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Nursing Home Deaths in NY Ignite Debate on Increase of Staff to Patient Ratios

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
This repeated call for a substantial increase in staffing at nursing homes was reiterated in a report released last week by New York State Attorney General Letitia James. Her report, entitled, “Nursing Homes’ Response to COVID-19” was released on January 28th. Photo Credit: AP

By: Fern Sidman

 

In light of the continuing controversy surrounding the deaths of over 10,000 nursing home patients in New York State during the early months of the coronavirus, legislators are now pushing forth a bill that would require nursing homes and hospitals to follow specific ratios of nurses to patients. Increasing the number of staff members at all nursing care and skilled care facilities in the state has been strongly advocated by health care unions.

This repeated call for a substantial increase in staffing at nursing homes was reiterated in a report released last week by New York State Attorney General Letitia James. Her report, entitled, “Nursing Homes’ Response to COVID-19” was released on January 28th.

The report, which is predicated on ongoing investigations into the matter since March of 2020, concluded that “a larger number of nursing home residents died from COVID-19 than the New York State Department of Health’s (DOH) published nursing home data reflected and may have been undercounted by as much as 50 percent.”

The report added that “the investigations also revealed that nursing homes’ lack of compliance with infection control protocols put residents at increased risk of harm, and facilities that had lower pre-pandemic staffing ratings had higher COVID-19 fatality rates.”

The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) is the only law enforcement agency in the state specifically mandated to investigate and prosecute abuse and neglect of residents in nursing homes. In early March, OAG received and began to investigate allegations and indications of COVID-19-related neglect of residents in nursing homes.

“As the pandemic and our investigations continue, it is imperative that we understand why the residents of nursing homes in New York unnecessarily suffered at such an alarming rate,” said Attorney General James. “While we cannot bring back the individuals we lost to this crisis, this report seeks to offer transparency that the public deserves and to spur increased action to protect our most vulnerable residents. Nursing homes residents and workers deserve to live and work in safe environments, and I will continue to work hard to safeguard this basic right during this precarious time.”

The WSJ reported that the bill which was approved on Tuesday by the state Assembly’s health committee said it would “require hospitals to develop staffing plans that met minimum ratios between nurses and patients in various kinds of settings, like intensive care or surgical units. Nursing homes would need to submit plans that show residents are receiving more than four hours of staff care a day.”

New York law requires a nursing home provide “sufficient nursing staff and related services to attain or maintain the highest practicable physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being,” as was reported by the WSJ.

Currently, state and federal laws mandate that nursing homes have at least one registered nurse or licensed practical nurse on call 24 hours a day, plus one RN for eight hours and an RN serving as director of nursing, as was reported by the WSJ.

According to a survey conducted by Charlene Harrington, a professor at the University of California, San Francisco, more than half of U.S. states set minimum hours of contact between nursing-home staff and residents or mandate a minimum number of caregivers in proportion to residents.

Because of concerns about increased costs, associations representing hospitals and nursing homes oppose the New York legislation, as was reported by the WSJ. They assert that recruiting the required amount of staff to meet the levels that the bill calls for would be difficult.

A source close to the nursing home industry, who spoke to the Jewish Voice on the condition of anonymity said, “It’s pretty straight forward as it pertains to nursing home policy. Their objective is to provide the least service possible for the most money possible. The astronomical costs of residing in nursing homes and what it means to patients and their families are of no concern to the owners of these facilities. Nursing homes are a gold mine for owners and they make it their business to implement cost cutting policies at every turn, even if that means that patients get very little or no care at all.”

Those advocating for the bill such as nurses unions say that the measure would “reduce fatigue and burnout among health-care workers and improve patient outcomes,” according to the WSJ report. They said the experience of the Covid-19 pandemic showed the consequences of inadequate staffing, the report continued.

Speaking to the WSJ, Pat Kane, executive director of the New York State Nurses Association union said , “What we want to do is provide care that is consistent with our professional standard.”

The WSJ reported that Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther, a Democrat from Sullivan County and a registered nurse, said the increased cost of hiring staff would be eventually offset by lower costs from better patient outcomes and lower turnover among nurses.

Brian Conway, a spokesman for the Greater New York Hospital Association told the WSJ that, “We have the deepest respect and admiration for our RNs, but forced nurse staffing ratios would undermine real-time patient care decisions, deny hospitals the flexibility they need to respond to emergencies such as Covid-19, and disrupt team-based care by crowding out other essential members of the health-care team.”

 

Feature Documentary About Fashion Designer Elie Tahari to be Released in March

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0

Edited by; TJVNews.com

Fashion Designer and Mogul Elie Tahari, has been living the American Dream for more than 50 years. He came to New York in 1971 with less than $100 in his pocket, slept on benches in Central Park, and went on to build a billion dollar fashion empire.

“The United States of Elie Tahari” is the first documentary ever produced about Elie Tahari, filmed during 2020. Directed & Produced by David Serero, this highly anticipated documentary tells the life of Elie Tahari from his birth and origins (born in Israel with Iranian parents) throughout all of his achievements and legacy. Part of the documentary is also dedicated to Tahari’s creative process and endurance in the fashion world. Several fashion personalities such as Fern Mallis (aka the Godmother of Fashion), Fashion designers Nicole Miller and Dennis Basso, Arthur S. Levine, WallStreet Journal Fashion Journalist Terri Agins, Instagram influencer Julia Kananovich, artist Lynna Davis, Disco music, models, Studio 54 and more, are part of this documentary, from which the trailer is released today.

« In this documentary, you’ll discover the whole inspiring story of Elie Tahari and his fashion world and process, as rarely shown before. David Serero added, « I want this film to be loved by fashion lovers and connoisseurs, as well as the ones who are not familiar with that important artistic environment. This documentary is educative, inspiring, and a celebration! You’ll feel joining a large party! said Serero. Elie Tahari is the definition of courage, determination, kindness, and…chutzpah! His parents fled Iran and moved to Israel, where he lived in a refugee camp Ma’Abarot’, then moved to New York without speaking English and has contributed to the New York fashion life for more than 40 years with his iconic and visionary signatures such as the Tube Top, the Woman Suit and more. »

About ELIE TAHARI

For more than 40 years, Elie Tahari’s keen understanding of fashion and design has ensured him a unique position in the luxury world. The internationally-renowned brand has a global presence on five continents and is sold in over 600 stores in over 40 countries. The brand has expanded to include women’s shoes, sunglasses and accessories, and menswear and has come to define modern sophistication with the designers inspired collections of understated grace and elegance.

At the start of the 1970s, Elie Tahari emigrated from Israel to the United States and began working in New York City’s garment center while moonlighting at a boutique in Greenwich Village. After he succeeded in popularizing the tube top, Tahari began designing his eponymous label Tahari in 1973. In the following years, Elie Tahari opened his first boutique on Madison Avenue, posted the company’s first billboard in New York City, and held his first fashion show at Studio 54.

In the 1980s, Tahari expanded in the eighties, turning his attention to the tailored suit that helped define a decade. His first advertisements appeared in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar.

In 1989 his first shop in Bloomingdales NYC opened, followed by Saks Fifth Avenue, and Tahari was named one of Crain’s most successful 40 under 40.

In the 1990s, Elie Tahari began the decade with his first cover of Women’s Wear Daily featuring a Tahari wool suit highlighted as the season’s trend and is admitted to the Council of Fashion Designers of America. The brand moves into new headquarters in the Grace building on West 42nd Street and is now carried by all major department stores. Tahari initiated a significant expansion campaign including licensing and international sales.

Television Networks also started to take notice of the brand with pieces from the collection being showcased on Ally McBeal, The X files and Will & Grace. Tahari was the featured designer in the annual Macy’s Passport fashion show in Los Angeles, which helps to raise over 2 million dollars for AIDS research, and was invited to the White House to meet with President Clinton. In 1997 Tahari became the founding partner and creative director of Theory and designed his own label.

In 2002 the company name was changed from Tahari to Elie Tahari, and the designer purchased 510 Fifth Avenue, which became the brand’s design center. Tahari opened freestanding boutiques in Soho, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Boston, East Hampton’s Main Street, and Boca Raton, Florida.

The company continued its global expansion in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East and opened freestanding boutiques in Istanbul, Turkey, and Dubai, as well as US boutiques in Newport Beach, California, Washington, D.C., Dallas, and a pop-up store at 510 5th Avenue, named The Vault as well as the E-commerce site elietahari.com. To mark the brand’s 40th anniversary, Tahari created a capsule collection “Elie Tahari 1974,” which featured updated silhouettes from the brands four decades in fashion.

Mayor Bloomberg proclaimed September 4th, 2013 “Elie Tahari Day,” honoring his 40 years in business. Fashion Group International honored the designer with a Brand Vision award, and Tahari served as a guest judge on Project Runway All-Stars for three seasons. In 2014 the designer launched eyewear, home, and the Elie Tahari Sport collection and partnered with photographer Steven Klein to shoot the brand’s ad campaigns.

In 2020, he received the Pomegranate Award from the New York Sephardic Jewish Film Festival.

About DAVID SERERO

David Serero is a critically acclaimed and awards-winner opera singer, actor, director, and producer. He has performed more than 2,500 performances in more than 45 countries, directed and produced nearly 100 theatrical productions, starred in over 100 films and TV series, recorded and produced over 100 albums and, played more than 50 lead and title roles (in several languages) from the opera, theatre, and musical repertoire. In New York, he starred Off-Broadway as iconic roles such as Shylock, Cyrano, Othello, Barabas, Yiddish King Lear, Don Giovanni, Figaro, Romeo, Nabucco, as well as new works such as Napoleon by Kubrick, Queen Esther, Anne Frank a Musical, among others. In his native Paris, he also starred as Don Quixote (Man of La Mancha) and Happy Mac (Beggar’s Holiday by Duke Ellington).

He entered the prestigious Who’s Who America for demonstrating outstanding achievements in the entertainment world and for the betterment of contemporary society. In 2019, he received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award, the Morocco Day Distinguished Achievement Award, the Trophy of the Culture of Morocco, and named among the fifteen most influential Moroccans worldwide by Morocco’s airline Royal Air Maroc. David is a member of the Recording Academy and the Television Academy and a voting member of both the Grammys and Emmys. In 2020, David Serero received the Award for Diversity by the UNESCO in Paris and became an Honorary Member of the United Nations of Arts and Science. He has conducted over 1,000 interviews on his iHeart Radio show. He won the 2020 BroadwayWorld Awards for Best Performer of the decade, Best Producer of a Musical and of a Play of the decade. www.davidserero.com

Former Shin Bet Chief Calls For Israel To ‘Initiate Military Operations Against Iran’

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0

(JNS) – In light of Iran’s fast-moving efforts to develop a nuclear bomb, Likud MK and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Avi Dichter, a former director of the Shin Bet, has called to “initiate serious operational moves, in the Israel Defense Forces in particular.”

The comments followed an Israel Hayom report that the International Atomic Energy Agency had also found that Iran was systematically violating the agreement and getting closer to obtaining a nuclear weapon.

According to Dichter, the lack of a U.S. response under former President Donald Trump to the massive Iranian attack on Saudi oil facilities in 2019 taught the Iranians that there would be no price to pay for ramping up their aggression in any arena, and “instilled in them the belief that under a Biden administration, they could achieve more.”

As a result of U.S. restraint, Dichter said, the Iranians accelerated their deployment of militias, construction of long-range missiles and uranium enrichment.

“They’re already doing a lot, with the knowledge of the IAEA, not to mention intelligence agencies, including ours.”

Given the Americans’ approach, Dichter warned, Israel must prepare for military action.

“In the 1990s, the U.S. fell asleep at the wheel and we got a North Korea with significant nuclear weapons. In that case, Israel could watch as the tragedy unfolded from the sidelines. If, God forbid, the American guard falls asleep on Iran, the Israeli bystander must not stand idly by again,” he said.

Nadav Tamir, executive director of Israel’s branch of the left-wing organization J Street, countered that “since the Trump administration’s unilateral withdrawal from the nuclear accord, Iran is on a trajectory of enriching uranium at a dangerous rate. We must remember that before the U.S. withdrawal, the IAEA determined Iran was adhering to the limits set by the accord.”

He said, “In the absence of diplomacy, Iranians will suffer, but it won’t be translated into a change in policy. Upon a return to the accord, the Biden administration intends to focus on the issue of ballistic missiles and Iran’s regional subversion.”

Supreme Court Denies Heirs’ Claim to Nazi Obtained Art

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
The U.S. Supreme Court is seen Tuesday, June 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

 

By Brian Trusdell (NEWSMAX)

Jews who had property taken from them or coerced into selling it by Nazi Germany in the 1930s cannot sue in U.S. federal court to reclaim the property for its modern-day value, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled.

The unanimous ruling Wednesday came in the reported $250 million medieval Christian art collection known as the Welfenschatz and was based on ”sovereign immunity,” which bars American courts from intervening in cases between foreign governments and their citizens.

The case, Federal Republic of Germany v. Philipp, involved heirs of the owners of the collection, who claim their ancestors were coerced into selling the art at a third of the value in 1935. When the U.S. Army conquered Germany to end World War II, it took possession of the Welfenschatz and eventually turned it over to the new German government.

The heirs argued that their claim is exempt from sovereign immunity’s ”domestic takings” law because it was ”property taken in violation of international law.”

But the court disagreed.

”This ‘domestic takings rule’ assumes that what a country does to property belonging to its own citizens within its own borders is not the subject of international law,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the court.

”We have recognized that United States law governs domestically but does not rule the world.”

Roberts did offer the heirs another chance by sending the case back to the district court, saying it was not ruling on the heirs’ additional claim that their ancestors were not citizens of Germany at the time.

Omar’s anti-Semitism makes her unfit for House committees, Republicans say

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
AP

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

House Republicans have launched an effort to oust Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) from her Committee assignments, “in light of conduct she has exhibited,” reported Fox News.

Reps. Brian Babin (R-TX), Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Jody Hice (R-GA), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), and Ronny Jackson (R-TX) argue that Omar’s repeated anti-Semitic and anti-Israel statements make her unfit for her job.

The move comes on the heels of a Democrat-led effort to expel newcomer Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene (R-GA) from Congress after she “liked” social media posts stating that a number of U.S. mass shootings were staged.

A member of the progressive “Squad,” Omar’s past statements have earned her criticism from Jewish groups, Republicans, and even some of her left-wing allies.

Former Grand Wizard of the KKK David Duke praised Omar in March 2019, saying he was “elated” by her ability to bring discussion of “Jewish power and the Jewish elite” to the forefront of public debate.

Stopantisemitism.org bestowed Omar with the title “2019 Anti-Semite of the year” for claiming that Israel’s supporters are forcing U.S. lawmakers to pledge “allegiance to a foreign country,” equating a boycott of Israel with a boycott of Nazi Germany, and alleging that U.S. Jews are nefariously “buying” political influence.

”Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel,” she tweeted in August 2012. The tweet rose to prominence years later after her election, and Omar defended the tweet in an interview.

“What is really important to me is that people recognize that there is a difference between criticizing a military action by a government that has exercised really oppressive policies and being offensive or attacking particular people of faith,” she told CNN.

During her July 2020 re-election campaign, Omar’s tactics against her fellow Democrat challenger, attorney Antone Melton-Meaux, were widely condemned as relying on anti-Semitic tropes.

Vice News published Omar’s flyer, which pointed large donations to Melton-Meaux from Jews. The flyer noted that one was made by “Michael in Scarsdale, New York,” a town known for having a large Jewish population.

“It’s a common campaign tactic for progressives to attack their moderate foes for taking big corporate money. But by solely mentioning Jewish donors by name while painting Melton-Meaux as being in their ‘pocket’ to do their bidding on financial issues, her campaign’s mailer makes an argument that critics see as an anti-Semitic trope — especially in light of her string of previous controversial remarks about Israel,” Vice reported.

In November 2020, Omar accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” after the Jewish state demolished temporary Palestinian structures which were illegally built in the middle of an IDF firing range.

House Strips Marjorie Taylor Greene of Her Committee Assignments

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., walks back to her office after speaking on the floor of the House Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

SEAN MORAN

The House passed a resolution Thursday to strip Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) of her committee assignments.

The House adopted H. Res. 72, which would strip Greene of her committee assignments in Congress’s lower chamber. The resolution passed with 230 votes in favor and 199 votes against the measure.

Reports suggest that 11 Republicans voted in favor of the measure. The 11 Republicans reportedly include:

House Democrats moved to strip her of her committee assignments after House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) condemned her past controversial and conspiratorial remarks.

“Her past comments now have much greater meaning. Marjorie recognized this in our conversation. I hold her to her word, as well as her actions going forward,” McCarthy said.

Greene’s controversial remarks included screenshots by which she expressed her belief that the Parkland school shooting was a “false flag” operation.

Ahead of the vote, Greene apologized for her former beliefs and said that her past comments do not represent her.

She added that Democrats have pushed “conspiracy theories,” such as the idea that Donald Trump colluded with the Russian government during the 2016 presidential election.

Greene then charged that while she has apologized for her past actions, many lawmakers have supported riots that have harmed Americans.

For instance, then-Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) praised the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which raised money to provide bonds for violent criminals in Minneapolis. Taylor Geen said:

If this Congress is to tolerate members that condoned riots, that have hurt American people, attacked police officers, occupied federal property, burned businesses and cities, but yet wants to condemn me and crucify me in the public square for words that I said and I regret a few years ago, then I think we’re in a real big problem, a very big problem.

Republicans remain concerned over creating the precedent of stripping a lawmaker’s assignments for remarks he or she made before she entered Congress.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) mentioned ahead of the vote that he has two issues with the resolution.

Massie wrote:

Today’s resolution against my colleague
@RepMTG
is ludicrous for at least two reasons: 1. It fails to mention any specific infraction she has allegedly committed. 2. It quotes a rule that applies to members, not to citizens. This is a sham. The Democrats will regret it.

Rep. Bob Good (R-VA), a freshman congressman, said in a statement after the vote:

Removing Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene from her committees is an unprecedented power grab by Democrats.
This is just another attempt to expand their radical left agenda — until they have silenced all counter viewpoints. Speaker Pelosi has taken no action on the countless divisive, violent and anti-semitic remarks hurled by her own party.
Right now, Democrats control the House, the Senate, and the White House – if they wanted to deliver positive results for the American people, they could.
Democrats don’t want to govern, they want to rule and clamp down on any dissent to their radical agenda.
Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-GA) said in a statement after the vote:
Congress has not – and should not – remove the responsibility of holding Members accountable from the people of their Congressional districts. This is a slippery slope to a new standard by which Members will be judged: not by their constituents, not by the Ethics Committee, but by the political games and power dynamics of the majority party.
 …
Today’s actions serve to fan the flames of division with this unprecedented and hypocritical abuse of power.

He added, “Now is the time to focus on creating jobs, rebuilding our communities, and kick-starting our economy.”

Breitbart

State Supreme Court Rules in Favor of NY State Senator Tedisco, Empire Center, on Cuomo Nursing Home COVID Cover-Up

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
Photo Credit: AP
(NY SENATE) Judge gives Cuomo Administration 5 business days to respond to Empire Center/Tedisco FOIL request lawsuit and release full COVID-19 nursing home data; grants Tedisco’s application to appear as “amicus curiae” on lawsuit; orders state to pay Center’s fees

New York State Supreme Court Justice Kimberly A. O’Connor ruled in favor of the Empire Center for Public Policy and Senator Jim Tedisco’s (R,C-Glenville) lawsuit on behalf of the thousands of families who lost loved ones to COVID-19 in state-regulated nursing homes, against the Cuomo Administration and the New York State Department of Health (DOH) to publicly release data related to the deaths of nursing home residents who were transferred to hospitals last year and died from the coronavirus.

In September, Senator Tedisco filed an amicus brief to the Empire Center for Public Policy’s lawsuit against the DOH for its refusal to release records showing the full count of coronavirus deaths among nursing home residents.  The DOH has delayed the Empire Center and Tedisco’s request for the data three times.

Justice O’Connor’s ruling today directs the DOH to disclose the requested information within 5 business days. O’Connor granted Senator Tedisco’s application to appear as “amicus curiae” on the Empire Center’s lawsuit. The Court also ordered the state to pay for the Empire Center’s legal fees.

The lawsuit sought the release of Health Emergency Response Data System (HERDS) data regularly submitted to DOH by facilities throughout the state. DOH through HERDS collects daily numbers of confirmed and presumed COVID deaths that take place inside and outside nursing homes and assisted care facilities.

“Clearly the best disinfectant is sunlight. Governor Cuomo’s coronavirus cover-up is crumbling down.  Last week, the Attorney General issued a scathing report that begun to lift the Cuomo Administration’s veil of secrecy that was hiding the real number of nursing home residents who died from COVID-19. It’s obvious that the Governor’s six-month cover-up and refusal to give us these numbers shows he felt they mattered so he could hide any blame. History has shown that the cover-up is often worse than what’s being covered-up. Sadly, a lack of transparency has been a hallmark of this Administration. I want to thank Justice O’Connor for her ruling that demonstrates that this nursing home data is public information and the people have a right to know what their government is doing,” said Senator Tedisco.

Senator Tedisco also has authored and sponsors legislation with Majority Democratic Assemblyman Ron Kim (S.8756/A.10857) for an independent, bipartisan state commission with subpoena power to fully investigate these nursing home deaths. s

ANDREW YANG GOT IT RIGHT ON BDS

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
AP

by Stephen H. Norwood and Rafael Medoff

We’re used to politicians mangling history, whether out of carelessness or partisanship. So it was a breath of fresh air when New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang recently shared a powerful historical truth about people who boycott Jews.

Yang has been pilloried by supporters of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. But he got it right. “A Yang administration will push back against the BDS movement, which singles out Israel for unfair economic punishment,” he wrote in The Forward. And then came his most controversial — but most important — sentence: “BDS [is] rooted in antisemitic thought and history, hearkening back to fascist boycotts of Jewish businesses…”

The best known “fascist boycott” against Jews was waged by the government of Nazi Germany, beginning with a one-day nationwide action, on April 1, 1933, shortly after Hitler’s rise to power. Throughout the Reich on that day, stormtroopers were stationed at entrances to Jewish stores and offices, and above the doors they posted a yellow circle — the medieval symbol associating Jews with gold and prostitution. The boycott was intended to demonstrate that the Nazis could readily threaten Jews’ economic survival. In subsequent years, the Nazis avidly enforced local boycotts of Jewish-owned businesses across Germany.

Elsewhere in Central and Eastern Europe during the same period, anti-Semitic political parties and grassroots movements promoted anti-Jewish boycotts, although generally they were local initiatives, lacking the imprimatur of government approval. A notable exception was Poland, where, beginning in 1936, Prime Minister Felicjan Skladkowski openly endorsed “economic struggle” against Polish Jews.

Here in the United States, the pro-Nazi German American Bund and the neofascist Christian Front organized and aggressively promoted boycotts of Jewish stores. The Friends of the New Germany, from which the Bund evolved, originated the boycott in 1934, establishing a German-American Business League to promote and police it.

In the heavily German-American neighborhood of Yorkville, in upper Manhattan, Jewish business “are boycotted quite as thoroughly as in Germany,” the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported that spring. A Jewish bookseller told the JTA his sales “have fallen off almost one hundred percent.” Previously, his business was so successful that there were “frequent robberies.” But now, “not even the burglars come any more.”

To intimidate non-Jewish shopkeepers, those who failed to pledge loyalty to the boycott had their front window “marked with large swastikas;” in many cases, “the Hitlerite insignia has been cut into the bay windows of the stores, apparently with a diamond.”

Over the next several years, in New York and Boston, the Christian Front, organized by followers of the anti-Semitic Catholic priest Charles Coughlin, distributed guides for shoppers identifying stores not owned by Jews. These guides carried the statement that “Christ Himself” sponsored the anti-Jewish boycott. The Christian Front posted fliers featuring Nazi-style anti-Semitic imagery in subway stations and on shop windows and buildings, urging passersby to boycott Jewish stores and to “Buy Christian.” These fliers included genocidal threats, such as “Destroy the Jews!” and “Kill the kike vermin!—Wake up Christians!”

As in Germany, the boycott and the circulation of anti-Semitic propaganda precipitated frequent violent attacks on Jews in the streets and parks of Boston and New York, on Jews’ homes and stores, and the desecration of Jewish cemeteries. Commentators referred to these attacks as “mini-pogroms.” They reached a peak during World War II, but continued for several years after the end of the war.

Obviously, there are many differences between the anti-Jewish boycotts of the 1930s and the BDS campaigns of our own time. Yet we dare not ignore the parallels.
Today’s BDS advocates heatedly deny that they are fascists or anti-Semites. They claim they are “only” boycotting Israelis, not Jews. Likewise, advocates of “partial” BDS say they are boycotting “only” Israeli settlers, not residents of Israeli towns within the pre-1967 areas.
If that were true, the BDS movement would boycott Israeli Arabs as well as Israeli Jews. And the “partial boycotters” would target Israeli Arab residents of communities beyond the pre-1967 lines. They would also refrain from boycotting foreign-born Jewish “settlers” who are not Israeli citizens.

Have you ever heard of BDS activists boycotting Israeli Arabs in general, or Israeli Arab residents of settlements or exempting non-Israeli settlers? We haven’t. The reason is simple: they are targeting Jews. And that makes their actions uncomfortably similar to the behavior of the fascists to whom Andrew Yang referred.

Dr. Norwood is Professor of History and Judaic Studies at the University of Oklahoma; his latest book, which is in press, is “Prologue to Annihilation: Ordinary American and British Jews Challenge the Third Reich.”

Dr. Medoff is founding director of The David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies; his most recent book is “The Jews Should Keep Quiet: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Rabbi Stephen S. Wise, and the Holocaust.”

Embarrassed After #AlexandriaOcasioSmollet Trends on Twitter, AOC Urges Her Supporters to Report Mocking Tweeters

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
AP

TVNNEWS.COM-

Information liberation pointed out:

Democratic Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez emailed her supporters on Wednesday night to encourage them to mass-report everyone who tweeted #AlexandriaOcasioSmollet, a hashtag making fun of her for claiming she “narrowly” escaped “death” during the Capitol protests despite not even being in the Capitol building.

TJV and numerous others reported yesterday that noted that “insurrectionists” never made it to the hall where AOC’s office is located and the congresswoman was actually in a separate building when the U.S. Capitol building was breached on Jan. 6.

While the Cannon Building (location of Cortez’s office ) and the capital are connected via tunnels, the rioters never made it near the tunnels nor the cannon building. After this was exposed thousands upon thousands of Twitter users began mocking the young socialist for exaggerating the alleged terror she faced the day of the riots.

The wise-cracking Twitter personalities began comparing AOC to actor Jessie Smollett. who claimed he was attacked by MAGA hat-wearing “white supremacists” on a winter night 2019  in Chicago when in reality the actor hired two Nigerian twin brothers to fake the hate crime. The media bought the entire story and Smollett was on the TV weaving a false story of angry white Trump supporters, brutally beating Smollett, who is a gay, black man.

AOC having none of this reached out to her political allies and urged them to take to Twitter and report users for making fun of her. AOC clearly exaggerated the dangers she faced and left out details as to the actual proximity between her office and the capitol where the riots occurred. Smollett’s hate crime hoax was clearly a politically motivated event, so was AOC’s exaggerated tales of right-wing terror knocking on her office door.

 

Smartmatic Sues Fox News, Giuliani And Powell For $2.7 Billion Over Voting Machine Fraud Claims

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0

(TJVNEWS) Voting software company Smartmatic has filed a $2.7 billion libel suit against Fox News, three Fox hosts – Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo, and Jeanine Pirro – as well as lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell over what the firm claims are knowingly false claims about former President Donald Trump’s election loss, CNBC reports. The lawsuit accuses the defendants of executing a coordinated disinformation campaign aimed at convincing the public of rampant election fraud.

The suit accuses the defendants of falsely saying or implying that Smartmatic’s election technology and software was comprised or hacked during the 2020 election, among other false claims.

Smartmatic scoffed at Trump’s claims that there was widespread fraud and manipulation of voting machines that led to an undercount of Trump votes and an overcount of ballots for Biden. The company’s attorneys said they have counted “dozens” of references to what they describe as the smear campaign on Fox News. That these claims were made repeatedly and echoed by the channel’s news staff is evidence that Fox News was actively plotting with Giuliani and Powell to disseminate the conspiracy, said Smartmatic’s attorney J. Erik Connolly.

The full lawsuit is below:

House Impeachment Managers Ask Trump to Testify Under Oath

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
AP.

(NEWSMAX) House impeachment managers are asking former President Donald Trump  to provide testimony under oath about his conduct before the violent breach of the Capitol in rioting on Jan. 6.

In a letter to Trump Thursday, lead Impeachment Manager Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., asked Trump to provide testimony under oath, either before or during the Senate impeachment trial, about his conduct on the day of the attack on the Capitol.

The letter says he must explain why he and his lawyers have disputed key factual allegations at the center of the case.

“In light of your disputing these factual allegations, I write to invite you to provide testimony under oath, either before or during the Senate impeachment trial, concerning your conduct on January 6, 2021. We would propose that you provide your testimony (of course including cross-examination) as early as Monday, February 8, 2021, and not later than Thursday, February 11, 2021. We would be pleased to arrange such testimony at a mutually convenient time and place,” the letter says.

Raskin wrote that if Trump refuses to testify, his refusal will be used against him in the trial – a similar argument put forth by House Democrats in last year’s impeachment trial, when many Trump officials ignored subpoenas.

“Indeed, whereas a sitting president might raise concerns about distraction from their official duties, that concern is obviously inapplicable here,” Raskin wrote.

The impeachment trial of Trump, the first U.S. president to face such a trial twice, is expected to begin next week.

Trump, who has argued that he lost the presidential election due to rampant electoral fraud, a charge he has continued to tout throughout the impeachment, urged supporters to fight at a rally before the storming of the Capitol. Five people, including a Capitol Police officer, died during the riot.

A Trump adviser did not immediately return a message seeking comment about the managers’ letter.

This report contains material from Reuters and The Associated Press.

Candida Auris- Deadly Bacteria CDC Warns Could Be the Next Pandemic

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
ucsfhealth.org

(TJVNEWS.COM) Candida Auris is the “perfect pathogen,” scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, theorizing that the yeast-like fungal infection could be the cause of the next pandemic.

Should the fungus enter the bloodstream, it will almost certainly become fatal, the CDC wrote

From CDC:

Can a person die from infection with C. Auris?

Yes. Invasive infections with any Candida species can be fatal. We don’t know if patients with invasive C. Auris infection are more likely to die than patients with other invasive Candida infections. Based on information from a limited number of patients, 30–60% of people with C. Auris infections have died. However, many of these people had other serious illnesses that also increased their risk of death.

How does C. Auris spread?

C. Auris can spread in healthcare settings through contact with contaminated environmental surfaces or equipment, or from person to person. More work is needed to further understand how it spreads.

 

First identified in 2009, Candida Auris is almost impervious to antifungal drugs, London’s Imperial College epidemiologist Johanna Rhodes told New Scientist

“One of the things that make Candida Auris so scary is the fact it can linger on inanimate surfaces for long periods and withstand whatever you throw at it,” Rhodes said.

Jen Psaki: Joe Biden ‘Would Love to See Action’ on Gun Control

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
AWR HAWKINS
White House press secretary Jen Psaki told NBC’s Peter Alexander on Thursday that President Joe Biden “would love to see action” on gun control.
“The President promised to act on day one on this issue, of we know there is only so much he can do by executive action on it,” he said. “Where does this fall on his legislative priorities?”
Alexander followed by asking when Biden “would he take action and put something before Congress?”
Psaki simply responded she believes there are some proposals before Congress already.
One of the gun control measures before Congress that has gotten a lot of attention is Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s (D-TX) H.R. 127, which would require the licensing and registration of firearms.  Her bill would also require an ammunition registration.

 

Bidens Bring An Unexpected Piece Of Furniture To White House

By
Sholom Schreirber
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(AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

(AP) — There’s a crib in President Joe Biden’s White House.

Upstairs in the family residence, the bed is set for the president’s youngest grandchild, Beau Biden Jr. The baby was born last year to Biden’s only surviving son, Hunter Biden, brother of Beau Biden, the president’s other son, who died of brain cancer in 2015 at age 46.

The baby bed’s addition came to light during a People magazine interview in which the president said the Senate must put former President Donald Trump on trial since the House had impeached him over last month’s riot at the U.S. Capitol, which left five people dead.

“Otherwise it makes a mockery of the system,” Biden said in his first White House interview since his Jan. 20 swearing-in as president.

Biden doubted that enough Republicans — at least 17 are needed — would join Democrats to convict Trump on a charge of inciting his supporters to storm the Capitol on Jan. 6 in an attempt to keep lawmakers from certifying Trump’s election loss to Biden.

A former senator himself, Biden has avoided saying whether he thinks the Senate should convict Trump, but he told People, “I’m not looking for retribution.”

“My job is to try to heal the country and move us forward, because I think we have so many opportunities as a country,” he said in interview excerpts released Wednesday.

Biden also pledged anew that no family member will work in the administration.

“We’re going to run this like the Obama-Biden administration,” he said. “No one in our family and extended family is going to be involved in any government undertaking or foreign policy. And nobody has an office in this place.”

 

Biden made that pledge during the 2020 presidential campaign — as Trump and other Republicans tried to make an issue out of some of Hunter Biden’s overseas business dealings. He sought to differentiate himself from Trump, whose daughter Ivanka and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, served him as high-level White House advisers.

Biden represented Delaware for 36 years in the Senate. Barack Obama, a senator from Illinois, and Biden were elected president and vice president, respectively, in 2008.

Biden told the magazine a folksy story about rejecting the advice of an accountant who had told him years ago that he could bill the Senate for some of the gasoline he pumped into the family car.

Biden said he told the accountant: “Here’s how I look at it: The foul line is 15 feet away from the basket. Never get me closer than 17 feet, because it really is a matter of the public trust.”

“And we need to rebuild that trust in government,” added Jill Biden, who joined her husband for the interview in the magazine’s Feb. 15 issue, hitting newsstands nationwide on Friday, days before Trump’s impeachment trial is set to open in the Senate.

Ritzy St Barts Island in the Caribbean Now Closed to Tourists Due to Rise in Covid-19 Cases

By
Sholom Schreirber
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0
.saintbarth-tourisme.com

By: Fern Sidman

To all those who think they can escape the dreaded Coronavirus and the strictures put in place because of it and just run off to a tropical island and forget about the grim realities of life, well, think again.

It has been reported in the New York post that the popular Caribbean island of St. Barts will no longer be accessible to jetsetters of all stripes.

Starting this week, St Barts, which is under the rule of the French government and a magnet for celebrities and the ultra wealthy will now bar visitors in order to comply with protocols put in place by France to stem the tide of the rapidly spreading virus.

The Post learned that all are not happy by the imposition of the new rules. Among them are local authorities of the Saint Barthelmy Island. As a matter of fact they are quite livid about it.

In a public statement, Nils Dufau, the president of the Tourism Board said, “Independently of the will of our local authorities to keep St. Barts open, the French government has just decided to put in place new preventive measures against COVID-19 variants.”

The Post reported that Dufau said that local authorities were currently “negotiating” with French officials “to ease the entry restrictions and find an alternative solution.”

“We have managed to keep it at bay, the situation is well managed and under control,” he insisted, as was reported by the Post.

Because the virus variants have dominated the headlines as of late, and due to the fact that a palpable fear has spread about the contagious strains of the coronavirus, on Sunday, France announced a travel ban of sorts on all non-essential travelers from outside of the European Union, of which France is a member state.

On Tuesday, the French government also imposed travel restrictions on France’s other overseas territories, including the resort islands of St. Martin, Martinique and Guadeloupe. And that is in addition to St Barts.

Celebrities who often just take off to the serenity of these islands, with their white-sandy beaches and beautiful harbors that are filled with yachts, will now have to give some serious consideration to taking a jaunt to another exotic destination of just stay home.

Spotted on the island recently were such A-Listers as former Beatles front man, Paul McCartney, retired professional boxer, Mike Tyson, Steve Harvey, and Ramona Singer of “The Real Housewives of New York,” according to the Post report.

St Barts has witnessed an increase in Covid infections and the island has only one hospital, so it appears that fun seeking visitors will not be able to enjoy the islands amenities as it is totally shut to anyone who is not a permanent resident.

The French government has explicitly stated that according to the new rules,  anyone wishing to come and go from St. Barts will only be able to do so for “compelling reasons,” such as pressing medical, professional or familial needs, as was reported by the New York Post.

Moreover, like other countries on the European continent, visitors who are coming to St. Barts for compelling reasons will be required to produce a negative COVID-19 PCR test from at least 72 hours before their departure and will need to quarantine for seven days upon arrival, as was reported by the Post.

For those tourists who are presently on the island, if they so choose, they may depart at any time.

 

 

Canada Designates The Proud Boys As A Terrorist Entity

By
Sholom Schreirber
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Gavin McInnes, center, founder of the far-right group Proud Boys, is surrounded by supporters after speaking at a rally in Berkeley, Calif. The Canadian government designated the Proud Boys group as a terrorist entity on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021, noting they played a pivotal role in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. McInnes has described the group as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists” and denies affiliations with far-right extremist groups that overtly espouse racist and anti-Semitic views. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

(AP) The Canadian government designated the Proud Boys group as a terrorist entity on Wednesday, noting they played a pivotal role in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

The Proud Boys have faced increased scrutiny after seizing on the former Trump administration’s policies and was a major agitator during earlier protests and the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. The Proud Boys is a far-right, male chauvinist extremist group known for engaging in violent clashes at political rallies. Canada is the first country to designate them as a terrorist entity.

During a September presidential debate, Donald Trump had urged the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by” when asked to condemn them by a moderator.

Senior officials speaking on a technical briefing said authorities had been monitoring and collecting evidence about the Proud Boys before the Capitol Hill insurrection, but confirmed that the event provided information that helped with the decision to list the organization.

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair said they revealed themselves.

“Their intent and their escalation toward violence became quite clear,” Blair said.

Enrique Tarrio, the chairman of Proud Boys, called the terrorist designation “ridiculous.”

“There is no basis for it. It’s an infringement of free speech rights. All the Canadian Proud Boys have ever done is go to rallies,” Tarrio said in a phone interview.

“They used what happened at the Capitol to push for this. They are no cases of any Proud Boys in Canada doing anything other than going to protests.”

 

Tarrio said the Canadian chapters are very quiet compared to their American counterparts. He estimated there are between 1,000 and 1,500 Proud Boys in Canada. He said Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and opposition New Democrat leader Jagmeet Singh, who first proposed the designation, are virtue signaling.

“It isn’t about white supremacy,” he said, noting he’s Cuban.

Tarrio was arrested in Washington shortly before the Capitol riot. He was accused of vandalizing a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic Black church during an earlier protest in the nation’s capital.

Asked whether the US will follow Canada and designate Proud Boys as a terrorist entity, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the U.S. has a domestic extremism review underway. “We will wait for that review to conclude before we make any determinations,” Psaki said.

The terrorist designation in Canada means the group may have assets seized and face harsher terrorism-related criminal penalties. A government official said just because they are a member doesn’t mean they will be charged with a crime, but if they do engage in violent acts they could be charged with terrorist crimes.

Sending money to the organization or buying Proud Boys paraphernalia would also be a crime.

“The group and its members have openly encouraged, planned, and conducted violent activities against those they perceive to be opposed to their ideology and political beliefs,” the Canadian government said in briefing materials.

“The group regularly attends Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests as counter-protesters, often engaging in violence targeting BLM supporters. On January 6, 2021, the Proud Boys played a pivotal role in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.”

The government calls the Proud Boys a neo-fascist organization with semiautonomous chapters located in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It said it engages in political violence and that members espouse misogynistic, Islamophobic, anti-Semitic, anti-immigrant, and white supremacist ideologies.

“Since 2018 we have seen an escalation towards violence for this group,” Blair said.

“In the aftermath of the U.S. presidential election, we have seen signals of escalation towards violence from a number of different groups including the Proud Boys.”

Blair said four right-wing groups are among 13 additions to the list, which include three groups linked to al-Qaida, four associated with the Islamic State group and one Kashmiri organization.

“Canada will not tolerate ideological, religious or politically motivated acts of violence,” Blair said.

The Proud Boys were formed in 2016 by Canadian Gavin McInnes, who co-founded Vice Media.

In 2018, police arrested several Proud Boys members and associates who brawled with antifascists after McInnes, delivered a speech at New York’s Metropolitan Republican Club.

McInnes has described the group as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists” and denies affiliations with far-right extremist groups that overtly espouse racist and anti-Semitic views. McInnes sued the Southern Poverty Law Center, claiming it defamed him when it designated the Proud Boys as a “hate group.”

In response to the federal suit, which is still pending in Alabama, the law center said McInnes has acknowledged an “overlap” between the Proud Boys and white nationalist groups.

“Indeed, Proud Boys members have posted social media pictures of themselves with prominent Holocaust deniers, white nationalists, and known neo-Nazis,” law center lawyers wrote in a court filing.

Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, said Trudeau’s Liberal government is trying to attach their star to the anti-Trump sentiment prevalent in Canada.

“Since the Proud Boys are identified with Trump, they are an easy target. Had Trump won the election, I’m confident the Liberals would not have gone after the Proud Boys,” Wiseman said.

“There is right-wing extremism in Canada but much, much less than in the U.S.”

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