Another diplomatic solution with an Islamist-Nazi Regime that has killed our troops, sought to assassinate our President, has sworn to destroy our country, that funds terrorism around the world, is attempting to conquer much of the Middle East, supplies drones to Russia to kill…
— Mark R. Levin (@marklevinshow) April 15, 2025
We have seen enough “emeriti” has-beens who in the name of their military record, pushed us into the blood-soaked, egregious Oslo disaster, we have seen the “intelligentsia” and the “wise experts” who led us to leave the Katif Bloc in the Gaza Strip while swearing that not one rocket would be launched from there and that tranquility would reign at our southern border. It did not quite work out that way. The time has come for a bit of humility.
To my mind, my sweet son Yonatan was killed because of the Oslo Accord adventure and the Disengagement, plans that most of you supported. The spirit of those disasters permeates every line of your letters.
Despite that, I am not accusing you of not valuing my son’s life and the lives of so many others who were victims of Oslo and the Disengagement from Gaza, nor am I accusing your for your naive eagerness to sign agreements with murderers. I am not accusing you of “personal and political interests” that made you advance the vision of the lauded “New Middle East” that collapsed on us.
Don’t you dare accuse me either.
You have opinions, and the right to express your opinions, but you do not have the right to taint me and millions of other people who think differently. You do not have the right to say that we want the war to continue because of a “desire for revenge” – that is a disgusting lie.
And on the same subject:
You do not have the right to say that we are willing to abandon the hostages because of “political and personal interests.” That, too, is an abominable lie. It is a mendacious portrayal of me, and of the government with whose policies millions agree, policies that say that in the name of the sanctity of the lives of the hostages, the citizens and the soldiers, it is incumbent upon us to continue to fight with all our might until the last terrorist is eliminated.
And don’t you dare preach to me about the “sanctity of life.” Believe me, I know what it is to lose someone. I cry for my fallen holy son every day, I want the hostages home no less than you do, but I still think differently than you. Say whatever you wish. Erase the idea of refusal to serve. And stop saying that all the truth and morality is in your hands. It is insulting to those who go out to battle the same as you, it insults others in your profession who do not agree with you. It insults me. Become accustomed to hearing disagreements with respect, even on critical issues, and learn to listen to other opinions.
Leave your echo chamber.
Translation: Rochel Sylvetsky
Haggai Luber is very well known in Israel as an actor, playwright, theater director, acting teacher, and the founder and artistic director of the Aspaklaria Theater and Acting School. He is the father of Yehonatan Hy"d, who fell in batle in Gaza in the Swords of Iron War, leaving a pregnant wife and infant son.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is facing a federal referral over alleged mortgage fraud tied to two property deals, according to a letter sent Tuesday by FHFA Director William Pulte.
Pulte alleges James misrepresented a Virginia home as her primary residence in 2023 to obtain a better mortgage rate, just weeks before launching her civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization. He also accuses her of repeatedly misclassifying a five-unit Brooklyn property as a four-unit in official documents to secure more favorable loan terms.
In earlier deals, James and her father were allegedly listed as “husband and wife” on mortgage applications, raising further questions.
Pulte claims these actions could constitute wire fraud, bank fraud, and other federal crimes. James’ office has not responded publicly. The referral comes as her office reviews possible insider trading linked to Trump’s recent tariff pause.
We’re not moving toward an oligarchy all THAT rapidly, apparently. pic.twitter.com/953oGwddVd
— Chris Stigall (@ChrisStigall) April 11, 2025
Trump admin freezes $2.3 billion in Harvard funding
US Department of Education freezes $2.3 billion in funding to Harvard University after the school pushed back on demands made by the government, including to clamp down on campus antisemitism.
The Trump administration has halted approximately $2.3 billion in federal funding allocated to Harvard University following the school’s refusal to comply with directives from the White House targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, Reuters reported.
According to an announcement on Monday from the US Department of Education, the decision encompasses a freeze on $2.2 billion in grant money, as well as $60 million in federal contracts previously designated for the Ivy League institution.
“Harvard’s statement today reinforces the troubling entitlement mindset that is endemic in our nation's most prestigious universities and colleges—that federal investment does not come with the responsibility to uphold civil rights laws,” stated the department’s task force on combating antisemitism.
While Harvard has not issued a detailed public response to the funding suspension, the dispute marks a significant escalation in tensions between the federal government and elite universities over the direction and governance of campus policies related to diversity and civil rights compliance.
The funding cut was announced hours after Harvard University President Alan Garber announced the university would refuse to comply with the Trump administration's demands on campus protests, diversity programs, and campus antisemitism.
“No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue,” Garber wrote.
In addition, attorneys representing Harvard claimed that the demands made of the school are illegal and that Harvard “is not prepared to agree to demands that go beyond the lawful authority of this or any administration.”
The Trump administration recently issued a firm ultimatum to Harvard University, demanding sweeping policy changes as a condition for maintaining its access to nearly $9 billion in federal grants and contracts.
Harvard, like other universities in the US, has seen an uptick in anti-Israel activity since Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel and the war in Gaza which followed. The university has come under fire over its handling of antisemitism on campus.
Just two days after the October 7 massacre, a coalition of 34 Harvard student organizations released a statement in which they blamed Israel for Hamas’ attack.
Later, then-Harvard President Claudine Gay came under fire after she, along with MIT President Sally Kornbluth and University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill, testified before a congressional hearing on the issue of antisemitism on college campuses.
All three university presidents gave similar answers to Rep. Elise Stefanik in which they failed to unequivocally condemn antisemitism or even calls for genocide against Jews. Gay eventually resigned as President of Harvard.
Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions – rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking concrete steps to make sure all students at Harvard can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and… https://t.co/gAu9UUqgjF
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) April 15, 2025
Left-wing activists placed dozens of pitas on Monday morning near the home of Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman, who left the Bennett-Lapid government two years ago over the issue of allowing chametz (leavened food) into hospitals during Pesach. Silman’s action culminated in the fall of that government and the establishment of the current government of which she is also a member.
A similar incident occurred last year near Silman’s home.
Minister Silman responded to the display:
“Pesach. A street mostly made up of religious and traditional people. These despicable individuals come and scatter pitas all over the street. This isn’t for the hostages. It’s not for democracy. It’s not even for politics.”
“It’s just because they are vile people, lacking basic human values. Zero care for others, zero respect for Judaism, and zero decency. Absolute zeroes. The overwhelming majority of the people are disgusted by them. Happy holiday!”
Media personality Yinon Magal commented:
“If I understood correctly, we’re supposed to be shocked by an insult to Macron, who wants to give terrorists a state in the heart of our country, while we’re laying out pitas in the heart of a religious neighborhood during Pesach?”
A Palestinian man who led protests against the war in Gaza as a student at Columbia University was arrested Monday at a Vermont immigration office where he expected to be interviewed about finalizing his U.S. citizenship, his attorneys said.
Mohsen Mahdawi, a legal permanent resident who has held a green card since 2015, was detained at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Colchester by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, his lawyers said.
The attorneys said they do not know where he is. They filed a petition in federal court seeking an order barring the government from removing him from the state or country.
“The Trump administration detained Mohsen Mahdawi in direct retaliation for his advocacy on behalf of Palestinians and because of his identity as a Palestinian. His detention is an attempt to silence those who speak out against the atrocities in Gaza. It is also unconstitutional,” attorney Luna Droubi said in an email.
According to the court filing, Mahdawi was born in a refugee camp in the West Bank and moved to the United States in 2014. He recently completed coursework at Columbia and was expected to graduate in May before beginning a master’s degree program there in the fall.
The petition describes him as a committed Buddhist who believes in “non-violence and empathy as a central tenet of his religion.”
As a student, Mahdawi was an outspoken critic of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and organized campus protests until March 2024. He co-founded the Palestinian Student Union at Columbia with Mahmoud Khalil, another Palestinian permanent resident of the U.S. and graduate student who recently was detained by ICE.
Khalil was the first person arrested under President Donald Trump’s promised crackdown on students who joined campus protests against the war in Gaza. On Friday, an immigration judge in Louisiana ruled that Khalil can be deported as a national security risk.
Christopher Helali, a friend of Mahdawi who lives near him in Vermont, was present outside the immigration office when Mahdawi was detained and recorded a video of Mahdawi being led away by authorities. In the video, which Helali released on social media Monday, Mahdawi is shown giving a peace sign with his hands and being led away to a car.
Helali described Mahdawi as a peaceful demonstrator who has worked to foster dialogue about the struggle of Palestinians in his homeland. Helali said he and Mahdawi were aware that Mahdawi could be detained today and that his friend went forward with the appointment anyway.
“And rightfully so, he was nervous for what was going on around him. But he was very much resolute in coming to this interview and coming today because he didn’t do anything wrong and was a law-abiding citizen, or soon-to-be citizen,” Helali said.
Hamas refused an Egyptian proposal for a ceasefire with Israel, citing the requirement that Palestinian factions disarm.
A senior Hamas official told Al Jazeera on Monday that Egypt recently presented a new cease-fire proposal that includes a 45-day truce in exchange for the entry of food and shelter into the Gaza Strip.
Half of the Israeli hostages would be released in the first week, the Egyptian plan stipulated. Hamas is demanding that Israel end the war, but Cairo has made it clear in its proposal that any long-term end to the fighting depends on Hamas disarming.
On the other hand, Hamas asserted that its disarmament is not open for negotiation, and that the Israeli military must withdraw from Gaza. They responded by stressing that any agreement must begin with a cease-fire and an Israeli withdrawal, not disarmament, which they say is not up for negotiation. According to the official, the proposal conditions extending the truce and continuing humanitarian aid on the return of all Israeli hostages – both living and deceased – by the end of the 45-day period.
Are you being serious??
So before we take this apart, let's ask the time-honored question!
What is really the difference between the "Chacham" and the "Rasha?'
After all they are basically asking the same question!
?חכם: מה הוא אומר? מה העדות והחוקים והמשפטים אשר צוה ה' אלוקינו אתכם
"What are the testimonies, decrees and ordinances which Hashem, our G-d has commanded YOU!"
?רשע: מה הוא אומר? מה העבודה הזאת לכם
"Of what purpose is this work to YOU?"
Yes the Chacham added "Hashem Elokeinu" but he like his brother the Rasha says the word "YOU" meaning he is excluding himself!
Now, one could possibly say that the "Chacham" is no "Tzaddik" after all the Baal Haggada on purpose doesn't call him a "Tazadik" "righteous' but calls him a "Chacham" "Smart "so it is no wonder that he says "YOU", he is excluding himself as well, he is "Smart" enough to know what would trigger his father at the seder table and so to pacify him, he mentions G-D, that's why he is called "The Chachem" but he is no "Tzadik!"
The Givonim also said to Yehoshua "Hashem Elokecha" when they were deceiving him!
There are probably a million explanations for this dilemma; every single year a hundred brand new Haggadas are published with another thousand new ideas on what the author of the Haggada meant!
This year I walked into shul, and a little charedie boy was clutching his homemade haggada which he colored in school. When he got distracted, I picked it up and saw lo and behold 4 cartoons of the "arba banim" ... the four sons!
The "Chacham" wore a Shtreimel" of course, and the Rasha was wearing a Kippah but was holding a smartphone in his hand!
Now, I'm confused, because I know that his father has a smartphone. I'm wondering when the child colored the Rasha and made sure that he didn't color out of the lines, if he for one second gave thought that his own father with the Shtreimel could also be a Rasha!
Wow! A Rasha and Chachem all rolled into one! I am certain that the father did not notice the caricatures of the 4 sons, but if he didn't, someone in the household will, and then what?
Which got me thinking, going back to the question, what is the difference between the Rasha and the Chacham, I thought that there must have been more to the statement of the Rasha that the Baal-Haggada left out!
To find out what else he could have said, I figured out that the answer must be on how we respond to the Rasha, which would tell me the difference!
And sure enough, the response is as clear as day!
לכם ולא לו, ולפי שהוציא את עצמו מן הכלל כפר בעקר
He says "To YOU" thereby excluding himself. By excluding himself from the community, he denies the basic principle of Yiddishkeit"
Wow! Pretty strong words "Koifer Be'ikar!"
The hagadda talks about Paro, talks about Lavan, yet here when we are talking about a "SON" the Baal Haggada uses language that I only saw in the Vayoel Moshe vis-a-vis the Rabbanim that support the Zionists in the Knesset!
The Baal Haggada doesn't even call Paro a "Koifer"!
So what's up with that?
It looks as if "excluding one's self from the community," which the Shulchan Aruch frames as someone being פורץ גדר "breaking the fence," is called a Rasha!
Shloime Hamelech says in Koheles פורץ גדר ישכנו נכש ..... "A snake should bite a poirtz geder"
The "Chacham" the smart one, though he too took himself out of the community, the tone of his question was possibly not as defiant, and by adding "Hashem our G-d" ...the father gave him the benefit of the doubt, but know that he is no "Tzadik!"
What does all this have to do with us??
Those of us who live in Israel ran to the shelters yesterday on the first day of Pesach! In fact, fragments fell in Chevron!
We are still at war with savages that want to kill us all, only because we are Jews!
Just over the weekend, an Imam based in Jordan told the entire world that the war has "nothing to do with land," it is about killing all infidels, and he added that if the Jews gave back the entire Land of Israel, it would still incumbent on Muslims to either convert them or to murder them! The only ones that don't believe this Imam, is the Israeli Left, Satmar, Neturi Karta and BMG in Lakewood
Last week, the week before Pesach, people on the local chats were asking families to invite the widows and orphans of this war for the seder. They were asking people to invite the "Living" widows the living "orphans" whose husbands and fathers will not be at the seder because they are at the front! All the Dati publications were asking families to not forget them and include them.
However, I perused the Hebrew Yated, the Chareidie Chadash, Hapelas, etc and couldn't find an honorable mention of the widows and orphans! In fact reading the Charedie news media, you would not even know that we are at war! They are totally disconnected! Not only won't they do anything to help the country that is so good to them, not only won't they show Hakaras Hatoiv to those on the front, they call them "Garbage Cleaners"
They are being "moitzeh themselves from the klaal"; they are excluding themselves from the community, they are being פורץ גדר
וכאן הבן שואל
What is the difference between the Chacham and the Rasha?
Dreams do come true 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/m8Hqn4ZFQN
— Matt Couch (@RealMattCouch) April 12, 2025
