Rav Elyakim Levanon, rav of the Shomron, has issued a psak stating that rice cakes from the company "Better and Different" can be eaten on pesach even by Ashkenazim and are not considered kitniyot.

Kitniyot is always a controversial topic, and nowadays we consider as kitniyot many things that were never before considered as such. The debates renew every year in the days leading up to pesach, and this psak is definitely unique and will not be accepted by many.

It should be stressed that Rav Levanon is only referring to the rice cakes made by Better and Different company, and not rice cakes of other companies.

Rav Levanon explains that he visited the factory and inspected the process of manufacture. From the moment the rice kernels leave the sacks until they are puffed, they do not come into any contact with water. As well, the rice is sifted and inspected. Rav Levanon sys that if you consider the Ashkenazi poskim's opinions on kitniyot and their concerns, this manufacturing process raises no questions or concerns about kitniyot. And, he adds, even those who prohibit, did not prohibit rice like this.

The rice cakes are labeled kosher for Pesach for those who eat kitniyot, but, according to Rav Levanon, even people who do not eat kitniyot on Pesach can eat them.
source: Kipa

I definitely won't be eating these rice cakes on Pesach, but I dont eat rice cakes all year round either.

What I do not understand from what he says is that even those who prohibit do not prohibit this rice. Why not? Did they differentiate in types of rice? If rice is kitniyot and prohibited, who cares how much you sift it or keep it away from water? And if keeping it away form water and sifting is good enough to circumvent the custom against eating kitniyot, why not eat many other forms of kitniyot that are banned, as long as you sift it and inspect it and keep it away from water?

that's Dean Cain, actor that played Superman, visiting Israel and posing with Mayor of Jerusalem Nir "Batman" Barkat..

It’s good that the Ashkenazim received the Sephardim and not the other way around, because otherwise they’d have set up another Arab country in the Middle East. If the Sephardim had come first, this would be another crappy kingdom. The country's Sephardim and Mizrahim should look in the mirror. How many universities were there in Morocco? What did we know about the developed world? How much technology was there in Morocco? When you move cultures, the first and second generation pay the price. You can’t get away from that. The price is justified, and I understand it. In exchange, we received independence and democracy.

  -- former mayor of Sderot Eli Moyal

it should be noted that Moyal himself is Sefardi. I don't know that that makes a difference, as he is now being called a racist by many.

Wars used to be fought manually, soldier to soldier. Front line troops were often referred to as cannon fodder, as the masses of soldiers were thrown at an enemy force, and had to suffer the barrage of arrows and cannon balls of the opposing forces.

The Peleg Yerushalmi people have been holding relatively violent protests for the past few years, protesting yeshiva boys AWOL from the army having been arrested, along with protesting the rules and requirements to obtain a deferral or exemption from the army.

Questions have been raised as to why these protests are heavily attended by the yeshiva boys, but the rabbonim themselves do not attend, despite their statements as to the importance of the protests.

Kikar checked with the rabbonim of the Peleg and came back with the following answers from Rav Deutsch.

Rav Deutsch responded that if the protests would be not just masses of people milling about the streets screaming but would have "a mizrach" and a podium, that would be a different story and perhaps the rabbonim would participate, but just to wander around in a hafgana among everyone else?

Further, should the rabbonim be there and be running away from the skunk smells sprayed at the protesters? Protests are important, I am not flippant about them [but they aren't for the rabbonim].

Rav Bordianski added that it would be a legal problem for the rabbonim to participate, as the protests they hold are illegal. The rabbonim calling to protest would be in legal trouble, and Rav Shmuel Auerbach as well was very careful to say things in certain ways to avoid saying anything illegal that can be pinned on rabbonim.

1. Rav Deutsch is basically saying the boys are cannon fodder. The rabbis should go and mingle among the regular protesters? pas nisht, even though the protesters are their own talmidim and are being mekadesh shem shamayim, in their opinion.

2. If they gave us a podium and a "mizrach" to sit on? So make one,. You are the one arranging the protest, so arrange it with a podium and speeches by rabbonim instead of sending yeshiva boys out to streets without direction and guidance.

3. Legal issues? haha. so it is all a game. they tailor their words carefully so other people can get in trouble for following their instructions but they themselves cant get in trouble. Again, cannon fodder.

Rav Avraham Yehoshua Soloveitchik, an esteemed rosh yeshiva of a very prestigious yeshiva, had an interesting thing to say in response to a speech given by an American rosh yeshiva about issues, especially issues of learning secular education, in yeshivas in Eretz Yisrael.

The entire speech can be read on Behadrei, and is very interesting, if you can manage it.

The main points of what he said, that I want to comment on is when he compared the young men learning in Eretz Yisrael to the young men learning in the USA.

 * Rav Soloveitchik basically said that the problems in the yeshivas in USA are much worse and the rosh yeshivas there should really worry about their problems there and not worry so much about the issues in yeshivas in Eretz Yisrael.

I don't disagree with this, though really anyone can talk about whatever they want. If one is going to use Rav Soloveitchik's model of each person only discussing his own problems and not commenting on issues of other places, that really goes both ways and rabbonim in Eretz Yisrael should then not mix in with issues in the Diaspora, and rabbonim of the Diaspora should not get involved in affairs of Eretz Yisrael. This is like the debate of whether or not Jews abroad can comment on the political/economical/defense/etc situations in Israel. Personally I think we are all connected and can talk about the various issues, but I get that some say otherwise, but if that's what you believe it should go in both directions.

 * Rav Sloveitchik further compared the two saying that in the USA in yeshiva high schools boys learn secular studies along with kodesh, and in some higher yeshivas they can go to university at night and get an academic degree. In the USA, everyone is looking for a wife with a degree, and without a degree she is not worth anything. Whereas in Eretz Yisrael avreichim learn many years after they marry, while in the USA after 3 years they go out to work, and once they do you can never tell that they had previously been in yeshiva.

It is increasingly common that yeshiva guys and avreichim stay in yeshiva and kollel much longer than they used to in the USA, especially in places like Lakewood, but also in many yeshivas around the USA. As well, many go to Israel to learn for a few years and then go back to learn for some more years there, so I am not sure how correct he is about this as a rule. Perhaps among the less "charedi/yeshivish" he is more correct. His issue with how the guys look and act after leaving yeshiva also seems relevant more for [some of] the Modern Orthodox or perhaps for the religiously weaker boys, and less for the yeshivish. Nowadays you can find guys after yeshiva in the workforce who still dress and at just like they did in yeshiva.

He really should be comparing apples and apples, and not apples and oranges.

 *  The best of America does not reach the worst of Eretz Yisrael. If the bochurim of America would stay in the USA and not come to learn in Israel, the spiritual status here in Eretz Yisrael would be much better.

Wow. So much here. First of all, in torah learning, I think he is probably right - the best of America, as a rule (with exceptions) is not as good as the learning in Israel. I dont know that they dont reach the worst of Israel - I think they are far better than that, but the level of torah learning in Israeli yeshivas, as a rule, is generally much higher.

If the boys of America would not come to Israel, many yeshivas in Israel would not exist, possibly including his own. Rav Soloveitchik's yeshiva, along with many in the same category of yeshiva, is made up almost entirely of American yeshiva boys coming to learn in Israel for a few years. If they are no good, what does that say about his yeshiva and others like it? If they ruin the spirituality of Israel, what does that say about his yeshiva? If they should not come, he might as well close his doors and encourage his potential talmidim to stay away. Unless, again, he is talking about everyone but the type of guy who would go to his his yeshiva.

And that's not even taking into account how the financial standing of many Israeli yeshivas would be affected, without the tuition and donations from parents and relatives who take an interest in the Israeli yeshivas only because their kids and friends kids learn there.

Someone asked Rav Aviner if he can continue learning, "bchavrusa", with his friend, as his friend, who is a good person with fine character traits and is learned, goes up to Har Habayit.

Rav Aviner responded that one should break off the learning partnership. He said you can continue being friends, doing things and doing mitzvos together, but not to learn together - learning Torah is the basis for the proper outlook and approach to life, and clearly this person has something messed up in him.

However, one need not cancel a shidduch that was arranged with a person who goes up to Har Habayit. Rav Aviner explains that nobody is perfect and we are judged by the majority of our actions, as we all have benefits and detriments. Torah is Godly and must be exact and we cannot allow distorted views in, but for a shidduch it is ok as none of us are perfect.
source: Srugim

interesting

It could very well be that the Likud will achieve the greatest electoral success since Menachem Begin, specifically in these circumstances. We are prepared that if the other parties shoot down the continued existence of the coalition government - then at this celebratory moment I would say please let us suck up all your mandates.

  -- MK Tzachi Hanegbi (Likud), putting out a warning to those who might cause the government to fall as a result of the current crisis.

A short while ago a law was proposed to minimize the use of cash in the market, thus giving the authorities more control over issues like money laundering and the like. This is a trend happening in governments around the world.

That law proposal passed last night.

cash is, officially, no longer king.

The law will go into effect on January 1, 2019, and it will apply equally to open checks 6 months later on June 1, 2019, as these checks have many similarities to cash.

Some of the details of the new law:

• Breaking the new law and using cash or check above the limitations will be forgiven for the first 9 months after the law goes into effect, to give the public time to acclimate to the new rules
• any transaction worth more than 11,000nis for a business or 50,000nis for private - cannot be paid in cash, even partially.
• using cash to pay salaries, donations, gifts or loans: if the transaction is worth more than 11,000nis with no family relation, or 50,000nis with family relation, cash is out, even for part of the arrangement.
• open checks and third party checks are not to be used. The bank will not accept checks that are open, or third party checks with sums greater than 10,000nis that have already been transferred through more than one party unless all the names and id numbers are listed on the check.
• businesses violating the law will suffer financial sanctions. Private individuals will receive criminal fines.

The law passed its final readings in Knesset 49-9.
source: Haredim10

I am not sure how they will enforce this, at least at a private level. Businesses seem easier, via the tax authorities and audits, but private donations or gifts can easily be split up into multiple donations, each being under the limit. Maybe if they discover  multiple donations or gifts at just under 11k within a certain time frame they will consider it a violation.