Above photo was taken very recently of Stefan Colemar!
*********************************************************
Dear UOJ readers,
My name is Israel Moskovits, I am a 21 year old, Chicago-based Orthodox Jewish filmmaking student currently filming a feature length, narrative film titled Narrow Bridge which I wrote, directed and am acting in. It tells the story of a young Jewish college student who was sexually abused by his rabbi as a child and the numerous struggles he encounters as he attempts to heal himself and seek closure. I started this project upon learning of the Rabbi Yehuda Kolko case and view this film an an opportunity to raise awareness of this important subject in a manner that will be approachable and accessible to those that need to hear it most. I feel that the film would be a great tool for educating others about sexual abuse as well as a film survivors can use to aid in their healing process.
I am currently seeking assistance in spreading the film's message either through arranging screenings, publicity, spreading word-of mouth, mass-media outlets, distribution, connections, etc. Any way in which you are able to take part is greatly appreciated.
Feel free to email me with any questions you might have.
Here is a link to the teaser trailer for the film:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2858431796056068698&hl=en
(Copy & Paste)
Here is a blog article about the film:
http://jewishsurvivors.blogspot.com/2007/03/new-film-narrow-bridge-june-2007-about.html
Thanks UOJ for everything you do!
Israel (Yisrael) Moskovits
IzzyComm Motion Pictures
icmpinfo@gmail.com
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Stefan Colemar's victim writes:
I saw all this information about Stefan Colmer recently and could not believe what I was reading. Stefan is from Belmar New Jersey and I believe I was probably his very first victim of sexual abuse. He is only about 5 or 6 years older than I am, but when I was about 10 I met him for the first time in a shul in Bradley Beach, NJ. He became close to my family and while becoming religous he would spend almost every single shabbos at our house. His parents were divorced. He lived with his mother in Belmar and his father lived with his wife. His mother was not religious and my parents were happy to have him over. For many years he would keep me in my room and sexually abuse me. The first time it happened was at night over either a shabbos or yom tov (I cannot remember for sure) when he was sleeping on a pullout bed in my room. I was petrified when he woke me up and started touching me and doing things to me. He told me if I told ANYONE that nobody would believe me and that it would cause tremendous problems for myself and my family. This went on almost every shabbos untill I went away for Yeshiva. Around that time there was an incident regarding another Rabbi he was spending a Shabbos with and his young son. He was also thrown out of a few schools for problems with other boys. After my parents learned about that they did not want him sleeping over anymore. However, he would still eat shabbos lunch and spend the day at our house. Whenever I came back from Yeshiva he continued to approach me on and off whenever he found himself alone with me. As I got bigger and stronger I started defending myself and after a while all he could do was ask me to do things with him which I would never allow. The last encounter with him was before I got married when he tried to put a hand on me. I grabbed him by the throat and told him if he ever tried that again I would slice his throat open.
Although I was no longer threatened by him I was always scared of him. My parents who still knew nothing ever happened were still very close to him. He would constantly be over at our house learning with my father. Because I was scared for so long and such a long time passed I decided it would be best if I just put it out of my head and tried to forget anything ever happened. I got married and now have 4 beautiful children. The only times I have ever thought of it was when I would see a special on T.V. about child predators. I never told my wife or my parents. I never wanted to be around him but could never throw him out because if I did I would have to say why and I didn't want to discuss it. It almost made me sick when he came to my wedding. But I still could not tell my parents. Even after such a long time I felt not only scared but felt guilty like I did something wrong. I always felt if I told anybody they might not believe me, and even if they did I felt they would think it was my fault. I know this might not make sense to many of you but it just felt better and easier to try and escape it than deal with it. It was my secret and would remain my secret until I died.
The other day I was on the phone with my mother and she told me to Google his name. She would not tell me why but told me I would not believe it. We always suspected him gay and when he got married it shocked my entire family. I refused to go to his wedding or call him to wish him mazal. We were more shocked when he had a child (again, I refused ANY contact). My parents always just thought I didn't like him because he was always a bit strange. while I completely agreed I had no interest in telling them all the details. When I read about what he did to some boys who spent a shabbos by him, chills ran down my back, and tears just started flowing down my face. All I could think about was every shabbos that he did the same or had me do things to him. I told my wife right away who was not sure exactly how to take what I was telling her. I called my mother back crying and tried to tell her the truth. It took a while to get the whole truth out and she was obviously shocked. I did not want to tell my father but she convinced me. Needless to say he was not too pleased. The hurt they had was that this was happening down the hall from them for YEARS under their noses and they had no idea. this was very hard for them to grasp.
My biggest shame is not that I still feel guilty or dirty or scared. Instead I feel that my being scared and not saying anything allowed for this to continue. Had I been able to put my fear aside and come out and say what happened, he would either be in jail or the jewish world would have known about it and this would not have happened to some boys again. For that I apologize to all the famillies and the boys this happened to. I am also shocked that the jewish world would rather not get the authorities involved. For that I am disgusted. If the jewish community would let this animal run around free to do this again than I know what I have to do. I WILL call the Police and do whatever I can to make sure this animal CANNOT do this again. This is not something he can control, and this definately cannot be controlled by Rabonim. If this happened to any of their children I can assure you that they would be in full agreement of putting this person behind bars. If not than this will happen again. I will tell the authorities what happened to me. If there is nothing they can do than there is nothing else I can do. But when he strikes again I do not want to be responsible. Any Rabbi who says the police should not be called will be responsible for the next boy that falls prey to Colmer.
I again would like to apologize to the boys and the famillies for this happening and for not being brave enough to say something years ago when I could have stopped it.
****************************************************
I'm working with a very experienced person in the field of child sexual abuse who made this comment.
"The more I learn about Stefan Colemar the more disturbed I become -- he appears to be a compulsive, manipulative, deceitful and highly dangerous sex addict who preys on children---- and who has so far been sheltered by rabbis, particularly, it seems, one Lazer Ginsburg".
I have just confirmed to my dis-satisfaction that "Rabbi" Shmuel Kaminetzky has advised parents of Colemar victims NOT TO GO TO THE POLICE!!!
UOJ
************************************************************
URGENT URGENT URGENT
**************************
We are making progress in bringing Colemar to justice! I URGE ANYONE AND EVERYONE WITH ANY INFORMATION AT ALL TO CONTACT:
Michael Lesher, Esq.
mlesher@att.net
www.MichaelLesher.com
(973) 470-0212
PLEASE CONTACT MICHAEL, ASAP!
THANKS!
*********************************************************
You may vote for 5 out of the 6 questions!
*************************************************
SEE THE SHAIGETZ AND FRAUD YISROEL BELSKY:
Download the Belsky files here:
http://savefile.com/files/53776
(copy & paste)
Yasher koach to the victim.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.canonist.com/wp-content/uploads/plugins/lemaraisvsbittoncomplaint.pdf
ReplyDeleteOui oui! We are suing Monsieur Isaac Bitton for $10 million.
No comment.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/breaking/100874.html
ReplyDeleteAnyone care to know what dirt I know about Levana's restaurant?
"30 percent slide in business over the weekend, its attorney, Richard Klass, told JTA. "
Does anyone know what SIW's opinion is? It probably depends if Sruly Singer likes eating at Le Marais or not.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/breaking/100694.html
ReplyDeleteThe U.S. House of Representatives unanimously approved protections for religious rights in the workplace as part of a whistleblower protection act. The 426-0 vote last week on the amendment incorporated into the act President Clinton's 1997 executive order that ensures accommodation of religious practices in the federal workplace. The Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which would protect federal whistleblowers from retaliation, also passed, 331-94.
Regarding the provision into the whistleblower act, the Orthodox Union said it applauded "the House's effort to ensure that religious federal employees are better protected in situations of conflict between the demands of their faith and the demands of their jobs."
UOJ, why do you hesitate to name the supposedly anonymous rabbi you gave an ultimatum to about performing an illegal ceremony if another blogger, as you are aware, has already publicly named him?
ReplyDeleteUOJ, I'm sorry, but attacking the saintly Geonim of over 1000 years ago is not legitimate.
ReplyDeleteYou run several risks by engaging in this kind of "debate".
You are empowering the type of clever kofer who posted that garbage and allow them to fool those that are not very learned.
You will alienate part of your base of supporters.
Despite the opinion of many of your readers, you have not allowed criticism to be posted of Moshe & Sholom Tendler. Are the Geonim not at least as great and untouchable as the Tendler brothers?
There are legitimate ways perhaps of getting around a takkanas Kadmonim, but attacking the integrity of gedolei oylam is not acceptable, any way you slice it. There are even parts of Shas written by the Geonim. See the Ran on Bava Metzia.
Lakewood Talmid and Full Disclosure,
ReplyDeleteYou have valid issues, and I have valid answers. My criteria for posting information is unusually high, regardless of what my critics may opine.
As far as I know "today", I have been wrong once, naming a gentleman in Baltimore as "Tuvya" when in fact it was Chaim Neuhoff.
I apologized profusely to the gentleman, publicly, privately and through a friend. I offered to make financial restitution to him by way of tzedaka in his name.
I will feature a headline post to explain my evolving views. I appreciate dissent and encourage readers with well thought-out issues to vent them.
I do not post and did not post the thousands.........of loons that try to put up garbage.
That's the only reason I have comment moderation, no other.
MAZEL TOV-20 million hits as of yesterday! THANKS!
I don't know what Uncle Milty was talking about. He brought Le Marais Tournados steak to the Brooklyn jail that night. I just asked him to get me my favorite,steak avec trois poivres, and he had to mess it up.
ReplyDeleteAhhh! That explains why when Kolko dove into his house from jail a minute before Shabbos, he had some kind of sauce all over his collar. Didn't Balkany bring any napkins with him?
ReplyDeleteVictim of Colemar
ReplyDeleteHow can I contact you? It is important for us to talk.
Survivors of Stefan Colemar that would like to make contact with each other and retain their anonymity, please contact
ReplyDeleteattorney Michael Lesher at: mlesher@att.net
Please contact that poor mashgiach and find out where we can send donations to help him fight the lawsuit. Any lawyer who ate at le marais might want to help this mashgiach and sue le marais.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work.
Judy
I am not immediately familiar with the supposed Notzri concepts mentioned by Overhaul. The only context I am aware of is the machlokes haposkim whether it is avoda zara for goyim themselves. I will be speaking to a talmid chochom who is also a Medieval history major who studied original old texts in Europe. My first impression is that Overhaul is at best pushing a silly exaggeration.
ReplyDeleteAs far as kitniyos, there is a discussion as to when the issur came into effect. Overhaul has a smach from the Yesodei Yeshurun who learns it was in the 1300s. Even if the Geonim had no input, how do you dismiss out of hand such luminaries as the Smak, the Mordechai, Rabbeinu Manoach and the Tur?
I second the motion, except the Feinstein grandchildren are mayid that R' Moishe alein ate peanuts on Pesach.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea from Judy. People should also send a message to Le Marais that if they don't drop the lawsuit, it will damage their business even more. It shouldn't be difficult to get them to surrender. They are after all French.
ReplyDeleteYou mean not all people who wear a hat are good people? I'm shocked! I can't believe it!
ReplyDeleteYoiu killing me with this.
ReplyDeleteThe picture looks like it was shot with a telescopic lense.
ReplyDeleteUOJ, good of you to crop out the baby that he's holding.
ReplyDeleteTo the Colemar Victim. It is very brave of you to come forward. If there was some way we could talk to each other please let me know.
ReplyDeleteWhy is this Colemar tinaf walking around with two intact knee caps?
ReplyDeleteThe Picture of Colemar has finally arived. UOJ, can you tell us all why you finally released this photo for the people to see? Was this taken in Israel?
ReplyDeleteBoog aska a gooda question. I gonna speaka to Tony Soprano and we gonna see about fix Colmer's knee caps.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.canonist.com/?p=1392#comment-54103
ReplyDelete5) There are definately many despicable crooks in the kashrut industry. Rabbi Leib Pinter and his crooked government food program that a few decades ago was serving “kosher” meat and cheese sandwitches to the Jewish poor and affirm comes to mind. It is also well established as part of law enforcement investigations that the top leader of Agudath Israel in the middle to latter half of the last century silenced whistleblowers who tried to out one of the most extensive worldwide kashrut frauds ever.
Yudel Shain is right. It's pretty easy for some Lubavitch guy like Bitton to judgement proof himself against a lawsuit.
ReplyDeleteBitton lives in Crown Heights. His address in the filing is on Eastern Parkway. A quick search of the Shmais Anash list shows only one Yitzchak Bitton in Crown Heights. The address is different – a less prestigious building – but people do move. So, it seems the Yitzchak Bitton of Le Marias is the same Yitzchak Bitton I thought he was.
ReplyDeleteYitzchak Bitton's story is sad. He is one of the very best rock drummers in the world. In France, before becoming Chabad, he led a band, Jackie and the Variations, which kept the Beatles out of the top spot on the French pop charts. He gave up his 'sinful' life and moved to Crown Heights. He learned, and he eventually formed a band Raya Mehemena, which was one of the best live bands I ever heard, religious or not. He played gigs and released an album that included a version of Lecha Dodi that is perhaps the single most beautiful contemporary religious song I have ever heard.
But the haredi and Chabad worlds (apart from BTs) were not ready for real musical talent. Bookings were not frequent enough to pay the rent, and the Rebbe would not give his blessing for the type of shows Matisyahu now does, surfing mosh pits and dancing in front of and sometimes with women. (This is a problem many BT musicians faced in the 1980s and early 90s.) So Yitzchak Bitton sold cameras for a living. He apparently went from that to serving as a mashgiach. Last I heard he still played gigs, as well.
Some of you may know Yitzchak Bitton from another venue, so to speak. There is an iconic picture of the Crown Heights riots (posted above, please click to enlarge). The man lying on the ground is Yitzchak Bitton. that's his son, now a shaliach, I believe, crying next to him. Bitton was felled by a projectile during the riots. I was told at the time that his injuries were not serious, but I do not know this first hand.
Yitzchak Bitton is a victim. He is part of system that cast aside his special talents and left him without a viable career. At the same time, he's had to watch poseurs like Matisyahu benefit from a Chabad PR machine and leniencies in Jewish law no one would have allowed Yitzchak Bitton, or Avi Piamenta, Peter Himmelman, or many others. In other words, Bitton's stridency may be a result of this treatment, and the years of financial and emotional deprivation it surely caused.
A very wise rabbi, Yizchok Berkowitz, who was at one time the posek of Aish HaTorah, spoke at a Jerusalem conference for budding and current kiruv workers sponsored by Heritage House. Among the things he said was that if you Rabbi Kiruv Worker are going to make a person frum, you have to worry about his/her income and talents. Is she an actress? Be prepared to promote women only plays. A singer? Women only concerts. Is he an artist, a musician, a poet, a writer? If his job cannot be continued because it is incompatible with Orthodoxy, you Rabbi Kiruv Worker must find a way for him to use his talents and keep his profession, but within Yiddishkeit.
The vast majority of kiruv workers present objected. Why? To them, even a frum life of poverty is better than a non-Orthodox lifestyle. The money, the creativity – that doesn't really matter. Rav Berkowitz would have none of it, and told these kiruv workers in no uncertain terms that this was their responsibility, whether they accepted it or not.
By and large, the kiruv-outreach world, including Chabad, even including Aish HaTorah itself, does not follow Rav Berkowitz. But Rav Berkowitz is a wise man; beyond that, a very caring man. And he knew the truth, even if they did not. If you bring someone to Orthodoxy like Yitzchak Bitton, and you rob him of what makes him special, makes him what he is, you have done deep and lasting damage.
Yitzchok Bitton should be leading his band on world tours and perhaps spending his off time teaching music in Chabad schools. Instead, he sweats away in kitchens, checking lettuce for bugs. That is a tragedy. And that tragedy may be the real story behind this whole sad affair Le Marais.
In 1971 Jim Morrison of the Doors died in 17 Rue Beautrellis in Le Marais. Who lived at 17 Rue Beautrellis in 1971? I believe it was the apartment of Meir Abehsera's brother. Meir – a friend of Bob Dylan and many other rock musicians, artists and writers – funtioned for many years as a near-rebbe for Chabad BTs, including fellow Moroccan Yitzchak Bitton.
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30D11FC345D0C728EDDAB0994D8404482
ReplyDeleteIf Isaac Bitton needs expert advice on how to judgement proof himself from Le Marais, he can feel free to come speak to me. I live at Ditmas & E 19th, not far from YTT.
Does Colmer know he's being tracked by this blog? I wonder what he could do to change his appearance. UOJ agents should keep sending in updated photos.
ReplyDeleteI usually have my reservation with Shmarya's assertions (failedmessiah.typepad.com) but it looks that in this case he captured the real problem of a BT who becomes a mishigener over that because of his real self being suppressed and eventually oppressed.
ReplyDeleteI do not have any special interest in the OU and its Kashrut organization, I do not really care for the guy who heads it, but the few mashgichim and people who work there that I know are usually honest. That said, Le Marais leaves on the Kosher audience and they should be crazy to offend that audience. As opposing to the Monsey story, there was no money to be made here.
In that particular case, I would go with the OU. And as for the Masgiach, I do not know what to make of it...
What do you expect from French weasels? John Kerry, Le Marais, they're all the same.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theeagle.com/stories/032707/business_20070327002.php
ReplyDeleteDid Ronnie get UOJ to rat me out? I knew something was up when I saw UOJ agents in uniform casing the place.
boog said...
ReplyDeleteWhy is this Colemar tinaf walking around with two intact knee caps?
...................................
Dear seargent BOOG!
The question is not why these sick people are walking amongst us w/o fear of physical harm,they are sick and in need of help, or to be put away for a long time so as not to harm another young neshama.
the real question is, why is "big dave olewski", "gruba lipa", "putz belsky", and the likes of them, that do not (to my knowledge)have this sickness of pedophilla, and all they did was cover it up each and every time, walk amongst us w/o fear of a blown knee cap.
Seargent BOOG "LETS ROLL".
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3379385,00.html
ReplyDeleteOr just some anti-frum big mouth making up stories?
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1173879180827&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter
ReplyDeleteYou know the numbers on assimilation, identity, intermarriage, how fewer American Jews see Israel as a component of their identity. Are you optimistic?
I'm a very worried optimist. Unless we change our trajectory, we risk losing our critical mass. In 1980, there were about 5.9 million Jews in the US. Running on current numbers, there will be 3 million Jews in 2030. That's a loss of 3 million in 50 years.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1173879180827&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter
ReplyDeleteYou know the numbers on assimilation, identity, intermarriage, how fewer American Jews see Israel as a component of their identity. Are you optimistic?
I'm a very worried optimist. Unless we change our trajectory, we risk losing our critical mass. In 1980, there were about 5.9 million Jews in the US. Running on current numbers, there will be 3 million Jews in 2030. That's a loss of 3 million in 50 years.
Even Shmarya (Scotty Rosenberg) can't spell. His title is "Le Affair Le Marais". The correct spelling is L'Affaire.
ReplyDeleteBoog should open a franchise of the Huntington Learning Center to bring all these guys up to speed.
Le Marais almost fails inspection with a very high score of 27 violation points.
ReplyDeletehttp://167.153.150.32/RI/web/detail.do?method=detail&restaurantId=40402023&inspectionDate=20060502
Violations were cited in the following area(s) and those requiring immediate action were addressed.
1.) Non-food contact surface improperly constructed. Unacceptable material used. Non-food contact surface or equipment improperly maintained.
2.) Accurate thermometer not provided in refrigerated or hot holding equipment.
3.) Personal cleanliness inadequate. Clean outer garments, effective hair restraint not worn.
4.) Nuisance created or allowed to exist. Facility not free from unsafe, hazardous, offensive or annoying condition.
5.) Food worker does not use proper utensil to eliminate bare hand contact with food that will not receive adequate additional heat treatment.
http://167.153.150.32/RI/web/detail.do?method=detail&restaurantId=40870894&inspectionDate=20060817
Le Marais Downtown location is no longer kosher, but look at the gross standards that are maintained:
2.) Plumbing not properly installed or maintained; anti-siphonage or backflow prevention device not provided where required; equipment or floor not properly drained; sewage disposal system in disrepair or not functioning properly.
3.) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to vermin exist.
4.) Evidence of flying insects or live flying insects present in facility's food and/or non-food areas.
URGENT URGENT URGENT
ReplyDelete**************************
We are making progress in bringing Colemar to justice! I URGE ANYONE AND EVERYONE WITH ANY INFORMATION AT ALL TO CONTACT:
Michael Lesher, Esq.
mlesher@att.net
www.MichaelLesher.com
(973) 470-0212
PLEASE CONTACT MICHAEL, ASAP!
THANKS!
Besides our involvement in the Le Marais fiasco and a treif scandal of our own, we also have problems maintaining a sanitary environment.
ReplyDeletehttp://167.153.150.32/RI/web/detail.do?method=detail&restaurantId=40384047&inspectionDate=20060503
1.) "Choking first aid" poster not posted."Alcohol and Pregnancy" Warning sign not posted. "Wash hands" sign not posted at hand wash facility. Resuscitation equipment: exhaled air resuscitation masks(adult & pediatric), latex gloves, sign not posted. Inspection report sign not posted.
2.) Sanitized equipment or utensil, including in-use food dispensing utensil, improperly used or stored.
3.) Food contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
4.) Cooked or prepared food is cross-contaminated.
And a couple years ago we really bombed with 56 violation points, as in mice, bugs & the works:
1.) Single service item reused, improperly stored, dispensed; not used when required.
2.) Non-food contact surface improperly constructed. Unacceptable material used. Non-food contact surface or equipment improperly maintained.
3.) Plumbing not properly installed or maintained; anti-siphonage or backflow prevention device not provided where required; equipment or floor not properly drained; sewage disposal system in disrepair or not functioning properly.
4.) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to vermin exist.
5.) Sanitized equipment or utensil, including in-use food dispensing utensil, improperly used or stored.
6.) Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility.
7.) Food worker does not use proper utensil to eliminate bare hand contact with food that will not receive adequate additional heat treatment.
8.) Food Protection Certificate not held by supervisor of food operations.
9.) Food from unapproved or unknown source, spoiled, adulterated, or home canned.
There are definately many despicable crooks in the kashrut industry. Rabbi Leib Pinter and his crooked government food program that a few decades ago was serving kosher meat and cheese sandwiches to the Jewish poor and affirm comes to mind.
ReplyDeleteIt is also well established as part of law enforcement investigations that MOSHE SHERER
of Agudath Israel in the middle to latter half of the last century silenced whistleblowers who tried to out one of the most extensive worldwide kashrut frauds ever.
Hey Shimshi Sherer,
ReplyDeleteSo nu, what was the scandal?
I can't take the suspense. It almost makes me feel like I shouldn't act like a big shot in shul today.
http://167.153.150.32/RI/web/detail.do?method=detail&restaurantId=41237134&inspectionDate=20070116
ReplyDeleteI'm the owner of Negev on Ave J. So far I'm leading the pack with all kinds of disgusting violations including this one:
Wiping cloths dirty or not stored in sanitizing solution.
http://167.153.150.32/RI/web/detail.do?method=detail&restaurantId=40394054&inspectionDate=20061212
ReplyDeleteLooks like the mice came over from the treif pizza place next door that was padlocked by the City.
Moishe Scheinerman doesn't care about our filth and creepy crawly things. We even beat George Gross with 71 violation points.
ReplyDeletehttp://167.153.150.32/RI/web/detail.do?method=history&restaurantId=40698955
OLIMPIC PITA
1419 CONEY ISLAND AVENUE, BROOKLYN 11230
718-258-6222
01/10/2007
1419 CONEY ISLAND AVENUE, BROOKLYN 11230
Inspection Date: 01/10/2007
Violation points: 71
Violations were cited in the following significant area(s) and those requiring immediate action were addressed.
1.) Permit not conspicuously displayed.
2.) Lighting inadequate. Fixture not shielded.
3.) Plumbing not properly installed or maintained; anti-siphonage or backflow prevention device not provided where required; equipment or floor not properly drained; sewage disposal system in disrepair or not functioning properly.
4.) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to vermin exist.
5.) Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.
6.) Hand washing facility not provided in or near food preparation area and toilet room. Hot and cold running water at adequate pressure not provided at facility. Soap and an acceptable hand-drying device not provided.
7.) Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility's food and/or non-food areas.
8.) Food not cooled by an approved method whereby the internal product temperature is reduced from 140°F to 70°F or less within 2 hours and from 70°F to 45°F or less within 4 additional hours.
9.) Current valid permit, registration or other authorization to operate establishment not available.
The name change from Olympic to Olimpic probably means they declared bankruptcy. I wonder if they screwed all their suppliers.
ReplyDeleteI'm working with a very experienced person in the field of child sexual abuse who made this comment.
ReplyDelete"The more I learn about Stefan Colemar the more disturbed I become -- he appears to be a compulsive, manipulative, deceitful and highly dangerous sex addict who preys on children---- and who has so far been sheltered by rabbis, particularly, it seems, one Lazer Ginsburg".
Here we go again attacking the messenger. Does it make a difference that Bitton is a wannabe rock star? Does that take awa from the culpability of the chef who cooked meat with dairy margarine? Does it take away the OU's culpability for not reprimanding the chef and instituting corrective measures that would prevent further kashrut violations?
ReplyDeleteThey tried doing the same thing with Vicki Polin. Her past does not exonerate the dozens of child molesters she has helped expose. They tried the same thing with Mark Fuhrman. His past should not have exonerated O.J. Simpson. This is the same Johnny Cochrane defense of "if you can't trust the messenger, you can't trust the message". This logic can only be applied when there is no evidence to support the message other than the messenger's word. However, in all these cases, the evidence is there and cannot be ignored.
The OU's letter in this case is enough damning evdence that they ignored blatant kashrut violations by Le Marais restaurant. This is something that they must be held accountable for.
Lazer ginzberg yemach shemum was told countless times by people in his shul to get rid of him.
ReplyDeletehe always answered that he "was watching him".
yeah.
probably watching him "play with himself".
prick.
UOJ, kindly open a different thread for all le maris bashers, and leave this strictly for colmer rippers.
ReplyDeleteis this the lazer ginzbuerg who davens for the amid at the siyim hashaas?
ReplyDeleteWhere does this monster live now?
ReplyDeletePlease post so I can take appropiate action to protect my family.
*****URGENT*****
i hope his peyos did not get stuck on his shmeckel
ReplyDeleteThis rapist was warned about in the comment section ages ago.
ReplyDeleteHere is a copy of what was written"
Silent Avenger said...
Colmer is still around!!
He had access to many children and it is 100% confirmed that he fondled them, and had oral sex with some of them.
The parents were advised by Rabbi Leizer Ginzberg to leave it alone!! HELP US FROM IGNORANT RABBIS WHO OVERSTEP THEIR ROLE AS RABBIS!
BTW Rabbi rosenblum said not to press charges now because of the victoms exposure.
Rav Shmuel Kaminetzky said the same thing.
FIND STEPHEN COLMER AND HARASS HIM!! HE IS A PREDATOR AND IS SUSPECT FOR THE WORST SEXUAL AND EMOTIONAL MANIPULATION.
HE CONVINCED PEOPLE INTO LETTING HIM DRIVE THEIR KIDS PLACES, AND EVEN GOT THE KEYS TO SOME OF HIS VICTOMS HOUSES.
HE IS SERIOUSLY SICK, AND MUST BE SCARED TO DEATH!!
WE BELIEE HE IS IN LAKEWOOD AREA, OR OCEAN COUNTY.
6:36 AM, July 28, 2006
to asher lang - If he were playing with himself we wouldn't be having this conversation...
ReplyDeleteThe following much needed site was created by serious people who are putting their discerning eye towards the kosher industry:
ReplyDeletehttp://exposeunkosher.blogspot.com/
Please publicize.Thank you.
I am against beatles in the salad of any kind, big or small.
ReplyDeletePlease be advised that bungalows are infestation prone areas.
Yes, the same ginsburg who shuckled his arse at the Siyum Hashass.
ReplyDeleteThat entire dais, save for R' Hershel Schacter and R' Meir Stern should be jettisoned.
Incredible, isn't it!
Ortho Judaism has gone into the toilet.
The Agudath Israel is looking really good!!!!
ReplyDeleteIsrael Singer HONORED at their dinner.
Lipa Margulies leads the Tehillim at the Agudah's version of American Rabbi Idiot Idol-Siyum Hashas.
Lazer Ginzburg-Colemar protector is shliach tzibbur at the Idol-fest!
KEEP IT UP GUYS!!!!!!!
Seems like you guys are shocked.
ReplyDeleteListen close.
Lazer Ginzberg has been a first class as* hole since day one.
He is a brainless jerk who must be brought to his knees crying.
I'm serious.
I am ready to wack his teeth out.
He was warned repetedly by many people about this Colmer dude, and ignored everyone.
He has blood (or should I say "6 year old sperm") on his hands.
MAY HE BE HIT BY THE NEXT TRUCK.
BTW;
ReplyDeleteGinzburg's Shabbos Hagodol Drosho this coming Shabbos will highlight the evils of Videos, going to Madison Square Garden on Chol Hamoed, Internet, Cellphones, and what should be considered proper reading material. Momentous Topics.
Limited seating, come early.
Hey Ginzburg, What about Colemar?
How many tyreh yiddeshe neshomas are scarred for life because of your obstruction, obfuscation, and obdurateness?
Ginsburg, L@@k at your hands.
There is blood.
B'Dohmayich Chayii?
http://amashgiachspeaksout.com/
ReplyDeleteUpdated Site
Regards,
Yitzchok Bitton
RONNIE..
ReplyDeleteI received your uoj caps, they are absolutily beutiful. I just have to get in touch now with guardian angels ceo curtis sliwa to help me organize the uoj swat team.
To Ronnie or whomever else,
ReplyDeleteBJ's Wholesale Club (or at least some locations) do small batches of customized windbreakers, like for sports clubs and the like.
Even stingy Mike Bloomberg finally agreed today to provide bulletproof vests to auxillary NYPD. How much longer do we have to wait to proudly wear our UOJ uniforms?
http://www.canonist.com/wp-content/uploads/plugins/bittonordertoshowcause.pdf
ReplyDeleteJudge orders Isaac Bitton to show cause.
Where is the brave individual who calls himself Overhaul?
ReplyDeleteI spoke to a descendent of the Chochom Tzvi who would like to know where he wrote anything about kitniyos being a "minhag shtus"
Let's see how easy it's going to be to pick apart Overhaul, one cleverly formed lie at a time.
anonymous:
ReplyDeleteYou tell me how to get intouch with you. I am not giving any information on here. I don't know how you want to talk.
Another reason why Lazer is not exactly evil, along the lines of an earlier comment, is because of his limited intellectual capacity. I'm not making a joke or cynical comment here. Although he inherited his father's role, he was not blessed with genius and therefore does not engage this parsha with any sort of calculating complexity. UOJ did good by stopping him, but if you're looking for a punching bag like all the candidates in the YTT affair, Lazer is not your guy.
ReplyDeleteHennessy can either be French or Irish. I should go down to Le Marais to get smashed with Mark at the bar. I just don't know if it's going to be with French Cognac or Irish Whiskey. Belsky thought it would be a good idea to get together and discuss framing Bitton who lives in my jurisdiction.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone remember the big assifa that the Agudah organized one Sunday on Water St in Lower Manhattan? Some finsterra Brisker letz who observed the long lines to get on the train commented that when R' Lazer gets here, he'll be forced to jump the turnstyles with his langa reckel, lemaan kevoid shomoyim, in case he's late.
ReplyDeleteAny update on Colemar's location?
ReplyDeleteThe chef at Le Marais is innocent because the meat cooked in dairy margarine did not penetrate its intended victims. No penetration means no violation.
ReplyDeleteto anonymous:
ReplyDeleteI don't know how you want to get in touch. I am obviously not putting my information on here. If you want, let me know how to contact you
Yo Bro, Anon 5:11 P.M.
ReplyDeleteHow much fricken intellectual capacity does one need to stop a child molester, sex deviate? Huh?
Everybody is screaming in Ginsburgs ear for years to stop this tinaf and he obstructs, obstructs, obstructs.
You mean Ginzburg gets a pass because he's no fricken Einstein?
Take your touchy-feely liberal crap and tell it to Dr. Phil, and then go explain it to the devastated molested kids and their parents.
BTW, Nixmary Brown's "mother" is no fricken genius either...does she also get a Pass?
I just saw this in the Charedi forum.Read it and shudder.
ReplyDeleteBrief synopsis: Charedi women sentenced to ten months in prison for violently abusing her 10 children. In her defense she said that she is from the Gerrer community and that community has different standards for raising children.
אם לעשרה קראה לילדיה "כלבים" והכריחה לאכול מהריצפה
גיל בן עמי 27/03/2007 13:25
עשרה חודשי מאסר נגזרו אתמול על אם לעשרה שהתעללה בילדיה במשך שנים. בין השאר הטיחה את ראשם בקיר עד לזוב דם. להגנתה טענה האם כי היא מחסידות גור בה יש נורמות אחרות לגידול ילדים.
בית המשפט המחוזי בירושלים גזר אתמול (ב') עשרה חודשי מאסר בפועל ושנה על תנאי, על אישה חרדית שביצעה התעללות קשה בעשרת ילדיה. האישה המשתייכת לחסידות ''גור'', החסידות הגדולה בישראל, נהגה להכות ולהשפיל את ילדיה על בסיס יומיומי במשך שנים.
עבירות האלימות כללו שימוש במקלות להכאת הילדים, חניקה ואף הטחת ראשם בקיר עד זוב דם. מלבד הפגיעות הפיזיות, נהגה האישה להשפיל את ילדיה לקרוא להם בשמות גנאי ולנצל את חוסר הישע שלהם.
בפסק הדין נכתב: "כשאחד הילדים אכל ארוחת ערב, נפלה הצלחת על הריצפה. בתגובה קראה לו האם "כלב", הורתה לו לאסוף את האוכל בידיים ואמרה לו לבחור בין שתי ברירות, או לאכול מן הריצפה או להישאר רעב. במקרה אחר, האישה דרכה על בנה והורתה לו לא לזוז למרות שמירר בבכי".
לטענת האישה, היא התחנכה על האמרה היהודית "חושך שבטו, שונא בנו" ולפיכך לא הבינה את חומרת המעשים. היא ביקשה להתחשב בפער בין חסידות "גור" שאליו היא משתייכת לבין החברה הישראלית. לטענתה, מעשיה הם "מתוך שילוב של השקפת עולם ומעגל החיים שנכפה עליה".
בגזר הדין התייחס השופט, נעם סולברג לנוהג המקראי בנוגע להכאת ילדים: "הכאה לשם חינוך, בעיני חכמי התלמוד, איננה אפוא דבר המסור לאב ולמחנך, כדי שיעשו ככל העולה על רוחם. מדובר באמצעי בעייתי שהשימוש בו נתון לביקורת ולבחינה וכפוף למרותו של המשפט".
"Does anyone remember the big assifa that the Agudah organized one Sunday on Water St in Lower Manhattan?"
ReplyDeleteScheinerman got up all excited about it. He was trying to whip his crowd into a frenzy by yelping with his yeshivishe rrrreshes that even the moderrrrne orthodox & Mizrrrrachist leaders like Drrruckmann said to go to the Water St prrrotest.
I just read the restaurant's order to show cause, which contains a temporary restraining order. It looks to me like a prior restraint on speech, which is almost always unconstitutional. Bitton can't open his mouth about Le Marais until April 17, when the motion gets heard. For the record, Judge Partnow is not one of the brighter bulbs on the bench.
ReplyDeleteI would be interested in reading the papers that support the order to show cause, which should include affidavits and various documents.
I don't get this.
Bitton should get Public Citizen to represent him, which did a good job representing the bloggers against Mordy Tendler.
It looks like you want to get Colemar in before Yom-Tov. His hat is worse than Shafran's.
ReplyDeleteColmer is gematria kolko.
ReplyDeletehahaha
Jerusalem Institute Questions Post-Diaspora Kitniyot Abstinence
ReplyDeleteby Ezra HaLevi
(IsraelNN.com) The religious court of a Jerusalem Talmudic research center has taken aim at the Ashkenazi practice of abstaining from legumes on Passover in Israel.
The Beit Din (religious court) of Machon Shilo, headed by Rabbi David Bar-Hayim, issued the ruling, which permits the consumption of Kitniyot (legumes) by all Jews in Israel during the Pesach holiday. Co-signing the ruling were Jerusalem Rabbis Yehoshua Buch and Chaim Wasserman.
The Beit Din explains in its ruling that the custom of refraining from consumption of Kitniyot on Pesach began due to purely logistical issues such as phenomenon of wheat grains being found in sacks of rice. The ruling and customs affect mostly Jews from Ashkenazi descent, as Sephardic Jewry never adopted the customs.
Rabbi Bar-Hayim heads Machon Shilo, a Talmudic research institute seeking to reestablish the religious customs and practices of the pre-exile Jewish communities in Israel in place of those adopted in Babylon and Europe.
"[Refraining from eating Kitniyot] was a localized custom in parts of Germany, which later moved eastwards to Poland and Russia with the waves of Jewish emigration," explains Rabbi Bar-Hayim. "The explanations offered for the custom are unconvincing. You don't find wheat in rice today. It was never accepted by Jews worldwide. Whatever the origin of the custom, Ashkenazi Jewish commentators have struggled to find good reasons for the ban. Some authorities, such as Rabbeinu Yeruham (Provence, 14 c.) called it a 'foolish custom'."
The Machon Shilo ruling goes to far as to insinuate that financial incentives contributed at certain times to the addition of other foods to the category of Kitniyot. “Over time, more and more items were arbitrarily added to the list,” Rabbi Bar Hayim writes. “Beans, peas, and more recently soya beans and even peanuts. Few Ashkenazi Jews today would eat peanuts or use peanut oil on Pesach, but as recently as 40 years ago peanuts were permitted by all Rabbinical authorities. Often there were economic interests at work behind the scenes, pushing for ever more stringent definitions of Kitniyot, in order to create a market for a particular product. Products that were previously kosher were banned. Very expensive oils such as walnut oil replaced other oils that were previously acceptable and the focus of the holiday shifted from avoiding Chametz to avoiding Kitniyot.”
Rabbi Bar-Hayim says he understands the importance of preserving customs, but that the Talmud itself explicitly instructs Jews how to relate to the customs passed down to them. "We learn from the Mishnah and the Talmud that customs are connected to a particular place. When one moves permanently to another locality, one is to adopt the local custom," Rabbi Bar-Hayim says. "The custom of abstaining from eating Kitniyot during Pesach has never been the prevailing practice among all Jews in the Land of Israel, and therefore is not binding upon Jews living in Israel. A person may choose to continue adhering to his custom, but no one has the right to enforce his custom on others."
Rabbi Bar-Hayim says that Kitniyot is just a symptom of the fractured nature of Judaism in Israel since the forced exile two millennia ago. He laments the status quo whereby Ashkenazi and Sephardi neighbors do not eat at one another’s home on the Pesach holiday, meant to be a time of unity for the Jewish people, who would ascend as a nation to Jerusalem in Temple times. “We hope that this ruling will serve as the beginning of a process that will unite the Jewish People."
Even more critical, says Rabbi Bar-Hayim, are the results of retaining the customs picked up during an exile during which many now-relevant mitzvoth (commandments) were superfluous. “When a Jew lives in accordance to the Judaism of Minsk or Dvinsk, there is no place in his worldview for bringing the Korban Pesach (the Pesach sacrifice of a lamb, as was done each year starting with the Exodus),” laments Rabbi Bar-Hayim. "Today, as always, we are commanded to bring a Korban Pesach, but most people are under the mistaken impression that we cannot since we are ritually impure from contact with the dead."
Citing the Mishna and the Rambam, which state that if a majority of the people is ritually unclean the Passover sacrifice is not postponed and is brought in a state of impurity, Rabbi Bar-Hayim says the only reason not to reinstate the Biblical commandment is the political climate preventing Jewish religious access to the Temple Mount. "We hope that this psak halacha (Jewish legal ruling) will cause a paradigm shift from 'small talk' about Kitniyot to confronting the big issues such as the Pesach sacrifice. I am aware that some people, even some religious Jews, are uncomfortable with the subject of animal sacrifice; this is something that we need to discuss and internalize. The Pesach sacrifice was one of the annual highlights of Jewish life in the Land of Israel during the First and Second Commonwealths. The Jewish People has come home; we need to start acting like it."
The full Machon Shilo ruling can be viewed (in Hebrew) by clicking here.
The Machon Shilo ruling remains a minority opinion. Arutz-7 contacted a few of Israel’s leading Religious Zionist rabbis to comment on the issue.
Rabbi Zalman Melamed, Chief Rabbi of Beit El, said that Ashkenazi Jews are forbidden from consuming Kitniyot on Pesach. “We act in accordance with our tradition, which is that Ashkenazim are forbidden to eat Kitniyot on Pesach,” he said.
Asked whether that applied to more recent additions to the Kitniyot classification, such as peanuts. Rabbi Melamed said, “One whose family has the tradition that they eat peanuts can eat peanuts.”
Rabbi Melamed stressed that while it is a desirable aim for the nation to move toward unity in their Jewish observance, such a shift must be done by a decision of a larger plurality of Torah sages, and not by individuals.
Rabbi Avigdor Nebenzahl, Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem’s Old City, also said that it is forbidden for Ashkenazi Jews to eat Kitniyot. He took issue with the assertion that the minhag hamakom (local custom) in Israel is to eat Kitniyot. “The Land of Israel belongs to all of the Jewish people and not just Sepharadi Jews,” he said. “There are many customs and there is no minhag hamakom that prevails in Israel.”
Rabbi Nebenzahl conceded that an Ashkenazi Jew could conceivably take on Sephardi customs if he lives in a community that is wholly Sephardi.
Rabbi Nachum Rabinovitch, Rosh Yeshiva of the Birkat Moshe Hesder Yeshiva in Maaleh Adumim, disagreed with the assertion that there was no local custom – in theory. “There was in fact a minhag hamakom in the Land of Israel. But when other communities arrived, they did not respect it and chose to continue their own customs…I presume the local custom was to eat Kitniyot.”
But Rabbi Rabinovitch says he does not understand why anybody should be bothered by the customs of others. “Who does it hurt that Ashkanazim today refrain from Kitniyot? They can in fact eat at their Sephardi neighbors and just not eat from the Kitniyot foods.”
“There are many congregations today,” he added. “There is no longer a single community without two rabbis…and just as you wouldn’t want to make everyone dress the same way, we should not force everyone to give up their customs…many of which offer a connection to their previous generations.”
Rabbi Rabinovitch concluded that the matter of consumption of Kitniyot is a personal matter of observance and should be discussed individually with one’s rabbi.
I'm just surprised that a NYC judge was able to get to this matter within a day. I would think there's a huge backlog. Would it surprise anyone if the OU used their connections to expedite this so that they can shut Bitton the hell up?
ReplyDeleteAnd maybe JWB who was also targeted with a frivolous lawsuit can help Bitton get hooked up with the free speech orgs. They're also helping Orthomom in the 5 Towns.
Did colmer mammish do the etzem zach?
ReplyDeleteich main. did his langer shteken mammish be mafrish the pessach of oisa makom?
or did he just go with the standard "bias peh" scenario?
i tayna that he mammish forced the ketanim onto his ayver so he could do the etzem maysah shelo kidarka.
it's a shtickle shver to fargin how he could mammish be over this shrekleche aveira.
Limaysa, i was thinking that kentz zain he will have a shtickle company in jail. yidi kolko will play "drop the soap" with colmer kiseder all day long.
please be mehana the olam wichh zach he was over.
inquiring minds need to know.
Some putz named Gilad Weinreb has just chimed in on Canonist that he hopes "it's over" now that the judge is ordering Bitton to show cause. Does the OU VP Rabbi Weinreb have a son by that name?
ReplyDeleteThe brave Mr. Overhaul has reappeared but he refuses to answer questions about gaping holes in his story. We are still waiting for the mareh mokom of the Chochom Tzvi.
ReplyDeleteAnd regarding Gur, the woman is obviously mentally ill. No one sane would harm their children like that. She is krank or an evil criminal. It has no bearing on Gur, unless that is there is any indication that they try to shield her.
Does anyone know who the machon Shilo people are? There are am haaratzim that come along every so often and make grand claims. I'd like to know who these people are. It sounds like something David Hartman would say, the ausvarf from Chaim Berlin who ran around to Conservative temples in the Diaspora in the 80s & 90s, huffing that his "yeshiva" would outlearn the mainstream Litvishe. Of course no one ever heard from him again.
Someone claims that Justice Hurkin Torres recused himself not because he’s a steak frites fan, but because he's a personal friend of the attorney.
ReplyDeleteIs marijuana kosher for Pessah?
ReplyDelete--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sheera Claire Frenkel, THE JERUSALEM POST Mar. 27, 2007
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Every Sunday school student knows Pessah for its ban on food that rises, but a growing number of Jews are asking whether the holiday also precludes them from getting high.
Hemp has increasingly been spotted on the list of kitniyot, or legumes, that Ashkenazi Jews abstain from eating during Pessah, according to several influential rabbinical Web sites, including kashrut.com. But not everyone agrees that hemp qualifies for the ban, and the debate has led many to question the definition of kitniyot.
While hemp isn't a kitchen staple for most people, hemp oil can be found in a number of hygiene products and in some alternative baked goods. But it's hemp's more notorious cousin, commonly known as marijuana, that has set the sparks flying. As debate over the kitniyot tradition has gathered steam among rabbinic circles, many are looking at hemp as a case in point of why the practice of abstention needs to be reexamined.
The ban on kitniyot during Pessah began because rabbis were concerned that certain legumes would come into contact with the grains forbidden during the holiday. Farmers often grew wheat and rice in adjacent fields, and families frequently stored all of their grains and legumes in the same containers. The kitniyot tradition only applies to Jews of Ashkenazi descent, since Sephardic Jewry never adopted the practice.
Of the dozen rabbis whom The Jerusalem Post questioned on this issue, none offered a conclusive statement about how hemp should be classified for Pessah. As Rabbi Daniel Kohn of Bat Ayin explained, the issue ultimately boils down to an individual decision by each rabbi about whether hemp seeds themselves could be considered edible. If a rabbi decides that the seeds are edible, then hemp - and, by extension, marijuana - would not be considered permissible for Pessah.
Israel's Green Leaf Party ("Aleh Yarok") said it was not taking any chances. Following an inquiry by the Post, a spokeswoman for the party said the group was sending out an e-mail to members warning them about hemp's possible kashrut problems.
"We are warning our people not to eat anything with hemp products if they follow the practice of kitniyot on Pessah," said party spokeswoman Michelle Levine. "We are considering announcing a ban on everything containing hemp just to be on the safe side. We are going with the rabbis on this. People should remove all cannabis and hemp from their homes."
Levine said one of the party's main arguments for cannabis legalization was biblical references to it.
"We would like to ask people... if it's listed as not kosher 'for Pessah,' [doesn't] that mean it must be kosher the rest of the year?" said Levine.
Hemp's tricky Pessah status has caused the first marital rift for Daniel and Sarah, who recently moved to Jerusalem from Chicago. The newlyweds, who asked not to use their last name, said they had just finished their Pessah cleaning when a friend asked them if he could buy the rest of their marijuana.
"We just had no idea what he meant. It turns out he was buying it from a lot of his observant friends so that they wouldn't have it in the house, [like] hametz," said Sarah. "We aren't habitual users, but we certainly smoke in our house, and we really aren't sure what our pipe may have come in contact with. It has caused a big crisis for us."
In the end, the two decided to quietly get rid of the rest of their marijuana (not by selling it to a friend, since it was kitniyot, and not hametz, they explained), and give their home one more cleaning before the holiday.
"There is no problem with hemp clothing, and of course, anything that is taken for medicinal purposes would be fine," said Kohn. "Many would look at it like cottonseed oil. There are a variety of opinions. If one considered it edible, then it is included in kitniyot."
On Monday, the religious court of the Shilo Institute issued a ruling that permits all Jews to consume kitniyot during Pessah. Rabbi David Bar-Hayim wrote the ruling, with Rabbis Yehoshua Buch and Chaim Wasserman co-signing.
The move is seen as a direct attack on the kitniyot tradition, as Bar-Hayim wrote that the current explanations for the custom were "unconvincing."
"Kitniyot is no longer applicable. It's a tradition people keep going because they want to extend a perimeter so far outside the actual law of Torah that they could not possibly violate the actual law," said Dan Sieradski, an editor at JewSchool.com who has been at work on a book on Jews and drugs for several years.
"Clearly, you can use hemp in food," he said. "You might mix it into brownies. You aren't going to make bread out of it."
lazer ginzass is a pompas as*hole who is going to be delt with.
ReplyDeleteYiskadail Viyiskadaish Shimey Rabbo!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI hope nnone minds that I practice kaddish a little for the next siyum hashas.....
Amen Yihey Shimey Rabbo I am a monster Liolmey mayoh
some1 should call rubi shron. he davens at ginzbergs hell hole.
ReplyDeleteask him how he allowed it toi go on.
OU Crony Watch,
ReplyDeleteI'll ask Rabbi Weinreb's son in law Zellinger who sells dog food for a living.
OU Crony Watch said...
ReplyDeleteI'm just surprised that a NYC judge was able to get to this matter within a day. I would think there's a huge backlog. Would it surprise anyone if the OU used their connections to expedite this so that they can shut Bitton the hell up?
--------
Not really. These type of "motions" are usually expedited by their very nature.
We are looking into being mattir this too
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3381816,00.html
Domino's expects 50 percent rise in sales during Pesach
Pizza delivery chain's stores to remain open during holiday due to high demand for non-kosher for Passover food
Ynet
The Domino's Pizza chain has begun preparing for Passover by increasing the number of delivery people in order to meet the high demand for non-kosher for Pesach food during the holiday.
Almost all of the chain's stores will remain open throughout the holiday in order to deliver Pizzas to Israelis who do not keep kosher, due to the rise in sales noted every year during Pesach.
Assaf Greenberg, CEO of Domino's Pizza Israel, expects a rise of 50 percent in sales during Paasover and a rise of 30 percent in sales before the holiday.
Domino's Pizza has 23 stores across the country.
First ask Ruby Schron why he's so chummy with scumbags like his next door neighbor Leib Pinter.
ReplyDeleteThe Agudah probably wanted R' Lazer to daven for the amud for dramatic effect. There are a few people who try to mimic a style that makes you feel like you're being transported back 200 years in Lita. That would be R' Don Segal, R' Lazer & R' Shmuel Gedaliah Pollock.
ReplyDeleteRuby Schron davens in the Mir not Agudah.
ReplyDeleteGet the story straight.
your dead wrong.
ReplyDeletehe davens in the agudah all the time and also in the mir.
call him up
Who cares? Anybody that walks into Ginzburg's crazy house is no better than Ginzburg. Supporters of crazies are crazies!
ReplyDeleteR' Lazer had a huge problem keeping his oylam. The SYs were knocking on doors offering everyone millions for their homes. Who could refuse? R' Lazer was virtually getting on his knees to beg them not to sell out. Most of what's left are a bunch of BTs that rent lower end apts & homes. If he still had a run of the mill crowd, he probably wouldn't get away with providing safe haven to Colmo the Homo.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the story with that guy who lived near Colmer from Derech Chaim who cracked up and got divorced?
ReplyDeleteMy father is a big talmid of Rav Scheinberg and a big benefactor of Torah Ohr and Derech Agav.
ReplyDeleteMInkoff?
ReplyDeleteYou said "R' Lazer was virtually getting on his knees to beg them not to sell out"
You have it wrong....he was on his knees while colmer "hocked shticker".
Get my drift?
OUCH!
Good thing Colmer is not around now.
ReplyDeleteIf he was I would absolutly crack his neck off.
Let me know if you need my help guys.
Moshe Kimchi,
Bisiyata Dishmaya Karate School.
My father is a big talmid of Rav Scheinberg and a big benefactor of Torah Ohr and Derech Agav.
ReplyDelete___________________________
Elli, I hope your father gets it up his yazoo from Colmer derech agav.
There were nebich a whole bunch of tzebruchenna neshomos in the Ave R corridor that cracked up. Rosner, Flagler, etc etc. Mordy Florans was making sure they were getting kosher food in the nut house.
ReplyDeleteR' Elya Jurkanski once looked up at the Mirrer yeshiva sign and said "vos, vos shteit duh? Farvos alla meshugoyim kummen arine?"
The guy from Derech Agav was last seen in a basement apt by East 29th and Kings Hwy. He also had some kind of part time job as an eid for Hersh Ginsberg's beis din.
ReplyDeleteLeib Pinter didn't need to "sell out" and move. He didn't need the money after he sold out and robbed everyone in sight.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how many commenting here actually know Colmer...
ReplyDeleteDoes UOJ have a problem with the OU on maple syrup?
ReplyDeletehttp://abcnews.go.com/WNT/GlobalWarming/story?id=2978788
Vermont Maple Syrup Hard Hit by Climate Change
http://www.opinionjournal.com/diary/?id=110009835
ReplyDeleteI know UOJ has a lot on his plate right now, but it's imperative that he stop this scam too.
Let's do whatever we can to discredit Bitton.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nypost.com/seven/03282007/news/regionalnews/oy__its_kosher_combat_regionalnews_bill_sanderson.htm
The OU responded, "Mr. Bitton developed amazing conspiratorial theories involving crime organizations to explain why people denied his allegations, and attributed dark and evil motives to sincere and honest individuals within the OU."
Colmer and Lanner - what is going in the water in Deal NJ?
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of karate, whatever happened to Ezrachi that used to stand guard against hoodlums in front of the Mir?
ReplyDeleteAnd does anyone know what became of Rosner in the end?
Anyone that has a photo of Lazer Ginzburg, or wants to get one using your cellphone....
ReplyDeletesend it to me at:
a_unorthodoxjew@yahoo.com
Let's get his photo up so the world can see what this sick putz looks like.
Any authentic personal information on him as well is welcomed...his history, yeshivas, etc.
The title of the post will be "The Rabbi And The Pedophile"....photos side by side.
R' Lazer has no right to protect a monster but I still feel sorry for him. He had a hard life, never having had any kids of his own. I can't imagine what he was thinking in helping Colmer.
ReplyDeleteI think we do a disservice in referring to Colmer as a monster or "colmo the homo". One minimizes the abuse, and the other seems to depict him as obviously flawed. It would be easy to spot the pedophiles if they were in fact monstrous. It may make us more comfortable to cast a great divide between people like Colmer and Kolko and the rest of us, but the fact is, other than the pedophilia, he is another Baal Teshuvah trying to follow the mitzvot that looks the same and acts the same as the rest of us. We can't stop abusers by pretending they are so different from us, but by recognizing how easily they blend in. Say he is manipulative, say he has committed aggregious acts against children, say he is a coward...to call him a monster makes it that much harder to spot the next pedophile. I am not defending him, not at all, just cautioning against deluding ourselves that pedophiles are so different.
ReplyDeleteFROM VOS IZ NEIAS:
ReplyDeleteAt March 27, 2007 7:57 PM , kashrus pro said...
For all you anti OU people, if you have beef with the OU, I would suggest you mill your own wheat, milk your own cow, etc., because the OU is involved in just about every product whether you like it or not. Even if you think you will eat your heimish hechsher products, they ALL rely on the OU anyway so cut the OU bashing!
At March 27, 2007 8:41 PM , Anonymous said...
Commercial bread never needed a hechsher nor did milk, yogurt, soft cheeses and sour cream in the US. Chalav Yisrael today is supervised by a security camera and not mashgiach.
Most canned and frozen fruits and vegetables that the OU certifies don't need hashgacha either.The same is true for candy and jelly.
The OU usually relies upon a letter from the company certifying that the ingredients on the package are what is in the product and believe me, the FDA is much more of a threat to them than the OU.(You didn't really think there was a Rabbi standing in the plant all day, did you? If you still do, call the plant and ask to speak to him, they'll give you the OU's office in NY).
In England for example where kashrus is not a business, the Rabbinate prints a list for free every year of acceptable kosher products (ie candies, cookies, jellies).
What we REALLY need hashgacha for is MEAT, HARD CHEESES and CATERING.
Thanks to the OU, for meat we have Rubashkin and for catering we have Le Marais.
I remember Observant life in America BEFORE the OU. We knew the shochet, knew the baker, knew the cheesemaker and ate from each other's homes instead of Gentiles in restaurants.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2932852&page=1
ReplyDeleteI hope UOJ doesn't follow me from Brooklyn to Skokie.
http://www.jewishpress.com/page.do/21122/Israel_Singer_Redux.html
ReplyDeleteJerry Greenwald and his puppet editorial board conveniently don't tell you that the Claims Conference is run by Sruli's buddy & neighbor from Forest Hills, Julian Berman.
http://www.canonist.com/?p=1394#comments
ReplyDeletevfb Says:
March 28th, 2007 at 2:12 pm
The Court should not have signed the OSC, as it is blatantly unconstitutional. A court may not restrain speech without a full hearing on the facts. Below is a link to a post by Eugene Volokh, a noted constitutional scholar in a case similar to this one.
http://volokh.com/posts/1147390259.shtml
Judge Issues Temporary Restraining Order Barring the Operation of a Web Site:
According to the Danville Register & Bee,
You also have to put a picture of Grubba Lipa next to Kolko.
ReplyDeletePreferably, both of them will be wearing handcuffs.
Rosner tried getting into Lakewood. It's amazing he even knew his way after what happened. He tried telling some story to Rav Schustal but got nowhere. R' Dovid just chuckled at him to go back to the Mir. He then disappeared for a while and briefly resurfaced in front of the yeshiva on Ocean Pkwy. He told one of the Fiddels that Belsky's brother poskened that he doesn't have to tell girls what happened to him. As far as I know, no one has seen him since then. It's a rachmonnus.
ReplyDeleteThe Medieval history major & Phd candidate responds to the jibberish posted by overhaul:
ReplyDeleteIN MY OPINION, CERTAINLY THINGS HAVE CHANGED. BUT IF YOU LEAVE "THE INSIDE" WHERE EVEN MINOR DIFFERENCES ARE MARKERS OF IDENTITY, THEN I THINK THAT IN MOST MATTERS OF RITUAL THINGS HAVE LARGELY STAYED THE SAME.
WHOA. WHERE DOES HE GET THIS STUFF FROM? CERTAINLY THERE ARE CHISTIAN AND PAGAN INFLUENCES, SOME OF WHICH THE GEMARA AND LATER GUYS TALK ABOUT. SO WHAT?
THIS GUY SEEMS TO BE HEAVILY INFLUENCED BY GRAETZ WHO WAS STRONGLY OPPOSED TO KABBALA ETC.
IN TRUTH, I THINK THAT THE INTENT OF THE ZOHAR WAS PRIMARILY JEWISH. IT COULD HAVE ALSO BEEN "PLUGGED IN" TO CHRISTIANITY.
OH, AND THE RAMBAM WASNT "CORRUPTED" BY ARISTOTLINISM ETC? GIVE ME A BREAK. AND WHERE WAS KABALLA "BORN" IF NOT AMONG THE SFARDIM?
THIS GUY HAS A MAJOR CHIP ON HIS SHOULDER.
Lakewood Talmid,
ReplyDeleteBefore you call people a 'kofer' and an 'am haaretz', why don't you read through the entire psak din v'hakol yavo al mekomo besholom.
http://machonshilo.org/PDF/Machon_Shilo_Pesaq_Qitniyoth_2.pdf
Lakewood Talmid,
ReplyDeletewho exactly is this 'The Medieval history major & Phd candidate' you speak of?
1) I haven't been influenced by Graetz. If you do want to speak about influences, I urge you to read "Ari Noham" by Rabbi De Modena and "Milchamot Hashem" by Rav Yachya Kafach.
The Rivash calls Kabbalistists worse than the Notzrim because the latter have created 3 Gods (trinity) while the former created 10 (the eser sfirot presented by many Kabbalists as ten manifestations of the Godhead).
2) The Rambam may have been influenced by Aristotle but his intent was to show that indeed "chochma bagoyim taamin". The Kabbalistic nonsense hardly stacks up against Maimonides logic and rationality.
3) Kabbalah was not born among the Sefardim. It may have become popularized under Ari who was himself of Ashkenazic and Sefardic descent. Still there continued pockets of Jewry in Sefarad and the east (particularly the Dardaim in Yemen) that opposed this essentially radical new theology.
There is plenty more to be said about all of this.
simcha klor said...
ReplyDeleteDid colmer mammish do the etzem zach?
ich main. did his langer shteken mammish be mafrish the pessach of oisa makom?
or did he just go with the standard "bias peh" scenario?
i tayna that he mammish forced the ketanim onto his ayver so he could do the etzem maysah shelo kidarka.
it's a shtickle shver to fargin how he could mammish be over this shrekleche aveira.
Limaysa, i was thinking that kentz zain he will have a shtickle company in jail. yidi kolko will play "drop the soap" with colmer kiseder all day long.
please be mehana the olam wichh zach he was over.
inquiring minds need to know.
8:11 PM, March 27, 2007
----------------------------
You must be a regular mispallel or frequent visitor of his shul with such a dead-on impersonation :o)
Either that, or, maybe you are YY having some fun?
Hey Klor;
ReplyDeleteGo back to watching your Porno movies.
Come over here; I'll be 'Mefarsim' you with a "Louima".
Since you are a Lakewood Talmid you should have no problem looking up that teshuvas Harivash that I mentioned before:
ReplyDelete"The Kabbalists are worse than the Christians. For the Christians pray to (a) three (part) gods (god) (the Trinity), while the Kabbalists pray to (a) ten (part) gods (god) (the Ten Sepherot)
(Responsa 157)".
Ironically even some Kabbalists themselves felt that their counterparts went too far. The following quote is from the noted Kabbalist Rabbi Avraham Abulafia:
"Accordingly, let me inform you, that the masters of Kabbalah [and] the sefirot thought to profess the unity of God, and escape the Trinitarian doctrine and [in fact] they made him ten. In the same fashion that the gentiles say ‘He is three and the three are one,’ some Kabbalists say that the divinity is ten sefirot and the ten are one"
See Adolph Jellinek, Ginze Hokhmat ha-Qabbala (Leipzig, 1853), p. 19. See In the Shadow of History, p. 15.
By the way Graetz was indeed an implacable foe of the Kabballah and writes as such:
“Discord was the mother of this monstrosity [Kabbalah], which has ever been the cause of schism"
See History of the Jews, vol. 3, p. 547.
The Kabbalah that most people are familiar with today is based on the writings of the Ari. It is important to note that the latter is a personage still somewhat shrouded in mystery. Rabbi Yosef Karo (himself a Kabbalist) has a teshuva addressed to the ARI and it may be inferred that Ari was not a stable or harmonious personality.
During the short time Ari was in Safad, he asked R' Karo a legal question. R' Karo answered with a published responsa (see Afkat Rokhel 136) where he mentions that Luria’s opinion was based on a misinterpretation of a passage in the Rambam. Furthermore, the very fabric of his arguments was illogical and internally inconsistent. "I must wonder about the condition of your mind (Hosheshani meTohar Sikhlekha)" wrote R' Karo to the Ari.
Some even suspect that he may have poisoned his own children after prophesizing about their impending demise. Some historians even claim that he poisoned himself.
p.s. I am sorry if this comes out twice; i was having some technical difficulties.
The Ten Plagues Delivered by the Aguda/Torah U'Mesorah/OU Administration of Perlow & Kamenetsky & Bloom & Fishman & Weinreb:
ReplyDelete1. Child sex abuse.
2. Suicides.
3. Depression, anxiety, aneroxia nervosa, other psychological disorders;
4. Drugs, alcohol, gambling abuse;
5. Widespread financial criminality, Jews in jail;
6. Poverty and unemployment;
7. Divorce;
8. 50 per cent intermarriage rate;
9. 90 per cent of Jewry not orthodox;
10. Unconscionable yeshiva and day school tuition.
RESIGN, ALL OF YOU RESIGN. YOU'RE KILLING US. PLEASE, WE BEG YOU, CLEAN OUT YOUR DESKS, AND GET OUT OF OUR LIVES. FOR G-D'S SAKE, RESIGN, RESIGN.
I have just confirmed to my satisfaction that "Rabbi" Shmuel Kaminetzky has advised parents of Colemar victims NOT TO GO TO THE POLICE!!!
ReplyDeleteUOJ
Hello, I have a lot of hatred inside of me. I'm married to a lovely woman from a good family. We have children. I love them all.
ReplyDeleteI hate the orthodox world. I hate Aguda, I hate the OU, I hate Torah U'Mesorah. I hate their rabbis. I mean it. I hate them. I hate them for the sex abuse, the suicides, the crime...did you read the Ten Plagues? I wrote it.
I hate their secrecy. I hate their snobbery. I hate their suspiciousness of everybody who doesn't look like them, act like them, talk like them.
Originally, I was on the verge of posting something along the lines of Drop..., but I held myself back. That's how much I hate them. I'm reasonably disciplined, so I x'd out before posting Drop...
They're wicked r'shaim. Yes, they are. They care only about their stinking jobs, and their yeshivas, and their own children and sons and daughters in law. That's it. At the end of the day, they leave the rest of us to twist in the wind.
The tuition? They don't give a crap. Divorce? Same. Kids at risk? Another excuse to raise money.
When children are jumping off buildings and destroying themselves, how do you remain silent? How do you not do something, anything?
I can't save a dollar. Everything goes for tuition. I can't go on a simple vacation with my wife and kids, not even to a bungalow. My wife works full time. The kids even work during the summer. I get letters and phone calls from collection agencies. I'm a professional and I earn in the low 100s. I'm miserable. I'm so unhappy. My wife has no respect for me because I don't make enough. I can't concentrate at work. I drink. I hate all of the stinking rabbis, its all your fault. This is real, by the way, not fake. Eat shit, all of you.
Anon 8:10,
ReplyDeleteMy dear brother,
I hurt right there with you and for all the other thousands of people that are hurting because of a very failed and corrupt system.
There are no words.........I hurt for Klal Israel!
anon 8:10 PM.
ReplyDeleteFor whatever it's worth, you are one of many in this shit-house foisted upon us by the aforementioned.
Them resign, Ha, Never!
Resignation for them is when they're put into tachrichim.
In this Passover Season, its vey to lament that we're still 'Avodim'.
Dear Fellow Yid,
ReplyDeleteI know we belong to a very close--minded group. If each of us is brave enough to send our kids to school with regular milk and Trident gum I know that the next step us brave ones will take is confronting the bullvants running our lives. We will demand justice and fair tuitions; we will demand fair treatment of those less fortunate and jailing of sex offenders in our midst or sending them to a theraputic locked setting.
We will demand coherent answers based upon logic when asking shailos. . .
I am sorry to say that Stefan Colmer is now living on John Street in Passaic, NJ.
ReplyDeleteTo Anon 1044,
ReplyDeleteAre you saying Colmer is back in Passaic NJ? I thought he was in Israel somewhere?
http://thetyee.ca/Books/2007/03/27/ConradAndLadyBlack/
ReplyDeleteBelsky asked me if I'd like to join a class action against Bitton.
Where did the brave individual who calls himself 'Lakewood talmid'?
ReplyDeleteI await his response.
To overhaul.. cut the crap, your wasting our time with your nonsence.uoj! don't let this blog stray from its real purpose of identifying pedophiles and their enablers, and getting rid of the corrupted leaders we have, for most of us reading this blog are not interested in what happened in the times of the "ari hakodoish", it will not fix any problems we have today.
ReplyDeleteTo the above anon. at 8:10.
i share your pain, were all in the same boat, and its sinking.
UOJ! shmuel kaminetzki advised not to go to the police, in ger, leizerowitz's goons literally threatend last summers victim and his family members if they go to the DA.
Does anybody have info on the new money man for "ICHUD MOLESTAS GUR"
someone by the name of khon, he used to collect for ohel,and he now gets a salary of $250,000.00 a year from ger, whats the story with him.
http://jewschool.com/2007/03/23/jewish-press-takes-umbrage-with-my-characterization-of-their-kolko-coverage
ReplyDeleteBoog, what do those references to porno & Simcha Klohr mean exactly?
ReplyDeletehttp://jewishsurvivors.blogspot.com/2007/03/update-case-of-juda-mintz-should.html
ReplyDeleteYuda Mintz learned in Torah Vodaath. He was NOT heading an Orthodox shul as the article claims. Mount Freedom JC is traditional / non-denominational which is like Conservative without official affiliation and without necessarily denying that Torah is divine.
What do the experts & UOJ say about this guy providing counseling?
http://jewishsurvivors.blogspot.com/2007/03/new-film-narrow-bridge-june-2007-about.html
ReplyDeleteIt's not fair that I get smeared because of Kolko.
I doth protest!
We're on standby on Passaic's John St. We're just waiting for the commander-in-chief to give the order. We've been trailing the perp all along.
ReplyDeleteI PLOTTED TO TORCH SEX EX-CONS
ReplyDeleteAP
March 29, 2007 -- A Long Island man is facing up to nine years in prison after admitting that he plotted to burn down the home of four high-risk sex offenders.
Donald Keegan , 36, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and arson charges Tuesday in Suffolk County Court.
Keegan admitted telling an undercover detective that he planned to torch the house, less than a mile from his Mastic home. "I want them dead," he told the cop.
Keegan, a county maintenance worker, also admitted setting "practice fires" in his back yard.
He said his motivation was to protect his wife and young daughter.
He claimed he went to the home of the men convicted of rape, sodomy and other crimes, but opted not to set the fire when he saw a police cruiser.
----------------------------------
SEARGENT BOOG..
We got ourselfs a soldier, we should send him the uoj swat team apparel, kolko, leizerowitz, eisman, mondrowitz, colmer, eisgrau, beware! you might be next.
This is scary now that UOJ is obviously interfering with legislative bodies. We at the Agudah have to find a way to stop this!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.topix.net/content/ap/3054380765338278708419508199030236966421
Putnam County will soon have one of the toughest child safety zone laws in New York state _ a law that opponents say essentially bans convicted sex offenders from setting foot in the county.
Under a bill that was approved by county Executive Robert Bondi after a public hearing Tuesday night, convicted sex offenders will not be permitted within 2,500 feet of schools, parks, large apartment houses or any other place where children congregate.
Opponents of the law say it effectively bars any convicted sex offender from entering or living in Putnam County. Neighboring Rockland County recently established a 1,000-foot child safety zone.
Linda Berns, of the Hudson Valley chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the law was 'the most severe in all of New York state.' The group opposed the bill.
Also against the bill were Edward and Susan Morrissey, of Brewster, whose son Brian Morrissey, 36, has been living with them since July after serving nine years for crimes involving child pornography.
However, the bill was supported by a man who said his granddaughter was sexually abused at the age of 2.
'My granddaughter has required professional help over the last seven years,' he said. 'This perp got six years in jail. My granddaughter has received a lifetime sentence at his hands.'
Under the law, which will go into effect when it is filed by the secretary of state in Albany, convicted sex offenders have six months to move out of a child safety zone or face fines up to $500 and imprisonment up to three months for a first offense. Subsequent violations would result in stiffer penalties.
No date was set for the filing.
Michael Piazza, county commissioner of social services, said Putnam would have to find housing for sex offenders who become homeless as a result of the new law. He also said that a new state civil confinement law requiring supervised housing and treatment programs for convicted sex offenders likely conflicted with Putnam's 2,500-foot restrictions.
'The Department of Mental Health and Social Services may be in a position of violating local law in order to conform to state law,' Piazza said.
It is my understanding (and I live in Passaic) that:
ReplyDelete1. Colmer was forced to move out of the community.
2. That the AJC's Marc Stern, who travels around the country filing briefs and agitating against tuition vouchers ('separation of church and state don't ya know) actually receives KIBUDIM (eg Aliyahs, etc) from many or all the shuls here in Passaic.
Menachem
Get you UOJ windbreakers here.
ReplyDeleteRonnie are you listening? You can order 6 at a time and resell them. Membership is only $35 dollars a year to get all the club discounts. Lots of kosher food available including huge bottles of Kedem at some locations for very cheap.
http://www.bjs.com/services/embroidered_apparel.shtml
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(This special Member benefit is available online only and will not be found in any Club.)
The above in parenthesis is not true. The BJ's in Queens on the Glendale-Ridgewood border does it. That's the location frequented by the haymishe crowd from Kew Gardens & Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Jewish Press takes umbrage with my characterization of their Kolko coverage
ReplyDeleteby Mobius · Friday, March 23rd, 2007
Alright Jewish Press, I take it back. You never defended rabbinic sex offenders, you just (by your own admission) attacked their accusers, making no apology after they were vindicated. Rather, you ran this quote on the occasion of Kolko’s arrest (otherwise known as the sole occasion on which his case was even mentioned in your paper):
“I think a bunch of people are out to get him,” Aaron Tarnes, 30, a student at the yeshiva for 15 years, told The Daily News. “I’m disturbed to hear such things against such a wonderful man.”
G-d forbid, you should’ve investigated the allegations and done your jobs as journalists. Maybe you could’ve come away nominated for a journalism award, as New York Magazine was for their bang-up job on the topic. Rather, you sought to act as part of the spin machine that deflected attention from the issue by instead focusing on the ethics of making anonymous accusations (without acknowledging the threats made against those who had spoken out previously).
But after all, you made all those special pullout supplements so the community that didn’t want to hear about it could continue to comfortably bury their heads in the sand. And how could that possibly be seen as anything other than stridently pursuing the truth? How noble.
Finally, yes, it is true, you ran my sister’s op-ed on the subject. I’d forgotten entirely about that, and specifically, how shocked I was to see that you had actually run it. If I recall correctly, the entirety of my email to my sister in response to the publication of her op-ed was, “The Jewish Press?!”
So uh, yeah, gee… Sorry for that misunderstanding there. Why don’t you cry about it?
Dude, you’re a newspaper; we’re a weblog. You’re supposed to steal our leads and pretend we don’t exist, like the other Jewish papers do… Come on. You’re embarrassing yourselves.
Stefan Colmer has been forced out of Passaic and was looking for a house in Israel. He found one and bought it but was found out and the sale was negated. He was then thrown out of the community and has been in Israel ever since. He is NOT in passaic or in any other part of the country for that matter.
ReplyDeleteuoj! you should put a picture of every known molester along with his enabler up for all to see their disgusting faces
ReplyDeleteA simple idea, that somebody should take charge with:
ReplyDeleteJust contact the Israeli police department. Tell them about Colmer, that he's a suspected pedophile, with many credible claims against him. Give them as much information as possible, and do your homework before you call. Date of birth, last known address, last known employer. Some of this stuff you can get from Motor Vehicles. Ask them to watch him, and to alert the community where he lives.
That's as much as you can do - at this point anyway.
Overhaul is not as clever as I thought. He cannot answer questions when he is asked for evidence, like regarding the Chochom Tzvi, so he creates more smokescreens that must be investigated.
ReplyDeleteNo one should pay attention to anything he wrote in the last day unless he can prove he is not lying about the Chochom Tzvi. Because people familiar with the ksovim are not aware of it, I doubt he can come up with a source.
And, speaking of pictures for whatever it's worth, the photo at the head of this thread is most certainly that of Stefan Colmer, whom I have known from his high school days in Hillel Yeshiva of Deal, NJ, up until his marriage a few years ago. For years now, reports of child abuse by him have been circulating in Monmouth County, NJ. After high school, he was ejected from a Yeshiva (or two) in the Catskills region for this very problem. He must be stopped before- Rachmana LiTzlan- he can harm another child.
ReplyDeleteBy Betzalel Kahn and A. Cohen
ReplyDeleteFollowing numerous requests regarding the "problem" of water on Pesach, MK Rabbi Moshe Gafni contacted Mekorot CEO Ronen
Wolfman and Central District Manager Yisrael Mantel with his
annual request to provide a solution for those who do not
want to drink water from the Kinneret that passes through the
uncovered national water carrier. On the other hand
underground water does not raise any concerns of containing..........
chometz............
since it is not exposed.
Which Catskills yeshivas did Colmer go to?
ReplyDeleteThe Beis Halevi had a chumras pesach on uncovered water because of flour merchants whose sechoyra was blown off their wagons.
ReplyDeleteSimcha Klohr = ain simcha kehatoras hasfaikos
ReplyDeleteNEWS
ReplyDeleteSpecial Shtar Mechiras Chometz for Non-Observant Owners
By Betzalel Kahn
Based on instructions from Maran HaRav Eliashiv
shlita, when owners of businesses, factories, stores
and food services who do not keep Torah and mitzvas sell
their chometz, the shtar mechiras chometz must
be written in such a way that it is legally binding and
includes severe sanctions against anyone who tries to dismiss
the shtar as a document used merely for religious
purposes.
http://www.shemayisrael.com/chareidi/ZAV67asellchmtz.htm
Cost of Kashering Hotels for Pesach: NIS 70 Million
ReplyDeleteBy M. Green
The cost of kashering hotels in Israel for the upcoming
holiday will total NIS 70 million ($17 million) at over 300
hotels around the country, according to a survey by the Hotel
Union's Economics Department, which conducted a survey for
the first time this year to assess the costs associated with
kashering hotels for Pesach.
http://www.shemayisrael.com/chareidi/ZAV67ahotels.htm
@ abba:
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, I don't know from which Catskills Yeshiva Colmer was ejected. Although, it must have been one that had a Mechina or some preparatory program for learning. Brilliant as he is in computers (and he is), he is completely lost when it comes to Girsa, and the ability to learn from within the Sefer.
If Colmer's a BT he could've been in the Mountain Dale yeshiva which is just down Woodridge Rd from Silver Lake & Regency.
ReplyDeleteAnd Simcha Kaufman, you doth protest too much.
@ YK:
ReplyDeleteYes, Stefan Colmer most certainly is a BT. But, whether it was Mountain Dale Yeshiva or not, I couldn't say.
The Colmer case is still another proof of the dysfunctional American yeshiva and day school world, which operates totally outside all legal boundaries. If the established Jewish organizations would have cooperated in establishing a registry, to receive and adjudicate credible complaints of child sex abuse against Colmer and other pedophiles like him, Colmer then would have been barred from operating a childrens' play group in Brooklyn. The children and their parents would have been spared this ordeal, which will, sadly, last a lifetime.
ReplyDeleteThe blame for this fiasco lies not only with Colmer, a very sick man, but be sure to point your fingers at the multi-million dollar Jewish organizations known as Aguda, Torah U'Mesorah, the Orthodox Union, the National Council of Young Israel, and the Rabbinical Council of America - and their millionaire benefactors. In a few days, if they haven't left already, these stinkers will be going on their Passover junkets at your expense. Meanwhile, the poor parents will be shlepping their poor kids, may Hashem give them a refuah shleima, to therapist appointments for the rest of their young lives.
In a normal world, there would be investigations and reports, followed by resignations and reorganization. But nothing in the frum world is normal. The abnormal has become normal.
Anonymous 3:04
ReplyDeleteGreat comment! The organizations you have mentioned answer to nobody and operate with impunity. The more they abuse, the more they get away with it. I'm afraid it will only get worse as people prefer to remain in the dark.
UOJ Marketing Division said...
ReplyDeleteGet you UOJ windbreakers here.
Ronnie are you listening? You can order 6 at a time and resell them.
I do my own embroidery and I probably can get the blank windbreakers from the same vendor as BJ's. Perhaps I'll order one as a sample the next time I order from Broder Bros, stitch it and put up the item on the shopping cart.
This is why Mr. Pasik wants to bring the nonpublic schools under the umbrella of New York State statutory law.
ReplyDeleteTo the many dear friends I made over the Internet asking me how I'm doing,
ReplyDeleteI'm in mourning!
For the Jewish lives that have been destroyed by the many sexual predators in our communities.
For the practically non-existent, authentic, Torah-abiding rabbis.
For the fraud that has become Orthodox Judaism.........
UOJ Comments:
ReplyDeleteThe OU lead by Yisroel Belsky was on the attack. The Star-K, Moshe Heinneman's organization was permitting it.
As we can see from the numbers, "Kosher" is a multi-billion dollar business.
Moshe Heinneman was relying on a p'sak "he said" was told to him by Rabbi Aron Kotler z"l.
UOJ called the Kotler & Schwartzman families and none of them knew of this psak by RAK, which would permit eating lettuce that normally had bug infestation in excess of ten percent of the time checked; providing that a particular batch of lettuce was checked and found bug free.
In other words, Heinnemann claims RAK told him you can go by a particular batch; if there is less than ten percent of bugs found, you may eat them.
The OU and gang, say you go by the type of vegetable, if generally there are bugs, you must clean them all or throw them out.
I called Heinneman and asked him the following.
1-When did RAK tell you about this p'sak?
2-How old were you at the time of the p'sak?
3-Why would you have asked this shaila, if the shaila of bugs in Romaine lettuce was on no one's radar screen in the early sixties?( thinking he had asked him in the sixties)
Moshe Heinneman is 67 years old, RAK was niftar in 1962. Assuming Heinneman asked him the shaila that "no one knows about" in 1962, that would put Heinneman at 24 years old. The problem is Heinneman said he asked RAK this shaila the year he came to Lakewood, when he was 18 years old. Counting backwards, this would be circa 1956.
Who in the world was thinking about bugs in lettuce in 1956?????
The whole bug "epidemic" is maybe ten years old!!!
The OU is losing market share to Heinneman, they seem way to eager to do him in.
Heinneman's p'sak from RAK sounds really questionable to me at best, and a friggin lie at worst.
When money is involved everything is possible.
Tell me what you think!
My father has a large Yeshiva, and I heard him railing against the Catholic church. He was indignant about how they could just move these depraved priests around to different cities once they were accused. I told him that this happens ALL THE TIME in yeshivas, and I told him that he would have done the EXACT same thing if he was in that situation. If one of his rebbeim was found molesting a kid, he'd fire the guy, but he'd try to sweep it under the rug to the extent possible. The guy would then move to another yeshiva and start over. I personally was molested when I was 13 years old (I'm in my 40's now) in a very prominent brand-name yeshiva, by a prominent brand-name Rov. I actually went to the Rosh HaYeshiva, and my reward was that I got thrown out of the Yeshiva. It was my word against his. I learned a valuable lesson about keeping my mouth shut. Today he writes articles in very frum magazines and newspapers, and it makes me want to vomit. I know of at least one other such story in a different Yeshiva. Don't think this molestation is unusual. Kudos to you for trying to do something about it.
ReplyDelete==================================
Would you please tell us the name of the Rabbi that molested you as a child? I feel everybody has a right to know. Thank you for talking about it.
Don't turn your back on Heinne-mini-man; You'll get the shiv, big time.
ReplyDeleteCheck out his 'heinous'man MO in ousting Chaimowitz and Rabbi Jacob's Schochtim a few years back and then teaming up with the Goyishe Plant owner, doing his beck and call.
"Glatt treif"?
Pre-cursor to Le Marais?
Machievelli would be proud.
UOJ, I'm a huge supporter of yours, but what I want to know is why you give the Sfardim, particulary the Syrians, a free pass. Okay, once in a while you have that guy on who pretends he's Ronnie Dweck and says Hazeet, etc, but you have no problem with their community issues, which are, in some cases, worse than the chareidim. Why the double standard?
ReplyDeleteAll victims of Kolko, Eisemann, Mondrowitz, Leizerowitz, Nussbaum, Langer,Colmer....and the many other sick rebbes and rabbis that hurt you, I urge you to contact Mr. Moskowitz. Your anonymity can be maintained. If you need assistance in getting through this, I will help you in any way I can. The world will see what our "leaders" have permitted to happen to you!
ReplyDeleteNew Film Coming Out - Sexual Abuse In The Orthodox world
Narrow Bridge
There's a new film coming out in June, 2007 called Narrow Bridge, which is
written and directed by an extremely talented, young film making by the name of
Israel Moskovits.
Israel Moskovits is an orthodox student at Northeastern Illinois University,
Chicago, IL. During an interview Moskovits stated he was inspired to create
this film after reading about the case of Rabbi Yehuda Kolko.
"He had no idea that there was such problems in Jewish communities, " yet was motivated to do his part in getting the word out there to help survivors and also to educate those who are unaware.
The story portrays a young man struggling with his Jewish identity and his
relationship with Rachel, who is a Baal Teshuva. The script is incredible and
very true to live, yet is the fictional story of "Daniel Yaakov Schneider"
coming to terms with being sexually abused at a yeshiva when he was twelve years
old by "Rabbi Kaufman."
I can't wait until this film is completed and we can all use it as an
educational tool. I also feel many survivors of sexual abuse and also those
struggling with their Jewish identity will see themselves in this film.
Israel Moskovits deserves awards for this film!
NARROW BRIDGE - Teaser Trailer - Google Video
http://video. google.com/ videoplay? docid=2559878491 383959992
For more information about the film contact:
Israel Moskovits
Izzycom Productions
icmpinfo@gmail. com
Gary,
ReplyDeleteI don't know the goings on in the Syrian community. If there is information that was sent and I missed, please resend.
I have a full-time investigator and a staff of 2 people (so far) that do nothing else but investigate and follow up on bona-fide requests for help of all kinds.
I'm here to help people in need in any way I can!
Anon@8:12PM,
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain. If you would like to talk offline, you may contact me at yeshivatuitions@gmail.com .
BROOKLYN DA ON TRIAL: LETTING KILLERS GO FREE
ReplyDeleteMarch 30, 2007 -- Natasha Ramen had her throat slashed by the man who previously raped her in order to stop her from testifying against him ("Law & Disorder: SVU," Editorial, March 22).
Now we find out that Brooklyn DA Charles "Joe" Hynes' office failed to notify the judge of the defendant's subsequent arrest for threatening the victim's family members.
I can't say that I'm surprised. In the last few months, besides this case, we have seen two of Hynes' assistant district attorneys dismissed.
How long will this political hack get a free pass? I think it's time for him to go.
Patrick Perry
Staten Island
*
Even the headline of your editorial shows that your paper prefers fantasy over reality.
On TV, prosecutors are perfect - Jack McCoy rarely errs. But in the real world, underpaid and overworked prosecutors make mistakes, which clearly happened in the Ramen case.
But crucifying the prosecutor and questioning the DA's competence because of human error is unfair.
Hynes, more than any other prosecutor, has demonstrated a commitment to "special victims" that pre-dates popular TV shows.
In his office, victims are treated with the respect they deserve and are offered a variety of services that even a TV show could not imagine.
I know, because I worked there, and I saw the dedication of the special-victim ADAs who took on the jobs that many of us could not handle.
Dennis Hawkins
Manhattan
*
Officials must rethink much more than the abysmal incompetence in Hynes' office.
From the courts to law enforcement, we must address the bureaucratic apathy and bottom-line expedience that allow rapists, murderers and gang members to pose a continuing threat, even when common sense shows they should not be out on the street.
Bureaucrats and judges will defend the system with stupid assertions like "that's the law," yet repeat offenders constantly harm citizens.
My heart goes out to the family of Ramen, and I grieve for our society. We lost a promising young person because our system has lost its moral compass.
Barry Moskowitz
The Bronx
Rudolph W. Giuliani told a grand jury that his former chief investigator remembered having briefed him on some aspects of Bernard B. Kerik’s relationship with a company suspected of ties to organized crime before Mr. Kerik’s appointment as New York City police commissioner, according to court records.
ReplyDeleteAnon,
ReplyDeleteI was also fed up, so I decided that I would try to get involved somewhere, someway. UOJ did it, I did it and I encourage you to do it too. Colletively we can make a difference, and it does not have to involve joining the Colmer SWAT team if you are not cut out for that.
1)As my username implies, I got involved in our local girl's school. Am I making a difference? I hope so. I also see many people in your financial situation, and it is very difficult. We have also been working on improving accountability, both financially and academically, and we have made great strides. Not perfect yet, but working on it.
2) I cancelled my subscriptions to some of the organizations mentioned here, and gleefully dispose of their mailings when they arrive daily. After reading your posting, I will begin marking them "Return to Sender/Remove from mailing list". I would encourage our other readers to do the same instead of throwing them in the garbage. So thank you for providing another very small, but significant way of expressing my displeasure as well.
I am sure that your financial situation is exacerbating your bitterness and diillusionment, which I am NOT playing down here. I've posted this advice before in other areas of this blog, so I apologize for the repetition. May I encourage you to:
1) If you have not done so yet (and tax season opportune time) sit down with your accountant and work out your budget. Looking at a balance of $10 is depressing. Are you getting a refund? If so, would it make sense to adjust withholding? Also, buy a copy of Quicken 2005 off of eBay for a few bucks, and use it to help you.
2) You have every right to appeal your assessment, but do it in a clinical and respectful way. I can tell you that the respectful appeals receive a much better dispostion than the nasty ones blaming us for global warming, etc.
I sincerely hope your home situation improves tremendously soon, and you have a lot of "shipmates" here who empathize with your feelings.
Kol Tuv
Chacham Tzvi is quoted by his son Rav Yakov Emden in Mor Uktziah, Orach Chaim 553
ReplyDeletethe abadi kids have been yelling about heinnemens bug issues for years and im sure uf there was some kind of psak from RAK they would know about it.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.canonist.com/?p=1394#comments
ReplyDeletea Jewish mother Says:
March 29th, 2007 at 6:46 pm
This libel suit is what is known as a SLAPP, (Strategic Lawsuit against Public Participation) NY is an anti SLAPP state so hopefully someone will be able to explain to the Judge why his OSC is unconstitutional.
Rabbi Bitton’s cause has been fought and won in something like 24 states already including NY.
Title 18 Section 241 - Federal code. Section 242 applies to the attorney. If there is sufficient evidence that the lawsuit was filed for the purpose of restraining Free Speech and Right of Religious Freedom (and I believe this one is pretty clear in its language) the FBI will investigate and possibly prosecute the attorney for attempting to restrict Rabbi Bittons civil rights.
I have found that the proper defense against SHAM filings is to file a complaint with law enforcement (in this case the NY Bar) against the attorney who is trying to harass on behalf of his client with ridiculous litigation. Suing a mashgiach for 10 mil. is absurd as there is no hope of recovery of damages even if you could prove them. The whole purpose of this is to silence Rabbi Bitton, violate his First Amendment Right of Free Speech, Freedom of the Press and Freedom to Practice his Religion as he sees it .
The Judge was incorrect to have issued the OSC because it is unconstitutional and violates Federal and State laws.
The Judge should read up on some recent cases. The Supreme Court ruled that the Internet is no different than a newspaper and Rabbi Bitton is no different than any other journalist. (Why aren’t they suing the NY Post??).
Check out ...
70-a and 76-a, Civil Rights Code; and N.Y. Civ. Prac. L. & R. 3211(g) and 3212(h).
“Legislation Provides Prompt Review of SLAPP Suits”, Terry Rice, 210 N.Y.L.J. 1 (1993).
Dakota County MN District Court Judge Timothy Blakely in Olson vs. Brodkorb
also Gordon v. Marrone N.Y. Supreme Court, 1992 (590 N.Y.S.2d 649)
a Jewish mother Says:
March 30th, 2007 at 7:24 am
Attorney Richard Klass’s website says it all:
“Firm Profile:
The firm has developed a niche practice of litigating tough cases that other attorneys wouldn’t touch.”
This is for those who are wondering why a high profile Manhattan concern such as Le Marais would hire a small Brooklyn firm to file a 10 million dollar suit against a mashgiach.
There are still plenty of attorneys out there who have ethics.
a Jewish mother Says:
March 30th, 2007 at 7:40 am
Does anyone know if NY State has a “whistle blower” law that would apply?
I don’t think it would be too hard to prove that the OU encouraged Le Marais to sue Isaac Bitton in retaliation for his reporting their wrongdoings to the public.
Now that the can of worms is open, I would like to relay a story that might offer some insight into the credibility of the OU and their leadership. A business owner was called in for a meeting at the OU and was informed that his yearly supervision fee was going to be raised by 500%. FIVE HUNDRED PERCENT! The business owner was told that he should have no problem with the increase because his business was growing. The "Rabbis" told the owner that if he refused to pay that they would put an ad in the following week Jewish Press which would state that The OU is longer certifying that his establishment was Kosher. Then the Rabbis said " And let the people figure out on their own why The OU decided to dropp your Hechsher"
ReplyDeleteI would LOVE to hear the " Orthodox Rabbis" at the Union deny that this is not the typical strongarm tacticts that they use in order to extort money from their customers. Yes, I know I said extort, I probably should have used the term blackmail.
The Current regime at the OU have NEVER been about Kashruth and Always been about MONEY.
Is UOJ taking sides in local LA politics?
ReplyDeleteWhat the OU does like organized crime kapos in a suit and tie, the Udvari Rov does like a common street punk. The Udvari was called to a din Torah for blackmail, threatening to bashmutz Paskesz & Sabra Salads and because actual signs went up in Boro Park bashmutzing Sabra when they refused to be extorted. Paskesz caved in out of fear. This is the putz who is "machshir" Dougies 18th Ave along with the OU. The kashrus and personalities stink as bad as the food does.
ReplyDeleteGary, do you mean the Ateret type crowd or the more modern segments or both?
ReplyDeletea Jewish mother Says:
ReplyDeleteMarch 29th, 2007 at 9:13 pm
It is my opinion that Le Marais or any other place like it cannot ever be kosher. Its too complicated. One Mashgiach cannot properly supervise a whole kitchen staff, and they never could.
The kitchen will be kosher Saturday night until the chef and his staff start cooking in it.
Jews who are serious about kashrus should eat in establishments run by people whose homes they would eat from.
Chag Kasher v’sameach
Anonymous Says:
March 30th, 2007 at 10:55 am
As a former mashgiach, I strongly disagree with “a Jewish mother”.
A commercial kitchen is nothing like a household kitchen. A commercial kitchen is either meat or dairy. Therefore, it is much harder to make mistakes - even when the whole kitchen staff are non-Jews. Household kitchens that have meat and dairy products, and meat and dairy utensils, all in a single room is MUCH more likely to have mistakes.
Think of it this way… if the mashgiach is able to insure that only kosher ingredients enter the establishment (pareve+meat for meat establishments or pareve+dairy for dairy ones), then hardly anything that the kitchen staff can do would possibly make anything non-kosher. The most important job of the mashgiach to insure that only kosher ingredients come into the facility. This is a tough job, but hardly impossible and it has little to do with the size of the facility or the number of people on the kitchen staff.
There are a few minor exceptions to my “the staff can’t treif a kitchen if only kosher ingredients enter the building” statement:
1) bishul akum (where applicable), which is usually solved by the mashgiach igniting the pilot lights for the ovens and burners.
2) using improperly inspected vegetables (for bugs)
3) mixing fish with meat (which is does not make something ‘trief’ even when mixed)
If “a Jewish mother” really believes what she writes, she should stop eating any commercially produced kosher product. If you think monitoring a restaurant is tough, try to monitor a factory with hundreds or thousands of people making cookies, pancake mix, bagels, etc.
Something Stinks Says:
March 30th, 2007 at 1:11 pm
The comment this morning makes little sense. Either the former mashgiach worked in a very special environment or he needs to be able to live with himself.
I have spoken to many former mashgichim who have shared horror stories. Some of them left the industry but with less fanfare than Bitton because they were disgusted that the hashgocho does not stick to it’s own “standards.”
If you think there haven’t been cover ups at Le Marais and other establishments, I have a bridge to sell you.
Jewish mother has a smach from the Baal Hafloah who said you can’t trust anyone - and that was 100s of years ago. When the former mashgiach “strongly” disagrees, it sounds like a page out of Alice in Wonderland.
I am familiar with a multitude of stories including one where a leading rosh yeshiva asked a talmid to snoop around a commercial kitchen. The talmid had a hard time finding anything that was done properly. In this case, items from a nearby treif kitchen were mixed up.
Is anyone aware that Le Marais is owned by the same people who own a host of treif steakhouses called Les Halles? Maybe the OU can explain this away with various safeguards but everyone in the kashrus industry knows that Le Marais is one of several restaurants were scandal were not unknown.
Something Stinks Says:
March 30th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
It’s a good question if mashgichim are paid by the restaurants or the hashgocho. The only way that there is no conflict of interest is if they are paid by the community. It’s time to abolish the current system that is so prone to corruption.
a Jewish mother Says:
March 30th, 2007 at 1:17 pm
There are no Mashgichim on site in kosher factories. Anyone who believes that there are should call any plant under any hashgacho and ask to speak to the “rabbi”. They will give you a number in Brooklyn or Baltimore. The “rabbi” either has never been to the plant , only went once when the company signed on, or goes out once a year when they re-sign the contract.
Rav Moshe Feinstein ztl among others ruled that we can rely upon a letter from the company to certify that the manufactured product is kosher.
Take for example Gilda Crackers under the OU for years. They make lard crackers, butter crackers and parve crackers .Only the parve crackers are under the OU although they are all made in the same plant.
When Rabbi Berel Simpser signed on the factory years ago, he visited it once. Since then the plant has been visited once a year or so by one of the local Rabbis.
The crackers made with vegetable oil are kosher because we have upon whom to rely when we rely upon the FDA to ensure that the parve crackers do not contain lard or butter that is not on the label.
The question that so many have been asking (http://www.kashrut.org) is why do we need to OU to tell us that the product is kosher when all the OU is doing is relying upon the COMPANY to tell them that the ingredients are kosher.
The OU is a trademarked marketing tool and that is fine, but in reality regarding packaged products that are made sold in the US, the OU is not providing any supervision over and beyond the label.
So much is this true, that years ago, when I bought a package of Gilda Butter Crackers and they said “natural butter flavor” on the label, I thought dairy, right? I called the OU and spoke to someone who gave me the number of the plant. I called the plant and they gave me the number of Fragrances and Flavors in Secaucus. I spoke to the owner of the company, a very nice man who explained to me that the flavor was parve but that it was called “natural butter flavor” even though its flavor came from soy.
The next day someone from the OU called ME to ask me if the flavor was dairy or parve. When I said “Parve”, whoever it was said “whew that is good news”.
Packaged foods from factories also do not have to be Bishul Yisrael according to most opinions.
As far as what can go wrong in a commercial kitchen, based upon my own experiences here are a few:
Bishul Akum - pilots go out and mashgichim are not always able to light them before the Gentile staff does. More often than not the Mashgiach is not called to relight the pilot. Many people dismiss the seriousness of eating Bishul Akum because it is a Rabbinical Assur but so is mixtures of chicken and cheese. The Laws of shechita are Rabbinical also.
Bugs - It is hard to check vegetables and not all Mashgichim are Yirei Shamayim. Not all cooks are patient. I have seen romaine lettuce being chopped and used straight from the head right in front of the Mashgiach.
Eating bugs is a D’oraisa prohibition. Going to Burger King for a chicken double cheese is less of a kashrus problem than eating buggy lettuce.
Mixing fish with meat - a “danger” - because this prohibition is a sakana, it is elevated to a D’oraisa prohibition because of our Biblical commandment to protect our health. Again, mixtures of chicken and cheese and the laws of shechita are Rabbinical. So mixing fish and meat is considered by many authorities to be a more serious prohibition. It is hard to explain this to Gentile cooks who are not used to watching which utensil they use. Even if they have cooked for Jewish places for 20 years, these mix ups happen all the time.
Checking eggs - Few places check eggs. Restaurants generally use Grade B eggs which more frequently have blood spots (because they are the ones that are rejected as Grade A BECAUSE of dark spots). The way that restaurants avoid checking eggs is to have a Gentile crack them so that the Jew does not have to spend the time checking them. There are opinions that permit this but I check eggs in my own kitchen and I find plenty of bloody ones even though I buy only Grade A.
Checking deliveries - a commercial kitchen gets many deliveries throughout the day, usually simultaneously because no deliveries can be received during the rush hours and food companies make LOTS of mistakes. If the fish order containing swordfish instead of salmon gets opened by the Gentile because the Mashgiach is in the bathroom checking another order, checking lettuce or praying mincha guess what???
Another thing I have actually seen with my own eyes was a Gentile employee who decided to use the kosher meat slicer to slice a ten pound ham that he was using for a party in his house. He waited until the Mashgiach took a lunch break to do this. I happened to walk into the kitchen just then. We had no way of knowing what other utensils he had used and no one was telling. He did not get fired because the caterer was already short handed and it was right before Pesach.
Then there is the employees’ lunch. What happens in a busy kitchen when one of the prep guys heats up his lunch from home in the oven or in a pot? No matter how many times you tell them even if you give them lunch from the restaurant, it happens all the time. Its 4 o’clock and the dinner rush begins in an hour.
And by the way, chefs DO send out helpers for ingredients ALL the time. The mashgiah doesn’t always notice it.
Another thing to keep in mind is that only Jews and Muslims have the cultural norm to wash their hands after using the toilet. Yeah, the Board of Health posts signs in all the bathrooms, but hang out a little and see how many of the kitchen help actually DO wash their hands after using the toilet.
This does not even begin to cover Shabbos violations (kosher caterers who cook on Shabbos for Saturday night and Sunday affairs, truck on Shabbos equipment, platters and dishes or prep sushi and salads on Shabbos), or kosher hotels where Gentile employees boil water for coffee or heat up soup on an open fire or in the microwave. Employees entering the kitchen before the mashgiach gets there (they say the gas is off and the freezer is locked but it rarely is).
I have personally seen lots of Shabbos cooking in “locked” kitchens. Did you ever wonder how they got 1500 steaks cooked in an hour for the Motzai Shabbos BBQ?? How about the sushi you had at a Saturday night simcha last winter?The fish used for sushi needs to be very fresh and sushi does not freeze. Neither does salad. There is an excellent chance that the sushi or the salad you are eating on Saturday night was not only made on Shabbos, but its ingredients were also delivered on Shabbos, with or without a Mashigiach.
This is just a “tip of the iceberg”. My family was in restaurant supply, my husband is a Rabbi. I have walked into many many commercial “kosher” kitchens under national hashgacha and have seen EVERY imaginable violation. I have yet to walk into ANY “kosher” kitchen and NOT seen numerous problems. The only exceptions are the heimishe places, the pita joints and the Mom and Pop’s of the world where the Yirat Shamayim is taking your order and his wife is cooking it and his son is serving it. These places usually have the best food anyway.
And by the way, I have always reported whatever I have seen to the Rav Ha Machshir. In retaliation for reporting grave (D’oraisa) kashrus violations to local Rabbis, who in turn have told the caterer that I was “out to get them”, I have been threatened with physical harm and lawsuits, I also have had my mail and email intercepted, my children have been stalked and threatened and my home has been vandalized.
Not only do I know that everything Isaac Bitton is saying is true, but I have EXPERIENCED it.
"What the OU does like organized crime kapos in a suit and tie"
ReplyDeleteIt's a good thing you didn't say the Agudah. Does anyone know if Shafran & Zweibel got a new wardrobe lekovod Pesach?
Yudel Shain just coined a very funny term. You've all heard "leochlei kitniyos" etc. Now there's "leochlei Rubashkin"
ReplyDeleteHeinne-mini-man is waiting in the wings to take over the Hechsher of Le Marais if it gets too hot in the 'kitchen' for the OU.
ReplyDeleteRonnie,
ReplyDeleteA trusted friend of mine told me recently (before the story broke) that he was at Le Marais and he commented to the waiter on the unusually delicious bread. My friend was informed that at the last minute they got the bread from a (treife) restaurant nearby. I guess I'll invoke the tired cliche...where there's smoke there's fire. Trust your old buddy Gross...no hashgacha organization can be trusted. It's a shame that a decent person can't open a restaurant without being shaken down for a phony certificate in the window.
Shabbat Shalom!
Excellent post by the Yiddishe Mamma. I will see when I have time to post at length about this & more with names & places.
ReplyDeleteHere's a sneak preview. When Mendel's at 18th Ave & 50th St(NOT Mendelson's at 18th & Dahill) was caught being machshil the rabim by a visiting food supplier, he threatened the guy and told rabbonim that "people are out to get him". He was forced to make some tikkunim but rabbonim who later snooped around say the baal habos is lying. He was first caught letting a goy cut up heads of lettuce with no checking whatsover. The fraudster advertised Bodek only or the like. The chassidishe manager who was openly allowing this was supposed to be fired. Despite the owner's promises he only ducked out for a day or two, then came back to work.
The hashgocho is Amram Roth. He doesn't even reach the ankles of his father in learning and kashrus standards. His father is R' Chatzkel Roth, the Karlsburg Dayan. Amram is trying to ride tatty's coattails. Amram panicked about Mendel's and wanted to drop him in case he got a bad reputation but ultimately kept it on. Amram had no clue in kashrus. It is shocking how little he knows. The KIS came in to hold Amram's hand and teach him the ropes. Unlike Gornish and others, he does show a willingness to be mekabel so at least you can say he means well. I once confronted Amram about Ralbag beverages in one restaurant. Amram felt that Ralbag is just as good as any non-Chassidish hashgocho. When I explained to him it is not. zogt er, tze vet nisht metamay zein der keilim veil ess iz nisht kli rishon. This stupidity by the way is the same excuse that Grossinger's hotel used to serve yayin akum.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI'm the author of the Ten Plagues post, and the same angry guy with a lot of hatred in him.
I just want to say that I'm very impressed with the yirei shomayim of the many good Jews who have been posting here about kashrus. Your posts have uplifted my spirits, and I really feel better. I thought I was all alone.
Thank you and G-d bless you.
A Good Shabbos, and a Chag Kosher Sameach.
E-mails like this...keep me going. I deleted any references that could identify the writer.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your kind words!
UOJ
---------------------------
Dear UOJ,
You and I corresponded a while back when you helped get Rabbi....., a convicted sex offender in ......, on the Awareness Center web site. Thank you again!
I have noticed recently that you have lamented (on your blog) the fact that nobody has seemed to take up your challenge to do what you do and I just wanted to let you know that in........ there are a few people who are trying to fill this role for the...... Jewish community.
There is a local person here, who has an email loop. His mission is really to expose the corruption and fraud in orthodoxy today. He calls for transparency and accountability in local Jewish organizations and a return to true Torah Judaism.
He has been branded a lunatic by some but most, even those who disagree with his public tactics, know that he speaks the truth.
His personal mission now is to hold..... and Torah U'mesorah accountable to the same standards of transparency in operations as other organizations. - long story.
People like me are inspired by your work and the work of this professional to save Torah Judaism.
Shabbat shalom and chag kosher v' sameach!
http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/NEWS03/703300394/1023/NEWS07
ReplyDeleteCorrupt rabbis can make you want to drive off a cliff.
"His personal mission now is to hold..... and Torah U'mesorah accountable to the same standards of transparency in operations as other organizations. - long story."
ReplyDeleteCould you please ask this upstanding fellow to share his information here where thousands of UOJ readers can join his ranks?
Thanks
PLEASE!!!!
ReplyDelete-------------
I need to find a place for the seder for a male college student in the Kings Hwy vicinity.
a_unorthodoxjew@yahoo.com
Mixing fish with meat - a “danger” - because this prohibition is a sakana, it is elevated to a D’oraisa prohibition because of our Biblical commandment to protect our health. Again, mixtures of chicken and cheese and the laws of shechita are Rabbinical. So mixing fish and meat is considered by many authorities to be a more serious prohibition. It is hard to explain this to Gentile cooks who are not used to watching which utensil they use.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to explain because it doesn't make any sense. The entire notion that fish and meat together is a sakana is a)itself rabbinic in origin and b)not supported by the evidence. The fact is that eating fish and meat together is not dangerous to health, so no d'oraisa mitzvahs have been violated.
I'm willing to eat my gefilte fish on a separate plate, but not quite willing to say a restaurant should be excoriated because the chef put some flounder next to a rib steak.
Ronnie, please. This is another example where you have no clue in the background subject matter. The Gemora has a rule by the way of Chamira sakanta meissura - danger is worse than plain prohibition. While many aspects of nature may have changed writes the Shach, many seforim and poskim speak of damage done on a spiritual level. There is an 1100 page compendium called Shmiras haguf vehanefesh that brings from all Chazal, Rishonim & Achronim on the matter that discusses this issue in very great detail.
ReplyDeleteUnnerving Touch
ReplyDeleteby Phil Jacobs, Executive Editor
Baltimore Jewish Times - MARCH 16, 2007
http://jewishtimes.com/Opinion/
A businessman with rabbinic ordination had a friendly confrontation with another friend, also a businessman. Both men, happily married with families, had been sexually molested while teens by a now-deceased rabbi Ephraim Shapiro of T.A. of Baltimore and major synagogue. It should be noted that men as old as their mid-60s have contacted the Baltimore Jewish Times about this man.
If you know of any other victims please contact the Baltimore Jewish Times or tavictims@yahoo.com
The Gemora has a rule by the way of Chamira sakanta meissura - danger is worse than plain prohibition. While many aspects of nature may have changed writes the Shach, many seforim and poskim speak of damage done on a spiritual level. There is an 1100 page compendium called Shmiras haguf vehanefesh that brings from all Chazal, Rishonim & Achronim on the matter that discusses this issue in very great detail.
ReplyDeleteWhy is it assur to simply say that chazal may have erred in their science? Instead you have to come up with mystical concepts that eating beef and flounder together damages us spiritually - something not at all mentioned or alluded to in the Tanach, and don't show up until much later than the minimal comments about health in the older sources.
So many explanations today in Judaism have the flavor of ex post facto rationalization. All minhagim are assumed to be ancient and equivalent to halachic certainties, while we ignore the great rabbis who criticized these very minhagim.
This reminds me of the issur of using medicine on Shabbat. Since the given reason for the g'zeira, that people might use a mortar and pestle to prepare medicine, no longer is applicable to how people are medicated today, there is no logical reason why anyone still observes this g'zeira. Of course when one says this, the party response is that Chazal had double plus top secret reasons for making g'zeiras in addition to their explicit rationales.
G'zeiras and chumras keep getting added, with no grandfather clauses to eliminate them once they are no longer needed.
The notion of sakana in this case is silly, since I can eat fish as an appetizer and then immediately follow it with beef and vice versa and as long as I'm using separate plates and utensils for the two dishes I'm kosher. So somehow eating them from separate plates is not a spiritual hazard but placing them on the same plate is? Is this some kind of prohibited shatnes type situation?. Since the two foods are co-mingled in my stomach the notion that they are a health hazard is ludicrous.