Jerusalem - A love story

1. Have you ever met anyone embracing seventy names? Have you ever tried searching for an item that has seventy names? Have you ever heard of a city with seventy names? If you haven't journeyed to that elusive city connected to seventy identities, then a plane, train, bus, or the light rail can transport you to that spiritual center, an ancient modern city, evoking weird and wonderful reactions from devotees and detesters. There is no other location with seventy exquisite names reflecting seventy characteristics, among them Ohaliba, Gila, Yedidut, Shalem — names that express sentiments of love and joy, of friendship and peace — seventy choice callings found in Tanach and Talmudic texts, known foremost as Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is not my birth city. Jerusalem is my home. Sacred and ancestral, it is the city of kings and prophets, a city that has known wars, and total destruction. Yet our generation, citizens, residents, and visitors alike, have merited a renewed Jerusalem, a thriving city atop layers of antiquity, known as Israel's captivating capital.

Modern-day Jerusalem is nothing short of a miracle, and the day for celebration is on the 28th of Iyar. Not everyone revels in that joyous day. The defeated abhor Jewish expansion, scorn Jewish presence, and envy Israeli success. Some fools prefer life as it was behind barbed wire, our tiny country mapped in green and sporting a belted waistline, as it was pre-1967. Yet for those of us who lived in a divided Jerusalem, ruptured by ugly concrete walls and twisted piercing wire, where Jordanian Legionnaires on rooftops at the “border” by Mamilla Street, shelled and fired at Jews below, and nearly all of us who have lived here continuously since those difficult years, as I have for sixty years, cannot ignore the miraculous fulfillment of prophecies worthy of celebration.

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Rabbi Dov Lipman sues 2 women amid sexual harassment accusations

 The American-born former Israeli politician Dov Lipman was once a rising star of Yesh Atid, the political party whose leader was tasked last week with forming a new government.

Now Lipman is being sued for sexual harassment, according to a report in Haaretz.

Two women from his Modern Orthodox community in Beit Shemesh made specific accusations about Lipman, a rabbi originally from Washington, D.C. Commenting on a post in a #MeToo-themed Facebook group written by a moderator that warned communities not to hire Lipman as a scholar-in-residence, one of the women said that Lipman had inappropriately propositioned her. The second woman wrote that Lipman had engaged in abusive and bullying behavior.

Lipman sued the two women in a libel lawsuit last July, Haaretz reported.

He claimed the women’s accusations were false and made with “evil intent” and “the goal of humiliating, deriding and destroying the chances of the complainant to be chosen for public roles, to damage his ability to support his family, with the goal of destroying his life.”

In response, the women filed a counter-lawsuit that accuses Lipman of trying to silence them and “damage their right to express their truth and their positions.”

Both women had worked with Lipman on the activism that helped kickstart his political run, which involved pushing back against harassment of women and girls over modesty and other perceived religious infractions in Beit Shemesh, a city that includes a community of extremist haredi Jews.

Lipman, who was elected to Israel’s parliament in 2013, lost his Knesset seat in 2015 when his party did not win enough seats to reelect him. Lipman continued to work on behalf of the party as an English-language spokesperson but broke with the party in 2018, citing “personal reasons” at the time. In text messages cited in the woman’s lawsuit against Lipman, he said the allegations of sexual harassment were the reason for his split from Yesh Atid.

Lipman currently serves as secretary-general of the World Confederation of United Zionists, part of the World Zionist Organization.

Lipman has denied the allegations and on Sunday blasted Haaretz, accusing it of writing a one-sided "smear story".

"A newspaper wrote a smear story about me without even asking for my side of the story," Lipman wrote in a Facebook post.

"I sued a woman who wrote false and defamatory words about me about something which in her words allegedly took place in 2014."

"There was, of course, no criminal complaint against me as I was never even alone with this woman at any time. Now it is in the hands of the civil court and I am confident that the decision in my law suit against her will bring the truth to light. In the meantime I will continue to work day and night to help olim and to tell Israel’s story to the world."

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"Jews' Lives Don't Matter" to this New York Congressman

 Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) defended his support for a bill that would impose limitations on U.S. military aid to Israel.

Bowman, who serves as the U.S. representative for New York’s 16th Congressional District, is one of 18 Democratic House members who co-sponsored the legislation, proposed by Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn), to regulate U.S. taxpayer funds to Israel. It specifies that Israel may not use American aid for the detainment of Palestinian children, damage of Palestinian property and support for unilateral annexation of parts of the West Bank.

The bill was supported by two anti-Israel Organizations, J Street and IfNotNow.

“My decision to sign on to this bill was not in a vacuum. It was made in consultation with many within the Jewish community within the district who also supported the bill,” Bowman said as part of an online discussion with Rabbi Michael Miller, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, which was posted on YouTube. “In order for us to get to a two-state solution, we have to have honest conversations about what’s happening on the ground—to ensure the long-term safety and security of Israel, of the Jewish community and of the Palestinians there.”

Bowman explained that the bill does not seek to condition aid outright, but calls for “more transparency in terms of how the aid is being used, particularly with regard to the detaining of Palestinian children.”

He added that “the safety and security of the Jewish community overall and the people of Israel is an upmost priority of mine and will remain an upmost priority of mine.”

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Student Visa Holders from US to be Granted Entry Into Israel Without Permits

 

Chaim V’Chessed has chronicled the saga of entry to Israel for student visa holders for well over a year. For several months, we have advocated for blanket permission to enter Israel for those holding valid visas. Now, this will become reality, for at least some travelers.

Ministry of Interior officials, as well as the Israeli Consulate in New York have confirmed that, beginning tomorrow, May 10, passengers departing the US for Israel (on non stop flights only) will be permitted to enter Israel if they hold valid student visas. This is is a pilot program which currently is only available for travelers form the United States.

We have confirmed this information with relevant government offices. At the same time, we caution that several airline officials with whom we are in contact with are as of yet not aware of this rule change.

Furthermore, there are still several unclear areas. For example, student visa families have been stranded abroad due to newborns who do not have visas. It is unclear how this new rule will help those families. W

Additionally, just last Thursday, we reported the Israeli authorities had suddenly begun demanding entry permits from toshavei keva (permanent residents of Israel). Will these passengers now be permitted to fly without permits? This would certainly be reasonable, but it is as yet unclear.

We continue to seek clarifications form government officials, and will update when more information becomes available.

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DIN Musings

 

This past shabbos was כ"ו אייר, the 26th day of the Jewish month of Iyar.  For those who delve into Kabbalah,  כ"ו אייר   is always "יסוד שביסוד"..(I won't go into the significance of this now)

It is also my Jewish birthday!

This year כ"ו אייר fell on Shabbos, and I was born on Shabbos. 

When I was born, my mother must have been torn between being thrilled and being sad as כ"ז אייר the day after, was the Yurzeit of practically her entire family that were brutally murdered in Auchwich just a couple of years prior.

I cannot imagine the pain searing thru her heart when she decided to name me after her eldest brother, whose wife and nine children (one survived) were also victims to the Nazi beasts!

It was  the Parsha of Behar- Bechukoisai, the parsha where Hashem warns us of all the curses that would come upon the Jewish people if they fail to observe the mitzvos that they had agreed upon at Har Sinai!

Growing up amongst survivors one could feel the sadness in the air and of course in the homes of my friends and family because it was during those weeks just a couple of years prior that Eichmann ym"s deported the Hungarian Jews in 1944; and when this time of Pesach & Shevuois came around, the families would all be  observing the Yurzeits and it was these weeks that would conjure up all that pain. 

No one was talking about the Talmidim of Rebbe Akiva that died in a  plague during this very time, they had their own martyrs to mourn.

I remember survivors gathering minyanim in the corridors of the Shuls, outside on the streets, in basements, so they could get the amud. ....there was no such thing as "one main minyan and only one davens.." not with those who just lost entire families ...these "yekkeh" rules went out the window, faster than a snowball melts in hell.

My bar-mitzvah fell smack into these sad weeks and I remember that we had a family friend who was a known Chazzan who walked in the pouring rain many blocks to our Shul , and my father z"l wanted  him very much to daven for the amud to enhance the simcha, but my father z"l was given flack by the survivors, who wanted the amud themselves, because they had Yurzeit..I remember my father z"l saying that" a simcha trumps a Yurzeit" and besides, our family had Yurzeit that shabbos as well; he won out at the end. They all also wanted Aliyas because they had Yurzeit ... and even though we had two parshiyois, we couldn't cut it up so that more could get aliyois because the bulk of the "tochcecha" is in Parshas Bechukosai...... so don't ask ...I could go on and on..

So when this parsha of Behar/Bechukoisah comes around, I pay special attention...

In Parshas Bechkoisa, the Torah predicted the Meron Tragedy .... 

(ויקרא, כ"ז:לז)

וכשלו איש-באחיו כמפני -חרב ורדף אין

"They will fall over one another as if chased by the sword, even when there is no one pursuing"

See Rashi:

כשירצו לנוס יכשלו זה בזה כי יבהלו לרוץ

"When they will run to escape they will stumble over one another, because they will run being confused"

Chilling isn't it?

and the Torah predicted not in "tochaca" but at "matan Torah" that the leaders would be useless!

 and not take the initiative... 

(שמות, פרשת יתרו, י"ט:ז)

ויבא משה ויקרא לזקני העם וישם לפניהם את כל הדברים האלה אשר צוהו  ה', ויענו כל-העם יחדיו ויאמר כל אשר-דבר ה' נעשה וישב את- דברי העם אל- ה'

"Moshe came and summoned the elders of the people, conveying to them all that Hashem had said.....all the people answered as one and said "All that Hashem has spoken, we will do."Moshe brought the people's reply back to Hashem"

So Moshe tells the leaders the "ziknei ha'am"  all that Hashem told him .....

 and what? Hellllllllllllow? What?

Crickets ..... they say nothing... nada ...zilch..gurnisht!

Who answers after hearing the very same thing? 

The "people" the regular guy with the baseball cap and jeans, that works like a dog all day  comes home grabs a bite and runs to his daf....that's the guy who said "we will do" he answers immediately ... he doesn't stop and learn "pshat" .. he heard the words of Hashem and he steps up to the plate ...

Yes...yes.. you can learn different pshat in the pasuk... yes yes ...

but the end of the day

אין המקרא יוצא מדי פשוטו

Yes you can call me an "apikoras" yes...you can twist your "gruber finger" in all directions ..yes you can say that "ha'am" includes the "ziknei ha'am" but the pasuk needs to be understood on its own merit and stands all by itself ..

The Torah is teaching us an important message ....that yes we need leaders.. absolutely.... you see that Moshe called them in first... but the leaders were probably not sure what the people would say, they weren't strong enough .they had to take a poll first ....and we see that back when they were still in Mitzrayim, they chickened out when Moshe and Aharon faced Paro, they backed out slowly until no one was left...

The Torah is telling us that the "pusheter yid" is the one that Hashem is counting on .... the Yaavetz points out that it was the leaders that were by in large the ones to convert during the inquisitions... the regular Jew who was unlearned didn't succumb to any of the pressures, they gave their lives  before they would convert.....they had "Amuneh Pshuteh" they had faith with no" ifs ands or buts" they weren't looking into the Rif, the Ran in the back of the gemaarah on what it means to have faith ...they had it in their hearts and we are the descendants of these Jews..  Read the Bio of Shabsai Tzvi and you will see that most of  the Rabbonim sided with him.. that's why Artscroll and Feldheim will never ever put out a book detailing these historical events, they are afraid that you will learn the truth ..

So what do we do today?

Firstly I want to bless all of you and my haters too, that we begin this year with Simchas, with Health, and Yiddish Nachas from all our children, that we embrace and love each Jew.... (that doesn't mean I will stop giving my opinions or to call someone out)

 and that we respect our leaders but follow Ronald Reagan's advice: "trust but verify"

If you have a Rav who criticises Israel and I don't mean Israeli politics like "Likkud vs Lapid" etc but says in public that one should wait until "Moshiach comes" until making Aliyah or if he brings proof against the State of Israel...then run the other way and remember that it was the Gedoilim the "ziknei Ha'am"who sided with Korach against Moshe just weeks after Matan Torah ...it was the gedoilim the "ziknei Ha'am" that were the meraglim .....it was the "ziknei Ha'am" that heard what the rest of the Jews heard from Moshe but remained silent ...

if the Rav says that there is no Mitzvah of Yishuv Eretz Yisrael Be'zman Hazeh.... run like hell!

If the Rav asks you to join any protest against the State of Israel that is the home of close to 6 million Jews, run like hell....and should he ask you "why did you leave"?  Politely direct him to Parshas Shlach, direct him to Parshas Korach .... then politely ask him if 6 million Jews would have been slaughtered if there was a State... and if he answers that it was a "gezirah min ha'shamyim" tell him that the founding and the establishment of the Jewish State was also a "gezirah min ha'shamyim" 

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A Must See For Satmar Israeli Flag Burners ...

 

Authorities in the Islamic Republic attempted to burn the Israeli flag, as they usually do. But this time, karma got them and they ended up burning themselves.

Meanwhile unlike the regime, ordinary Iranians increasingly refuse to burn or walk on Israeli and American flags. pic.twitter.com/flOKCA44wn

— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) May 9, 2021

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Lady and Her 3 Year Old Son Kicked Off Plane ..Not Because He Had no Mask.. He Did! But Because "he would PROBABLY take off his mask"

Rav Biderman Comes to give Chizuk in Beit Shemesh but not Before Removing the "Beit Shemesh Logo" from the Shtender

 

I actually like this Rav Biderman and he has a big following. He came to Beit Shemesh to give us chizuk, after all we are all so broken about the tragedy in Meron.... 

The gathering was well publicised and it was held in a hall that is owned by the local municipality of Beit Shemesh. They were nice enough to give him access to the hall, as this drasha benefitted all of us.

It didn't take two minutes when this "chizuk forum" turned into a political fiasco, as a huge groan was heard from the crowd as one of Rav Biderman's gabaoim ran to the podium to cover up the logo of Beit Shemesh! 

People were very respectful and didn't shout out when this happened, but when it ended no one spoke about his great words of chizuk and all that was heard was talk about the incident!

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Never Wonder Why We Are Still in Galut .....

 

אין לאנדאן pic.twitter.com/ameLYIa8xz

— Hasidic2 (@hasidic_1) May 7, 2021

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Toldos Aharon Rebbe at Gathering "some things always need strengthening. ” How About not packing 100,000 people in a place that accommodates 10,000?

On one of the blogs, a guy named "Yosef" summed up the situation...

Yosef

 3 days ago

Let’s be Mekabel, that we shall never ever again protest on the streets by blocking city buses and innocent cars.
We can all watch the video clips of those horrific protests where we are just sitting there in middle of the thru-way, piled up on each other, pulling our friends out of the police officers’ hands, forcing these hardworking police officers to carry our bodies away from the road.
There were good innocent people, old and young, who were on an important errand, doctor’s appointment, etc, (there are some stories of women and girls desperate to use the bathroom) who just had to sit on the road and wait for us Yeshiva boys sitting on the road singing Lag Bo’omer songs (yes, listen to the clips) among other songs.
How can a Yeshiva Bochur choose to cause so much pain and suffering to innocent people in the cars and buses, who did nothing wrong?"

Following the tragedy in Meron, a large general gathering for all followers of Toldos Aharon throughout the country was held this past Tuesday night. The conference was held at the Great Beit Midrash in Mea Shearim.

Thousands of Chasidim from across the country attended.

The rally was opened by Rabbi Yaakov Mendel Yorovitz, a member of the Eida Chareidis, who mourned the great loss of the late Rabbi David Kreuss.  Rabbi Kreuss was killed in the Meron disaster. In addition, Rabbi Birach Yehuda Heimlich praised the Haredi community and the rabbis of the Toldot Aharon community.

The Rebbe of Toldot Aharon, who usually stays in Tzfas after Lag BaOmer  came especially to attend the conference. He explained that we certainly do not know the ways of heaven, but these were taken and called up to make amends for the whole, and to atone for the whole house of Israel.

“Obviously we need to wake ourselves up and get stronger, and called for the correction of actions in general, and in particular.” The Rebbe continued, “I do not know what really needs to be awakened but every heart knows the stress of his soul, and I want to categorize Klal Yisrael only in general. In some things that always need strengthening. ”

After the rally, the Rebbe came to the Mea Shearim market to comfort mourners at the Kreuss family home where he sat for a long time. He told the orphans, “From now on, I would like to see where you are holding in learning – come to me regularly.”

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Heshy Tischler Sentenced To 10 Days Of Community Service

 Seven months after Heshy Tischler was charged with inciting a riot in Brooklyn’s Borough Park, the Orthodox activist and provocateur has been sentenced to 10 days of community service.

Tischler, a radio host who is now running for City Council, was arrested in October on charges of unlawful imprisonment of a journalist and member of the Hasidic community. He pled guilty to inciting a riot, one of four charges that he drew during a week of turbulent protests in Borough Park last fall when the heavily Orthodox Brooklyn neighborhood was placed under tighter restrictions due to rising COVID-19 cases there.

Explaining his decision to plead guilty, Tischler told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency Friday, “I did it for the community.”

The charges were dated October 7, the night when Tischler led a group of young Orthodox men in surrounding Jacob Kornbluh, a member of the Hasidic community and a journalist who had criticized Tischler. The crowd surrounded Kornbluh, backing him against a brick wall, and screamed the word “moser” at him. The term means an informer and carries the connotation of a threat.

Video of the incident posted to Twitter by Jake Offenhartz, a reporter for Gothamist, showed a large crowd gathered around Kornbluh with Tischler at the center, shouting in Kornbluh’s face while unmasked. “You’re a moser,” Tischler is seen screaming. “Everybody scream moser!” Tischler had called Kornbluh a “moser” and a “rat” in a video he posted to Instagram earlier that day from a cemetery.

At a protest the night before, where protesters at points burned masks and blocked a city bus from passing, Tischler encouraged the crowds to defy the public health orders imposed on the neighborhood’s schools and synagogues. “We will not close,” he told the crowds. Later, he told protestors, “You are my soldiers. We are at war.”

In a virtual court appearance Friday afternoon, Tischler was sentenced to 10 days of community service. The terms of the sentencing mean that if Tischler completes his community service according to the terms set by the court, the judge will remove the charges from his record.

Tischler, who attained his public persona in Borough Park in large part due to his volunteering, downplayed the severity of the community service requirement, saying it was “not a sentence.”

“I will do 10 days of community service even though each week I do about four, five or six days of community service,” he said.

“Heshy loves helping people and he does community service every day,” said Sara Shulevitz, one of Tischler’s lawyers.

Kornbluh reacted to the sentence in a statement posted to Twitter. “I welcome the fact that Mr. Tischler acknowledged in the court of law that he incited a riot against me and has been held accountable for his actions. I am looking forward to continuing my work in journalism undeterred,” he said.

The Brooklyn District Attorney’s office, which prosecuted the case, also asked for an order of protection on behalf of Kornbluh. Tischler said that he would ask for an order of protection against Kornbluh.

Tischler is running for City Council in District 48, which includes several Orthodox neighborhoods in south Brooklyn. The seat is currently held by Chaim Deutsch, an Orthodox politician who was recently expelled from the council after pleading guilty to tax fraud.

In a video posted to Instagram Wednesday, Tischler appeared with City Councilman Kalman Yeger, who represents Borough Park, and State Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein, two of the most prominent Orthodox elected officials in Brooklyn. Yeger and Eichenstein smile and joke with Tischler in the video, which is branded with Tischler’s campaign logo.

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Why Are The Arabs Rioting? Here Are the Facts

 

The Nachalat Shimon and Shimon Hatzaddik neighborhood

Not that we need a reason why those savages riot and want to kill Jews..but it's important for readers to know the false narrative that is being spread by the news media and social media platforms. Even frum Jews are backing the blood thirsty Arabs so it's important to be informed.

With Israel under international attack over its response to the riots in Sheikh Jarrah and Temple Mount, and with bloodcurdling threats coming both from rioters and from Hamas and PA leaders, it is no surprise that even many Israelis cannot understand what the fuss is about.

The lack of hasbara, or targeted PR on the part of Israel’s foreign ministry has led many Israelis to adopt the narrative of the Palestinians regarding Sheikh Jarrah. Even prominent journalists like Barak Ravid, political correspondent on Walla news, have simply presented the facts the Palestinian way, claiming that Israel is maintaining a double standard in the Arab neighborhood by evicting Arabs on the basis of pre-1948 Jewish properties, since there is no such legal recourse for Arabs claiming properties in Israel which they abandoned prior to the War of Independence.

Ravid claims the Sheikh Jarrah situation is causing Israel “crazy political and diplomatic damage” in the world and then cites Alexandria Ocasia-Cortez, not known as a great ally of Israel, who tweeted that:

“We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem. Israeli forces are forcing families from their homes during Ramadan and inflicting violence.

“It is inhumane and the US must show leadership in safeguarding the human rights of Palestinians.”

The problem is that the real damage is being caused by Ravid and his fellow journalists, since there is a real way to justify Israel’s actions but they are too lazy and biased to present it. A few historical facts will suffice to explain the Israeli position:

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Rav Avraham Hamra, 78 Chief Rabbi Of Syrian And Lebanese Jews Passes On

 

 The kehilla of Jews of Syrian and Lebanese origin in Israel on Friday morning were shocked at the news of the death HaRav Avraham Chamra, z’l, at the age of 78.

The niftar was born in Syria, where he began leading the community as a young man, and tended to all the needs of the Jewish community with great mesirus nefesh, including kashrus, marriage, araba minin, gittin and levayos.

He moved to Israel in 1994 after ensuring that many other Jews left the country as well, and established a new kehilla in Eretz Hakodesh in the city of Holon. He also served as a member of the Holon Religious Council.

“Rav Chamra, zt’l, upheld kashrus, marriage and chinuch for the Jewish kehilla in Syria while maintaining a friendship with the [Syrian] President, thereby greatly assisting the preservation of the community,” stated Chief Rabbi HaRav Yitzchak Yosef.

“From the time he moved to Eretz Yisrael, he was moser nefesh for the members of the community in Syria in order to bring them to Eretz Yisrael and was active in the preservation and elevation of the glorious Jewish traditions of these communities.”

The levaya was held on Friday afternoon in Holon.

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Gunned-Down Palestinian Terrorists Were En Route to Carry Out ‘Major’ Attack in Israel

 

The Palestinian terrorists gunned down by Israeli security forces on Friday were set out to perpetrate a “major” terrorist attack within Israel, security officials said.

The firefight broke outside a Border Police base near the West Bank-Israel border by the northern Palestinian city of Jenin.

Israeli border policemen were inspecting a bus of Palestinian workers crossing into Israel illegally when the terrorists opened fire; Israeli troops killed two members of the terror cell and critically wounded the third.

There were no casualties among Israeli troops.

“The sharp and professional actions of the border police officers helped prevent a major terrorist attack,” the head of the IDF’s Central Command Tamir Yadai said.

The three members of the terror cell were reportedly trying to reach the Israeli capital of Jerusalem.

The attack follows the overnight detention of a woman with a knife in the West Bank city of Hebron, at the Cave of the Patriarchs, as well as overnight clashes in Jerusalem’s east.

It also comes as Israel Police brace for more unrest in Jerusalem after prayers on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

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Principal is cleared after viral video showed her SPANKING a six-year-old girl with a paddle for damaging a computer

 

A Florida school principal has been cleared of wrongdoing after a viral video showed her spanking a six-year-old girl with a paddle in front of her mom as punishment for damaging a computer. 

State Attorney Amira Fox's office said Friday that Melissa Carter, head of Central Elementary School in Clewiston, will not face charges over the incident and that no crime was committed.

Prosecutors said the punishment did not cause harm or amount to child abuse and that its investigation found the child's mom, Fabiola Rivera, had consented to her daughter being spanked by the school staffer.  

Carter was under investigation

The six year-old's mother, who has not been named, said she was called to her daughter's school after the officials complained she had caused damage to a school computer.

The mother, who does not speak fluent English, claims she was confused by the allegations made against her daughter as she arrived at the school to pay a $50 fine. 

She claims she was taken to the principal's office where her daughter was waiting.

Carter then brought out a wooden paddle and smacked the girl on the behind as she wailed.

The mom secretly filmed the incident but did not intervene, later claiming she was confused due to the language barrier.

She filed a police report and her attorney Brent Probinsky accused Carter of committing child abuse and aggravated battery.  

But prosecutors said Friday their probe found no crime had been committed. 

According to statements by Carter and another staff member Cecilia Self, the first-grader's mom was called by the school telling her about her child damaging the computer and that she would have to pay a fine.  

The mom told Self her daughter was breaking things at home as well but that she was scared to spank her daughter at home because the girl had threatened to call authorities, according to the memo.

The mother is an undocumented immigrant and was fearful of reprimand. 

The school staff told investigators that the mom asked if the school could spank the child for her, according to the memo.

Rivera was reportedly told she would have to come to the school to request such discipline, and must be 'present during the spanking if she wished for school staff to do it for her,' the memo reads. 

'According to both Ms. Carter and Ms. Self, Ms. Rivera then arrived at the school and made that request.'

Prosecutors said it appears that Rivera filmed the incident without the knowledge of anyone else in the room. 

In the video, Carter is seen explaining to the child what was about to happen and why.

Self and Carter then appear to position the girl in a way she can be safely spanked without causing her injury, prosecutors said. 

The girl was then spanked three times then told to apologize to her mother and that the same punishment would happen again if she continued to misbehave.

Both staff members appear to 'treat the child and her mother with respect throughout the process' with Self translating to Spanish for the benefit of the mom on several occasions, the State Attorney's Office said. 

At no point did the mom object to what was going on and when she left with her daughter she said 'thank you' to the two staff members, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said the two staff members' versions of events also matched their interview with the child.   

Deputy Chief Assistant State Attorney Abraham Thornburg concluded that 'the evidence in this case appears clear that the child's mother sanctioned and consented to the spanking of her daughter as discipline for misbehavior.

'A parent has a right to use corporal punishment to discipline their children and similarly has the right to consent that others do so on their behalf.'   

'Based upon the evidence reviewed, the actions of Ms. Carter in this case do not meet the elements of any criminal offense in the State of Florida,' the State Attorney's Office added.

The office also said that edited clips of the video had been released to local media which had led to an 'incomplete and misleading account of the incident.' 

The DA's decision came after county investigators reached a similar conclusion. 

The mother had told investigators she had been 'confused' because of the language barrier and didn't know what was going on. 

She claimed she feared getting in trouble, or having her immigration status questioned if she tried to stand up for her daughter.

She later took her daughter to a doctor, and documented red marks and bruises made by the paddle. 

She later told local media she had offered the youngster as a 'sacrifice' and filmed the spanking to show what was happening at the school.   

She said she was now worried about what psychological harm has been caused to her child. 

Florida is one of 19 states that still allows corporal punishment in schools, but the practice is banned in Hendry County school district - which includes Central Elementary School. 

Corporal punishment is legal in 19 US states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Wyoming.

But certain school districts in those states have banned the punishment.

In 2011, New Mexico became the most recent state to outlaw the practice.

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45 Tragic deaths in Meron Doesn't Stop Ponivitzer's Future Torah Leaders From Trying to Kill Each Other

 Anyone have $$$$ to donate to Ponovitz to buy New Shtenders?

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The Guardian calls early support for Zionism one of its "worst errors" in 200 years

 The UK’s Guardian newspaper provoked anger and disbelief from Jewish groups and the Israeli government after it called its 1917 editorial support for the Balfour Declaration one of the newspaper’s “worst errors in judgement over 200 years.”

The statement was made in a feature story on the newspaper’s 200th birthday, titled "What we got wrong: The Guardian's worst errors of judgement over 200 years."

The 1917 Balfour Declaration, which paved the way for the eventual creation of the State of Israel, was a public decree by the British government during the last years of WW I that announced support for the establishment of a “national home for the Jewish people” in historic Palestine, then an Ottoman region.

“A daily newspaper cannot publish for 200 years without getting some things wrong. This one has made its share of mistakes,” the article stated.

It continued, “When Arthur Balfour, then Britain’s foreign secretary, promised 104 years ago to help establish a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine, his words changed the world. The Guardian of 1917 supported, celebrated and could even be said to have helped facilitate the Balfour declaration.”

The article said that at the time the newspaper’s editor CP Scott was a “supporter of Zionism and this blinded him to Palestinian rights.”

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