THE TWIN BRIEF
Why Avraham never slow-walked the last ten feet, Israel’s count is almost done and nobody has 61, a deadly train crash in Spain, Apple’s touchscreen Mac is real (and pricey), Google stock gets smoked, the Brewers win their first World Series ever, and the Oilers shut out Calgary.
Dvar Torah
No slow-walk on the last lap
Three strangers show up in the desert heat, and Avraham (a 99-year-old recovering from his brit milah) goes full sprint mode. Then the Torah says: “Vaymaher Avraham ha’ohela el Sarah” — Avraham hurried into the tent, to Sarah (Bereshit 18:6).
The Ben Ish Chai, the great Sephardi chacham of Baghdad, notices something about how people run. Normally, if you’re running to tell someone something, you run outside, but once you reach the door you downshift. Even if the person is sitting at the far end of the house, you walk the rest of the way, nice and chill. Avraham didn’t. He hurried outside and kept hurrying inside the tent, all the way until he reached Sarah. That’s why the pasuk spells it out: hurried “to the tent” and “to Sarah.”
Bonus from the same Ben Ish Chai: Avraham told Sarah to bake “ugot”, round loaves. Why round? He says a round shape is a reminder that the world is a wheel that turns (the Gemara’s line, “galgal hu shechozer ba’olam”, Shabbat 151b). Today you’re the one with the bread; tomorrow you might need it. So don’t act like a big shot when you give.
Teen takeaway: Everybody starts strong. The test is the last 10%: the last page of the essay, the last minute of the shift, the last set at practice, the last few lines of davening. Avraham’s move was simple: no coasting once you’re “basically there.” Finish the mitzvah at the same speed you started it.
Source: Ben Ish Chai, Derashot, Parashat Vayera (on “Vaymaher Avraham ha’ohela el Sarah,” and on the round loaves as a reminder that the wheel turns in the world); Bereshit 18:6; Shabbat 151b. Hebrew text checked on Sefaria. Written in-house (no Rabbi input this run). Teen reference, not a personal ruling. Ask your rav for your own practice.
World
Israel: almost counted, still stuck · Train disaster in Spain · Hormuz
- Israel: With more than 90% of votes counted, Netanyahu’s bloc is at 53 seats, Gadi Eisenkot’s bloc at 48, and Arab-led parties at 19. Nobody is near 61, and many in Eisenkot’s camp have ruled out governing with the Arab parties. Likud is the biggest single party with 26. Absentee ballots are still being counted. Police and the Central Elections Committee said there’s no evidence for fraud claims being thrown around online (Haaretz, The Guardian, Ynet).
- Spain: Two high-speed trains collided near Toledo on Wednesday, killing at least 68 people and injuring about 100. A computer failure had stopped trains on the Madrid–Seville line, and investigators are looking at why one train was cleared to move while another was still stopped ahead. Spain declared three days of mourning (AP, CNN, Reuters).
- Iran: Iran says it’s talking with mediators (Qatar and Pakistan) about a plan to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but there are no direct U.S.–Iran talks. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said three tankers caught fire after hitting mines in the strait (Al Jazeera, Al Arabiya, Arab News).
Tech
The touchscreen Mac is here (bring your wallet)
- Apple: Apple announced its first touchscreen MacBook Pro, with a new OLED “PROLED XDR” screen and M5 Pro/M5 Max chips. The 14-inch starts at $2,899 and the 16-inch at $3,399. Preorders are open and it ships Nov. 6. Max out every option and it’s $14,549, which is a lot of tapping (Apple, The Verge, MacRumors).
- Microsoft vs. Google: Microsoft beat expectations thanks to its Azure cloud business (up 48%), and its stock rose. Alphabet (Google’s parent) missed on revenue and burned cash on AI data centers, and its stock fell about 10% before the market opened today (CNBC, Schwab Network).
Money
Fed holds · December hike in play
- The Fed: It kept rates at 3.75%–4.00%, but two officials voted to raise them. Chair Kevin Warsh said inflation is still too high, and traders now see about an 85% chance of a hike in December (Reuters, Yahoo Finance).
- Wednesday’s close: S&P 500 up 0.3% to 7,743.97, Dow up 0.2% to 52,475, Nasdaq up 0.3%. Chip stocks rallied after SK Hynix’s profit jumped more than sevenfold (Reuters).
- Today: Nasdaq futures were down about 1% on the Google drop. A fresh inflation reading (PCE) and a first look at third-quarter GDP land today (CNBC, Reuters).
Sports
Oilers blank Calgary · McDavid makes history · Brewers are champs
- Oilers: Edmonton won the first Battle of Alberta 4–0. Tristan Jarry stopped all 24 shots for his first shutout of the season, and Joseph, Ekholm (back from a concussion), Kapanen and Formenton scored. Connor McDavid had two assists and set an NHL record: an assist in each of the first 13 games of the season, passing a mark shared by Wayne Gretzky. He leads the league with 36 points. The Oilers are 9-2-2. Next: at the Islanders Sat Oct 31, then the Rangers Sun Nov 1 (NHL.com, ESPN/AP).
- World Series: The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Rays 4–1 in Game 5 to win the first World Series in their 57-year history. Rookie Cooper Pratt drove in two runs, flamethrower Misiorowski threw 5⅔ scoreless innings, and catcher William Contreras was named MVP (ESPN, AP).
- NFL: Thursday Night Football tonight is Panthers at Packers, 8:15 PM ET on Prime Video (NFL.com).
- NBA: The Knicks won again, beating the Bulls 133–127 behind 38 points from Jalen Brunson. They’re 2–3 (ESPN, NBA.com).
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