Interesting Recent Links - Terumah 5773

• Illinois State Senate approves same-gender marriage - it now goes to the Illinois House.  Rahmana Litzlan.
• Hagel confirmation temporarily blocked
• Kikar quoting Kipa: Rav Aviner, in his youth, served as a minor Mossad agent and was sent to Iran
• Chabad of Nepal takes a Nepalese boy off the streets
• Ya'ir Lapid talked so much about Ahdut and lovingkindness for the religious during his campaign.  Let's see where this has taken him:
• Lapid: Entering Gov't with Shas will End My Career
• Lapid: I’ll Push Civil Marriage, Reform Judaism
• Lapid: No Solution Other Than 2 States for 2 People
  
  So much for that!
• With regard to Ruth Calderon's speech, my heart was initially moved by what she said, but then my head took over and I realize the danger of using Torah as a tool against Torah.  It seems to be Yesh Atid's modus operandi.  Every decade, there's another one: Shulamit Aloni is like Nevuchadnetzar, Tommy Lapid was like Haman, and Ya'ir Lapid is like Antiochus.  Who'll be Titus?  Let's not find out.
• Hesder Rabbi: Support Hareidi Exemptions
• The Premishlaner Rebbe on the Haredi draft
• We probably shouldn't be ignoring North Korea's test this week, where radioactivity has been untraceable so far.  Here are some of my older posts about North Korea.
• Some misguided people aren't sure whether to wait for Mashiah or the Mahdi.  I guess whichever comes first then, huh?
• An obituary for the Divrei Hayim of Sanz in 1876 stated, "Chasidism only dates from the end of the last century, and as it is destitute of every high moral idea, it has no future."  Hmm...how's that one working out for you?
• Golus America is worst of All!  (h/t Rafi)