Letter of endorsement by Harav Eliyohu Levin shlita calling on everyone to support the efforts of R' Aaron Lang to bring tax relief and a fixed funding formula to Lakewood The only way to achieve success for the Lakewood taxpayers is by R’ Ahron working with the Lakewood Board of Education. Avrohom Schubert, Eli Eisenbach, and Yoni Morgenstern have volunteered to run for the BOE and give full political support to his lawsuit, (which has already won in the Appellate Division, the second highest court in the state).
Asditional Letter below by Lakewood talmidei chachomim in support of R' Aaron Lang and to vote for the selected endorsed candidates
Many people, particularly those officially on the company payroll are convinced this is right but cannot publicly go against corporate leadership. Similarly, many other rabbanon in the know are aware of the problem , the incredulous opposition of the BOE, and the fifth column working with the governor to undermine our achdus on this most important issue. These rabbanon will speak off the record. ITK
ReplyDeleteTo me this looks like a mIchtav Brocho and not an endorsement to be honest
ReplyDeleteI guess you can say the same for Avigdor Shnall letter
Delete"ולזה אנו קוראים להציבור לתמוך בנציגיו בבחירות הבאות"
Delete^^^ The final words of the kol korei.
(Besides for the big red circle on the english letter)
Reb Eliyahu is giving us a message.
DeleteSupport Reb Aaron Lang because of the many years of learning he did. He is a Ben Torah and understands what we need. He can be trusted to do the right thing, and not chase his own interests against those of the Tzibur, and he will not use the Tzibur's vote against them. Because he learned Torah, unlike his detractors.
This message transcends this election cycle. It is a message to all of us to whom to turn for askanus. If he didn't spend years learning, he is unlikely to be of any use.
well put!
DeleteBeing touht from childhood On the importance of listening to daas torah I Would assume that everyone will everyone will follow the dictates of Rabbi levin shlitah. Or is daas torah Also Subject to party lines
ReplyDeleteThis is A very important letter !
ReplyDeleteRead it carefully. It’s valuable
This letter will unlikely get anyone to vote for these candidates, and will at most cause people to stay home, not wanting to pick a side. If turnout is low, Schnall will lose, while the local incumbents will win.
ReplyDeleteOK It's your loss, not mine. So the governor will be able to delay the matter from getting back to Court until 2025 when the debt will be $500 million, which means we pay back $50 million a year (that is what the statute says and we have been paying 10% a year), unless the Court agrees to hear our motion in aid of litigants' rights that we filed two days ago. Eventually we will get into court and win. But by then, the next governor is going to have a disaster on his hands when the SFRA, IY"H, is ruled unconstitutional as applied to Lakewood. When that happens, state aid will be litigated by 100 other districts. But who cares, the governor will be in the US Senate by then, he will have succeeded in turning Ocean County partly blue, Lakewood will have its $5 million or less voucher program which of course, 75% will likely be reserved for school choice, meaning public school kids. Boy, Murphy really did strike a bargain with Lakewood!
DeleteOn the other hand, if I lose, and the debt keeps on climbing, eventually the legislature is going to tell us to pony up. It can authorize unlimited tax increases, using budgetary footnote language such as, "Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary," for "districts that owe over $100 million in debt." (The NJ Constitution prohibits making laws specifically targeting a single township.) Of course, it won't be like they forced Lakewood to pay more taxes, just like in Jersey City, where they removed the 2% tax increase cap, and authorized a payroll tax, but we have a state monitor that has to remain in Lakewood until all the debt is paid, and he has the statutory power to raise taxes to the full extent of the law. So authorization a tax increase is the same as forcing it.
Really, I get why voters won't care and will stay home. After all, our tax levy is only $110 million a year and the state says we are wealthy and don't tax high enough. So what's another $100 million a year? Maybe the state is right. So stay home.
After all, aren't we borrowing $93 million just this year alone and supposedly it is because, as the state has been claiming for two decades, our own BOE mismanagement and incompetence. (We have had state monitors for a decade so how can that be true?) As long as we get $1.2 million in vouchers. That would take care of the tuition of 120 or so kids! Big money!
(The numbers are just guesses but don't think for a second that the legislature will allocate $500 million for private schools in Lakewood when the public schools are borrowing about $100 million a year, funding public schools are a constitutional duty of the legislature, and public schools have BROAD support across the state. NJ schools are the second best in the country and every member of the legislature and public will know that any voucher program proposed by the governor would be political gift to Lakewood since we have 1/3 of all nonpublic kids in the state.)
So why shouldn't people stay home and not vote? If you care about the public schools, they will get the money either way. They would have anyway gotten the money by way of loans and encumbrances on the people of Lakewood if we had not litigated; or they can get the money by way of regular formulaic state aid if we win.
So go ahead and stay home. After all, isn't am State Assembly seat more vastly more important than a puny, do-nothing, BOE seat? We can just be confident that our legislative delegation and community leaders jumped at the opportunity and reached out to Senators Ruiz and Sarlo, the Democratic leadership, when they told the Commissioner after our victory that they were ready to fund Lakewood, "You can lean on us."
Aaron Lang
BTW What is the other side? I have not understood that for many years. I don't even know if the other side knows what's on the agenda each BOE meeting. There is no other side. If there was, they would explain what they stand for, what they oppose, and why. It's not just now, but for the last several years, the BOE has had no input into any policy decisions, helping people, bussing routes, or anything that I know of. They are essentially doing nothing, all the while so much is happening.
DeleteTo be clear, in the last paragraph, I don't think anyone involved in Lakewood politics followed up on the Senate hearings when the Commissioner testified about the Lakewood case. The video is easily accessible online and I told everyone about it. The Commissioner said then that she did not know who would represent her. Guess what? She still doesn't have a lawyer (I guess now she does by now because someone is going to have to respond to the motion), as we make clear in our recent motion. The state's game is so pashut. It doesn't hesitate to reach down into its bottomless bag of tricks to delay complying with the court order. We still copy the two Senators on some of our letters to the Commissioner, though. It just seems to me that the legislature is anticipating some kind of action when we are done. Of course, and I think necessarily due to the nature of litigation and due process, they are not going to talk to the lawyers fighting on behalf of Lakewood children against the governor until we reach some kind of settlement with him or win in the Supreme Court.
DeleteLink to video of Budget and Appropriations Committee questioning the Commissioner about our court victory:
https://twitter.com/lakewoodlawNJ/status/1717765089644659108
A L
https://www.faanews.com/2023/10/r-yudel-shain-throws-full-support-on.html
ReplyDeleteI just spoke with Rabbi Eisemann, and he confirms that he did NOT repeat, did NOT sign this letter
ReplyDeleteSheker!
DeleteI saw him sign it.
It may be a different person with the same last name. There are a number of Eisemann's in Lakewood.
DeleteAre you saying Rav Meir Eiseman did not sign it? He is the oldest brother, the one still learning in Yeshiva.
DeleteNo Shame ?? PS if you sell your soul make sure the price is right....
DeleteIt is truly strange to see these kinds of comments.
DeleteNobody who knows Reb Aaron, even his greatest detractor, would suspect him of forging a signature. And if someone is forging a signature, Reb Meir Eiseman's is not the one to forge.
It is obvious that nobody spoke to Reb Meir, and he never denied signing it. Some troll is trying to stir up trouble, ignoring the fact that there are real human beings behind this sign. Reb Meir Eisemann is a person, he isn't a bot, you have no right to hurt him with lies like this.
When we see the lengths people will go to discredit Reb Aaron, we can see how much success he is having. We all gain if he wins, not just some special interests. He is the real thing, go out and vote for 'Fixing the Formula'
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ReplyDeleteAaron Lang deserves the Nobel Peace prize for his efforts. He saw the storm brewing. He knew we borrowed hundreds of millions and just keep kicking the can down the road. He knows what will happen when the town needs to repay these millions. Many of us will be priced out of our homes when taxes need to cover these loans. On the Township Committee I will provide Aaron Lang with any support he may need.
ReplyDeleteRav Meir Wiseman learns every day in Rav Eliyahu's kollel. Rav Eliyahu is his Rav. I saw him sign.
ReplyDeleteI saw Rav lEiseman sign shame on u
ReplyDeleteRav Eliyhaou does not sign the daily shtusim going around Lakewood unlike many I will not mention. He always tells me tzurich chakira. If he investigated and signed 👍. He is Dass Torah.
ReplyDeleteRav Meir Eiseman signed it
ReplyDelete