Dear Matzav Inbox,
Why is bad breath the one problem nobody is allowed to mention?
We live in a community where people will correct your pronunciation of a word, your nusach, your shoelaces, or how long your jacket is, but when someone’s breath is so bad it makes standing next to them physically difficult, suddenly everyone becomes polite, silent, and paralyzed.
This isn’t about embarrassing people. It’s about basic derech eretz.
We sit next to each other in shul. We talk face to face at Kiddush. We lean in during conversations. We daven shoulder to shoulder. And sometimes, honestly, it’s unbearable. People are stepping back, turning their heads, holding their breath, and nobody says a word. Everyone just suffers quietly and pretends nothing is happening.
Why?
Brushing teeth is not a chumra. Mouthwash is not a luxury. And checking yourself before going out into public is not asking too much. This isn’t about perfection. It’s about awareness.
What makes it worse is that the person usually has no idea. Everyone else knows. Everyone else talks about it, just not to him. That’s not chesed. That’s ridiculous. If someone had spinach in their teeth all day and nobody told them, we’d say that’s cruel. So why is this different?
We’ll hint. We’ll cough. We’ll open windows. We’ll suddenly remember something urgent and walk away. But actually saying, “Maybe check your breath,” is treated like a capital offense.
And let’s be honest: Sometimes it’s not a one-time thing. It’s constant. Day after day. The same smell, the same avoidance, the same quiet suffering.
This affects shalom bayis, friendships, chavrusas, workplaces, and shul life. People don’t want to sit near you. They don’t want to talk to you. They don’t want to learn with you. And instead of addressing the issue, we let relationships die slowly and silently.
What happened to the idea that caring about someone includes telling them uncomfortable truths?
Nobody is saying to announce it publicly or embarrass someone. But a spouse, a close friend, a sibling, someone, should be able to say it gently and privately. “I’m telling you because I care.” That used to be normal.
Somehow we’ve decided it’s better to let a person go around unknowingly offending everyone than to risk an awkward conversation. That makes no sense.
We expect people to dress appropriately, behave appropriately, and show basic consideration in public spaces. Hygiene is part of that. Not talking about it doesn’t make it go away. It just makes everyone miserable.
So here’s a radical idea: Let’s stop pretending this isn’t a thing. Let’s normalize basic self-awareness. And let’s remember that real kindness isn’t silence. It’s honesty, said with care.
Because bad breath doesn’t just disappear on its own.
And neither does the discomfort when nobody is willing to speak up.
I Can’t Stand It
To submit a letter to appear on Matzav.com, email MatzavInbox@gmail.com
DON’T MISS OUT! Join the Matzav Status by CLICKING HERE. Join the Matzav WhatsApp Groups by CLICKING HERE.
The opinions expressed in letters on Matzav.com do not necessarily reflect the stance of the Matzav Media Network.
Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has finalized an understanding with the Agudas Yisroel faction that will see MK Yisrael Eichler appointed as Deputy Communications Minister, a move that will require him to step down from his seat in the Knesset.
Eichler’s resignation will trigger the Norwegian Law mechanism, allowing Yitzchok Pindrus of Degel Hatorah to reenter the Knesset as a serving MK.
Agudas Yisroel and Degel Hatorah run jointly under the banner of United Torah Judaism, using a so-called “zipper” list in which candidates from the two factions alternate. Under this arrangement, when an Agudas Yisroel lawmaker resigns, the next eligible candidate from Degel Hatorah moves into the Knesset, and the same applies in reverse.
Pindrus’ return is expected to strengthen the governing coalition by adding another vote in favor of advancing the Draft Law.
Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi of Likud welcomed the development and praised Eichler’s appointment, saying, “I congratulate my dear colleague, MK Yisrael Eichler, on his appointment as Deputy Communications Minister. I thank Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu and MK Eichler for their cooperation and trust and welcome this move.
Together, we will work decisively to complete the central tasks of the government, in the Draft Law, communications reform, the budget, and other areas, for the benefit of the people of Israel.”
Sharp criticism came from Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of Yisrael Beytenu, who blasted the decision, saying, “Government ministries are not gifts or bribes, there is actually a country to manage here. Eichler’s appointment as Deputy Communications Minister is not only disgraceful but also absurd. Eichler is a person who opposes the very existence of the State and, broadly speaking, also pretty much opposes the very existence of communications. As mentioned, an absurd and disgraceful appointment.”
{Matzav.com}
Sen. Lindsey Graham on Thursday rejected media reports suggesting that President Donald Trump is easing off the possibility of US action against Iran, calling such coverage flatly wrong.
Responding on X, Graham said reports portraying the administration as stepping back were misleading. “All the headlines like these are examples of reporting that are beyond inaccurate,” he wrote.
Graham insisted that any potential move against Tehran has not been weakened by hesitation from the White House. “The circumstances around the necessary, decisive action to be taken against the evil Iranian regime have nothing to do with President Trump’s will or determination. Nothing could be further from the truth. Quite the opposite. Stay tuned,” he added.
The comments followed a turbulent stretch on Wednesday, when tensions appeared to peak and the prospect of American action against Iran seemed imminent. However, as evening approached in Tehran, the situation appeared to cool after President Trump said he had been told that Iranian authorities had halted the killing of protesters.
“We have been notified pretty strongly that the killing in Iran is stopping, and there’s no plan for executions or an execution,” Trump told reporters during remarks in the Oval Office.
Trump stressed that the information came from reliable sources, while cautioning that events would need to be verified. “I’ve been told that in good authority. We’ll find out about it, I’m sure. If it happens, we’ll be very upset,” he said.
By Thursday morning, Iran had reopened its airspace after shutting it down for several hours amid the unrest. The regime also announced that it would not carry out the execution of Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old arrested during the recent protests who had become a prominent symbol for demonstrators.
President Donald Trump highlighted the development in a social media post, writing, “According to Fox News, ‘An Iranian protester will no longer be sentenced to death after President Trump’s warnings. Likewise, others.’ This is good news. Hopefully, it will continue!”
Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council said it had arranged an emergency session for Thursday afternoon at the request of the United States to address the unfolding situation in Iran.
{Matzav.com}
The Yerushalayim District Court on Thursday turned down a police request to keep Fakhri Khatib under house arrest following a fatal ramming during a protest earlier this month that claimed the life of 14-year-old Yosef Eisenthal.
In her decision, Judge Hagit Mac Kalmanovitz said the legal threshold for continuing the house arrest had not been met, while stressing that the ruling does not bar investigators from taking additional steps as the probe continues.
The ruling followed a decision issued a day earlier by the Magistrate’s Court, which lifted all restrictive measures imposed on Khatib, including the house arrest he had been placed under for roughly a week. Police immediately challenged that decision, but their appeal was rejected.
Khatib remains under investigation on suspicion of causing death either intentionally or through reckless conduct, as well as causing severe injury to a minor. Authorities initially brought an aggravated murder charge, though it was later reduced.
At the court hearing, police acknowledged that Khatib himself contacted the emergency center after the incident, reporting that he was under attack and asking to be rescued. His attorney told the court that his client “was attacked, spat on, and felt in danger,” and maintained that “he acted to save his life without intending to harm anyone.” The defense further claimed the case amounted to a “political investigation.”
The incident took place during a January 6 protest opposing the proposed Draft Law. Video footage shows a bus driven by Khatib moving toward demonstrators and striking Eisenthal, who was pinned beneath the vehicle and killed. Three additional protesters sustained minor injuries.
{Matzav.com}
President Trump said Thursday that he is prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act in Minnesota if state leaders fail to halt violent confrontations targeting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, escalating federal warnings amid growing unrest in Minneapolis.
The Insurrection Act grants the president authority to deploy active-duty military forces and place National Guard units under federal control in situations involving widespread disorder or rebellion against the federal government.
“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me,” Trump warned on Truth Social.
The president’s statement followed a violent encounter Wednesday night in Minneapolis during a traffic stop involving an ICE agent and a suspected illegal immigrant. Authorities say two people intervened during the stop, striking the officer with a shovel and a broom handle.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, the suspect managed to break free and then assaulted the officer with either a broomstick or a shovel, prompting the agent to fire a shot that struck the individual in the leg.
Federal officials said the suspect, identified as a Venezuelan national, has since been taken into custody.
The incident came just a week after another ICE officer fatally shot activist Renee Good after she allegedly drove her SUV toward him.
Together, the two incidents have sparked several consecutive days of demonstrations and unrest across the Twin Cities area.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said that more than 3,000 federal immigration officers, including personnel from ICE and the Border Patrol, have been sent into the city — a presence far exceeding the city’s roughly 600 police officers.
“This is not sustainable,” Frey told reporters late Wednesday. “This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in, and at the same time we are trying to find a way forward, to keep people safe, to protect our neighbors, to maintain order.”
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in Minnesota following disclosures of widespread benefits fraud that officials say has strained the state’s systems.
Governor Tim Walz’s office did not immediately comment on Trump’s threat to invoke the Insurrection Act.
Earlier this week, Minnesota and Illinois jointly filed suit against the Trump administration seeking to halt the expanded ICE presence. Federal officials argue the increase is necessary due to state laws that restrict cooperation between local police departments and immigration authorities.
Trump issued the warning about invoking the Insurrection Act in a Truth Social post dated Jan. 15.
The statute was last used in 1992, when President George H.W. Bush authorized military involvement during the Los Angeles riots that erupted after the acquittal of police officers charged in the beating of Rodney King.
Trump has previously explored other legal avenues to deploy National Guard forces in states such as Illinois, but those efforts were abandoned after courts blocked them.
National Guard troops remain stationed in Washington, D.C., where the federal government exercises broader authority than it does over state and municipal jurisdictions.
{Matzav.com}
