Fruits and a fruitcake

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) triggered controversy with a fiery floor speech in the Senate on Tuesday night, accusing supporters of the bipartisan Kirk-Menendez bill on Iran sanctions of wanting "regime change" and declaring that "we cannot let Israel determine when and where the United States goes to war." The bill includes a provision offering support to Israel in the event of an Israeli pre-emptive strike on Iran.
Read more: http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/01/15/Feinstein-We-Cannot-Let-Israel-Determine-When-and-Where-the-United-States-Goes-to-War

Click here to listen to the speech.


      
The Pasuk in the Book of Debarim lists the seven special species of Eretz Yisrael, known as the “Perot She’nishtabeha Bahen Eretz Yisrael.” This status has important Halachic implications. Namely, if a person is eating two fruits, one of which is among this group, then he recites the Beracha over that fruit. For example, if a person is eating an apple and grapes, he recites the Beracha of “Boreh Peri Ha’etz” over the grapes, and that Beracha covers the apple, as well. Even if he likes apples better than grapes, he nevertheless recites the Beracha over the grapes. Since grapes are included among the special species of Eretz Yisrael, they take precedence even over fruits for which one has a preference. The same is true if the grapes are sliced, such as if one is eating an apple and some fruit salad with has sliced grapes. Even though the apple is whole and the grapes are sliced, he nevertheless recites the Beracha over the grapes, because the status of the seven special species overrides the factor of “Shelemut” (wholeness).

If one is eating two fruits from among the special species, then precedence is given to the fruit that appears closer to the word “Eretz” in the Pasuk.

Read more: http://www.dailyhalacha.com/


Matzav writes about Minhagim of Tu B’Shevat.