News

New York News

 Israeli soldier Captain Omer Maxim Neutra, a 21-year-old tank platoon commander, was confirmed killed during Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack near Kibbutz Nir Oz. Initially believed to be among the hostages in Gaza, new intelligence revealed his death and the abduction of his body. Neutra, born in New York after 9/11 and later immigrating to Israel to serve in the IDF, was described by Israeli leaders as a devoted Zionist and exemplary soldier. During the attack, Neutra’s tank was struck, forcing the crew to evacuate, with some killed and others taken hostage. Israeli officials vowed to recover all hostages and bodies, honoring Neutra’s legacy and commitment.

Remember the term, “the new normal”? Our current situation seems to be just that. A temporary ceasefire with Hezbollah (I think their understanding of cease-fire is “you cease, we fire”), which has been broken by Hezbollah many times, a potential ceasefire with Hamas, with more accusations of intentional genocide coming from disgruntled Israeli politicians. What else is new? A new civil war in Syria, and the enemy of my enemy is my... enemy? What’s going on over there? Both more hope and despair with the fate of the hostages, Hashem yeracheim. More positive appointments from the Trump government, but they’re not in power yet. With all the ups and downs we’ve been having, it seems like a never-ending story. What’s going on in these crazy times? 

If you have read any of my past wine columns since October 7, 2023, you know that I am in close touch with many winemakers in Israel and am trying to support them however I can by recommending their wines, which have been made with increasing difficulty over the past year. Over the last 14 difficult months, our team at the Jewish Link Wine Guide has tried to communicate the importance to kosher-keeping Jews who regularly buy wine to prioritize their shopping dollars to wines made in the Eretz Yisrael. 

 There  was a moment, when the Republicans won the elections, that I believed the world was waking up and returning to some semblance of sanity.Then a banana duck taped to a canvas sold at auction for 6.2 million dollars. The buyer has  to continually replace the banana but he owns a certificate saying the original conceptual art painting is his. Copies of this painting, priced from $19.29 to $278 are selling like wildfire. You can buy a banana for twenty cents and create your own masterpiece.

Recap: In the journal, Aida just found out that her father is in a Syrian prison. Aliza was reading the journal to distract herself from the upsetting day she just experienced. Zevi had gone missing, and they finally found him playing at a family’s cabin. That family was frum and invited Aliza’s family for a Shabbos meal.

New York News

 Jessica Tisch, the newly appointed NYPD Commissioner, inherits a challenging landscape as New York grapples with a public-safety crisis marked by crime levels significantly above pre-2019 figures, despite a slight recent decline. With major felonies up 30.4% compared to 2019 and murders 12.1% higher, Tisch must confront the systemic challenges of defendant-friendly criminal-justice reforms and insufficient police resources.