Jul 21, 2021
Lenny Solomon Live (video)
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"Vhaarev Na" along with S.Y. Rechnitz, Baruch Levine, and Eitan Katz Presents “KULANU” (video)
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Jul 20, 2021
kashrut reforms coming
Minister of Religious Affairs Matan Kahane announced a short while ago that he will be introducing reforms to the kashrut industry. Essentially he will be turning the Rabbanut into a regulator while kashrut is privatized. Basically anyone can give kashrut certification and the Rabbanut will set a variety of standards, and monitor and ensure that the various kashrut organizations live up to the standards it chose to certify with.
Additionally, kashrut organizations will be allowed to certify restaurants that are open and operating on Shabbos, if three municipal rabbis give it permission to operate.
Kahane says there will no longer be a need for double (or more) certification - until now every food or restaurant had to minimally have a Rabbanut hechsher by law, and if they wanted a private hechsher as well, they still had to have the Rabbanut and only above that a private one. Now they will only need to pay for one, and the Rabbanut will be the regulator.
source: INN
Bennett's people have promoted this idea for a long time, so it is not a surprise.
I do not know what might be wrong with it. Municipal rabbis are appointed by the Rabbanut, so I am not sure what the fear is of giving them power to give kashrut in other cities or to give special permission (such as for opening on Shabbos or for setting different standards).
the only opposition I have heard so far is from the Haredi politicians, but I haven't heard an explanation form them of what is wrong - just that Kahane and Bennett are dismantling the kashrut in Israel. Again, I don't know what is wrong with this arrangement. Anyways, they who oppose the move (so far) don't even rely on the Rabbanut hechsher (and many say it isnt even kosher to begin with), so I am not sure why removing that hechsher and having them regulate other certification standards instead is so bad.
I just dont get the argument against giving too much power or authority to rabbis appointed by the Rabbanut instead of leaving that power centralized by the Rabbanut. if you think the Rabbanut should hold the power, what is so bad about the rabbis the Rabbanut appointed? The same argument is used when discussing changes to the conversion system, and I dont understand the complaint there either.
the big issue I think is that I dont see who will step in to replace the Rabbanut and give basic kashrut certification. The competition will be to say I am the best mehadrin hechsher, not I give the basic kashrut level. And this might be the end of non-glatt meat, among other things
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Headline of the Day
Miss Universe competition coming to Israel
this is going to go over well...
Does Donald Trump still own the Miss Universe competition? If he does, it might pass quietly with no protest, but if he doesnt...
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price of disposables, chad paami, to go up to hurt Haredim and save the environment
In an effort to make changes that will improve the environment, or at least cause less damage to it, Minister of Environment Protection Tamar Zandberg, in conjunction with the Minister of Finance Avigdor Lieberman, has said that they are looking into imposing a steep tax on disposable utensils - plastic plates, cups, straws, forks, etc.
While the exact size of the tax has not yet been decided, or announced, they have studied the matter and have determined that a steep tax could cause a decrease in the use of disposable utensils by as much as 40%. the expected level of the tax is that the prices will be doubled, but that is not official as the exact tax has not been finalized or announced.
If they decide to move ahead with this, it would be going into effect in 2022.
We all know these plastic goods are bad for the environment, but we use them because of the convenience, and they are generally cheap enough to make it worthwhile.
According to the studies, the average Israeli household consumes 7.5kg of disposable plastic goods per person, with sales of nearly 2 billion shekels a year. This is 5 times the amount consumed in the European Union.
According to Knesset studies, 95% of Haredi families use these disposable utensils [regularly], while 57% of the secular population uses them.
Haredi politicians are looking at this as another attack on Haredim rather than as an attempt to do something good for the environment. It seems they, or some, think that the alternative is paying more for disposable utensils and increasing the cost of Haredi living, rather than using less disposables and more regular dishes and cutlery. This could save people a lot of money as it could encourage them to use real dishes and wash them rather than pay significantly higher prices.
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Interview with Ben & Jerry's Israel CEO (video)
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MK Moshe Abutbol on the issue of flights to Uman and CoronaVirus (video)
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Jacob Steinmetz Becomes First Orthodox Jew Drafted into MLB (video)
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Who Is Not Jewish? (video)
weird
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Duvy Burston-SEARCHING FOR YOU (cover by CHAYA KOGAN) For women and girls only (video)
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Jul 19, 2021
punishing Unilever
MK Moshe Arbel (Shas) has put out a statement in light of the Ben & Jerry's recent announcement to not renew the license of the current manufacturer in Israel and to stop selling in the Occupied Territories.
Arbel is calling on the various mehadrin kashrut certifiers to withdraw certification from all Unilever products, the parent company of Ben & Jerry's, sold in Israel.
This would be a big blow to Unilever, but why stop at mehadrin certifications? Why not call on the Rabbanut to withdraw certification as well?
I also want to know if Unilever is going to stop selling all their products in the "Occupied Territories" or just Ben & Jerry's? And if just B&J, why is that product different than all the others they sell?
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Et Tu Ben & Jerry?
Ben & Jerry was always a company with Leftist ideas in relation to Israel, but there was never a need to be upset at them because the franchisee in Israel operated independently of the mothership. Ben & Jerry's in Israel sold, sells, good kosher ice cream, with some mehadrin flavors and distributes all over Israel. Despite the well known policies of the parent company.
That seems to be coming to an end.
Ben & Jerry's put out a statement today:
Ben & Jerry’s Will End Sales of Our Ice Cream in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
July 19, 2021We believe it is inconsistent with our values for Ben & Jerry’s ice cream to be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). We also hear and recognize the concerns shared with us by our fans and trusted partners.
We have a longstanding partnership with our licensee, who manufactures Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in Israel and distributes it in the region. We have been working to change this, and so we have informed our licensee that we will not renew the license agreement when it expires at the end of next year.
Although Ben & Jerry’s will no longer be sold in the OPT, we will stay in Israel through a different arrangement. We will share an update on this as soon as we’re ready.
I don't call for boycotts, but I don't like this.
Ben & Jerry's Israel has pushed back releasing a statement saying this is unacceptable and ice cream is apolitical. I am not sure how much power they will have n this, considering the B&J statement. We shall see what will happen...
I think it is fair to add that "boycotting" them now will only hurt the current licensee and his employees who are producing and selling all over Israel, including Judea and Samaria and trying to oppose the change, and is seemingly being punished for that (by not having his license renewed in 1.5 years). if you are going to stop buying B&J because of this change in policy, I might suggest you take into consideration to continue buying it for the next year and a half until the license expires, to continue supporting the current licensee, and only after the new policy goes into effect stop buying the ice cream...
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Quote of the Day
My friend, as someone for whom the good of the State of Israel is at the forefront of his concerns - join us in establishing a national government without the Left and without representatives of the Islamic Movement - and thereby save the citizens of Israel from these evil government.
-- MK Miki Zohar (Likud) to Defense Minister Benny Gantz, after reports yesterday had MK Netanyahu trying to persuade Gantz to abandon ship and join Likud in forming a government with Gantz serving first as PM in a rotation arrangement
I have no problem with them trying to persuade Gantz to abandon ship and form a government with the Likud. That's politics and part of the game.
that being said, the offer shows the hypocrisy of the Likud.
The two biggest complaints of the Likdu against Bennett, that they keep repeating again and again, are that 1) Bennett only has 6/7 mandates and it is unethical for him to be prime minister as head of a 6 mandate party, and 2) Bennett broke campaign promises to become Prime Minister and form this government.
Gantz heads a party of 8 MKs. it would be no more or less ethical for him to serve as Prime Minister than it is for Bennett.
And, Gantz has promised not to sit with Netanyahu - both in the elections and after and even repeated it after since the government has been formed. It would be no more ethical for him to break his promise to become PM than it was for Bennett to break his.
yet for the Likud it is all ok as long as it serves their interests. they arent really upset at anything Bennett did and they have no moral high ground to play, as they try the same games. This time they happened to lose at it and that is what they are upset at.
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leaving for Uman
The issue of Uman is being raised already, with the pilgrims preparing to travel for Rosh Hashana. The calls are starting already now with suspicion that the airports will be shut for Rosh Hashana Uman travel, possibly with a full holiday lockdown as well. The anger is based on the images of Israelis traveling freely now for vacation, with the government not intervening while Corona is being smuggled in, yet assuming that Uman will be limited [at best] and maybe prevented entirely.
If the government shuts the airport down now for everyone and keeps it shut for a while, that is one thing. If not, the government will not be justified in shutting it just for Uman travel.
As I said last year, Israel really should not care about people leaving the country. It could care about people coming in to Israel and it can set rules to regulate who comes in - eg only citizens, only vaccinated, quarantine upon return, electronic trackers, etc. The State of Israel can put any requirement it wants on people coming in to Israel as harsh or weak as it decides to go, and the people will have to comply. if Uman is important enough, they will be willing to be vaccinated or to go through quarantine and testing and whatever.
But to leave? Israel should not care who leaves. It is Ukraine's problem to decide on their end who to let in and who to keep out. if they say we are open for anyone including Uman travelers (a significant number of whom are likely not vaccinated), that is their problem. They should be allowed to go, and upon return will have to deal with whatever requirements Israel decides on.
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time to shut the airport?
Without professing to know what steps need to be taken to nip the current surge of Corona "in the bud" (we might have already passed the stage of nipping it in the bud, but it is still relatively low), I am almost convinced that the airport should be shut down, or at least almost entirely shut down.
According to reports of tracing, Israelis returning from vacations abroad are responsible for bringing in at least a lot of the current Corona and spreading it around. People have traveled to countries designated as dangerous, people have not adhered to quarantine rules, people have forged documentation. And people have returned to Israel smuggling Corona in and spreading it around Israel.
According to reports, 17,000 people traveled out of the country - just yesterday alone!
When all those people come back, along with all the people leaving all the other days, with many countries around the world experiencing increases in Corona spread, it is only natural that all these people are going to be bringing in lots of Corona back to Israel with them.
So I am close to convinced that Israel just needs to shut the airport down again.
the airport can be shut down for general travel, left open for urgent and business travel, with special permission granted upon application. Israelis have to be allowed to return to Israel, but they should be required to be tested and quarantine. Tourists who were allowed in with permission should be allowed to leave a the end of their trips.
The other option, and I don't know which is better, is simply deciding that it is time to live with this - we can't keep shutting down the economy, locking people up, opening and closing, etc. Keep pushing vaccinations and if necessary (and it seems likely it is) boosters, encourage hygiene and people to be careful, especially those at greater risk. Israel can't keep going like this and Corona is not going to go away so quickly. It will wane for a bit before it waxes again. And it will wax for a bit before it wanes again.
Corona was not Netanyahu's fault back in 2020-2021, and its return now is not Bennett's fault. Corona is just the reality of the world right now. the only question is how authorities deal with it.
Either declare the country open for good or shut the airport for almost everyone.
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Interesting Psak: tefillos of a Rav or Yeshiva Bachur
A weird and interesting question was raised when the local tzedaka organization in Modiin Ilit ran a campaign to have someone pray on behalf of donors to the campaign at the grave of Rav Yonasan ben Uziel in Amuka.
I don't know why they did this, but Hamechadesh says that a group of the donors tracked the shiach of the kupa and saw that because of the heat, on the long walk to the grave he took his hat and jacket off. The young man fulfilled his task by saying some tehillim by the grave and saying the names of the donors, but he did so without donning his hat and jacket.
the donors asked Rav Mendel Shafran if they deserve their money back as they had expected a rav of some sort to be sent, not a bachur [who would take off his hat and jacket]. The Kupa responded that they never promised or insinuated that they would be sending a rav, just that they would send a messenger to daven and say the names of the donors at the grave - that was done and they need to pay their commitment.
The group of rabbonim led by Rav Shafran, including Rav Yaakov Chaim Sofer, Rav Shafran, Rav Naftali Nussbaum and Rav Fried, rejected the claim of the donors. They decided that if the kupa did not explicitly promise to send a rabbi or a notable talmid chacham to daven on their behalf, sending any frum, Torah-observant Jew, is acceptable. Rav Chaim Kanievsky agreed with this psak.
Rav Shafran concluded the psak with a note saying that who even knows if the prayer of notable rabbonim is more accepted than those of a young yeshiva bachur who is still protected and without sin...
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