The operating license of the "Ever Forward" captain who steered the container ship into the muddy bottom of the Chesapeake Bay this past spring has been suspended, according to the Maryland Department of Labor. The ship was finally freed in mid-April, more than a month after it ran aground. “After thorough review of evidence and expert analysis in the investigation of the March 13, 2022 grounding of the MV Ever Forward, the Maryland Board of Pilots (Board), in a unanimous decision, voted to summarily suspend the operating license of Captain Steven Germac on October 20, 2022, and formally notified Captain Germac by letter dated October 21, 2022,” said Maryland Department of Labor Chief Strategy Officer Joseph E. Farren. As part of the Board’s statutory process, Germac w...
Baltimore, MD – Dec. 6, 2022 - It is with regret that Baltimore Jewish Life (BJL) informs the community of the petira of Mrs. Ruth Malinowitz, a’h, mother of Rebetzin Chavi (Rabbi Yaakov) Horowitz. The levayah will take place today, Tuesday, December 6 at 1:30PM at Congregation Bais Torah, 89 Carlton Road W, Suffern, NY 10901 Shiva will be observed at 4 Wendover Lane, Suffern NY, 10901 (845.825.3611) Bila Hamaves Lanetzach...
Baltimore, MD – Dec. 5, 2022 –   Tonight/Tomorrow is the 12th of Kislev, and the 166th yahrzeit of Rebbe Avraham Dov of Avritch-Tzfas [1765-1840], m’chaber of the Bas Ayin. A Baltimore yahrzeit seudah/kumzitz took place at the home of R' Ori Strum with Rabbi Menachem Goldberger in attendance offering divrei Torah.
Former President Trump trails Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and outgoing Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) in a new Utah poll of possible GOP contenders for the 2024 presidential race.  A Deseret News-Hinckley Institute of Politics poll of Utah voters found DeSantis with a decisive lead in a hypothetical Republican presidential primary, at 24.2 percent, followed by Cheney with 16.4 percent.   Trump came in third place with 14.6 percent, nearly 2 points below Cheney and nearly 10 points behind the Florida governor — the latest indication that the former president’s popularity may be slipping.  However, more Utah voters said they didn’t know which candidate they’d cast their ballot for (20.7 percent) than backed either Trump or Cheney...
Governor Roy Cooper addressed the mass power outages in Moore County Monday afternoon after a state of emergency was issued over the weekend. That’s after a group of people vandalized and shot at the county’s power equipment, causing physical damage at two power substations. "This kind of attack raises a new level of threat," Gov. Cooper said. State and local officials are working to harden infrastructure where necessary to prevent future damage. "I am sure that we will learn more about motives of this intentional attack to come," Cooper said. "Regardless of motive, violence and sabotage will not be tolerated." Deputies said people across the community called to report power outages they were experiencing just after 7 p.m. on Saturday. The North Carolina Public Safety rep...
Nearly every U.S. state is battling high levels of flu-like illness, public health authorities warned Monday as multiple respiratory viruses threaten to overwhelm the health-care system while people travel for the holidays and gather indoors with friends and family. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials say they’re seeing signs of an early and severe flu season that turned significantly worse during Thanksgiving week, the official start of the holiday season. That ferocious return of influenza is coinciding with the start of a third pandemic winter – with a novel coronavirus that never left. “It’s a perfect storm for a terrible holiday season,” said the chair of the American Medical Association board, Sandra Fryhofer, an Atlanta infectious-di...
The Central Bureau for Statistics has published its annual report on volunteering in Israel, with findings similar to those in years past. Around a quarter of all Jewish Israelis engage in volunteer work, the Bureau's survey found. When looking at sector-based sub-divisions, it was found that haredim volunteer the most - some 40 percent of haredim volunteer. Among the religious community, around 32 percent volunteer. 25 percent of people who define themselves as secular do volunteer work, and 18 percent of those who describe themselves as traditional. 38 percent of those who volunteer do so within the framework of an organization or several organizations. 44 percent of respondents who volunteer said that they do so on a private basis, and 18 percent said that they volunteered for or...
B’nai Brith Canada reported on Monday that Walmart Canada has responded positively to its concerns that an item sacred in the Jewish religion was depicted frivolously as a beach towel for women. The item was a tallit which was depicted in offensive fashion by a third-party seller on Walmart’s website as an “Elegant Sunscreen Scarves Sun Block Shawl Scarf Beach Shawl Towel.” Walmart quickly acknowledged B’nai Brith’s complaint and acted rapidly to remove the item, the organization said in a statement. B’nai Brith had alerted Walmart through its Twitter account of the offensive description. The corporation responded to B’nai Brith that it would remove the listing after it conducted an investigation. Walmart apologized for the offence.
IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi strongly criticizes the granting of powers in Judea and Samaria to Otzma Yehudit chairman Itamar Ben-Gvir and Religious Zionism party chairman Bezalel Smotrich in the coalition agreements, Channel 13 News reported. According to the report, Kochavi, who is expected to end his term soon, claimed in closed conversations, claimed that the splitting of powers which previously belonged solely to the Defense Ministry to give them to Ben-Gvir and Smotrich "breaks the chain of command." Senior security officials warn that "this will create anarchy, which will damage Israel's international standing and create two different legal systems in the territories: one for the Jews and one for the Palestinians." Kochavi said that he would not allow Ben-Gvir a...
Arizona officials certified the state’s vote canvass on Monday, officially declaring winners in the high-profile gubernatorial and Senate races, among other contests, as GOP figures vow to fight the election results in court. The once low-profile certification process turned into a fierce battle between election officials, Republican candidates and some county boards as the GOP seized on printer malfunctions in the state’s most populous county, in part leading Arizona to become an epicenter for voter disenfranchisement allegations. Election officials have acknowledged mishaps but insist no voter was disenfranchised. Some GOP figures and their supporters claimed officials were lying, unsuccessfully calling on county boards to not certify their canvasses in recen...
Former President Trump on Monday insisted he does not want to “terminate” the Constitution, responding to broad backlash after he said over the weekend its rules and laws should be disregarded so he can return to the White House. Trump, in a pair of posts on Truth Social, responded to the fallout from his comments on Saturday that the 2020 election should be redone or he should be put back in office. The former president weighed in after internal Twitter communications showed company officials deciding to limit the spread of posts about allegations against Hunter Biden, President’s Biden’s son, in the closing weeks of the 2020 campaign. “The Fake News is actually trying to convince the American People that I said I wanted to ‘terminate’ the ...
Former President Trump’s weekend call to terminate parts of the U.S. Constitution in order to overturn the 2020 election results was met with derision and opposition by Senate Republicans on Monday.  “I think it’s ridiculous talk,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.), a newly minted member of GOP leadership. “To besmirch our dedication to the Constitution is ridiculous.” “Very inappropriate,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), an ally of the former president. “The statement was inappropriate and I’m glad to see him clarify.  “Most Republicans are frustrated, but that wasn’t the answer,” he added. Trump’s remarks came in a post on Truth Social on Saturday and bookended a crazy...
 Incarcerated lawyer Michael Avenatti was sentenced to 14 years in prison on Monday in Southern California and ordered to pay more than $10 million in restitution after admitting he cheated four of his clients out of millions of dollars. The sentence should run consecutively to the five years in prison he is currently serving for separate convictions in New York, U.S. District Judge James V. Selna said during a hearing in Santa Ana, California. It is the last of three major federal criminal cases to wrap up against the 51-year-old Californian. Avenatti pleaded guilty earlier this year to four counts of wire fraud and a tax-related charge despite not reaching a plea deal with federal prosecutors, saying he wanted to be accountable and spare his family further embarrassment.
The agreement gives Bezalel Smotrich sweeping powers over Israeli settlements and daily Palestinian life Far-right Religious Zionism party received considerable authority over the Israeli government's civilian activities in the West Bank, according to a partial coalition agreement published on Monday. The deal reached between the incoming prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the leader of Religious Zionism Bezalel Smotrich will see the faction influencing the appointment of key officials as well the final approval of construction and demolition of houses in a majority of the territory. The agreement, however, requires that the minister appointed to this post, which will likely be taken by Smotrich himself, will act in coordination with the next prime minister and will need h...
Elon Musk on Saturday evening said there is "definitely some risk" to his personal safety. "Frankly," Musk said in a Twitter Spaces discussion, "the risk of something bad happening or literally even being shot is quite significant. I'm definitely not going to be doing any open air car parades, let me put it that way." "It's not that hard to kill me if somebody wanted to, so hopefully they don't." During his roughly two-hour discussion, Twitter's new owner spoke of his future plans for the company while emphasizing the importance of free speech. "Throughout history," he adds, "free speech has been highly unusual, not common. So we have to fight really hard to keep that because it's such a rare thing and it's by no means something that's default. C...
Chinese hackers have stolen tens of millions of dollars worth of US COVID relief benefits since 2020, the Secret Service said on Monday. The Secret Service declined to provide any additional details but confirmed a report by NBC News that said the Chinese hacking team that is reportedly responsible is known within the security research community as APT41 or Winnti. What is the hacker group APT41? APT41 is a prolific cybercriminal group that had conducted a mix of government-backed cyber intrusions and financially motivated data breaches, according to experts. Several members of the hacking group were indicted in 2019 and 2020 by the US Justice Department for spying on over 100 companies, including software development companies, telecommunications providers, ...
Baltimore, MD – Dec. 5, 2022 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Shulamis and Yosef Leder on the birth of a daughter. Mazel tov to grandparents, Sarah and Louis Leder יה"ר שיזכו לגדל בתם לתורה, לחופה, ולמעשים טובים. אמן!
Baltimore, MD – Dec. 1, 2022 - It is with regret that Baltimore Jewish Life (BJL) informs the community of the petira of Sol Mogilensky, z’l, brother of Marsha (Avi) Grant and Judah (Lynne) Mogilensky. The Kevurah will take place in Eretz HaChaim cemetery in Beit Shemesh on Sunday. Shiva will be observed through Shacharis Sunday, Dec. 11 at 1902 Rookwood Rd., Silver Spring, MD, 20910. (Best parking is in the extra parking lot for Sniders’s grocery store.). All visitors should wear masks.Shiva following Shacharis until 12noon; 1:00-6:00p, then from 7:00-9:30p (Friday until 1:00PM)Shacharis: Tues/Wed/Fri: 7:00AM Motzaei Shabbos: Visiting 7Pm-10PMShacharis Thurs: 6:50AM (Sunday: 8:00AM) Mincha/Maariv: 4:30PM  Bila Hamaves Lanetzach...
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