There are beings from different planets among us

by RationalistJudiasm

 One of the strange aspects of modern society is that it has become possible to interact with aliens. Yes, that’s right, aliens. Beings from a different planet!

They are appearing here on our planet, disguised as regular people. But when you speak to them, it’s clear that they are from a different planet. (There seem to be, broadly speaking, two races of aliens, with some similarities and some differences.)

Life on their planet is very different from life on mine, here in Israel. There’s no war with Hamas, no threat of massive rocket attacks from Hezbollah, no fear of Iran, no concern about a massive armed uprising in the West Bank. Many of these aliens are not involved in the wars taking place on my planet. They raise their children in a world where the daily concerns are mundane and they have nothing significant to worry about beyond satisfying their lifestyle. I find it a little jarring when I hear them talk about their alien way of life as though it’s the most important thing in the universe.

One race of aliens speaks English, one speaks Hebrew, but the words have a different meaning. Some of the English-speaking ones talk about the great stress on their planet, yet their lives and families are not at risk. Many of them seem to be only vaguely aware of what’s happening on my planet; it just doesn’t seem to be real to them.

With the Hebrew-speaking aliens, it’s even stranger, because they are actually living here in Israel, yet the war is just not happening for them. Their existence is no different than before October 7th. I suppose it’s somewhat understandable - after all, these aliens appear to be immune from the war, and none of them have died in it. Still, it’s strange that they live and walk among us, yet are oblivious to what’s really going on. They use phrases like “sacrificing one’s life” to refer to their sitting safely in a comfortable room indulging in intellectual pursuits, while in my world the phrase refers to people who are ready to actually sacrifice their actual life and sometimes actually do.

(The Hebrew-speaking aliens are disturbing in their behavior as well as their words. They seem to be here in Israel, they are capable of helping us with the wars, but they generally refuse to do so. Instead, they claim to have special powers that are crucially helping us. But these aliens weren’t even here in any significant numbers until extremely recently, so how could these powers be so crucial? Plus, they’ve never managed to demonstrate them. And they didn’t seem to work on October 7th. And in fact, it doesn’t even seem that they themselves believe in their efficacy. And last week, they significantly cut down on using them, despite the increased threat from Iran and Hezbollah. Yet they nevertheless want us Earthlings to part with our hard-earned resources, which we need to finance the war and operate and defend the country, in exchange for these alleged powers!)

All these aliens physically appear to be located on the same planet as me and my community; some of them even in the same country, the same city. But they’re actually living in a different world - in fact, seemingly in a different universe

"Death to America" Chants in New York City Carrying Hezbollah Flags!

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 Anti-Israel protesters in Manhattan waved the yellow-and-green banner of Hezbollah and proclaimed their “love” for the Iran-backed terrorist organization – as others set US flags on fire and chanted “death to America” during Monday’s day of unrest.

Videos taken during the downtown protest show at least one masked activist proudly displaying Hezbollah’s flag emblazoned with the image of an assault rifle and the words: “The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon.”

“Why are you supporting this? This is terrorism!” one outraged activist said of the murderous group — which the US says was behind the 1983 suicide bombing of American military barracks in Beirut that killed 241 service members, mostly Marines. 

A man wearing a keffiyeh scarf wrapped around his head and holding a defaced Israeli flag riddled with holes shot back, “Israel is a pariah state.”

Hit the mullahs and hit’em hard, Israel — and 5 key takeaways from Iran’s failed attack

 

by Michael Goodwin

Joe Biden’s timid advice for restraint notwithstanding, there’s zero doubt that Israel will retaliate against Iran.

The mad mullahs’ attack last weekend aimed to kill thousands of Israelis, and they get no discount just because they failed miserably. 

Iran’s terrorist leaders must be taught a painful and public lesson, one that will deter them from soon taking on Israel directly again.

It will also clarify for their proxies just how weak their patron is. 

As the debate in Israel’s war cabinet continues over its response, it is helpful from a distance to grasp the significance of what happened last weekend.

Here are five key takeaways. 

Evil and incompetent 

First, Iran was unmasked as a third-rate military power, one whose malignancy far outstrips its competency.

Congressman Hoyar Wants USA to "re-evaluate" Relationship with Qatar

Ezra Friedlander pandering Qatar Official 

 The Qatari embassy in the US expressed surprise on Tuesday at comments made by Congressman Steny Hoyer (D-MD) regarding the Gaza hostage crisis and his threat to "reevaluate" the US relationship with Qatar, Reuters reports.

Hoyer said on Monday that Qatar, which along with Egypt is mediating negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza, should tell Hamas there will be "repercussions" if the terrorist group "continues to block progress towards releasing the hostages and establishing a temporary ceasefire".

"Consequences ought to include cutting off funding to Hamas or refusing to grant Hamas' leaders refuge in Doha. If Qatar fails to apply this pressure, the United States must reevaluate its relationship with Qatar," Hoyer said in a statement quoted by Reuters.

In response, Qatar said Hoyer's comments were not "constructive".

"Qatar is only a mediator - we do not control Israel or Hamas. Israel and Hamas are entirely responsible for reaching an agreement," the embassy statement said.

"Of course, recent progress has been slow, and Congressman Hoyer is not alone in his frustration. But blaming and threatening is not constructive," it added, while also dismissing Hoyer's suggestion that Hamas should not be in Qatar.

"It is certainly tempting to do as he suggests and walk away from seemingly intransigent parties... but it is useful to remember that Qatar's mediation role exists only because we were asked by the US in 2012 to play this role since, regrettably, Israel and Hamas refuse to speak to each other directly," it said.

Qatar has played a key role in attempts to reach a deal between Israel and Hamas that would allow for the release of the hostages who are still held by Hamas in Gaza.

Qatar and the US have cooperated on other issues, and most recently the two countries reached an agreement that extends the US military presence at a sprawling base in Qatar for another 10 years.

Despite this, Qatar has come under fire for hosting senior Hamas leaders. Economy Minister Nir Barkat recently criticized Qatar, saying he didn’t trust Qatar to act as a mediator with Hamas and accused the Gulf country of “funding terror all over the world.”

Majed Al Ansari, the spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, later responded to Barkat, writing on social media, “Yet another headline-seeking politician in Israel is using ‘Qatar-bashing’ as a means to further his own political future. Rather than being preoccupied with supporting in the efforts to secure a deal, Minister Barkat finds his time is better spent attacking the mediators who are working round the clock to reach a deal that ensures the release of hostages and stop the bloodshed.”

Rabbi Lau " 'We still don't understand the magnitude of the miracle'"

In a special interview before Passover, Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, the former Chief Rabbi, Rabbi of Tel Aviv, spoke to Israel National News - Arutz Sheva and emphasized that the interception of the Iranian attack on Israel is not the only miracle, but the fact that the international coalition stood by Israel.

"It is by God’s grace that all these countries joined us in responding to the Iranian attack," says Rabbi Lau, "the USA, England, to a certain extent France, and even Jordan, which on the one hand is our enemy and on the other hand fought with us."

Rabbi Lau says that it is obvious that there was a common interest in this coalition, but even so, the Hand of God is visible here. "I understand why. We all have a common enemy; the Iranian threat, but everything is from heaven and suddenly all of these countries have a common enemy with us, and we are no longer isolated, nor alone in the face of this great danger."

According to Rabbi Lau, "God did us a great favor that 99% of all the UAVs were destroyed without harming us. There was only some damage to places, and no harm to people. This whole story was a great miracle, but we still have not appreciated its magnitude. We experienced God's true protection and this connection with the superpowers and our neighbors, as well as other details that are confidential, all I can say is that this was a great divine miracle."

 

Lakewood Talmud is Trump's Defense Attorney

 Observers of President Trump’s criminal trial in New York City may have noticed photos of two yarmulka-clad defense attorneys.

One of them is Gedalia M. Stern, a partner at the law firm of NechelesLaw, where he represents “clients in both federal and state court charged with a variety of crimes, including bribery, benefits fraud, wire fraud, kidnapping…” according to the firm’s website.

Stern spent several years learning at BMG in Lakewood, before attending Columbia Law School, where he graduated in 2014.

In deference to Stern’s observance of Shabbos and Yom Tov, Judge Juan Merchan said the court will adjourn at 2 p.m. Monday (Erev Pesach) “to allow counsel to arrive at their holiday destination.” Although unconfirmed, it appears that there will be no proceedings on all four days of Yom Tov as well.

Stern and his law partner, Susan Necheles, defended the Trump Organization in its 2022 criminal tax fraud trial.

Stern’s father is believed to be Marc Stern, the Chief Legal Officer of the American Jewish Committee (AJC). He also spent 33 years at the American Jewish Congress. In addition he has argued four cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. He earned a B.A. at Yeshiva University and a J.D. at the Columbia University School of Law.

According to some reports, Judge Merchan has disqualified Shabbos-observant Jews from being jurors in the case, however this is difficult to understand, especially in light of the fact that Trump’s own defense lawyer keeps Shabbos.

Finally a Twitter Account That Fights Antisemites and Gets Immediate Results!

 

Antisemite Celine Khalife

Dani Marzouca was in bed trying to sleep when the phone started buzzing. An organization dedicated to publicly rebuking critics of Israel had posted on X a clip of Marzouca declaring that “radical solidarity with Palestine means … not apologizing for Hamas.”

The 20-second clip, from an Instagram live stream, rapidly garnered more than 1 million views. Soon, the group, StopAntisemitism, was calling Marzouca a “Hamas terrorist supporter” and tagging their employer, the branding firm Terakeet of Syracuse, N.Y.

 Hundreds of people commented on X, LinkedIn and email, including one who asked: “Do you really have antisemites like this working for you, @Terakeet?”

Within a day, Marzouca was fired — a development Terakeet announced as a reply to StopAntisemitism’s Twitter thread, 15 hours after the original post.

“Thank you for your swift action,” StopAntisemitism wrote.

Terakeet did not respond to a request for comment.

Marzouca, 32, is one of nearly three dozen people who have been fired or suspended from their jobs after being featured by StopAntisemitism, according to the group’s X feed, part of a wave of digital activism related to the Israel-Gaza war. 

Why Israel's failure to strike back at Iran could lead to NUCLEAR WAR

There is no going back to the days before October 7, 2023 - before Hamas stormed across Israel's borders to murder, rape, maim and kidnap innocent civilians.

Now, there's no going back to a time before April 13, 2024, either.

The world irrevocably changed on Saturday when Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei unleashed, for the first time, a direct attack on the Jewish State from Iranian territory.

Israel has now proven, in the most significant way yet, the superiority of its missile defensive systems by intercepting over 95 percent of the hundreds of armed drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles launched by Tehran.

However, pride in this technological wizardry mustn't lull Israel or its allies into a false sense of security or diminish the severity of this change in the Middle East's savage rules of engagement.

Make no mistake – the threat to Israel's existence is greater today than it has ever been before.

For decades, Tehran has acted as the head of a terrorist octopus, lashing out at its Western foes with long tentacles in the form of proxy armies arrayed in a ring of fire around Israel (Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and militias in Yemen, Syria and Iraq).

But these new attacks raise the stakes dramatically.

Iran's assault came in response to an Israeli Air Force strike in Damascus earlier this month, which killed Mohammad Reza Zahedi the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon.

Zahedi was a big fish. He was responsible for numerous terrorist attacks on Israel and participated in an Iranian-backed militia attack that killed three American troops in Jordan in January.

There is also evidence that he participated in the planning and execution of the October 7 attacks - and at the time of his assassination, Zahedi was planning other terror plots.

Israel was acting well within the rules of its dangerous neighborhood by taking him out. But the Ayatollah responded with a potentially catastrophic barrage on Israeli civilians, military bases and government facilities.

If Iran walks away from this moment without paying a severe price, Tehran may be emboldened to deploy its weapons again. And the next time, these drones and missiles may be armed with nuclear or chemical payloads.

Yet today, some are arguing that Israel's response must match the actual damage, not the potential devastation, caused by the Iranian attack.

Only a few of Iran's deadly drones and missiles actually penetrated the Israeli 'Iron Curtain' of incredible air defenses, and those that did scarcely caused significant damage or causalities, save for the serious injury of a seven-year-old Israeli Bedouin girl who remains in hospital.

'You got a win. Take the win,' President Biden reportedly advised Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while warning the U.S. would not support an Israeli counterattack on Iran.

It would be a mistake for Israel to heed Biden's advice.

The concept of 'deterrence by denial', where Israel uses its military and technology to limit the cost of attacks on its civilians, is a fatally flawed strategy.

Indeed, 'deterrence by denial' failed spectacularly on October 7, when Israel failed to foresee and foil the attack from Hamas.

Israel must now adopt a doctrine of 'deterrence by punishment' where it inflicts disproportionate costs on its enemies and focuses its response on a few priority targets.

The Israeli military could destroy the weapons deployed against them, including unnamed aerial vehicle development and production plants, as well as cruise missile and drone storage facilities inside Iran.

Israel could also hit Iranian ports, oil and gas refineries, pipelines, and other infrastructure that finance the regime. 

Other targets could include leadership assets. Such strikes have the added deterrent effect of demonstrating the long arm of Israel's intelligence and military capabilities.

But the Israeli military's most important strategic target should be Iran's nuclear weapons program.

Israeli attention, which in recent decades has focused on delaying Tehran's progress in fissile material production, must now shift to neutralizing Iran's nuclear scientists and their ability to build an actual weapon.

Right now, Tehran is building a new heavily fortified facility near Natanz in central Iran that is reportedly designed to extend over 100 meters underground and is buried under a mountain. 

It is here that Iran could develop an enrichment plant powered by advanced centrifuges capable of producing multiple nuclear weapons without detection.

If completed, the Natanz facility could be impervious to Israeli and even American bombs.

Though, in contrast to Israeli 'deterrence by punishment', President Biden will dangle new weapons sales, political support and continued intelligence and defensive cooperation in front of Netanyahu in exchange for quiet in the Middle East before the November elections.

Biden's thinking right now is short-term. 

His political advisers don't want to risk a widening conflict threatening the flow of oil supplies and causing domestic gas prices to rise, or making Biden appear to be a feckless observer to an international crisis.

Israel must think long-term.

Biden's supposedly steadfast support for Israel after October 7 has diminished as he faced political pressure from the extreme left of his party. There's no reason Biden's will won't weaken again.

Israel's enemies will also interpret the lack of any meaningful response as weakness and capitulation to American demands. This will immediately influence their behavior in Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank, and reduce the chances that Hamas releases its hostages.

After this weekend, the threat of a nuclear weapon being deployed from inside Iran toward Israel is a step closer to reality. 

Israel must decide for itself the nature and timing of its response, but it must inflict serious damage on Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his regime to restore Israeli deterrence.

Brig. Gen. (res.) Jacob Nagel is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and a professor at the Technion. He served as National Security Advisor to Prime Minister Netanyahu and as acting head of the National Security Council. Mark Dubowitz is FDD's chief executive and an expert on Iran's nuclear program and sanctions. In 2019, he was sanctioned by Iran.

Shas and UTJ Making Deal With Arab Parties to Oppose Granting Ben-Gvir Power to Enforce Illegal Arab Construction

 

 This report is from the Jerusalem Post and I really hope this isn't true! Both the Chareidim and the Arabs are denying it. 

The article explains that the Chareidie Parties need the Arab Parties to back them to pass laws to exempt Chareidim from the Draft! 

Why am I surprised?

They will sit with Eichmann and Hitler ym"s as long as they back them in their selfish scheme to get "leidegeirs" from doing what should required of every Jew. 

National Security Minister and Otzma Yehudit chairman MK Itamar Ben-Gvir announced on Monday that his party would no longer adhere to coalition discipline and would vote in the Knesset as it sees fit, after the two ultra-Orthodox (haredi) parties, Shas and United Torah Judaism (UTJ), refused to support a move that would give him broader powers to enforce construction violations.

The seemingly inconsequential spat touched on simmering political tensions on additional issues such as the haredi exemption from military service, and provided a glimpse into political wheeling and dealing occurring behind the scenes

The plenum was scheduled on Monday to approve Ben-Gvir’s takeover of the National Unit for Enforcing Planning and Construction Laws. The unit was formed in 2017 as part of the Kamenetz Law, the purpose of which was to tighten enforcement of illegal construction, especially in the Arab sector.

The unit, which has the authority to hand out fines and other sanctions for construction violators, has been under the auspices of the Finance Ministry. However, the Likud agreed, in coalition agreements signed in November 2022, that the unit would move to Ben-Gvir’s ministry.

Ben-Gvir has promoted stricter enforcement against construction violations, especially among Bedouin nomad communities in the South, and having the unit under his auspices will give him more power over it.

However, Ben-Gvir announced on Monday that the haredim were unwilling to support the move, and therefore the coalition did not have a majority for it to pass. According to Ben-Gvir, the reason the haredim opposed the move was that they had made a deal with the Knesset’s two Arab parties.

The deal was that the haredi parties would agree to block Ben-Gvir’s move in exchange for support from the Arab parties on a future bill to regulate haredi conscription to the IDF. The Arab parties strongly oppose the Kamenetz Law and argue that it is discriminatory towards Israeli Arabs, who are forced to build illegally due to insufficient urban planning by the state in Arab cities and towns.

The haredi parties are seeking to pass a new law to enable as many yeshiva students as possible to remain exempt from IDF service, after the law that granted them a blanket exemption expired.

Sources from both the haredi and Arab parties denied Ben-Gvir’s claim. The haredi and Arab parties have collaborated in the past on the issue of laws providing an exemption from IDF service, but this time that was not the case, the sources said. Hadash-Ta’al MK Ahmad Tibi called Ben-Gvir a liar, saying in a speech in the plenum that even though the

Arab parties supported the haredi exemption, they would vote against such a bill to bring down the government if their votes were the deciding factor. A source from UTJ confirmed that there was no deal between the two groups.

Following the October 7 Hamas massacre and ensuing war, the haredi constituency will no longer accept cooperation with the Israeli Arab parties, the source said.

Shas Religious Affairs Minister Michel Malkieli filibustered on the Knesset dais for approximately an hour while the sides tried to work out their differences behind the scenes, but this was unsuccessful, and the vote to move the National Unit for Enforcing Planning and Construction Laws to Ben-Gvir’s ministry was removed from the agenda. The Knesset is currently in recess and sessions are rarely held, and only after receiving special approval, and it is unclear when the next vote on the matter will occur. 

People Getting Murdered on the Streets of NYC Yet The AG Pushing this Sham Trial .. Trying to Jail Trump on a Misdemeanor

 

Trump should risk arrest and attend son's graduation, force Dems into 'political suicide'

 

After New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan told former President Trump he would face arrest if he did not attend daily court sessions in his hush money trial, Fox Nation host Piers Morgan said the presumptive GOP presidential candidate should attend his son Barron's graduation, and challenge the judge's warning. "Donald Trump should go to his son's graduation … go to the graduation.

 Honestly, if you're watching, President Trump, just go to the graduation. Every parent in America, whether they like you or hate you, will go, 'Yeah, I'd have done that, too,'" Morgan said Monday on "The Five." 

 Barron Trump is graduating later this month from Oxbridge Academy in Palm Beach, Fla., while his father is scheduled to appear before Merchan in a New York courtroom 1,200 miles away. Morgan, who notably interviewed Trump for Fox Nation in a sometimes tense back-and-forth in 2022, called the case one of "the most petty, self-harming acts of political suicide I've ever witnessed."

The "Piers Morgan: Uncensored' host also called Merchan's case, brought by New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg, "utterly ridiculous."

Judge Jeanine Pirro, who held court in neighboring Westchester County and served as its Republican prosecutor for many years, said Merchan can indeed issue a bench warrant for Trump and have him arrested, but left open whether – as Morgan suggested – it would be politically advantageous.

Morgan went on to call the idea that a former president would be taken to court with a potential 10-year felony sentence over "potentially, a one-night-stand with a porn star" completely nonsensical.

"Have you lost your minds, America? What a demeaning way to treat a former president. Secondly, if you're on the left, why would you think this would possibly work? Why would you not think that what you're doing here is going to almost guarantee Donald Trump wins the next election?" he asked.

For his part, Trump said Merchan's decision that he cannot attend Barron's graduation or Supreme Court arguments for another case he is involved in are collectively a "perfect" ploy to help the "radical-left Democrats."

"That's exactly what they want. This is about election interference, that's all," he said in remarks following his day in Manhattan court.

Fox News host Jesse Watters added that former President Bill Clinton also made headlines for his 1998 legal settlement with former Arkansas state employee Paula Jones, but did not receive the same scrutiny Trump has.

Jones received an $850,000 payment over her 1991 claim Clinton – then the state's governor – harassed her inside a Little Rock hotel. Jones – one of several Clinton accusers Trump invited as guests to a Missouri debate against the Democrat's wife Hillary during the 2016 race – claimed Clinton exposed himself and made sexual advances.

At the time of the settlement, Clinton attorney Robert Bennett said Jones claim was meritless.

Clinton White House Press Secretary Michael McCurry said at the time that Clinton was "pleased that he has received the vindication he has long awaited."

Jordan allowed Israeli fighter jets into its airspace

 

Jordan allowed Israeli fighter jets into its airspace to intercept incoming Iranian missiles and drones, an Israeli air force official told NBC News on Monday.

“In order to address something that comes from the east, we need to fly somewhere that is east of Israel,” the official was quoted as having said in a briefing to reporters. “This was done with coordination.”

While Iran’s direct attack against Israel on Saturday night was unprecedented, so was the scale of coordination between Israel and its Arab neighbor in the response. Jordanian and Israeli fighters — coordinated by the US military — acted together to intercept the barrage of drones and missiles.

In a statement on Sunday, Jordan’s government said the interceptions were made to ensure the safety of its citizens, rather than in the defense of Israel, but it is thought to be the first time the two countries’ militaries have fought side by side.

Jordan signed a peace deal with Israel in 1994 but relations have been cold at times. Many locals are against the treaty. In addition, the Jordanian parliament, which is made up mostly of Islamists, remains anti-Israel and its members have more than once called to annul the peace treaty.

The Jordanian parliament has in the past approved a proposal to establish a committee to re-evaluate all formal ties with Israel, including the peace agreement.

That decision does not necessarily mean that the peace accords with Israel will be annulled, as such a decision requires the approval of the government, the royal palace and the council advising Jordan's King Abdullah II.

Charedim will agree to draft up to 50% of yeshiva students

 

After dozens of discussions on the Draft Law, a proposal was put forward to begin drafting approximately 25% of yeshiva students who come of age each year, and later raise the percentage to 50%, which would amount to 6,000 yeshiva students, Israel Hayom reported.

According to the report, the main delay in advancing the law is connected to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who has tied his support of the bill to Minister Benny Gantz's approval of it. Gantz opposes the current draft.

Currently, discussions on the details of the law are under intense discussion. Meanwhile, the haredim have agreed to allow thousands of yeshiva students to enlist, compared to the 1,200 who currently enlist each year.

According to data from haredi sources, over 1,000 young men who are exempted from army service because "their Torah is their occupation" are not in the yeshivas at all.

Many others are registered in yeshivas which haredim refer to as "yeshivas for drop-outs," attended by yeshiva students who are not capable of learning but who are registered in these yeshivas in order to avoid enlistment. The haredi representatives engaged in discussions on the Draft Law are aware of this.