| Consider Different Plans Someone who feels discouraged will not be able to think straight and will most likely overlook opportunities that he could benefit from. If something is important to you, don't think in a negative manner. Rather, try to think of a number of potential plans. One of those plans might work. The more optimistic and confident you are, the greater your chance of success. Love Yehuda Lave | | Mel Ziegler --An American Jewish Success story http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/banana-republic-was-mainstream-fashion-it-was-weirdly-wonderful-safari-brand-170059?curator=MediaREDEF
Genius marketers who broke most conventional expectations and proved they could sell anything to anyone, especially if you do not want it, do not need it and cannot afford it...and finally, leave with a smile after the sale. | | French Jews http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/22/middleeast/france-israel-jews-immigration/index.html | | | By: David Israel Published: March 17th, 2016 More than 300 FBI agents and Rockland district attorney investigators were spread across Rockland County, NY, on Wednesday with search warrants, asking local vendors and yeshivas for records and account for equipment that was supposedly purchased by religious schools with millions of dollars provided by federal education technology programs, LoHud.com reported. The FBI-led raid began at about 1:30 PM in Monsey and the village of Airmont, and included private homes, businesses and yeshivas. The FBI issued 22 search warrants in Ramapo alone. Some raids were carried out in Kiryas Joel in Orange County. According to LoHud.com, the raids are part of an investigation of local yeshivas over money obtained through the federal government's E-Rate program, which allocates more than $4 billion annually for computer and Internet access across the US. The US Attorney's Office said in a statement Wednesday: "Today, the FBI, working with our office, conducted searches in connection with an ongoing fraud investigation. If and when charges are filed, they will eventually become public. This remains an ongoing matter, and we are unable to provide any additional information at this time." The E-Rate program has been investigated for fraud many times since its inauguration in 1998. Robert Rhodes, chairman of Preserve Ramapo, told LoHud.com, "We expect eventually there will be conspiracy indictments and the same people who are involved in different areas of illegal activities are are interconnected." | | Purim prank gone wrong: Jewish boys arrested in Iran for Haman graffiti - Diaspora - Jerusalem Post Two Jewish teenagers were arrested in Tehran earlier this week after they were caught spray painting a building in the center of the Iranian capital with the words "Death to Haman," according to a report in The Jerusalem Post's sister Hebrew publication Maariv.
Details of the incident quickly came to the attention of various US Jewish organizations. According to the latest reports, the two have not yet been released. 
"Based on the details that came from Iran, the Tehran police promised to release the two boys, both 17, after it was made clear to them that this is not a political act, but a simple Purim prank, but as of now, the boys have not been released," said one official dealing with the issue according to the report.
Next week in Israel and across the world, Jews will celebrate the holiday of Purim.
According to Jewish tradition, it is a joyous celebration marked with the sending of gift baskets and with donations to the poor in commemoration of the salvation of the Jewish nation from Persia and the decree of the political leader Haman, who called for the death of the Jewish people.
"Although the authorities in Iran and the Muslim population are not connected to the story that took place in the historical Persian capital of Shushan, conservative factions in the country refer to the Book of Esther as the story of a massacre committed by the Jews against their enemies," an American Jewish official handling the case explained to Maariv.
According to tradition, the city of Shushan, mentioned
mentioned in the Book of Esther, is the modern day city of Hamadan in the northwest of the country, about 250 kilometers west of Tehran.
The spray-painted phrase "Death to Haman" may have been interpreted by Iranian police and the authorities as provocation against the regime directed against Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
American Jewish officials are working to determine the status of the two Jewish boys and hope to facilitate their release.
Approximately 13,000 Jews live in Iran with nearly half living in the capital city of Tehran. Jews are allowed freedom of worship and have one representative in the Iranian parliament | | Life in Israel: The Name Heard Round the World http://lifeinisrael.blogspot.co.il/2016/03/the-name-heard-round-world-video.html | | After worshipers don't return to Gaza - Israel cancels weekly visit from Gaza to Al-Aqsa Israel cancels weekly visit from Gaza to Al-Aqsa
March 16, 2016 10:56 P.M. (Updated: March 17, 2016 4:17 P.M.)
http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=770732
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- The Israeli authorities on Wednesday cancelled a weekly visit allowing elderly Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to travel to occupied East Jerusalem for Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to Palestinian liaison officials.
Sources at the Palestinian liaison office said that Israel had called off the agreement, which previously allowed 200 Gazans above the age of 60 to worship at the holy site as part of a ceasefire agreement that ended the 2014 Gaza war.
Sources said Israel cancelled the agreement on the grounds that Palestinian worshipers traveling for worship were not returning to the Gaza Strip on the same day of the visit as the agreement stipulated.
A spokesperson for Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) confirmed the cancellation and said: "Any claims regarding the freezing of permits for prayers in the Temple Mount [Al-Aqsa] should be directed to those who choose to exploit illegally the permits at the expense of the rest of the public."
"In light of inappropriate misusing of the permit and exploiting inappropriately the Israeli civil policy, it has been decided to freeze the permits for prayers in the Temple Mount [Al-Aqsa]," the spokesperson said, adding that over 1,000 Palestinians in Gaza are permitted to cross to Israel each day for a variety of purposes including for business affairs or medical treatment.
The spokesperson said that giving permits for entry to the Al-Aqsa compound is a "civil step" among others taken by the body, but added that any "attempts to harm the security of Israel" would not be tolerated.
The spokesperson told Ma'an the decision was temporary until the issue was addressed by the Palestinian Civil Committee in the Gaza Strip.
The announcement comes after the Israeli authorities last week reportedly said they were considering increasing the number of Palestinians able to travel from Gaza to Al-Aqsa, as well as lowering the age limit to 50.
Al-Aqsa Mosque. Disputes surrounding visitation to the site have historically flared tensions in the occupied Palestinian territory.
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IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on Arab-Israeli relations | | Hope for stroke victims: Zapping the brains of patients with electricity can restore strength and grip after just nine treatments
Stroke patients recover dexterity after having their brains zapped Neuroscientists at Oxford University used a technique called transcranial direct current stimulation to stimulate key parts of patients brains, improving their ability to reach, lift and grasp. Read the full story: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3495522/Hope-stroke-victims-Zapping-brains-patients-electricity-restore-strength-grip-just-nine-treatments.html 17 March 2016 | | | Kahane on the Parsha
Rabbi Meir Kahane- Parshat VaYikra
A SYMBOL OF TRUST "And a soul who brings a minchah sacrifice to G-d..." (Leviticus 2:1). On this verse, the Rabbis ask, "Why does the Torah alter its language and use the word 'soul' [instead of 'man']? G-d said, 'Who ordinarily brings a minchah? A poor person. When he brings a minchah, I consider it as if he offered his soul to Me'" (Menachot 104b). The minchah sacrifice, brought by a poor person, symbolizes dedication and subjugation. That's why it cannot contain chametz (Leviticus 2:11) since chametz symbolizes arrogance. The minchah, though, also symbolizes faith that G-d will give man what he lacks. That's why the Rabbis called the afternoon prayer - recited when the sun is setting and the world begins to grow dark - Tefillat Minchah. Precisely when the situation appears dark and likely to darken further, a person must have faith and pray - and if he does, G-d will help. That's why the Rabbis declared that "a person should always be careful to pray Minchah because the prophet Elijah doesn't answer any prayer save this one" (Berachot 6b).
Incidentally, this understanding of the words "soul" and "minchah" explains why G-d exiled Jacob and his progeny to Egypt. For when Jacob heard that his brother Esau was coming to kill him, he sent him a present - a minchah (Genesis 32:13). In other words, instead of relying on G-d and placing his faith in Him, Jacob placed his faith in the goodwill of Esau. He took the Minchah - which symbolizes faith in G-d - and sent it to Esau. The Torah alludes to this sin when it refers to the descent of Jacob and his progeny to Egypt as the descent of 70 "souls" (Exodus 1:5). "Soul" ordinarily symbolizes someone who has complete faith, someone who brings a minchah sacrifice. Since Jacob did not exhibit complete faith, he and his family were sent into exile in Egypt, and the Torah reminds us of his sin by using the word "soul" in this context. Peirush HaMaccabee | |  | | |
