Kanye West, or Ye, chickened out the moment he was challenged to defend his views on Jews -- in the mildest way -- by Tim Pool on his podcast. West walked out and took his entourage, including antisemitic troll Nick Fuentes, with him.
It was a triumphant moment: first, because West could not defend his views; second, because he showed true cowardice in leaving the set; third, because the snarky Fuentes demeaned himself by scurrying after his new benefactor.
Such is the fate of all bullies: punch back, or even stand up for yourselves, and they flee in terror. I could not imagine a better or mere deserving fate for Ye and crew. No one canceled them; given a platform, they canceled themselves.
It was a victory for America -- not just because hate lost, but because free speech won. Pool showed that debate is the best way to expose and undermine haters -- not cancel culture, which reinforces their victimhood and notoriety.
Obviously, one has to be careful when setting up such a debate; haters will not always be as easy to defeat. But today's haters are not used to being challenged; they create their own bubbles on social media. They cannot withstand scrutiny.
This week'd portion begins the book of Numbers. Interestingly, the Hebrew name for the book is "In the Desert," not "Numbers." The portion, which happens to be my bar mitzvah portion, focuses almost as much on the names of the princes of each tribe as the number of soldiers it fielded. It also focuses on the configuration of the tribal camps around the central Tabernacle and the Levites.
So why "Numbers" instead of "Names" or "Places"? The numbers are, to be sure, a unique feature of the opening of this Biblical book -- but they are not the focus of the rest of the narrative. The Hebrew focuses on the place where the events in the book take place, because essentially this is the narrative of the Israelites' wanderings from Egypt to Israel, across 40 years. We move from the giving of the Torah and the construction of the Tabernacle in Exodus and Leviticus, to the final valediction of Moses in Deuteronomy -- Bamidbar is the story of wandering that happened in between.
The question of ...
This week's portion begins with the laws of the Sabbath and the Sabbatical year, and the Jubilee year that restores all land to its original (tribal) owners. It also explores laws of property and labor that will apply in the Land of Israel, and the laws of vows and inheritance.
The Israelites are presented -- not for the last time -- with the essential moral choice that they must face, and the rewards for choosing well, along with the consequences for choosing poorly.
We learn that doing good things will earn God's protection from enemies. That does not mean that victims of terror, God forbid, were sinful. But it does mean that we can respond to evil by committing ourselves to a higher path.
This week's portion describes the major sacrifices that are to be offered by the Jewish people, including those that are offered only by the priestly Kohen class, and physical requirements of the people (men) who serve in that role.
Inter alia, there are interesting commandments -- such as an injection to treat animals with respect and care, first, by letting a mother animal nurse her offspring for a week before being offered in any sacrifice; and second, by refraining from slaughtering an animal and its offspring on the same day.
The commandments regarding animals remind us of the purpose of those regarding human beings: to uphold a divine connection, through ritual.
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/111878/jewish/Rabbi-Isaac-Luria-The-Ari-Hakodosh.htm
