How Rabbi Yehuda Became One of the Most Authoritative Rabbis in History

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06/26/2024

Jewish Features - How Rabbi article — Yehuda is the most common name in Talmudic literature, appearing a total of 7,302 times. Many outstanding scholars went by that name, notably Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi (Judah the Prince), who compiled the Mishnah, the foundational code of the Talmud, completed at the beginning of the 3rd century CE. Art by: Sefira Lightstone

By Yossi Ives

Yehuda is the most common name in Talmudic literature, appearing a total of 7,302 times. Many outstanding scholars went by that name, notably Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi (Judah the Prince), who compiled the Mishnah, the foundational code of the Talmud, completed at the beginning of the 3rd century CE.

The Yehuda who appears most often, however, is Rabbi Yehuda ben Ilai—usually just referred to as Rabbi Yehuda—a leading scholar in the Land of Israel during the 2nd century CE. His rulings appear in all but one of the 63 tractates of the Mishnah, and he is cited more than any of his 1281 contemporary Tannaim—600 times in all.

Throughout the Babylonian Talmud—the immense compendium of scholarship based upon the Mishnah (developed over three centuries and completed circa 500 CE)—his teachings are mentioned over 3,000 times, more than any other scholar.

Not only in the Talmud, but also in other classic texts (such as the Tosefta and Sifra), Rabbi Yehuda stands out as the most oft-cited teacher. Considering that he lived and taught in an era of truly outstanding Torah personalities—including Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Akiva, etc.—this accomplishment is truly extraordinary.

Moreover, the Talmud almost always sides with Rabbi Yehuda’s opinion when he and his illustrious colleagues disagree.2

Rabbi Yehuda was put on a pedestal, extolled for his great scholarship and appointed as the Rosh Yeshiva, head of the rabbinical academy, for 20 years. There is a passage in the Talmud3 that praises “the generation of Rabbi Yehuda ben Ilai” over those of Moses, Joshua and the pious King Hezekiah—high praise indeed.

So, we may ask, what was it about Rabbi Yehuda that enabled him to become such a towering Torah giant?

He Advocated Living Simply

Perhaps the most extraordinary thing we know about Rabbi Yehuda was that he didn’t own even a single item of outerwear! In fact, he and his wife shared a single cloak, taking turns to use it, as we can see from the following incident related in the Talmud:

Rabbi Yehuda’s wife went out to the market, collected wool, and made a thick cloak. When she would go out to the market, she would cover herself with it. When Rabbi Yehuda would go out to pray he would cover himself with the cloak and pray … On one occasion Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel [the Nasi or president], decreed a public fast. Rabbi Yehuda did not come to the house of the fast, where everyone gathered. The people said to Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel: Rabbi Yehuda does not have a garment to cover himself with. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel sent him a cloak, but Rabbi Yehuda did not accept it.4

He refused to accept material benefit from anyone, preferring to earn a living through his own hands. He would even carry an earthenware jug on his shoulder on his way to the House of Study, declaring that “Labor is great, for it brings honor to those who practice it.”5

Rabbi Yehuda advocated living simply, and was known for a saying (that rhymes in Hebrew) “Eat onions (batzel) and sit in the shade (tzel).”6

He Was Exceedingly Pious

Rabbi Yehuda’s piety was so renowned that when the Talmud tells a story about “a chassid,” a pious person, it usually refers to our Rabbi Yehuda.7

A typical story related in the Talmud8 describes Rabbi Yehuda strolling in his field on Shabbat when he noticed a breach in the fence. He began mentally planning how he would repair the fence the next day, but then remembered it was Shabbat and that it would be disrespectful to the holy day to contemplate mundane issues or plan actions to be taken on a weekday.

He was so distressed that he had allowed his mind to wander to mundane matters on Shabbat—even momentarily—that he punished himself by vowing never to repair the fence. After Shabbat, a miracle was performed for him and a caper bush (a thorny plant whose fruits have a high monetary value) sprouted, effectively blocking the hole in the fence.

One may get a sense of Rabbi Yehuda’s saintliness from a first-hand description of his countenance on Shabbat:

This was the custom of Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai: On Shabbat Eve, they would bring him a bowl full of hot water and he would use it to wash his face, hands, and feet, and he would wrap himself, and sit in linen cloaks with ritual fringes, and he was like an angel of the L-rd of hosts.9

His Care for Others Was Renowned

Rabbi Yehuda advocated for prioritizing acts of lovingkindness, and indeed there are numerous accounts of him acting on his own teachings:

The Sages said about Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai, that he would suspend the study of Torah to attend the removal of a corpse for burial and to attend the entry of a bride into the wedding canopy.

The Sages said about Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai that he would take a myrtle branch and dance before the bride, and declare that she was beautiful and charming.10

Here was the greatest rabbi of his generation canceling his lecture so that a stranger could receive a dignified burial or an unknown bride would be celebrated on her special day. Such is the mindset of a truly selfless person.

One story is particularly striking. In a fit of anger, a man (who apparently was unhappy with his wife’s culinary abilities) said to his wife: “You are banned by an oath from benefiting from me in any way until you have given Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Shimon your cooked food to taste, so they can see for themselves what a bad cook you are.”11

When the woman brought her food to Rabbi Shimon, he adamantly refused to taste it. He insisted that the oath was ridiculous and inappropriate (as indeed it was). He also felt that this was the height of disrespect to a leading scholar.

By contrast, when the woman came with her request to Rabbi Yehuda, he tasted the food. He justified allowing himself to be humiliated in this way by arguing that if G‑d was prepared to have his name blotted out (in the case of the Sotah) to bring peace between a man and his wife, all the more so a mere mortal should be ready to suffer indignity to restore marital harmony.

An Example for the Ages

Rabbi Yehuda achieved stellar heights and authoritative rabbinic leadership not only because he was a towering intellect, but also a person of impeccable character and exceptional kindness. Almost 2,000 years later, he remains one of our most cherished teachers.

Above all, Rabbi Yehuda is an exemplar of sacrificing worldly convenience and earthly comfort for the sake of nobler pursuits. He foreswore all indulgences and eschewed any self-interest in favor of a life dedicated to a higher purpose.

At the very opening of the classic Ethics of the Fathers, the great Rabbi Shimon Hatzadik (Simeon the Righteous) taught that “The world stands on three things: Torah, Service of G‑d, and Acts of lovingkindness.”12 Rabbi Yehuda encompassed all three qualities to an exceptional degree. He was the living expression of our faith.

Perhaps it is unrealistic for every person to aspire to Rabbi Yehuda’s heights, but we can draw inspiration, select appropriate priorities, and occasionally give up on what’s easy in favor of what’s right. Like Rabbi Yehuda, we should dedicate more of ourselves to the pursuit of Torah knowledge, a life of piety, and a propensity for committing good deeds.

(Chabad.org)

FOOTNOTES

Maimonides, introduction to his commentary to the Mishnah.
Eruvin 46b.
Sanhedrin 21a.
Nedarim 49b.
Nedarim 49b.
Pesachim 114a.
Or another Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava.
Shabbat 150b.
Shabbat 25b.
Ketubot 17a.
Nedarim 66a.
Ethics of the Fathers 1:2.

Yossi Ives is the rabbi of Cong. Ahavas Yisrael of Pomona, N.Y. He is founder and is Chief Executive of Tag International Development, a charitable organization that focuses on sharing Israeli expertise with developing countries. Yossi holds a PhD. in Coaching Psychology and is a qualified life coach who specializes in relationship coaching. He is the author of several books, mainly on mysticism and psychology.

Parshas Shelach–Scouting Lessons

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Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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By: Chaya Sora Jungreis-Gertzulin

A mission gone awry. In this week’s parsha, Shelach, we learn of the meraglim, scouts sent to check out the Promised Land, prior to Bnei Yisroel settling there.

As Moshe recounts, the people said, “Let us send men before us, that they may search the land”. Rashi comments that the nation approached Moshe, “b’irbuvia”, with confusion, in a disorderly, disrespectful manner. The young were pushing the elders, the elders pushing the leaders. (Devarim 1:22)

Rashi cites a Midrash that Moshe was unsure how to proceed. He turns to HaShem for direction. The response was that He already told Bnei Yisroel that the land was good. Yet, if they still want to scout out the land, “shelach, send”. But they should be aware that such a mission comes with the risk to err through the words they will hear back from the meraglim.

Imagine being offered a most precious, valuable gift from a parent. However, before accepting, one hesitates, saying, not just yet…. I have to first check it out, I need to ascertain its true value.

The generation of the exodus was given the precious gift of Eretz Yisroel, but they requested to first scout out the land.

Shelach lecha. Rashi comments, “l’da’ascha, for your knowledge, for your own interest”. This is in contrast to HaShem’s telling Avraham Avinu, “Lech lecha, Go for yourself”. Rashi on that pasuk explains, “l’ha’anoscha, for your own benefit, u’le’tovascha, and for your own good.” HaShem instructed Avrohom to pick himself up, to leave the world he knew, his home, his birthplace, his family, and go “el ha’aretz asher ar’echa, to the land that I will show you.”

Avrohom, together with Sora, made the journey to Eretz Yisroel, sight unseen. A journey that brought Avrohom and Sora to great spiritual heights, to becoming patriarch and matriarch of the Jewish nation.

Two journeys to Eretz Yisroel, lech lecha and shelach lecha. The first, commanded by HaShem to Avrohom, the second initiated by Bnei Yisroel.

Avrohom’s journey ended in greatness. In contrast, the meraglim’s journey had a tragic ending. The Torah tells us that the meraglim were “anoshim”, men of importance. They were “neseeim”, each one the leader of his respective tribe. After forty days of exploration, they returned, carrying beautiful, grand-sized fruits. They reported to the nation that it was a land of milk and honey. But that’s where the good news ended. They spoke of walled cities and giants who inhabited the country. They painted a picture of despair, saying it was an “eretz ocheles yoshvehah, a land that eats its inhabitants”. A land that would be impossible to conquer and settle.

How could this have happened? How could it be that leaders would speak negatively about Eretz Yisroel? The nation that witnessed the Hand of G-d, and experienced multiple miracles, from crossing the sea to receiving the Torah at Sinai. They were provided with manna from Heaven, had clouds of glory to guide them by day, and a fire to protect them at night – where was their faith and trust in HaShem?

The meraglim walked in the footsteps of the Avrohom, but the similarity ended there. Unlike Avrohom whose heart and soul were filled with emunah, the scouts allowed worry and hopelessness to set in.

Until now, life in the desert was one filled with miracles. They depended on HaShem for their daily existence. Bnei Yisroel now feared that upon entering the land, HaShem’s miracles will cease. How would they survive the hardships of life without HaShem’s miraculous hand.

They allowed the “what if” factor to take over and consume them. Yes, there will be challenges and difficulties at times, even dangers and perils in settling the land. But they failed to have confidence that HaShem’s guiding hand would always be with them.

A life lesson for us all. Don’t concentrate on the “what ifs”. While life comes with its bumps along the way, we must truly believe that when HaShem sends messages our way, it will all work out. That it can’t be any other way. That HaShem is always with us. As we recite every day in the Modim prayer, “v’al neesecha she’b’chol yom imanu, and for the miracles that are with us each and every day”.

The Ohr HaChaim explains that it’s easier to be a believer, to be righteous, when one sees a nes golui, an open miracle, than when the daily miracles are hidden from us.

The meraglim assessed the land correctly. Everything was beautiful and wonderful. The fruits were large and luscious, the inhabitants powerful, the cities strong and fortified. But, it was their perception of themselves that was lacking. As the pasuk relates, “We were like grasshoppers in our eyes, and similarly in their eyes.” (Bamidbar 13:33) A feeling of insecurity overtook their very being. They became overwhelmed, filled with fear and self-doubt. They felt small and insignificant, undeserving of HaShem’s constant care and protection.

Only two of the scouts, Yehoshua and Calev, stood strong and spoke positively, giving the nation words of encouragement. Yehoshua received a special bracha from Moshe to be successful in his mission. Yehoshua’s name was originally Hoshea, meaning salvation. This reflected his constant prayers for Divine protection, and to be shielded from negative influences. Moshe added a yud to Hoshea, which is symbolic of HaShem’s name, transforming Hoshea to Yehoshua. Moshe assured Yehoshua, that the extra yud in his name will bring with it all of the blessings from HaShem, not only in this mission, but in his future years as the leader of the Jewish nation.

Calev was married to Miriam, the sister of Moshe. Miriam was known for her strong emunah. It was Miriam who prepared tambourines for the women before the exodus, knowing in her heart that a great miracle was about to happen. A miracle worthy of shira, songs with tambourines.

Calev, as Miriam’s husband, was enveloped with emunah. It permeated their home day and night. Calev means ca-lev, like a heart. Calev’s heart was one with HaShem, and one with His people.

We need to learn from Yehoshua and Calev to always have HaShem in our hearts and minds. To replace worry with emunah, to eradicate anxiety and despair with bitachon, trust and faith in HaShem, and in ourselves.

Shabbat Shalom!

Chaya Sora

Chaya Sora can be reached at [email protected]

This article was written L’zecher Nishmas/In Memory Of HaRav Meshulem ben HaRav Osher Anshil HaLevi, zt”l and Rebbetzin Esther bas HaRav Avraham HaLevi, zt”l

Parshas Shelach – “Memory Loss”

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Parsha - Parshas Shelach Memory Loss article — Rabbi Yonatan Eybeshutz, in his collection of sermons known as Yaarot Devash, uses idyllic terminology to describe the midbar experience: “With all their physical needs cared for, their time was freed to be totally devoted to the Lord, with no impediments and no distractions.”

By: Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb

When one reaches a certain age, he does not have to be reminded that his memory is not what it used to be. These days, one receives e-mails, unsolicited of course, with such titles as “Eight Tips for Improving Memory,” and “Preventing Memory Loss in the Aging Person”. Undoubtedly, one of the consequences of the passage of the years is the fading of some, but certainly not all, memories.

But it is not only older people for whom memory is problematic. Younger people as well forget a lot. Moreover, even those memories that they retain are often modified, if not distorted.

Our ability to substantially change the memories we have of past experiences is brought home to me forcefully almost every week. As the faithful reader of this column knows full well, I often share my recollections of events in my life as the background for my comments on the weekly Torah portion. Very frequently I receive e-mails from old friends and classmates protesting that these recollections are inaccurate. Typically, it is my younger sister, Judy, who chastises me and declares: “That’s not the way I remember it.” Or, increasingly lately,” You must have made up that one!”

What about memories of a group? Surely, when a group of friends, for example, gets together after many years and discusses their memories, they will all agree about what transpired. Yet, if you ever attended a class reunion, you came away impressed by how different people remember events very differently.

The Jewish nation specializes in memory. We remember the Sabbath, the Exodus from Egypt, and a host of other historical experiences. We even remember our enemy, Amalek. Sociologists have termed such memories “collective memories”. One wonders whether collective memories remain intact over time, or whether different groups of descendants remember their ancestors’ experiences differently.

This week’s Torah portion, Parshat Shelach (Numbers 13:1-15:41), contains a description of the beginning of the ordeal of spending forty years in the wilderness, or midbar. The story is a familiar one. The spies returned from their mission and spoke words of despair and discouragement. The Almighty was angered by this and by the people’s reaction to the spies report. He expressed His anger harshly: “Not one shall enter the land in which I swore to settle you…Your carcasses shall drop in this wilderness, while your children roam the wilderness for forty years, suffering for your faithlessness…”

Forty years of wandering must have left an indelible impression upon the collective memories of the Jewish people. Yet, note how very discrepant versions of the wilderness experience developed over the course of the centuries.

On one hand, there are those who look back upon the years in the midbar is a time of opportunity for spiritual development. They see it as a time when the Jews could concentrate upon Torah study without concern for mundane matters. After all, their needs were taken care of by the Almighty. They were fed the manna, food from heaven, and their clothing showed neither wear nor tear. According to an ancient Midrash, Mechilta DeRabi Ishmael, the Almighty knew that had the people entered directly into the Land of Israel they would have busied themselves with their fields and vineyards and would have ignored Torah. He, therefore, rerouted them through the desert, where they ate the manna and drank from the miraculous well and absorbed Torah into their very bodies.

Rabbi Yonatan Eybeshutz, in his collection of sermons known as Yaarot Devash, uses idyllic terminology to describe the midbar experience: “With all their physical needs cared for, their time was freed to be totally devoted to the Lord, with no impediments and no distractions.”

Indeed, Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, the early 19th century founder of the famed yeshiva of Volozhin, wanted his institution of higher learning to replicate the midbar environment. He dreamed of creating an institution in which the students gave thought to neither career nor creature comforts, but were free to devote all their time, day and night, summer and winter, to pure Torah study, with nothing to deter them from that sacred goal. To a large degree, Rabbi Chaim was successful in achieving his dream.

The collective memory of men such as Rabbi Yonatan Eybeshutz and Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin was of forty pleasant years of life in a placid wilderness, a paradise of sorts, in which men were free to indulge in Torah study in its most spiritual sense.

But we also have evidence of a very different collective memory of the experience of 40 years in the midbar. One articulate expression of this very different version is to be found in the commentary of Ramban, Nachmanides, on Exodus 12:42. He views the wilderness experience as the very opposite of a utopia. He sees it instead as a precursor to the lengthy and persistent galut, the exile of the Jewish people from its land, the torture and persecution it endured, and its dispersal throughout the world

He writes: “All these forty years were a time of great suffering, as it is written: ‘Remember the long way that the Lord…Has made you travel in the wilderness…That he tested you with hardships…He subjected you to the hardship of hunger.’ You had a total exile in a land which was not yours, but which was the realm of the snake, the serpent, and the scorpion.”

These two very different collective memories force us to question which version is true. The answer is, as in so many other such disagreements, that there is a grain of truth in both versions. For some people, and for some of the time, the wilderness experience was an unsurpassed spiritual opportunity. For others, and at other times, challenges prevailed, and deprivation and frustration were familiar phenomena.

All of us live, to one extent or another, in a “wilderness.” At times we feel that we are in paradise, and at times we are convinced that we are in the opposite of that. At times we use our “wilderness” for its spiritual richness, and at times we find the “wilderness” arid and barren.

Eventually, we will tell the story of our years in the “wilderness” to our children, and they will pass the story on to our grandchildren.

It should be no surprise to us that our grandchildren will then have differing versions of what our experience was like. Collective memories differ because our world is complex. It is a world in which, as the Midrash puts it near the beginning of the book of Genesis, “light and darkness are intermingled”.

More Holocaust Scholars Press George Washington U on History of Hosting & Honoring Nazis

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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FOR E-MAIL BLAST - More Holocaust article — Dr. Medoff reported that in 1985, GW awarded an honorary doctorate to Mircea Eliade (pictured above), who was an official of the Nazi-allied “Iron Guard” regime in Romania during the Holocaust. After the war, Eliade became a prominent scholar of religion. Photo Credit: Britannica.com

By: Fern Sidman

Prominent historians are rallying in support of a Holocaust scholar’s appeal to George Washington University to make amends for hosting Nazi diplomats in the 1930s and later honoring a Nazi collaborator.

The controversy began last month, when Holocaust scholar Dr. Rafael Medoff published evidence that GW welcomed Nazi representatives to its campus in 1933, 1934, and 1937. The university also hosted screenings of films that were supplied by the Nazi embassy in Washington.

In addition, Dr. Medoff reported that in 1985, GW awarded an honorary doctorate to Mircea Eliade, who was an official of the Nazi-allied “Iron Guard” regime in Romania during the Holocaust. After the war, Eliade became a prominent scholar of religion.

Medoff, who is director of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies and author of more than twenty books about the Holocaust and Jewish history, urged GW to apologize for hosting Nazi officials and revoke the doctorate it gave to Eliade.

Dr. Mordechai Paldiel, former director of Yad Vashem’s Department of the Righteous Among the Nations, told the Jewish Voice he agrees that GW should apologize. Doing so would help “make amends for its timid and hesitant response to the recent demonstrations by [pro-Hamas] students and agitators on its campus, that included targeting Jewish students,” Paldiel said.

Regarding Eliade, Paldiel said that “while no one disputes Eliade’s contribution to the history of religions, it is distressing that 40 years after the Holocaust, an elite university fully overlooked Eliade’s known role as part of a regime that was allied to Nazi Germany and partook in the death of so many Jews under its control.”

Prof. Gil Troy, presidential historian, prolific author and widely published columnist, praised Medoff’s research for showing “how slow many major institutions from GW to Harvard to Ford were to standing up against the Nazis.”

In a statement to the Jewish Voice, Troy said that while in general he does not favor “cancel culture or delayed apologies,” in this case it is GW itself that has “set the precedent.” He was referring to the fact that in 2022, GW removed the name of its longest-serving president, the late Cloyd Heck Marvin, from the university’s student center because he advocated racial segregation. Also, the GW administration last year changed the school moniker from “Colonials” to “Revolutionaries” because of the injustices associated with colonialism.

“Because GW set the precedent of editing history and backtracking and apologizing, it’s worth asking: why not for antisemitism?,” Prof. Troy wrote. “Has it somehow become the acceptable bigotry, the okay hatred? The thought sends shudders down my spine—and makes me sick to my stomach.”

Prof. Steven Katz, founding director of Boston University’s Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies and a professor of Holocaust studies, said he “fully agrees” with Medoff that GW “should publicly express regret for having hosted Nazi officials.” As for the Eliade question, that is “a little more complicated,” Katz told the Jewish Voice, because it is not clear what GW knew about him when it awarded the doctorate in 1985. “This said, however, now that there are no secrets, the honorable thing for the university to do would be to revoke the doctorate,” Katz emphasized.

As for GW’s sensitivity to the concerns of other minorities but not to Jews, Prof. Katz said: “There is no doubt that the university is now being two-faced. It responds to racism but not to antisemitism. Clearly there is a double standard operating, which raises unpleasant questions about the views of the current administration at GW.”

Dr. Steven Jacobs, professor at the University of Alabama and author of Antisemitism: Exploring the Issues, likewise endorsed the calls for restorative action by the GW administration. “Acknowledgment of [GW’s] own sorry participation along with revoking the honorary doctorate of the late religious studies scholar Mircea Eliade would send a strong message locally and nationally to the academic communities and Jewish communities that at this moment of rising antisemitism, it rejects any and all expressions of such hate,” Jacobs told the Jewish Voice.

He noted that on his own campus in Alabama, several buildings have been renamed because they were originally named after slave owners. “I applaud GW’s rationale for doing the same thing,” Prof. Jacobs said, “but in light of its own past, GW must also understand that this relatively small and comfortable step must and should be seen as part of a larger effort to confront not only the past, but the present and future as well.”

For Prof. Alan Berger, the Raddock Family Eminent Scholar Chair in Holocaust Studies at Florida Atlantic University, the historical context is crucial. “Unhappily, America has a long and sordid history of pro-Nazi and pro-facist sympathizers,” he wrote. For that reason, “definitely [GW] should express its regret” for contributing to that troubling history by hosting Nazi officials in the 1930s. With regard to the Eliade doctorate, “the university should fight to reclaim its good name by withdrawing the honor bestowed on him.”

There should be financial consequences if GW refuses to apologize and revoke the doctorate, says Prof. Gershon Greenberg of American University.

Greenberg pointed out in a statement to the Jewish Voice that “a university draws federal funds and is awarded special privileges in society—with the expectation that is serves the truth and ethical ideals.” If the GW administration “is not going to take responsibility for its institutional past, and instead continues to fail to evince decent, moral standards, then society as represented by the government should have [GW] renounce any claims for special status in society, including tax benefits,” according to Greenberg.

Prof. Greenberg, who has written extensively on the religious and philosophical meaning of the Holocaust, urged: “Universities are the last bastion of American society largely outside the rule of law. Having lost all moral authority on the institutional level, it’s time the law and government get ahold of them and force them into some serious self-reckoning.”

GW spokesman Joshua Grossman told the Jewish Voice that the university “will take under advisement” the calls for an apology and withdrawal of the Eliade doctorate.

‘LMAO’: Dean of Columbia College Mocked Hillel Head in Newly Obtained Text Exchange

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Education - LMAO Dean of Columbia article - pic 1 — The dean of Columbia College, Josef Sorett, sneered at Columbia’s top Hillel official in a new text message obtained by the Washington Free Beacon, further implicating him in the texting scandal that has caused three of his colleagues to be placed on leave. Credit: college.columbia.edu

Josef Sorett has sought to distance himself from leaked messages that are now the subject of a university investigation. The latest text message shows his participation in the affair.

By: Aaron Sibarium and Eliana Johnson

The dean of Columbia College, Josef Sorett, sneered at Columbia’s top Hillel official in a new text message obtained by the Washington Free Beacon, further implicating him in the texting scandal that has caused three of his colleagues to be placed on leave.

“LMAO,” Sorett said in response to a sarcastic message from his colleague, Columbia’s vice dean and chief administrative officer Susan Chang-Kim, who said of Columbia’s Hillel director, Brian Cohen, “He is our hero.”

The exchange, according to the person who photographed Chang-Kim’s cell phone during the May 31 panel on anti-Semitism, came as Cohen told a concerned parent in the audience that his “soul has been broken” by the protests on Columbia’s campus—which included calls to murder Jewish students and “burn Tel Aviv to the ground.”

In an earlier exchange between the two officials, Sorett agreed with Chang-Kim’s verdict that the panel, which included Jewish students and parents as well as faculty, was “difficult to listen to.”

Columbia deans Susan Chang-Kim and Josef Sorett exchange text messages during May 31 panel on the future of Jewish life on campus

Sorett has since sought to distance himself from that exchange, though, telling an alumni advisory board that the messages did not “indicate the views of any individual or the team.”

He has not addressed his own participation in the back and forth or offered more than a vague apology for a separate text chain in which two other Columbia University deans, Matthew Patashnick and Cristen Kromm, exchanged messages with Chang-Kim as the panel discussion proceeded, using vomit emojis to describe a Columbia rabbi’s op-ed and arguing that Cohen was capitalizing on the moment for “fundraising potential.”

Sorett said Thursday that Patashnick, Kromm, and Chang-Kim had been placed on leave pending an investigation.

The university declined to comment on why Sorett is not also under investigation, on who would conduct the investigation and to whom the results would be reported, and on whether the results would be made public.

In the new exchange, Chang-Kim appears to take issue with remarks from panel moderator and the former co-chairwoman of Columbia’s board of trustees, Lisa Carnoy, who, sources told the Free Beacon, is pressing the university to change its admissions application to screen for students who are tolerant of dissenting views.

Carnoy told the audience, “When we select students in recent years, we’ve often asked students, and you can look at the supplement application for the college and it says, basically, ‘Why are you different?’ And what we need to ask about is, ‘How do you engage with people that are from different backgrounds?’ And also, ‘Where has something you believe evolved? Where has someone changed your view, and how excited are you to be in an environment where you will be challenged?’”

Regarding those remarks, Chang-Kim wrote to Sorett, “Well now we know why this is on the trustees’ meeting agenda. LC put it there.”

Neither Sorett nor Chang-Kim responded to a request for comment. A Columbia University spokesman did not respond to a request for comment. Carnoy did not respond to a request for comment.

Days after a Free Beacon report revealed the first batch of messages, Sorett acknowledged that an “unknown third party” had captured them, calling it an “invasion of privacy.”

“These texts are not emblematic of the totality of their work,” Sorett told Columbia’s Board of Visitors, an alumni body that advises the dean, in a Friday email. “It makes the hard work that we are committed to even more challenging.”

The new exchange, which has not been previously reported, could create an additional challenge for Sorett as he seeks to stem the fallout from the leaked messages. It raises questions about what else could be uncovered if Columbia complies with a request from the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, the congressional body investigating campus anti-Semitism, to turn over the texts by June 26. Columbia has said it “will respond” to the committee’s request.

Sorett’s derisive messages and those of his colleagues have shocked Jewish students, who say the texts reflect the way in which Columbia administrators have echoed and emboldened their most radical students.

“It’s no wonder these students feel entitled to go take over a lawn or take over a building when you have actual leaders—people who hold a meaningful title—sending puke emojis as somebody’s speaking,” one student told the Free Beacon. “They are insinuating that [the Jewish panelists] are just lining their pockets with money.”

(FreeBeacom.com)

Wall Street Analyst Warns Stock Market Could Fall 5% or More Before Year’s End

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Business - Wall Street Analyst article — Sam Stovall, CFRA Research’s chief investment strategist, said that the recent tech rally may soon come to an abrupt halt. The analyst cited the confidence Index for June. Credit: X.com

By: Ilana Siyance

A longtime Wall Street analyst made a gloomy prediction about the stock market’s expected performance for the remainder of 2024. As reported by the NY Post, Sam Stovall, CFRA Research’s chief investment strategist, said that the recent tech rally may soon come to an abrupt halt. The analyst cited that the confidence Index for June shows that Americans are feeling low about the economy, with the index reaching its lowest level since November. He noted that tech was “the only outperforming sector”, thanks to the booming artificial intelligence market.

AI chipmaker Nvidia had experiencing extraordinary gains again last week to become the world’s most valuable company ahead of both Apple and Microsoft. Nvidia was valued at over $3.3 trillion. On Monday, that excitement was already worn off, with Nvidia stocks sliding over 6 percent as of mid-day, down to $118.70 per share. The market cap fell back to $2.92 trillion.

“How long can this jumbo jet fly on only one engine?,” Stovall said in an interview with Yahoo. “I am getting increasingly concerned that we have to endure another decline of 5 percent or more before the year is out,” he said. Stovall, who previously served as a managing director for S&P Global, compared the predicted downturn to a “resetting of the dials” or “digestion” after a large meal. “If we start to see other economic indicators that point to an economic slowdown that causes investors to worry that maybe we are headed for a recession,” he added.

Per the Post, Stovall said that in the first three months of 2024, the S&P 500 saw its 11th-best first quarter return since the end of World War II, having surged by more than 10 percent in the quarter. He said there was “a silver lining” because the top 15 years of returns “posted full year gains with the average being above 20 percent.” He added, however, that 14 of those top-15 returns were followed by a decline of at least 5% or more – with some of the drops taking back over 12%.

Stovall noted that investors could still get “tripped up” by any “unanticipated” bad economic news, such as a bank failure, bringing on a halt to any future increase in stock prices.

Per the Post, other analysts and senior executives have sounded a similar warning, cautioning about a possible upcoming slowdown in the economy. The rising price of goods and high interest rates would be the primary culprits. Last month, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan warned that consumers and businesses were cutting down on spending. “Both of our customer bases that have a lot to do with how the American economy runs are saying, ‘You know what? I’m being careful, slowing things down,” he told investors at the end of May.

Similarly, last month, Bob Nardelli, former CEO of Home Depot and Chrysler, blamed the Biden administration for “overspending”, and warned that the “fault lines” in the economy were “ready to crack”, per an interview with Fox Business News.

Microsoft Breached Antitrust Rules by Bundling Teams with Office Software, EU Says

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Business - Microsoft Breached article — The logo of Microsoft is seen outside its French headquarters in Issy-les-Moulineaux, outside Paris, on May 13, 2024. On Monday, June 24, 2024, European Union regulators accused Microsoft of “possibly abusive” practices that violate the bloc’s antitrust rules by tying its Teams messaging and videoconferencing app to its widely used business software. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)

By: Kelvin Chan

Microsoft violated European Union antitrust rules with “possibly abusive” practices by tying its Teams messaging and videoconferencing app to its widely used business software, the bloc said.

The European Commission said Monday it informed Microsoft of its preliminary view that the U.S. tech giant has been “restricting competition” by bundling Teams with core office productivity applications such as Office 365 and Microsoft 365.

The commission, the 27-nation bloc’s top antitrust enforcer, said it suspects Microsoft might have granted Teams a “distribution advantage” by not giving customers a choice on whether to have Teams when they purchased the software. The advantage might have been widened by limits on the ability of rival messaging apps to work with Microsoft software, it said.

“We are concerned that Microsoft may be giving its own communication product Teams an undue advantage over competitors, by tying it to its popular productivity suites for businesses,” Margrethe Vestager, the commission’s executive vice-president for competition policy, said in a statement.

“And preserving competition for remote communication and collaboration tools is essential as it also fosters innovation on these markets.”

The commission took aim at Microsoft a day after accusing Apple of breaching the bloc’s new digital competition rulebook, in a flurry of regulatory action underlining Brussels’ leading role as a watchdog for Big Tech companies.

Microsoft made some changes last year in an effort to head off an penalty, including offering the software packages without Teams for European customers. But the commission said Tuesday the changes are not enough to address its concerns and that it needs to do more to “restore competition.”

“Having unbundled Teams and taken initial interoperability steps, we appreciate the additional clarity provided today and will work to find solutions to address the Commission‘s remaining concerns.” Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a prepared statement.

In April, the company also gave customers worldwide the option to get Microsoft 365 and Office 365 without Teams. The two software suites include programs like Word, Excel and Outlook.

Microsoft now has a chance to respond to the accusations, formally known as a statement of objections, before the commission makes its final decision. The company could face a fine worth up to 10% of its annual global revenue, or be forced to carry out “remedies” to satisfy the competition concerns.

The commission opened its investigation in July 2023 after rival Slack Technologies, which makes popular workplace messagiёng software, filed a complaint with Brussels. Alfaview, which makes videoconferencing software, also filed a separate complaint.

Slack, owned by business software maker Salesforce, had alleged that Microsoft abused its market dominance to eliminate competition — in violation of EU laws.

“The Statement of Objections issued today by the European Commission is a win for customer choice and an affirmation that Microsoft’s practices with Teams have harmed competition,” Salesforce President Sabastian Niles said. “We appreciate the Commission’s thorough investigation of Slack’s complaint and urge the Commission to move towards a swift, binding, and effective remedy that restores free and fair choice and promotes competition, interoperability, and innovation in the digital ecosystem.”

(AP)

Bankruptcy Trustee Discloses Plan to Shut Down Alex Jones’ Infowars & Liquidate Assets

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Business - Bankruptcy Trustee article_1 — Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ media platform Inforwars will be shut down. Credit: AP

By: Dave Collins

A U.S. bankruptcy court trustee is planning to shut down conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ Infowars media platform and liquidate its assets to help pay the $1.5 billion in lawsuit judgments Jones owes for repeatedly calling the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting a hoax.

In an “emergency” motion filed Sunday in Houston, trustee Christopher Murray indicated publicly for the first time that he intends to “conduct an orderly wind-down” of the operations of Infowars’ parent company and “liquidate its inventory.” Murray, who was appointed by a federal judge to oversee the assets in Jones’ personal bankruptcy case, did not give a timetable for the liquidation.

Jones has been saying on his web and radio shows that he expects Infowars to operate for a few more months before it is shut down because of the bankruptcy. But he has vowed to continue his bombastic broadcasts in some other fashion, possibly on social media. He also had talked about someone else buying the company and allowing him to continue his shows as an employee.

Murray also asked U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez to put an immediate hold on the Sandy Hook families’ efforts to collect the massive amount Jones owes them. Murray said those efforts would interfere with his plans to close the parent company, Free Speech Systems in Austin, Texas, and sell off its assets — with much of the proceeds going to the families.

On Friday, lawyers for the parents of one of the 20 children killed in the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, asked a state judge in Texas to order Free Speech Systems, or FSS, to turn over to the families certain assets, including money in bank accounts, and garnish its accounts. Judge Maya Guerra Gamble approved the request, court records show, prompting Murray’s emergency motion.

The parents, Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, whose 6-year-old son, Jesse Lewis, was killed in the shooting, won a $50 million verdict in Texas over Jones’ lies about the shooting being a hoax staged by crisis actors with the goal of increasing gun control. In a separate Connecticut lawsuit, Jones was ordered to pay other Sandy Hook families more than $1.4 billion for defamation and emotional distress.

Referring to the families’ collection efforts, Murray said in the Sunday court filing that “The specter of a pell-mell seizure of FSS’s assets, including its cash, threatens to throw the business into chaos, potentially stopping it in its tracks, to the detriment” of his duties in Jones’ personal bankruptcy case.

“The Trustee seeks this Court’s intervention to prevent a value-destructive money grab and allow an orderly process to take its course,” Murray said.

Murray also asked the judge to clarify his authority over Jones’ bank accounts. As part of Jones’ personal bankruptcy case, his ownership rights of FSS were turned over to Murray. Jones has been continuing his daily broadcasts in the meantime.

It was not immediately clear when the bankruptcy judge would address Murray’s motion.

Bankruptcy lawyers for Jones, Heslin and Lewis did not immediately return messages seeking comment Monday.

Christopher Mattei, a lawyer for the Sandy Hook families in the Connecticut lawsuit, said they supported the trustee’s new motion. He also said the families were disappointed with the motion filed Friday in the Texas court by Heslin and Lewis, which he said would “undercut” an equitable distribution of Jones’ assets to all the families.

“This is precisely the unfortunate situation that the Connecticut (lawsuit) families hoped to avoid,” Mattei said.

(AP)

All Eyes Are on Nvidia’s Stock, So What’s Been Going On?

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Business - All Eyes article — A Nvidia building in Santa Clara, Calif. Credit: AP

By: Michelle Chapman

In the past few days, Nvidia’s shares have lost billions in market value and the chipmaker has slipped off its perch as the most valuable stock on Wall Street. But the concerns may be short lived.

Nvidia’s stock had been falling since it briefly overtook Microsoft as Wall Street’s most valuable last week, and it was down nearly 13% in just three days, its worst such stretch since 2022. The company’s $2.97 trillion market capitalization puts it behind Microsoft, at $3.34 trillion, and Apple, at $3.22 trillion.

Because Nvidia has become so massive in size, the movements for its stock carry extra weight on the S&P 500 and other indexes. It was the heaviest weight by far on the S&P 500 Monday.

Market watchers would rather there be more diversification, having concerns seeing just Nvidia and a handful of other companies responsible for much of the S&P 500’s returns recently. They would prefer a market where many stocks are participating in the gains.

There’s been nearly insatiable demand for Nvidia’s chips to power artificial intelligence applications and the company has played a big role in the U.S. stock market’s recent record runs even as the economy’s growth slows under the weight of high interest rates. But the AI boom is moving at such a rapid pace that it’s raised worries about a possible bubble in the stock market and too-high expectations among investors.

Still, investor concerns may be calming, as Nvidia Corp.’s stock is up more than 5% in trading on Tuesday. The rebound for Nvidia helped the Nasdaq composite rise and head toward its first gain in four days.

Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said in a statement that while Nvidia’s stock has declined in recent days, one must also look at the bigger picture.

“The shares have still gained 190% on a 12-month view, so it’s no surprise some investors are locking in some profits,” he said.

Nathan also isn’t concerned about potential wider spread implications. “Although Nvidia has sneezed, the wider market hasn’t caught a cold with a mixture of less extreme movements in both directions for the rest of the Magnificent 7,” he said.

The Magnificent 7, which include Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla, are a small group of stocks that are responsible for a big chunk of the U.S. stock market’s total return.

Investors may also be welcoming a better-than-expected consumer confidence reading and a solid job market. America’s employers added a strong 272,000 jobs last month, a sign that companies are still confident enough in the economy to keep hiring despite persistently high interest rates.

Long term, the market may remain upbeat on Nvidia’s prospects. Analysts estimate that the company’s revenue for the fiscal year that ends in January 2025 will reach $119.9 billion — about double its revenue for fiscal 2024 and more than four times its receipts the year before that.

(AP)

Tiny Implant Revolutionizes Treatment for Heart Failure Patients

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Travel - Tiny Implant article_1 — Fluid buildup occurs when the heart is no longer able to pump blood through the body properly (IMage:

By: Sara Miller

A groundbreaking way of measuring fluid buildup in the body allows chronic heart failure patients to monitor their condition and treat it independently with a physician-approved response.

Tel Aviv-based startup Vectorious has created a tiny pressure sensor that is implanted directly into the heart. It is the only sensor in the world that measures the pressure in the left atrium (one of the heart’s two upper chambers) and is able to identify increases in that pressure caused by a buildup of fluid in the body.

This data on the left atrial pressure (LAP) is then transmitted to an app for the patient and their doctor.

Fluid buildup occurs during heart failure deterioration and is caused when the heart can no longer effectively pump blood around the body. That fluid buildup, especially in the lungs, causes the pressure within the left atrium to increase – and it is this that Vectorious’ V-LAP device measures.

“With fluid overload, pretty much the entire system of the body starts to collapse, and the patient gets hospitalized again and again,” Gil Visokolov, Vectorious’ senior director of product, tells NoCamels.

Through the V-LAP, both the patient and the doctor can see increases in the pressure in the left atrium weeks before any other symptoms begin to manifest. The patient is equipped with a mobile app that instructs them on the doses of a diuretic to control their fluid levels.

This helps reduce the amount of fluid in the body, eases the pressure on the heart and and avoids heart failure deterioration and hospitalization.

Visokolov explains that cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the number one cause of hospitalization and death in the Western world, while heart failure is the greatest pandemic of cardiovascular diseases.

In fact, according to the World Health Organization, CVDs are the leading cause of death globally. It says that some 18 million people across the world died from CVD in 2019 – representing 32 percent of all global deaths for that year.

The V-LAP sensor is put in place via minimally invasive procedure, one of the standard ways of treating blood vessels and the heart and implanting devices into them.

The sensor has no battery and both receives its charge and sends its data via proprietary technology developed by Vectorious. This is carried out by the patient, who measures the pressure twice a day by putting on a belt-like device around their chest while the two processes are carried out, which Visokolov says takes a short time.

The data extracted from the device by the belt is then sent wirelessly to the patient’s mobile app that tells the dose of diuretic they should take. Should the pressure levels in the left atrium point to a buildup of fluid at a level that cannot be treated solely by taking the diuretic, the patient’s doctor is informed so that more significant steps can be taken.

“Instead of having the patient be hospitalized,” says Visokolov, “the V-LAP system will allow you to pinpoint the treatment and to pinpoint the fluid levels.”

The data and recommended treatment entirely rely on a physical reliable indicator – the LAP and the treatment plan supplied by physicians – without the use of artificial intelligence, he says, as the company decided to use actual diagnoses rather than predictive algorithms.

Visokolov explains that using the V-LAP device and the patient self-management concept significantly reduce the burden on the medical system and medical professionals, who are mostly already overburdened. This is because most of the time the patients manage themselves by monitoring their LAP and taking the appropriate diuretics, and the physician needs to intervene only as an exception.

This unique concept, which is based on the most accurate and reliable heart failure indication, can reduce the need for hospitalization as it acts as a preventative therapy.

“Heart specialists, very experienced physicians, and heart center nurses are dealing with chronic diseases,” he says. “They are overworked and overloaded.”

Indeed, Vectorious says that intervention in the early stages of LAP increase, before symptoms appear, can lead to a dramatic reduction in hospital readmissions for heart failure and better quality of life for the patients.

Heart failure patients taking charge of their own care, Visokolov says, is a “revolutionary” approach to CVDs.

“We see patients feel empowered, like they finally have a sense of control,” he says.

But not only does this method imbue the patient with a greater sense of control over their illness and as a result make them more likely to adhere to the testing regimen, he explains, it also helps with the emotional impact of being a heart failure patient.

“Heart failure, psychologically, is different to other diseases,” Visokolov says.

“It’s different to cancer that you fight against – you don’t fight against your heart. And it puts you in a very complex and emotional place.”

According to Visokolov, Vectorious is the only medtech company using LAP to measure fluid buildup due to heart failure. And this, he says, is largely due to the company’s unique technology and R&D.

The startup was founded in 2011 by Dr. Eyal Orion, a physician with experience of medical devices, and Oren Goldshtein, an electrical engineer, who both recognized the need for a way to easily measure LAP without catheterization.

And today the company has investors who appreciate the unique technology and its potential, Visokolov says, without identifying them.

He acknowledges that the technology could be transferable and used to diagnose and treat other diseases, but says that for now the focus is on CVD.

“The implantable sensors and our impact decisions mean that we’re not limited only to pressure sensing,” says Visokolov. “We have all the building blocks required to make the implantable sensor [for multiple purposes].”

The LAP sensor is currently in a clinical trial involving dozens of patients in Israel and Europe, with trials also starting soon in the US.

Visokolov says that the company has also gathered data from thousands of heart failure patients that they have been able to use to further understand the implications of left atrial pressure.

“Before Vectorious, it was mainly theory based on catheterization, which is done every time patients are hospitalized,” he says.

“Now we have this routine LAP data, which allows us to create a whole lot of science.”

(NoCamels.com)

How Nvidia Became an AI Giant

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Technology - How Nvidia article — Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang speaks at the Computex 2024 exhibition in Taiwan. Nvidia passed Microsoft to become the most valuable company in the S&P 500. Credit: AP

By: Sarah Parvini

It all started at a Denny’s in San Jose in 1993.

Three engineers — Jensen Huang, Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem — gathered at the diner in what is now the heart of Silicon Valley to discuss building a computer chip that would make graphics for video games faster and more realistic. That conversation, and the ones that followed, led to the founding of Nvidia, the tech company that soared through the ranks of the stock market to briefly top Microsoft as the most valuable company in the S&P 500 this week.

The company is now worth over $3.2 trillion, with its dominance as a chipmaker cementing Nvidia’s place as the poster child of the artificial intelligence boom — a moment that Huang, Nvidia’s CEO, has dubbed “the next industrial revolution.”

On a conference call with analysts last month, Huang predicted that the companies using Nvidia chips would build a new type of data center called “AI factories.”

Huang added that training AI models is becoming a faster process as they learn to become “multimodal” — able to understand text, speech, images, video and 3-D data — and also “to reason and plan.”

“People kind of talk about AI as if Jensen just kind of arrived like in the last 18 months, like 24 months ago all of a sudden figured this out,” said Daniel Newman, CEO of The Futurum Group, a tech research firm. “But if you actually go back in time and listen to Jensen talking about accelerated computing, he’s been sharing his vision for more than a decade.”

The Santa Clara, California-based tech company’s invention of the graphics processor unit, or GPU, in 1999 helped spark the growth of the PC gaming market and redefined computer graphics. Now Nvidia’s specialized chips are key components that help power different forms of artificial intelligence, including the latest generative AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.

Nvidia’s GPUs are a key factor in the company’s success in artificial intelligence, Newman added.

“They took an architecture that was used for a single thing, to maybe enhance gaming, and they figured out how to network these things,” he said. “The GPU became the most compelling architecture for AI, going from gaming, rendering graphics and stuff, to actually using it for data. … They basically ended up creating a market that didn’t exist, which was GPUs for AI, or GPUs for machine learning.”

AI chips are designed to perform artificial intelligence tasks faster and more efficiently. While general-purpose chips like CPUs can also be used for simpler AI tasks, they’re “becoming less and less useful as AI advances,” a 2020 report from Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology found.

Tech giants are snapping up Nvidia chips as they wade deeper into AI — a movement that’s enabling cars to drive by themselves, and generating stories, art and music.

“Jensen basically has made AI digestible and then Apple will make it consumable,” Newman said.

The company carved out an early lead in the hardware and software needed to tailor its technology to AI applications, partly because Huang nudged it into what was still a nascent technology more than a decade ago.

(AP)

High Stress Resiliency Linked to Specific Types of Gut Microbes and Metabolites: Study

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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Health - High Stress article — A new study came out on Friday in Nature Mental Health reveals new evidence that the gut and brain work together to build resilience to stress. Credit: nivati.com/blog

A distinct microbial phenotype was associated with more positive psychosocial traits, revealing a gut-brain connection that could help cope with stress.

By: Amy Denney

A new study came out on Friday in Nature Mental Health reveals new evidence that the gut and brain work together to build resilience to stress, contributing to a growing body of research that suggests the gut is a possible pathway to help prevent or minimize stress-related psychiatric conditions.

Specifically, a high-resilience phenotype of the gut microbiome was identified based on a mix of microbes and metabolites that had anti-inflammatory and gut-barrier integrity features. This phenotype was associated with lower levels of anxiety and depression.

Besides looking at the traits of the microbiome, the study used clinical and psychological assessment tools and MRIs that examined structural and functional roles of the brain. The study included 116 healthy participants, 18 to 60 years old.

The main finding suggests that “the microbiome is critical in shaping resilience” and modifying the gut microbiome “can optimize mental health.”

Understanding Stress

Arpana Church, lead author of the study and associate professor at UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, told The Epoch Times that deep-diving into the relationships stress has with the body can help prevent or mitigate mental and physical ailments.

Not only that, stress is an inevitable part of the human experience, she said, noting that 77 percent of Americans have physical symptoms related to stress and 33 percent report extreme stress.

The study also notes that stress leads to an annual loss of $300 billion in health care expenses and missed work in the United States.

“What really makes the study unique is often we focus on stress, or we focus on the negative or we focus on the disease group,” said Ms. Church, who is also co-director of the Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center.

“Usually in medicine, we really focus on disease, how to cure disease, how to better understand the underlying mechanism of disease, and what I wanted to do was flip the script.”

This study focused instead on health and the microbiome characteristics of resilient people.

Resiliency Equates to Health

The differences in microbes and metabolites between high-resilience and low-resilience individuals were distinct in the study. High resiliency was associated with biomarkers indicating better gut barrier integrity, lower depression and anxiety psychopathology, higher cognitive function, less gray matter volume in the brain, and increased functional circuitry in the brain.

Compromised or weakened gut barrier, sometimes called “leaky gut,” is being considered as a potential factor in a number of chronic diseases. Dysbiosis, or an imbalance of gut microbes, is associated with chronic diseases and inflammation.

Analysis of the gut microbiome in the high-resilience individuals noted increased levels of microbes and metabolites that are:

Better at environmental adaptation

Able to replicate and repair DNA

Better at carbohydrate and energy metabolism

Anti-inflammatory

Ms. Church said in terms of psychosocial traits, the high-resilient individuals were also more non-judgmental, easy-going, kind, extroverted, and mindful. They had lower levels of perceived stress and also low levels of neuroticism.

She described the relationship between the gut and brain like a car with working brakes.

“If you have great working brakes, you’re able to modulate or control the situation, have emotional regulation and cognitive response,” she said. “And they had gut bacteria and metabolites associated with reduced inflammation and better gut barrier integrity.”

Clinical Implications

The findings may lead to new approaches in mental health. Resiliency has traditionally been perceived as a psychological trait related to a person’s agency, will, mental grit, and ability to use cognitive strategies, Vanessa Ruiz explained.

Ms. Ruiz told The Epoch Times in an email interview that using such strategies to improve resiliency requires metabolic energy and examining stress as resiliency more holistically will help practitioners and patients. Ms. Ruiz is a naturopathic doctor and national speaker on adverse childhood experiences who teaches at Rewire Trauma Therapy.

“Stress is a hypermetabolic state, suggesting that resilience may be linked to a state of metabolic endurance during stressful times,” Ms. Ruiz said. “The role of the microbiome in adapting to these changes is particularly exciting.”

“This study … offers a more holistic perspective on resilience adaptations, emphasizing the dynamic interplay between the microbiome, neuroplasticity, and stress adaptations,” she continued. “Although this doesn’t provide causality, it can help to elucidate a relationship to stress resiliency.”

It makes sense, Ms. Ruiz explained, that someone suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) would lose physical and psychological adaptation, which would naturally show up as a loss of resilience. Previous studies have also shown a loss of gut microbial diversity in those suffering from PTSD.

Gut microbiota are responsible for making metabolites, including neurotransmitters like serotonin and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) that are involved in stress-related psychopathology.

“Most people don’t realize how much impact the gut has on our brain and specifically the way we produce mood-modulating neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin,” said Chelsea Blackbird, a nutritionist and co-owner of The School of Christian Health and Nutrition. “These important hormones help govern the way we feel and handle stress. Good gut health supports good mental health.”

Ms. Blackbird told The Epoch Times in an email that often when she works with clients who are seeking help for gut health, they also note an improvement in brain health like better cognition, clarity, and mood.

“People don’t normally associate their gut health with their mental health but it is often a root cause of anxiety, depression, poor focus, and other mental conditions. Many people are able to avoid pharmaceutical prescriptions for these issues once they restore a healthy gut microbiome,” she said.

Hope for the Future

Ms. Church noted that in the future, gut-boosting strategies—like probiotics, prebiotics, other supplements, and diet—could be used for treating mental health states in the same way we advise one another to take vitamin C when we feel a cold coming on.

“It [the study] has implications for how we can boost resilience because all these things are changeable, manipulatable,” she said. “It’s not like you have cancer, and that’s it. You can actually implement a lot of things that can boost these brain and gut microbiome and behavioral variables.”

Because of the bi-directional relationship, brain-boosting strategies may also be helpful for gut health.

“We can focus on stress tolerance and the burden of stress on these body systems. Maybe on the brain level, thinking about resilience training, mindfulness, or just being kind or non-judgmental,” Ms. Church said.

She also advocates for a diet that:

Is high in fiber

Includes probiotics

Minimizes artificial sweeteners, processed foods, and added sugars

Is balanced and diverse

“We don’t need to go on any diets. We just need to add 30 different diverse fruits and vegetables per week to our diet. I think that would really help boost a good, healthy gut microbiome and support optimal brain functioning and even well-being,” Ms. Church said.

Going forward, she said researchers are working on clinical trials that will test diet interventions, probiotics and prebiotics, and brain-directed therapies.

“Looking at ways we can manipulate the brain and the gut microbiome to prevent disease—or at least slow down progression—will be huge in the future but also will empower people to implement these on their own,” Ms. Church said.

(TheEpochTimes.com)

How New Yorkers Can Stay Safe During a Heat Wave – Important Directives from NYC Emergency Management

By

Sholom Schreirber

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06/26/2024

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FOR E-MAIL BLAST - How New Yorkers article - pic 1 — Zachary Iscol, the Commissioner of NYC Emergency Management. Iscol has led in settings ranging from combat operations in Iraq to the frontlines of COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Sandy here in New York. His experience includes building a pioneering nonprofit mental healthcare provider, leading one of the premiere military journalism outlets, and serving as a strong advocate for immigrants and underserved communities . Credit: newpolitics.org

By: Fern Sidman

On a recent visit to the downtown Brooklyn headquarters of the New York City Emergency Management agency, The Jewish Voice had the unique opportunity to tour its expansive operations division and to meet with their highly experienced staff. To say that the Big Apple is prepared for any kind of emergency, whether it be climactic, political or internationally oriented would be a gross understatement. When one enters the cavernous facility and witnesses the very place where on-the-spot decisions are made to safeguard all New Yorkers, one is left beyond awestruck.

Assisting us throughout the tour were Aries Dela Cruz, the Executive Director of Public Information and Ira Tannenbaum, the Assistant Commissioner for Public/Private Initiatives. The seemingly infinite amount of knowledge that they imparted was exceptionally invaluable and their warm reception was very much appreciated.

Command center at New York City Emergency Management.

The Jewish Voice also had the wonderful opportunity to speak with Zachary Iscol, the Commissioner of NYC Emergency Management.

A crisis tested leader, Zachary Iscol has led in settings ranging from combat operations in Iraq to the frontlines of COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Sandy here in New York. His experience includes building a pioneering nonprofit mental healthcare provider, leading one of the premiere military journalism outlets, and serving as a strong advocate for immigrants and underserved communities. Two of his former commanding officers cited him as the officer they would personally select to lead their sons into combat.

Over the past decade, Iscol has built and led businesses and a nonprofit mental healthcare provider, the Headstrong Project. The Headstrong Project now cares for over 1,000 veterans a week in 30+ cities and counting to provide world-class, cost, and bureaucracy free mental healthcare veterans and service members need to recover from hidden wounds and get back to the best versions of themselves.

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, Iscol led over 40 federal, state, and city agencies as the deputy director of Joint New York Medical Station, one of the largest and only successful COVID field hospitals in the country.

Iscol told The Jewish Voice, “The role of ethnic and community media in covering the activities and initiatives of the New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) is so important because your position in the media landscape enables you to reach diverse audiences that mainstream outlets may not always connect with effectively. This ability to communicate crucial information to a wide range of communities is vital, especially in a city as diverse as New York.”

As summer has arrived and the mercury rises, New Yorkers are naturally concerned about heat related matters and personal health issues.

The New York City Office of Emergency Management replaced the former OEM headquarters destroyed on September 11, 2001. The 65,000 square foot building includes a new 100 person Emergency Operations Center, Watch Command, Situation Room, General Office space and a Press and Conference Center. Credit: smwllc.com

Commissioner Iscol told the Jewish Voice that, “It is important for New Yorkers to plan ahead to stay safe during extreme heat in the upcoming summer months. High temperatures can be dangerous, especially for vulnerable populations including older adults and individuals with chronic medical conditions.”

Health studies have shown that at these extreme temperatures people will chronic illnesses, older New Yorkers, and those without access to air conditioners suffer the greatest impacts, sometimes deadly.

Iscol added that NYC follows the guidelines set by the NYC DOHMH from findings of their Heat Vulnerability Index study. Studies have showed that at a heat index of 95 or higher is when NYC sees more health impacts from heat.

As was explained to The Jewish Voice, the Heat Vulnerability Index (HVI) shows neighborhoods whose residents are more at risk for dying during and immediately following extreme heat. It uses a statistical model to summarize the most important social and environmental factors that contribute to neighborhood heat risk.

The first heat plan was implemented in 2000 under the leadership of Mayor Rudy Giuliani while NYCEM was part of the Mayor’s office.

The City has various resources and programs available to help New Yorkers beat the heat during the summer months. New Yorkers can visit www.nyc.gov/beattheheat for more information or call 311 to find the nearest center.

NYCEM and its partners have over 500 cooling centers, 464 are accessible, and 16 are pet friendly for New Yorkers to find relief from the heat.

Iscol added that, “Our partners are libraries, senior centers and any community space that is free for anyone to enter. We rely on our public officials and partners to respond to our survey on Share Your Space.”

NYC Emergency Management in downtown Brooklyn is the agency that is responsible for coordinating citywide emergency planning and response for all types and scales of emergencies. It is staffed by more than 200 dedicated professionals with diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise, including individuals assigned from other City agencies. Credit: nyc.gov

In terms of other climate related emergencies, Commissioner Iscol spoke at great length about the devastating impact of hurricane season. Most New Yorkers still have vivid but horrifying memories of Superstorm Sandy that hit the area on October 22, 2012.

He told The Jewish Voice that, “the Atlantic Hurricane Season starts June 1st and we strongly encourage New Yorkers to take steps for this hurricane season. While New York is most at risk for tropical storms and hurricanes from August to October, the City plans and prepares year-round for coastal storms.”

NYC Emergency Management encourages residents to take three key steps to prepare for hurricane season:

KNOW YOUR ZONE – The City is divided into six hurricane evacuation zones (1 through 6) and about 3 million New Yorkers live in these zones. New Yorkers can find out what zone they’re in by calling 311 or visiting nyc.gov/knowyourzone.

The City will issue evacuation orders when/if necessary starting with the most vulnerable locations (Zone 1).

Commissioner Iscol added that NYC Emergency Management also expanded its outreach efforts on residents in hurricane evacuation zones, providing hundreds of presentations in hurricane evacuation zones and mailing hurricane guides to New York City residents and businesses in all the city’s hurricane evacuation zones.

Knowing your hurricane evacuation zone in advance can prevent stress and evacuation delays in the event that you are asked to evacuate due to an incoming hurricane or coastal storm.

If you must evacuate ask friends or relatives outside your evacuation zone boundaries if you can stay with them. Make sure that your friends and family are not located in an evacuation zone.

The City has various resources and programs available to help New Yorkers beat the heat during the summer months. New Yorkers can visit www.nyc.gov/beattheheat for more information or call 311 to find the nearest center. Credit: NYCEM – X.com

STAY INFORMED – New Yorkers can sign up for Notify NYC to receive free emergency alerts and updates in their preferred language by visiting NYC.gov/notifynyc, calling 311, following @NotifyNYC on Twitter, or getting the free Notify NYC mobile application for their Apple or Android device. Notify NYC messages are available in 14 languages, including English, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Italian, Korean, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Urdu, Yiddish, and American Sign Language (ASL) video format.

Starting last year, the city provided life-safety messaging specifically to Notify NYC subscribers who registered for the new group for those living in basement and/or cellar apartments. (More than 800 New Yorkers have registered for the basement group).

Since its inception, Notify NYC has sent out over 24,306 messages and has grown to over 1.2 million subscribers.

The Notify NYC team operates inside NYCEM’s Watch Command which is open 24/7 days a week. Watch Command monitors agency communications systems citywide and is designed to keep track of multiple sources of information pertaining to emergency situations in the 5 boroughs of the City of New York.

The service started as a pilot program in December 2007 in four neighborhoods. It went citywide in May 2009 to communicate localized emergency information quickly to city residents.

Normally, you can begin subscribing to Notify NYC by going to nyc.gov/notify. New Yorkers are now able to sign up for the highest-priority, verified alerts across all five boroughs with a brand-new SMS opt-in feature — allowing people to sign up for Notify NYC alerts in their preferred language by texting “NOTIFYNYC,” “NOTIFYNYCESP” (Spanish), or “NOTIFYNYCFRE” (French) to 692-692. With no mobile application download or email setup, this new capability makes it easier than ever for residents to stay informed and safe.

Commissioner Iscol added that, “We are continuously learning, adapting, and empowering our residents to take control of their safety. We are evolving as a city that stays informed, stays prepared, and above all, stays resilient — one alert at a time.”

MAKE A PLAN – Have a plan before the storm arrives to help keep you and your family safe. Know what to do, where to go, how to find each other, and how to communicate if a hurricane strikes. Everyone should have a plan that best suits their needs. If you live in an evacuation zone, have a plan for where you will go if an evacuation order is issued for your area. New Yorkers can find resources to help them develop an emergency plan by visiting NYC.gov/ReadyNY

“The City understands how vulnerable the city can be are to the effects of climate change. In response to these risks, we are implementing bold, comprehensive strategies to advance interim and long-term measures that will protect and reinforce the city’s coastal areas. These robust plans safeguard our communities against the growing threat of our changing environment, “ Commissioner Iscol added.

The IFPM program was established in 2016 to protect critical facilities, infrastructure, and low-lying areas in New York City from flooding caused by a hurricane.

IFPM was designed with the goal of protecting the area from the impacts of storm surge. NYC Emergency Management led the project, with support from the New York City Mayor’s Office of Climate Resiliency and the Department of Design and Construction. The project team also includes the NYC Department of Transportation, Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Economic Development Corporation, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

“The City continues to explore additional critical temporary resiliency projects as we move ahead with permanent solutions, “ said Commissioner Iscol.

He added that, “The terrible flooding and loss of life we experienced with Ida was unprecedented. As a rain event, it brought 5-10 inches of rain over three hours and overwhelmed the city’s infrastructure. We are increasing messaging in the areas of mandatory evacuations, travel bans, and update early warning systems.

“We have already created basement specific messaging and alerts for residents. Our agency does extensive outreach to communities through various programs and initiatives that outline steps on how to be prepared.

We hired a third-party forecasting service to provide additional weather forecast information as a result of the recommendations outlined in the Extreme Weather Task Force report created under the previous administration. We are also in constant communication with the National Weather Service and our in-house meteorologist to keep an eye on the weather.

Our messaging includes having a plan, staying informed, family and home preparedness educational campaigns, as well as in-person and virtual events.”

Squad Member Jamaal Bowman Loses in Most Expensive House Primary in History

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TJV news

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06/26/2024

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New York - Bowman Excuses article — Rep. Jamaal Bowman (N.Y.) is excusing the basketball players who hurled anti-Semitic slurs at their Jewish opponents. Credit: AP

Bradley Jaye

Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s (D-NY) career in Congress will end after a single term following a series of antisemitic controversies and a Capitol stunt resulting in his criminal conviction.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer defeated Bowman Tuesday night in the most expensive House race in history. AdImpact estimated the two camps spent a total of $23 million on the Democrat primary, according to filings compiled by OpenSecrets.

The race was called for Latimer less than a half hour after polls closed.

“I’m not supposed to fight back? We gonna show them, who the fk we are!” Spoke Rep. Bowman along with Rep AOC and Bernie Sanders at a rally in the Bronx as Pro-palestine protesters chant to disrupt the rally.

Video by Ed Quinn [email protected] to license pic.twitter.com/0UmNJN7FQs

— Oliya Scootercaster 🛴 (@ScooterCasterNY) June 22, 2024

The primary in New York’s 16th Congressional District centered around a referendum on Israel-Palestinian policy and drew significant national attention. Bowman, the progressive former middle school principal and member of “The Squad,” represented the insurgent Hamas sympathizer wing of the Democrat Party, while Latimer, supported by the pro-Israel lobby, condemned Hamas’s attack on Israel.

Bowman opposes Israel’s military operations in Gaza, while Latimer has not called for a ceasefire but supports a two-state solution.

AOC and Jaamal Bowman exhibit bizarre behavior as Bowman campaigns for reelection in the Bronx.

“Ceasefire now y’all. That’s what we’re doing. Ceasefire now. Let’s get it poppin.” pic.twitter.com/NzNOf1d6GM

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) June 22, 2024

Additionally, Bowman had denied Hamas raped women during the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel (he apologized under immense political pressure) and ridiculed another House member for hosting Jewish leaders, among other instances, which drew accusations of antisemitism.

Those were not the only controversies to overwhelm Bowman.

Jamaal Bowman pleaded guilty in October 2023 to one misdemeanor for falsely pulling a fire alarm in a congressional office building a month prior, just as lawmakers were about to vote on a short-term government funding measure to avoid a government shutdown.

Watch: Security Video Shows Democrat Jamaal Bowman Take Down Warning Signs, Pull Fire Alarm

U.S. Capitol Police

He had faced six months jail time, but in a plea deal, he agreed to pay a $1,000 fine and write an apology to Capitol Police.

Bowman claimed at the time he had pulled the fire alarm because he was trying to open emergency doors in order to go vote. However, Breitbart News first broke exclusively that Bowman threw emergency warning signs to the floor before pulling the alarm and running down a set of stairs before exiting the building from another floor, contradicting his claims.

Bowman hosted fellow Squad member and New York delegation compatriot Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Ortez (D-NY) as well as progressive icon Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in a bizarre and profane campaign rally the weekend before the primary.

It was not enough.

Bowman is expected to continue serving out his term until January 2025.

Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.

Chaos in Kenya: TikTok-Fueled Protests Turn Deadly as Protesters Storm Parliament, Police Tear-Gas Cathedral

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TJV news

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06/26/2024

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Kenya's President William Ruto speaks at a flag-handover ceremony for members from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), ahead of their future deployment to eastern Congo as part of the newly-created East African Community Regional Force (EACRF), at the Embakasi garrison in Nairobi, Kenya Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022. Kenya is sending more than 900 military personnel to eastern Congo to join a new regional force trying to calm deadly tensions fueled by armed groups that have led to a diplomatic crisis between Congo and neighboring Rwanda. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

John Hayward (Breitbart)

At least five people were killed and 30 wounded in Kenya on Tuesday when anti-tax protesters attempted to storm Parliament and police responded by firing live ammunition.

Kenyans have been protesting for weeks against a proposed finance bill packed with tax increases, including taxes on everything from bread to car insurance. Some of the more onerous provisions of the bill were dropped amid the protests, but President William Ruto insisted major tax increases were still necessary to balance the budget, while protesters vowed to keep marching until the entire bill was withdrawn.

Chaos erupted in Nairobi on Tuesday as lawmakers voted to pass the finance bill. Thousands of protesters surged against the parliament building, parting only to allow legislators who voted against the bill to depart from the premises in peace.

Watch videos:

The protesters managed to force their way past police cordons and enter the parliament building. Fires broke out in parliament and in the nearby Nairobi City Hall. Heavy clouds of tear gas wreathed the buildings, and then shots rang out.

At least five fatalities were reported, although some accounts said ten or more people could be dead from gunshot wounds. Journalists on the scene reported that most of the injured appeared to be young men.

Watch video:

Nairobi’s Kenyatta National Hospital reported receiving 45 injured demonstrators, seven of them female. One of the activists struck by tear gas on Tuesday was Auma Obama, the 64-year-old sister of former U.S. President Barack Obama.

“I’m here because, look at what’s happening. Young Kenyans are demonstrating for their rights. They are demonstrating with flags and banners,” Obama said, just as tear gas enveloped her live on camera during a CNN interview.

Watch video:

Kenya Red Cross said on Tuesday that its vehicles were attacked, and some of its staffers and drivers were injured, while it tried to provide “live-saving interventions” to the wounded.

Kenya Red Cross did not identify the attackers, but other reports from the scene said some protesters were attacking ambulances because they thought members of parliament who voted for the tax bill were being smuggled inside of them. Many of the pro-tax legislators reportedly huddled in the basement of the parliament building for safety and were later evacuated through a tunnel.

President Ruto said in a televised address on Tuesday that he was deploying military forces to “provide a full, effective, and expeditious response to today’s treasonous events.”

Ruto vowed that his administration “shall treat every threat to national security and the integrity of our state as an existential danger to our republic.”

Kenya’s President William Ruto speaks in Nairobi, Kenya, on November 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Ruto said the protests had been infiltrated by “criminals” and “hijacked by dangerous people.”

“It is not in order or even conceivable that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives and the institutions established under our constitution and expect to go scot-free. I hereby put on notice the planners, financiers, orchestrators, abetters of violence and anarchy,” he said.

Opposition politicians called on Ruto to “do the honorable thing” and “resign” after the terrible events on Tuesday, or at least withdraw the controversial finance bill.

“I am disturbed at the murders, arrests, detentions and surveillance being perpetrated by police on boys and girls who are only seeking to be heard over taxation policies that are stealing both their present and future,” said opposition leader Raila Odinga.

Former president Uhuru Kenyatta wrote an open letter to Kenyans and their government, urging the leadership to “embrace dialogue and speak to the people, not at the people.”

“Leaders must know that power and authority they have is donated to them by the people,” Kenyatta declared.

A privately-owned TV station called KTN TV said it was threatened with closure by the government unless it stopped reporting on the protests, a demand the station refused. KTN reported that clergy inside the All Saints Cathedral, which offered itself as a makeshift medical facility for injured protesters, witnessed police tear-gassing the inside of the house of worship.

Watch video:

Internet monitors reported a “major disruption to internet connectivity in Kenya,” possibly caused by the government to keep protesters from coordinating their activities via TikTok, which is extremely popular in Kenya.

Human rights groups denounced the Kenyan police for brutalizing protesters, while a group of diplomatic missions from 13 countries – including the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada — issued a statement that said they were “deeply concerned” by the violence.

“We are especially shocked by the scenes witnessed outside the Kenyan Parliament. We regret the tragic loss of life and injuries sustained including by the use of live fire,” the statement said.

“We welcome civic engagement by all Kenyans, in particular the youth, in addressing issues of vital public concern. We call for restraint on all sides, and encourage all leaders to find peaceful solutions through constructive dialogue,” the statement concluded.

The Biden White House appealed for calm as it grappled with another foreign policy disaster. President Joe Biden formally named Kenya as a major non-NATO ally of the United States just hours before Kenyan police opened fire on protesters.

Biden promised the upgrade in relations to Ruto when the Kenyan president visited Washington last month, a splashy event hailed as the first state visit to the White House by an African leader in 16 years. Among the honors Ruto received was a White House state dinner with a celebrity guest list that included Barack Obama, whose sister would go on to be tear-gassed by Ruto’s police on Tuesday.

Biden’s close embrace of Ruto was due in no small part to the Kenyan president’s unflagging determination to send hundreds of Kenyan police to intervene in Haiti, despite public opposition back home, logistical problems in Haiti, and a Kenyan Supreme Court ruling that he lacked the constitutional authority to deploy police on foreign soil.

After almost a year of delays, Kenyan police officers finally arrived in Haiti on Tuesday, the vanguard of a multinational intervention force that is eventually slated to include 1,000 Kenyan police plus at least 1,500 officers from other countries.

Cotton Calls for ‘Immediate Action’ by Biden, Garland After LA Synagogue Attack

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TJV news

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06/26/2024

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Op-Ed - The Illberal Crusade article - pic 4 — Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) spoke for many when he posted on X that he believed that citizens who are being obstructed by pro-Hamas demonstrators should “take matters into your own hands to get them out of the way.” He then added another post with a video of someone roughly hauling leftists out of a street where they had laid down to halt traffic to show their sympathy for “Palestine.” Credit: AP

(JNS) – Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) sent a letter to U.S. President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland urging a federal response to the violence that occurred on Sunday at the Adas Torah synagogue in Los Angeles.

“I write urging immediate action against a pro-Hamas mob’s recent assault on a Jewish community,” Cotton wrote on Tuesday. “The mob attacked Jews with bear spray, beat a man until his face and shirt were covered in blood, and chanted ‘intifada revolution.’”

Noting that the anti-Israel activists had announced their plans in advance and that members of the synagogue had requested police protection, the senator wrote that “city officials allowed the mob to grow out of control.” Cotton cited reports noting that “elected officials even told the Los Angeles Police Department to stand down initially, with police sent to intervene only after violence broke out.”

Pointing to the spring demonstrations on college campuses throughout the United States, Cotton challenged the Biden administration, saying its inaction had “emboldened these extremists to escalate their attacks.”

He called on the U.S. Department of Justice and federal law enforcement to “take immediate action to protect the Jewish community and prosecute these mobs.”

The Arkansas senator concluded with a demand for information by July 1, wanting to know if the DOJ had received advanced warning of the protests; if the case had been referred to the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division; and whether the DOJ would investigate “whether outside groups are funding and organizing these violent outbursts.”

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