Baltimore, MD – July 30, 2021 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Leibi Laks and Adina Sofer (Monsey) on their engagement.   יה"ר שיזכו לבנות בית נאמן בישראל. אמן!
What is your opinion of the speedier version of WhatsApp? It's now possible to hear recorded messages twice as fast as before. This saves lots of time and I have already gotten used to it. It's addictive. Sometimes during regular phone calls or even face-to-face conversations I would also prefer to speed things up.  Patience, listening, concentration, waiting patiently, the capacity to be here and now and not to run ahead, the ability to fully experience the moment - all of these are significantly diminished in the digital age. Therefore, in our generation, Shabbat takes on new meaning as it is now needed more than ever.In the near future we may play football twice as fast. After all, aren't 90 minutes too long for a match? And songs - why should we have to invest 3 ful...
The Japanese-owned tanker sailing under Libyan flag was operated by an Israeli company Two crew members of a Japanese-owned oil tanker died in a suspected piracy incident off the coast of Oman, the British office of the Israeli-owned company that manages the vessel said Friday. London-based Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group "With profound sadness, we understand the incident onboard the M/T Mercer Street on 29 July, 2021 has resulted in the deaths of two crew members onboard: a Romanian national and a UK national," Zodiac Maritime said. Britain's military said earlier on Friday it was investigating reports that an oil tanker managed by the Israeli-owned Zodiac Maritime company has been attacked in the Arabian Sea. Zodiac Maritime said ...
Parshas Eikev falls between the two places in the Torah where we are warned of the calamities which would befall Klal Yisroel if they turned away from Hashem.  In between those readings of Parshas Bechukosai and Ki Savo we also experience Tisha B’Av, when we vividly recall and reflect on many of those warnings which came to pass on multiple occasions in our history.   Conversely, Parshas Eikev begins with promises of great rewards for fulfilling Hashem’s Mitzvos. Specific blessings of ample crops, health, great families and security from our enemies are just some of the assurances given.  Our Parsha gives us perhaps the greatest blessing of all, it tells us the failures of mankind which lead us to go astray.  Not only does Hashem urge us to do what&rsqu...
Fueled by vaccinations and government aid, the U.S. economy grew at a 6.5% annual rate last quarter, a solid gain that fell short of some expectations. The total size of the economy has now surpassed its pre-pandemic level. Thursday’s report from the Commerce Department estimated that the nation’s gross domestic product — its total output of goods and services — accelerated in the April-June quarter from a 6.3% annual growth rate in the first quarter of the year. The quarterly figure was less than analysts had expected, but the economy was likely held back mainly by supply shortages in goods, components and labor. Analysts surveyed by Refintiv had expected 8.5% growth, according to reports. For all of 2021, the economy is expected to expand as muc...
President Joe Biden is set to nominate Deborah Lipstadt, the Emory University Holocaust historian, to be the State Department’s antisemitism envoy. The White House alerted top Biden supporters of the pick, which has been expected for weeks, on Thursday night. Lipstadt is perhaps best known for defeating Holocaust denier David Irving after he sued her in a British court for defamation for calling him a Holocaust denier. Her 2005 book, “History on Trial: My Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier,” was made into a 2016 movie with Rachel Weisz starring as Lipstadt. Lipstadt, 74, has been for years a go-to expert for the media and for legislators on Holocaust issues, particularly on how the genocide’s meaning should be understood in the 21st century, and whether it had ...
Conservative lawmakers made a push Thursday to boot Republican Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger out of the House GOP because the two defied party leaders and joined the chamber’s special committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack by supporters of then-President Donald Trump. The effort by the House Freedom Caucus faces uncertain prospects. House Republican leaders have exhibited little interest in acting quickly against the two mavericks, which could fuel a fight that would distract from the party’s preferred focus on issues such as inflation, crime and immigration. The move is the latest example of turmoil over the GOP’s message and image, even as Trump’s shadow continues to loom large over the party. Banishing Cheney, R-Wyo., and Kinzinger, R-Ill., fr...
Mayor Bill de Blasio will issue local guidance next week on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new advice that both vaccinated and unvaccinated people should wear masks indoors to protect against the virulent Delta variant of the coronavirus. “On Monday, we’ll give a shape of things to people to help guide them while emphasizing the thing that’s absolutely irreplaceable is vaccination,” de Blasio said at his daily press briefing Thursday. On Tuesday, the CDC recommended indoor-mask mandates even for fully vaccinated people in areas experiencing spikes in COVID-19 cases. The recommendation is a reversal of the agency’s determination in May that vaccinated people could ditch their face coverings in most indoor settings. De Blasi...
U.S. President Joe Biden asked Congress on Thursday to extend a moratorium on evictions to protect renters and their families that is set to expire this week amid a deadly rise in coronavirus infections, the White House said. Biden also asked the departments of Housing and Urban Development, Agriculture, and Veterans Affairs to extend their respective eviction bans through the end of September, the White House said, to protect Americans living in federally insured, single-family properties. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said last month it would not extend the eviction moratorium past July 31. The CDC did not immediately comment on Thursday. Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 to leave in place the CDC’s ban on residential evictions imposed last year...
Battling with the delta variant, Israel has reintroduced the 'green pass' vaccination certificate Israel on Thursday registered 1,448 new cases of COVID-19, according to an update on the Health Ministry's website.  The death toll has risen to 6,463, with three more Israelis dying of the virus. In spite of its record-setting vaccination rollout, Israel has been battling to contain the spread of the delta variant of the virus, which has been driving the recent hike in infections.  Out of 15,521 active patients, 151 are in serious condition, with 26 on artificial lung ventilation.  Earlier in the day, Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee added Britain, Turkey, Georgia and Cyprus to the list of countries posing the highest risk to travele...
For the first time ever in Australia, an Orthodox rabbi has been appointed as a supreme court justice. On Thursday, Attorney General John Quiqley announced that Rabbi Marcus Solomon was tapped to become a justice on the Supreme Court of Western Australia. Solomon, a barrister, was ordained as an Orthodox rabbi at the Beit Midrash of Western Australia in 1993. In his capacity as an attorney, he was appointed Senior Counsel in 2013. Solomon has provided extensive pro-bono legal advice to community groups and to legal practitioners before the Legal Practitioners Complaints Committee and the State Administrative Tribunal. "It is with great pleasure that I announce the appointment of Mr. Solomon to the bench of the Supreme Court,” said Quigley on Thursday. "Mr. Solomon, who was unti...
Beware that you do not forget the Lord, your G-d, by not keeping His commandments... which I command you this day, lest you eat and be sated, and build good houses and dwell therein, and your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold increase, and all that you have increases, and your heart grows haughty, and you forget the Lord, your G-d...   The Torah here forewarns of the danger of being lured into delusional independence from   from G-d, a prideful smugness that stemmed from becoming drunk with success. It continues with testament to G-d’s having tended to and providing for their every need.  Who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, Who led you through that great and awesome desert, [in which were] snakes, vipers ...
Baltimore County Schools have announced that they will be moving to universal masking for all students and staff for the fall of the 2021-22 school year. The school district made the announcement Thursday morning. READ THE RELEASE HERE "Unfortunately, the pandemic continues to impact our community," Baltimore County Public School superintendent Darryl Williams said. "Universal masking is an important part of our multifaceted approach to mitigate the spread of COVID while keeping schools open for in-person learning." This decision comes after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rolled back to previous mask recommendations, deciding that it would be better for all people in grades K-12 to wear masks.  "Protecting the health and well-being of our children a...
McCormick & Co. this week issued a voluntary recall of three spice products sold at Kroger, Target and Walmart stores, citing possible salmonella contamination. The spices included in the recall are McCormick Perfect Pinch Italian Seasoning, McCormick Culinary Italian Seasoning and Frank's RedHot Buffalo Ranch Seasoning, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The recall includes the following products: McCormick Perfect Pinch Italian Seasoning, 1.31 oz. bottle UPC Number: 052100049731 McCormick Item Number: 901582629 Affected Date Codes: BEST BY MAY 26 24 K, BEST BY MAY 27 24 K, BEST BY JUN 04 24 K, BEST BY JUN 05 24 K McCormick Perfect Pinch Italian Seasoning, 2.25 oz. bottle UPC Number: 052100038254 McCormick Item Number: 9014554...
Famous for gazing over eyeglasses worn on the end of his nose, Carl Levin seemed at ease wherever he went, whether attending a college football game back home in Michigan or taking on a multibillion-dollar corporation before cameras on Capitol Hill. Michigan’s longest-serving U.S. senator had a slightly rumpled, down-to-earth demeanor that helped him win over voters throughout his 36-year career, as did his staunch support for the hometown auto industry. But the Harvard-educated attorney also was a respected voice on military issues, spending years leading the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee. Despite his record tenure and status, he kept his role in perspective. At his direction, the portraits of all 38 senators who had served before or with him since Michigan’s stat...
Balltimore, MD -  July 29, 2021 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Rabbi and Mrs. Shlomo Bergman on the birth of  Nechama Tova. יה"ר שיזכו לגדל בתם לתורה, לחופה, ולמעשים טובים. אמן!  
And it will be, because you will heed these ordinances and keep and perform them, that the Lord, your God, will keep for you the covenant and the kindness that He swore to your forefathers.” (Devorim 7:12) At first glance, it represents a simple, straightforward theme; if we follow the word of God, He will take care of us. The Torah is replete with verses emphasizing the reciprocal nature of our relationship with God. If we are willing to commit our allegiance to the Torah and Mitzvos, God will see that our needs are met. This idea is at the core of our relationship contract with God: You will get out what you are willing to put in. Yet, the famed commentator, Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki 1040-1105) highlights an additional dimension of meaning: ...
A report by Forbes shows that numerous Democrat mayors around the country hired private security after their cities cut or “proposed cutting” police budgets. According to Forbes, “25 major U.S. cities across the country” took up the defund the police cause and mayors in 20 of those cities “enjoy the personal protection of a dedicated police security detail.” Moreover, Forbes emphasized that “the defunding of police — coupled with taxpayer dollars spent on police security details protecting public officials — only occurred in cities run by Democratic mayors.” The cities where this occurred included Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, San Diego, San Francisco, and New York City. Breitbart News noted similar happenings incidents with som...
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