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Rabbi Matis Blum - of Blessed Memory
R' Matis Blum (Matzav)I was very sorry to hear of the passing of Rav Matis Blum this past Shabbos. He succumbed to the coronavirus at a relatively young age. I believe he was in his mid 60s.Those who...
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Rabbi Yaakov Perlow of Blessed Memory
Rabbi Perlow and me in the HTC Beis HaMedrash (photo from a few years ago)I was both shocked and saddened this morning to learn of the Petirah (death) of my rebbe, Rav Yaakov Perlow. He succumbed to...
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The Tenth Plague
The First PesachThis year we will be getting a tiny little taste of what it must have been like for our ancestors on the very first Pesach ever celebrated. Just as they were all secluded in their homes...
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Of Normalcy and Hishtadlus
Dr. Vladimir (Zev) Zelenko ( Chicago Tribune/New York Times)People are still getting sick and dying. Covid-19 is unrelenting in its determination to destroy civilization as we know it. Thankfully most...
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The Blame Game
The President and senior health adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci. Will he be fired?There is light at the end of the coronavirus tunnel. Indications are that our mitigation efforts are working to reduce the...
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Trump, Obama, and Blindness to the Truth
As this is the Erev Yom Tov, I would normally share a D’var Torah. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the reaction to it by so many people that I respect who comment here (reactions that include...
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Does Torah Study Protect Us?
Rav Chaim Kanievsky (Hebrew Yated)There is nothing wrong with believing that the study of Torah protects the Jewish people. I happen to believe that it does. But more importantly so does Rav Chaim...
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Justifying Deadly Means for Charitable Ends
The latest fatality - Judge Noach Dear (Jewish Star)Just read of yet another death of a prominent Orthodox Jew who has succumbed to the coronavirus. From YWN:Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge Noach Dear,...
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We Should NOT Suffer Fools Lightly
I guess Rav Chaim Kanievsky encourages Mesirah. At least according to a Chasidic group who is responsible for the poster (pictured here) written in Yiddish.Rav Kanievsky has been quoted as saying that...
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Trump, His Critics, and the Eventual New Normal
Illinois Governor, J.B. Pritzker (Wikipedia)There was a lot of push-back against the President when he said he wanted to open America back up a while back. At the time, we had not yet reached the peak...
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Prejudice - And Recognizing the Dignity of Difference
Boro Park on March 20, 2020 (TOI)There has been a spike in antisemitism in this country - some of which blames the spread of the coronavirus on Jews. But I do not believe for a moment that Americans...
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What the Charedi World is Really Like
Chaim Lebovits’ son, Nachum, donating blood (Forward)That’s what I’m talking about!This is an example of a major Kiddush Hashem. An example where one man is making a difference.There are lots of...
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Being Grateful for What We Have
I am so tired of talking about the coronavirus. But at the same time, never has there been a subject that so dominated the news. At least in my lifetime. It is almost as if nothing else is happening in...
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What Will the Post Pandemic World Look Like?
By Guest ContributorWhat will the new normal be like? (AVweb)I am pleased to host this submission from someone that comments here frequently under a pseudonym. He learned in East Coast Yeshivos through...
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Nebech an Ignoramus is Still an Ignoramus
The streets of Ramat Bet Shemseh - Bet (Times of Israel)At a time where I am really trying not to criticize fellow Jews, bending over backwards to be Dan L’Kav Zechus (judge people favorably) there is...
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Saints or Sinners - The Students of Rabbi Akiva
Guest Contribution by Rabbi Dr. Shalom GoldYom Hazikaron - 2020 (Israel Hayom)In the middle of all the havoc and change going on in the world right now, some things remain constant. Despite all the...
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Painting With Too Broad a Brush is Always Wrong
Scene in Williamsburg last night (TOI)As I often say when I disagree with Rabbi Avi Shafran, I more often agree with him than not. On most issues we see eye to eye. And it pains me greatly when I see...
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Closet Non Believers
Ex-Chasid Shulem Deen: All who go do not returnThe world has not really stopped. Although it sure seems like it. That said, we are not going to be living like this forever. Getting back to normal will...
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The Sordid Sexual Past of the Next President
Reade and Biden in their younger years - about the time of the assault DRSIN)How I long for the days of George W. Bush! Or even Barack Obama! Not necessarily their policies. But their character. These...
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Facing an Unpleasant Reality as the Weather Improves
Eli Beer returns to Israel after recovering from coronavirus (Jerusalem Post)I took a walk yesterday. It was a beautiful day in Chicago, well into the 70s. Wearing a mask, I walked just over a mile to...
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