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Tziyunov is definitely getting the attention he was looking for.

Tziyunov went to a football (soccer) game the other day and drew a lot of attention, and last night he went to a nightclub (shalvata) in Tel Aviv in full regalia and hung out with the deejay swaying to the beats...but today he was slapped with a cease and desist letter from the Council of the Sephardi and Oriental Communities in Jerusalem, the Vaad Adat Hesephardim...

I like how in the address section of the letter they address the letter to him with the title "The One Who Dresses in Vain in the Cloak of the Rishon Letzion"

In the letter the Chairman of the council writes the vaad was established 759 years ago upon the Rambans arrival in Jerusalem.. Since the 17th century all Rishon Letzions since Rav Moshe Gelenti have served wearing the unique robes and headdress and the Council holds exclusive rights on the inaugural ceremonies and the dressing of the Rishon Letzions robes and headdress, uninterrupted during the Ottoman rule and under the British Mandate. All have been designed and sewn under the authority of the Council and the Council holds the trademark/copyright and it is illegal to copy this.

The letter goes on to say he has no right to use it, etc etc and should immediately cease to wear it in public and in appearances before legal action will be taken.

Wow. Interesting. I did not know that this old council holds the legal rights to this outfit.

I somehow suspect that he is not going to be deterred by this letter. I am curious to see what will happn and if they will take him to court over this and what the courts will say...

Tziyunov is right now basking his 15 minutes in the sun and is probably getting more attention than he ever fantasized about.

With the ceasefire still holding, even if just barely, our grand country seems to be very bored that this is one of the big issues of the day... 

 

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Why did his name come up?

During the torch lighting ceremony on Har Harzl, the night of Yom Haatzmaut, perhaps you noticed the camera panning on the crowd rest momentarily on the above person.

I noticed and wondered who that is and why he is dressed like that as it is clearly not Rishon LeTzion Chief Rabbi Dovid Yosef (who, if I am not mistaken, bowed out of the ceremony due to illness) or his brother former Chief Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef or former Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar. 

It seems many other people were wondering as well because throughout the day of Yom Haatzmaut this was one of the most discussed topics - who it was, why he dressed like that and more. Quite a stir was caused by his appearance.

So it turns out this is a fellow named Eyal Tziyunov who seems to be quite a character, claiming at times to be mashiach, dressing not infrequently like a Chief Rabbi, (I saw a cute line of someone, I think it was Yair Cherki) calling him the Rishon LeTziyunov), going up to Har Habayit dressed in this garb despite the Chief Rabbis all supporting the official Chief Rabbinate position of not going to Har Habayit.... is he a rabbi or not? I dont know, but sometimes I have seen him referred to as Rav Eyal Tziyunov and sometimes just as Eyal Tziyunov.

The interesting thing is there was both outrage and a supposed security incident with him at the ceremony dressed like this.

There were attempts to push the Rabbanut to file a complaint with the police and have him arrested. I am not quite sure for what. Is it illegal to wear the robes and hat? is Purim a legal exception or is it illegal then as well? Is the Sephardic Chief Rabbi (and former SCRs) the only person legally allowed to wear the outfit? As far as I know he has never claimed to be the Chief Rabbi and in interviews over the past day or so he has explicitly denied any claims that he is claiming to be so.

People also complained a security failure because he was able to get into the event and be in the crowd in proximity of the Prime Minister. I am not sure why that was an issue. I assume security checked him and did not find him to be carrying a gun or any other weapon. He never attacked anyone. I am nto quite sure what the failure is. Maybe people are assuming he was not checked because security might have thought he was the Chief Rabbi? I would assume a badge or some identification has to be shown to get through security, and I would like to believe security at these events is already familiar with the Chief Rabbis and cannot be so easily fooled (though you never know). Also the design on his robe and the quality of the garments is not the same as that of the garments used by the Chief Rabbi and are easily distinguished.

I hope this guy gets the help he needs if he is more than just eccentric, but let's not turn everything into a crisis and an insult.

the video got passed around and went somewhat viral and it created quite a stir with different personalities such as Aryeh Deri and Aryeh Erlich, among others, getting involved, donating money and spekaing out against what happened and calling on people to donate..

Inbar Twizer, the journalist who posted the video, later defended herslef, to the onslaught of attacks against because of her video, saying that her husnad had just returned from funerals of six of his friends in miluim who had fallen in battle in Lebanon, and all of them were religious, and these 18 year olds knocked on the door and we had a pleasant conversation  in which we asked them why they have not inducted into the army. If anyone thinks we shamed them, we can agree about one thing - that not inducting into the army at this time - that is definitely something to be ashamed of.

Each and every person has the right to decide to whom to give charity. Nobody is obligated to give to whoever knocks at the door, and if you dont approve of the lifestyle of someone asking for tzedaka, feel free to not donate.

That being said, while you can choose to donate tzedaka or not donate tzedaka to any given person r organization, there is no need to treat people disrespectfully. There is a time and a place for those discussions. Go arrange a meeting between representatives of the various communities and aks the questions and have your discussions. Set up one on one meetings with average young and old haredim and ask your questions about why they do this or that. You should not treat people disrespectfully. Two young men coming to the door for one purpose do not need to be harassed like that and then shamed online. She could have asked them if they serve in the army and upon hearing no she could have chosen to not donate and send them on their way without causing a big stir. 

That is Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, one of the Haredi gedolim today and Rosh Yeshiva of Slabodka Yeshiva in Bnei Braq, autographing a baseball in a donor's home (parlor meeting I guess) in Chicago... shortly after this he flew back to Israel... 

Being that he was born in the USA (NY) and lived there for almost 30 years before moving to Israel, I wonder if he has fond memories of baseball (as Rav Scheinberg famously did) and if he was a fan of any team when he was younger....

Traditionally Israelis go out on Yom Haatzmaut and hit the trails, see the sights, bask largely in nature. The weather is beautiful today. 

We went out with friends to his on Gan Emek HaEla up to Shaaraim, an old archaeological site dated to King David and is thought to have been the location of one of his palaces... Because Israelis traditionally go out and hit the trails before having a bbq celebration, there is always lots of traffic on Yom Haatzmaut, and popular sites can fill up very quickly. We try to avoid the traffic by going out a little buit earlier, and doing things closer to home. Shaaraim is right outside Bet Shemesh, and you can even see RBS D from the archaeological site. We accomplished our goals and did not sit in traffic, had a lovely hike and saw some people, though it was not crowded when we were there.

Befitting the day, the trail marker for our tiyul was blue and white...

and on our way out to the tiyul, just as we were heading out of Bet Shemesh, we spotted an eagle doing the air force's regular Yom Haatzmaut and performing a flyover... The Air Force flyovers are canceled this year due to the situation with Iran, so the eagle made sure we did not miss out...

Happy Birthday Israel!

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and (if you watched to the very end you will see), he's a mentsch too!

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  -- MK Aryeh Deri

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According to the report, it seems the policeman considered the wrapped arm to be an impediment to driving properly. There is no statement from the ticketing officer nor from the Spokesperson of the Police, but the lawyer, who literally wrote the book on traffic law, according to the report, surmises that to be the problem. 

If the fellow were laying/wrapping the tefilln while driving, I could understand the problem. Like applying makeup while driving, like shaving while driving. Like talking on a phone while driving. Just wearing the already wrapped tefillin? I dont see a problem and dont see how that is different than wearing anything else, even something unusual like a costume on Purim. As long as his movement is not restricted by it in any significant matter I do not see why wearing tefillin should be a poblem.

That being said, from a halachic perspectivee I am not sure driving while wearing tefillin is appropriate. When one is wearing tefillin one is meant to be focused on the tefillin. Being involved in anything that is distracting should not be done or is a reason to remove the tefillin. When one is driving one must pay attention to the road, not focus on the tefillin. This, in my opinion, is the ultimate "hesech hadaas" of the tefillin. I see people driving while wrapped not too infrequently, but in my opinion it is not appropriate.

this brings new meaning to the DUI - Driving Under the Influence 

 

Taba border crossing as Israelis try to exit through Egypt to travel for the Pesach holiday to their planned destinations as Israeli travel is still basically shut down because of the war

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  -- Alan Dershowitz

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu related to some strange claims on the Internet that he had been killed in Iranian missile attacks on Israel. I am not sure why he gave them any credence and felt the need to show himself as alive - he is out there enough anyway in the news, and even did a rare press conference a few days ago. But, for whatever reason, he did and went to a coffee shop really a "coffee cart, Sataf, just outside of Jerusalem and made a video of his appearance there, drinking coffee, showing he has five fingers on each hand, and laughing at the claims he is dead.

Instead of putting the claims to rest, Netanyahu's video flared up the claims of Netanyahu being dead, the video being made by AI, the use of a double and it not really being him, etc.. 

Add this to the claims online being made about the destruction of Tel Aviv and of Israel with Iranian missiles raining destruction on Israel and laying Tel Aviv in ruins. 

To be fair, Iran's ballistic missiles have done some damage around Israel and have tragically killed several people in Israel. The vast majority of Iran's missiles have been shot down. Some damage done is far from the level of destruction that is being claimed and depicted.

Now, I dont really get what the point of making these claims is. Israel is still functioning. If Netanyahu is dead (he isn't) we would elect another Prime Minister. the IDF is still being led to destroy Iranian targets, whether it is being led by netanyahu or by someone else (it is being led by Netanyahu)..  what is the point of these claims and in what way do those making them benefit? Are they simply trying to paint a false narrative to their followers?

So why is this history repeating itself?

In all of Israel's wars, going back to 1948, the enemy Arab countries told their people they were destroying Israel and Israel was losing and would be wiped off the map. What was their endgame?  just to keep their people motivated? Their lies were their downfall. They suffer to this day for believing those lies, and they continue to believe those lies even today. 

History does repeat itself, even in a different playing field.

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On this topic, INN brings a psak from Rav Dovid Fendel, Rosh Yeshiva of the Yeshiva Hesder Sderot, after being asked by some soldiers what to do in such a situation, would they be able to be in the vehicle when the hummer driver is a female or if a female paramedic is assigned to their armored vehicle, etc..

Rav Fendel, with other rabbonim of the yeshiva, said that the Rama is lenient about yichud in certain situations (specifically 1 woman with 3 men present) but in today's reality it would be difficult to rely on this - the Ramas leniency is when the people involved are kosher and not "prutzim" but today we are all exposed to inappropriate content online so it would be difficult to meet the standards of kosher for this leniency to apply.

Additionally, the reality of the situation is that other problems also exist, such as being in the vehicle for long periods of time would lead to violation prohibitions of looking at women, joking and talking with women and inappropriate thoughts. 

The rabbonim said that from what they have been told by many soldiers in these situations, being in these situations of a crowded and cramped military vehicle and how at times it can be difficult to avoid even physical contact, among the other problems already mentioned. Therefore, Rav Fendel and the rabbonim have pasked for their soldiers to avoid these situations. A soldier caught in such a situation should complain to his commander and to the IDF Rabbinate to not allow such yichud. EVen in times of war this is a problem as in times of war and great distress, more safeguarding of the holiness of the camp is warranted..

Similarly, Srugim brings a similar psak from Rav Aviner, though not form a yichud perspective, makng it slightly different than Rav Fendel's psak.

Rav Aviner was asked about the same situation - 3 religious soldiers serving in a hummer with a female soldier as a paramedic or driver, what should they do?

Rav Aviner responded that this is not allowed but not really from a yichud perspective. The issue of yichud does not really apply. The issue really is one of "gas libo" - when people are familiar and confortable with each ther after spending time together and experiencing experiences together (such as in an army vehicle possibly experiencing some harrowing circumstances).

The problem here is less yichud and more the issues of looking at women, talking and joking with women. When serving many hours of the day together in a ttight army vehicle, these situations would be unavoidable.

Practically speaking, Rav Aviner said this situation should be stopped right away. Religious soldiers cannot let themselves be in such a situation. They should request to not serve with a female paramedic/driver. If the commanders ignore these requests, the soldiers should respond saying these instructions are in contradiction to the terms of the shared service agreement. If the commanders continue to force them to serve like this, they should refuse to serve, even at the price of being thrown in the brig.

If this situation is made permanent, the soldiers should be told to not induct to those units and more.

  -- Defense Minister Yisrael Katz

whoa, that's a serious statement... I hope he weighed his words.. we will probably see the Cenks and Tuckers scream now about Israel occupying Lebanon...

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I know it should be cauldon int he title, not kauldron, but the k works better for this...

That image and experience may soon be extinct and go the way of the dodo bird.

The Eida Hachareidis kashrut organization has decided that it is a serious kashrus problem to have these pots sittig around unsupervised for so long. Until the pot gets picked up someone might use it for who knows what in an unsupervised kitchen... and then the pot eventually gets picked up and the next yerushalmi kugel is made in it and who knows what the kiddush goers the next shabbos might be consuming traces of, along with the possibly unkosher kugel.

They say they have been working on solutions to this problem for years but have never come up with anything practical. Recently a solution was found and the Eida has let all its yerushalmi kugel suppliers know that a special disposable aluminum pot has been produced that can replace the original kugel pot and as of Shavuos of this year they must all stop using their regular pots for yerushalmi kuger and only use the new disposable pot.

According to Behadrei, some fellow named Aharon Moshe Kubichek put a lot of effort and investment into it and finally figured ut how to make a disposable pot that would be able to replace the original yerushalmi kugel pot and allow the kugel to cook properly. 

Manufacturing this disposable pot, along with importing it, will for now cost 10.5nis per pot, and hopefully in time that price will go down, so all kugel makers must stop using the original pots by Shavuos of this year and make the switch to the disposable pots by then at the latest. In the meantime, the pots already owned can continue to be used and people should continue to follow the guidelines of trying to collect the empty pots as quickly as possible after Shabbos or after the event and to check the pots after use to determine that the pots were not used for anything else and that they were not washed... the type of event, whether it be a shul kiddush, a private simcha, something in a private home, a wedding hall or whatever - the same rules must be followed and anything out of the ordinary should be reported to get guidelines from the Eida team...

I do wonder if the guy they are saying to buy the disposable pots from is a cousin of someone, but good on him for coming up with the solution... I did always wonder how the Eida allowed the pots to just sit around anywhere and everywhere...

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The Palestians, in their statement, lay claim to the entire Temple Mount area as an exclusive Muslim place of worship with support by the UN so any attempt to perform Jewish rituals would be a violation of international law.

I feel like this year of all years anything can happen. With Minister Ben Gvir running the show up there, it is definitely much more of a possibility now than in years past. In years past, for many years already, there have been people who tried to smuggle in a small lamb, but the police have been on top of things and prevent it from happening well before the "smugglers" even get close to Temple Mount. 

It just feels, with everything that has been going on and with Minister Ben Gvir's provocative approach, this year mightbe different...

It will be interesting to see!

Of all years to register on one of those sign up forms for sharing the korban pesach, this year could be the year it is really relevant!

this was from right before the war but I missed it, so here goes...

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