Asifa Under Way: Photos

Photo Credit: VIN

Photo credit: VIN

Harav M. Salamon arrives at Citifield: Photo Credit VIN

Author of "Hush" comments on the Asifa!

Ignorance is sacred .... To whom

This is why the Internet Asifa is important for K’lal Yisroel: because a wholesome lie is better than any broken truth; because denial must be protected at all costs; because ignorance is sacred in a world whose existence depends on it.

And this is why it is important that we be there on Sunday: because we hold the broken truth, the one we experienced firsthand when our rebbis, teachers, and leaders ripped their own lie piece by piece, life by life, in front of our eyes, and then intimidated, threatened, brutalized and suppressed any victim or witness who dared speak out, warning that they would destroy us and our broken truth if we did not accept their lie.

The Internet is an enormous threat to the ultra-orthodox world for the same reason it is a threat in Syria , Iran and Russia; a population that is aware is a population difficult to control. They say that they must fight the Internet for it brings moral decay. What they do not say, even to themselves, is that they must fight the Internet so they can conceal moral decay. That the only thing they fear more than the outside corruption the Internet brought inside, is the inside corruption the Internet has revealed to the outside.

The Internet is terrifying to the rabbanim perhaps because of porn, perhaps because it exposes youth to foreign ideas, but even more importantly, because it enables open dialogue and an honesty they cannot afford if they are to survive as a community, the community they insist they are; pure, innocent, and above their own frailties. And if a few children must be sacrificed for this wholesome lie, then so be it. It is better than any broken truth.

In the last few years, the Internet has served as a crucial tool for victims of sexual abuse. It is through blogs and online discussions that many victims first realized they are not alone, that this is a communal problem. The silence that has kept victims in such utter isolation, unable to connect with others, has been broken by the anonymity and connectivity of the Internet. It was there victims could finally speak honestly without fear. It was there they could hear of so many similar experiences, and reach out to other victims. The Internet played a large role in tapping at the wall of denial, and for the communal authorities this was a dangerous thing.

Denial is a terrible thing to lose. We know. For many victims it takes years to face their own traumas, to break away from the security and warmth of a well taught lie. But no one knows like we do that it is never technology that corrupts man, but man that corrupts technology. Because decades before there was Internet or computers, there was sexual molestation and the worst forms of moral decay. We were there when it happened, when men who did not have access to the Internet turned into beasts, groping, fondling, and raping boys and girls half their size and strength, then terrorizing them into silence.

Tomorrow we will stand outside Citifield with our cardboard signs. There will be thousands of orthodox men walking past us. Some will look quickly away, some will laugh in pity, some will wish they were standing with us. We’ll stand for the first time as a united voice, in public, telling them that we are no longer afraid; that we, who have seen the darkest parts of their world, will never be silenced again; that we will make as big a ‘Chillul Hashem’ as we need to, and for as long as we need to, because there are basic morals and there are cultural traditions and for too long the ultra-orthodox world has confused one for the other.

The Citifield rally is so important to the community because it is another form of denial, another excuse they can point to. It allows them to avoid confronting the most dangerous enemy of all: themselves. The Internet does not molest, only people do; they always have. But if they can just persist on blaming internal problems on evil outside forces they can continue to remain blind to what they refuse to see: themselves. And that is why we will be there tomorrow, because this is the broken truth.

‑ Judy Brown, Hush

Robert Klein arrested for filing a false report stating that his Father-In-Law beat him to force him to give a get!

New York - The Queens man who claimed he was beaten and robbed by his estranged father-in-law and several other men was arrested today for falsifying a police report, The Post has learned.

Robert Klein was collared at 1:50 a.m. after investigators discovered his Blackberry cell phone was never stolen in the May 12 attack as he had alleged, police sources said.

Klein, 25, previously told The Post that the assailants tied his hands and feet, blindfolded him and pummeled him.

Klein said the men—including father-in-law Brian Hirshman – then forced him to mumble the words for a rabbi-sanctioned divorce. Men must consent to the divorce—known as a “get”—under Jewish tradition.

Klein is locked in a bitter divorce battle with his wife in Queens Supreme Court.

Hirshman, 52, was arrested May 13 for his alleged role in the attack.

Sacha Baron Cohen "The Dictator" almost killed by Frummies in Yerushalyim!

Sacha Baron Cohen ran for his life when he was chased by a rock-wielding gang of "Hasidic nutcases".

'The Dictator' star angered a group of Hasidic Jews by wearing a camp version of their traditional costume in Jerusalem and he feared for his life as he was being chased by the mob before hiding in a bathroom store.

He said: "A bunch of Hasidic Jews ran after me with rocks and I ended up hiding in a bathroom store.

"Normally in dangerous situations I have a getaway car. But as I ran towards the getaway car it drove away.

"So I found myself running down the street, running for my life, and being chased by these Hasidic nutcases.

"I turned round to calm them down, and I shouted in Hebrew 'I am Jewish', which apparently is the worst thing ever you can tell Hasidic Jews.

"It was then they decided that they wanted to really kill me."

Sacha admits he has come "close" to being murdered or seriously hurt while shooting his previous two movies, mockumentaries 'Borat' - which featured him as a controversial Kazak journalist and sparked anger among the Kazakhstan community - and 'Bruno', where he played a homosexual Austrian fashion designer.

He is quoted by the Daily Mirror newspaper as saying: "In those last two movies there were lots of people with guns who got angry and it became a little hairy at times.

"I never felt I'd get killed, but it has been close."

Sacha's latest movie 'The Dictator', which sees him star as fictional leader General Aladeen, has also sparked controversy among the Arab community.

Nadia Tonova, director of the National Network for Arab American Communities, said his latest role "perpetuates a negative stereotype against Arabs".

'Obama was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii': 1991 promotional booklet from President's OWN literary agency claims 'he was born in Africa'

The simmering political row over President Obama’s heritage was dramatically reignited today as a 1991 booklet boldly announced that the Democrat was ‘born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.’

In the cover for a 1991 promotional booklet by Mr Obama’s then-publisher Acton & Dystel, he is as ‘the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review, (who) was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.’

The information, which could be used as more ammunition against the incumbent president, comes months before what will likely be a close campaign between Mr Obama and 

The 36-page promotional booklet was exclusively obtained by Breitbart, and was sent out to colleagues within the publishing industry in the early 1990s.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2146034/Obama-born-Kenya-raised-Indonesia-Hawaii-Presidents-literary-agency-promotional-booklet-1991-claims-WAS-born-Africa.html#ixzz1vAPNW3mW

Protests at the Weberman (accused of raping a chassidishe girl for 3 years) Fundraiser! Video!

Donna Summer, Disco legend dies at 63

TMZ reports that Donna Summer has died after a battle with cancer, she was in Florida at the time of her death. She was 63 years old.  Summer was a 5 -time Grammy winner ...

Her family released a statement Thursday saying Summer had died and that they "are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy."'

TMZ first reported the news, noting Summer had  died in Florida on Thursday after a long battle with cancer. Insiders told TMZ she was recently working on music for a new album.

Known as the "Queen of Disco," Summer was born in Boston, Mass. in 1948, as one of seven children.

The five-time Grammy winner rose to fame in the 1970s, scoring hits with "Last Dance," "Hot Stuff" and "Bad Girls."

She co-wrote the single "Love to Love You Baby" in 1975, and went on to co-write several other hits, including "She Works Hard For Her Money."

Summer appeared in the 1978 film, "Thank God It's Friday," which took home the best original song Oscar for "Last Dance."

Summer married Brooklyn Dreams vocalist Bruce Sudano in 1980. She is survived by her husband, three daughters and four grandchildren.

US conducts largest military exercises in Middle East! Israel not invited!

The United States is leading what it described as the "largest military exercises in the Middle East in 10 years" in Jordan on Tuesday.

Eager Lion 2012 “is the largest exercise held in the region in the past ten years,” Major General Ken Tovo, head of the US Special Operations Forces, told reporters in Amman.
“Yesterday we began to apply the skills that we have developed over the last weeks in an irregular warfare scenario … They will last for approximately the coming two weeks,” he added.
“The message that I want to send through this exercise is that we have developed the right partners throughout the region and across the world … insuring that we have the ability to … meet challenges that are coming to our nations,” Tovo said.
Over 12,000 soldiers are taking part in the war games, representing 19 countries, including Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Pakistan, Qatar, Britain, France, Italy, Spain and Australia.
Jordanian army operations and training chief Major General Awni Adwan said the military exercise “has been in the planning phase for the past three years.”
“No forces will be deployed north … the exercise is not connected to any real world event,” Adwan said when asked if the war games were related to the ongoing violence in Jordan’s northern neighbor Syria.
"This has nothing to do with Syria. We respect the sovereignty of Syria. There is no tension between the Syrians and us. Our objectives are clear,” Adwan said.
Israel – despite having extensive security agreements with Jordan – was not invited to participate in the exercises. Several Arab nations participating in the drill are still formally at war with the Jewish state.
Washington has granted Amman $2.4 billion in military and economic aid in the past five years, according to official figures

Jewish teen commits suicide after being abused and turned away by Yeshivah!

When will the Roshei Yeshuvas do something about this? Children are being denied access to schools and we wonder why they go off the derech! Our opinion is that all Yeshivas must make space to any child that wants to learn Torah, yes even trouble makers. If the Yeshivah leaders can't handle it, they should seek other employment, then this job is not for them... let's STOP supporting the "elite" Yeshivas.

Read the following and weep!
From YeshivahWorld.

‘Y’, a child of a Yerushalayim chareidi family took his own life R”L. Family members blame the school he attended as a young child, apparently the victim of abuse.
According to an exclusive Kikar Shabbat report, Y attended the reputable chareidi school five years ago. His father was hospitalized with a serious illness during the same time period. Apparently the directors and staff of the yeshiva simply ignored the child’s difficult situation at home, and this is when the child’s situation began to deteriorate.
Y’s parents however remained determined to do their best for their son and they tried to get Y into another school. This during the time period the father was still hospitalized but nevertheless he learned with Y to assist in preparing him for the change of schools.
When the other school informed the family that Y was accepted they felt there was finally a ray of sunshine, a new hope. Unfortunately, the simcha was short lived as they learned that a principle of the old school phoned the new one, informing them the child is “very problematic” and the acceptance into the school became a rejection.
At this point, Y’s condition began to deteriorate more rapidly, and it was not too long until he moved to the north. It is pointed out that despite his change of venue he remained in touch with his parents and the family. Two weeks ago, Y, now 19, called and asked if he can come home for Shabbos. His parents were thrilled and they all enjoyed the special Shabbos. Y was singing zmiros and even got up for davening on Shabbos morning.
After davening he asked his father to open the Aron Kodesh and he placed his head inside between the sifrei torah and spoke to HKBH as he wept bitterly, as the family described the event. Two weeks later he was gone, taking his own life. The teen left a note which he wrote two days earlier.
At the levaya, one of the maspedim, HaRav Binayahu Shmueli spoke. “Woe is to us that teachers destroy talmidim and now we see the result. I personally know the deceased and the family. The problem is that today, anyone looking to earn a livelihood becomes a teacher. Today, not every teacher understands educations, and it is most unfortunate because of the failed system he fell”.
In a conversation with Kikar, a brother is quoted as adding “His rabbonim killed him. I learned in the same school and I know the situation first hand. The teachers killed him. I remember that period very well, when he wanted to come back to school and they did not permit him to. Even if a child is a joker and troublemaker, they must know how to deal with him and not to break him”.
“Perhaps our tragedy will shake the tzibur, awaken someone, and that everyone seeking to earn a living will not be hired as a teacher”.

Satmar defends the accused child rapist Weberman!

Remember Weberman the accused child rapist? Well, he has supporters that are calling the 14 year old (now 16 years old) victim a liar!

An ad, which promotes a gathering at the Continental Caterers dining hall scheduled for Wednesday, was placed in the Satmar weekly Der Yid, which also ran two articles/ads on the event, Here are the street posters followed by that Der Yid ad and those 'articles': (from Failed Messiah)

Here is the article in DER YID:

Frum Guy beaten because he refuses to give a "get"

An Orthodox Jewish man from Queens allegedly tied up and beat his estranged son-in-law — and then forced him to recite the words for a rabbi-sanctioned divorce known as a “get.”

Robert Klein

“There were four guys in black ski masks. They pulled me, and they started beating me,” said Robert Klein, 25, of Brooklyn. He said they also took his cellphone and credit card.

“They tied my hands and feet. blindfolded me, beat me and made me repeat, ‘I want to give a get, and I’m doing so willingly and freely,’ ” said Klein, who is in a bitter divorce battle with wife Reva in Queens Supreme Court. The couple split after 10 months of marriage

Reva Klein

Under Jewish tradition, the husband must consent to a divorce.

Klein’s father-in-law, Brian Hirshman, 52, was charged with robbery and assault yesterday.

Klein said that after he was ambushed by Hirshman and the others, he mumbled the words they made him say.

“If they recorded it, they would know it was forced. I checked with the rabbis, and it’s not considered a valid get. It wasn’t written,’’ he said.

A woman who answered the phone at Hirshman’s home declined to comment.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/divorce_gets_way_too_rough_PVfIZnJkaWStYIhHGRO66K#ixzz1uqW6B7Rk

Mandy Patinkin, the self hating Jew, Pro - Palestinian addresses "peace now" in Israel!

Mandy Patinkin

"Homeland" star Mandy Patinkin expressed solidarity with Israeli actors who refuse to perform in West Bank settlements.

Patinkin, who is currently in Israel to film the second season of the award-winning "Homeland," spent part of last week touring the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem with the left-wing Peace Now organization. He spoke at a Peace Now conference on Friday, attended by about 700 participants.

“I call myself an American Disney Land Jew,” he told the conference. “We can do whatever we want. We can say whatever we want. We are safe. We are never attacked. We live in freedom."
 
Patinkin visited the Ariel Cultural Center in the West Bank, which was at the center of boycotts by Israeli actors when it opened last fall. He signed a petition in support of the boycotting actors and directors.

He said he has been attacked by people in the United States for his pro-Palestinian views.

He also visited Hebron last week and was surprised by how much he believes it has changed since he first visited there 30 years ago, citing the streets closed to Palestinian vehicles and the shuttered storefronts. 

No "Sholom Bayis" in this house, Husband and Wife running against each other for office!

Michelle Schimel

The War of the Roses is erupting on Long Island, where a Nassau County man is set to challenge his estranged wife for state Assembly.

Mark Schimel has been given the Nassau County GOP nomination to seek the Great Neck seat that currently belongs to his estranged wife — Democrat Michelle Schimel.

It’s a move that shocked even his own mother.

“You’re joking,” Irma Schimel said when she learned of her son’s plans by the Daily News.

“This is a really startling thing. It’s a shock. Why would he do this?”

The couple separated about a year ago after 32 years of marriage and two kids — but are not legally divorced.

Irma Schimel said she still considers Michelle her daughter-in-law and even received a Mother’s Day card from her this year.

“I love her very much,” Irma Schimel said. “I can’t believe he’d do a thing like this. I’m going to talk to him.”

Michelle Schimel, 54, is in her third term, having first been elected in 2007 to replace Thomas DiNapoli, who resigned to become state controller.

“He’ll never win anything against Michelle,” Irma Schimel predicted. “They (the voters) love her.”

Mark Schimel did not return a call seeking comment.

Michelle Schimel vowed to run the campaign no differently than her others: “on the issues and on my record.”

A Democratic Party source accused Mark Schimel and the Nassau GOP of “lowering themselves to any level . . . and allowing people’s personal issues to become part of political mudslinging.”

Frank Moroney, the North Hempstead town GOP chairman, admitted there were concerns the race could degenerate into a bitter, personal battle, but insisted the GOP leaders urged him several times to keep it classy.

“One of the things we made clear is we want this to be a very dignified, issue-oriented campaign,”

Moroney said.

“If he wants our continued support he is going to have to keep it that way.”

Mark Schimel was a Republican who changed his registration to Democrat when his wife ran for office, Moroney said. Earlier this year, he switched back to the GOP.

Schimel, according to Moroney, works as an information technology consultant and is very active in the community. He serves on the Great Neck Architectural Review Committee.

“He is a serious candidate,” Moroney said.

April Kauffman, popular radio host shot to death!

New Jersey authorities are searching for the killer or killers in the shooting death of a local radio talk show host known for her activism on veterans' issues.   

 
April Kauffman, 47, was found dead inside the bedroom of her New Jersey home Thursday from "multiple gunshot wounds," according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office.

Kauffman, who hosted a weekly talk radio program on WOND, was found around 11:30 a.m. Thursday by a worker who called 911. Kauffman reportedly lived with her husband, a physician, near the Jersey shore in Linwood, about 12 miles from Atlantic City.

In a statement released to FoxNews.com, Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., said he was "incredibly shocked and saddened" to learn the news about Kauffman, known throughout the region as a fierce advocate for veterans.

"Quite simply, April was a patriot in every sense of the word and her tireless work on behalf of those who served made a real difference in the lives of many," Menendez said. "The Atlantic County community has lost one of its most passionate voices, and she will be missed. My thoughts and prayers go out to her family and friends in this difficult time."

Harry Hurley, who did several radio broadcasts with Kauffman, told The Press of Atlantic City that Kauffman; "Did the work of 100 people."
The newspaper reported Friday that Kauffman recently helped to raise money for Army Staff Sgt. Kevin Snow, a father of five who was left severely disabled after fighting in Iraq.

The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office, which is handling all media inquiries in the case, was tight-

lipped about the crime but said no arrests had been made as of Friday morning. The prosecutor's office as well as the Linwood Police Department are investigating.

Neighbors reportedly told local station KYW-TV that when Kauffman's husband left her in the early morning Thursday, she was sleeping with a pillow over her face. Local media reports have identified the woman's husband as James Kauffman, an Egg Harbor Township-based endocrinologist.   
Authorities are urging anyone with information on the crime to contact the Linwood police at 609-927-4108.

200,000 celebrate in Meron despite Vishnitz Ban

This year visitors to Meron broke all previous attendance records despite the ban by the Vishnitzer Rebbe. 

R' Mordechai Steiner Shlita in Meron

Read the following report!

It appears the number of people visiting Meron on Lag B’Omer increases annually. This year, estimates are upwards of 200,000 people.
Over 1,500 police were assigned to the operation, including border police, Yassam commando forces and other specialized forces. Magen David Adom was out in force, even placing a helicopter on standby, deploying hundreds of paid and volunteer personnel of varying levels of medical expertise in the area.
Ichud Hatzalah was also on the scene, deploying hundreds of volunteers that operated 12 stations throughout the Lag B’Omer event under the command of R’ Nachman Klein, Galil commander of the organization. Ichud reports treating 350 patients, most with only light injuries Baruch Hashem.
This year, in addition to the bonfire marking the official start of Lag B’Omer by the Boyaner Rebbe Shlita, Rishon L’Tzion HaGaon HaRav Shlomo Moshe Amar Shlita lit a fire as well, a number of hours later.
Many people who traveled to Meron for Lag B’Omer will be spending Shabbos in the north and police and other agencies are maintaining the necessary manpower to address this reality.

Israelis celebrate Lag Ba'Omer in Meron! Video

Self Hating Jew Norman Finkelstein says most Jewish Americans now Hate Israel! Video

Sounds just like a Satmarer Chassid ...

Norman Finkelstein YM"S

What happens if American Jews fall out of love with Israel?

That's what the Jewish American academic Norman Finkelstein claims is happening. 

You can watch the full interview on BBC World News

Click on link

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/hardtalk/9719381.stm

Health Dept goes crazy..fines bagel bakery for having sesame & poppy seeds on floor!

Any way you slice it, this is one seedy dispute.
A Health Department inspector bizarrely slapped a Brooklyn bagel shop with $1,650 in fines — because sesame and poppy seeds fell to the floor while the bagels were being made during working hours.

The owner of B&B Empire Bagel Cafe — who appealed the violations and lost at two separate hearings — says the inspectors must have holes in their heads.

How is he supposed to make seeded bagels without some of the tiny goods spilling onto the ground?
“It is impossible to clean up after each and every bagel,” declared Alex Gormakh, 59, who owns the Clinton Sreet. shop. “It is impossible. It is a process.”

To demonstrate, Gormakh placed two poppy and sesame bagels on a table near his $60,000 wood-burning oven, where they are baked “Montreal style” — smaller and chewier than their New York cousins.

“Look,” explained Gormakh, “a few seeds are always going to be dropped when you are dipping the bagel in the seeds. They don’t all stick like glue.”
“Now imagine the seeds from 100 bagels. Any place where bagels are produced will have these problems.”

Fellow bagel-makers agreed.
“No matter how much you sweep during the daytime there’s always going to be seeds on the floor,” said A.J. Tawfik, at Brooklyn Bagel, an A-graded shop on Eighth Avenue in Chelsea.
Still, city regulators were unsympathetic.

A Health Department spokeswoman said the bagel shop was cited on Oct. 23, 2011, for “a heavy accumulation of seeds in the same area that many mouse droppings were found.”
No mice were detected in an earlier inspection on Aug. 1, 2011, and none were found in the latest inspection on April 5, when B&B was awarded the highest cleanliness grade of “A.”

Now, Gormakh and his son, Max, 34, have invested close to $900,000 in larger stainless steel preparation tables — in hopes of containing seed fallout — and an expensive water-filter vacuum to suck up the seeds from the floor.

“It is still not profitable, but it is close,” said Gormakh, who moved his family here from Russia in 1995 and opened his store last June.

The money to settle the violations “would be better spent on further developing the restaurant,” he argued.
Gormakh appears resigned to the higher cost of doing business in this city.

“If you want to work you have to pay,” he concluded. “In Russia, they call it corruption. Here they call it something else. Either way, you have to pay.”

New artifacts from the time of Dovid Hamelech found! Proof that Jews lived in Jerusalem long before the Arabs did!

A Hebrew University archaeologist has uncovered spectacular evidence confirming the reign of King David and that non-Jews believed in one Creator. Architecture that was uncovered pre-dates the First Temple built by King Solomon.

Prof. Yosef Garfinkel announced on Tuesday the discovery of objects found in the ruins called  Khirbet Qeiyafa, a fortified border city in the Kingdom of Judah adjacent to the Valley of Elah, less than 20 miles southwest of Jerusalem and half five miles west of Gush Etzion.

The archaeologist and colleagues uncovered rich assemblages of pottery, stone and metal tools, and many art and ritual objects. The architecture and discoveries correspond to the biblical description of a local organized group that observed the second of the 10 Commandments prohibiting belief in graven images.

The absence of cultic images of humans or animals in the shrines provides evidence that the local inhabitants practiced a different cult than that of the Canaanites or the Philistines.

This discovery is the first time that shrines from the time of early biblical kings were uncovered. The village of Khirbet apparently existed for only about 40 years and was violently destroyed.

The biblical tradition presents the People of Israel as conducting a cult different from all other nations of the ancient Near East by being monotheistic and banning human or animal figures). 

The findings at Khirbet Qeiyafa also indicate that an elaborate architectural style had developed as early as the time of King David. The construction is typical of royal activities and indicates    the establishment of a state and of   urban life in the region in the days of the early kings of Israel.

“These finds strengthen the historicity of the biblical tradition and its architectural description of the Palace and Temple of Solomon,” Hebrew University stated.

“This is the first time that archaeologists uncovered a fortified city in Judah from the time of King David,” according to Prof. Garfinkel. “Even in Jerusalem we do not have a clear fortified city from his period. Thus, various suggestions that completely deny the biblical tradition regarding King David and argue that he was a mythological figure, or just a leader of a small tribe, are now shown to be wrong.

“Over the years, thousands of animal bones were found, including sheep, goats and cattle, but no pigs. Now we uncovered three cultic rooms… but not even one human or animal figurine was found. This suggests that the population of Khirbet Qeiyafa observed two biblical bans – on pork and on graven images – and thus practiced a different cult than that of the Canaanites or the Philistines.”

The three shrines are part of larger building complexes,  different from the style of Canaanite or

Philistine cults, and Prof. Garfinkel pointed out the Biblical verse in the time of King David:  “He brought the ark of God from a private house in Kyriat Yearim and put it in Jerusalem in a private house” (Chapter 6 in the Second Book of Samuel).

Parts of the structures, such as the doors, help explain obscure technical terms in the description of Solomon’s palace as described in the First Book of Kings 6.

“For the first time in history, we have actual objects from the time of David, which can be related to monuments described in the Bible,” the archaeologist said.

Counter Protest at Citi Field Internet Asifa!

While thousands of frum Jews will be attending Citi Field to listen to speech after speech warning about the dangers of the Internet, hundreds of  sexual abuse victims will be protesting outside Citi Field warning the masses about child abuse! 

Before you read the following experiences of the victims of abuse. I have a question to ask Rav Solomon Shlita the founder of the Asifah:
Rav Solomon said in reference to the Asifa:
"The main purpose… why we created an “Ichud HaKehillos” as a basis on which to make this kinus. Because it has to be a kinus of a united Klal Yisrael. The pain has to be felt as the pain of Klal Yisrael and the search for a - I don’t really like the word “solution” - the search for help has to beKlal Yisrael’s search. We have to find some way or another to hold up this terrible tragedy."
Dusiznies:  did you say "united Klal Yisrael?"


Why weren't the following groups  invited?
1) Women
2) Chabad
3) The Syrian Community
4) The Sfardi Community


"Ichud HaKehillos"   has caused more strife and machlokas than before its creation.


Every Shul should appoint some of its members to join the counter-protest to support the victims.
Read the following story in the huffington Post!

Yoelly Twersky* grew up in the Hasidic community of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. His father wore a sleek fur hat, and his mother smelled of vegetable soup and rugalach. When Yoelly started eighth grade, his new teacher seemed to take an immediate dislike to him, striking him almost every morning.

"I thought the teacher knew what was best," Yoelly says, thinking back. "Physical punishment was normal in my school, and I figured it had to be that I deserved it."

Six months into the year, his teacher called him into the school's boiler closet. In that dark dank room, the teacher pulled down both their pants, and raped the little boy.

"I was screaming the whole time," Yoelly recalls. "When he finished, he went back to the classroom and I stayed where I was, in shock, gushing blood."

Hasidic children are not given sexual education and Yoelly had no words to describe the rape that continued to occur for the remainder of the school year.

For Yoelly, those awful days were not the worst of it. A few months later, he found the courage to tell his father what had happened. His father slapped him and told him never to mention such immodest things again.

"That day was the worst day of my life," Yoelly says. "I realized that I was all alone. There was nobody to keep me safe."

The teacher who raped Yoelly still teaches at that school. As an adult, haunted by the thought that other children were enduring what he had, Yoelly sought a private audience with the grand Rebbe, or leader, of his Hasidic sect, to discuss the issue. After he told the Rebbe what had happened, the Rebbe turned to his personal assistant.

"He's a shaigetz," the Rebbe said, using a derogatory slur for a non-Jew. "Get him out of here." Yoelly was hustled out of the room with threats of violence.

My story is different. I was the fifth of 11 children in a non-Hasidic ultra-Orthodox family. As a teenager, I realized I didn't want to be as religious as my family.

"I want to go to college," I told my mother.

"We'll have you locked up!" she thundered at me in reply. My parents consulted with rabbinic leaders and by the age of 16, I was ostracized, and shortly thereafter, left to fend for myself on the streets of New York. I found an apartment and a minimum wage job, and learned to call a handful of ketchup dinner. Some days, when I couldn't afford the subway token, I walked from Brooklyn to my job in Manhattan. But the terror of my parent's abandonment and my community's rejection was worse than any poverty. Naive and alone, it wasn't long before I was found by people quick to take advantage of me.

When Ari Mandel thinks about his vulnerability as a religious child in Monsey, N.Y., it isn't abuse or neglect that jumps out at him, as much as math class -- or the lack thereof.

"As an 11-year-old, I was in school from 7:30 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon, studying religious texts. We had 'English' from 4 until 6 at night, but the class was treated like recess, and after a long day of learning, we had no patience to sit in our seats."

At the age of 12 Ari was sent to yeshiva where he studied religious texts exclusively. That was the end of his secular education.

"When I got married at 18, we had to sign up for Food Stamps and Medicaid," Ari says. "I thought credit cards were free money and racked up thousands of dollars of credit card debt. I couldn't do basic multiplication or division and my English vocabulary was hugely limited."

Ari went on to earn a GED by himself, at the age of 24, so he could join the U.S. Army, but he still can't sign his own name in cursive and only gained a basic grasp of geography as he was stationed around the globe.

"It's a staggering handicap," Ari says. "When we deprive our children of a basic education, we leave them hugely vulnerable to abuse, poverty and even crime."

When Yoelly, Ari and I heard that thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews from many different communities were gathering together to rent Citi Field, to address a pressing issue in the religious community, you might understand that we were frustrated -- no, furious -- that the issue being addressed at the unusually elaborate meeting was the dangers of the Internet.

We don't deny that the Internet is a serious concern for a community that strives to shelter its members. But we do feel that the Internet should not be getting more attention than the safety of children.

If it were only Yoelly, Ari and me, we'd still believe that is cause for soul searching and reform, but our experiences are not unique. There are far too many stories like ours. Although some efforts have been made to address these issues, not enough is being done.

And so, on May 20, Yoelly, me and Ari, along with defenders of children from every walk of life, religious and secular, Jewish and non-Jewish, male and female, old and young, will gather outside Citi Field to raise awareness about the need to develop reforms to keep our children safe. Neither God nor Judaism is being attacked in this protest. This is strictly a message to rabbinic leadership to work harder to keep our children safe by ensuring those who abuse children are reported to the appropriate authorities, that families are supported to stay together even if they make differing religious choices and that children receive a basic education.

Although some worry that this protest is an inappropriate airing of "dirty laundry," we say, when it comes to the safety of our children, we must be united and unabashed in our actions.

*name changed to protect his identity