Author Topic: Interesting Articles...  (Read 2348127 times)

Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12260 on: March 11, 2023, 11:50:16 PM »
Feel like I’ve seen this story on DDF before. I was in the news as early as two months ago.

Possible. Apparently the story unraveled a few months ago, he admitted to the charges and told investors he would start returning funds, but then fled to Israel.
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Offline drosenberg88429

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12261 on: March 11, 2023, 11:51:09 PM »
Truth is, a bit ironic to be wasting time on an Internet forum and complaining that something may be hashkafically problematic. I should go look in mirror. Gut voch.

Offline AsherO

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12262 on: March 11, 2023, 11:54:20 PM »
This individual is out of picture. As a warning and example for others, is that a justified exception to hilchos LH?

Is he though? If he gets out on bail then he isn’t.
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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12263 on: March 12, 2023, 10:40:52 AM »
It was in the news as early as two months ago.

The release says that the SEC filed (civil) charges against him in Jan.

Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12264 on: March 12, 2023, 12:33:03 PM »
What a relief. Common sense (and much more) prevailed.

https://www.makorrishon.co.il/opinion/589917/
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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12265 on: March 12, 2023, 05:18:51 PM »
What a relief. Common sense (and much more) prevailed.

Why do you say that? Is this decision in line with Halacha?

Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12266 on: March 12, 2023, 05:50:20 PM »
Why do you say that? Is this decision in line with Halacha?

IDK, especially not in these complicated situations.

The fact is that there is a known mother who carried the baby to term (and without her, there would be no viable baby). The other fact is that there is no knowledge of who the genetic parents are. Why is this any worse than a שתוקי (especially in a case like this where there was no מעשה ביאה)?

ETA: Based on my cursory reading of https://www.medethics.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/RC031333a.html I would think the ruling is in line with Halacha.

also see https://www.medethics.org.il/article/%D7%A2%D7%9C-%D7%AA%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9E%D7%AA-%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%AA-%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%A0%D7%93%D7%A7%D7%90%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%A4%D7%90%D7%AA-%D7%96%D7%A8%D7%A2%D7%95-%D7%A9%D7%9C/
« Last Edit: March 12, 2023, 07:39:19 PM by ExGingi »
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Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12267 on: March 12, 2023, 11:00:07 PM »
Why do you say that? Is this decision in line with Halacha?

There are various opinions. I think this case is unique in the fact that it is truly unknown who the genetic parents are, and there is probably no Halachic חיוב to find out.

https://www.psakdin.co.il/Court/מעמדו-של-ולד-מביצית-של-נוכרייה-שהושתלה-ברחמה-של-יהודייה

Also see:
https://olamot.net/shiur/פונדקאות
And the sources: https://olamot.net/sites/default/files/pdf/33.pdf
« Last Edit: March 12, 2023, 11:10:59 PM by ExGingi »
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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12268 on: March 12, 2023, 11:27:56 PM »
There are various opinions. I think this case is unique in the fact that it is truly unknown who the genetic parents are, and there is probably no Halachic חיוב to find out.

Who can this child marry?

Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12269 on: March 12, 2023, 11:34:16 PM »
Who can this child marry?

Read the sources. Based on my reading the child can marry any ישראל כשר that isn't אסור due to relationship with the mother who bore the child and her husband.

Obviously I am not qualified to give any Halachic opinion here.
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Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12270 on: March 12, 2023, 11:52:30 PM »
Why do you say that? Is this decision in line with Halacha?

I guess the answer is yes: https://www.tehillim-center.co.il/article/6868
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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12271 on: March 14, 2023, 05:37:37 AM »
https://torrentfreak.com/nearly-every-person-in-iraq-is-a-pirate-sources-say-230313/

Quote
Every year, copyright holders nominate countries with significant intellectual property challenges for a mention on the US Trade Representative's 'Special 301' watchlist. Heard at the highest diplomatic levels, allegations can carry significant weight, including one statement that 90% of the Iraqi population pirate sports content and other media.

Piracy is a global phenomenon but the availability of enforcement options varies from country to country.

In Iraq, for example, tackling copyright infringement isn’t seen as a priority or a new phenomenon.

When U.S. troops were still stationed in Iraq, rightsholders discovered that American soldiers were picking up the local habit. As a result, “copyright notices” were sent to US bases and United States Central Command was put on high alert.

At the end of 2021, the U.S. combat mission in Iraq officially ended, so that’s no longer an issue. Iraq still faces plenty of internal issues, of course, but fighting piracy doesn’t appear to be high on the agenda. That’s a concern for copyright holders.

Given Iraq’s history, it is no surprise that the country has been repeatedly flagged by the U.S. Trade Representative. The USTR considers rightsholder input and other public signals when compiling its Special 301 Report, an annual list of countries that deserve extra attention due to intellectual property shortcomings that may hurt U.S. businesses.

The report doesn’t lead directly to concrete action but is used as a leverage tool at the highest diplomatic levels to ‘demand’ change. As such, recommendations are taken very seriously.

Ideally, strong statements and claims from rightsholders should be backed up by solid evidence. That’s not always needed for their positions to be cited in the USTR report but, more recently, the USTR has begun asking detailed follow-up questions. That has lead to some insightful results, also regarding Iraq.

Miramax and beIN, for example, stated in their submission that around 90% of the Iraqi population watches pirated live sports events and other media content. That’s a remarkable figure that we have never seen in any official reports, and it also triggered the USTR to ask “how these estimates are formulated.”

With roughly half of Iraq lacking a basic broadband connection, describing this section of society as online pirates is problematic. And since more than a third of all Iraqis are under 14, a considerable number of pirates must be rather young too.

Last week Miramax and beIN responded to the USTR’s questions, explaining that the claims about Iraq and Algeria come from local contacts and partners, as well as their own extensive, independent knowledge.

“beIN has developed these estimates through discussions with contacts and commercial partners on the ground in both countries. These estimates are also informed by beIN’s extensive, independent knowledge of piracy networks in Iraq and Algeria,” Miramax and beIN write.

The companies further explain that the 90% Iraqi piracy rate “should not come as a surprise” as external researchers have described the region as a “piracy hotspot.”

We examined the cited research and found that it doesn’t mention Iraq or Algeria specifically. In general terms, it refers to North Africa and the Middle East as a piracy hotspot, without sharing any concrete statistics.

While we don’t doubt that piracy is rampant in Iraq (and Algeria), there seems to be no hard data to back up the “90% of the population are pirates” claim. Without proper evidence, making such bold and strong claims in such an important recommendation could raise some eyebrows.

The USTR’s follow-up questions for beIN, Miramax, and other rightsholders are mostly requests for further evidence, to back up the claims being made. Responses often cite third-party sources instead of concrete detail, however.

For example, beIN said that it ‘understood’ that it would be very difficult for rightsholders to convince a public prosecutor to launch a copyright case against pirates in Algeria. The USTR requested further information on specific difficulties but it appears beIN’s comments are mostly based on input from its local counsel.

“beIN has not yet attempted to file a copyright infringement action (either civil or criminal) in Algeria. However, Algerian counsel has advised beIN that it would be extremely difficult for an audiovisual copyright holder to prevail in civil litigation against an infringer.

“According to Algerian counsel, it would be similarly difficult for an audiovisual copyright holder to convince an Algerian prosecutor to pursue criminal action,” beIN’s answer adds.

The same is true for the “lack of legal enforcement options in Iraq,” as reported by beIN to the U.S. Government. This claim is mostly based on advice from third parties rather than first-hand experience.

“beIN has received professional advice that due to the endemic political corruption in Iraq, legal actions against key infringers are unlikely to succeed,” beIN responded.

beIN and Miramax do mention some names of ‘pirate’ services that allegedly have good connections with local government. This leads to corruption and the lack of enforcement options, including prosecutions.

“beIN understands that the owners and operators of Earthlink, Chaloos, and iStar (three major Iraqi media pirates) have significant influence among Iraqi government officials, both at the federal and regional levels.

“This helps explain the lack of criminal action to date in Iraq against any of these three pirates, despite their wide reach and notoriety,” the broadcaster notes.

Similar claims were made last year. While this definitely sounds concerning and plausible, yet again the claims were based on reports from third-party sources rather than concrete evidence. At least, as far as we can see.

The question is whether the USTR feels comfortable repeating these allegations in its high-profile Special 301 report. Based on the questions asked, it appears that the Office would like to have more detail.

In addition to the contributions from beIN and Miramax, the lack of concrete detail also comes up in other responses. For example, the Premier League also mentions the Shabakaty and Chaloos services, noting that local rightsholders reported them to the Iraqi Government.

The USTR asked the Premier League to provide more detail on these reporting efforts and how the government responded, but the football organization says it can’t share any.

“As the Premier League has not itself been directly involved in attempts to pursue enforcement action against the services in question, we are unable to provide further specific details,” the Premier League responded.

All in all, the above shows that several rightsholders’ complaints concerning governments lacking copyright policies rely on reports from third-party sources. While these can be insightful, placing a country on the Special 301 Watchlist ideally requires some verifiable facts as well.
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Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12272 on: March 14, 2023, 06:04:14 PM »
I've been waiting over 5 years with bated breath for someone to say that!
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Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12273 on: March 15, 2023, 04:07:15 PM »
Now it's scientific. Non kosher meat tastes better.

https://m.ynet.co.il/articles/bkkv111rai
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Offline drosenberg88429

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12274 on: March 15, 2023, 04:39:04 PM »
Now it's scientific. Non kosher meat tastes better.

https://m.ynet.co.il/articles/bkkv111rai

This is assuming the same animals are being processed either via kosher slaughter or non kosher processing. This was a case of a group of 20 animals being divided in half, as to control out the variance in input that changes the output results. However, this may not be the case in all areas. It's not economically viable to slaughter unhealthy animals for the kosher market, being as there's a high degree of likelihood that they'll be treif, so it's very possible that the average animal slaughtered for the kosher market is of higher quality than the average animal killed for general market. A study to determine this would need to randomly select beef off the shelf from kosher and non kosher supermarkets and compare them.
(However, it's probably true that while the cheapest chuck or minute steak may be better if you're getting kosher vs non kosher, it's still not a fair comparison given the significant price premium paid for kosher. A fairer contest might be to pay the price of the kosher meat for the equivalent cut in the non kosher market. In that price range, one would be purchasing a premium non kosher choice, and the quality would quite possibly surpass that of the kosher option.)

The article also doesn't go into detail how the non kosher slaughter process was carried out, and whether that mirrors the large scale processes one would expect when it comes to a standard supermarket off the shelf cut. Again, to compare, it may be necessary to test the random supermarket picks for the barometers tested in the article. However, if one had the same budget for kosher and non kosher, it's still likely that they'd end up with a better non kosher product.

In short, while I'm guessing that a $7 kosher burger (or whatever cheapest fast food burger goes for) is higher quality than a $2.49 McDonald's burger, I'm also guessing that a $7 non kosher burger in a restaurant is better than the kosher option. Complete conjecture though.

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12275 on: March 15, 2023, 05:01:23 PM »
In short, while I'm guessing that a $7 kosher burger (or whatever cheapest fast food burger goes for) is higher quality than a $2.49 McDonald's burger, I'm also guessing that a $7 non kosher burger in a restaurant is better than the kosher option. Complete conjecture though.
How is higher quality determined? Is 90% ground beef higher quality than 80% ground beef? Which hamburger would taste better?
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Offline ExGingi

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Offline drosenberg88429

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12277 on: March 15, 2023, 05:11:12 PM »
How is higher quality determined? Is 90% ground beef higher quality than 80% ground beef? Which hamburger would taste better?

There are industry standards for grading beef.
https://meat.tamu.edu/beefgrading/

Which would taste better (and whether higher beef content is necessarily higher quality) is a much more subjective question. It's like comparing sourdough bread to ramen noodles - the more artificial options have a pretty uniform taste, which a person can get used to and enjoy more.
The lower end fast food chains are known for using pretty low quality beef and odd bits for their ground meat products, that they would never be able to use for unground products without the degree of artificial additives that the ground products have. However, that doesn't mean they taste bad. It's just different.

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12278 on: March 15, 2023, 05:14:35 PM »
Only on DDF does 24/6 mean 24/5/half/half

Offline ExGingi

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Re: Interesting Articles...
« Reply #12279 on: March 15, 2023, 05:18:15 PM »
How about a blind taste test.  :)
I will put Lawry's or Ruth's Chris against the best kosher steak house.

Why bother? It is pretty obvious that non-kosher beef tastes better for quite obvious reasons (which are scientifically explained in the research published).

When something tastes good I often jokingly say it doesn't taste kosher (not that I would know what the non-kosher tastes like, but it stands to reason).
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