by Cindy Grosz
Since September, I am aware of two major newsworthy events that scare me. I see a pattern of Jew vs Jew. Worse, it’s Orthodox fighting other Orthodox. Non religious Jews and anti-Semites are witnessing this and many seem to be enjoying it.
A Local Race
For years, I have shared vital information about why Jews of all religious affiliations, financial situations and neighborhoods must educate themselves about registering to vote in both major parties. Part of the registration process is educating oneself about all candidates, including school boards and judges.
In September, in the Five Towns, a race took place for the positions of mayor and trustees in Lawrence, one of The Five Towns. All of the candidates were religious. These races became nasty, with accusations of voter fraud and a lawsuit filed and later dropped. The worst was that the eventual losers of the race were consulted by some “questionable” political consultants. One is currently going through a trial. John Novello was indicted on 11 charges related to the alleged theft of $60,000 from bank accounts belonging to the Cedarhurst Republican Committee. These charges include grand larceny, petit larceny, and election law violations. Another alleged consultant was Lawrence Deputy Mayor and a Jewish consultant for the New York State GOP, Michael Fragin. Their advice included sending out a letter filled with typos from a fake organization. to potential voters attacking their opponents.
In the end, those who were attacked won with an overwhelming majority. But Orthodox Jews all lost as these vicious attacks played out in public.
