Yehuda Lave, Spiritual Advisor and Counselor | | | | Yehuda Lave is an author, journalist, psychologist, rabbi, spiritual teacher, and coach, with degrees in business, psychology and Jewish Law. He works with people from all walks of life and helps them in their search for greater happiness, meaning, business advice on saving money, and spiritual engagement. Now also a Blogger on the Times of Israel. Look for my column Love Yehuda Lave | | What is the most Eastern US State? You won't believe it! What is the most Eastern State in the UNITED STATES-You won't believe it If you pay attention to Alaska, you can see that it's the northernmost and westernmost state in the United States. But there's another secret to Alaska. Let's zoom in. The red line is the 180th meridian, which separates the East to the West. If you look closely, you can see part of Alaska's the Aleutian Islands surpass the line. That means that these islands are officially part of the Eastern Hemisphere. So one little known fact about Alaska is that it's not only the northernmost and westernmost, but also the easternmost state. When Australia was developing as a new nation, why didn't it eventually become like another USA? The USA has inland desert cities & although the Australian outback is uninhabitable, can't more people live along the west, east, north & south coasts? So, you haven't been to any of these wonderful places you suggest we live in. If you had you would not ask this question. An interesting thing about the USA is that the eastern half is wet and fertile. As is the North West down to Northern California. Now imagine all of the USA resembling southern California to Arizona. That's Australia. The South Coast of Australia becomes unlivable between the Eyre Peninsula and Esperance. Then it's Southern California around the corner to Geraldton. From there it is salty desert meets the sea all the way to Broome. The north is tropical. Not Indonesia or South East Asia tropical. We have our own dry humid season and super wet season with no actual water retention. The East coast is Southern California again. Add to that an unreliable water supply and you have Australia. We can't just add people to this. The ability to expand is reliant on resources the country doesn't have. On a trip to Western Australia, I asked about the brilliant blues in their oh so clear waters. I was told it was because they do not have mountains as we do in the East. Well, we really don't have mountains either but it is wetter. That means bacteria can create a substantial clay fraction on the East coast that they don't have on the West Coast. That means their landscape holds very little water. That means rivers are largely seasonal. No clay fraction means clear ocean water. As for the concept of living near the coast. At least ninety percent of Australians live within a thirty-minute drive of the ocean. That shows you how sparsely populated our country is. Most population centers are created around mining or agriculture. What few thriving towns we have in those regions you suggest we populate are only there because of mines. To increase the population you need another reason for them to be there. As it currently stands agriculture cannot fill that void. There simply is no ability for Australia to become like the USA unless we learn to enrich the climate of the nation. That's not likely to happen. As humans, we are too short-sighted. How much does a single tire cost for a 747 airplane? Here is a list of Goodyear aircraft tires: Goodyear Aviation And from that list here is the cost of one of those tires that is used on a Boeing 747: AeroDirect Online Store. NULL You can go back and forth from the Goodyear list to the supplier cost list. Enjoy, and for $3,225 I hope your 747 is well again. | | Henry "Henny" Youngman Henry "Henny" Youngman, a comedian and musician famous for his mastery of the "one-liner"; his best-known one-liner being "Take my wife ... please". In a time when many comedians told elaborate anecdotes, Youngman's routine consisted of telling simple one-liner jokes, occasionally with interludes of violin playing. These depicted simple, cartoon-like situations, eliminating lengthy build-ups, and going straight to the punch line. He was known as "the King of One-Liners", a title conferred to him by columnist Walter Winchell. Stage performances by Youngman lasted only 15 to 20 minutes but contained dozens of jokes in rapid-fire succession.
Henny Youngman/Quotes The secret of a happy marriage remains a secret. When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading. I take my wife everywhere, but she keeps finding her way back. Just got back from a pleasure trip: I took my mother-in-law to the airport. I once wanted to become an atheist, but I gave up - they have no holidays. I told the doctor I broke my leg in two places. He told me to quit going to those places. If you're going to do something tonight that you'll be sorry for tomorrow morning, sleep late. My wife dresses to kill. She cooks the same way. If at first you don't succeed... so much for skydiving. She's been married so many times she has rice marks on her face. | | America's Jews and Christians Are Failing the Test of Their Lives by Dennis Prager If you are a Jew or Christian in America, the seriousness of your Judaism or Christianity is now being tested. People look back in time and wonder how religious people, especially religious leaders -- specifically, the clergy -- could have failed in times of moral crisis. The failure of most rabbis, priests and pastors to speak out today -- when the risk to personal safety is so much less than it was in communist and fascist countries -- should provide the answer: Religion doesn't have all that much impact on most religious people. During comfortable times, it provides two essentials to a happy and fulfilled life -- community and meaning -- but when tested, it often fails like an umbrella that fails to expand just as it starts to rain. America is being taken over by violent mobs; a vast amount of destruction and stealing has taken place (with little police intervention and the apathy of our political leaders). Why aren't all clergy delivering thundering sermons about the Seventh Commandment, "Thou shalt not steal"? Does it now come with an asterisk? A central part of a major American city has been seized and occupied by people who hate America and its values, including its Judeo-Christian values. Heard any clergy (aside from some evangelical Christians) speaking out against it? And most ominous by far, for the first time in American history, free speech -- the mother of all freedoms -- is being widely suppressed, not by the government but by the press, the universities, the high schools, the elementary schools, all the giant internet media, Hollywood and virtually every major business in America. Christians and Jews place repentance at the center of their theologies, yet there is no place for repentance if you did or said one insensitive thing -- real or alleged -- even if it was 20 or more years ago. Yet all we get from American religious leaders on this matter is ... silence. The freest, least racist, most opportunity-providing country in history -- "the last best hope of earth," in Abraham Lincoln's words -- is smeared as "systemically racist"; all white people are declared "racist"; and the statues of the greatest Americans, including George Washington and even Abraham Lincoln, are toppled and/or defaced. And all we get from most American religious leaders is either agreement or silence. It leads this religious American to ask the question the anti-religious ask: Of what use is religion? Take the claim that being "colorblind" is racist. If you are a religious Jew or Christian -- let alone a rabbi, priest or minister -- do you believe that? Do you believe that the human ideal is not to be colorblind? Do you believe that the ideal is to see every person, first and foremost, as a member of a race? Is that what you learned at seminary? Is that what you have taught from your pulpit all of your life? I doubt it. I assume that, until as recently as a year or even six months ago, you have always believed and preached that we are, in Martin Luther King Jr.'s words, to measure people not by "the color of their skin but by the content of their character." Isn't it fundamental to all Bible-based religions that we are all created in God's image, that God has no race and that Adam and Eve, from whom we all descend, had no race? If you are a Christian, do you see Christians of other races first as fellow Christians or first as members of their race? If you are a Jew, do you see Jews of other races as anything other than fellow Jews? Does God? So, why the silence? Why aren't all rabbis, priests and pastors telling their congregations and telling America -- in tweets, on Facebook, in letters to the editor, on television and radio, in opinion pieces -- that there is one race, the human race, and that the only antidote to racism is to deny that race determines our worth, not to affirm its significance? Does an ideology that affirms the significance of race have an honorable pedigree? Has it ever led to anything good? Isn't that exactly what Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan advocated? So, how are we to explain this tragic failure of religious Jews and Christians -- and their clergy -- to speak up against looting (aka stealing) and for freedom, for America, for Western civilization and for being colorblind? The answer to this question also goes to the core of what it means to be religious. At the center of our two religions is the notion of fear of God: "Fear God, and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man" (Ecclesiastes 12:13). But what is now apparent is that most Jews and Christians fear the left, fear The New York Times, fear being shunned by "friends" on Facebook and mobbed on Twitter more than they fear God. That's what this moment comes down to. Jews and Christians who fail this test will not only lose their freedom, lose the great American hope for mankind and lose the West; they will have also lost their souls. Dennis Prager is a nationally syndicated radio talk-show host and columnist. His latest book, published by Regnery in May 2019, is "The Rational Bible," a commentary on the book of Genesis. His film, "No Safe Spaces," came to theaters fall 2019. He is the founder of Prager University and may be contacted at dennisprager.com. | | | Austria Breaks Ground On Holocaust Memorial In Vienna BERLIN (AP) — Austria broke ground Monday on a new memorial to the country's 65,000 Jews killed during the Nazi era. "The Memorial to the Jewish Children, Women and Men of Austria who were Murdered in the Shoah" being erected in Vienna's central Ostarrichi Park will consist of large slabs set in the ground in a circle, engraved with the names of the 64,000 victims who have been identified. Another 1,000 are known to have been killed by the Nazis, but their names have been lost. Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler was born in Austria, and many in the country enthusiastically welcomed Germany's annexation of it in 1938, the year before World War II. At that time, around 210,000 Jews lived in the country. Many fled, but later found themselves in Nazi hands again as the German armies swept westward to the English Channel and deep into the Soviet Union in the east. The memorial, to be completed by next spring, is envisioned as a place of reflection, and both a tribute to those who lost their lives and a reminder of the perils of anti-Semitism. There is only one entrance into the center of the circle formed by the slabs, which will create a "place of reverence" for visitors, according to the plans. "Descendants of those who were murdered should, without being disturbed, be able to search for the names of their relatives, to touch the letters with their hand, to say a prayer, to light a memorial candle," organizers said on their website. "For all Austrians, the memorial should offer a quiet place, in which they can remember the fate of their Jewish fellow citizens and honor their lives, today and in future generations." Austria's parliamentary speaker, Wolfgang Sobotka, said at the ceremony that nothing could remedy the crimes of the Holocaust, but that the memorial could serve as a warning for the future. "There is no gesture of redress here, but there is a gesture of remembrance," he said, Austria's APA news agency reported | | 13 Facts About the Mitzvah to Visit the Sick By Menachem Posner In the time of corona, many of our social interactions and celebrations have changed, most often transferring from in-person to virtual. Visiting the sick is no exception. Rather than physically visiting, we often find ourselves calling or video conferencing, expressing our love and concern through the divine gift of technological connectivity. As we do, let's take a step back and learn 13 facts about the mitzvah to visit the sick. 1. It is Known as Bikur Cholim Visiting the sick is a fundamental Jewish value. The Hebrew term for visiting the sick is bikur cholim. (Among Ashkenazi Jews, this is pronounced BICK-er KHO-lim. In Modern Hebrew, it sounds more like bee-KOOR kho-LEEM.) In the era of social distancing, we can perform this mitzvah over the phone or via video conferencing, expressing our care, interest, and concern, just as we would with an in-person visit. 2. Visiting the Sick Is a Mitzvah Your presence and smile can go a long way in helping the patient and their caregivers. Although not explicitly legislated in the Five Books of Moses, visiting the sick is considered a mitzvah (obligation).1 So important is this act, that we enjoy both its dividends in This World and the primary reward in the World to Come.2 3. It Has No Limit Visiting the sick is one of the mitzvahs that has no set limit; each person is encouraged to do it as much as possible, even visiting the same person several times in a single day when it makes sense.3 Those who increase the frequency of their visits are praiseworthy, provided they are actually wanted and do not become burdensome.4 4. Timing Matters Visiting is not appropriate at all times. Tradition tells us to stay away in the early morning or late hours when the patient is being tended to and may not appreciate a visit. Nor should one visit at any other time they believe their presence will not be appreciated or overstay their welcome.5 5. G‑d Himself Does It While Abraham was recovering from his circumcision (which he performed on himself at the age of 99), G‑d visited him. The sages tell us that this indicates G‑d Himself visits the sick.6 6. It Removes 1/60th of the Illness The Talmud teaches that the visitor absorbs one-sixtieth of the patient's sickness.7 7. Make Yourself Helpful A young student of Rabbi Akiva fell ill, and nobody bothered to visit him. When Rabbi Akiva heard, he himself went to visit. Seeing the deplorable state of the young man, who was not receiving help, Rabbi Akiva himself swept and tidied the room. The grateful student exclaimed: "Master, you have revived me!"8 8. Be Sure to Pray While Visiting The Talmudic narrative9 asserts that one who visits a sick person and prays for their recovery is considered to have given them life. Conversely, neglecting to visit and pray is comparable to manslaughter. 9. G‑d Is With the Patient When visiting the sick, one should not sit on a higher surface than the patient. Why? The Divine presence rests on the bed of the sick person, and it would be disrespectful to sit "above" G‑d, so to speak.10 10. No Blessing Is Said We say no blessing when fulfilling this mitzvah. Why is that? For one, we cannot know in advance if our visit will be well-received. Since we may potentially not perform a mitzvah at all, no blessing is said.11 11. It Applies to Non-Jews As Well Since the purpose of the Torah is to bring peace and harmony to the world, the sages see it as axiomatic that one should visit non-Jewish patients just as one visits Jewish ones.12 12. There Are Bikur Cholim Societies All Over the World In many communities, Bikur Cholim societies do just more than just visit the sick. Services may include stocking kosher food in hospitals, providing rides to medical appointments, accommodations for those who must stay near hospitals, childcare and meals for those at home, patient advocacy, and more. 13. Bikur Cholim Hospital Is a Jerusalem Landmark Since the 19th century, the ill of Jerusalem have been treated in the Bikur Cholim Hospital (now a branch of Shaarei Zedek Medical Center), which operates according to Jewish law and initially provided a vital alternative for Jews whose only other option was to be treated by Christian missionaries. No longer a tiny operation in the Old City, it has remained true to its purpose: Bikur Cholim. The Bikur Cholim Hospital as it appeared in the summer of 1924 (credit: Bikur Cholim Hospital). Footnotes 1. Maimonides, Laws of Mourning 14:4. 2. Shabbat 127a. 3. Nedarim 39b. 4. Maimonides, Laws of Mourning 14:4. 5. Maimonides, Laws of Mourning 14:5. 6. Sotah 14a. 7. Note that the Talmud limits this to when the visitor shares the same mazal as the patient. Nedarim ibid and Bava Metzia 30b. 8. Nedarim 40a 9. Ibid. 10. Shabbat 12b. 11. Responsa of the Rashba, 1:18. 12. Gittin 61a. By Menachem Posner | | See you tomorrow bli neder We need Mosiach now Love Yehuda Lave | | | |
