Five years ago -- before Trump -- California began slapping travel bans on conservative states that passed conservative social legislation.
The Sacramento Bee noted Monday that with a new travel ban on Ohio, in response to a law allowing doctors to refuse to participate in treatments that violate their moral or religious conscience (think: abortion or gender reassignment surgery), California has now banned state-funded travel to one-third of the U.S. by population, and 72% of the states that voted for Trump.
There are all kinds of loopholes, but this really is a bizarre form of protest, one that severs official ties with much of America: just look at the Bee's map of the banned states. It is now impossible to drive cross-country from California without passing through a a banned state.
Notably, the bans have had little effect. One state, North Carolina, remains banned even though it repealed a controversial 2016 transgender bathroom law. Evidently, it is on the list simply for being North Carolina.
Not only is California showing -- again -- the intolerance of the left, but it is also contributing to the crackup of the American body politic. Being a citizen, being an adult, means learning to live with people even if you disagree with them. You don't have to accept everything they do, but the set of things that should prompt a severing of relations is really rather small.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article254625357.html
This is the portion that all journalists should love: the Torah tells the story of the 12 spies, only two of whom tell the truth when the other ten shade it in a negative away (perhaps to suit a political agenda that is opposed to Moses).
It's not that the ten "lying" spies misconstrue the facts about the Land of Israel; rather, they interject their opinions that the land is impossible to conquer, which strikes unnecessary terror into the hearts of the people.
We have many examples of such fake news today -- from the Iranian propaganda outlets spreading false claims that they are winning the war, to California politicians spreading false horror stories about ICE raids in L.A.
The people realize, too late, that they have been fooled, and once they are condemned to die in the desert, they try to rush into Israel -- only to be defeated by the inhabitants, as the spies predicted that they would be.
But as consolation, God gives the people new commandments -- focused on things they must ...
This week's portion discusses the procedure for lighting the menorah, the holy seven-branched lamp, in the Tabernacle (and later the Temple). It also describes an episode where the people crave meat, and God punishes them by giving it to them in excess. We also read the story of Miriam, Moses's sister, who is punished with the spiritual skin blemish of tzara'at for speaking about her brother, thus violating the prohibition against lashon hara (evil tongue).
I heard a fantastic sermon this week about the lighting of the menorah: that while only the priests were qualified to clean and purify the menorah, anyone could light it. A reminder that each of us can inspire others along the way.
This week we study the vow of the Nazirite; a reminder that sometimes trying to be too holy is excessive, and the best we can do is to be the best that we are.
https://www.chabad.org/parshah/torahreading_cdo/aid/2495720/p/complete/jewish/Naso-Torah-Reading.htm
