BARBARA'S TCHATZKAHS

This is what happens when abuse victims (ANY kind of abuse, and any religious or cultural background) are silenced!: By SUSAN EDELMAN and KIRSTEN FLEMING A Brooklyn newlywed who jumped to his death from a hotel balcony the night after his wedding was tormented by memories of being sexually molested as a Jewish student, sources say. After joyfully singing and dancing at their lavish celebration in Williamsburg on Nov. 3, Motty Borger, 24, bared his secret anguish to his bride, Mali Gutman, the next day -- and the revelation caused a strain, a source close to the family told The Post. "That entire day he discussed it with her. He told her the story of his life, how he felt so awful and he couldn't go near her," the source said. The couple had met just last July, after a matchmaker set them up. "When he got married, he realized he couldn't face up to it, and he told his wife that he needed help." The stunned bride responded, "So, why did you m...

by Daniel Treiman The L.A. Jewish Journal’s Amy Klein had a great in-depth article in 2008 on the alleged money-laundering and tax-fraud scheme that has resulted in the indictment of leaders of the Spinka Hasidic sect. Reporting from both coasts, and visiting the Spinka sect’s home base in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn, Klein tackles a number of interesting issues that the case raises, including the debate among Orthodox Jews over criminality in their community. The most interesting aspect of the article, however, is Klein’s treatment of the question of how the community regards individuals who report their fellow Jews to law-enforcement. In the Spinka case, an informant dubbed “RK” — whom Klein says is actually businessman Robert A. Kasirer — played a key role in helping prosecutors assemble their case. And some are quite angry with him for doing so. Klein reports: …the most talked-about aspect of the case — both among bloggers and at Shabbat tables on both coasts — has been th...

I had to pinch this - its so powerful. Plaguarism is the soul of blogging! And spreading Torah can only be a good thing R. Yonah of Gerona, Sha'arei Teshuvah 1:47 (translation by R. Yaakov Feldman - taken from here): There's one sin, however -- profaning G-d’s name -- in whose case both tshuvah and tribulations are held in abeyance, and (only) death purges. As it's said, “Surely this sin will not be forgiven you till you die” (Isaiah 22:14). Try, in that instance, to champion truth, to bolster it, and to be encouraged by it, as well as to convey truth’s light to other Jews by upholding men of truth and exalting them, while denigrating liars and casting them to the ground. For that’s how you sanctify G-d’s name, and lend glory and splendor to the belief in Him and to the service of Him in the world. And how you strengthen and glorify the Sanctuary of His Torah. So do as much as you can to sanctify G-d’s name, to encourage the truth, to accommodate it and come to its aid...