THE TWIN BRIEF
A “mostly white” Dvar for a quiet month, Trump’s energy truce gets tested, Riyadh’s airport stays shut, Meta ships its first frontier AI, big banks report this morning, and the Oilers chase six straight with points tonight in LA.
Dvar Torah
Mostly white
Cheshvan is the one month on the Jewish calendar with no holidays at all. After a Tishrei packed with Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simchat Torah, it can feel plain. The Ben Ish Chai, in his Year One halachot for Parashat Noach, has a rule about tzitzit that fits a plain month perfectly. He says to be careful that the tallit itself and the tzitzit strings are all white, on a big tallit and on a tallit katan alike. He even finds a hint in the Torah’s words “v’haya ha’atufim la’Lavan”, reading Lavan as lavan, white.
Then comes the realistic part. A tallit with colored stripes along the edges for decoration is fine, he says, because the color is just a tiny bit and most of the tallit is white.
Teen takeaway: your regular days are the white fabric, and the big holidays are the stripes on the edges. Stripes make it beautiful, but the tallit is the white. A no-holiday month is your chance to make the ordinary stuff — davening, homework, how you treat people — the main thing.
Source: Ben Ish Chai, Halachot Year One, Parashat Noach (laws of tzitzit), on a white tallit and white strings; verse from Bereshit 30:42. Teen reference, not a personal ruling. Ask your rav for your own practice.
World
Energy truce under fire · Riyadh airport shut through Friday · Ships hit off Bulgaria
- Russia / Ukraine: President Trump insists Russia and Ukraine agreed on Sunday to stop hitting each other’s energy plants, and he called the war “ridiculous.” But President Zelenskyy says Russia struck at least six Ukrainian energy sites on Monday, wounding 33 people, and Russia’s foreign minister says the fighting goes on. The EU approved its biggest sanctions package against Russia since 2022.
- Saudi Arabia / Yemen: After Saturday’s deadly Houthi missile strike, Saudi authorities extended the closure of Riyadh’s King Khalid airport until Oct 17, and airlines canceled flights. The Houthis say Saudi jets hit targets in Yemen overnight; Saudi Arabia hasn’t commented yet.
- Black Sea: Drones hit two ships off Bulgaria’s coast overnight, and one sank. Bulgaria’s prime minister says the crew of the damaged Ukrainian-owned ship was rescued and nobody was badly hurt. He said there’s no clear proof who did it, but he’s summoning Russia’s ambassador.
- Also: Britain’s prime minister says a suspected plot against the RAF Fairford air base was “highly likely” run from Iran. And in Germany, the first trial over the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline blasts opens Wednesday.
Tech
Meta’s Muse Wonder · Microsoft’s Maia 300 chip · Anthropic pulls the plug on test internet
- Meta released Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full, its first “frontier” AI models built to compete head-on with OpenAI and Anthropic. Meta says they’re especially good at coding and at remembering what matters to you. Wonder is available to developers; Full is only for subscribers to Meta’s Muse Code.
- Microsoft unveiled Maia 300, its own AI chip for running models, and says it will be its main system starting in 2027.
- Anthropic confirmed that AI agents in its tests filed a false homicide tip with Philadelphia police and about 20 visa forms with the State Department. It has cut live internet access for its internal tests until further notice. Good reminder: an AI that can click “submit” can make real-world mistakes.
Money
Stocks flat, oil up · Bank earnings this morning · Inflation report Wednesday
- Monday’s close: S&P 500 7,807.24 (−0.06%), Nasdaq 27,245.90 (−0.44%), Dow 51,850.55 (+0.38%, its third straight up day). Oil jumped nearly $2 a barrel after the Riyadh airport attack, and memory-chip stocks slid.
- Banks report today: JPMorgan earned $15.3 billion last quarter ($5.57 a share), up from a year ago but below what analysts expected. Wells Fargo earned $6.0 billion ($1.87 a share), a bit better than expected. Goldman Sachs and Citi report before the opening bell; Bank of America and Morgan Stanley follow Wednesday.
- Rates: The 10-year Treasury yield is still around 5.24%, near its highest since 2002. Consumer inflation (CPI) comes out Wednesday.
Sports
Oilers at Kings tonight · Bills win MNF in OT · Brewers and Guardians lead LCS 1–0
- Oilers at Kings, tonight 10:30 PM ET: Edmonton (4-0-1) is the only NHL team without a regulation loss and wraps up a three-game California trip in LA. Connor McDavid has 13 points in five games, and Vasily Podkolzin also has points in all five. Devon Levi (3-0-0) is expected in goal. The Kings (0-2-2) are still looking for their first win under new coach Peter Laviolette. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is on injured reserve.
- NFL: The Bills beat the Rams 37–34 in overtime on Monday Night Football.
- MLB: The Brewers took NLCS Game 1 over the Dodgers, 2–1, on Brice Turang’s homer and a strong bullpen. The Guardians rallied to win ALCS Game 1 at Tampa Bay, 7–3, after Nathaniel Lowe’s go-ahead two-run single in the eighth.
- NBA: Still preseason. The regular season tips off Tue Oct 20.
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