Thursday August 14 News Upda Lakewood

Weather: 88° Mostly cloudy this morning. Scattered thunderstorms developing this afternoon Chance of rain 50%.

- The Yated Neeman will not be available this shabbos for bein hazmanim 

- Rav Moshe Hillel HIrsch shlita tonight at the Atzeres against Giyus I'm front of the prison:

"Even those who are not learning Torah are forbidden to enlist in the IDF, because the army is simply not suitable for Charedim at all,"

"We need to understand what we are doing here in eretz Yisroel It is written that if the Jewish people committed Aveiros, the land would spit them out. So why has the land not yet spit us out? Only because we learn Torah. The sole reason there is a Land here, with a living Jewish presence, is because of us," said the Rosh Yeshiva.

He related that one of the senior members of a foreign embassy(Mike Huckabee) told him: "Of course we need an army, but without spirituality, there is no country." According to him, even a non-Jew understands that without halacha (Jewish law), there is nothing.

 "The army is not a place suitable for a Charedi person. There are issues Chilul Shabbos and giluy arayos; it is simply not appropriate. One of the senior ministers in the government told me: 'I hope and want that a Charedi who joins the army will leave as a Charedi,' but he admitted that today this is not the case."

- Mortgage rates in the United States have fallen for the fourth consecutive week, the average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage now stands at 6.58%, down from 6.63% just a week ago signaling a potential turning point for those seeking to secure financing.

-President Trump announced 12.4 MILLION names WERE on the Social Security Database over the age of 120!

- Trump: 275,000+ illegal aliens have been kicked off of Social Security benefits. "We were sending them checks all the time! [This is] making the system STRONG"

- CA Gov. Gavin Newsom is claiming Donald Trump will run for a third term as president in 2028 “Mark my word! These guys are NOT messing around!"“I received in the mail - a ‘Trump 2028’ hat!”

- Sticker shock as the July electric bill arrives with increases of a few hundred dollars for some customers after NJ voted to increase rates.  The state gave a $30 credit for this month.

- Initial contacts between Washington and Jerusalem on possible Trump visit to Israel next month contingent on progress in negotiations with Hamas over a ceasefire and hostage release deal. He’s set to visit the UK Sept 17–19, with a possible Israel stop still up in the air, per US and Israeli officials.

- Brick Reservoir  walking path Will Close to the Public Starting Aug. 18 for Major Project The closure will last approximately 10 months and is necessary to allow for the completion of infrastructure improvements

- Bank of America ATM drive thru at 4th street and Rt 9 in Lakewood will be closed from August 27  thru September 26. Customers can go to the other branch off Rt 70 in Lakewood 

- Giyus: Another yeshiva bochur was arrested last night at his home in Kiryat Atta

- The Sanz chasidim announced its participation in the atzeres tonight outside the gates of Prison 10  in addition to the Slonimer chasidim which has already announced that they will arrive from all over the country.

Rav Dov Landau shlita will be in hand 

- APP investigation Did Lakewood Schools manipulate attendance numbers?

 claims Lakewood public schools manipulated data showing a drop in absenteeism. A review of dozens of school files revealed examples of school attendance records that appear to be misleading and were possibly altered to falsely indicate more students were in school than actually were. Several district sources familiar with the school data claim it has been changed regularly to reduce the appearance of chronic absentee rates, possibly to help boost funding.

- At Howell township meeting last night Sue Fisher was appointed Deputy Mayor 

The town introduced an ordinance that will require permits for public events like a  hachnosas sefer Torah "overseeing the holding of public events such as but not limited to parades or block parties in the community that take place on public places. No event  shall be advertised or held unless a permit for such event has been issued failure to comply will result in 2000 fine. the application must be filed 30 days prior 

- DNI Tulsi Gabbard has confirmed an investigation into Anthony Fauci for perjury and his role in funding gain-of-function research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, as part of efforts to uncover the origins of COVID-19.

- Allegiant Airlines announced Wednesday it will expand service at Atlantic City International Airport with four new nonstop routes to Fort Lauderdale, St. Petersburg, Sanford, and Punta Gorda.

- A woman who crashed into a building at the intersection of Squankum rd and Oak Glen in Howell this past Sunday  has died of her injuries, officials say

- Lindsey Graham warns that if Americans pull the plug on Israel, "God will pull the plug on us."

- CNN: American intelligence officials dealing with Russia say that Putin has not budged at all from his maximalist demands in Ukraine, warning that he may use a ceasefire only to allow his army to recover and then try again to capture Kyiv. "Putin feels he is winning and therefore has no reason to back down," the sources were quoted as saying, adding that he is determined to prevent at all costs Ukraine's accession to NATO and the deployment of foreign peacekeepers in Ukraine.

- Total employment in New Jersey increased by 7,500 jobs in July and the unemployment rate in the state remained at 4.9%.The June estimate was revised downward by 4,700 jobs, resulting in a May-to-June net loss of 14,400 jobs, down from the preliminary estimate of 9,700 jobs lost.(Onejersey)

- Secretary Kristi Noem:  In less than 200 days, 1.6 MILLION illegal immigrants have left the United States population. This is massive. This means safer streets, taxpayer savings, pressure off of schools and hospital services and better job opportunities for Americans.

- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits a recently established Border Police company for ultra-Orthodox men, which combines combat service with maintaining an ultra-Orthodox way of life, telling members of the company that “there is no contradiction between Torah and service.”

- Reports indicate that Jewish groups secretly sacrificed a “pure” red heifer (Para Aduma) on July 1, 2025  the first such ritual in over 2,000 years. Some see it as an attempt to usher in end-times events, including the rebuilding of the Third Temple in Jerusalem. According to detailed accounts, the ceremony was performed by a kohen deemed “perfect” by organizers — meaning he had never come into contact with a dead body  producing ashes for ritual purification. The ashes, divided into small packets, are said to yield enough for 10,000 doses  per dime bag to be mixed with water for sprinkling  While some Jewish authorities question the ritual’s validity, the event was reportedly carried out discreetly, possibly in Shiloh rather than on Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives.

Gedolei Yisroel at the Atzeres in front of prison