19 Responses

1. Torah, Torah, Chikri Sak.

   What a great day of mourning for the Klal Yisroel. Lakewood, the holy city of Torah to publicly celebrate and honor a convicted felon. None other than the leader of the Agudas Yisroel of America, Rabbi Yaakov Perlow The Admor of Novominsk, and the Leader of the Famed Lakewood Yeshiva, Rabbi Malkiel Kotler to lead the festivities and celebration.

   Wow! Wow! what a chillul hashem. Giving honor to a convicted felon.

   Mark this day as a great churban for Klal Yisroel, 19 Sevat 5778

   Rubashkin was mechallel the sheim hashem in public and yet gets all this honor and attention.
   I have lost all faith in our leaders and really wonder if this Torah is for me anymore.
   Is this what Lakewood the city of Torah is all about? Does it not say in the Torah “Do not steal”. Does it not say in the Torah “You shall be innocent and free from suspicion in the eyes of Hashem and man”. Does it not say in the Torah “Do not profane My holy Name”?

   This behavior is a spit in the face to every honest hard working person. Do not forget that Rubashkin is defiant, unrepentant and one who shows no remorse or regret whatsoever for the crimes he has committed.
   Achdus and chizuk are a pathetic excuse. There was more achdus at the chet haeigal and a lot of good that did us. Rubashkin is the golden calf of this generation. We have no ethics, values, morals or shame whatsoever.
   Where is the outrage for such a public display of honor to a felon? Especially in the City of Lakewood. What kind of example do you send to your children? Do whatever you wish and try not to get caught. If you get into trouble don’t worry just rally around Torah and Emunah and you will be a rock star like our Holy Rebbe Sholom Rubashkin.
   What power, entitlement and right do the Novominsker Rebbe, Rabbi Yaakov Perlow and Rabbi Malkiel Kotler have to fool us into believing that this is Daas Torah. These people have highjacked our holy Torah and Replaced it with a new religion. “Rubashknaism”: The glorification of Illegal and unethical behavior wrapped up in the mantle of Torah.
   על זה נאמר בתחילת ספר ישעיה. שריך סוררים וחברי גנבים כלו אהב שחד ורדף שלמונים
   PLEASE spread my comments and let people speak out! let this comment go viral.

   Google the Rubashkin Story and learn all the facts of who this person is and how he got into this situation.

   The chillul Hashem is mindboggling

   Please show this to Rav Perlow and Rav Kotler. Why only among us Orthodox Jews is there no such thing as accountability.

   From the thegazette.com
   Greed knows no religious boundary. … That this businessman earned the support of politicians who adamantly rally against illegal immigration — as well as politicians that supposedly support workers’ rights — is such an utter disconnect from reality that every Iowan should be questioning why. The answer is as simple as what led to numerous travesties in Postville, what had otherwise good people willing to look the other way: Greed. … Any area resident who didn’t comprehend the “company store” mentality and total disregard for law behind the Agriprocessors plant were surely clued in once Stephen Bloom’s “Postville” book was published.
   …
   Sholom Rubashkin, who served as Agriprocessors’ day-to-day manager, initially was charged with several crimes — child labor violations by the state, immigration, bank fraud and money laundering at the federal level. It was the money, and the Rubashkin family’s overt attempts to hinder and evade the law, that were Sholom’s downfall. Immigration-related charges were set aside once the executive had been prosecuted and convicted of fraud in 2009, and Rubashkin was acquitted on the child labor violations while awaiting federal sentencing.*

   While Rubashkin offered payments to witnesses to flee the country or keep their mouths shut and destroyed other incriminating evidence, prosecutors proved beyond any doubt that financial lenders and business suppliers were bilked out of more than $26 million. The case, since appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, has withstood scrutiny.

   It was by political decree, and not the hands of justice, that Rubashkin was released to his family in New York. Because his sentence was commuted, Rubashkin will continue to serve a period of supervised release and need to provide restitution. The statute of limitations has expired on the other atrocities in Postville. No doubt it’s a small consequence, and far less than what was deserved, but it is a consequence.

   Multiple companies and supposed charities were established by the Rubashkin family. All seemed to be used in one way or another to obscure the truth about how the nation’s then-largest provider of kosher meat was built on a foundation of undocumented workers, animal welfare violations and human rights offenses.

   It was orchestrated nose thumbing at the law, and complete humanitarian disregard. And yet, when it all began to fall apart, no remorse or compassion was forthcoming. Creditors large and small, many of them Iowans, were left holding worthless promises.

2. Chilul Hashem

3. crazykanoiy, you would make a good kapo.

4. Jeff, by the mere fact that you back yourself with a proven anti-semite and YOU spit in the face of daas Torah shows your real colors.

   Did you listen to the complete speech of Mr. Rubashkin?

5. Alan Dershowitz of Harvard Law School has said that had Rubashkin received a fair trial, he would have been acquitted.

   Why anyone would want to believe all the lashon harah that has been put out in the media as opposed to the true picture that has been put out by eminent scholars of law such as Alan Dershowitz and every living Attorney General prior to the Obama administration is beyond me.

   And the sources you quoted are google and a couple of newspapers. As if only the absolute truth about Orthodox Jews is to be found online and in newspapers?!? I honestly don’t know how a frum yid reached the conclusions you did about your own brother.

6. Next is the”Weberman /Kolko melava malka” sponsored by the satmar bikur cholim. Details to follow.פרטים יבואו.

7. Jeff:
   You’re amazing! You are greater daas Torah than Reb Malkiel Kotler and the Novominsker! Not only that but you are a greater judge of the law than all living attorneys general before Obama! Why don’t you post your name and info so I can start asking you shailos?!

8. All Rubashkin’s accusers should really examine their Jewishness.

9. Pony: Alan Dershowitz is a defense lawyer. He defended OJ Simpson. It is not unusual for a defense attorney to claim that people are innocent. Furrhermore Dershowitz is on written record stating that Rubashkin received ten times more than what he deserved. Meaning that Rubashkin’s sentence was excessive but not that nothing wrong was done. You can google the article and read it yourself.

   We should be happy that Rubashkin was freed it is the hero worship that is the problematic issue being stressed by Jeff and others

10. Pony: please list one attorney general living or dead that wrote or said that nothing wrong was done. The issue is with the sentencing.

11. Pony
    February 4, 2018 1:55 am at 1:55 am
    Alan Dershowitz of Harvard Law School has said that had Rubashkin received a fair trial, he would have been acquitted.
    ————————-
    Really?
    I didnt know lawyers have super powers of knowing the unknown of the future.

12. @ Pony, I don’t know where you get your information. A good friend of mine spoke directly to Alan Dershowitz, who told him that Mr. Rubashkin deserved 6-8 years in prison, and that the judge in question has a history of issuing harsh sentences, so he does not think it was an antisemitic ruling. The basic takeaway from the whole story according to Mr. Dershowitz is that if a person is careful to conduct his business in accordance with the law, he won’t have to worry about things like sting operations, fraud charges, harsh judges, and aggressive prosecutors.

    Jeff and crazykanoi are exactly correct on this issue.

    That SMR was guilty of bank fraud is an indisputable fact. The assertions that “everybody does it,” or “he was going to pay it back anyway,” do nothing to change this fact, they only exacerbate the Chillul Hashem. The silent majority of B’nei Torah are appalled at the way he has been held up as a hero over the years, and absolutely mortified at the way our community has acted since his release.

    Of course, I am happy for him and his family that he has been released. This has nothing to do with the fact that our recent (and unfortunately ongoing) conduct as a community is completely at odds with the ideals of Yashrus and Emes.

    Would Rav Moshe Sherrer have condoned such canonization of dishonesty? I think we all know the answer.

13. Jeff
    your looking for excuses(to be apikores(see sanhedrin what is apikores one who mock gedilim)…so for that we dont have answers…as per rav michoel ber wiessmandel z’tl told another apikores like you ‘ your questions are actully answers so for answers i cant give answers’

14. According to the defenders of this melava malka those that are legitimately concerned about chilul shem shomayim are kapos, apikorsum and should have their Jewishness examined. It is telling that the name calling (and misstatements of fact regarding the position of Alan Dershowitz and the statements of many attorney generals) comes from one side that seems to have difficulty defending their positions in a coherent manner.

15. There’s nothing wrong with asking questions but when someone says that because of the answers that were given they can no longer trust gedolim and possibly not the Torah all together that’s a little different than asking questions.

16. Ruthie
    February 4, 2018 10:31 am at 10:31 am
    Jeff:
    You’re amazing! You are greater daas Torah than Reb Malkiel Kotler and the Novominsker!
    ———————–
    Ruthie :
    It seems u have this vast knowledge of the dass torah world. Care to share with us what dass torah is? Where This term came from? who is qualified to be considered a dass torah and who decides who is Worthy of a particular person whether they are dass torah or not. To me it seems that dass tora is used very loosely and just about anyone can claim that title as long as they have some sort of congregational (position active or inactive)

17. @catch yourself, I got my information from Reb Shalom Mordechai Rubashkins lawyer, Gary Apfel, who quoted Alan Dershowitz on David Lichtensiens program stating, that had Rubashkin received a fair trial, he would have been acquitted. I assume that as Rubashkins lawyer with intimate knowledge of everything going on in the case, he would have more information then your friend.

    That RSMR was convicted is a fact, that he was guilty is NOT a fact unless you believe all the lashon harah in the media. I choose to believe Gary Apfel, a frum yid that tells me that my brother has committed no wrong. Why anyone is obsessed in believing the media with their tract record on orthodox jews is beyond me.

    @Takes2-2tango, Ruthie is 100% regarding daas torah. Just like a doctor has more medical knowledge because he went to medical school, a godal batorah who spends his days and nights toiling in torah and helping the klal would have more torah knowledge how to help the klal.

    All in all, a tremendous kiddush Hashem in seeing a man like RSMR who was unfairly incarcerated and was suffering under one of the worst miscarriages of justice in recent memory still went about his life with emmuna and bitochon, a tremendous inspiration! I hope there are many more such events to celebrate this amazing and inspiring individual. May there be many more like him in klal yisroel!

18. Pony: Gary Apfel had a hard time backing up his claims during that interview. He claimed that the bank “told” SMR to make fake documents when Lichtenstein challenged him to provide proof he didnt. He then seemed to justify it by saying that “everybody” lied to banks during the subprime mortgage crisis. He made other claims that were unsubstantiated and when challenged by Lichtenstein he accused Lichtenstein of spreading lies. You are better off listening to the interviews with Rabbi Bechoffer and Rabbi Yankel Horowitz who both made some fine points. Furthermore Dershowitz has written about the case online and nowhere does he say that the verdict was wrong he only takes issue with the length of the sentence. You can read it for yourself

19. Even if Rubashkin did do something wrong to compare what he did to Weberman is sick.