Money Makes the World Go Round In Circles

The reason we can’t resolve the Tropper affair or repair our economy and healthcare system is that our leaders are routinely corrupted by plain old fashioned cash. Check out this article by Lawrence Lessig in The Nation.

The Shul for Scandal: Where the Molesters Prey

In Vilna there was a shul for tailors, another for shoemakers and so on. In this way working men got to pick their chazzan and President. Boro Park has a shul for molesters, Congregation Shomer Shabbos. For most folks in Boro Park it is like a fast food restaurant, a place to get a quick chassidish nusach minyan any time of the day. But for molesters it is more like an open house, a place to hang out, renew connections with their peers, refurbish their reputations as frum leit, and brush against boys and lure them to a private location.

Emes Lane Dead Ends Before It Reaches Tropper’s Yeshiva

Someone in Monsey pointed out that Emes Lane is a short distance from Leib Tropper’s Kol Yaakov Torah Center on W. Maple Ave, but it dead ends before it reaches Kol Yaakov.

Rabbi Reuven Feinstein Explains Why He Supports Tropper (Satire)

I am grateful to Rabbi Feinstein who took time out from his busy schedule to answer my questions during a phone interview

YL : Many people are surprised that you have not publicly criticized Rabbi Tropper

RF: Why should I? He has plenty of other critics?

YL: You are the Chair of the EJF Halachic Committee?

RF: What does that have to do with Tropper? He resigned as Director of EJF?

YL: But he has been accused of improper behavior and exploiting a potential giyores and of promoting conversion among spouses of Jews who were themselves not frum?

Train To Become An Internet Goy™ (Satire)

Looking for extra income? Who isn’t these days?

Exciting new opportunities have opened up for serving the needs of ultra orthodox Jews. Many of them do not use the Internet because their rabbis have told them it is forbidden. Nevertheless they need the Internet to fill job applications, apply for government benefits, make online purchases, read sacred texts and most importantly to find out what is happening inside their own world by reading forbidden blogs. Many ultra orthodox Jews won’t dare have an internet connection in their homes because they will lose social standing. However they know the rulings are silly and they want Internet content. So they rely on an Internet Goy™

There are now people making an excellent living or spare income by using their basic Internet skills in ways that meet the needs of this community.

Our training program will turn you into a qualified IG™(Internet Goy™). Our study at home program covers the following points:

Why Tiger Woods Is Better Than Leib Tropper

Tiger Woods remains the greatest golfer in our generation. Yes, he failed as a husband and appears to be a sex addict but he did not cheat at golf or throw a game to get money from a gambler.  He admitted his failures and suffered the consequences by losing advertising endorsements.  Tropper cheated on his own self-proclaimed principals. He exploited everyone around him. He has no real accomplishments except advancing himself. He has not taken any responsibility for himself.

Mondrowitz: The Missing Years

The well know Brooklyn rapist of teen boys, Avrohom Mondrowitz, is now free. He fled to Israel after he was indicted in 1984. The Israeli Supreme Court overturned a lower court extradition order. How is this possible? Officially the answer is legalese: he was denied due process. Practically, there is something fishy. It is almost as if the Israeli system and the US system colluded so each could blame the other and the case could fall between the cracks.

Hella Winston has written an informative article in the Jewish Week. When he fled, Elizabeth Holtman, the Brooklyn DA, got the US State Department to request extradition. The request was turned down because sodomy (e.g., rape of a male) was not included in Israel’s definition of rape. Thus it was not an extraditable offense. According to Winston:

Trial of Motty Borger’s Molester Began on Thursday

The criminal prosecution of Boruch Lebovits inched forward this week. Jury selection started on Thursday (1/21/10) according to a reliable  source. Lebovits was arrested and charged in April on hundreds of counts of sexual misconduct with children including felony “oral and anal contact.” Lebovits is a notorious molester. According to the NY Post his victims include Motty Borger, the groom who committed suicide two days after he was married.

A Drashah For True Chareidim About Molesting

A true chareidi only has to tremble before hakdosh borchu. Not before a ben adam, not even before a talmid chochom if like Elisha ben Avuyah he turns into acher. Not before relatives, fellow mispalilim, shechanim or those with whom you hope to make a shidduch. Not even before your av v’eim if they are rashaim. Rabbossai, es steht kadohim thiyu. And in the biggest letters are the arayos., Men tor nit tzitterin before those who violate the arrayos with massei saddom inflicted on our pure children. You are not allowed to take away your eyes if it means leaving unzerer kinder unprotected.

Mondrowitz Eludes Justice, For the Moment!

Two weeks ago Avrohom Mondorowitz got off the hook for being a child rapist. Not in the eyes of G-d or man but in the legal system. The Israeli Supreme Court declared he cannot be extradited to the US to be tried for outstanding charges When he was indicted in 1984 he fled to Israel. The Brooklyn DA, Elizabeth Holtzman tried to extradite him but failed because the existing US-Israel extradition treaty did not cover rape of boys, just girls and women. The treaty was changed three years ago to cover all crimes which carried a sentence of one or more years. This happened after Holtzman left office. Her successor Charles Hynes was slow in pursuing the matter.

Shmuel Borger Update: Why I Still Stand By My November Posting

One my readers asked me:

Is there anything new regarding the events that culminated in the death of Motty Borger? The story has seemingly disappeared. If in fact there are unseemly aspects to the reported story, this story needs to stay alive. If the Father [Shmuel Borger] has been wrongly accused, then that needs to be known. Itchiemayer (12/7/10)

I stand by by my earlier post about Shmuel Borger. Since November 29 I have received additional confirmation of the allegations. Several key figures in the frum world have arrived at similar conclusions because of old information that came to their attention, new witnesses who came forward, and their interactions with Shmuel Borger. However, no one is willing to come forward to public authorities or be quoted by name. So once again, justice is not being done though we know there is an injustice.

The Empire Strikes Back: Artscroll Demands An End To Spoof Because It Causes “Brand Confusion”

WARNING – PER INPUT FROM SEVERAL COMMENTERS – THIS POSTING IS A MIXTURE OF FACT, PARODY AND SATIRE

Rabbi Mayer Pasternak, the webmaven at ArtScroll emailed the putative author of a parody sefer about halachah for prisoners. According to the letter addressed to Rabbi Akum Shlit’a, the “spoof is causing brand confusion” to “ArtScroll’s readership.”ArtScroll’s webmaven, Rabbi Pasternak is no Boris. His letter is a shoddy specimen of writing. It is an even shoddier specimen of thinking.

Corruption in Jewish Courts

Luke Ford has a posting about corruption in Jewish courts of law (batei din). He makes a persuasive case and posts a list egregious offenders. I am not in a position to evaluate his list of offenders. I wish he would cite his evidence about the individuals. However, I suspect many on that list have earned their places.

ChaptzemNisht Rebbe Endorses Prison Halachah Guide (Satire)

Many of us are in the Goyish Golus Archipelago which stretches from Otisville in the east to Alcatraz in the west. I am well acquainted with Harav Hagaon, Reb Getzel (Gezel) Akum, shlita. He never leaves the four cubits of torah, or his cell. Rav Akum’s new sefer, Hilchos Beis Hasohar: The Laws Of Incarceration©,covers:

• Hasagos gvul when dealing with prison gangs
• Selecting a nusach in a mixed minyan
• Including a moser in a minyan when required by prison regulations

Torah Sage Advises: Hold Onto Both Your Kidneys

Rabbi Elyashiv recently stated a father could not sell his kidney to marry off his daughter. Instead he suggested a cheaper wedding. While Rabbi Elyashiv is respected for his wisdom on matters such as Indian sheitals, service in the Knesset and elevators there is widespread consternation about this most recent ruling. The daughters of Israel are weeping and the young men are pondering their Ponzi schemes. The entire chareidi kollel system is a massive pyramid scheme. One couple has many children, all of whom must be supported by the parents and in-laws. The first beneficiaries depended on an older generation of shvach employed yidn with small families. These parents were persuaded that the stuff about teaching your children a livelihood was just for chiloni taxpayers and goyim. Of course the parents themselves were exempted because it was too late for them to start learning full-time and their money was going to a worthy cause.

The Conversation about Gays at YU

The event, Being Gay In The Orthodox World: A Conversation with Members of the YU Community on December 22 has stirred a hornets nest with right wingers (including some at YU) claiming the event promotes a homosexual lifestyle and left wingers defending the event as a step forward for tolerance. The reality is that the event’s organizers tried to minimize the controversy by saying they recognized and were not challenging the halachah which bars homosexual activity. In fact the event itself completely sidestepped debate about halachah or discussion of any behavior. It was focused on the fact that there are individuals in the frum world with such sexual orientations. But of course admitting that reality begs the question, then what do we do? The usual frum response is to say, we don’t talk about those things. We can see where that has gotten us on sex abuse.

Anyways, I thought my readers would appreciate having the facts about the debate so they could decide what to make of it themselves. I would suggest going to JewSchool’s excellent post on the event which includes links to transcripts (sort of) of the event and the text of criticisms of the event.

Advice On Starting Your Own Blog

I recently encouraged one of my readers with great sense of humor to start blogging. I sent him the following advice.

1. Don’t aim for long pieces. Readers have the average attention span of laundry machine lint. The goal is 2-4 punchy paragraphs.
2. Write a statement about yourself and your goals. Then disregard it. Those statements satisfy readers and give you the illusion you know what you are doing. This gives you confidence.

Rabbi Margulies: Pay Up or Else! (Satire)

NEW YORK PEST

Rabbi Margulies: Pay Up or Else!

Rabbi Lipa Margulies, Director of Yeshiva Torah Temimah (YTT) all but said, pay up or your kids are vulnerable to molesting and will be kicked out. At one point he parodied a mobster and said, protection, if you know what I mean. And everyone needs protection. This was said as part of a Saturday Night Melava Malka to escort out the Sabbath Queen. One bitter parent said “they really need to escort out the queens on the faculty who molest boys.”

The Story behind the Arrest of Rabbi David Greenfeld for Molesting

The Daily News reported the arrest on December 23 of Rabbi David Y Greenfeld  of 47th St. in Boro Park. He was booked in Kings County Criminal Court on charges of sexual abuse, forcible touching and harassment (charge sheet #2009KN101458). David Y Greenfeld (also known by his Jewish names as Dovid Leib or Dovid Yidie) is the son of Rabbi Baruch Chuna Greenfeld, Dayan (religious judge) and Gabay (personal secretary) of the 45th Street Bobov Rabbi, Mordechai Dovid Unger.

According to the Daily News, the victim is a 15-year-old Chassidic boy and “the pair met at their place of worship.” According to Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg  the episode actually took place in May in the Tosher mikvah (ritual bath) in Boro Park. What follows is an account about the alleged assault and its aftermath as reported to me by Rabbi Rosenberg, a hasid from Williamsburg who is active in the fight against child molesting in the orthodox Jewish world.

How To Remove a Dybuk Using Modern Technology

Feuj.org has an amusing report about  a recent attempt to remove a dybuk  in Brazil by Rabbi Basri in Israel over the internet.

(Streimel tip to a Jew in Boro Park)