As a member of a northern New Jersey Modern Orthodox community, it has been very interesting to read of the widespread concerns about scams plaguing the “mainstream” frum community. As someone who is a rather objective outsider, I want to give my two cents, if I may. I should note beforehand that I’m very familiar with Lakewood (I’m there often) and I work in an industry in which many “yeshivish” people do business, so I’m not completely clueless. That said, there was a recent mailbag article on YWN that decried materialism as the new Avoda Zarah, and lamented that too many people have bought into the concept that money equals happiness. However, the article didn’t provide a reason as to why this phenomenon is occurring.

WhatsApp is a useful tool that many of us frum Jews use. It enables us to communicate with our family, friends, rabbonim, and community in a secure and convenient way. WhatsApp was always regarded as relatively clean and kosher, compared to other social media platforms that are full of harmful and distracting content. But this may soon change with WhatsApp Channels, a new feature that will allow users to follow people and organizations they are interested in in a separate tab called Updates. WhatsApp Channels is a tool for admins to send text, photos, videos, stickers, and polls to their followers. Users can find and join channels through a directory they can search or invite links sent in chats, email, or online.

We have all seen and heard about the string of Ponzi’s and dishonest business dealings in the frum community. It’s been published and discussed on YWN, Lakewood Alerts, and now a magazine has placed it on their front cover. But have you wondered why? Why are we getting hit over and again by financial scammers? Did something happen, has something changed? There have been numerous frauds exposed in just the past few weeks; 20 years ago, five frauds being exposed in the frum community would take years. What happened to us? I’d like to suggest a theory which I think also serves as a serious bit of mussar for all of us, myself included. The theory is simple: Materialism has become our Avoda Zara, and the pursuit of it requires a literally endless amount of money.

YWN NOTE: The following letter was written by a prominent and well-known Baal Haboos in Brooklyn. It was written for YWN following the recent debacle that hundreds of Rabbeiyim and Morah’s were informed – via a letter on YWN – that summer vacations would be shortened, and that the Yeshivas would be starting earlier than it had been for the past 60 years. The letter was released by Torah Umesorah, and signed by the Vaad Roshei Yeshiva. In the town of Brisk, where the great Reb Chaim Brisker presided as the Rav, there was an orphanage which served any child whose parents couldn’t provide for. Many a time Reb Chaim would open his front door only to find a small package wrapped in a towel or a sheet with a paper pinned to it, identifying it as an abandoned Jewish child.

Sadly, our community has seen its fair share of Ponzi schemes, phony investments, and thieves who prey on fellow members of their kehilla; We all know the names of the most infamous schemers and scammers that have wrought havoc in our community. Some have been jailed, but others have been “bailed out” to prevent prison time and “mesira.” Many readers may not know this, but there were at least five Ponzi schemes and frauds exposed in just the past few weeks. One of them – seemingly the best known one –  is alleged to be a whopping $45 million dollars stolen by a thief in Toms River who then fled to Israel. Another one was in Flatbush, where around $10 million dollars was allegedly embezzled.

The past few weeks have been tumultuous for myself and my fellow Toms River residents. Since I moved in six years ago, my family and neighbors have been hoping to one day have a place to daven and learn with our children. Four years ago, we were told by our local askanim to vote for Mo Hill instead of Joe Coronato, despite more seasoned askonim from Lakewood and beyond advising otherwise. Trusting our local leaders, I listened. Hill emerged victorious; We celebrated, and so did the askonim, who trumpeted their deep ties and friendship with the newly minted Mayor Hill and his allies on the Toms River Council. Four years later, we still don’t have shuls. Code enforcement is still issuing violations. The askanim made excuses, and I naively trusted them.

Dear YWN, The Gedolim of Torah Umesorah are trying to correct a problem in the calendar that we have had for decades. When Rosh Chodesh Elul is early, camps are forced to end early in order to have counselors who are Bnei Torah – counselors must leave before Rosh Chodesh to get back to yeshiva. If left uncorrected, this year there would be a huge gap of literally three weeks between the end of camps and the start of yeshiva. I think we can all agree that having three weeks of unstructured time off after camps are over before yeshiva starts is not a good chinuch idea. I believe every mechanech and bal habos will agree with that premise. Torah Umesorah’s is to simply shift the calendar by one week (not one and a half weeks) and have it based upon Rosh Chodesh Elul and not Labor Day.

To whom it may concern. I am a longtime Rebbi in a Brooklyn Yeshiva. I never in a million years thought I would have to be writing such a letter, but I am left without a choice. A few weeks ago, hundreds of Rabbeiyim and Morah’s were informed – via a letter on YWN – that our summer vacations would be shortened, and that the Yeshivas would be starting earlier than it had been for the past 60 years. The letter was released by Torah Umesorah, and signed by the Vaad Roshei Yeshiva, all of whom I have the utmost Kavod for. Yeshivos and Bais Yaakovs in Brooklyn have reached an unprecedented “consensus” to begin the 2023-2024 school year around the start of Elul, rather than with the secular start date of Labor Day.

I’m somewhat shocked at the way YWN has been covering the Jordan Neely story. Instead of describing what truly happened and who Neely really was, you seem to have been at least somewhat sucked in by the mainstream media to think that he was some poor, helpless, and innocent man. He wasn’t. Just to refresh: Neely was on a subway when he was tackled by several bystanders and put in a stronghold by one of them, with Neely ultimately dying from being placed in that chokehold. Now leftists are calling for demonstrations, insisting that he was “lynched” and “murdered.” Let’s get the facts straight. Neely was no innocent man and it is almost certain that he posed a serious danger to fellow subway riders.

There is an issue I have now twice encountered at Nyack Hospital that I believe is critical to share with your audience. Three years ago, I gave birth at Nyack Hospital. During my time at the hospital, I noticed that one of the kosher meals given to me was a fleishig one, but contained a dairy cookie for dessert! Following my stay, I gave the hospital a call to let them know that they were erroneously serving dairy with meat! They profusely apologized and assured me that the problem would be rectified. Well, it’s now three years later, and b”h I gave birth to another child at the hospital. And guess what? A full three years after my first stay, I once again got the exact same fleishig dinner with the same dairy cookie!