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It’s official: Chaim Deutsch, an aide to Councilman Michael Nelson and founder of the Flatbush Shomrim, formally announced his campaign today in an e-mail to press and supporters.

The letter states:

Dear friends,

With the support and encouragement of my wife, children, family and friends, I am excited to inform you that I am officially running for the New York City Council seat in the 48th District. For over two decades I have worked, both as a professional and a volunteer, on behalf of the community. I believe that the 48th Council District needs a strong advocate in the City Council and I am proud to have worked with so many of you, to make our neighborhoods safer and improve the quality of life for all. Affordable housing, education, safe streets, and care for our seniors are just some of the issues that concern all of us. Together, we have accomplished a lot but there is still so much more to achieve.

I hope you will join me as our campaign kicks-off in the very near future. Details to follow…

I look forward to your continued friendship and support, it means everything to me.

Warmest regards,

Chaim

Deutsch, a Midwood resident with roots in the Orthodox Jewish community, has long been considered a likely candidate for the seat to replace Nelson. He declined to confirm his run as district lines were being redrawn, and was a local opponent of plans to redraw the district with an increase in Russian-American voters and a decrease in Orthodox Jewish voters. Despite the opposition from Deutsch and his supporters, the plans stood with minor changes.

Deutsch will face off against Ari Kagan, Igor Oberman, Theresa Scavo, Michael Treybich and Natraj Bhushan in the Democratic primaries. He is expected to have the backing of Councilman Nelson.

Former State Senator David Storobin is considered a likely Republican contender, and has already received the support of the Conservative Party.

Source: nesnad via wikimedia commons

The fight over speed enforcement cameras is getting nastier. Last week, Mayor Michael Bloomberg personally called out State Senators Marty Golden, Simcha Felder and Dean Skelos for having blood on their hands in refusing to include funding for speed enforcement cameras in the state budget. In response, Senate Democrats are trying to reinvigorate the effort to get the cameras approved. However, in their recap of the week’s events, the New York Times included this interesting tidbit of closed door negotiations between Governor Andrew Cuomo, Bloomberg, Felder and Golden.

Senator Felder, too, has no use for cameras. He represents a district dominated by Orthodox Jewish voters, and his priority this session was to persuade the city and state to foot the bill to bus any child past 4 p.m., which in effect means mostly children who attend yeshivas. Mr. Felder and Mr. Golden succeeded in pushing through this legislation, which will cost the city $5.6 million this year.

As the state senators are not unreasonable men, they even offered to bargain: they might allow speed cameras if Mr. Bloomberg agreed to foot the bill for this busing program.

The mayor said no. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said no. But when his state budget emerged from behind closed doors in Albany it included this new and costly busing program.

The Orthodox, who are adroit at pulling the levers of power, and their political allies claim all children could benefit. But that argument is evidence-starved. The state paid for a pilot program this year, and city school buses have picked up 1,000 children — from 29 yeshivas and one charter school.

Senator Golden, who has charted the growth of the Orthodox population in his district, shrugs off criticism. It is, he said, “the new normal.”

So Golden and Felder would have been happy to approve the funding for speed enforcement cameras as long as yeshiva students who attend private Orthodox schools got free busing? Huh…so, using Golden and Felder’s logic, I guess this means that the safety of responsible motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians is less important than free transportation for private schools provided on the taxpayers’ dime.

It’s the “new normal” after all.

Yoseph Robinson, Source: haaretz.com via facebook

Councilmember Jumaane Williams wants to honor the tragically slain Yoseph Robinson, a former hip-hop artist turned Orthodox Jew, by renaming the corner of Nostrand Avenue and Avenue J in his honor, according to a press release.

Robinson, who was murdered on August 19, 2010, while working as a liquor store clerk in Midwood, left behind an inspirational story and thousands of mourners across Brooklyn. Council Member Williams reflected on Robinson’s legacy and the pain left in his tragic death:

“Yoseph Robinson was a true role model for the Caribbean and Jewish communities of Flatbush,” said Williams. “I live just a stone’s throw from where Yoseph worked and ultimately lost his life, and I can speak to the impact his loss has had on this tight-knit neighborhood … Now, we must take the next step to memorialize his legacy for future generations.”

Robinson’s remarkable journey from Spanish Town, Jamaica, to Midwood, Brooklyn, was set on a rocky road. As a teenager, Robinson was a budding hip-hop artist caught up in criminal activity like drug dealing. Looking to reform his life, he converted to Orthodox Judaism at age 23. Never giving up music, he began to mix Torah passages into his lyrics while making a living working as a clerk at MB Vineyards located at 2388 Nostrand Avenue.

While trying to protect his girlfriend, Robinson was gunned down by Eion Klass as Klass tried to take her jewelry. Klass was eventually sentenced to 35 years in prison.

“Yoseph’s life bridged the cultures of our neighborhood and showed us all the individual capacity to rebuild one’s life and restore one’s potential,” said Williams.

To join those wishing to rename the corner of Nostrand Avenue and Avenue J in Robinson’s honor, you can visit MB Vineyards and sign the petition there. According to the press release, several notable rabbis and civic leaders have already pledged their support for the commemoration.

Chabad of Sheepshead Bay invites all to a Sukkot Street Festival, featuring pony rides, face-painting, hair-braiding, moon-bouncing, rides, a magic show (at 4:30 p.m.), petting zoo, live music, and more, October 3 from 1:00-6:00 p.m. on East 14th Street between Avenue X and Avenue Y.

Outdoor laser tag will take place between 1:30-4:30 p.m., and for $12, a child can go on unlimited rides and enjoy a game of laser tag.

Sukkot, an eight-day (seven days in Israel), biblically-mandated “pilgrimage” festival, runs this year from September 30-October 7. You can learn more about the holiday of Sukkot — also known as the Feast of Booths, and the Feast of the Tabernacles — by clicking here.

For more, call Chabad of Sheepshead Bay, 1315 Avenue Y, at (718) 934-9331, or email info@chabadsheepsheadbay.com.

The Synagogue of Chabad Lubavitch of Manhattan Beach at 134 West End Ave is completing their very first Torah. For those who are not well versed in these matters, this is a pretty big deal for a synagogue.

Rabbi Avrohom and Shula Winner, who lead the congregation, have planned a parade to mark the occasion.

Traditionally, when a Torah is written, there exist opportunities for dedication of pages, covers and so on. Rabbi Winner calls this a “community Torah.”

He writes:

The last mitzvah (commandment) in the Torah is for every Jew to write for themselves a Torah scroll, just as it is ones responsibility to keep any of the other 613 laws. However, not everyone can write their own Torah scroll, whether they don’t know how or don’t have the financial means to do so. If, However, we participate in the writing of one it is as if we wrote our very own Torah scroll.

In Jewish law Mechzo k’kuloy is: Half is counted like the whole thing. Participate partially and G-d counts it like you did the whole thing. In plain English: Give a little from your pocket and a lot from your heart G-d looks at the action (because action is what counts) and gives reward for the feelings.

Once the Torah is complete, the parade will take place Sunday, September 9, 2012, at 12:00 p.m. It begins in front of  the Chabad Lubavitch Synagogue of Manhattan Beach.

The streets will be closed. Music and dancing are encouraged and refreshments will be served.

For more info, call (718) 368-1395 or (646) 296-9020.

Jewish seniors from the former Soviet Union have a startlingly high poverty rate of 71 percent, according to the UJA-Federation’s “Jewish Community Study of New York: 2011,” and Orthodox Jews aren’t far behind, with a poverty rate of 42 percent.

The survey shows that 361,000 Jews in New York City, Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester, are presently experiencing a life of poverty. This represents a 15 percent increase in the amount of impoverished Jews in those areas since 2002.

The study placed the poverty line at an annual income of $27,000 for a family of three, and designated that of $45,000 as “near-poverty” for a family of the same size.

Elderly Russian immigrants and Orthodox Jews are the two groups who have been most affected, said Jack Ukeles, a member of the survey team. He also stated that younger Russians are fairing better than the elderly.

“Older Russians, who came here with little money and a lot of health problems, are not making it,” Ukeles said. “It’s too late for them.”

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Andrew Goodman (via NY Post)

Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz is demanding a tough sentencing of a confessed Midwood child molester a judge plans to put back on the streets just in time for the school season to start.

Cymbrowitz sent a letter to the judge overseeing the case of Andrew Goodman asking that he dole out a seven-year sentence during proceedings today to the admitted child sex offender instead of a rumored two-year sentence with time served – which would have Goodman back in the pol’s district by September.

Goodman pleaded guilty to two counts of child molestation in June, and has been in jail for two years after failing to post a $1 million bail.

“When you impose punishment for Andrew Goodman’s unspeakable crimes, you have the opportunity to send a clear message not just to the defendant but to his victims, their families and the entire community,” Cymbrowitz wrote to the judge. “Your judgment can provide some degree of closure to this terrible episode, or it can leave a raw, open wound from which the victims may never heal. Your judgment can demonstrate an unshakable commitment to protect the rights of victims, especially the most vulnerable, or it can extend mercy to an offender whose heinous acts are, frankly, beyond our comprehension.”

The seven-year sentence was recommended by the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office.

Goodman, 27, became the poster boy for child molestation in the Orthodox Jewish community after the New York Post published his name and photo when he was busted by the Brooklyn DA’s office in a three-year initiative called Kol Tzedek, Hebrew for “voice of justice.” The sweep netted 85 members of the community charged with molesting 117 predominantly male children over three years.

Goodman faced a 144-count indictment for molesting, filming and threatening young boys in the neighborhood. According to court documents reported by the New York Post last year, Goodman held booze-fueled parties in his home while screening child porn, and also “threatened the life” of a boy who reported him to authorities.

According to the Post, Goodman was caught on camera inviting teens into his home – after his indictment in 2010.

“Andrew Goodman’s victims aren’t yet free of the burden of his crimes. It seems just and reasonable that he shouldn’t be free anytime soon, either,” Cymbrowitz said.

Source: abegeorge2013.com

Abraham George began his campaign for Brooklyn District Attorney last week by blasting incumbent Charles Hynes, saying he has failed to protect Brooklyn’s children.

The New York Law Journal reports that George, 33, accused Hynes of focusing on small crimes like marijuana possession charges, as opposed to larger and more violent ones, such as child molestation. George specifically referred to the manner in which Hynes dealt with the prosecution of child molesters in the Orthodox Jewish Community, a recent sore point for the sitting DA, who was accused of hiding the names of alleged molesters in order to secure the Jewish vote.

“He’s actually harming people,” George told the Daily News. “There are children who are being harmed because he runs a political office. I’m not going to stand around when I know I can do something about it.”

George said he wishes to pursue the individuals who scare witnesses from coming forward and testifying against molesters. He also hopes to form a campaign committee later on in the summer. He has considered running for this position for a while now, and feels that based on his credentials, he is now prepared to assume this role.

Hynes’ spokesman told the Daily News that Hynes will be running for re-election in 2013.

George grew up in Sheepshead Bay and now lives in Williamsburg.

He graduated from Hofstra University School of Law, and has served as an assistant prosecutor in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office for the past eight years.

DJ Johnny Versache of OPM helps inscribe the Sefer Torah / Source: Alex Gorokhov of Glatt Photography for ColLive.com

What makes DJ Johnny Versache different from all other DJ’s?

Well, for one thing, the disc jockey over at OPM Restaurant and Ultra Lounge, 3202 Emmons Avenue, dedicated a new Sefer Torah during a gala dinner benefiting Camp F.R.E.E. – the Gan Israel Scholarship Fund.

The highlight of the event was the commencement of a new Sefer Torah, dedicated by the well-known New York DJ Johnny Versache (Zachariah).

Supporters of the camp in attendance were honored with the writing of the first letters.

Rabbi Dan Dashevsky, the camp’s administrator, told a beautiful story comparing a Jew to a living Torah Scroll and presented the dinner awards together with the camp director, Rabbi Mendel Okunov.

Rabbi Meir Okunov, the chairman of F.R.E.E. awarded Rabbi Shlomo Galperin for the 40 years of dedication to Jewish education. Young professionals and businessmen were entertained by popular comedian Modi.

Recently garnering not such glowing feedback from seniors at a nearby retirement home, hosting a benefit for youngsters to be able to attend Camp F.R.E.E. – Gan Israel is a cause worth making a little noise over.

Source: Google Maps

A less-than-heimishe nightclub is eager to open for business in the heart of Gravesend, but Orthodox residents in the area do not want any of their crazy tsures, Vos Iz Neias is reporting.

The business, called Pleasure, would be situated on the corner of Avenue U and East 9th Street, within a stone’s throw from the “Torah Academy of Brooklyn, a boys yeshiva high school…numerous shuls, a kosher pizzeria and a school bus stop utilized by several yeshivos and Bais Yaakovs [girls yeshivas].”

The upscale restaurant and lounge would replace an identical establishment with the same name and at the same location, which Community Board 15 Chairperson Theresa Scavo railed against initially, calling the first incarnation of Pleasure “a detriment to the quality of life in this neighborhood.”

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