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In 1994, I introduced Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver to a group of Jewish leaders at the Young Israel of Forest Hills. I used the words that the Megillah used to describe Mordechai: “He sought the good of his people.” Nothing in the years since has changed that opinion. Yet, as I write this obituary, I cannot help but think of the words King David used to eulogize an ancestor of Mordechai, King Saul: “Woe how the mighty have fallen.” Like most people who accomplish significant things, Sheldon Silver was a man with a mixed legacy. He deserves to be remembered for the entirety of his work. Hatzalah, Ohel, the Met Council on Jewish Poverty, and many other Torah and chesed institutions are his legacy. He championed the cause of agunos and secured the right to burial according to halachah.

As Joe Biden circles the drain, both mentally and in his approval ratings, Republican executives are waking up to the fact that conservative governance is actually popular. Biden’s approvals have tanked during his first year not because he failed to deliver on promises he made, but rather because he is keeping those promises. While Democrats have the advantage on the campaign trail, the reality of governing benefits Republicans.

In honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which falls out on January 27, let’s study the history of the Aliyah Bet, the code name for the illegal operation of refugee ships before, during, and after the Holocaust.

In a shocking turn of events, a New York State Supreme Court justice deemed Governor Kathy Hochul’s mask mandate for schools and public areas unconstitutional. This ruling takes away the final excuse that schools have to keep mandating the masking of children, and every parent should immediately demand that masking of their child be a decision made by them, not the school.

Who Is Aafia Siddiqui And Why Do Islamists Want Her Released?

This big news of the week is the coverage of and reaction to the hostage situation that took place last Shabbos in Colleyville, Texas.  The terrorist who detained four people against their will had only one demand: Release Aafia Siddiqui from prison.  Who is she, and why did this terrorist, and other Muslim terrorist sympathizers, want her released?

In this week’s parshah, Moshe is instructed to speak to the Jewish people in Hashem’s name, saying, “And now, if you listen diligently to My voice and preserve my covenant, you shall be my treasured people.”