Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Rosh (55.9) No one's view - not even Rashi's - is automatically accepted

from Daas Torah - translation copyrighted

Rosh (55.9): You wrote that because of the perfection of the distinguished scholar Rabbi Yaakov ben Shushon no one would think to question his views and reject his explanation. That is not a reason for not disagreeing with an authority. Who is greater than Rashi who illuminated our eyes in the darkness of exile with his commentaries and yet his own descendants Rabbeinu Tam and Ri disagreed with him concerning many issues and rejected his words. That is because it is the Torah of truth and we submit to no man because of his status and authority. And this that you said he was perfected in reasoning or language – it doesn’t matter because Yiftach in his generation is like Shmuel in his (Rosh HaShanna 25b)… Furthermore the Gaonim (Seder Tanaym and Amoraim #25) have said that from Abaye and Rava the halacha follows the more recent authority – not the previous ones…

High medical costs:Surgeons get kickbacks for spinal fusion surgery


Wall Street Journal

A Portland, Ore., neurosurgeon who performed multiple spinal fusions on the same patients lost his operating privileges at the hospital where he did many of his surgeries and is under investigation by the Oregon Medical Board.

The latest developments came as new information emerged about the medical-device distributorship that supplies Dr. Makker with spinal implants. The distributor, Omega Solutions of Fresno, Calif., sometimes pays surgeons to use its products, according to a document reviewed by the Journal that Omega recently sent to surgeons it sought to recruit.

The document says that the company enters into partnerships with surgeons who agree to use its products and pays them "dividends" based on the number of surgeries they perform. Critics say such arrangements are controversial because they can skew medical decision-making.

The document details the cash payments made to one of Omega's partners, an unnamed spine surgeon in Los Angeles. From Jan. 1, 2009, to May 19, 2010, the surgeon received a total of $519,674.35 based on his use of Omega implants in two to three surgeries a week, the document says.

Rabbi accused of bribing witness to testify against Baruch Liebovitz


NBC

A Brooklyn rabbi is under arrest and facing charges of bribery and witness tampering for allegedly paying an individual to accuse another rabbi of sexual abuse.

Sources tell NBC New York that Samuel Kellner was arrested Tuesday night. The Brooklyn district attorney has scheduled a news conference but has declined comment ahead of the announcement.

Kellner is accused of paying a witness to say he was abused by Rabbi Baruch Lebovits, who was sentenced a year ago to 32 years in prison after he was convicted of child molestation. [...]

JBAC protests against conference on "Molestation Issues"

Sunday, May 15, 2011, Jewish Board of Advocates for Children will
protest at the Brooklyn Marriott, while Aguda Rabbis Chaim Dovid Zwiebel
and Shlomo Gottesman are publicly speaking to 500 orthodox professionals
on, "Molestation Issues and Reporting: Halachic and Legal Overview." The
source of the problem will pontificate about the problem. What a cruel
farce and hoax! There will be no experienced prosecutor, lawyer,
therapist, child advocate, nor recognized rabbi-posek who will speak.
The cover-up and obfuscation continue. And so will the protest. Its an
outrage.

Rabbis Sound an Alarm Over Eating Disorders


NYTimes

n the large and growing Orthodox Jewish communities around New York and elsewhere, rabbinic leaders are sounding an alarm about an unexpected problem: a wave of anorexia and other eating disorders among teenage girls.

While no one knows whether such disorders are more prevalent among Orthodox Jews than in society at large, they may be more baffling to outsiders. Orthodox women are famously expected to dress modestly, yet matchmakers feel no qualms in asking about a prospective bride’s dress size — and her mother’s — and the preferred answer is 0 to 4, extra small.

Rabbis say the problem is especially hard to treat because of the shame that has long surrounded mental illness among Orthodox Jews.

“There is an amazing stigma attached to eating disorders — this is the real problem,” said Rabbi Saul Zucker, educational director for the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, or O.U., the organization that issues the all-important kashrut stamp for food. “But hiding it is not going to make it go away. If we don’t confront it, it’s going to get worse.”  [...]

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Rabbi indicted for sexual assault


YNET

An indictment was filed Tuesday by the Jerusalem District Prosecutor's Office against a well-known rabbi accused of sodomizing and performing an indecent act on his friend's wife who was seeking his professional counseling.

According to the indictment, the defendant, a counselor for young couples and a rabbi at a girls seminary, was approached early last month by a haredi couple - his student and good friend and his wife - for counseling on family matters. [...]


Call Police: Don't call your rabbi when faced with immediate possible life threatening situations


the Shul Bomber was recently captured by the FBI. The person who discovered him and was aware that he was the bombing suspect - first called his rabbi to see whether it was permitted. This is sheer idiocy. When there is even a suspected life threatening situation you must call the police immediately!


ABC News

"Today, I happened to be on the Jewish website 'Vos Iz Neias,'" the rabbi added. "I saw the facial features, although he shaved off part of his beard. First thing I did was call my local rabbi to see if I could report him. He said, 'If he is a danger to society, you have to report him.' I called the FBI in Santa Monica. They asked me to call the Cleveland Heights police. They came to synagogue, and he was sitting right in the back."