I just want you to know, the oldest Catholic church in Delaware, my daughter got married several years ago and there was a chuppah on the altar.., I’m more Jewish than Hillary is, I been there a lot longer than even Hillary.

  -- US Vice President Joe Biden, of the Catholic faith

they both have Jewish sons in law, while the daughters of neither of them converted to Judaism. Neither Hillary nor Joe are Jewish. I'm not quite sure how the "Jewish" rating system goes for such people.

Satmar, seemingly both of the major Satmar sects, has issued a call to its supporters to vote for Hillary Clinton for President of the United States in the elections this week.

Satmar's endorsement comes with an explanation - Clinton helped the Satmar community in her role as Senator, and in her husband's role as President of the USA. They point to "freeing captives", saving lives, helping get the Jews of Iran out, assistance (permits and welfare grants, presumably).. and more specifically point to the fact that Trump is too pro-Israel.
sources: Haredim10, Kikar, INN

For normative Jews who are pro-Israel, this seems to be the best endorsement for Donald Trump. It seems to be a bit of a backhanded compliment to Clinton. She is good because she is not pro-Israel, or at least not as much as Trump. I am not sure she would like to be portrayed that way.

On the other hand, Ivanka Trump and family were documented going to pay a visit at the ohel of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
source: Algemeiner

It seems the Satmar and Chabad communities are at odds once again...

The Chicago Cubs won the World Series. Yes, you read that correctly. it might still be hard to digest, but it actually happened.

The POTD is of Rabbi Daniel Eleff, famous for being the man behind Dan's Deals, throwing out a ceremonial first pitch at the beginning of the game. Eleff acquired the rights to this honor by bidding over a million Starwood Points, the equivalent of over $20,000. Eleff is from Cleveland and was rooting for the Indians.

It seems though that it was Chabad vs Chabad (According to COL Eleff is a Chabad hassid) and it seems that Chicago Chabad must have more influence in the higher spheres than Cleveland Chabad..

I am not quite sure what to think of this story, and of the criticism of the incident, or lack of criticism.

Yochi Apolyuon, a star actress of Israeli reality television and bikini designer and model, was photographed writing a letter in a Torah at a ceremony of a hachnasat sefer torah.

This ceremony did not take place in a Reform community. It took place in Bnei Braq. The Torah was written in memory of her father, Rav Binyamin Apolyoun, a mashgiach kashrut residing in Bnei Braq, who recently died. The Torah was dedicated and installed in a yeshiva in Bnei Braq callled Yeshivat Bet Meir.

Present at the ceremony were the Roshei Yeshiva, other important rabbonim, "hundreds of" the yeshiva students and alumni.
sources: Kooker, Mako, Haredim10
Rav Chaim Amsalem criticized the image. His criticism was that there was no criticism of the picture. Amsalem is upset that because Haredim were doing this, it was let to happen silently, with no opposition or criticism. If anybody else had done this - Dati Leumi, Sefardim, Modern Haredi, or any other group, the Haredim would be screaming and calling them Reform. Rav Amsalem calls "them" hypocrites acting for money who would even sell their own grandmothers.

According to Mako, the incident was criticized by "many" Haredim, but I guess Rav Amsalem's criticism that at a Haredi yeshiva this was allowed to happen and some vocal opposition only came later after the fact and was probably just lip service.

Haredim10 also says that Rav Motka Bloi criticized the incident. expressing shock. Bloi said that even if she did not actually write a letter in the Torah it is a disgrace. A Sefer Torah is not a television prop. And it is much more serious that it happened in the streets of Bnei Braq, in the center of the City of Torah.

So, again, it was allowed to happen and many rabbis seemed to know about it and even participate in the event in which she did this, but it was also criticized by askanim and others outside of the event. So, I don't know what to think of both Amsalem's criticism and the event itself.

Then there is the issue of the writing in the Torah. I am not sure what the problem is. As far as I know, most of the time a ceremony like this is held, the laymen writing in the Torah is only ceremonial and the sofer really rewrites it or he makes the shapes of the letters and has the laymen fill in the outlines. The Torah is not written by laymen - allowing that to happen would be too risky in many situations, so they do it in a way that is only ceremonial, and the sofer usually is the one actually writing.

That being said, why when someone who is a television star does a mitzvah or religious act of some sort it has to be described as a television prop. Can't she want to dedicate a Torah in her father's memory just for the sake of his memory as not as a television prop? When men do it, even not-religious men, there is no such criticism, of it being just a prop. So why is this the criticism in this case? I can understand criticizing allowing a woman to write in the Torah, as, from what I understand, a Sefer Torah written by a woman is not kosher, but I do not understand the criticism of it being a cynical ploy for her personal career.

Interestingly, in all the various sites I saw this picture posted on, Apolyoun is pictured normally, while the rabbi, a male, has his face blurred. I understand why - to protect his identity - but it is a reversal of roles, of sorts.

MKs Dovid Bitan (Likud) and Nachman Shai (Hamachane Hatzioni) are promoting a law proposal that would allow absentee voting for Israel's national elections. The voting would be done in a special ballot box located on election day in the embassy, consulate or other Israeli representative site of the country you are in.

Shas opposes the law, as they expect to not benefit from this, but will have to support it anyway due to coalition agreements. I am not sure why they think they won't benefit. Plenty of Israeli sefardi citizens live or travel abroad, and many of them might vote Shas. Perhaps in percentages they are fewer than supporters of other parties so even though they might get some additional votes, those votes would be canceled out by the larger number voting for other parties. Just a guess.

PM Netanyahu wants this law advanced and claims it will strengthen Israel.

The proposal is justified by explaining that absentee voting already exists in a limited fashion - for Israelis working for various arms of government and other organized bodies, with 4200 Israelis abroad voting in elections. This law would expand that to the many Israelis abroad in private capacities.

Another important factor is that the law would allow absentee voting for Israelis abroad who retain Israel as the center of their lives - meaning, in each of the 7 years prior to the elections, one would have to have been in Israel for 210 days of the year (for each of those 7 years). Alternatively, in each of the 5 years prior, the Israeli would have to have spent 270 days in Israel.

Absentee voting would be done no later than 80 days before the elections. Only registered eligible voters would be allowed to vote, so the "pinkas bochrim" - the ballot roll - would not be changed. This law is expected to give tens of thousands of Israelis abroad the ability to vote.
source: Walla News

I have heard Moshe Feiglin support absentee voting in the past, and he even wants to include all Jews in this and not limit it to just Israelis. He thinks that the many right wing Jews in America would vote for him.

I have heard the Orthodox parties oppose similar law proposals in the past as they think it would strengthen the vote for the non-religious and hurt the religious, with the Reform and Conservative Jews abroad voting for anti-religious platforms (the non-Orthodox Jews in Feiglin's proposal and the non-religious Israelis in other proposals). They think that even with the many religious Israeli citizens living abroad, the numbers are minor compared to the many non-religious Israelis, so ultimately they think they would be hurt by this.

In the past similar proposals failed to advance, despite being included in coalition agreements. This proposal seems to have support form both sides of Parliament, so perhaps it has a better chance of advancing.

Kikar has an interesting, and somewhat humorous, story and quote from Rav Chaim Kanievsky.

Supposedly, Rav Kanievsky was asked what he does with the "extra" hour during the night of the time change from DST to "regular" time (a.k.a. the winter clock), considering how normally his time is extremely measured and calculated for maximum efficiency.

The answer is that Rav Kanievsky does not bother with DST and just never even adjusts his clocks or schedule. He just uses the regular time all year round.

His schedule is set to work well within that, and since he does not really have to go anywhere on a daily basis and everyone else comes to him, it normally does not present much of a problem. His shul, Lederman, davens mincha all year round at the same time - 12:30pm on his schedule, and they too do not bother to adjust their clocks. At 2AM he gets up to learn.

Why?

In Rav Kanievsky's words, supposedly, "Because some crazy people in the government decided to adjust the clocks I have to listen to them?"

Obviously, such behavior can cause scheduling mix-ups and confusion. Perhaps not by him but by those coming to visit him or by those inviting him to be sandak at a bris, for example - they have to remember to plan taking into account possible confusion regarding the appointed times.

historic

Svetlova dressed in her wedding finest - actually a wedding dress - to promote a law she was proposing that the State should fund trips abroad for couple unable to marry in Israel due to no civil marriage allowances. The proposal was shot down.

Maybe she was dressing up for Halloween.