UOJ ASKS THE CONCERNED JEWISH COMMUNITY TO COMMENT ON THE EDITORIAL IN THE JEWISH PRESS

To our readers, friends and others...I invite you to respond to the Jewish Press editorial. Well written comments will be posted in my headliner and included in my response to the J.P.in a few days.

Please use logic, common sense and well reasoned arguments, the world media will be reading your responses. You are welcome to use your names; in matter of fact I would encourage rabbis, lay leaders, medical professionals, attorneys and all people of good will to comment.

Disclaimer: Just because someone chooses to comment on this blog, that does not mean that you agree with or endorse any or all of my writings and opinions.

I do believe that all fair minded people will agree that there is no place in our yeshiva system for sexual predators and their protectors...and that a sex abuse registry system for our schools, an independendent panel of professionals to investigate claims of abuse, and a zero tolerance policy for these crimes are long overdue.

I do apologize to the thousands of people that have e-mailed me and posted comments that as of yet I was not able to read, publish and respond to.

I do find it very curious that Yeshiva Torah Temimah, Lipa Margulies and Yudi Kolko have not found the time to come out with a simple written statement denying the allegations against them.


To all that this does concern:


Although as a concerned parent I have monitored this blog for a while, I have held back from posting until now.

Truth, you are a liar and misleader, and if all this innuando about Kolko turns out accurate, your are as evil in my mind as the molestors themselfs.

As a significant contributor to TT, (Appelgrad had me on speed dial-Margo has come to my house in the past year-I have 2 boys there) I had a phone conference with Rabbi Margolis a few days after the letter.

He actually asked me "what would you do". I said to him "In ten years you never aked my advice, why now?" He said he's never been in such a tough position.

He did admit hearing rumors years ago. He also admitted to a few people coming foward in the past, but nothing "serious" in the past 10 years. He also layed on the Rabbi Kolko sob story. Don't get me wrong Rabbi Kolko was mine and my sons' favorite Rebbi. But my childs safety supercedes any sob story or personal tastes.

At no point did he completely deny that Rabbi Kolko was or is, a child Molestor. He even stated that the yeshiva is set up, so that no Rebbi should ever be allowed to be alone with a boy. Implying in my mind that there was concerns with Kolko and maybe at some point other Rebbeyim.

All in all, the conversation left me with a sick taste in my mouth. One of my sons is graduating, but the other I am removing from the Yeshiva at the end of the year. Three other parents in my sons class are removing their kids as well. Must of us were unhappy before this debacle anyway.

Oh, icing on the cake unfortunately, I found out last week, a distant cousin of mine punched Rabbi Kolko in the mouth a few summers ago. As I hear now, he has for years accused Kolko of molesting him. I believe his name is public now.

Anyway, sorry about my spelling and grammer, I am also a TT graduate. I think this problem is prevelent in every yeshiva, but a man with so much accusations around him (especially abuse)should be removed. With the safety of our children the saying applies in my mind. "Where there is smoke, there is fire".

Again I wanted to reiterate that the "Truth" is lying. Rabbi Margolis hedged himseld and did not give me or other parents an assuring denial of the accusations.

This whole incident is a Chillul Hashem and hope this matter concludes shortly.

--
Posted by Anonymous to Un-Orthodox Jew at 2/26/2006 09:30:10 PM