching and parenting are synonymous. “And you shall teach your children— these are your students.” How to bring Hashem into the classroom? How to enliven every lesson with Toras Chaim, Simchas HaChaim, the life gifted by the Boreh Olam? How to anchor education in Emunah and Bitachon? How to ignite teachers and curricula with the eternal flame of Ner Mitzvah and Torah Ohr? Teach To Reach was launched to solidify the kesher between teacher and student, and in turn the student’s relationship with Hashem, in the mightiest of ways.

The Eliezer Institute followed to manifest the same ideas and ideals that Priority 1 infused into education and parenting into the general public. Imagine communities saturated in the security of Bitachon and the confidence of Emunah. Picture generations built upon the foundations of purpose and the gifts of meaning. Envision Klal Yisroel

pulsating with the simcha inherent to Hashem’s children, and the tools necessary to implement our chosen calling at the ready of every person’s fingertip.

The legacy of Torah, Halacha, Mussar, and Hashkafa soon extended to Eretz Yisroel, where Rebbeim and Kollel Yungeleit help every post-high school talmid maximize his growth at Yeshiva Ohr Hatzafon. Of course, the aura and chochma of Eretz Yisroel then ripples outward, uplifting the entire planet.

A lot has happened since 1987. Much has changed. Technology has electrified (for better or for worse) everything. Our communities have blossomed and bloomed. Many challenges have been addressed. Many new ones have arisen.

While much has changed, the oneness, the emes, the essence has remained the same. Torah is Torah. Emunah and Bitachon are as critical today as they ever were. Our need for Hashem in our lives never changes and only increases with the possibilities and unpredictability of life. With the collective and individual challenges peculiar

to our generation, prioritized parenting is critically important. And, of course, teaching and reaching our children, youth, and teenagers with the illuminated warmth of Yiddishkeit is as acutely relevant to life as inhaling and exhaling.

To harness the thirty-seven years of impact in a way that paves an elevated path forward, one that will shape and empower the future, Priority 1 has coalesced all its initiatives under one identity, one family, one vision and mission.

Sometimes, especially today, it can feel like we are being pulled in infinite directions. Finding the one true path is a struggle. Discovering the one core identity is a battle. Priority 1 is here to help turn the struggle into fuel, transform the battle into a battle cry spiriting the energy of a restless Neshama.

It all began one day thirty-seven years ago.

And, on one day it begins and begins again—today!

With one teacher, one parent, one person—you!

Flag Football

What a week it was at the 5 Towns FM Home Loans Flag Football League! It was week number three, and the boys came ready to play.

The first grade division learned how to run fast after catching the ball and had a lot of fun doing so. In the second grade division, there were three matchups. The Jets played the Patriots, the Eagles played the Giants, and the Vikings played the Broncos. To everyone’s surprise, they all tied! In the third and fourth grade division, the Eagles beat the Raiders, the Panthers beat the Saints, the Steelers beat the Jets, the Vikings beat the Falcons, the Giants and the Broncos tied, the Seahawks beat the Patriots, and the Packers beat the Dolphins with some great catches by Abie Shapiro. In the fifth and sixth grade division, the Broncos beat the Patriots, the Raiders beat

the Panthers, the Dolphins beat the Giants, and the Jets beat the Packers led by Moshe Austin who had three touchdown catches. In the seventh and eighth grade division, the Eagles beat the Giants, the Vikings beat the Broncos, and the Patriots beat the Jets with some great touchdown catches by Yehuda Harary.

Week three was a blast! What made this week even better was the fact that every single participant received a FM Home Loans Gatorade water bottle. It’s the first of many giveaways this semester. We can’t wait to see everyone on the field next week!

Sportsmanship of the Week Awards: 1st: Mordechai Berkowitz; 2nd: Pacey Sprecher; 3rd & 4th: Yosef Packer; 5th & 6th: Pinchas Mishaan; 7th & 8th: Tzvi Brazil.

HANC

ELA and Chocolate at YOSS

After completing The Chocolate Touch by Patrick Skene Catling, Mrs. Gober’s second grade ELA enrichment class at YOSS embarked on a full exploration about chocolate! The students learned so many new and interesting facts about chocolate such as where cocoa beans are grown and how chocolate is made from start to finish.

The boys learned how to take notes on interesting and important facts while reading the nonfiction book. Now, they are working on taking their research and creating a class book which will feature the interesting facts they discovered. Of course, Mrs. Gober’s class had to have a tasty treat now that they know all about chocolate, and it was delicious!

ECC had a hands-on experience making matzah

The pre-1A classes at Siach Yitzchok were given their very first siddurim this week and are all very excited to begin davening

Can YOU Answer the Question of the Day?!

By Daniel Stroock

If you were to take a piece of paper and write out every number in English, beginning with “o-n-e,” “t-w-o,” “t-hr-e-e,” and so on, at what point would you get to a number whose letters appear in alphabetical order? I shot a video of myself asking this and that was the first “Question of the Day”! I posted it on my linked Facebook & Instagram accounts. The reaction was positive and immediate!

I had actually been thinking about doing this for some time. But like many of us, before jumping into a creative endeavor and “putting myself out there,” I had to deal with some trepidation. OK, maybe more than “some.”

Much of my time is spent as a teacher of American History, in two of our local schools. And in addition to relishing the opportunity to share the important story of our great nation’s founding and its first 250 years, I love to find and share interesting facts of all sorts. I guess those two things go together.

And there is no shortage of fascinating factoids. In the first month, I have posted approximately 25 videos. They are generally less than 60 seconds in length, and they invite the viewer to think about something from an angle they have never noticed. Or, to simply learn something unbelievable and amazing! For example, there’s the story of the two brothers

that built a fast food empire that today is worth billions of dollars. They began with a loan of $400 from their mother. At the start, while money was in super short supply, to advertise their establishment, they were forced to use the free Coca Cola-sponsored sign, which only had room for 8 letters. And thus, one of the world’s most well-known franchises was branded, and today still uses that same 8 letter name.

Since beginning this new journey, I’ve been stopped in shul, the local supermarkets, eateries and once even by someone who was crossing Central Ave as I drove by, to comment on the Question of the Day. I have been thanked and encouraged by fellow teachers that have introduce the QotD into their classrooms.

The most common feedback I get is about the answers. That is where my “community” is most divided. Some people have requested that I include the answers with the question. I finally tried that once. It didn’t go well. After asking the question, I waited a 3 count before stating the answer. A number of people reached out and told me they were frustrated because the nature of Instagram is such that the “reel” will re-play again and again, until it is stopped. That gives viewers an opportunity to automatically hear the question several times by simply leaving their phones untouched. When the answer was given, they were frustrated at having lost the opportunity to think

about it on their own.

And sometimes, people like to argue. I asked a question one day about a body part that every human has, but no other creature in the animal kingdom can boast. I even included in the video, a gratuitously cute picture of my dog Oakley, from the neck up. I pointed out that if Oakley had this particular body part, it would have been visible in the photo. When the answer was shared in the comments, a number of people told me why I was wrong. But I can live with that. :)

So far, our questions have covered math, animals, astronomy, geography, business, politics, history and sometimes, things that are just downright wacky. Take this question about the FBI, for example. When the FBI surreptitiously enters a suspected criminal’s home with the intent of planting a hidden eavesdropping device, they bring with them a vial of this particular substance to make sure they can cover their tracks. I pointed out that my mom would be horrified to hear about this since she has spent much of her life trying to obliterate every last vestige of this from her home. Can you guess what it is?

One of the joys of the process has been discussing it with my 11th grade classes. They in particular encouraged me to begin and have even helped by “staying quiet” at the very beginning of our period so we can quickly film the questions before moving back to our history topic at hand.

And as a matter of routine, their daily greeting to me has generally become, “Hi, did you make a QotD video yet?” They have suggested that I aim to go viral by including topics and therefore hashtags that include Taylor Swift or other trending celebrities. So far, I have declined to do so. Our classroom discussions have inspired several of the Questions, however. For example, we talked about the advent of photography in the 1800s and its impact on the Civil War. That led to: this specific use for photography had already been innovated by 1850. And nowadays, it is done approximately 12 million times per year. What type of picture is it?

While I am not quite ready to piggyback on Taylor Swift’s fame, I sure would appreciate your support! :) So if inclined, please feel free to follow StreetSmartGameShows on Instagram or YouTube. As for the answers, you can generally find someone intelligent (or proficient at Googling) that has written them in the comments. (I will usually “pin” the correct answer. But until then)…Forty, Pizza Hut, a vial of dust, and the Mug Shot! :)

Daniel Stroock loves teaching American History to students in HAFTR & MAY. He is also the Director of HALB’s Avnet Country Day School. In his free time, he produces trivia-based game shows for parties and special events. For more information, please reach out to him directly danielstroock@gmail.com.

Congressman Ritchie Torres with Daniel Lifshitz, grandson of Oded Lifshitz, who is still being held hostage

Congressman Ritchie Torres toured Israel this week with the UJA. He is seen here inside a house in Kibbutz Nir Oz

Comptroller Brad Lander celebrated Shushan Purim with Crown Heights leaders Rabbi Schmuel Butler, Rabbi Yaacov Behrman, Pinny Hikind and Ushi Teitelbaum

SAT at MTA

On Tuesday, March 26, about half of MTA juniors took the SAT in school. This is noteworthy for a few reasons. First of all, why take the SAT at all? Most colleges, including all the ones most MTA students are considering, are test optional. The SAT and ACT are not required. So these 39 students chose to prepare, study, and test even though they were not required to do so. Second, it was a Tuesday. Who takes the SAT on a Tuesday? The whole world tests on Saturday, except a small group of Sabbath observers who test on Sunday. Third, how could these MTA students test at school, when MTA is not a national test center? If you try to register for the SAT on the College Board’s website, you will not see MTA as a listed test center.

The answers are that yes, these students felt it was worth the trouble to test even though the colleges they’ll be applying to next year will not require it, and yes, MTA is able to offer the SAT through a program called “School Day,” where any high school can administer the test to its own students on any day it chooses (within a prescribed window). As a result, these students were able to take their regular bussing to come to school,

attend their regular Shacharis, and then take the test in the comfort of their regular surroundings.

And why are these students testing?

Many of them are hoping to apply to the Honors Program at YU, which is not test optional and requires an SAT of 1450 or better. Others simply want to add to their portfolio another impressive accomplishment with which to attract the attention of college admissions officers. (For example, although the Ivy League is test optional, it is also true that all the MTA students in the last few years who were admitted to Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Penn, Princeton, and Yale, all submitted test scores). Still, others are hoping to demonstrate that even though their grades are not as good as they would like, their aptitude is greater, which they hope to prove with a high score. And for all of these students, MTA is happy to offer the test and dedicate the time, space, and staff to make the test possible.

MTA has been offering “SAT School Day” for many years, and encourages other high schools to offer it as well. If you would like it at your school (or your child’s), please contact College Guidance at MTA for advice about how to set it up.

HANC Middle School Purim Chagiga

The seventh and eighth grade girls at HANC celebrated a joyous Chagiga in honor of Purim with “iMove with Naz.” It was a beautiful event that showcased unity and happiness among the students. Adorned in colorful costumes and beaming smiles, the

girls came together to dance, sing, and truly embrace the spirit of Purim. The Chagiga was a testament to the power of community and the joy of coming together, especially during these challenging times for the Jewish people.

The talmidos of the Ganger Early Childhood Center at TAG collaborated to create a giant Krias Yam Suf bulletin board

Congratulations to HAFTR for placing 2nd and 3rd place in the CIJE Robotics Tournament held at the Armory this past Monday

Mazal tov to the HAFTR Middle School Boys’ Torah Bowl Team on their championship run

YCQ Debate Team Takes Home 3 First Place Trophies

On Thursday, March 28, YCQ was awarded the First Place School at the Debate Tournament hosted by the Yeshiva of Central Queens. YCQ students Sophie Sisser and Aiden Olsen were awarded First Place Team, and Aiden won First Place Speaker as well.

All of the YCQ students performed phenomenally as they defeated tough opponents from SAR, Flatbush, and Kushner. Students debated whether or not tobacco products and vaping should be federally banned and made excellent points on both sides of the topic.

It was a particularly special win for Coach Mr. Ehrenkranz, as the debate

was dedicated in memory of his friend and mentor, the late Senator Joseph Lieberman, a”h, who had passed away the evening before. Mr. Ehrenkranz worked with Senator Lieberman early in his career when he had the opportunity to serve as one of his aides. He described how special the Senator was, stressing that he never met someone who had a smaller ego and how kind and sincere Senator Lieberman always acted.

Thank you to Mr. Ehrenkranz, Ms. Ellen Zakin, and Mr. Jacob Grossman for organizing and leading the team to victory!

Shaindy Plotzker Comes to Shulamith

The Shulamith students had the zechut to hear from Shaindy Plotzker about the launch of a new tefillah initiative “TYH 4 Tefillah,” a global Tehillimathon. Shulamith is one of the first schools to participate in this exciting program that will benefit Israeli families in more than one way. Packets were distributed to explain

the initiative which is designed to increase our tefillot for the sake of our chayalim and to benefit so many who need extra financial assistance for basic necessities at this difficult time.

We are proud of all our girls who are motivated to increase their tefillah and tzedaka at this time! Tizku l’mitzvot!

Morah Ruchama Israel with Rabbi Avrohom Bender and family

MTA Alum Ben Richman Donates Bone Marrow

MTA always celebrates the accomplishments of their alumni. Some go on to become roshei yeshiva, others successful businessmen, all of whom getting their start during their formative years of high school. Not many can say they donated bone marrow through a Gift of Life drive that took place at MTA. Ben Richman (‘22) joins a growing list of successful donors, after matching with a 47-yearold man suffering from leukemia.

Ben is the son of Cory (‘95) and Mandy (YUHSG ‘96), twin brother of Sam (‘22), and older brother of Andi (‘26) and Jake. He lives in Bergenfield, NJ, and is a third generation MTA alum. Ben’s parents are invested in his progress and are involved parents at MTA.

When Ben was a student at MTA, he participated in MTA’s annual Gift of Life bone-marrow drive. He did not think anything would come of it other than a simple swab of his mouth. However, this past October, all that changed when he was contacted by Gift of Life because he was a match. Ben was a talmid in Reishit at the time, enjoying his shana bet year.

Because of the war that broke out on October 7, the normal timing associated with the bone marrow donation process was delayed, as special blood tests that needed to be shipped to Israel took longer than anticipated. In late December, the blood tests finally arrived in Israel, and the donation process was underway. After several check-ups in Israel at various labs and doctor’s offices, the date of

HANC Middle School Torah Bowl

On Tuesday, March 19, the amazing girls’ Torah Bowl team at HANC traveled to Great Neck for our fourth and last meet of the year. It was the playoff competition, and the girls independently reviewed so well for it. We are so proud of our girls for coming in second place in the league. They surpassed HALB, HAFTR, North Shore, and Silverstein! They then had to play against Shulamith. It was a tight game, and we did not win. It was a great experience nonetheless, and it was a great year mastering Sefer Shemot. We are so proud of all the effort and dedication Becca, Baila, Lielle, Yael, Rachelie, and Agam put in all year long. We look forward to next year as we work through Sefer Bamidbar. The HANC Middle School boys’ To -

rah Bowl team has just concluded another wonderful season. Unfortunately, this year, the boys did not repeat as champions, however, the boys did finish second overall in the league. All of the boys learned the entire sefer of Shemot with Perush Rashi, and this is quite a

March 25 was set for Ben’s donation.

Ben was flown in ten days prior to that date and needed two shots every day for five days before the donation to help the bone marrow make new white blood cells that would be needed for the extraction.

When March 25 finally arrived, Ben went to Hackensack University Hospital to donate. It turned into a 12-hour affair as some complications arose which required a location change for the draw.

Despite that, Ben says, “It doesn’t matter if the person I donated to is Jewish or not. At a time like this, we need to make a kiddush Hashem with everyone.”

Ben is now back to his normal self, and other than limiting physical activity for two weeks post the procedure, life

has gone back to normal, but is also forever changed in the best way possible.

remarkable accomplishment. We would like to thank eighth graders Yonah Lalehzari, Yitzchak Engelsohn, Kaleb Lerner, Yehuda Weissman, and Elisha Bronstein for their leadership and time spent on the team. We wish them the best of luck in high school Torah Bowl! Our seventh

graders are eagerly awaiting next year’s Torah Bowl season, as they will get an opportunity to continue to learn Torah in-depth and will hopefully be able to win the school another Torah Bowl Championship!

on Purim At the recent RCCS Far Rockaway event held at the home of Chaim and Matti Becker

BJX, A Vibrant Community Organization

What is it like to teach a fellow Jew about the yesodos of our Mesorah? Or to familiarize a fellow Jew about Purim, a yom tov they never heard of? Or to show them the difference between an Aleph and a Beis? Just ask members of the Flatbush community who spend their time learning with BJX students. They will tell you it is

“thrilling,” “gratifying,” and “fulfilling.”

We take our Yeshiva education and the chinuch that our parents instilled in us for granted, but so many of acheinu bnei Yisroel never had the chance to learn the basics of Yiddishkeit. BJX and their mentors have the opportunity to give them that chance they never had.

YUHSG Celebrates Purim and Positivity With Maccabiah 5784

Purim is a time of fun and positive energy, and students at the Yeshiva University High School for Girls (Central) made the most of the holiday with special programming and events. Dress up days, including the much-anticipated “Dress Like a Teacher Day,” provided fun, as did the legendary annual Purim Shpiel and Purim Day visits at the homes of Central faculty members in Brooklyn, Queens, Great Neck, Lawrence, and West Hempstead. But the one word that best summarizes the past week at Central: Maccabiah 5784!

Breakout occurred on Monday, March 25, and the four grades immediately went to work discussing their tactics for this year’s competition. In solidarity with those fighting to keep Israel safe throughout Operation Swords of Iron, this year’s theme was “On the Front Lines.” With the idea that everyone is being called to fight on the front lines in one way or another, each grade was assigned an IDF unit to represent, as well as a personal middah that their team could adopt in America to help those fighting in Israel. The freshmen, led by grade general Nili Aharon and captains Annabelle Klein and Adelle Yukhanov, represented the Field Intelligence unit of the IDF, which gathers information behind enemy lines and has worked to free the hostages and disarm Hamas. They also represented the personal theme of Torah. Sophomores, led by grade general Kayla Brukner and captains Orli Fish and Shalhevet Koenigsberg and representing the personal theme of Tefillah, were IDF Paratroopers, the elite infantry unit defending the Israeli border. The junior class, representing the personal theme of Chesed, was helmed by grade general Esther Nazarov and captains Perri Bausk and Amy Morris. Juniors represented the Border Police, which provides counterterrorism efforts, law enforcement, and riot control, “We’re better than ever,” said junior general Esther Nazarov of the class of 2025. “This is our year.” The seniors, who won last year’s competition as juniors, were led by grade general Aviva Kessock and captains Sari Beer and Keira Kahn. Their role: the IDF Navy, which protects Israel from threats from the sea. The team also represented the personal theme of Ahavat Yisrael.

At the forefront of everyone’s minds was not competing and landing first

place, but using Maccabiah as an opportunity to collaborate and solidify bonds as a community, echoing the phrase many in Israel have used throughout Operation Swords of Iron: “B’yachad n’netzeach, Together, we will win.” Missions included academic challenges, performing arts competitions, and athletic matches, as well as a chesed drive in which each grade assembled bags of supplies to send to lone soldiers fighting on the front lines in Israel.

“We’re doing really well working together. Everyone is truly starting to participate and get involved -- and stepping outside their comfort zones to do so,” said freshman team captain Annabelle Klein. “Though being a captain can be stressful, it’s a valuable experience collaborating with my classmates and building a team.”

While Maccabiah 5784 provided typical fun and mayhem as the senior class won the event, the Central community took care to use the event as an opportunity to daven for the safety and security of our brothers and sisters in Israel. On the first day of Maccabiah, the school paused to remember the 134 hostages still being held in Gaza as Mrs. Einav Danino, the mother of Mr. Ori Danino, a hostage currently held in Gaza, visited Central to speak to the community, bringing a powerful message of faith and gratitude that touched every member of the Central community. As Central Judaic Studies faculty member Ms. Sydney Daitch – who, as Programming Director, played a pivotal role in this year’s Maccabiah –said, “In the merit of everything Jews are doing all over the world, may Am Yisrael be victorious in this war, may all of our hostages return to their families soon, and may all of our chayalim be protected!” Am Yisrael chai!

Around the Community

Rav Itay Tick, R”M Yeshivas Dimona and rav in the IDF, shared words of inspiration with talmidim at Yeshiva Ketana of Long Island this week. Rav Tick encouraged the talmidim to be mechazek their learning and davening as those are the greatest zechuyos on behalf of the Yidden in Eretz Yisrael during this difficult time.

Purim is over, which means all the classes at Lev Chana are already busy getting ready for Pesach. They have begun working on their very own haggadot to use at the Seder

Einav Danino, Mother of Hostage Ori, Inspires Students at Rambam

Rambam students and faculty were spellbound by the emunah and bitachon emanating from Einav Danino, mother of Ori, who was taken captive by Hamas on October 7, 2023. She delivered a life-changing message of resilience and faith in the face of the unfathomable.

Einav shared Ori’s story of strength and courage. Ori was taken hostage following his attendance at the Nova Festival. He first escaped, piling as many people as he could into his car, but then returned to save more people, only to be captured and taken to Gaza.

Emphasizing the significance of Ori’s name, which translates to “light” in Hebrew, Einav and her family find solace in its symbolic representation of hope during these extremely challenging

times. She also shared that Ori always encouraged her as well as everyone around him to “dream big.”

As students and staff gathered to provide support and comfort, the room radiated with Einav’s unwavering faith in Hashem, offering everyone a glimpse of her extraordinary resilience. Despite facing unimaginable challenges, she somehow finds the strength to express gratitude to Hashem for this test, remaining steadfast in her belief that everything will ultimately be alright. Her profound message serves as a remarkable lesson for our students, coming from someone enduring the most difficult period of their life.

Following Einav’s moving account, students and faculty united with her in reciting a chapter of Tehillim. They then encircled her, contributing to a book she

carries with her, each adding a pledge to perform an additional mitzvah in merit of the hostages.

Since the October 7th attacks, Rambam students have organized many initiatives to support Israelis in need. Between running drives for essential equipment, packing bags for soldiers, organizing and shlepping luggage at

Rockets Into Roses Artist Visits Mercaz Academy

Students at Mercaz Academy were delighted to welcome artist Yaron Bob to their campus in Plainview last week. As the artist behind Rockets Into Roses, Mr. Bob sculpts metal remnants from exploded rockets launched into Israel by terrorists from Gaza and transforms them into beautiful jewelry, art, and Jewish ritual objects.

Yaron introduced himself to students in grades one through six, telling them that he had been an art teacher and blacksmith in the town of Yated, a small Israeli community near the border of Gaza. He told his fascinated audience about a time he accidentally sat on a fork, which bent. Aimlessly playing with the bent fork, he shaped it into a cat, and came up with the idea of teaching “students like me, who have trouble in school,” how to work with

metal as a therapeutic method to relieve stress. As he told this story and throughout the presentation, he idly shaped a stash of metal forks into cats, bracelets, scorpions, and other fantastic sculptures that he gave to lucky students, much to their delight.

One day many years ago, Yaron told the students, sirens wailed, indicating that Yaron had seven seconds to take shelter from an incoming Kassem missile from Gaza. The rocket hit uncomfortably close, and while he wasn’t hurt, he was frightened and upset. Needing to retake control of his fear, Yaron sculpted the shrapnel from this near-miss into a rose. It needed a base, so he added one, allowing the rose to rise from a map of Israel.

Now, he makes many different pieces of art in addition to those originals,

including a megillah case made from a rocket shell, mezuzah covers made from exploded Iron Dome fragments, and necklaces with charms shaped like maps of Israel or Stars of David. Mercaz students found Yaron’s most impressive creation to be a set of chimes made from exploded rockets, finished and painted with a Magen David. Yaron selected a student to strike each chime once in the order in which they were strung to demonstrate which song these particular chimes were designed to play. As the first notes of “Hatikvah” rang out, Mercaz students immediately recognized Israel’s national anthem and spontaneously sang along, bringing the artist to tears.

Yaron has a natural rapport with children, and they loved him, clamoring for fork sculptures and peppering him with

JFK Airport, collecting winter clothes for displaced families, picking fruits on kibbutz farms, and bikur cholim visits to the wounded in Israeli hospitals, Rambam students have been involved wherever help has been needed. Hearing from Einav Danino has deepened the sense of purpose and importance of these efforts.

questions. It was an incredible lesson on resilience and empowerment in difficult times, and the artist gently taught Mercaz students how to transform the things that try to break us into something beautiful.

Yeshiva of Central Queens Launches New Parenting Podcast

The Yeshiva of Central Queens recently launched a new podcast called “Y.C.Q Answered, Your Children’s Questions – Answered!” Each episode will feature different members of the YCQ family and administration discussing the challenges and opportunities of raising Jewish children in the 21st century.

The first episode kicked off with a conversation about “When Can I Get a Phone?” and responsible technology use. The episode featured a lively discussion between Dr. Elana Dumont, the Director of Psychological Services l, and Rabbi Stephen Knapp, the Junior High School principal, and was hosted by Yossi Zimilover, YCQ’s Director of Communications.

An excerpt of the conversation is printed below. Visit ycqweb.com/podcast to listen to the whole episode or search for YCQ Answered on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Yossi Zimilover: “Mommy, Daddy, I want a phone. Everyone else in my class has one. When can I get a phone?” How do we go about talking to children about that? Why, yes? Why, no? It’s probably going to happen at a certain age. How do we do that safely and responsibly?

Rabbi Stephen Knapp: I like to give the kids a mashal, a little bit of an example here. So I ask the kids in the Junior High School, how many of you have

a driver’s license?

Of course, none of them do, because society has said in its research that only at a certain age, when the mind is developed is it really appropriate to have a driver’s license.

We would never let a child drive a car. It’s too dangerous. So too, we have to ask that same question about a cell phone. A cell phone is fine by itself, it’s not the issue. But if it gives you so much access to things that could be so dangerous beyond one’s imagination, why would we give it out to a child and expose them to that danger without going through that process, training the child?

Maybe a slow rollout. You can have certain apps only initially, and then maybe with someone else by one side. When it comes to driving, there are very, very strict rules about what hours a child can drive, when a child is getting a license for the first time, how many passengers can be in the car with the driver. Because we know there’s a tendency among teenagers when they’re with groups of kids to make decisions that are far less than the most healthy ones. So I think we should take the same approach to cell phones. And the longer we can wait, the better.

Yossi Zimilover: I also love that analogy, that mashal, and I think it’s also worth pointing out that eventually, teenagers do get a driver’s license and then become adults with a car and a driver’s license. I drive to work every day. There

are plenty of dangerous adults out there on the road. And I think we also need to make sure as adults that we’re using our own phones responsibly and not hurting ourselves or hurting other people.

Dr. Elana Dumont: The longer the better, 100%. And another thing that I will often ask parents is to think about how their child manages social relationships offline. So face to face in person, in school, on a playdate in the house, what are their conflict resolution skills like? Because however they are, it is going to be magnified and way more impulsive when once they have access to a device.

And, while I agree with the later, the better, I do want to validate that there is a risk of your child becoming socially isolated if everyone gets a phone and your family rule is to wait until whatever age. While I agree with maintaining your family boundaries and rules, I also think that there is a need to balance what the repercussions would be for a child who is

maybe the only one without a certain app.

And then, if the decision is made that now is the time we’re giving you the phone, we’re giving you access, there should be an understanding that parents have full access to monitor anything that their kids are doing, not because we don’t trust them, but I always say this to kids and I say this to parents that the frontal lobe of the brain is really not fully developed until you’re a young adult. And that’s really the area that we use to make decisions and use our judgment. And we have to expect mistakes, like you just said.

Even adults are going to make mistakes; we get into car accidents. And if we go into it with no room for error here, then we’re setting them up for failure. So if they know that we’re monitoring because our job is to keep them safe as the adults in their life, then I think it takes on a different framework of being able to partner with them on helping them make good decisions.

The sun shone bright and the weather was nice for the first time in weeks as the 5TLL by FM Home Loans kicked off the season this past Sunday!

This past Sunday, 5TLL boys played their preseason games as they got ready for a great season! In the K/P soccer scrimmage, Avi Langer of the yellow team secured victory with a penalty kick, sealing a 1-0 win. In the 3rd grade baseball division, Benny Markowitz of Signature Coverage launched a game-tying 3-run homer, while Eli Benedek showcased exceptional fielding with some incredible catches! In 5th grade, Yehuda Stern and Ariel Heimowitz of Marciano Dentistry delivered an offensive spectacle with a grand slam and a 2-run homer respectively. Dov Cohen of Team Hamaspik hit an impressive home run, rounding 3rd before the fielders could even get to the ball!

In a tense finish, Elegant Lawns clinched victory over Newman Dental with a crucial outfield catch by Elimelech Gitelis. Among the younger players, Yakov Kopelowitz of Nojo Promo stood out with a stunning catch at second base, sealing the game! Dovi Jakubowitz made a memorable debut in 1st grade baseball, smashing a 3-run homer and earning the team MVP. Pre1A baseball saw Dave Erez’s home run and MVP performance for Rita’s, along with Aryeh Stern’s impressive home run. Even the youngest players showed promise, exemplified by Jakob Rosenberg’s double to center field for the Kindergarten Maidenbaum team. The volunteer fathers who are coaching this season did a phenomenal job in week one!

Special Guest

Coach Benny Kellman, a member of the NYS Red Bulls freestyle team, professional juggler, and accomplished sports

Social/Emotional Learning at HANC

In addition to a robust academic curriculum in HANC’s Elementary School in West Hempstead, the students are also engaging in social/emotional learning in all grade levels. The goal of these programs is to help children build resilience skills so that each child can approach learning challenges with confidence and make good choices throughout the day. Through Counterforce’s Second Step Program, the children in kindergarten through fifth grade engage in activities that enable the children to strengthen their ability to manage their emotions, impulses and problem solving skills. Research has shown that social/emotional skills can help improve academic performance, create a more positive classroom culture and reduce negative social interactions.

Throughout the year, HANC’s social worker, Mrs. Devora Jaye-Loike, meets with the students weekly and teaches

Did you know?

them skills that help them to strengthen their ability to learn, develop empathy and learn ways to reach out to others with compassion, manage their emotions, and solve conflicts as they arise. The program promotes the development of self-regulation skills that will not only enhance their learning in school but will be useful throughout their lives. Mrs. Loike utilizes techniques to help the children identify their feelings and when they have strong feelings, she teaches them proactive strategies that help each child to calm down and prevent these emotions from escalating into negative behaviors.

With the help of “situation cards” that depict difficult interpersonal situations that can arise in school, the children discuss what is happening and try to place themselves in that situation. Together as a class, the children discuss how each child in that circumstance feels and try

In the South, horseradish was rubbed on people’s foreheads to relieve headaches.

coach was there this past Sunday and put on some amazing shows and taught the boys valuable soccer/baseball skills!

Swag Update

The boys received team jerseys and caps and some amazing swag including: water bottles sponsored by Tikva Fire, Rita’s buy one get one free italian ices cards, and Mets/Yankees season sched-

ule magnets from 5 Towns Batting Cages!

More swag is coming next week!

This season, the league was also excited to introduce Rita’s Sportsmanship cards for the player with the best middos during the game and 2 tokens to the Batting Cages and a Piu Bello Game MVP bumper sticker for each game’s MVP!

to work together to come up with strategies and solutions that will rectify the situation without hurting anyone’s feelings. When a child finds themselves very upset about something, the program teaches them how to name their feelings and take deep “belly breaths” to help them calm down. In addition, there is an emphasis on utilizing positive self-talk to help themselves better manage their emotions.

First graderse through fourth graders enjoy “Lunch Bunch” Mrs. Loike, a program geared to work with small groups of children on developing stronger social skills, learning how to handle difficult

situations and how to develop deeper friendships with their peers. In fifth grade, a new program was added this year to focus on learning about empathy and breaking down stereotypes of other people. Incorporating role playing of different scenarios, the children are able to learn how to understand the feelings of others and to navigate tricky social situations. In preparation for Middle School, the sixth graders are participating in a program tailor made for them to prepare them for the social and emotional challenges they may face as they move to a new school building and meet new students from other schools.

MAY Class of 2019 Reunion

The Class of 2019’s five-year reunion at Mesivta Ateres Yaakov was a huge hit, thanks to the dedicated efforts of alumnus Sham Shamilzadeh and the enthusiastic participation of over half the graduating class. Held last Thursday night in the beautiful Lieber Beis Medrash, the event was a testament to the enduring bonds forged within the

yeshiva.

Kicking off the evening, the Rosh HaYeshiva, Rabbi Yaffe, imparted heartfelt divrei bracha, setting a tone of warmth and camaraderie. His presence, alongside that of Rabbi Bennett, underscored the significance of the occasion.

Rabbi Sprung, known for his insightful shiurim, delivered a captivating shiur to

EFRAT: A Heroine’s Circle of Support

By Rifki Orzech

Chazal say we were redeemed in the merit of nashim tzidkaniyos: Miriam and Yocheved, as well as all the women of Am Yisrael who birthed children, even when they were experiencing slavery and despair. Three millennia later, Israeli women are facing the choice of bringing life into a world overshadowed by a war, and holding their homefront island together, alone.

EFRAT will be there to support a woman’s decision to welcome new life despite her circumstances, and we will see a soul born for each we have lost.

Years ago, EFRAT identified that Israeli women might see another child as a financial burden she could not possibly

take on. This led to EFRAT devising a case management system of moral support, counseling, and financial assistance. The latter, an initial package of crib, stroller, bathtub, infant seat, layette, is followed by monthly deliveries of diapers, wipes, infant formula, and, where necessary, staple food items for the whole family. This strategy has facilitated the births of over 86,000 Jewish babies in the last 47 years.

Great Leaders Inspire Leadership and Mission

EFRAT founder Dr. Eli Schussheim, zt”l, took a leaf from Miriam’s book, speaking up for those without a voice – Israel’s unborn babies. The doctor took his mantra all over the world: Money should

the alumni on the miztvos and chiyuv of Talmud Torah.

Adding to the festivities, the culinary delights provided by Traditions ensured that stomachs were as satisfied as hearts. Laughter and reminiscence filled the air as old friends reconnected and shared stories of their journeys since graduation. The event served not only as a cel-

ebration of past achievements but also as a reaffirmation of the enduring bonds of friendship and community nurtured at Mesivta Ateres Yaakov. With a good time had by all, the class of 2019’s reunion marked a joyous milestone in their collective journey.

never be the reason for ending life!

This passion and his great love for the Jewish people inspired others, as well. One of those was Rabbi Baruj Garzon, rabbi of Madrid and the first chief rabbi of Spain since the Spanish Inquisition. In the wake of Dr. Schussheim’s 2008 visit to Madrid, Rav Garzon mobilized Spanish communities nationwide to fundraise for EFRAT.

Rabbi Garzon’s volunteers worked tirelessly to rally Spanish Jews to the cause, translating EFRAT’s promotional material into Spanish and organizing oneon-one fundraising encounters. Rav Garzon looks back fondly; every year, their efforts would generate a generous sum, which they considered their way of “supporting Israel from within.” Rav Garzon

subsequently made aliyah to Ra’anana in 2018, where he now leads a community of Spanish expatriates. He continues to visit Madrid, repeating his own mantra that it is our zechus to support EFRAT’s beneficiaries.

EFRAT’s volunteers are continuing their holy work to prioritize resilience by meeting the needs of any woman who chooses our age-old response of Am Yisrael Chai.

For more information, contact us at info@cribefrat.org and visit www. cribefrat.org

Rabbi Asaf Stefansky of Brooklyn made a fascinating and informative presentation to the fourth grades of Yeshiva Darchei Torah about Parah Adumah last week. (Last Shabbos was Parshas Parah.)

Around

Sixth graders in Yeshiva Darchei Torah participated in a Chumash project

HALB Participates in Long Island History Day

Nine groups from HALB competed in the Long Island History Day Competition at Hofstra University. For the past five months, under the guidance of their social studies teacher Ms. Kristen Waterman, the students created documentaries, websites, and museum exhibits on topics related to the national theme: Turning Points in History. Their projects competed with public and private school students from all over Long Island. HALB projects placed first and second in the museum exhibit category and second place in the website category. The three winning projects will advance to New York State History Day which will take place in midApril in Oneonta, NY.

Ahead of Pesach, Rabbi Lemberger’s shiur at YOSS Mechina assisted the JCCRP packing food boxes for Holocaust survivors in the community

HALB Middle School Girls Basketball Wins Championship

The HALB Middle School girls basketball team won the championship last week! To celebrate, the morot brought in kugel, blue and white cookies and had a big kumzitz for all the Middle School girls together. It was a beautiful celebration filled with achdut and fun!

Fourth Grade Mishna Siyum

Mazal

tov to the Fourth Grade boys at HALB on their Mishna Siyum! The boys celebrated with their rebbeim and parents,

performed songs, enjoyed a beautiful breakfast and danced together. Mazal tov!

Avromi Elian, twelfth grade talmid in Yeshiva Nishmas Hatorah, making a siyum on Seder Nezikin

New York State Senate and Assembly Republicans Call For the Return of Hostages in Gaza

Senator Patricia-Canzoneri Fitzpatrick, along with New York State Senate Republican Leader Robert Ortt, Senator Steven Rhoads, Assemblyman Ari Brown (R-Cedarhurst), Kurt Roth and Amanda Aussems, organizers of Run for Their Lives New York rallied together this week with members of the Senate and Assembly Conferences to advocate for the release of the 134 hostages being held in Gaza, including six Americans, two from New York State.

Run for Their Lives is a leading humanitarian organization dedicated to advocating for victims of the hostage crisis, both alive and deceased, from all countries. Supporters and participants of Run for Their Lives meet weekly in locations across the globe dressed in matching red attire and either walk or run one kilometer to raise awareness for the hostage crisis in Gaza.

Among the Americans still being held captive are two New Yorkers: Omer Neutra of Plainview, who is still believed to be alive, and Itay Chen of Brooklyn, who lost his life on October 7th and whose body is still being held by Hamas.

“We must prioritize diplomatic efforts to ensure the safe release of all hostages and reunite them with their families. Run

for Their Lives’ visit to Albany underscores the urgent need for action to address the ongoing hostage crisis in Gaza, where 134 individuals, including six Americans and two from New York State, are held captive.

“New York State stands in solidarity with those affected by this crisis and supports efforts for the release of those held captive. We must bring them home,” said Senator Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, member of the Antisemitism Working Group, 9th Senate District.

“We, the Jewish people, are the indigenous inhabitants of our land, and these hostages are our children being held captive,” Assemblyman Brown said.

Brown emphasized the unique freedoms and equal rights enjoyed by all citizens in Israel, regardless of their background. Reflecting on recent events, Brown highlighted Israel’s defense after Hamas broke a ceasefire on October 7, 2023, contrasting it with the actions of others. “Israel defended herself in a proper and humane way, unlike the actions of Hamas,” he asserted.

Brown concluded with a heartfelt plea, “Bring our children home! Their families await their safe return, and it is our duty to ensure their swift release.”

A delegation from Boca Raton, Florida, led by Rav Efrem Goldberg, visited Yeshiva Darchei Torah and conducted a wide-ranging chinuch discussion with Rav Yaakov Bender, Rosh HaYeshiva

Be My Guest Invites Bracha to Your Home

By Chaya Feldstein

The Be My Guest initiative, which is about doing the mitzvah of hachnosos orchim the way it ought to be, hosted a pre-Purim Challenge. The idea was to meet new faces, put a name to a face so that the Kehilla feels more at home and inviting, making connections and bringing awareness to people to get to know each other and who may appreciate a Shabbos/Yom Tov invitation. We had a bit less than two weeks to play! A beautiful Purim card was created to ascertain how many signatures can we get on this posterboard before Purim? The idea was presented at the ladies’ Rosh Chodesh Adar II, and at that talk, women signed up for the ride and Rebbetzin Feiner wrote the first message on it. The shiur hostess was the first on the Purim card train to pass it along to the person she was emailed to pass it on to. The goal was to circle back to display in the shul lobby before Purim

It was similar to a broken telephone game, although the hope was it would be an unbroken telephone which was achieved as it landed in the shul just before Shabbos Parshas Zachor, Erev Purim. Here is how the game was played:

1) You get a call/text/email from a Be My Guest friend.

2) Coordinate a time to meet, so they can drop off the Purim card.

3) Sign with a short message.

4) Next, you will pass it on to _______ , coordinate a time to meet and the train continues.

It was important to meet the person by the door to meet and greet – put a

Shulamith High School Israel Mission

name to a face.

The names were chosen somewhat in a lottery and specifically people who may not know or recognize each other.

It was a very hectic two weeks keeping tabs on the train, and it got stuck at some stops along the way when we didn’t have time to be on top of the process... however, still there were two women who were the next stop on the train phoned each other and through that extended a Shabbos invite!

Now, in pre-Pesach mode, one of the most hectic times of the year, is especially when someone who finds themselves alone will appreciate an invitation even more! This applies to Shabbos and especially in advance of yom tov, it feels good to be thought of at the start and not as an afterthought.

Be My Guest has already been working on a plan to make sure that the words of the Hagadda, “Kol Dichfin,” will be met with much warmth and bracha.

To become an ambassador in your shul and for more information, please contact Bemyguest@whiteshul.com. May Hashem reward our efforts!

By Tsofia Atlas

The Shulamith High School mission to Israel was an unreal experience. After October 7, I felt the tremendous need to go to Israel and help my brothers and sisters. After much hard work and planning, our school said it was running a mission to Israel, and I jumped right in and signed up. Once we got to Israel, it felt like I was finally at home and this is where I needed to be at this time. I needed to be there for the children, for the soldiers, for the parents and for all the people of Israel. Every activity and every experience that we went through together as a group was meaningful, moving, and emotional. What really shocked me is that every person that we met had tremendous faith and hope, and they’re staying so strong despite the unbearable pain that’s occurring.

Personally, one of the most impactful experiences I had on this trip was making a carnival for young children displaced in the south. These kids and their families went through unimaginable pain, and many of their fathers and brothers are still fighting. Making them this carnival put the biggest smile on each of their faces, and they had the best time. Instead of them having to hear sirens and run into bomb shelters throughout the day, they felt like regular children just having a fun time at a Purim carnival. They finally got some sort of normalcy. Their parents were shocked that a bunch of high school

girls came all the way from New York to volunteer. As happy as the children and their families were, I think I was the happiest in the room because there’s no better feeling than helping your brothers and sisters during a time of pain and turning a bit of their sadness into simcha. I am so grateful I got to give them the opportunity. I think we all felt a special achdut and connection in the room, a feeling of oneness, togetherness, and felt like family.

Another personal favorite was the last day, when we all recited Shema at the Kotel as one nation. This has been my second time at the Kotel and hearing the shofar and everyone from all backgrounds screaming the same words, Shema Yisrael, gave me the chills. It was a sense of connection to my people that I’ve never felt before. We screamed to bring back our hostages, we screamed to protect our soldiers, we screamed to protect Am Yisrael, and we screamed to bring the final redemption. After, we grabbed any person’s hand, not knowing who the person was, and just started dancing and singing words of praise to Hashem.

My goal was that when I would come back to America, I would take all those feelings, emotions, and lessons with me and share them with people, spread awareness and donate to organizations. This trip also instilled more love, hope, sensitivity and kindness in me. I still feel that my mission isn’t over. That was only the beginning. Wherever I go, I will make a difference for the people of Am Yisrael.

Around the Community

The Beis Yisroel: The Life and Legacy of Rav Yisroel Alter of Gur

A Conversation with Yisroel Besser

AS: You wrote us an email before The Beis Yisroel went to print that said: “I think it is, without exaggeration, the most novel gadol story I have ever worked on, almost paradoxical...” What were the paradoxes that defined the Beis Yisroel?

SB: The great paradox of the Beis Yisroel was how he was somehow able to make demands and be relentless with the greatest of his chassidim, recreating the derech of Kotzk. At the same time, he could patiently and lovingly guide those chassidim who were slipping after the trauma of the Holocaust years.

AS: The Beis Yisroel was born to greatness, and certainly lived up to his awesome potential. What can an “average Jew” gain from reading about such a “not-average” person?

SB: We will learn to appreciate the value of a neshamah, the power of a Yid, and how teshuvah is always within reach. We will discover just how significant is our every action, our every nuance.

AS: Please share one vignette that helps encapsulate a lifetime of devotion to the Beis Yisroel’s people.

SB: A sign-painter who lived near Yeshiva Sfas Emes noticed that the Beis Yisroel would sometimes pass by, heading for the yeshivah dormitory to find boys who were supposed to be in the beis medrash. Moments after the Rebbe would enter, panicked looking bachurim would race out of the building.

The sign-painter felt for these young men, and he came up with a way to help them. Since he worked in his courtyard, he would see the Rebbe turn onto the

street. When he saw him, the painter would run to the dormitory. “Zeh bah!” (it is coming!) he would announce, giving the boys time to run to the beis medrash.

One morning, the sign-painter didn’t notice the Gerrer Rebbe approaching. The Rebbe stopped and the painter, feeling the presence of another person behind him, turned towards him.

The Rebbe whispered the words, “Zeh bah!” and went on his way.

The sign-painter felt overcome with shame. What had he been thinking, to involve himself in the affairs of a tzaddik?

Suddenly the Rebbe turned around, heading back toward the painter.

“You meant it for the good of the bachurim,” he said gently, “you meant their good, and you will have good children!”

The Rebbe resumed his walk. The

sign-painter hurried into his apartment, his face glowing. “The Rebbe said we will have good children,” he sang out to his wife. “the Rebbe said we will have good children!”

Beyond Sustenance: Meir Panim Brings Joy in Times of Turmoil

By Hadassah Bay

Despite – or because of – the challenging situation in Israel, with the ongoing war, Meir Panim has chosen this year to double down on its mission of spreading joy and support during Purim and Passover. Their efforts were not just about assistance but infusing a sense of normalcy and celebration into the lives of those whose lives have been most affected during this difficult period.

For Purim, Meir Panim made special efforts to fulfill its name and “brighten the faces” of regular patrons: needy families, Holocaust survivors and the elderly, in addition to troops and displaced families. “We distributed over 4,000 traditional Purim gift baskets and as many festive Purim meals,” Mimi Rozmaryn, Director of Global Development at Meir Panim said, describing a monumental endeavor. Meir Panim branches also gave out Purim costumes to ensure that the

Did you know?

children would experience the joy of the day to the fullest.

In line with its commitment to assist in the war effort, and ensure the safety and preparedness of vulnerable populations, Meir Panim continued distribution of special tactical equipment to local groups of volunteer First Responders. “This week we distributed to 20 more communities, totaling 112 of the 134 communities in the northern border who are truly in harm’s way,” said Mimi.

And at the close of Purim, while the country as a whole was making the rapid turnaround toward Passover preparations, Mimi described how staff returned speedily to their normal routine of caring for those in need — “jumping into our free shuk days and preparing for Shabbat — while simultaneously making up lists of people who had requested help for Passover.”

Meir Panim’s five branches across Israel – in Tzefat, Tiberias, Or Akifa, Jerusalem and Dimona – do an amazing job

Horseradish was actually called “stingnose” in some parts of the United States years ago.

every year arranging all the necessities of the Passover holiday: cooked Seder meals, as well as generous pantry baskets and grocery shopping cards. The branches in Tzefat and Dimona open their doors wide to people from the community and beyond to partake of a beautiful communal Seder, while the other branches are closed for the week of the holiday. While we all pray that the war will be over by Passover, Meir Panim is prepared to deliver thousands of Seder meals to frontline troops and displaced families, as well.

“Through our work we don’t only ad-

dress immediate needs,” says Mimi. “We weave a stronger social fabric, bringing individuals together and providing hope, support and shared joy.”

Support Meir Panim by donating online at mpdonate.org, by phone at 877-7366283, or by mail: American Friends of Meir Panim, 88 Walton Street, Suite B1, Brooklyn, NY 11206. All donations made in the U.S. are tax-deductible under EIN #20-1582478.

HANC H.S.’s First Ever Adar Cup Competition

By Sigal Holtzman

HANC High School’s Purim festivities do not stop at the amazing Purim Chagiga. For us, Purim is a season of celebration, with a week of costumes and festivities leading up to Purim day. One of our highlights was the incredible senior break-fast at Coffee Bar of Lawrence after the conclusion of Taanit Esther. Seniors and staff alike davened Maariv and broke their fasts on incredible pastas, pizzas, and salads. While they ate, they had the privilege of being entertained and mesmerized by the renowned mentalist Marc Salem, who dazzled everyone!

Additionally, after hearing Megillah on Purim night, students from all grades were hosted by their morot and rabbeim for incredible Purim festivities! The junior and senior girls traveled from house to house on party buses, creating incredible Purim memories with their friends, alumni, and teachers. The junior and senior boys visited their rabbeim and enjoyed delicious food, d’vrei Torah and festive singing and dancing.

On Shushan Purim, the students participated in an incredible chagiga, com-

plete with costumes, a DJ, and a hilarious Purim video featuring our faculty, created by Shayna Levian ‘24 and Yosef Zerubaveli ‘25! After the chagiga, Rabbi Slomnicki surprised everyone by introducing a new, exciting Purim tradition for HANC High School: the Adar Cup! Grades competed in various challenges of athleticism and skill, all vying to win a plaque on the infamous Adar Cup. The juniors ultimately took the trophy, winning the first annual Adar Cup competition! The chagiga ended with a schoolwide kumzitz, while the seniors danced “L’shana Habah B’Yerushalayim.”

As is our school tradition, we raised funds for Od Yosef Chai, an organization that distributes Matanot L’evyonim in Yerushalayim. With a prize of a Carlos & Gabby’s lunch to the class that raises the most money, Rabbi Chesir’s class took the competition to an extraordinary new level!! The campaign raised an incredible… (drum roll, please) $15,754!

HANC’s Purim celebrations were truly incredible and memorable, creating opportunities for fun, chesed, and simcha! Thank you to the Student Life team for making Adar Alef and Adar Bet awesome at HANC High School.

TJH Centerfold

Déjà Eclipse

Yes, there are many forms of déjà vu

p

p

p

Déjà boo: The feeling that I’ve been frightened like this before.

Déjà do: The feeling my hairdresser has given me this cut before.

Déjà eau: The feeling I’ve smelled this perfume before.

p

Déjà fu: The feeling I’ve been kicked in the head like this before.

p

Déjà moo: The feeling I’ve drank this milk before.

p

p

Déjà who: The feeling that I forgot your name before.

Déjà crew: The feeling that I always hang out with the same three people.

p Déjà new: The feeling that for a second I smell that new car smell again.

p

Déjà stew: The feeling that I ate this cholent before.

p

Déjà goo: The feeling that I bought my child slime 100 times already.

p

DUH-ja-vu: The feeling that the answer was so obvious, that you surely should have known it before. DUH!

Sunday: Greg, Monday: Ian, Tuesday: Greg, Wednesday: Ian, Thursday: Greg, Friday: Ian, Saturday: Greg

It’s the Gregorian calendar!

Solar Eclipse Triva

1. When was the last total solar eclipse in the U.S.?

a. April 8, 2022

b. November 8, 2016

c. August 21, 2017

2. During a solar eclipse, what happens?

a. The Earth passes between the sun and the moon

b. The moon passes between the Earth and the sun

c. The sun passes between the Earth and the moon

d. The moon passes between the sun and the Earth

3. What is it called when the sun, the moon and Earth are aligned?

a. Celestial Alignment

b. Synchronic Solarization

c. Perfected Orbital Gravitation

d. Syzygy

4. What is the darkest part of the shadow cast during a total solar eclipse called?

a. Penumbra

b. Umbra

c. Corona

d. Chromosphere

5. What is the longest amount of time that a

Riddle Me This

What comes after the sun rises, after it sets, but not during the day or night?

solar eclipse can last?

a. 2 minutes and 18 seconds

b. 7 minutes and 32 seconds

c. 47 minutes

d. 106 minutes and 14 seconds

6. What is it called when, in the seconds before totality occurs, it seems like light is dancing on the sides of the moon?

a. Baily’s Beads

b. Dark Side of the Moon

c. Lightning Hoppings

d. Lunar Luminations

Answers: 1-C

Wisdom Key:

4-6 correct: You probably want to name your kid Syzygy!

2-3 correct: Your solar system IQ is seventeen and a half moleds with 4 chalokim short of a whole.

0-1 correct: You looked too closely at the Baily’s Beads…fried you a bit.

Answer: A comma!

Torah Thought

Parshas Shemini

By Rabbi Berel Wein

The parsha deals with the eighth day of the dedication of the Mishkan. In general, it can be stated that the eighth day after any event can be a time of challenge. The eighth day of life is the day of circumcision of male Jewish children. The eighth day – the day after the week of rejoicing of a young newly married couple – was and is the day when real married life with all of its

joys and challenges begins.The eighth day after the beginning of the holiday of Pesach in Israel is the day when we return to our ordinary lives and tasks, and many times that is a moment of at least temporary depression. And here in the parsha, the eighth day is transformed from the day of joy and supreme attainment to one of tragedy and silence.

The eighth day is a difficult day. But

the main lesson here is that life is, in reality, a series of “eighth days.” The eighth day is unpredictable, it can bring pain and sadness, but it can also be inspiring and joyful, productive and worthy. So the eighth day syndrome has become a metaphor for life in general and certainly for Jewish life particularly.

Because of the potential problems and difficulties that the eighth day may bring, the Torah begins the parsha with the word “vayehi ,” which is not necessarily an expression of happiness. Here,

of his family. It indicates that Aharon had plenty he could have said and could have taken Heaven to task, so to speak, but instead he himself chose to remain silent. The Talmud in many instances advocates the supremacy of silence over complaint, in fact over unnecessary speech generally. There is much to complain about from our human viewpoint of life and its events. Heaven states that the fact that we are alive and functioning should be sufficient to stifle any complaints.

Life is, in reality, a series of “eighth days.”

it will refer to the untimely deaths of the two sons of Aharon. But in general, it serves as a warning to humans to view life cautiously and realistically. The Torah always teaches us to drive defensively in all areas of living.

Aharon’s reaction to the tragedy that has befallen him is noteworthy. The Torah emphasizes that he keep silent. Many times, events occur in human lives that are so shocking, sudden and overwhelming that humans are left speechless. Silence then is really a reflex reaction. But here the Torah records Aharon’s silence as an act of bravery, restraint and holiness and not as a reflex reaction to the destruction of half

This hard judgment is also one of the primary lessons of the eighth day. Aharon’s unspoken heartbroken complaint and his unanswered – in fact, unasked – question hang in the air of Jewish history, mysterious and unfathomable. This also is true of all eighth day challenges that face us – the righteous and faithful shoulder on.

The great Rebbe of Kotzk said famously: “For the believer, there are no questions; for the non-believer, there are no answers.” We are all eighth day Jews. Let us also shoulder on to build the Jewish people in strength, compassion and belief.

Shabbat shalom.

From the Fire

Parshas Shemini

Yiddishkeit for Every Jew

By Rav Moshe Weinberger

Adapted for publication by Binyomin Wolf

All of Creation was waiting for “And it was, on the eighth day…” (Vayikra 9:1) in this week’s parsha. That was the long-awaited day when (ibid. 6) “the glory of Hashem will appear to you.” But suddenly, the joy of that day was marred by the “fire [that] went forth from before Hashem and consumed [Nadav and Avihu, Aharon’s sons,] and they died before Hashem” (ibid. 10:2). The same fire that came from Heaven “and consumed the burnt offering and fats on the altar” (ibid. 9:24) then “went forth and consumed” Nadav and Avihu. The similarity between these pesukim, only separated by one verse, is remarkable. What is the connection between them?

Because the bringing of a “foreign fire which He had not commanded them” (ibid. 10:1) does not seem to fully explain the severity of Nadav and Avihu’s punishment, Chazal and the commentaries struggle to offer a number of explanations for the fire from Heaven which consumed them. According to some, it was because they made halachic decisions in Moshe’s presence, and according to others, it was because they drank wine excessively before entering the Holy of Holies (Rashi on ibid. 2). According to them, the root cause of their deaths was not the fact that Nadav and Avihu each “took his fire-pan, put fire in them and placed incense upon it” (Vayikra 10:1). Rather, they were killed because of some unrelated sin.

But the Rashbam and Chizkuni explain that their sin was bringing their own fire before Hashem “had the chance” to cause a Heavenly fire to descend and consume the sacrifices. According to this explanation, the whole purpose of the day of the inauguration of the kohanim’s service in the Mishkan was to reveal Hashem’s presence in the Mishkan through the fire from Heaven which would con-

sume the congregation’s sacrifices. By bringing a human fire before Hashem’s fire descended, Nadav and Avihu prevented that full expression of G-d’s revelation in the Mishkan. In the language of the mekubalim, they created a separation between yesod Abah and yesod Imah

But these commentaries do not explain the rest of the pasuk in which the Torah explains their sin. Each one “took his fire-pan, put fire in them and placed incense upon it.” Their explanation accounts for why it was a problem for Nadav and Avihu to bring a human fire before the revelation of Hashem’s fire. But they do not explain the Torah’s emphasis on the fact that they placed incense on this fire.

Let us first understand more about the nature of this eighth day on which the kohanim brought sacrifices to Hash-

em and then we can suggest an approach which will explain the significance of the incense.

Moshe told the entire Jewish people (ibid. 9:6), “This is the thing that Hashem has commanded you to do and the glory of Hashem will appear to you.” The purpose of the day was (ibid. 4) “today Hashem is appearing to you.” The last time Hashem appeared to the entire Jewish people was at Sinai, when the pasuk (Shemos 24:17) says, “And the appearance of the glory of Hashem was like a consuming fire at the top of the mountain before the eyes of the Jewish people.” The Ramban (on ibid. 25:1) says that the purpose of the Mishkan, and later, the Beis Hamikdash, is to continue the Sinai experience throughout the generations. And the heroes of the Sinai experience, who led the Jewish people to the mountain,

were Moshe, Aharon, Nadav, and Avihu (Shemos 24:1): “And He said to Moshe: ‘Ascend to Hashem, you, Aharon, Nadav, Avihu, and the seventy of the elders of Israel...’” Why were Aharon’s sons chosen for this special honor of going closer to Sinai than the rest of the Jewish people? Because they were destined to be inaugurated into the service in the Mishkan, the purpose of which is to continue to bring Hashem’s presence into the Jewish people just like on Sinai.

The connection between the revelation at Sinai and the Mishkan/Beis Hamikdash is also expressed through the fact that there are only three occasions on which communal peace offerings are brought: (1) at Sinai (Shemos 24:5); (2) on the day of the kohanim’s inauguration into the Mishkan’s service in this week’s parsha (Vayikra 9:4); and (3) throughout the generations on Shavuos (Vayikra 23:19), the anniversary of the day Hashem gave us the Torah on Sinai. The connection between these days is clear. Each of them represents a joining of the world above and the world below. That is why a communal peace offering is brought. The significance of a peace offering is that it is consumed jointly by Heaven, the kohanim, and the owner of the offering. Because these three occasions represent a direct encounter between the entire Jewish people and Hashem, it is appropriate to bring a joint offering which is “consumed” both by Hashem above and his children below on each of these days.

Perhaps based on the above we can understand the sin of Nadav and Avihu and how it relates to the incense they brought. As we said above, Nadav and Avihu were not with the rest of the Jewish people at Sinai. They came closer to the mountain than everyone else and were “cut off” from regular Jews. The

pasuk says regarding Nadav, Avihu and the other elders (Shemos 24:10-11), “And they perceived the G-d of Israel…and upon the nobles of Israel He did not lay a hand and they saw G-d…” But they were not the only ones who perceived Hashem at Sinai. As we quoted earlier: “And the appearance of the glory of Hashem was like a consuming fire at the top of the mountain before the eyes of the Jewish people.” The rest of the Jewish people also experienced a revelation of G-d.

It is possible, however, that because Nadav and Avihu were cut off from the average Jews, they may not have realized that Hashem considered the entire Jewish people worthy of revelation. They might have thought that such a direct encounter with G-d was reserved for “the nobles of Israel” like themselves and the elders.

It may not have occurred to Nadav and Avihu that the “proletariat,” the average Jews, the “riff raff,” were capable or worthy of receiving Hashem’s presence. It could be that when the whole Jewish people witnessed Hashem’s revelation through the fire on the altar (Vayikra 9:24), “the entire nation saw, sang praises, and fell on their faces,” Nadav and Avihu might have seen this as extremely

problematic. Perhaps that is why, in the next verse (ibid. 10:1), they ran to bring incense into the Holy of Holies.

What is the significance and purpose of incense? Whenever there is a direct Divine revelation, Hashem commands us to create a cloud around that revelation using incense, as the pasuk (Vayikra 16:2) says, “in a cloud [of incense] I will appear

They therefore ran to burn incense to create a cloud of concealment around that direct revelation to prevent those they thought were not worthy of experiencing it further. They may have viewed that direct revelation as a lack of honor toward Heaven.

Because they were separated from average Jews at Sinai, they did not realize

Yiddishkeit is not a spectator’s sport in which we watch the tzaddikim from afar and gaze in awe at how close they are to Hashem.

above the [ark] cover.” The smoke created by the burning of the incense creates a fog around Hashem’s revelation, obscuring it as an expression of modesty.

Nadav and Avihu could not imagine that the entire Jewish people were actually supposed to experience that which the pasuk says, “The entire nation saw, sang praises, and fell on their faces.”

that Hashem intended that they too experience a direct encounter with Hashem. They did not realize that Hashem wants not only a direct relationship with the tzaddikim and scholars but also a direct connection with the lowest Jews, from the woodchoppers to the water-drawers (Devarim 29:10).

But this was a mistake. That is why

Moshe explained to Aharon after Nadav and Avihu’s deaths (Vayikra 10:3): “This is what Hashem spoke [when He said], ‘I will be sanctified through those close to Me and before the entire nation I will be glorified.” A direct relationship and revelation of Hashem is not only for the “nobles of Israel” and “those close to Me” like Moshe, Aharon, Nadav, and Avihu. It is for “the entire nation.” Yiddishkeit is not a spectator’s sport in which we watch the tzaddikim from afar and gaze in awe at how close they are to Hashem. We value the tzaddikim and scholars, drink up every word they teach, and follow their leadership, but they do not have a monopoly on closeness with Hashem. Yiddishkeit and connection is for every Jew. No one should write themselves or other Jews off as beyond the pale of Yiddishkeit.

May all of us merit to internalize this message and never write ourselves off from working to draw ourselves closer and closer to Hashem.

Rav Moshe Weinberger, shlita, is the founding Morah d’Asrah of Congregation Aish Kodesh in Woodmere, NY, and serves as leader of the new mechina Emek HaMelech.

There is a Mishnah in Bava Metzia that at first glance seems understandable. Yet when the Gemara (41a) tries to elucidate it, it seems that the first law in the anonymous Mishnah represents the opinion of Rebbe Yishmael, while the very next law in the anonymous Mishnah represents the opposing view of Rebbe Akiva. It would indeed be rare for the very same Mishnah to reflect two opposing views without indicating that.

However, Rebbe Yochanan concludes that though it may be difficult to accept, this is, in fact, the correct explanation of the Mishnah, and the Mishnah reflects two different opinions. Rebbe Yochanan exclaimed, “If anyone can explain the entire Mishnah as following one point of view, I will carry his clothing behind him to the bathhouse.” Rebbe Yochanan was in effect saying that if someone is so great that he can come up with an alternate understanding of the Mishnah, he would accept him as his rebbe and carry his clothing after him.

Why didn’t Rebbe Yochanan just espouse this thought clearly and exclaim, “If someone explains this Mishnah, I will attend his lectures and study under him?”

Rebbe Aharon Levine, Hy”d, pointed out that Rebbe Yochanan himself stated in Berachos that serving talmidei chachamim is even greater than learning un-

Delving into the Daf Two Points of View

By Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow

der them. He was therefore stating that he would fulfill his own dictum and serve his rebbe. Rashi on Chumash (Vayikra 25:39) explains that one who purchases an eved Ivri, a Jewish indentured servant, may not direct him to perform menial tasks. The very example Rashi offers of a menial task is asking the eved Ivri to carry his master’s

which the entire Mishnah represents one opinion. At that point, Rebbe Heschel remarked, “Now Rebbe Yochanan can fulfill his words” (i.e., he can carry my clothes after me to the bathhouse). Immediately, his candle blew out. He asked his talmid, Rav Shabbatai HaKohen (1621-1662), also known as the Shach, to relight the candle

When the Shach approached him, the man said, “I am Rebbe Yochanan. Tell your rebbe that his explanation is in error.”

clothing to the bathhouse. Rebbe Yochanan was exclaiming that if he indeed found a rebbe that was greater than him, he would completely humble himself before the rebbe to the point that he would carry his clothes to the bathhouse.

There is an intriguing incident recorded in the Sefer Chemda Genuza. HaGaon Rebbe Heschel (1578-1648) was learning the aforementioned Mishnah. He came up with an explanation of the Mishnah by

at one of the neighbor’s houses. The Shach was surprised to find that all the houses were dark, save one. He approached the last house and found an old man studying by candlelight. When the Shach approached him, the man said, “I am Rebbe Yochanan.

Tell your rebbe that his explanation is in error for such and such reason. Further, tell your rebbe that as a punishment for speaking disparagingly, he should choose to die without children or choose to die without

publishing a sefer.” Rebbe Heschel chose to die without publishing a sefer. (The story does not record the explanation of the Mishnah that Rebbe Heschel proposed.) Rebbe Heschel’s seforim were published posthumously.

As an interesting postscript to the above story: it is worthwhile to note that the Sm’a (C.M. 355:6) expresses a view on a subject that is relevant to the above Mishnah. The Sm’a was written by Rebbe Yehoshua Falk. The Shach (355:1) rejects the opinion of the Sm’a. He argues that if one would follow the opinion of the Sm’a to its logical conclusion, it would be possible to explain the aforementioned Mishnah according to a single opinion – but Rebbe Yochanan implied that such an explanation was not possible. Perhaps Rebbe Heschel proposed explaining the Mishnah following the opinion of the Sm’a. Rebbe Heschel’s student, the Shach, having witnessed the above incident, cautioned his readers against following the opinion of the Sm’a.

Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow is a rebbe at Yeshiva Ateres Shimon in Far Rockaway. In addition, Rabbi Sebrow leads a daf yomi chaburah at Eitz Chayim of Dogwood Park in West Hempstead, NY. He can be contacted at ASebrow@ gmail.com.

Headlines Halacha

Sheitels from One’s Own Hair

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman

It is a question that seems to be on the mind of a number of people. And people of all ages and genders seem to be asking it. What is the halacha regarding using one’s own hair for a sheitel?

A Brief History

Let us first take a look at the history of wigs before we get to our specific question. The human hair wig as we know it first appeared in ancient times, then virtually disappeared after the fall of Rome in 473 CE, and then reappeared in the last six centuries. We find that the Egyptians wore wigs to protect against the hot sun. They attached the wigs to their head using beeswax and resin. The Assyrians, Greeks and Romans also used wigs.

The term wig, by the way, is short for periwig, a term that developed only in the past three centuries.

The Mishna in Shabbos (6:5) also attests to the use of wigs, and the Gemara later on clearly shows that it was done for beauty. Both Rashi and the Meiri explain that it was worn so that “she would appear to be a baalas sei’ar – having [much] hair.”

Rashi in Bechoros (7b) seems to add more information. He writes (D”H nehenim b’saarah), “The women who had little hair used to attach (or tie) the hair of other women to their hair and this is called peah nachris.”

The Wig In Halacha

The Ramah (75:3) discusses the halacha of reciting the Shema in front of a woman who is wearing a wig. The Ramah writes that it is permitted to recite

it. The Mishna Berurah explains that it is because he holds that this, the wig, is not considered “sei’ar b’isha ervah – the hair of a woman is forbidden.” There is a view that is of the opinion that wigs are forbidden because they are still considered “the hair of a women which is ervah.”

Most Ashkenazic poskim (See Igros Moshe Even HaEzer Vol. II #12) and families, however, followed the lenient opinion regarding wigs. Indeed, the Kaf haChaim (OC 75:19), Mishpetai Uziel (EH Mahadurah Tanina #74), and Yaskil Avdi (Vol. VII EH #16), all prominent Sefardi poskim also permit the wig. On the other hand, Rav Chaim Palaji (Ruach Chaim EH 21) and Rav Ovadiah Yosef, zt”l, (Yabia Omer V EH 5:4) follow the stringent view forbidding wigs for Sefardic women.

Rav Chaim Kanievsky, zt”l, stated that the Chazon Ish’s wife wore a wig (cited in Meir Oz Vol. III page 829) as did his mother. He also ruled that if a Sefardi man studied in an Ashkenazic yeshiva, he may allow his wife to wear a wig, otherwise, she should cover her hair with a kerchief.

All this, of course, relates to a wig made of another woman’s hair, but what about a wig that is made with one’s own hair?

The Mishna Brurah (75:15) cites two views in this regard. The first view he cites is that of Rav Yoseph Ben Meir Teumim (1727-1793), author of the Pri Magadim. The Pri Magadim is of the opinion that use of a peah nachris , a sheitel, is permitted. The Mishna Berurah then states that it is indicative in the language of the Pri Magadim that he permits the use of one’s own hair in the

manufacture of it as well. He then cites the view of the Mogen Giborim (written by the two brothers-in-law, Rav Yosef Shaul Nathanson [1808-1875] and Rav Mordechai Zev Ettinger [1804-1863] and published in two parts) who were stringent in this manner.

It is also interesting to note that manuscripts of Rav Teumim have been found in the Bodleian Library at Oxford (1:1500:16419) of his work entitled “Aim LaBina” mentioned by R. Avrohom Meir Livshitz Breizel printed in 2014 which show that days before he passed away, Rav Teumim retracted his whole heter for wigs entirely. Nonetheless, we have a dictum that an author’s more authoritative work will set aside a lesser work that he wrote, even if he wrote it later.

Rav Nissim Karelitz, shlita, (Chut Shaini Shabbos III page 272) writes, “Praised be the one who, in her tzinius, can fulfill the halacha according to all opinions.” It is clear that Rav Karelitz believes that ideally a woman should be stringent in accordance with the view of the Magain Giborim. What, however, is the view of the Mishna Berurah? What is the bottom line halacha?

The earliest source who discusses the topic is Rav Yehoshua Boaz Ben Shimon Boruch (d. 1557) of Northern Italy, the author of the Shiltei Giborim. He writes on tractate Shabbos (64b) that the wig is permitted, and it makes no difference whether it is her own hair or that of another woman. He also shows that this is clearly referring to a married woman because the Gemara states that she wears it so that she not be found unappealing in the eyes of her husband.

The Levush, however, forbade the

use of a person’s own hair, disagreeing with the Darchei Moshe in (YD 303) who indicates that it is permitted. The Ateres Zkainim also understands the Ramah as permitting it with one’s own hair. It would seem that the fact that Be’er Haitev does not even cite the view of the Levush is indicative that he holds the halacha is clearly like the Ramah. This is borne out by the fact that in Even Ha’Ezer (Siman 115) he just cites the view of the Shiltei Giborim without bringing any dissenting view.

Conclusion

When the Mishna Berurah cites one authority and then a second one who is stringent, the general understanding that he rules in accordance with the first view (heard from my Rebbe, a relative of the Chofetz Chaim). Also, generally speaking, the Pri Magadim is more authoritative than the Mogain Giborim. This combined with the view of the Shiltei Giborim would indicate that as a matter of pure halacha, notwithstanding the recommendation of Rav Nissim Karelitz, it would be permitted to use one’s own hair. However, the fact that the Mishna Berurah cites the view forbidding it as well indicates that it is not being unduly strict to be machmir

As in all matters of halacha, however, one should always ask one’s own rav or posek as to how to conduct oneself.

The Show Goes On

By Senator Joe Lie B erman

The longest-ever running show on Broadway is The Phantom of the Opera, a polished and engaging musical that explores a wide range of human emotions. It opened in 1988 and continues to play to sellout crowds.

But my family and I – and, I imagine, you and yours – have been performing in a dramatic production with a far longer run. It is the Passover Seder, presented annually for more than three thousand years. Every Passover Eve, all across the world, members of our extended family prepare for their roles as actors, singers, and storytellers. We provide “dinner and a show” as we tell the story of the liberation of the Children of Israel from slavery in Egypt.

Although every nationality and every family makes individual adaptations, and nuances its version of the story, and though each may sing the text to different tunes or anchor the feast with different cuisines, the Passover Seder retains its shared meaning. It is a celebration of G-d’s love for humanity and humanity’s G-d-given right to be free.

Passover was not ordained to be a singular, isolated moment in our national calendar. It is part of a cycle. The Exodus was the key with which our po -

tential as a nation was unlocked – but what followed was the doorway to realizing that potential.

Every year, for over three thousand years, Jews have counted the days and weeks that lead from Passover, the Festival of Liberation, to Shavuot, the Festival of the Giving of the Law. Passover is only the first act in the drama.

leased from bondage to be free in the desert. They were not freed to be absorbed into Egyptian society. Their liberation had a purpose, already expressed in Moses’ first conversation with Pharaoh: “Thus said the L-rd, the G-d of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast unto Me in the wilderness’” (Ex. 5:1). Later, Moses re -

The Exodus was the key with which our potential as a nation was unlocked – but what followed was the doorway to realizing that potential.

Unfortunately, despite the appeal and success of the Passover “production,” most people do not remain for the second act: Shavuot. They leave the theater, as it were, before the entire story has been told, missing the point of the annual journey from slavery in Egypt to the Law at Sinai.

The Israelites were not simply re -

peatedly transmits G-d’s request to Pharaoh: “Let My people go that they may serve Me” (9:1).

As the Israelites would soon learn, the purpose of the Exodus was for them to serve G-d’s values by observing G-d’s laws. Their ultimate destination was the Holy Land of Israel, but their first stop was Sinai, where they would receive the

Law, and, with it, their national objective and destiny.

In this, the Israelites were unusual. Their national purpose preceded their territorial existence – their values were conferred before their homeland – because the Revelation at Sinai provided the Children of Israel with the values they, and all the world, needed to build a new kind of just society.

Passover and Shavuot are two acts in the same drama whose plot explores how liberty and law must be joined to create justice. The immoral antediluvian society of Noah, and the years of Pharaoh’s cruel rule in Egypt, demonstrated what happens when people enjoy liberty without law.

Without law, freedom cannot guarantee anyone a secure or good life. That is the point of the second act, Shavuot, in which the rest of the story unfolds, as you will see, if you stay in your seat and experience it.

This article has been excerpted from Senator Joe Lieberman’s book With Liberty and Justice: The Fifty-Day Journey from Egypt to Sinai, published by OU Press.

When Talking to Walls

IBy Rafi Sackville

once witnessed an event in the old Central Bus Station in Jerusalem that has remained ensconced in my mind’s eye till this day. The station, designed in the 1960s by one of the architects of the Knesset, Ossip Klarwein, didn’t amount to much – just an elongated building that stood next to the open station with diagonal busy ramps, platforms, and a narrow entrance that was forever a challenge to get through.

Jerusalem wasn’t as populated as it is today, but at all hours of the day, the station felt as if the entire city was there. When we were married in 1985, our apartment was situated right behind the station’s exit route in Romema. The six months are themselves a reminder of all that black smoke and noise.

On the day in question, police sappers suddenly appeared, barking orders and dispersing the crowd to a safe distance. Something was obviously afoot.

And the focus of their attention? Alone on a bench rested a large, white, plastic shopping bag. A sapper, covered from head to toe in protective gear, carefully approached it. Without disturbing it in the slightest, he very carefully attached a string to its handle. Then, like a fisherman unwinding a line, he walked backwards to where his fellow sappers awaited him. Their goal was to pull the now extended string, topple the bag, and wait for either a clattering of what – from my distant perch –looked like glass bottles or, in the worst case scenario, the tripping of an explosive device. After once again barking orders to move even further back, all was ready.

Just as the string was about to be pulled, an old man broke through the crowd and shuffled his way towards the bag. No amount of yelling by the sappers changed his course, because this elderly

gentleman, a man whom I’d often seen wandering aimlessly through the streets of the city mumbling to himself, finally reached the platform bench, untied the string, picked up the bag, and began walking towards the station’s exit where I was standing.

Now all the sappers were screaming at him. It was to no avail, however, because it quickly became apparent to all that the gentleman in question was, to put it mildly, ten cents on the dollar, or what others might call, not the sharpest pencil in the box. Once this fact had been established

debate was the state of the elevator, which seemed to have a predilection of its own to stop working on Shabbat. Another issue raised was the abuse of the downstairs miklat (protected room) by my next door neighbor and his cronies, who often slept there.

The neighbor’s name is Prosper. He’s well into his late 70s. When he talks –whenever he talks –he appears to be inebriated, especially when he’s not wearing his teeth. Truth be told, he isn’t drunk at all. In all the conversations I’ve had with him, it is clear that he’s not completely

Life at the bus station resumed as it had done, with throngs of people in a hurry, hungry, or idly awaiting their rides out of the city.

by the sappers, they collected their equipment and were gone as quickly as they’d come. Life at the bus station resumed as it had done, with throngs of people in a hurry, hungry, or idly awaiting their rides out of the city.

I mention this story as a preamble to a similar situation my wife and I currently find ourselves in. We recently moved into an apartment block in the Gonen-Katamon neighborhood of Jerusalem. It’s a quiet but popular block; on its right is Zarifa, a fashionable cafe; at the bottom of the building is a corner store. Our neighbors mainly keep to themselves. When we meet one another on the stairwell or elevator, the momentary bonhomie is genuine.

We recently met in the lobby for a corporate meeting. One point of intense

with it. I feel sorry for him because he has difficulty communicating with the world around him. He expresses concern and concentration when conversing, but a close look into his eyes reveals that he’s living in a detached universe, far removed from basic understanding.

He has a steady flow of friends and helpers, some of whom take advantage of the empty miklat. They, too, appear less than cogent. I spoke to Nisan, one of these friends, in an effort to convince Prosper to do something about the smell of cigarettes in the stairwell on floors 4 and 5 that begins mid-afternoon and continues throughout the night. Nisan promised he would, but he didn’t. I know because I asked him on two separate occasions about his promise, and he swore he’d forgotten, then swore he wouldn’t,

then he just swore. I gave up, but not before confronting Prosper himself, for the third time.

“Prosper, you’ve got to do something about the stench of tobacco in the stairwell,” I implored.

“I’ll open the windows,” he said.

“And Prosper, you leave your television on all night, every night. The noise is deafening.”

“My hearing isn’t too good,” he explained.

“Can’t you turn it down?” I almost begged.

“I’ll close the windows,” he offered earnestly.

“Why can’t you watch television while wearing your hearing aids?” I asked.

“But I watch television when I want to go to sleep.”

I threw up my arms in despair. I was on the cusp of making another point, when I recalled the scene at the bus station after the old man had collected his white bag and was walking towards me. As he passed by, one of the onlookers told him he shouldn’t be leaving his belongings on public benches.

“I’ve got it with me,” he replied, and lifted the bag for us to see. But he wasn’t looking at us when he did. He was away in his own world.

My wife and I have come to terms with Prosper. There’s nothing we can do to change his habits. I’m sure that, if he could, he would rectify the situation. Like the original “Home Alone” movie, when I hear the sounds of screaming or gunfire at 3 a.m., I know the world is OK. It’s just Prosper sleeping through another American gangster film.

Rafi Sackville, formerly from Cedarhurst, teaches in Yeshivat Horev in Yerushalayim.

The Old Central Bus Station

The Wandering Jew Great Britain

Part II: Edinburgh, Scotland

By Hershel Lieber

The trip from Manchester to Edinburgh was not easy. The train was fairly comfortable, but the overcrowded car meant that our suitcases could not fit into the luggage racks. They stood on the floor near the racks, and we had to monitor them at each train stop to see that they were not being removed! Also, the supposedly four-hour journey took well over eight hours. The train made an unscheduled stop in Carlisle where we had to get off and wait for the next train for two hours. You can imagine how congested the next train was! About an hour later, we were informed that due to some emergency, our train was being diverted to Glascow. When we arrived there, we were told to walk four long blocks to a different station for a train to

Edinburgh. We just could not physically attempt that with all our luggage. Instead, we waited an hour and a half for a

ly nine in the evening. We were lucky to meet a Sudanese taxi driver near the exit who took us to our apartment. I knew that

The stories of conquests, wars, intrigue and executions are integrated with royal pomp and ceremony.

local train that was going from Glascow to Edinburgh. Local meant a train making twenty-one stops!

When we finally arrived, it was near -

our apartment was about eight minutes away, and yet our driver kept on driving for over fifteen minutes when we both realized that he was heading to a street that

had a somewhat similar name. He apologized profusely and immediately took us to the right address.

The apartment building was in the center of the city at the corner of the Royal Mile, Ediburgh’s main thoroughfare. We knew that we were on the third floor, and when we opened the building’s front door, we were in for a shock. First, there was no elevator. Second, the winding staircase with its narrowing slate steps would be a major challenge for us. Our taxi driver came to our rescue as he graciously hauled up every piece of our luggage. Even walking up that narrow winding staircase was a challenge. On the other hand, we realized that the third floor in Europe meant only two floors to climb. What a relief!

Street view from above Edinbourgh

The apartment was not bad, though somewhat old fashioned. There was a decent-sized kitchen, a dining area, and a living room with a welcoming couch. The bedroom was large, the beds very low but the mattresses were quite comfortable. Instead of a closet, there was a large clothes rack for our hanging clothes. There was a washer/dryer and a modern bath/shower in the bathroom. There were large windows with vintage curtains but not enough lighting for our liking. We settled in and warmed up our supper. Tomorrow, would be an easier day.

Edinburgh’s Jewish population is less than one thousand. There is only one synagogue, and services are limited to Shabbos and holidays. I contacted a religious couple concerning kosher options but was told that there was not much available. We were scheduled to depart on Thursday to Warsaw, so in effect we would be touring Edinburgh for only three days and could well manage with the food we brought from home supplemented by ready-made dinners we purchased in Manchester. My general policy is that I rather forgo some food comfort in favor of exploring the world. Over the years, Pesi adapted to the same position regarding traveling to places with limited or nonexistent options for Orthodox visitors. Edinburgh very well fits that description.

So, what did we do in Edinburgh?

Well, on Monday, we explored the Royal Mile. The “Royal Mile” is actually a succession of streets that form the city’s main thoroughfare. It runs from Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse and was the processional route of the monarchs. The street boasts the old Parliament House which now houses the law courts. A number of famous churches also are positioned along this street as are many historic edifices and some buildings of the Edinburgh’s University.

The Royal Mile is the city’s busiest tourist destination with a plethora of shops and restaurants featuring Scottish commodities and cuisine.

We were enthralled with bagpipe renditions played by musicians along this street. We stopped to explore the many liquor shops featuring hundreds of brands of Scotch in every price range. Yes, we did see stores selling skirts for men, and we even witnessed some men wearing them. What excited Pesi most was the

dozens of shops specializing in clothing and scarves with their distinctive Scottish plaid tartan patterns and colors. The colorful displays were enticing, and Pesi bought for herself and for our daughters and daughter-in-law a number of items. Yes, the stores were tourist traps, but we let ourselves become entrapped.

After a quick lunch in our apartment, we returned to the tourist office to buy tickets for tomorrow’s highlight, a visit to Edinburgh Castle.

Iconic British telephone booth

Former Parliment Building on the Royal Mile

Advocate’s Close, one of the many alleyways in Edinbourgh

Our residence on the Royal Mile

Traditional bagpipe and drum duo Scottish plaid tartan scarfs

On Wednesday, we had a light morning and readied ourselves for an in-depth exploration of Edinburgh Castle. The castle is one of Europe’s oldest fortified strongholds. It has a long history of being used as a military garrison, prison, and fortress, as well as a royal residence. There are many tales about this castle that was built in the 11th century and continued as a royal residence until 1633. The list of characters associated with this palace include Mary Queen of Scots and Oliver Cromwell. The stories of con-

quests, wars, intrigue and executions are integrated with royal pomp and ceremony. Our three-hour visit only touched the tip of the turret’s spire.

We trudged up the steep incline that led to the castle’s battery overlooking the River Forth. There, we witnessed a reenactment of the marching sentries and the firing of the cannons. From there, we took an audio guided tour inspecting the many buildings that were part of the castle’s military installations. We listened intently to the narrative, and it gave us

an excellent understanding of the important history and features of this castle. We also waited on line to see the Royal Crown and Jewel Collection. Then we entered the refurbished castle with many original artifacts and listened to the tormented history of Mary Queen of Scots. In summation, this tour was excellent both intellectually and visually. Truly an experience to remember.

We still had some time, so we took an hour-long tour of Mary Kings Close. A “close” is a Scottish term for an alleyway. There are many closes along the Royal Mile. Many of the original closes became buried over time as new foundations for buildings were erected. Mary Kings Close was one of them. This close, which was active in the 16th and 17 th century, was reopened in 2003 with the goal of preserving and presenting visitors with a picture of the difficulties of life during that era. Most of the close is underground, and the tour is fascinating. Of course, it is associated with legends and ghost stories, but that’s what makes it interesting.

The next day was our last chance to take in Edinburgh’s charm. In the morning, we visited the Palace of Holy-

roodhouse on the lower end of the Royal Mile. The palace is the home of Scottish Royalty for over five hundred years. Yes, Mary Queen of Scots also lived there. The present English Royal family makes this palace their home for a week every year. Seventeen out of 289 rooms are open to the public, and they portray an exhibit of royal interior design. The Great Gallery’s collection of artwork is nothing short of outstanding. The exterior of the palace is a bit plain, but the building is massive. There are also ten acres of gardens surrounding the palace. Here, too, we took an informative audio tour that made the palace’s history come alive.

We topped off our day with a twohour visit to the Royal Botanic Gardens. This seventy-acre garden was established for the growth of medicinal plants but is presently one of the world’s leading gardens. The forty-minute trail is a refuge of tranquility and peace in this bustling city. The beauty that surrounded us was a calming climax for our stimulating adventure in Scotland. Tomorrow morning, we would be changing gears as we would be preparing ourselves for the Yomim Noraim in Warsaw.

Hershel Lieber has been involved in kiruv activities for over 30 years. As a founding member of the Vaad L’Hatzolas Nidchei Yisroel he has traveled with his wife, Pesi, to the Soviet Union during the harsh years of the Communist regimes to advance Yiddishkeit. He has spearheaded a yeshiva in the city of Kishinev that had 12 successful years with many students making Torah their way of life. In Poland, he lectured in the summers at the Ronald S. Lauder Foundation camp for nearly 30 years. He still travels to Warsaw every year – since 1979 – to be the chazzan for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur for the Jews there. Together with Pesi, he organized and led trips to Europe on behalf of Gateways and Aish Hatorah for college students finding their paths to Jewish identity. His passion for travel has taken them to many interesting places and afforded them unique experiences. Their open home gave them opportunities to meet and develop relationships with a variety of people. Hershel’s column will appear in The Jewish Home on a bi-weekly basis.

At the palace of Holyroodhouse

At the Edinbourgh Botanical Gardens

At Edinbourgh Castle

Teenage boredom is a reality too often regarded as inevitable. For a high schooler to sit in class, uninterested in what they’re learning, questioning the practicality of the information they’re being taught, and feeling resentful over tasks that they’re forced to do is, in the eyes of many, a normal part of teenagerhood. It seems as though the overall consensus is that it’s natural for adolescents to live life in a state of academic apathy; that the younger generation’s lack of interest in education is just something that needs to be embraced, accepted, and endured until adulthood arrives.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. The

In His Words…

Rabbi Daniel Kalish: Inspiring the Next Generation

By Eliyahu RosEnBERg

next generation doesn’t need to be raised to dread learning; the youths of today don’t need to be pushed into a state of academic disengagement.

Imagine a world in which teenagers are excited to go to school; where they feel valued in the classroom and see purpose and meaning embedded in their learning. Imagine a world in which students love to learn.

Rabbi Daniel Kalish is on a mission to make that world a reality.

Before co-founding and becoming the Menahel of Yeshiva Ateres Shmuel of Waterbury, Rabbi Kalish, along with nine other families, moved to Connecticut with one

There are things inside that we’re taught almost to neglect that i don’t believe we should. There are voices, there are feelings that we could actually bring to the service of hashem.

When you’re passionate about a mission and you believe in something, then fears that might scare people away won’t scare you.

Torah learning has two parts. There’s the Torah and there’s you, and making a shidduch of both is Torah learning. you can know Torah, but if you don’t know yourself, you won’t have da’as.

We all have a world inside. We’ve left out pieces and voices and parts of ourselves, and the tikkun of today’s generation is: don’t ignore those parts of yourself. That will bring your entirety to avodas hashem. you become shaleim; you become whole.

goal in mind: to start a yeshiva that would, in his words, “energize the bachur of today.”

“Let’s say there was a teenager who wasn’t frum – do you think he would become frum in our schools? Just going through 10th, 11th, 12th, would he become frum? I’m afraid – I’m worried about that question,” Rabbi Kalish shared. “And I don’t know if schools are that inspiring. They’re somewhat dry. A secular school tends to be very, very dry: the classes, the worries, the structure, the grades, the tests. They’re not very inspiring places.”

As Rabbi Kalish explains, there are three solutions to making school less – for lack of a better word – dry, the first being the most obvious approach: adding fun to the educational experience.

“There’s one genre of schools for a kid who’s just gone to school, been very bored and disconnected, sits in class – maybe even Gemara lectures – and is not feeling anything. So they [the schools] give him fun,” Rabbi Kalish said.

It’s true that everyone needs some excitement in their lives. And while it’s most certainly a good thing to have some degree of fun at school, the “make it more fun” approach (e.g. trips, games, etc.), by itself, serves more as a quick fix than a direct solution to the issue of dryness in the education system.

The second solution, as outlined by Rabbi Kalish, is far more effective in addressing the root cause of the issue. In general, schools value very specific qualities in students, namely intellectual prowess and general academic ability. Those who are not talented in those areas are oftentimes pushed down and set up for failure, even if they are otherwise brimming with potential or are talented in a variety of other ways. And, of course, such a system leads to

disengagement among students who don’t conform to the conventional student mold. Thus, how can we, as a society, fix this issue? By valuing every talent and skill.

“We’re commanded to serve Hashem b’chol m’odecha – with every unique talent that we have. If someone’s a good speaker, that’s crazy valuable. If somebody has charisma, if somebody has athletic ability, all of sudden that gives them a platform to impact. So talk to it, celebrate it, not as a side point, but as a gift from Hashem that could be used,” Rabbi Kalish explained. “I’ve had guys who’ve drawn pictures of every mussar shiur, and the yeshiva celebrates their pictures. There are guys who’ve written poems that have really expressed things in the yeshiva, and we’ve been inspired by it.”

As Rabbi Kalish explains, our talents and skills are from Hashem. It’s easy to prioritize some abilities over others, but all talents are means of serving G-d, and thus, should be recognized and cultivated. And when a student feels valued, the entire educational experience is far more engaging. They’re suddenly driven to want to succeed.

The emphasis on each student’s personal talents represents the second approach to making schools less boring. The third approach, however, is the ultimate method of cultivating the next generation of leaders. Rabbi Kalish calls this solution, the “honest conversation.”

“I think that in schools, who you are doesn’t seem to matter so much. But I think Torah learning has two parts. There’s the Torah, and there’s you. And making a shidduch of both is Torah learning. You can know Torah, but if you don’t know yourself, you won’t have da’as,” said Rabbi Kalish.

To be honest with ourselves and validate our innermost feelings and thoughts is essential, he explains.

The traditional way of going through life is what Rabbi Kalish calls “soldiering through”; to do whatever needs to be done without taking into account what we feel inside. And while there are positive qualities of that approach, there comes a time when we have to pay attention to our feelings and be honest about our own emotional state, because once we truly acknowledge how we feel and who we are, we can change for the better in a truly authentic way.

“Rabbi Yisroel Salanter said that when he walked into a room and people stood up, he felt sick – which makes sense. Kavod is very dangerous because the world of honor can create pretend people. But Rabbi Yisroel said that when he saw someone not standing up, he was sick for the entire day. And there’s something so amazing

that Rabbi Yisrael was in touch with every part of himself,” Rabbi Kalish explained. “A kid who’s sitting in a chair and says, ‘I am bored’ – that’s important. That’s a part of him. There are things we’re taught almost to neglect that I don’t believe we should.

“When a bachur comes and cries and talks, I want to cheer him up. And that’s nice. But much more important is to hear what he’s saying and to sit with him where he is. He’s crying out with something. Feel what he’s feeling. When you do that, there’s tremendous healing,” he added.

We’re trained to label certain thoughts and feelings as “bad,” but in truth, says Rabbi Kalish, there are no bad thoughts or feelings. If one, for instance, feels jealousy, they may respond in one of two ways: A) By reacting with cynicism and trying to push the feeling away; or B) By acknowledging

the feeling, recognizing that Hashem made you this way, and validating the way you feel. By being in touch with our emotions and accepting them, we can transform our “worst” qualities into our greatest teachers, because by honestly considering the way we feel, we can learn about ourselves and heal our emotional wounds.

“It’s the right thought, because it’s the thought G-d gave me,” he advises. “Acknowledge it. It’s not bad. Validate the feeling. G-d made me that way.”

This approach – the honest conversation – is Rabbi Kalish’s third and final solution to the issue of student disengagement. When teachers can communicate with their students in an emotionally nuanced way, cultivating self-honesty and understanding about the struggles and challenges this generation faces, we can make progress in

creating an educational system where everyone is valued and no one is alone.

The stereotypical teenager tells adults, “You don’t get it.” And, of course, the impulse is to label such a teen as “rebellious” or “defiant,” but there may be merit in considering whether the young individual’s assertion is, in fact, true: do you really understand? Perhaps the best way to teach is to first truly learn who the learner is; to sit and talk with the student in the face of their concerns, pushing away the desire to dismiss their emotions, to ignore the way they feel inside. If we, as a society, can transform the relationship between students and teachers from one of negativity to one of mutual trust and understanding, then we can bring out the next generation’s true potential and build a brighter future for everyone.

This article is based on a podcast, “Inspiration For the Nation,” hosted by Yaakov Langer. To catch more of this conversation, you can watch it on LivingLchaim. com or YouTube.com/LivingLchaim or listen wherever you listen to podcasts (just search for “Inspiration For The Nation”) or call our free hotline: 605-477-2100.

Dating Dialogue What Would You Do If…

Moderated by Jennifer Mann, LCSW of The Navidaters

Dear Navidaters,

Dear Navidaters,

I have to say how much I love reading your column. I enjoy all the different perspectives, and it just has become a part of my Shabbos relaxation. I never thought I would write in, but there’s a first time for everything, right?

I have been divorced for two years. My ex-husband and I were a terrible match from the beginning. Well-meaning friends and family members kept encouraging the shidduch. I was a bit older, and I guess was getting worried that I would never get married and have children and so, going against my own better judgment, I listened to everyone’s insistence that things would be OK and that love grows. Well, things were not OK and love did not grow. I did have children with him and for that I will be forever grateful and can actually see yad Hashem in the marriage.

I have spent the last two years engaged in intensive therapy and going to Al-anon where I am learning to shed myself of my codependency and get in touch with my own inner voice. I can now make boundaries and don’t obsess over whether or not someone is mad at me. I believe I have finally shed the “good girl” mentality that was shoved down my throat from my family of origin and yeshiva education.

I am at such a loss currently. I would like to get remarried one day. I am petrified of winding up in a similar situation. I am petrified of losing all my hard work and emotional independence, of losing myself in someone again to the point that I don’t know who I am. I am also scared of bringing a man around my children or chas v’shalom getting divorced again, which seems to be somewhat of a common occurrence these days.

There is a man that I speak with regularly and we go out. I guess one could say we are “dating.” I know we are; I just can’t accept what is happening. He is wonderful and knows about my hangups and traumas and is a pure source of support. He would like to come out as a public couple and begin to blend lives...introducing our children etc. And I just can’t seem to pull the trigger. I am already in therapy and speak about this a lot. I was wondering if you had any insight or advice or even chizuk for me. I’d appreciate it so much.

-Leah*

The Panel

The Rebbetzin

Rebbetzin Faigie Horowitz, M.S.

Good for you for sharing your vulnerability with him and with us. Kol hakavod for exploring this deeply in therapy.

You have made great progress in your journey. You have looked at yourself, you have looked at your past, and you are focusing on the positive that came out of it.

Your fears about the future are normal. It is normal to be afraid of trusting yourself and making a wrong move in committing to a marriage partner after having an unsuccessful marriage.

I would suggest that you continue therapy and very slowly begin what cognitive behavioral therapists call exposure therapy. Begin to be a couple in small increments. Your comfort level will rise as

your experiences will strengthen you. At the same time, continue the “talk therapy.” Bring him into the therapy room at some point, too. Let him share his concerns and past with the two of you and see if there are issues for him to air and work through.

B’hatzlacha!

The Shadchan

Michelle Mond

It sounds like you have been through so much, and you have really done the work to come out the other side a solid, healthy, and well-rounded person. PTSD is real, and there is absolutely no way around it. You do not want to announce your relationship because then it becomes real. In some ways, you would

rather keep it this precious secret that only you and him know about. If nobody knows about it, and the relationship ends or something catastrophic happens, the damage is not far-reaching. Additionally, there will not be the “All-Eyes-On-Me” element. This is the element where one feels like they are stepping out on a balancing beam between two large towers. There are those that are watching you, almost expecting you to fall. These are the people who either never believed in you, put you down in the past, or have always been skeptical of you. Your biggest fear is having their eyes on you again. Perhaps these are the people you have worked so hard to make boundaries with. You have come to a plateau of normalcy within the guidelines of these boundaries but bringing a new man into the picture will lead to the need for new, custom curated boundaries. There almost inevitably will be updated negativity and comments from these people, whether they are said with words or

Tell yourself every single day: “What if you fall? Oh, but my darling, what if you fly?”

merely the looks on their face.

I know this is all giving you a pit in your stomach and you want so badly to avoid it. But you must think of the alternative, Leah. The alternative is keeping quiet about it forever, thereby avoiding all of that discomfort, but depriving yourself of getting married again. Does avoiding it solve the problem or is it merely a BandAid? You seem to want to try to get married again, and even have an amazing guy you are currently seeing who wants

things to progress. Tell yourself every single day: “What if you fall? Oh, but my darling, what if you fly?” Take this opportunity as the ultimate challenge: putting into practice all you have learned in therapy and codependency Al Anon. Have faith in yourself. You know that there is room for both being vulnerable and taken care of in a relationship, as well as being capable and independent; one does not disqualify the other.

Keep these things in mind as you progress in your relationship as things become more and more public and real. You can do this!

The Zaidy

Dr. Jeffrey Galler

You have gone through a very tough experience, but, baruch Hashem, you seem to be evolving and growing in a very healthy manner. At this point in your life, you are quite right to be very, very cautious before remarrying.

I came across a very sobering and surprising statistic. In the United States today:

• 41% of first marriages end in divorce.

Pulling It All Together

The Navidaters

Dating and Relationship Coaches and Therapists

Dear Leah,

Thank you so much for writing into the panel. And thank you for being an avid reader. I think it is absolutely commendable that you have engaged in your self-growth and awareness and healing journey since your divorce through therapy, Al-Anon and likely other avenues as well. A lot of people don’t understand how Big T Trauma a divorce can be. All the emotions –not only yours, but those of your children – financial restructuring, infinitely more responsibility, changes in social status amongst other changing factors are nothing short of overwhelming. To do “the work” always requires self-exploration, something that unfortunately some people never do. To walk away from a marriage pointing a finger (even if there are many warranted fingers pointed) misses the entire point. And look at you! Doing

the work! I am mucho impressed! Be proud of yourself! What an example to set for your children as well! Wow! Let me say that if you didn’t have concerns about getting married a second time, I’d be more concerned. The fact that you are concerned means that you have your eyes wide open and are going to be cautious about this. When I work with or see couples jumping into second marriages (especially with kids involved), I do raise an eyebrow. It takes time to lay the foundation for a second marriage, if not for the adults, then for the comfort of the children. And you are correct. There are many second divorces. It’s not easy to blend families, and finances can get sticky.

Here’s what I will say.... No one can tell you whether or not you should get

• 60% of second marriages end in divorce.

• 73% of third marriages end in divorce.

These numbers are counterintuitive. You would think that after experiencing a failed marriage, people would learn from their mistakes, be wiser, be more mature, and be less likely to suffer a divorce once again.

Why do 2nd and 3rd marriages so often fail? According to a Good Housekeeping opinion piece:

“Money, intimacy, and in-laws. These ‘big three’ issues are the primary problems that plague most first marriages. These same issues also impact subsequent marriages—but even more so. The money problem becomes even more troublesome in second marriages due to child support and spousal maintenance payments.”

So, what should you do? There is no

Anyone who gets married (or does anything in life) is always taking a risk.

definitive answer.

But, obviously, continue to be cautious, take things slowly, and prioritize what will be best for you and for your children. And, since you seem to have done extremely well with your trusted therapists, why not continue to seek their guidance? Perhaps it would be helpful to schedule some pre-marriage counseling sessions together with your boyfriend.

Best wishes!

married again. Some people really don’t want to, and that is a fair choice. And some people really want to find love and have a beautiful blended family. And that is a fine choice as well. It seems that you have found a potentially wonderful partner, Leah. Someone who is supportive and listens and who is kind. I suggest you and your boyfriend begin couples counseling, sooner rather than later, to have these discussions with a trained third party. Those sessions for second timers are invaluable. You will discuss your fears, your dreams and hopes. And through the sessions, you will hopefully learn more about your boyfriend and where he is holding. You will learn “how” to do this. The practical pieces. Anyone who gets married (or does anything in life) is always taking a risk. Remember that. There are no guarantees. Remaining alone is safe. I understand that. No one wants to put children through a second divorce or experience the trauma from their own

pasts. Remaining alone guarantees remaining alone. Trying with a new partner is a risk. We all know couples who are divorced twice, and we all know second-time couples who have beautiful, blended families and share beautiful partnerships. Hopefully through the therapy process, you will find some safety in your new partnership and begin to consider coming out as a couple. At some point, your boyfriend is going to need this, and it is completely understandable to want to share your relationship and integrate into your life. So let’s hold some space for him, too.

If we don’t move forward, we are stuck. You get to decide what direction you are moving.... toward peaceful, safe, single mom life, with no threat to the serenity of your life and home. Or, taking the plunge and risking your peace for potential marital bliss.

Wishing you all the best, Jennifer

718-908-0512. Visit www.thenavidaters.com for more information. If you would like to submit a dating or relationship question to the panel anonymously, please email

JenniferMannLCSW@gmail.com. You can follow The Navidaters on FB and Instagram for dating and relationship advice.

Jennifer Mann, LCSW is a licensed psychotherapist and certified trauma healing life coach, as well as a dating and relationship coach working with individuals, couples, and families in private practice at 123 Maple Avenue in Cedarhurst, NY. To set up a consultation or to ask questions, please call

Building the Foundation of Chinuch

By Sara Rayvych, MSEd

The many chinuch-related books gracing the shelves of every seforim store will testify to how much there is to learn about this important, lifelong task. Certainly, no article will do justice, but we can still use this space to highlight different aspects of chinuch.

Last week, we discussed the vital, but limited, role of punishment. Erroneously considered the most crucial part of educating a child, punishment alone can be ineffective. While it may stop the negative behavior, it frequently fails to educate a child in the positive behavior that is expected of them. Many times, a child doesn’t even understand what they did wrong initially. The result is they can be stuck with a punishment that feels unfair because they don’t know the reason they received it.

Punishment, when used incorrectly, can even cause a deterioration in the kavod a child is meant to have for their parent. Many parents find it challenging to consistently enforce the rules. If a child frequently ignores a parent’s requests, or makes light of the consequences, the child could begin to see the parent as less of an authority, chas v’shalom, with the

adults slowly becoming irrelevant.

Punishment alone is also very limited, working only for a set period of time. Eventually, a parent loses the ability to force a child to do something based on punishment alone. For example, as teens, our youth still need us to guide them, yet they’re likely to disregard or rebel against a punishment.

The key to parenting is more than just punishment; it’s about the connection we have with our child. When our child feels close to us, they are naturally more inclined to do what we ask, and they can feel the intended love when the consequence does come.

What is Connection

I’m defining “connection” as the emotional bond between two people. In parenting, it’s built through being physically and emotionally present in a child’s life, speaking with them meaningfully, and being responsive to their needs. It can sound difficult but most mindful parents will do this automatically, occasionally reevaluating their parenting to ensure they are best meeting their child’s needs.

Parents are the most important people in a child’s life, and we need to spend

quality time with them. While this can certainly include outings and other trips, discussions around the table, shmoozing on the couch or baking cookies are more common ways to spend time together. It’s not the activity that matters, and any task can be used to meaningfully connect.

Communication is critical to any relationship. While it is important to discuss the more difficult topics that come up throughout life, it’s the everyday discussions with our children that build our bond daily. We shouldn’t forget the role of non-verbal communication. Our children start their lives needing to be held often. As they grow, they will still need some hugs, pats on the back and lots of smiles.

Connection In Parenting

The role of connection – the bond between parent and child – can never be overstated. An emotionally healthy child feels connected to their parents and loved in return. They have someone to protect them and guide them through the many challenges they will face in a world that is new to them. The greater the connection, the more positive their development.

When children are connected, they

more frequently want to listen and do what they are asked. They want to make their loved ones happy and avoid upsetting them. Children will make mistakes, but a connected teen recognizes their errors after being spoken with – a disconnected one shrugs their shoulders and walks away. It’s important to remember we don’t build a bond with our child to manipulate or control them; we connect to them because we love them and want to be present for them.

Being connected doesn’t mean we neglect to rebuke them when they are wrong. Failing to educate a child in proper behavior isn’t love. Educating with connection means we speak to them without degrading them, and we guide them towards improving themselves. It certainly doesn’t mean we never give a consequence for their actions.

Encouraging Kibbud Horim

Some parents are concerned their child won’t respect them unless they’re excessively tough. Children, both by nature and halacha, are meant to have respect and show kavod to their parents. We are their link to their past and the bridge towards their future. A loving

parent will do anything for their child, often without the child ever recognizing the extent of that sacrifice.

What was once a given in previous generations is no longer assumed. A number of years ago, I had the z’chus of speaking with an older woman in our community. As a great-grandmother, she had a perspective on multiple generations. She said that when addressing her own grandparents, they used the third person, “What would the Zaide want?” She expressed absolute shock by the idea of even addressing her grandparents casually. I think the yeridas ha’doros is obvious, with many in the outside world considering it appropriate to call their parents by name. Baruch Hashem, our community raises children that show respect to their parents (and teachers), but there is still an extra challenge we face in passing on this fundamental middah.

Being connected to our child only enhances their ability to fulfill this mitzvah. It will not be challenging for them to show honor to someone they already respect and admire. They will easily give kavod to someone they look up to and want to emulate.

We, in turn, need to set a good example and live honestly in the way we

want them to follow. Children recognize both those who act according to a moral compass and those who are hypocrites.

Being Relevant

A few years ago, I took the children to a local indoor playground. My kids were having a wonderful time, but there was one rowdy child that was out of control. This little boy was around six or seven

get him to stop. He doesn’t listen to me”. I was upset that my children were having their trip ruined, and concerned about their safety with this child’s antics, but I was also truly disappointed by this adult’s response. He not only denied any responsibility for this child, he thought it was funny that he was a joke in this child’s eyes. The child considered the adult irrelevant and did as he pleased.

It’s the everyday discussions with our children that build our bond daily.

years old, but he was simultaneously in everything. He was rudely cutting lines, swinging in front of others, and creating an overall dangerous situation as he nearly knocked children off the equipment. The children were getting upset, and the staff attendant was trying to intervene. The adult responsible (I use that word lightly in this case) for him shrugged his shoulders at the staff member and laughingly said, “Maybe you can

The results were obvious, and the child was wild and ill-mannered.

Every parent should want to be relevant and recognized as an authority in their child’s mind. We are not cruel nor are we overly harsh, but we are someone they should know is in charge and deserving of respect. This is not only a means to maintain order but is also a comfort for a child to know there is someone who knows what is going on

and is taking care of them. I had brought a friend’s son with us to the indoor play area. In contrast to the undisciplined boy mentioned above, this young man was raised by a loving mother who was connected to him and took her son’s education seriously. He treated others with respect, and he understood the adults were there to keep him safe. This young man approached me, upset over the situation. I was able to gently explain to him about the other boy’s behavior and what our limited options were. He understood and accepted my response. I was very impressed by his actions and was able to give his mother a nachas report afterwards.

Being connected with our children not only gives us a chance to build a meaningful relationship with the wonderful treasures Hashem has gifted to us, it also gives us the opportunity to create the foundation for a strong chinuch that will bring continued nachas.

Sara Rayvych, MSEd, has her master’s in general and special education. She has been homeschooling for over 10 years in Far Rockaway. She can be contacted at RayvychHomeschool@gmail.com.

School of Thought

By Etti Siegel

Thoughts on Pesach and how it affects the little people in our care.

Change

We are entering a time on our calendar which brings about a lot of change. While some children love finding a kitchen covered in foil and tasting all the new Pesachdik foods, other children really struggle with the fact that everything they are used to is now different and they can’t have their predictable meals (cereal, noodles and cheese, pizza), and it really throws them off kilter.

Even children going to hotels for Pesach that offer foods that almost taste like the real thing discover that it is not the real thing, and they get quite discombobulated.

It is normal for small children (and some not-sosmall children) to fear change. The biggest issue is when children feel like they don’t know what is happening next. They dislike and often fear the lack of predictability.

Kristen Rinehart, director of behavioral health services at Muskingum Valley Health Centers and owner of Changing Minds, explains that all new experiences have the potential to make a child fearful. Children often misunderstand what they are told, sometimes absorbing only half the statement, so they might think that the current state of affairs is the new reality or start creating “what-if” thoughts that lead them to thoughts about what could go wrong.

Since children feel safer when their world is predictable, now, a few weeks before Pesach, begin talking about all the changes that will be coming up in a fun and positive way.

“We can eat Cheerios now, yum, but on Pesach we have different food for breakfast. Won’t that be fun? What kinds of food will we have?”

“I love Pesach! For a few days we will have such special treats! We will have…”

“Oh, look! I bought _____ special for Pesach! Where can we put it so we don’t use it now but we can take it out and have it on Pesach?”

Change is a natural occurrence in life, and we want our children to embrace change instead of being fearful.

Some parents have shared with me that they have a special game box of games and toys they take out once a year along with their Pesach dishes. Others tell me that they make sure to purchase one new game for the holiday.

Celebrate the change with your children, and remember that they often will misread cues. They might misread the stress of preparing for the upcoming yom tov as fear or unhappiness and take it as an indication that there is what to be afraid of!

Thoughts on Pesach and how it affects the big people in our orbit.

Stress seems to be synonymous with Pesach prep. Suddenly, we have so much to do, and sometimes we begin barking orders to the older children and our spouse. When children don’t want to be home during this time, this might mean it is time to rethink our values and what we want our children to remember about this time in their lives.

It is important to have our older children help for Pesach, but we should remember to set them up for success. Just like I counsel teachers to state expectations clearly for classwork and projects, we should do the same with Pesach prep at home. If they can choose the jobs from a list, that offers them a feeling of autonomy. If they know exactly what the expectations are for each job, that helps with self-confidence.

Even families with full-time help and who are going away should try to figure out what their children can do for Pesach, as there is no greater feeling than entering a yom tov when you were more than a spectator and a guest!

Years ago, a close friend shared with me that she went to speak to Rav Zelig Epstein, zt”l, and asked him how to ensure that her kids would grow up to be kind and caring people. He told her to make sure they were exposed to those less fortunate and to help them. She encouraged her boys to collect on Purim for the needy families she knew about, and then they quietly helped distribute those funds. She made sure to have her children, girls and boys, visit those who needed help cleaning, watching children, and more. And her kids are impressive, caring, sensitive adults raising children of their own today.

Taking a page from that story, when my kids were young, I connected them with families in the neighborhood to be “mother’s helpers.” It made them feel so good to hold a baby and give some attention to the little kids, and the moms got a little reprieve. One of my granddaughters is doing this now, too, in her neighborhood. The boost it gives the child who is assisting far outweighs what she actually does for those she is helping. (Shout out

to those wonderful families who let my children “help” you. I hope it really was helpful!)

Letting our children be givers has long-term ramifications.

Pesach is a wonderful time to get your children to be on the giving end. Too often, children are on the receiving end.

It also helps them define themselves as givers; a wonderful self-definition to own.

Gratefulness

Let us keep the words “thank you” on our lips as the people around us try to be of assistance. Proper thanks encourages more helping, and even if their attempts actually make you more work in the short run, in the long run, they will become more and more adept at helping, and then you will truly be grateful for their assistance. If you are quick to criticize, and you discourage their help now, you will never get the pleasure of seeing them grow to be the coworkers they could be. Make the goal “good enough” and not perfection, and watch everyone around you beam at how helpful they have been!

I work on all of these points every day for myself and work with the teachers I coach on this as well. If we all take these lessons to heart, allow our students and children to help more in the classroom and in our homes, be more involved in the preparation of upcoming events, and we allow them to own some of the tasks we set out to do, we will be surrounded by truly enjoyable people and less entitled children. I saw this when I had classroom jobs, and I saw it as I shared my responsibilities with my children… and I see this being duplicated in classes and homes all across the USA.

When given the chance, children want to be good and helpful. As Dr. Ross Green, author of The Explosive Child and Lost at School, famously says, “Kids do well if they can.” Let us help them be successful by giving them tasks they can manage and being genuinely appreciative of the effort they put in.

Wishing you a happy countdown to Pesach, Etti

Mrs. Etti Siegel holds an MS in Teaching and Learning/Educational Leadership and brings sound teaching advice to her audiences culled from her over 35 years of teaching and administrative experience. She is an Adjunct at the College of Mount Saint Vincent/Sara Shenirer. She is a coach and educational consultant for Catapult Learning, is a sought-after mentor and workshop presenter around the country, and a popular presenter for Sayan (a teacher-mentoring program), Hidden Sparks, and the Consortium of Jewish Day Schools. She is a frequent contributor to Hamechanech Magazine and The Journal for Jewish Day School leaders. She will be answering your education-based questions and writing articles weekly for The Jewish Home. Mrs. Siegel can be reached at ettisiegel@gmail.com.

The Joy in Your Marriage

By Malka Klaver

Joy is a funny thing.

Many people think of it like one of those dandelions spinning in the wind; grab it quickly, before it gets away. Then, once you catch it, you cradle it carefully, ensuring you don’t ruin its delicate nature or lose it. Then, just as quickly, you look down – and it’s gone.

Attaining and maintaining joy in life is complicated. Why is it so hard? Because life is hard. It’s difficult to feel happy when we see and experience pain. So, does that mean joy is elusive and limited to those not experiencing challenges or pain?

Joy is not elusive. It is not limited to people in a specific socioeconomic group, intelligence level, or life circumstance. Anyone and everyone can have joy in their life. Some people have more barriers and challenges, which make it more complex, but it’s within everyone’s reach.

How do we experience more joy, specifically in our marriages? Marriage is a gift. It can bring so much joy and connection. It can also bring tremendous pain when there is distance and conflict. Infusing our relationship with more joy can ignite our marriage and our life in a way that no other relationship can.

When we have joy in our marriage, many other challenging areas of our lives become less daunting. The problem is many of us are waiting to experience joy as if it’s that dandelion flying in the wind so daintily. We do not need to wait for joy and grab it when it comes our way. It’s not a place we land when we have achieved a certain status financially or socially. Joy is a feeling we can all feel, if we understand how to acquire it.

Dr. Brene Brown, noted author and researcher, discusses joy in many of her books. She explains a very practical way to tap into joy amidst the vicissitudes of life. Dr. Brown found that joy unequivocally comes through practicing gratitude. Not simply having a “gratitude attitude” – we need to express gratitude.

Expressing our appreciation for the relationship is critical in increasing joy in our marriage. For example, you may turn to your spouse and say, “I had such a wonderful Purim with you. I love going through the holidays together. I’m so lucky to do all this with you!” A moment. A powerful infusion of joy in your marriage. By stopping and expressing gratitude, you will

Be careful, though – even once you nail the gratitude practice piece, you have to be OK with allowing yourself to feel joy. Dr. Brown discovered in her research something shocking: one of the most uncomfortable and scary feelings for people was joy. People will make endless sacrifices to attain joy for themselves and their families, yet never actually feel joy.

Why?

Because they never lean into the feeling of joy.

In simple terms, it’s hard to feel joy. We acknowledge that something is going well, and then the what-ifs begin, or what Dr. Brown calls, “foreboding joy.” The feeling of dread that follows a joyful moment.

So often, we are afraid to lean into joy because we don’t want to experience the fear of losing it.

experience the joy that was there all along. The reason people search high and low for joy is not because it doesn’t exist in the commonplace. It’s because it needs to be brought to the surface. Think of it as a scratch-off lotto. The winnings are right there, but they need a little scratch to be seen. So many opportunities come up in our marriage that can be so much more if we acknowledge and express our gratitude for one another. Then we can experience joy together. It may feel cheesy or insignificant, but try it. You will see a difference.

Let me give you an example, based on a practice we do in our home often. We’re sitting at the Shabbos table, and everything is going well. There’s good food, good conversation, laughter, and zemiros. I turn to my family and say, “I’m so lucky to have such an incredible family. Thank you, Abba, Elisha, and Esther. Thank you, Hashem!”

What thoughts can follow such a moment? “Um…now what’s going to happen? This won’t last. Ugh, why did you have to say something, Malka?!” Sound familiar? So often, we are afraid to lean into joy

because we don’t want to experience the fear of losing it. So what do we do? Gloss over countless moments in our lives that could have been moments of connection and joy. What’s the solution, you ask? Not to tell yourself not to be afraid; fear is an emotion you must be ready to feel if you want meaningful relationships in life. Accept the fear and the instinct to move out of joy.

Lean into it. The more you do this, the more you will get used to it. I’ve been doing this practice many times, and there still can be a voice saying, OK, now what’s going to happen? But it gets lower and less intense. And what becomes even louder and more intense is the feeling of joy you experience with the people who matter the most.

Look for moments in your marriage where you can practice gratitude with one another and then accept the emotions that follow. Don’t move on to something else (like your phone). Just be in that moment – no need to search for dandelions drifting in the wind. Scratch the surface a tiny bit and reap the priceless reward of connection and joy in marriage.

Malka Klaver is a certified marriage coach and marriage educator. She provides individual and group coaching, as well as yearly workshops, to educate and guide women to a closer, more connected marriage. She also hosts a podcast titled, “Best Friends for Life,” where she discusses relatable challenges and practical tools to enhance marriage. For more information or to contact her, please visit malkaklaver.com.

The postpartum period of a mother’s life poses different dietary challenges. Firstly, mothers require a healthy diet because the nutritional choices made while nursing play a critical role in promoting the health of both the mother and the baby. Another postpartum challenge is achieving post-pregnancy weight goals. While the immediate focus after giving birth is typically on the newborn, the importance of addressing post-pregnancy weight should not be overlooked since accumulation of extra weight can increase a woman’s risk of chronic disease and decrease her quality of life. This article will provide strategies on how to eat healthy for postpartum nursing and on how to achieve post-pregnancy weight goals.

Nutritional Considerations

Whether nursing or not, a balanced diet is essential for optimal recovery and weight management after birth. However, nutritional needs may vary between nursing and non-nursing mothers. Non-nursing mothers have lower calorie needs, but they should still prioritize nutrient-dense foods for optimal health and weight management.

Nursing mothers should focus on:

1. Increasing intake of nutrient-dense food: Generally, nursing mothers need to increase their calorie requirement to support milk production. While you may feel encouraged to eat foods high in empty calories, it’s important to get most of your foods from nutrient-dense sources. These include lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats.

2. Constipation and flatulence: Constipation is common for many women during the postpartum period because of reduced physical activity, medications, dehydration, and hormonal changes. To combat this, incorporate more fiber into

Postpartum Nutritional Health

By Aliza Beer MS, RD, CDN

your diet by eating beans, lentils, apples, berries, string beans, zucchini, oatmeal, and whole grain bread. I work with many nursing mothers, and another common concern is that specific vegetables can lead to the development of gassy symptoms in mothers and their babies. These include broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and brussels sprouts. To avoid flatulence (or a cranky baby!), choose vegetables like string beans, eggplant, zucchini, peppers, mushrooms, and onions.

3. Drink plenty of fluids: If you’re nursing, your body needs more fluid to prevent dehydration and to compensate for extra water used to make breastmilk.

A nursing mother should have about 16 cups per day of fluid mostly coming from water, but it is acceptable to occasionally consume sugar-free beverages.

4. Vitamins and minerals: Negative health outcomes can occur to you and your baby if there are deficiencies in essential nutrients. Micronutrients are critical for maternal health, infant development, quality of breast milk, and energy levels. Nutrients that are important during nursing are iron, iodine, vitamin B12, vitamin

K, folate, calcium and vitamin D. Here are food sources of each of the micronutrients:

a) Iron- Red kidney beans, chickpeas, tofu, chicken, liver and spinach

b) Iodine - Milk, cheese, chicken, and eggs

c) Vitamin B12- Beef, Greek yogurt, salmon, and chicken

d) Vitamin K- Kale, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, eggs, and meat

e) Folate - Peanuts, beans, almonds, and sunflower seeds

f) Calcium- Sardines, yogurt, almonds, milk, leafy greens, and salmon

g) Vitamin D - Egg yolks, mushrooms, salmon, and fortified cereals.

Eating a diet that focuses on whole foods can help you maintain a balance of these nutrients, but you may need to consider supplements if you’re deficient.

5. Is fish OK?: Fish provides us with many nutrients, but nursing mothers should eat no more than about 8-12 ounces of seafood each week and choose sources low in mercury. This translates to 0.045 mcg of mercury per pound of body weight per day. For example, if you weigh 150 lbs.,

then you multiply your body weight (150 lbs.) by 0.045 and you get your reference dose of 6.8 mcg per day and 47.6 mcg per week. There are fish options that contain higher amounts of mercury than others. An albacore tuna can has 29.75 mcg of mercury, while salmon and sardines contain 4 mcg and 2 mcg of mercury per serving respectively. If you eat a can of tuna, then you have already exceeded your weekly limit of mercury! When choosing fish to eat, aim for fish options that contain lower amounts of mercury.

6. Alcohol while nursing : If you’re nursing, it’s best to wait two hours or more before breastfeeding if you consume a single alcoholic drink. Another option is to bottle-feed using previously expressed breast milk if you had an alcoholic beverage.

7. Reduce caffeine intake: Since caffeine is a stimulant, consuming large amounts can make your baby restless and keep him or her awake. If you’re nursing, it’s important to reduce how much caffeine you drink to no more than 200 mg a day. This can be a mug of tea or coffee, one energy drink can, and one bar of dark chocolate.

Since there are many nutritional recommendations, here’s a nutrient-dense sample meal plan for nursing mothers.

a) Breakfast : Cooked rolled oats with berries, chia seeds and slivered almonds

b) Lunch: Grilled chicken salad quinoa, spinach, cucumber, tomato, and homemade vinaigrette dressing

c) Dinner : Poached salmon with sweet potatoes and string beans

d) Snacks: Low-fat Greek yogurt, apple with peanut butter, and sliced veggies with hummus.

Achieving Post-Pregnancy Weight Goals

Carrying excess weight can increase

health risks of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. Losing extra weight can also help with postpartum recovery, mental health, and reduce the risk of future pregnancy complications. You should attempt to return to your pre-pregnancy weight by 6-12 months after delivery.

Here are a few strategies you can implement to achieve post-pregnancy weight goals:

1. Eat a balanced diet: Focus on eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Aim for smaller, more frequent meals to satisfy hunger cues and maintain energy levels.

2. Stay hydrated: Dehydration can make you feel hungry, so drinking enough water can help prevent unnecessary snacking. Avoid drinks with added sugar and calories since they can contribute to weight gain and make it harder to lose weight.

3. Exercise : Exercise can aid in weight loss, but it’s essential to speak with a healthcare provider before starting any physical activity after childbirth. You should start slowly after childbirth and listen to your body if you’re experiencing any pain, dizziness, and discomfort. You

can start low-impact workouts like pelvic floor exercises, walking, swimming, and Pilates. When your healthcare provider gives you the green light, you can return to more intense exercise like weightlifting, running, and aerobics.

4. Breastfeed if possible: Breastfeeding can aid with post-pregnancy weight loss since it burns extra calories.

5. Get enough sleep: Lack of sleep can increase your cravings for unhealthy

to follow long term, you will ultimately regain the weight you lost and slow down your metabolism.

7. Be patient and kind to yourself: Your body needs time to recover from childbirth and losing weight too soon can make the recovery process harder. As long as you eat healthily and exercise, you will be successful at losing excess fat. Focus on making healthy lifestyle changes that you can maintain

Be patient and kind to yourself.

foods, increase hunger, and calorie intake which can lead to weight gain. Try to establish a regular sleep schedule and prioritize rest whenever possible.

6. Avoid fad diets: Fad diets can be tempting since they help you drop weight fast, but many of them restrict essential nutrients needed for postpartum health. For example, Atkins and Keto restrict carbohydrates, making it more difficult to eat adequate amounts of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Since these fad diets are hard

long-term rather than quick fixes. It’s also important to be realistic and understand that it’s normal to not return to your exact pre-pregnancy shape.

8. Consult a healthcare professional: If you’re having a difficult time losing weight, speaking to a registered dietitian who specializes in postpartum care can help. They can provide you with individualized weight loss advice to help you reach your post-pregnancy weight goals safely and effectively.

The postpartum period presents many dietary challenges for mothers like focusing on nutritional health and achieving post-pregnancy weight goals. Prioritizing a balanced diet rich in nutrient-dense foods is crucial for promoting maternal and infant health, especially for nursing mothers. It’s essential to keep tabs on your hydration, micronutrient intake, and dietary fiber, alongside careful considerations for alcohol and caffeine. There are many ways to achieve a post-pregnancy weight goal: maintaining a balanced diet, focusing on hydration, exercising, breastfeeding if possible, getting adequate sleep, and avoiding fad diets. Patience, self-compassion, and seeking guidance from healthcare professionals are important components in navigating this postpartum period with positive health outcomes for both mother and baby.

Aliza Beer is a registered dietitian with a master’s degree in nutrition. She has a private practice in Cedarhurst, NY. Patients’ success has been featured on the Dr. Oz show. Aliza can be reached at alizabeer@gmail. com, and you can follow her on Instagram at @alizabeer

Kosher for Pesach with Ari

By Prime By Ari

BBQ Chicken Bites

Ingredients

• 1 package of Prime by Ari Chicken cubes

• ½ cup mayonnaise

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp onion powder

• 1 cup of almond milk

• 1-2 bags BBQ potato chips

Preparation

1. Place mayonnaise, garlic, and onion powder in a bowl.

2. Place the almond milk in a second bowl.

3. Crush the BBQ potato chips and place them in their bowl as well.

4. Dip the chicken cutlets into the mayo mixture, then into the almond milk, and then in the BBQ chips.

5. Place the coated chicken bites into a greased pan.

6. Preheat oven to 375°F.

7. Place in the oven for 15 minutes.

Meatballs

Ingredients

• 2 lbs chopped meat

• 1 egg

• ½ onion, chopped

• Salt, pepper

• ½ cup potato starch or matzo meal

• 1 Tbsp chopped parsley

• 1 clove of garlic, minced

• ½ tsp oregano

• 16 oz of tomato sauce

Preparation

1. In a large bowl, mix the first eight ingredients with half a cup of tomato sauce. Form into small balls.

2. Put in greased baking pan and bake at 400°F for 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, heat the rest of the sauce in a large pot.

4. Place the cooked meatballs in the sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.

Straight to the Plate

By Menuchah armel Photography & Food Design: Mirit Hatav

Two-Color Cabbage Salad

Yield: 20 servings | Gluten free

A wonderful blend of cabbages & color, this recipe is a great addition to any meal or simcha.

Ingredients SALAD

> 1.1 lb. (500 g) purple cabbage, shredded

> 1.1 lb. (500 g) white cabbage, shredded

> 3 scallions, sliced

> ½ cup slivered almonds, toasted

DRESSING

> 5 Tbsp. oil

> 2 Tbsp. vinegar

> 3 Tbsp. sugar

> ½ tsp. salt

Preparation

1. Combine salad ingredients in large mixing bowl.

2. Top with dressing ingredients and toss until fully combined.

3. Serve immediately.

TIP: Add dressing as late as possible to this salad so that the cabbage retains its delicious crispiness.

Broccoli Kugel

Yield: One 9x13 kugel | Gluten free

A classic dish that brings a healthy balance to a traditional Shabbos meal.

It also adds great color to the table.

Ingredients

> 24 oz. frozen broccoli, slightly thawed

> 3 onions, diced and sauteed

> ¾ cup mayonnaise

> 5 eggs

> 1 ½ tsp. salt

> Dash of pepper

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.

2. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper.

3. Using the S-blade of a food processor, chop broccoli.

4. In a large mixing bowl, combine chopped broccoli with onion.

5. Add mayonnaise, eggs, salt, and pepper, and mix until fully combined.

6. Pour mixture into prepared pan.

7. Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

TIP: You can easily substitute cauliflower for half or all of the broccoli.

Salmon with Dill, Honey & Mustard

Yield: 8 servings | Gluten free

Salmon is a versatile fish that can be prepared in a variety of ways. This recipe is wonderful and festive. Served as an appetizer or as a main course, it is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients FISH

> 1 whole fillet of salmon (or 8 individual slices)

> Salt and pepper, to taste

> 3 sprigs fresh dill, chopped SAUCE

> 2 tsp. lemon rind (optional)

> 2 Tbsp. lemon juice

> ½ cup mustard

> ½ cup honey

> 2 Tbsp. water

> 1 tsp. garlic powder

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.

2. Place fish fillets on a lined baking tray and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the sauce ingredients. Pour half of sauce over fish.

4. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

5. Stir fresh dill into remaining sauce and pour over cooked fish.

6. Serve warm or cool.

TIP: Fish changes color slightly when it’s ready. For salmon, that means the color gets lighter. If you are still unsure if it’s ready, gently press the flesh with the prongs of a fork. When cooked, it will flake easily— meaning it will separate along the natural lines in the flesh.

Born in Baltimore, MD, Menucha Armel moved to Israel in 1995. Her passion for cooking began as a hobby, selling salads and kugels for Shabbos, which eventually blossomed into a business, Menuchah L’simcha Catering. Her culinary skills, honed through catering events and cooking in yeshivas and seminaries, led to the creation of her cookbook, “Straight to the Plate,” featuring her best quick and easy recipes.

Menucha is dedicated to teaching others how to prepare delicious, uncomplicated meals using everyday pantry ingredients. Through workshops and cooking demonstrations, she shares not only recipes but also techniques and skills, promoting a sense of calm and ease in the kitchen.

To order Menucha’s cookbook, visit www.straighttotheplate.net.

In The K tchen

Vegetable Pad Thai

By Naomi Nachman

I expanded my love for Thai cuisine here to Pesach. With some small tweaks, this recipe, which is the national dish of Thailand, makes a great addition to your Chol Hamoed repertoire!

Ingredients

◦ 4 zucchini or 2 spaghetti squash

◦ 3 tablespoons fresh or packaged lime juice

◦ 4 tablespoons brown sugar

◦ ¼ cup imitation soy sauce

◦ ½ teaspoon sriracha sauce

◦ 2 tablespoons neutral-flavored oil

◦ 1 medium onion, sliced into half-moons

◦ 1 teaspoon kosher salt

◦ 5 cloves garlic, minced or 5 cubes frozen garlic

◦ 1 (8-oz./225-g.) bag shredded green cabbage

◦ 4 eggs, lightly beaten (see tip)

◦ ½ cup roasted almonds, chopped, for garnish

◦ Handful cilantro, chopped, for garnish

◦ 1 lime, cut into wedges, for garnish

Preparation

1. To Prepare Zucchini: Use a julienne peeler or spiralizer to cut zucchini into long, thin, spaghetti-shaped strands. Place the zucchini noodles in a single layer on paper towels. Let them air dry for at least one hour, up to four hours.

To Prepare Spaghetti Squash: Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with

parchment paper; set aside. Halve squash lengthwise; scoop out seeds. Lay halves, flesh side down, on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 35 minutes or until you can easily pierce the rind with a fork. Remove squash from oven and set aside to cool. Use a fork to scrape the squash flesh crosswise, pulling the strands from the rind. Set your zucchini or spaghetti squash aside.

2. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, simmer lime juice, brown sugar, imitation soy sauce, and sriracha.

3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until soft. Add salt; stir mixture for two minutes. Add garlic and cabbage; sauté until soft.

4. Push vegetables to one side of the skillet. Add eggs; scramble until just done. Toss scrambled eggs with vegetables. Add the zucchini or spaghetti squash and cook until they begin to soften. Zucchini releases a lot of water, so keep cooking and tossing the vegetables until the water has mostly evaporated.

5. Add sauce mixture to the pan. Stir until vegetables are evenly coated. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve, sprinkling each dish with almonds and garnishing with cilantro and lime wedges.

Tip: Instead of eggs, you can use deli, leftover cooked chicken, or salmon to turn this into a main course.

Credits: Photography by Felicia Peretti

Food and Prop Styling by Goldie Stern

Naomi Nachman, the owner of The Aussie Gourmet, caters weekly and Shabbat/ Yom Tov meals for families and individuals within The Five Towns and neighboring communities, with a specialty in Pesach catering. Naomi is a contributing editor to this paper and also produces and hosts her own weekly radio show on the Nachum Segal Network stream called “A Table for Two with Naomi Nachman.” Naomi gives cooking presentations for organizations and private groups throughout the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan area. In addition, Naomi has been a guest host on the QVC TV network and has been featured in cookbooks, magazines as well as other media covering topics related to cuisine preparation and personal chefs. To obtain additional recipes, join The Aussie Gourmet on Facebook or visit Naomi’s blog. Naomi can be reached through her website, www.theaussiegourmet.com or at (516) 295-9669.

Fd for Thought RSVP

RBy Nati Burnside

SVP isn’t just another steakhouse. The idea of the restaurant was to give patrons a complete white glove treatment from the moment they walk through the door. There’s even a kind of barrier between RSVP and the outside world that is accomplished by the coat room that you walk into before you even get to the maître d’s podium.

But even after that point, RSVP offers some unique seating options. There are booths that are built into alcoves in one wall of a raised hallway that overlooks the dining room through the opposing glass wall. The booths have curtains that can be drawn that turn them into their own private rooms for four to six people. The restaurant strives to be its own curated environment and succeeds.

When I was invited to experience RSVP, I had to start out by trying the RSVP Roll. Their eponymous sushi creation is interesting for its lack of roughage. With fatty tuna on the inside, the roll is topped with a colorful display of tuna, salmon, amber jack, and yellowtail before each piece is dotted with spicy sauce and garnished with scallions. When it comes to sushi, I usually tend to lean towards choosing based on the fish, and this roll gives you that opportunity because there are eight pieces and they’re topped with four fishes. In essence, it’s almost like having four different rolls of sushi to choose from. The fish was extremely fresh, and the texture was perfection.

But if I’m going to recommend one appetizer above all others, it’s going to be the Harissa Lamb Kofta. Served on top of a laffa, this generous portion of lamb kofta comes with a smidge of red onion and minimal garnish to accompany the large dollops of harissa paste and pareve tzatziki that stand out on opposite ends of the dish. It might seem like this is a daunting item to consume at a high-end restaurant, but it’s worth it. Tear off a piece of the laffa, get some tzatziki, harissa, or both and put a piece of the lamb kofta on there for a truly amazing bite. The laffa is crisp, yet soft, and

the kofta is slightly charred, yet juicy. The tzatziki might not taste exactly like the real thing, but it lacks that trademark pareve taste. I loved the harissa here, but obviously your tolerance might differ. A larger portion size than most appetizers, this plate would be great to split even for a party of up to six people. If it wasn’t for so many other great options on the menu, I might even suggest a person order this as an entrée.

Speaking of main courses, RSVP may be a steakhouse, but the non-steak options will not disappoint you in the slightest. Not only are there many choices, but some of them are right up there with the extreme quality of the steaks. The Glazed Saddle stands out in particular. The trio of dark meat chicken cutlets are served over top of a medley of sautéed vegetables that includes string beans, peppers, onions, and more. The glaze is a sweet and spicy sauce that carries just enough heat on the back end to make you appreciate the flavor of the sweetness before combatting the spice. The vegetables are crunchy, and the glaze is a perfect sauce for them as well. As all mains come with a side of your choice, I can’t recommend the Smashed Marble Potatoes enough. Tossed in a mixture of lemon juice and garlic powder after their smashing, these were completely addictive and shouldn’t be skipped.

Obviously, with the quality of all the other elements of the restaurant, the steaks at this steakhouse are going to be on point. But the question you’ll be faced with is one of selection, as there are quite a few options on the menu for you to choose from. If you’re looking to try something a little different, go with the Mojo Marinated Skirt Steak. Using a citrus-based marinade on skirt steak is a great choice as the acid offsets the inherent saltiness of the cut of meat. The result is a balance of flavors that comes together nicely and gives you the incentive you need to really savor each bite of the perfectly cooked meat. The acid from the citrus marinade also helps tenderize the meat, allowing this skirt steak to not

be quite as chewy as you’d find with other preparation methods. All steaks come with pomme frites and your choice of another side. And while I wouldn’t blame you for doubling up on potatoes, I’d pair this with the Balsamic Glazed Mushrooms. Obviously not for the faint of palate, but you’re going to need a strong flavor to pair with the boldness of the meat. These mushrooms are delightfully reduced and have a great punch of balsamic flavor that will have you trying to imitate them at home.

Finally, we arrive at the pièce de résistance…the RSVP Steak. While it certainly seems like it’s a signature steak, it’s really a signature steak preparation. Your server may give you the option of what cuts of meat the RSVP is available on that night, and frankly choosing that answer is up to you. What really matters here is that they take whichever cut you’ve chosen and coat the outside of it with their house-made porcini powder. This might be something that you’ve seen on TV, but it’s not available in many places in the kosher restaurant world. That added crust on the outside of the steak that is accomplished by searing the mushroom flavor into the meat will be

something you’ll talk about on the car ride home. It adds a true depth to the flavor of the steak that can’t be replicated. When you’re choosing a side dish for this, I’d go with something that can be eaten on its own. You want to be able to isolate the taste of the steak itself.

Speaking of taste pairings, RSVP has an almost disturbingly extensive drink menu that you may want to check out. They even have a section of drinks specifically to pair with dessert and some dedicated mocktail options. The drink menu might seem daunting, but the breadth is understandable once you see the bar and its prominence in the dining room. The central feature stands out quite a bit, and you’ll likely see people eating at the bar just so they can watch the bartender make some of these concoctions.

If you walk in the doors of RSVP, you’ll certainly be treated to a special evening. Just remember to leave your worries behind as you step into the carefully crafted luxury world that’s there to make you feel like it’s not just the night that’s special to you; it’s you that’s special to the restaurant.

Mind Y ur Business

The Power of Data

This column features business insights from a recent “Mind Your Business with Yitzchok Saftlas” radio show. The weekly “Mind Your Business” show – broadcasting since 2015 – features interviews with Fortune 500 executives, business leaders and marketing gurus. Prominent guests include John Sculley, former CEO of Apple and Pepsi; Dick Schulze, founder and Chairman Emeritus of Best Buy; and Beth Comstock, former Vice Chair of GE; among over 400+ senior-level executives and business celebrities. Yitzchok Saftlas, president of Bottom Line Marketing Group, hosts the weekly “Mind Your Business” show, which airs at 10pm every Sunday night on 710 WOR and throughout America on the iHeartRadio Network.

On a recent addition of the “Mind Your Business” show, Yitzchok Saftlas sat down with Moshe Hecht, founder and CEO of Hatch.

Read on for Hecht’s top 5 pieces of advice for utilizing data to take your fundraising to the next level.

Finding Data

When I was the CEO of a crowdfunding organization called Charidy, I started

to recognize a real unmet need for many organizations running fundraising campaigns. On average, our clients’ campaign sizes were around a million dollars. And one of the benefits of raising a million dollars shouldn’t just be raising that million but also getting thousands of new donors into your database. Yet, many times, roughly 9-10 months after their campaigns ended, I would ask the organizations, “How has the year been going by with you max-

imizing and monetizing all of these new constituents?” And unfortunately, 9 times out of 10, they would say, “You know what? We haven’t really tapped into that base. It’s interesting, we have data on them, but we don’t have enough data on them. We have their names, their emails, their phone numbers, maybe the amount they gave, but we don’t have the necessary information that can inform a greater relationship, a greater size gift, or deeper engagement.”

Now, there are actually hundreds of data points available on most people on the internet. If you do a Google search on someone, you’ll find out a lot of information. The key is bringing all that data together to create, what we call at Hatch, a “complete human profile.” We gather information from roughly 40 different public sources, like the IRS, the FEC, the SEC, different social data, live news, and live Tweets. When you put that together, an organization can visualize what was before, maybe this one or two-dimensional line in a CRM, as a three-dimensional individual, where they can learn their preferences, their lifestyle, and so on.

Getting the Bigger Picture

If you have a piece of information that seems really good, and you go out, relying solely on that one piece of information, you could end up heading down a really scary path. If you see that a person gave a million-dollar gift to your organization in 2005, that’s very weak data to go on alone, because there is a lot of missing context, and many things could have changed since then. What’s happened to that person in the years since? Why did they give that gift to you in the first place? Are you seeing a trend of them continuing to give similar gifts in the following years? But, let’s say I see that one piece of information and I also find

out that the person is now the CEO of a big company, or I see that there’s still a trend of them continuing to give to other organizations, or I see that they have stopped giving ever since their retirement. Each of these pieces of information add valuable context to help us create that person’s “complete human profile.” We need dozens and dozens of little pieces of information that come together to add this necessary context. I think a lot of fundraisers out there are currently only looking at one or two pieces of information before acting. They see that the person lives in a $50 million home. But do they continue looking to see that he also owns 90% of the mortgage or that he’s actually living with his parents? That’s why we need as many pieces of information as we can gather, to help us make more educated and artful predictions around a person to help qualify our ask.

Starting with Home Value

Now, while it’s never a good idea to base your entire ask around one piece of information, a great piece of data to start with would be a person’s home value. Home value is always 100% accurate, just as long as the constituent gives you their address. The great advantage here is that there’s no “John Smith” problem, as in, there’s no checking to see if this is really where they live. So, how can you utilize this information to your advantage? All you have to do is take your existing database and sort it by who has the most expensive home. Now, remember, this is just a starting point. You still need to research further from there. I was once working with an organization that sorted their entire database this way and the most expensive home that came up was $75 million. Then, we went a little further in gathering info and saw that it was actually the family house and the individ-

ual didn’t fully own it. But, just that little bit of info started to give the organization a better sense of the person and led them towards other areas to explore. That’s why home value is such a good place to start. It’s always 100% accurate, it always gives a sense of the individual, and from there, you can go and veer out into all the other pieces of information that will help color the individual or their family even further.

Building Relationships

Any professional fundraising consultant, or any person who’s been in the nonprofit space for a long time, will tell you that ultimately fundraising is all about building relationships. But, I think that there’s a nuance there, that we have an opportunity to explore under the umbrella of building relationships. When you think about it, what is a really good relationship? I think it’s very similar to having a really good friend. A great friend isn’t just someone who comes to your parties or spends time hanging out in your backyard. One of the most important qualities of a really good friend is that they can predict what you like and what you need. Like a true friend, a good fundraiser needs to be able to say, “You know what? Based on this information and our relationship, I have this predictive power

where I know what program, what donation size, and which particular cause is going to make the greatest impact for you.” Because, ultimately, our job as fundraisers is to take our philanthropists, or even anyone just giving a $10 donation, and to make their dreams come true through their giving. In the same way a friend should be able to fin-

pipeline and getting new people in their database. The question is which category you should really be putting your main concentration into. My advice is that for an organization that’s been around for roughly five years, that raises north of $200,000-$300,000 a year, all your hopes and dreams are right under your nose. Be-

We need as many pieces of information as we can gather to help us make more educated and artful predictions around a person to help qualify our ask.

ish your sentence or should be able to know exactly what you want for your birthday, we need to have that same predictive power to know exactly how to align our constituents’ philanthropy with our causes.

Maximizing Your Constituents

An organization has to be focused on their existing constituents, while simultaneously focusing on building out their

cause, even though you do have to build your database further, the best place to start is with your existing database. I find that many nonprofits are ignoring 90% of their existing constituents. They’re focusing on their major donors, their most active supporters, but they’re ignoring the rest of their database. And in that 90% are more major donors, mid-tier donors, modest donors, and social influencers. So -

cial influencers are especially important today, because it’s not just about money anymore, but about how they can propel your organization through their influence. So, look deeper into your existing constituents, learn more about them, build those relationships, and then word of mouth will come and help you expand in the long run.

If you do your research on your existing constituents, they’re going to be inspired and motivated to share.

Notable Quotes “Say What?!”

I don’t know anybody in America who’s got a family who agrees with him on everything.

- Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., sharing how he feels having family members disapprove of his presidential run

I’m currently out of the country, but if what I’ve written here qualifies as an offense under the terms of the new act, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment.

- Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling after posting a “politically incorrect” tweet that violates Scotland’s new woke hate crime act which makes it a crime to “mis-identify” people

I just don’t believe raising penalties is ever a deterrent on crime.

- NY Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D) at a press conference

If you just keep dealing with the penalties, what happens after people get arrested? You’re still only worrying about what happens after something has already happened.

- Ibid.

How many more police officers and how many families need to make the ultimate sacrifice before we start protecting them?

- Stephanie Diller, eulogizing her husband NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller

I’m sure that many elected officials will attend PO Diller’s funeral, shed a few crocodile tears, and prominently seat themselves for a good photo opportunity.

- SBA President Vincent Vallelong

Adrienne Adams, Jumaane Williams and their cohorts should stay home. They detest cops and have no appreciation for what they do. They should stay home and not pretend they are grieving. They have caused enough heartbreak and destruction.

- Ibid.

We don’t want you here. You’re not wanted here. You have blood on your hands. If you want to do something, change the bail laws.

- Officer Diller’s uncle to Gov. Kathy Hochul when she came to the wake

Israel was the target of a brutal attack, and this type of thing requires a response that sets the example. Israel is not committing any excess.

- Argentinian President Javier Milei in a wide-ranging interview with CNN

You can’t expect much from someone who was a terrorist murderer.

- Ibid., talking about Columbia’s new radical-left President (Gustavo) Petro who is a former guerilla fighter

Presently, Biden prefers the line of Rashida Tlaib and Sinwar to the line of Benjamin Netanyahu and Ben Gvir. I would have expected the president of the United States not to take their line.

- National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir in an interview with The New York Times

If the Veterans Administration wants to use AI in VA hospitals to help doctors diagnose patients, they would first have to demonstrate that AI does not produce racially biased diagnoses.

– Vice Pres. Kamala Harris stating that AI needs to prove that it is not racist before it can become a tool used by the federal government

To prevent the possibility of being attacked in your home, leave your fobs at the front door because they are breaking into your home to steal your car; they don’t want anything else.

- A Toronto police spokesman advising people to make it easier for car thieves to locate their car keys within their homes so that thieves will only steal people’s cars and not attack them

I don’t think that any of our aid that goes to Israel to support our greatest ally, arguably in the world to defeat Hamas, Iran, and Russia…we shouldn’t be spending a dime on humanitarian aid. It should be like Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Get it over quick.

- Republican Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) at a recent townhall, drawing outrage from the people who advocate for the genocide of Israelis with chants of “From the river to the sea…”

Any other nation that was adjacent to a neighboring nation that was bombing it with rockets, sending commandos over to murder its citizens, pledging itself to murder every person in that nation and annihilate it, would go and level it with aerial bombardment. But Israel is a moral nation. So it didn’t do that. Instead, it built an Iron Dome to protect itself so it would not have to go into Gaza.

- Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in an interview with The Jerusalem Post

You know what’s worse than getting rejected from PhD program at your dream school? Having your entire higher ed system bombed to oblivion.

– Tweet by Gazan Omar D. Foda

That’s why I made sure that none of the PhD programs I applied to had tunnels beneath them or rocket launchers in the classrooms.

- Response Tweet by S. Rozenblatt, Ph.D.

Pres. Biden and his minions have politicized our judicial system by prosecuting one of their political opponents right before an election. That’s the sort of thing that happens in countries whose Powerball jackpot is 287 chickens and a goat... This is a dangerous precedent.

- Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) on Fox News

This demonstrates that migrants go out and do risky jobs at midnight. And for this reason, they do not deserve to be treated as they are by certain insensitive, irresponsible politicians in the United States.

- Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador after the Baltimore bridge collapse which resulted in the death of six immigrants who were working on the bridge

Israel Invades Al-Shifa Hospital Against What It Said Were Palestinian Militants.

- A New York Times headline

“What it said were Palestinian militants.” Question: Who else could the IDF have a “a two-week battle” with? I mean if they weren’t militants, why would it take two weeks? If they weren’t Palestinians, shouldn’t the NYT be chasing down that story?

– Tweet by Jonah Goldberg

Your question presumes at this very early hour that it was a deliberate strike, that they knew exactly what they were hitting, that they were hitting aid workers on purpose. There is no evidence of that. I will also remind you, sir, that we continue to look for incidents as they occur. The State Department has a process in place. And, to date, as you and I are speaking, they have not found any incidents where the Israelis have violated international law.

- NSC Spokesperson John Kirby, who is one of the more supportive voices for Israel in the Biden White House, responding to a reporter who suggested that the strike that killed aid workers was a war crime

Get over yourself. Those are the two choices.

- Hillary Clinton, when asked by Jimmy Fallon what she would tell someone who is upset at the presidential choices in 2024

I’m only 40 years old, times two, plus one.

- President Joe Biden, joking about his age at a recent campaign event

Political Crossfire

A Politician Who Was Also a Role Model

In a life full of accomplishments, Joe Lieberman will almost certainly be best remembered as the answer to a trivia question. Even more significant was his role as a supporting player in one of the most intense political controversies as well as one of the great “what ifs” in American history. But as much as the 2000 presidential election – during which he became Al Gore’s running mate and the first Jew ever to achieve such a distinction – and its denouement over recounts in Florida was his moment in the sun, his life should be recalled with honor and affection for much more than that.

As someone who not only followed his career but covered him as an editor in his home state of Connecticut for several years, I got to know him not just as a public figure but as a person. And, as such, I can say without reservation that he was that rare breed of politician who was a mensch and a role model, both as a Jew and as an American.

Lieberman, who died last week at the age of 82, was a career politician who served a total of 40 years in various elected positions, including state senator, Connecticut state attorney general and U.S. senator. That’s the sort of résumé that nowadays is regarded by many, if not most, Americans with distrust. While politicians have always been viewed with some wariness, by the third decade of the 21st century, we’ve come to associate much of our governing class with some of the worst characteristics of our public life: mendacity, avarice, cynicism, a lack of principles and utter contempt for the people they are supposed to serve.

A Faithful Jew

Lieberman was a throwback to an earlier, gentler era of American politics when those who engaged in public ser -

By Jonathan S. Tobin

vice were not all assumed to be liars, crooks and scoundrels. He was a man who was not prepared to change his positions merely to gain a momentary advantage or win elections. We took him as we found him, and when that wasn’t good enough to retain office, he thanked the voters for the privilege of serving them and moved on.

And what made that truly remarkable was that it was also reflected in the public observance of his faith. By the time Lieberman was first sworn into the U.S. Senate in January 1989, there had been many other Jews who had served in that body, as well as in the U.S. House of Representatives and prominent federal positions. Some of them, though not all, expressed pride in their heritage and faith. But what made Lieberman special was that he observed Shabbat and kept kosher while performing his duties. And he did so without fuss or making any special demands on the institution. As he wrote in his 2011 book The Gift of Rest,

if he had to walk to the Capitol or walk home from it, then that’s what he did.

More than anyone else, Lieberman normalized not just being a Jew in the public square but being a faithful Jew. And when then-Vice President Al Gore chose him to be his vice-presidential nominee in 2000, he seemed to embody the truth that not only was America a safe haven for Jews as well as the freest and most successful Diaspora community in history, but also a place where a Jew could aspire to the highest offices in the land.

As the first Jew on a major party presidential ticket, he’s the answer to a trivia question. And who knows how or whether history would have been different if he had been elected. The election that year was narrowly decided when George W. Bush defeated Gore by 537 votes in Florida, thereby gaining an Electoral College victory. The nation has since grappled with other such controversies and even worse arguments about

them than those that transfixed the nation while that outcome was disputed in recounts and litigation. It only ended when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Florida couldn’t – as Gore and Lieberman wished – only conduct recounts in the counties where they were looking for more votes. To their credit, the two men conceded, and the nation moved on.

Principle Over Party

We can never know whether America or the world would have been better off had Gore and Lieberman been in charge in the years that followed, or how they might have handled the challenges related to the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 (the theorem of the fallacy of the predetermined outcome notwithstanding) and the dangers of Islamist terror.

But in the years to follow, as Lieberman continued to serve in the Senate, he showed the country what it meant to put principle over party.

Lieberman was the kind of moderate Democrat that today is almost, if not completely extinct: a consistent liberal on domestic issues but a hawk when it came to national security. As such, he supported Bush’s decision to go to war not just in Afghanistan, where the 9/11 Al-Qaeda plotters had used as a base, but also in Iraq, to topple the tyrannical, terrorist-supporting regime of Saddam Hussein.

For Lieberman, Iraq was a central issue. He believed in the American mission to make the region and the world safer by eliminating the rogue regime in Baghdad. He also thought it right to try to foster democracy in the Arab world.

Initially, he was one of many Democrats to take this stand. But as the war in Iraq dragged on amid a bloody and costly Islamist insurgency, most in his party, including then Sens. Joe Biden and Hil-

lary Clinton, changed their tune.

Lieberman’s support for the war was probably not the only reason why his bid for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination fell flat. In the 1990s, centrists like Bill Clinton, Al Gore and Joe Lieberman dominated the Democratic Party. But in the 21st century, it drifted to the left, and Lieberman’s foreign-policy stands were no longer appealing.

Unlike most veteran Democrats, Lieberman didn’t shift his positions to be in sync with the party’s angry and increasingly more liberal, if not leftist, grassroots. He stuck to his position on Iraq, and it led to Connecticut Democrats rejecting him when he ran for re-election to the Senate in 2006. The fact that he was able to win in November by running as an independent testified to his centrist appeal.

In the years that followed, he again fell out with his party when he chose to support the presidential campaign of his friend and Senate colleague John McCain in 2008 rather than support Barack Obama, the man that Democrats had chosen. Although he was reliably liberal on other issues, such as helping to provide the slim margin of victory enabling the passage of Obamacare in 2010, it made no difference. Democrats never forgave him for the sin of backing a Republican and an unpopular war, and in 2012, when the presence of a viable Republican candidate rendered another independent run unlikely, he left politics and returned to private life.

Willing to Take a Stand

The thread of his life was consistent. He was known for taking strong, principled positions and sticking to them, even when they weren’t popular. That could be seen in his active participation in the civil-rights movement in the 1960s by volunteering to help blacks register to vote in the still-segregated South. It was also evident in his September 1998 speech on the floor of the Senate when he broke with most in his party by condemning President Bill Clinton’s lies and marital infidelity in the Monica Lewinsky affair as “immoral,” “disgraceful” and “damaging to the country.” It continued not just with his stand on the Iraq war but after his time as an active politician when he joined the “no labels” movement that called for a return to centrist governance in a time when rabid and extremist partisanship had come to dominate both major parties.

Lieberman was no plaster saint; he was a pragmatic workaday politician. Some of his fellow Connecticut Demo -

crats resented him in the 1990s. And he was not always in the right.

One Jewish Democrat bitterly complained publicly that Lieberman had tried to keep him from running for statewide office in 1994 when the senator was up for re-election because he claimed that he didn’t want too many Jews on the ballot, though it turned out that the only Democrats who won that year in the

his own skin, and didn’t seem to act and speak as if gaining every bit of possible publicity and getting even with foes were his primary goals in life. He was decent and respectful to political foes and the press alike.

Faith in the Public Square

The fact that he was a man of faith and a proud Jew was part of that decency. His

He was known for taking strong, principled positions and sticking to them, even when they weren’t popular.

state were the Jewish candidates. That same year, others in the state noted ruefully that while Lieberman was a supporter of school choice that would have allowed funding for families who choose private and religious schools, he failed to help those working for passage of a law that would have implemented such a process in Connecticut. That groundbreaking effort failed by only one vote in the legislature.

He remained a supporter of the Iraq War and publicly defended it last year on the 20th anniversary of the invasion long after other backers of the effort conceded it was a terrible mistake. Contrary to his assertion, our collective memories of that disastrous conflict are not mistaken. Leaving aside the folly of trying to impose democracy on cultures that reject it, he never acknowledged (as other past backers of the war did) that while toppling Saddam was a good thing, it not only threw Iraq into chaos but allowed the equally sinister Islamist regime in Iran to become more powerful and dangerous.

His embrace of “no labels” independent politics reflected his basic moderation and political instincts. While we may long for an era where centrism prevails, in 2024, the only thing left in the middle of the road is roadkill. In today’s bifurcated political culture, one has to choose one side or the other. Lieberman’s time as a political player had passed. But if that is so, it doesn’t reflect well on American society.

Whether you agreed with him on the issues or not, anyone who knew him could testify to the fact that he was a genuinely nice man in a profession not so well known for that trait. Unlike most politicians, he was comfortable in

rise in public life to the point where he might have been only a heartbeat from the presidency reflected a sea change in American politics, in which Republicans and Democrats believed that public practice of faith was a proper reflection of both the character of the American nation and protected by the Constitution. That consensus has faded, and the role of religion in public life has unfortunately

become a source of controversy.

Still, the example he provided of living a fully Jewish life while serving in the Senate is especially important now as antisemitism is on the rise, and Jews are increasingly finding themselves worried about displaying their faith and identity in public. The fact that one of Lieberman’s last public utterances was to condemn his old colleague, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s disgraceful speech condemning Israel and calling for the ouster of its government, in an op-ed published in The Wall Street Journal showed how he was still putting principle –support for Israel and the idea of that being a bipartisan concept – first.

Throughout my career, I’ve met many politicians and learned that they are, as a group, like most people – a mix of good, bad and indifferent. But I’ve known none who was Joe Lieberman’s equal as a human being and a model of what we ought to want in a public figure as well as a source of pride to Jews. In a time when political decency and a willingness to befriend and work with members of the other party is out of fashion, we may not soon see his like again.

May his memory be for a blessing. (JNS)

Political Crossfire

Who Is Blowing Up Russia?

By Bret Stephens

There are two plausible hypotheses regarding last Friday’s terrorist attack at a concert hall outside Moscow, in which at least 139 people were killed. The first is that it was an inside job — orchestrated by Russian security services, or at least carried out with their foreknowledge.

The second is that it wasn’t.

In open societies, conspiracy theories are for cranks. In closed societies, they’re a reasonable (if not always correct) way to understand political phenomena.

In 1999, more than 300 Russians were killed and 1,700 injured in a series of apartment bombings for which authorities blamed Chechen terrorists. The bombings served as a pretext for Vladimir Putin — who had ascended swiftly from secondary apparatchik to director of the Federal Security Service, or FSB, to prime minister — to launch the second Chechen war.

Then something strange happened. The police found three enormous sacks of white powder in the basement of an apartment building in the city of Ryazan, connected to a detonator and timer set to go off at 5:30 in the morning. Initial tests of the powder found it contained the same explosive, hexogen, that had been used in other bombings.

The police soon apprehended the culprits who had placed the sacks — and they turned out to be employees of the FSB. The Russian government later said the sacks were filled with sugar and had been left in the buildings as a training exercise. But as historian David Satter and others have documented, the claim borders on the preposterous. And numerous journalists and politicians who sought to investigate the incident wound up poisoned or shot dead.

Why does this history matter? Because it shows that Putin “has no allergy to blood, Russian or any other kind, if spilling it furthers his goals,” as Garry Kasparov noted in The Wall Street Journal.

It says something that Putin seemed to provide a motivation for a false-flag

attack by almost immediately pointing the finger at Ukraine for Friday’s massacre — an absurd if telling choice of a culprit, given that Ukraine would immediately destroy its credibility with its Western partners if it had any connection to the event.

States alerted Moscow on March 7 (just as it alerted Iran before an attack by the Islamic State group there in January) that an attack was imminent. In both cases, the warnings were ignored — Putin dismissed it as “an attempt to frighten and destabilize our society” —

What I know for sure, though, is that this is the most dangerous game of chicken going on anywhere on the planet today.

It says something, too, that the attack occurred right after Putin’s reelection in this month’s sham vote, and just as he is seeking to mobilize tens of thousands of fresh troops for the war in Ukraine. What better way for him to do so than to revert to the tried-and-true formula of creating panic on the homefront so that he can bring destruction to the frontier?

That’s the first hypothesis. But there’s also a brutal history of Islamic terrorism in Russia, and the United

perhaps because cynical regimes have trouble imagining the possibility of altruistic motives.

This suggests what we already knew: Putin’s state is as incompetent as it is brutish. And with the enemies it has, it doesn’t need to invent a fictitious conspiracy between Western powers and the “Nazi regime” in Kyiv. Russia will never resolve its inner weaknesses — a shrinking population, fissiparous ethnic minorities, a brain drain and an ener -

gy-dependent economy — through foreign conquests.

But it suggests something else: Five years after the Islamic State group’s socalled caliphate fell in northern Iraq and Syria, the group and its offshoots are far from gone.

Around 9,000 hardened Islamic State fighters are held as prisoners in several camps in Syria, guarded by Kurdish forces with American help (which Donald Trump attempted to end). The branch of the Islamic State group accused of the Moscow attacks is estimated to have as many as 6,000 fighters at large, mostly in Afghanistan. Other Islamic State affiliates operate throughout Africa, where U.S. counterterrorist efforts are being hampered by local upheavals.

In other words, as Washington has retreated from (or been forced out of) its efforts to confront global disorder, the disorder has grown. What happened in Moscow is reminiscent of what happened at the Bataclan theater in Paris in 2015, where 90 were murdered. The Islamic State group seems to have a taste for concert halls.

The word “pivot” gets used a lot in foreign policy discussions, as in the Obama administration’s “pivot to Asia” or the “pivot to great-power competition” under Trump and President Joe Biden. But if the lesson of the first pivot is that we neglected NATO and European security at our peril, the lesson of the second is that we have lulled ourselves into the belief that our Islamist terror problem is largely behind us. As Israel found out on Oct. 7, a country’s mortal enemies aren’t tamed or vanquished just because leaders have other priorities.

The American security challenge today is global: a resurgent Islamic State group, a revanchist China, a regionally aggressive Iran and a Russia where the lines between grandiosity and paranoia blur. Whether what happened in Russia was Islamist terror, an FSB conspiracy, or some appalling combination of both, it augurs ill for us.

(© The New York Times)

Forgotten Her es The Army Legend You Never Heard Of

By Avi Heiligman

This column has shared many stories of those who have gone above and beyond in combat with their stories gone largely unnoticed by the general public. Many accounts that are told in the Forgotten Heroes column are from Jewish service men and women from around the world but there are many other overlooked heroes whose dedication and sacrifices have helped their countries in difficult times of war. Here is one of those incredible tales that is history not to be forgotten.

Master Sergeant Llewellyn Chilson, of Dayton, Ohio, was personally awarded seven decorations by President Harry Truman for actions during World War II. Chilson was with an anti-tank company, 2nd Battalion, 179th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division and served with the division, nicknamed the Thunderbirds, while they fought in several campaigns. Their first stop was at Oran in North Africa before partaking in the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. Then it was off to Italy where the Allies were trying to break out of the Anzio beachhead. The sergeant was wounded by shrapnel on February 15, 1944. Two days later, Chilson was taken prisoner with three other Americans near Aprilla, Italy. The four Americans were forced to work as litter bearers for the Germans but made their escape during an artillery barrage. On their way back to American lines, they captured four enemy soldiers and brought back valuable intelligence on German positions. This information led to an offensive in which forty Germans were captured with little harm to American troops. For these actions, Chilson was awarded the Silver Star and Prisoner of War Medal.

Chilson then took part in Operation Dragoon, which was the invasion of southern France. In October, he captured 25 Germans while taking a hill. By November, the regiment was operating in northern France when, on November 24, his platoon stopped in the face of heavy

machine gun fire as well as a German roadblock. Chilson moved forward alone and outflanked the position. He then threw two grenades and opened fire on the machine gunners. Two Germans were killed, while nine others surrendered. This action cut off German access to the road and led to the capture of the town. On November 30, he was cited for defending an indefensible position.

On March 26, 1945, Chilson was a platoon sergeant in Company G when they were crossing the Rhine River in Germany. His platoon leader had been wounded, and Chilson quickly assumed command. He was noted for his bravery and aggressiveness while remaining calm under pressure as they attacked the Germans on the bank of the river. With determination, he killed eleven Germans while capturing 225 enemy soldiers. Additionally, he destroyed a vehicle carrying ammunition and two machine guns. His actions led to two more machine guns and three anti-aircraft vehicles to be destroyed.

The brave platoon sergeant continued his heroic actions, earning a Silver Star on March 31. German flak vehicles, machine guns and infantry soldiers opened up on Chilson’s company while they were entering a town. He ran back a few hundred yards and jumped on top of a tank. Under his orders, the tank began eliminating enemy targets while he remained in an exposed position. Six Germans were killed and seven were captured, and due to his bravery, Chilson had once again led his company to success on the battlefield.

Heavy fighting continued even in the last few weeks of the war. On April 25, Chilson’s platoon entered a German town and observed enemy movements. He moved a jeep into a position where he took out two flak guns and a heavy artillery piece and killed the crew of another artillery gun. At this point, Chilson had killed forty German soldiers. Another flak gun then opened fire on American

reconnaissance troops. Thinking quickly, Chilson picked up an abandoned German motorcycle and located six more flak guns. The motorcycle was shot out from under him, but he continued to fight. He rolled over, jumped to his feet, and threw a grenade at the gun position. This eliminated the crew, and he then directed tank fire to take out the remaining five enemy guns.

Two days later, on April 27, Chilson’s unit was assaulting the town of Nueberg, Germany. Machine gun fire from a second story position stopped their advance. Disregarding his own safety, Chilson ran across the street and up the stairs of the building. He threw a grenade into the room and killed two Germans. The other eight Germans of the machine gun crew surrendered to Chilson, and his platoon was able to enter the building without any more problems. They then assaulted another house where they were halted by machine gun fire coming from the courtyard. Chilson tossed a phosphorous grenade into the courtyard and attacked the position. A bullet had hit his right hand, so he held his carbine in his left hand. In this action, he killed two more Germans and a third surrendered.

Chilson was one of the most highly decorated soldiers in the U.S. Army. At the awards ceremony, President Truman called it “the most remarkable list of citations I have ever seen.” However, Chilson wasn’t awarded the Medal of Honor by the War Department even though it was approved by a four-star general.

After the war, Chilson reenlisted in the army to train National Guardsmen and in 1961 survived a C-124 Globemaster plane crash that killed 24.

Oak Leaf Cluster, the Purple Heart with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Commendation Medal, and the Prisoner of War Medal. Chilson displayed dedication and sacrifice and will be remembered for his incredible feats of bravery during the bitter battles of World War II.

The highly decorated soldier retired as a master sergeant in 1964 with a long list of decorations that include the Distinguished Service Cross with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters, the Silver Star with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star

Bronze

Avi Heiligman is a weekly contributor to The Jewish Home. He welcomes your comments and suggestions for future columns and can be reached at aviheiligman@gmail.com.

with one

Master Sgt Llewellyn Chilson

President Truman pinning seven medals to Chilson’s uniform

Troops of the 45th Infantry Division in a transport bound for Sicily, June 1943

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HEWLETT

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LAWRENCE

Stunning One of a Kind Mid Century Modern 6 Bedroom, 6.5 Bath, Contemporary Ranch. Resort Style Home on Over an Acre of Property in Back Lawrence. Incredible Views, Regulation Size Tennis Court - Deco Turf. IG-Gunite Pool, Low Taxes, 5318 sq. ft. of Main Floor Living Space. Plus 5000 sq. ft. Basement With Very High Ceilings. Call Mark 516-298-8457 for more details Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457  mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE

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CEDARHURST JUST LISTED

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HOUSES FOR SALE HOUSES FOR SALE

NORTH WOODMERE

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WOODMERE

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HEWLETT

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WOODMERE

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Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457

mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

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Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457

mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

NORTH WOODMERE

Meticulously maintained fourbedroom, two-bathroom home on an expansive corner. Main floor: entrance foyer, generously sized bedroom, a full bath, attached two-car garage. On the next level: sophisticated formal living room with cathedral ceilings, eat-in kitchen, formal dining room, sleek black banisters, hardwood floors. Third floor: master suite, two additional bedrooms, and another full bath. Lower level: cozy den with brick fireplace, laundry facilities, ample storage space, and utilities. New heating system, central air conditioning, custom closets throughout, inground sprinkler system. Conveniently located near parks, shopping centers, and houses of worship, and situated within SD#15 with low taxes. Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE

Welcome to this stunning residence situated on a tranquil residential street in Lawrence SD#15. This spacious and flawlessly maintained home boasts 4 to 5 bedrooms. Bright, airy living room with vaulted ceilings, skylights and wet bar. Central air conditioning, elegant quartz countertops, eat-in kitchen, formal dining room, main floor den with fireplace, master bedroom with bathroom snd dressing room, Jacuzzi tub, three other bedrooms and two full bathrooms. Inground sprinklers, lush landscaping, alarm system. Spacious playroom. Twocar garage. Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

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HOUSES FOR SALE HOUSES FOR SALE

HEWLETT-WOODMERE

School district. New to the market. 4 bedroom 3 full bathroom home features living room with a fireplace, formal dining room leading out to the deck, eat-in-kitchen with granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, 2 dishwashers, double oven, new microwave, primary bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, plus 3 additional bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms, large family room, central air conditioning, gas heat, in-ground sprinklers, hardwood floors, modern high hat lighting, custom window treatments, driveway has recently been done, 2 car garage, beautifully landscaped plus so much more.

Mark Lipner Associate Broker

Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WEST HEMPSTEAD

Introducing a stunning new construction home. Nestled in a picturesque neighborhood. Large windows, open-concept layout that merges the various living spaces. The expansive living room is bathed in natural light, thanks to the windows that offer great views of the surrounding area. Gourmet kitchen with top-of-the-line stainless steel appliances, sleek cabinetry, expansive center island with a breakfast bar. Ample counter space and a welldesigned layout. Wonderful dining area providing. Large glass doors, spacious patio. Luxurious master suite with a spacious bedroom, a lavish ensuite bathroom and a large walk-in closet. Additional bedrooms. Highend finishes, premium flooring, and custom details throughout.

OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY, APRIL 7 1-3:00PM• 222 WALKER PL. Call for pricing Mark Lipner Associate

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WOODMERE

Spacious home within school district

14 with exquisite upgrades and central air conditioning, splendid kitchen with dual sinks, five bedrooms. Main level encompasses a spacious great room, office space, complementing the formal living and dining areas. Unfinished basement, detached garage. Expansive lot, measuring 80 x 100. Conveniently located near shopping, railroad, restaurants and places of worship.

Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457

mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WEST HEMPSTEAD

647 Harrison • Amazing Location

3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms. Living Room/Dining Room. Kitchen car garage. Near Shuls. Call or Text ALLGOING Realtor 516-206-2005

WOODMERE

Woodmere just listed 3 bedroom 2 full bathroom hi-ranch in sd #15 with central air-conditioning , gas heat, 2 car garage, eat-in-kitchen, l/r, d/r, den, hardwood floors, minutes to transportation , shopping, and houses of worship Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE

1st showing spacious bright and sunny 5 bedroom 3 full bathrooms in school district 15. Features an expanded gourmet kitchen with stainless steel appliances, 2 sinks, double oven, warming drawer, great counter space, central air conditioning, gas heat, 2 of the bathrooms are new, hardwood floors, recessed lighting, in ground sprinkler, gas line for the barbeque, 2 car garage and minutes to all.

Mark Lipner Associate Broker

Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE

Introducing a stunning 14-side hall colonial home in the Hewlett Woodmere School District. Formal living room, formal dining room, den with a skylight. Eat in Kitchen, two sinks, a double oven, a warming draw and a microwave. First floor bedroom, a full bathroom and laundry room. Two-car garage. Upper level has four bedrooms, two full bathrooms. Finished basement with playroom, storage and utilities. Well-groomed exterior with porch adjoining the master bedroom. Hardwood floors and back patio. Central air conditioning, inground sprinkler system, alarm system. Close proximity to schools, shopping centers, restaurants, and transportation options.

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Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

HOUSES FOR SALE

LAWRENCE

First open house on multifamily in Lawrence!!!

251 Randall avenue Lawrence!!! April 7 from 12 to 2!!!

5 bdrs, 2 full bath, 60 x 100 Call Alexandra at Realty Connect USA 516 784 0856

NORTH WOODMERE

New to the market magnificent 5 bedroom 3 full bathroom split level. Bright & sunny, living room with vaulted ceilings, formal dining room, eat-in-kitchen, den with fireplace, sunroom, 2 car garage, gas heating, central air conditioning, master bedroom with en-suite, hardwood floors, in ground sprinkler system, plus so much more.

Mark Lipner Associate Broker

Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

APT./COOP/CONDO SALE

LAWRENCE

359A Central Av Lawrence  1 bedroom apartment, elevator building, eat-in kitchen, full bath, hardwood floors, plenty of closet space. Ceiling fan in bedroom & kitchen, laundry room in the basement. Close to the railroad, shopping, and houses of worship. $179k Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

LAWRENCE

New to the market 2 bedroom 2 full bathrooms top floor elevator building, 24 hr doorman, open concept, totally renovated kitchen, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, 2 dishwashers, island, 2 new bathrooms, terrace, central air conditioning, u/g parking, high hats throughout, custom closets minutes to shopping, railroad, park, and houses of worship Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE

New to the market studio co-op apartment, elevator building, high ceilings, low maintenance, laundry room on premises, minutes to the railroad, shopping, restaurants and houses of worship. $130K Mark Lipner

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HEWLETT

Totally renovated 1 and 2 Bedroom, Apartments with washer/dryer, kitchen with quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances. Recessed lighting, hardwood floors, storage in basement. Close to RR, shopping, and houses of worship. Mark Lipner

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LAWRENCE

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LAWRENCE

New to the market 1 bedroom

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Laffey International 516-298-8457

mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

APT./COOP/CONDO RENT APT./COOP/CONDO RENT

LAWRENCE JUST LISTED

This amazing two-bedroom two full bathroom condo Features a luxurious lifestyle in the beautiful city of Lawrence. What more could you ask for? The building has a 24-hour doorman and elevator access, with a social room, library, washer/dryer inside the unit, and terrace. Plus, the added benefit of having a live-in super to ensure maximum safety and security! And don’t forget about your new kitchen complete with a gas stove, refrigerator, microwave, and even two dishwashers! The living room and dining room are spacious and have recessed lighting installed throughout. Both bedrooms feature lots of closet space for storage. To top it off, there’s even garage parking available to make your life just that much easier! Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity. Please call for a private showing Mark Lipner

Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

LAWRENCE

Spacious 2BR, 2 Full Bath Apt with an enclosed terrace in the heart of Lawrence. Well maintained & manicured building. New hardwood floors, updated Eat-in Kitchen with gas stove. warming draw, dishwasher & microwave. New windows on the enclosed terrace & one of the bedrooms. 3 New A/C Units & New Refrigerator. Close to shopping, transportation, library, schools, and houses of worship. $339K Mark Lipner

Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway

Laffey International 516-298-8457

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WOODMERE

1 bedroom apartment, elevator building, eat-in kitchen, full bath, hardwood floors, plenty of closet space. Ceiling fan in bedroom & kitchen, laundry room in the basement. Close to the railroad, shopping, and houses of worship.

$179k Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457

mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

CEDARHURST

2 bedroom 2 bathroom apartment, private entrance, washer/dryer, central air conditioning, freshly painted, hardwood floors, recessed lighting, garage parking, stainless steel appliances, great courtyard, minutes to the railroad, shopping, restaurants, park and houses of worship. Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@ bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE

Totally renovated bright and sunny 1 bedroom corner unit apartment with a washer/dryer. Features quartz countertops, ss appliances, recessed lighting, bathroom with chrome fixtures, close to the railroads, shopping and houses of worship. Call for details Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

3 BEDROOM BELLE HARBOR BEACH

Community, 3 blocks from beach, 1200 sq.ft.  2 family home, separate entrance,  renovated, spacious 3 bedroom,  2 bath, EIK, stainless steel appliances, dishwasher, w/d, 6 closets, deck, summer parking. Heat & water incl. Pay g&e $3600

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CEDARHURST

1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments, totally renovated private entrance , central air conditioning, hardwood floors, washer/dryer, garage parking, dishwasher, recessed lighting, private playground, close to railroad, park, shopping and houses of worship. Call for more details

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HEWLETT

Welcome To Luxury Living in The Heart of Hewlett! This Spacious 2 Bedroom, 2 Full Bathroom Condo Boasts in Unit Separate Laundry For Ultimate Convenience. Enjoy Lovely Courtyard Views from Your Private Terrace. With Elevator Access and A Doorman, Experience The Epitome Of Comfort In This Prestigious Building. Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

COMMERCIAL REAL ESATATE

1500SF LOFT OFFICE

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2 store/offices; ~600sf each

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5 TOWNS - OFFICES FOR LEASE

CEDARHURST

Individual office spaces available in great location.

Rental fee includes electricity, taxes, internet, cleaning and parking.

Large corner office $995 mo.

Smaller interior office $625 mo.

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HELP WANTED

SHEVACH HS

Has these open teaching positions available pm M-Th for 2024-5. Computer science (AP Comp Principles, Graphics, Google apps), Spanish, Algebra, AP Biology, Phys ed.

Candidates with credentials and/or experience should send their resume to mshepard@shevachhs.org

MDS REGIONAL NURSE

5 Towns area Nursing Home management office seeking a Regional/Corporate level MDS Nurse to work in our office. Must be an RN. Regional experience preferred. 2-3 years MDS experience with good computer skills required. Position is Full Time but Part Time can be considered. Great Shomer Shabbos environment with some remote options as well. Email: officejob2019@gmail.com

HELP WANTED

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Tutoring regents in Algebra and Geometry

A Darchei Torah instructor

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TEACHING POSITIONS 2024-25

Due to expansion, Yeshiva Kol Torah in Inwood, seeks afternoon teachers for English, math, science and electives.  Extremely competitive pay. Warm and professional environment.

Interested candidates should submit resumes to srada@yeshivakoltorah.org

HELP WANTED

HE LOVES COMPUTERS, animals, and exercise. Can you share his interests? Spend time with a 29-year-old young man with developmental disabilities in Lawrence, NY. Part time, flexible hours, starting salary $27.

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BNOS MALKA ACADEMY is seeking a 4th grade kodesh teacher, starting immediately. MondayThursday 8-12:30, Friday 8-11. Please send resume to rungar@bnosmalka.org

BOOKKEEPER

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• text 443-929-4003

MISC. HELP WANTED

SEEKING ELA TEACHER

Teaching position for Gr. 6. Mon.-Thurs., afternoon hours. Far Rockaway/5T area. Great salary, warm, supportive environment. Training in our curriculum is provided. Teachersearch11@gmail.com

A YESHIVA IN QUEENS

is looking for an experienced part/ full time secretary, 2-year-old morah, kindergarten morah, kindergarten morah assistant and Pre-1A English teacher for the 2022-2023 school year. Nice and timely pay. Please email resume to mshelt613@gmail. com or call/text 718-971-9799.

MISC. HELP WANTED

5 TOWNS BOYS YESHIVA

Seeking Elem Gen Ed Teachers

Excellent working environment and pay. Only lic/exp need apply.

Email resume to yeshivalooking@gmail.com

DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANT

A multi-tasker needed for general office work. The ideal candidate is someone who is detail-oriented, responsible, and can take ownership. Looking for someone who is eager to learn, and expand his/her skill set while possessing the ability to work independently and as part of a team. Experience with Excel required. Five Towns location. In-office position only, not remote. Please send resume to 5tpart.timecareer@gmail.com

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SHMIRAS HALASHON

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Since 1914, this has been the time of year for Americans to gather for their annual wrestling match with the internal revenue code. Famed smart guy Albert Einstein once said, “The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax.” Decades later, Jimmy Carter called our tax system, “a disgrace to the human race.” More recently still, Fran Lebowitz declared that “a dog who thinks he is man’s best friend is a dog who has clearly never met a tax lawyer.”

And yet, for all that effort, it’s not enough. We’re adding a trillion dollars to the national debt every hundred days now. So this week, let’s take a look at some new ideas for bringing home some bacon without making Form 1040 even more unbearable.

First, something at the international level we might try adapting here. Right now, the shipping industry emits 2.9% of the world’s greenhouse gases. The International Maritime Organization, a United Nations body that regulates global shipping, is proposing up to $80 billion in annual taxes on carbon emissions. The goals would be to nudge shippers towards greener alternatives and raise money to help poorer countries cope with climate change. The tax

Your Money Iceberg Ahead!

By Allan Rolnick, CPA

would add a few pennies to the price of a pair of shoes, though, and one study projects it would cut GDP across developing countries by 0.13%. Tax proposals are full of tradeoffs, but it’s hard to see how 175 different countries can agree to assign winners and losers like that.

Next, a national effort. Our current estate tax, which kicks in on fortunes

argue that taxing the proceeds of hard work and thrift is less fair to survivors than taxing generational wealth that may still be left over from some Gilded Age robber baron with muttonchops and a pocket watch. The problem, of course, lies in determining how to separate clean, first-generation money from dirty inherited money. You might as well

The problem, of course, lies in determining how to separate clean, first-generation money from dirty inherited money.

starting at $13,610,000, treats money you earn during your lifetime the same as money you inherit. Earlier this month, a professor in San Diego proposed a “Rignano” tax that would let you pass an unlimited amount of wealth you create yourself, while nicking inherited wealth at the current 40% rate. (Eugenio Rignano was an Italian philosopher who first proposed the concept in 1919.) The tax is designed to satisfy estate tax critics who

just call it “The Accountants, Attorneys, and Appraisers Full Employment Act” of whatever year the bill passes. Can you imagine the fine print?

Finally, something at the local level that Uncle Sam might also consider. In Chicago, housing advocates proposed a referendum that would have raised transfer taxes on properties selling for more than $1 million and lowered transfer taxes for properties below that

amount. The goal was to use overall higher proceeds to fund services for the homeless. In 2022, Los Angeles voters approved a similar “mansion tax” equal to 4% on residential sales over $5 million and 5.5% on sales over $10 million. Now, a million dollars goes a lot farther in Second City than it does in the City of Angels. But Chicago’s levy targeted commercial properties, too, which scared away voters worried it would drive rents up. Despite the chance to lower taxes on smaller sales, the proposal failed in this month’s primary.

None of these three proposals would raise the sheer volume of dollars a government as large as Uncle Sam’s needs to operate. But they illustrate the sort of incremental efforts we can expect to see more often as our current budget deficits continue to grow. That’s where we come in – consider us your “distant early warning line” keeping an eye out for those incoming threats!

Allan J Rolnick is a CPA who has been in practice for over 30 years in Queens, NY. He welcomes your comments and can be reached at 718-896-8715 or at allanjrcpa@aol.com.

Does All the Busyness Make Sense?

By Rivki D. Rosenwald Esq., LMFT, CLC, SDS

Ican almost hear the crunching in my ear.

The faint lilting scent of fine wine wafting my way.

The drip, drip, dripping of generously salinated water.

Yes, Pesach is in the air.

Whether you’re cooking, ordering, flying, or driving, you will wind up somewhere having that intricate and extended meal.

There will be the bitter and the sweet.

The wet and the dry.

The loud and the soft.

The night will go on and on. For some, much longer than desired, and for others, it will end too soon.

But the inevitable story will be told.

Yes, it’s an interesting ride to be a Jew. Never a dull moment.

Often, we are celebrating some interesting holiday. Many are replete with fascinating and quizzical paraphernalia, such as one that advocates lemonlike fruits and mini trees being dragged with us everywhere or hanging out in tiki huts, while this one encourages digesting an endless array of cow-worthy food dipped in teardrops along with masticating an endless amount of seemingly stale, burnt bread.

Why do we embrace this theme with such gusto?

Some may say because of tradition. But, that would be only a small piece of the incentive.

Tradition gets handed down from

When we keep up these traditions, we are actually connecting to our inner essence, our purpose for being here.

Yes, the story of a people in bondage, who were miraculously freed and taken in by G-d to love….

Maybe, in a bit of a funky way!

Sometimes with splendor and beauty, yet, sometimes with tests and challenges.

generation to generation. And truly keeps us connected to our past and our ancestors. However, there is much more to it – because when we keep up these traditions, we are actually connecting to our inner essence, our purpose for being here. We are a people who expe -

Rivki Rosenwald is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist working with both couples and individuals and is a certified relationship counselor. Rivki is a co-founder and creator of an effective Parent Management of Adolescent Years Program. She can be contacted at 917-7052004 or at rivkirosenwald@gmail.com. A book is the ultimate apparatus.

rienced G-d’s beneficence firsthand and live with appreciation for it and as role models of such.

Our practices and traditions make us sit up and take stock of where we might be today had we not embraced this very important relationship. As we are aware, many of those ancient peoples who opted out are no longer around anymore.

By embracing a relationship with the Creator of the universe, we certainly put

ourselves in an advantageous position. There’s nothing as secure as having connections at the top.

So if we need to crunch a bit to remember it, dip a few times to remember it, or even do an in-depth home- and self-searching to remember it, it’s certainly a small price to pay for a partnership with the Entity who decided the lofty agenda for our world and keeps it going on a continuous basis.