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July 3, 2020 at 11:38 am
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra’s virtual gala on Sunday was disrupted by what is now confirmed to be a cyber attack.
Hackers crashed the websites of the IPO and its partner, Medici.TV, for the duration of the one-hour gala, which sought to fundraise to make up the losses incurred by the orchestra due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The June 28 live virtual gala had more than 13,000 registrants from around the world at the time of the planned broadcast on Sunday. Despite the disruption, the program now has a combined total of more than 300,000 views on Medici.TV’s website and Facebook page, and the Israel Philharmonic’s website and YouTube channel.
Actress Helen Mirren hosted the event, which featured performances from the orchestra’s new conductor, Lahav Shani, a...
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July 3, 2020 at 11:35 am
Antisemitic behavior toward Jews is alarmingly common in Switzerland, a new academic study of victim experiences published on Thursday revealed.
The report — conducted by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) — surveyed 500 Swiss Jews about their experiences of antisemitism, discovering that 50 percent of the respondents had been personally targeted for antisemitic abuse during the last five years.
About 18,000 Jews live in Switzerland.
The survey’s director, Prof. Dirk Baier, told the Berner Oberlander newspaper that he was not surprised by the results, pointing to a recent Swiss government survey showing that one in ten citizens held negative views of Jews.
He pointed out that similar animosity existed toward other minorities.
“If you asked 500 bla...
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July 3, 2020 at 11:31 am
Former White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney accused former national security adviser John Bolton of committing “despicable acts of betrayal” when he released a tell-all book that put himself over the president and his service to the United States.
In an op-ed Mulvaney wrote for CNBC he said “Bolton’s greatest transgression is not publishing a tell-all book, or even doing so while the president is still in office. Nor is it that he was apparently writing the book while still serving in the West Wing.
“Bolton’s cardinal sin is that he put himself before the president, before service, and before the country. He forgot that he was staff, and that he was not the president. In doing so, he just confirmed what those who worked with him already knew: that ...
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July 3, 2020 at 11:30 am
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she anticipates Congress will pass another economic relief package addressing the effects of the coronavirus crisis.
It’s been more than 45 days since the Democratic-controlled House passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act. But the legislation stalled in the Senate, where Republicans deemed it “dead on arrival.” The White House signaled that the bill would be vetoed if it made it to President Donald Trump’s desk.
Asked during her weekly press conference if Congress would have time to negotiate another economic relief package before the August recess, the top Democrat said, “Of course.”
Speaking about the Republicans, she said, “They know, they’ve made their o...
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July 3, 2020 at 11:30 am
Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Thursday approved the call-up of 500 IDF reservists to help combat the renewed spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which many in Israel believe has entered a second wave.
The decision was made in light of fresh assessments about the pandemic. Most of the troops will be used as staff at 10 coronavirus hotels the Defense Ministry plans to reopen to house people with light symptoms or who require preventive quarantine, Gantz’s office said in a statement.
The IDF Home Front Command was also instructed to set up headquarters in a number of Israeli cities and towns to help distribute information to residents and to safely move coronavirus patients to hospitals and hotels.
Read more at Times of Israel.
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July 3, 2020 at 11:30 am
The U.S. unemployment rate is expected to stay above its pre-pandemic levels through the end of 2030, according to a 10-year economic report released Thursday by the Congressional Budget Office.
The agency is predicting that the unemployment rate in the fourth quarter of 2030 will be 4.4%. The current level, according to data published Thursday by the Labor Department, is 11.1%. Before the spread of the coronavirus pandemic shut down vast swaths of the American economy, unemployment had reached 50-year lows, coming in at 3.5% in February.
The new projection shows the long-term tail impact that economists believe the coronavirus pandemic will have on the U.S. economy, which is the largest economy in the world. A severe disruption to production and hiring in March and April has had a jarri...
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July 3, 2020 at 11:29 am
Meet the new class of rising GOP stars: Madison Cawthorn and Burgess Owens. The two candidates breakdown the importance of standing with President Trump.
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July 3, 2020 at 11:19 am
Hundreds of social workers demonstrated at dozens of junctions around the country Thursday in protest of what they say is an unreasonable workload, with poor wages and the constant danger of violence.
During the latest in a series of recent protest rallies, the social workers reiterated their threat from earlier in the week to call a full strike next Monday.
Demonstrations were held in various cities including Yerushalayim, Tel Aviv and Haifa.
Read more at Times of Israel.
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July 3, 2020 at 11:15 am
Baltimore, MD – July 3, 2020 – Seven Mile Market announces new hours beginning with Sunday, July 5th, including a 10 PM closing time on Thursdays.
We also have masks and sanitizers for sale at Customer Service and, as a community service, complimentary “Baby is in the Car Bracelets” are available.
Wishing everyone a Good Shabbos/Shabbat Shalom.
The Seven Mile Market Family
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July 3, 2020 at 10:43 am
BERLIN – It was a rainy first of July in Berlin, and a protest was expected outside of the Reichstag, Germany’s historic house of parliament (Bundestag) with its famously post-war transparent dome above the parliament that tourists can alight for a view of the capital and of modern Germany’s democracy in action.
For the handful of protesters on the wet stone near the neo-Baroque edifice, it was a day of shame for Germany democracy. An hour later, the “grand coalition” consisting of the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and the Social Democrats (SDP), along with the Free Democrats (FdP) from the opposition, would vote on a non-binding resolution to condemn Israel over plans to extend sovereignty over Israeli-controlled areas in t...
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July 3, 2020 at 10:12 am
Law enforcement officers in one California city will be issuing $300 fines for those who do not wear a mask in public settings.
The West Hollywood station of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement on Twitter that it will begin issuing “administrative citations for people who are not conforming to the Order to wear a face cover/mask in public.” The fine for the first offense will be $300, which comprises a $250 fine and $50 in fees.
“Our last option was to conduct enforcement by issuing an administrative citation, but the risk to community health is too great. We ask our community to please wear a face cover/mask while in public in an effort to keep everyone healthy and control the spread of the virus,” the sheriff’s office sa...
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July 2, 2020 at 11:07 pm
In Parshas Balak, the Torah describes for us in graphic detail, one of the most colorful stories in the Chamishei Chumshei Torah, that of Bilham and his donkey traveling on their way to curse Bnei Yisroel. The Psukim inform us of the various Nissim which Hashem caused in order to place road blocks in Bilham’s way. A simple reading of the Psukim reveals three clear Nissim which transpired. First, we are told “Vatereh HaAson es Malach Hashem” - Hashem allows the donkey to see the Malach standing in its path and causes the donkey to turn off the road. A few Psukim later, the Torah tells us “Vayiftach Hashem es Pi HaAson – Hashem opened up the mouth of the donkey and allowed it to speak to Bilham. The final Nais, “Vayigal ...
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July 2, 2020 at 10:34 pm
The Children of Israel find themselves, after thirty-eight years in the desert, poised to enter the land. Miriam dies and the well that provided them water in her merit for all these years, suddenly ceases to flow.
They quarrel with Moshe, pointedly asking him, “Why have you brought the congregation of G-d to this wilderness to die there, we and our animals? And why did you bring us up from Egypt to this evil place? - not a place of seed, or fig, or grape, or pomegranate; and no water to drink!”
It seems odd that fearing death from the paucity of water they should express their bewilderment about the death of their animals too. If they are to die, their animals are insignificant to them.
Additionally, their statement about having brought them to a place lacking, ‘figs,...
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July 2, 2020 at 10:32 pm
[Ed. Note] Out of the respect and recognition of the impact made by longtime BJL friend and contributor, Reb Shaya Gross, z’l, we will maintain a living memoriam to Shaya through the sweet words and thoughtful insights of his Divrei Torah. BJL readers will remember his weekly column on the Parsha and on various Torah ideas and concepts. These meaningful words will help us remember this special young man who will be sorely missed and for those who did not merit to know him, this will be the most appropriate way for them to become familiar with who he was.
The Mitzva of Parah Aduma discussed in our Parsha is the quintessential chok; a Mitzva which we cannot comprehend it's reason. One aspect of the Mitzva that seems incomprehensible is that although the Mitzv...
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July 2, 2020 at 10:30 pm
Boeing Co. is pulling the plug on its 747 jumbo jet, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday.
The 747 democratized global air travel in the 1970s but fell behind modern twin-engine passenger jets.
The last 747-8 will roll out of a Seattle area factory in about two years, according to the Bloomberg report.
Read more at REUTERS.
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July 2, 2020 at 10:29 pm
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has issued an order making it mandatory for all Texans to wear a face covering of some kind while out in public as the state faces a surge in coronavirus cases.
The governor’s office said the order applied to all counties in Texas with 20 or more confirmed cases of COVID-19, saying the move was necessary with other efforts to curb the spread of the disease.
“Due to recent substantial increases in COVID-19 positive cases, and increases in the COVID-19 positivity rate and hospitalizations resulting from COVID-19, further measures are needed to achieve the least restrictive means for reducing the growing spread of COVID-19, and to avoid a need for more extreme measures,” Abbott said in his executive order issued Thursday afternoon.
He added: “...
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July 2, 2020 at 10:28 pm
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Thursday that the city is issuing an emergency travel order directing all residents and travelers entering Chicago from states experiencing an uptick in coronavirus cases to quarantine for 14 days in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
The order, issued by Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Allison Arwady, is set to go into effect next Monday. As of Thursday, the states included in the order were Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nevada, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.
A state will be designated under the order “if it has a case rate greater than 15 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 resident population, per day.” The rate will be determine...
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July 2, 2020 at 10:23 pm
Democrat Joe Biden edged out Republican Donald Trump in fundraising for a second straight month in June, data from the rival US presidential campaigns showed on Wednesday.
Biden and allied Democratic groups raked in over $141 million during the month, while President Trump and closely tied groups hauled $131 million.
In each case, the figures were new monthly records this year for campaigns that are expected to mount the most expensive US election in history.
Biden, who waged his successful primary battle against a historically-large field of Democrats on a shoestring budget, is trying erase a fundraising gap ahead of his Nov. 3 election with Trump.
The president, who started his re-election bid shortly after he moved into the White House, has been a prodigious fundraiser and built an ...
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July 2, 2020 at 10:21 pm
Florida recorded 10,109 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the highest single-day increase for the state.
There are now more than 169,000 confirmed cases in Florida. An additional 68 deaths were reported Wednesday, bringing the total number of COVID-19 fatalities to 3,718.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has taken some steps to try to slow the spread of the virus, including closing bars and some beaches. While he has not issued a statewide mask mandate, several localities require the use of masks in public.
Read more at The Hill.
