On a previous post, I received two comments asking me to write about Ezra Friedlander. One had more details, and I will post the entire comment here.
Community observerMarch 14, 2013 at 4:43 PM
Thanks for your noble efforts.
I don't see why you are giving Ezra Friedlander a free ride here. Who recently escorted Quinn when she went to Williamsburg last week to the shiva house after the Glauber deaths? Who came up with a 'Tu Bishvat seder' with Quinn at his house in Boro Park about six weeks ago? Who worked for David Weprin in a special election after he claimed that it was okay for an orthodox Jew to support gay marriage? Who wrote a widely publicized op-ed that moral values should not determine who orthodox Jews support? Ezra Friedlander. As the son of Chasidic Rebbe, one would think he would know better.
You should be focusing on Freidlander here.
Re censorship of comments at VIN - that is true. Also, try posting something there against Friedlander and see how far you get. He is well connected there. Time to shine a spotlight on him and his practices.
(Excerpt from Crains Insider:)
I don't see why you are giving Ezra Friedlander a free ride here. Who recently escorted Quinn when she went to Williamsburg last week to the shiva house after the Glauber deaths? Who came up with a 'Tu Bishvat seder' with Quinn at his house in Boro Park about six weeks ago? Who worked for David Weprin in a special election after he claimed that it was okay for an orthodox Jew to support gay marriage? Who wrote a widely publicized op-ed that moral values should not determine who orthodox Jews support? Ezra Friedlander. As the son of Chasidic Rebbe, one would think he would know better.
You should be focusing on Freidlander here.
Re censorship of comments at VIN - that is true. Also, try posting something there against Friedlander and see how far you get. He is well connected there. Time to shine a spotlight on him and his practices.
(Excerpt from Crains Insider:)
Friedlander got a free ride because Yidel Perlstein took his own "Bais Yaakov" girls and allowed them to touch someone who is sexually attracted to females. He may hold it is perfectly fine for his daughters to have sex with other girls. Perhaps his daughters will marry women in the future. I don't give a damn.
Did Friedlander take his daughters for a photo op? No. He convinced Perlstein to take the photo. Friedlander is OK with hurting other peoples children, but Perlstein as a father is willing to hurt his own children. Perlstein gets the award as biggest retard dad in NYC.
There is nothing wrong with taking a lesbian to visit a shiva house.
I wasn't going to cover old news, but a look at his website tells me that Friedlander is not just a hypocrite, he is a complete idiot. Who posts on your "professional website" contradicting statements on the same webpage?
(Excerpt from City Hall News:)
Ezra Friedlander, the firm’s CEO, said Orthodox voters would ultimately support Weprin because of his track record on other issues. Friedlander cited everything from Weprin’s strong stance against the Department of Health’s efforts to ban certain circumcision rites, to the fact Weprin once came under rocket attack in Israel while delivering bulletproof vests, to his extensive efforts to fight autism.
“David Weprin is better qualified to represent this community than probably anyone who has ever run for Congress,” Friedlander said. “Of course you’re not going to see eye-to-eye on every single issue. But if you look at the totality, it’s not even a race.”
It's Gay Marriage, Stupid
It was Assemblyman David Weprin's vote for same-sex marriage—not Ed Koch's support for Bob Turner in protest of President Barack Obama's treatment of Israel—that galvanized Orthodox Jews to vote for Turner in last week's congressional election, said consultant Ezra Friedlander. “Gay marriage was the red meat,” said Friedlander, who worked for the Weprin campaign on the Jewish vote. “Israel was just a side dish, a good dessert.” The irony: The credit for Weprin's defeat accrued to Koch, whom Orthodox Jews once vilified for banning organizations with city contracts from discriminating against gays.
Friedlander is a moron.
If you wish to contact me with any tips, stories, or blogs, please e-mail me at unorthodoxyidden@gmail.com. I am only interested in the hypocrisy of Orthodox Jews.
"Did Friedlander take his daughters for a photo op?"
ReplyDeleteHow do you know he has daughters?
A very important thing that needs to be mentioned with regard to Ezra Friedlander, when examining how he operates and what gives him whatever power and influence he may or may not have, is his close connection to and involvement with Zev Brenner of Talkline Communications.
Talkine describes itself as America's largest Jewish radio program. Friedlander is Zev's producer. So Friedlander has a big influence by being able to dangle in front of politicians the prospect of being able to reach, thousands, tens of thousands, or more (I have heard higher numbers, however how true they are I don't know) of people in the Jewish community. Zev gives him airtime personally, and Friedlander's clients, such as Shema Koleinu and others, also come on the air on Talkline radio to promote themselves. Talkline and Friedlander are closely connected with the controversial Vos Iz Neias website. When there was a ban placed on it a few years ago, Talkline was in the forefront of fighting against it. Also, Talkline ads flash at the Vos Iz Neias site frequently. Additionally, Vos Iz Neias not infrequently features audio and reports from Talkine programs. So obviously there is a close connection there.
Talkline's power has declined in recent years, as old media in general, with the rise of the internet, blogs, internet radio and so on. It used to be on the radio for many more hours per week. Things are significantly down now from their peak in that sense, however they still are a force to be reckoned with.
Re Friedlander and Quinn - perhaps we will see in info put out by the NYC campaign finance board in the future that Quinn has hired Friedlander. Close ties are already evident.
Friedlander would work for Hitler if he was paid enough money. Would you like to join this blog as a blog contributor? I can send you the info if you e-mail me.
ReplyDeleteWe should be careful of not going overboard in attacking, as it could hurt credibility. The fellow is not all bad. Even a broken clock is right two times a day, they say.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, another interesting thing about Ezra Friedlander, the Hasidic politico, is the steps he has taken recently to try to improve his image. For example, he now calls his business a grandiose sounding name, The Friedlander Group. That is a kind of name usually used for a giant conglomerate or something like that, that owns a number of businesses or companies. That is the meaning of group. If you have just a single, small business, where is the group? But using such a name can fool some people and make them think that you are bigger and more powerful than you actually are. In the same vein, he is now using the title of CEO. Now if you have a big company you have titles like that. CEO, CFO, COO. There are various types and layers of employees and management, that are overseen by different people and departments, so such titles re in order. If you have a business of maybe 2-3 people, however, those titles can be, shall we say, out of place and misleading. They make it sound like you have a big operation, when you don't. He has also got help and really jazzed up his website.
So this gives you an idea of how Friedlander operates. Of course, he is in the PR business, that is understood. But people should know if and how they are being fooled, and know what they are dealing with. Not a giant outfit, it is just a small business.
Another point is, going back to a previous post, that at least Perlstein was elected, one way or another, to represent an area. Who elected Friedlander to anything? By what authority does he speak for Orthodox and Hasidic Jews, in Washington or elsewhere? By authority of his imagination? People should know that. He was not elected to represent the Jewish community and should be treated as a self appointed 'representative'.
Come Back, Ezra!—“Chazor Boch!”
ReplyDeleteEzra Friedlander: You Have Crossed a “Red Line,”
and You Have Become a Problem for the Orthodox Jewish Community
by Rabbi William Handler
Ezra, we go back many, many years.
I remember you as a restless bochur—not really “off-the-derech”—just a restless boy who got involved with New York City politicians out of sheer boredom with yeshiva.
As you may recall, I was always worried for you. I liked you--you are a Rebbeshe Einikel (Liska), with a sweet personality—and I urged you, whenever we met, to normalize your life, get married and start a family—“Tachlis.”
Well, I don’t know if was my influence that did it, but you did get married, and you parlayed your connections and influence with the prominent public officials in New York City into a successful public relations business—“The Friedlander Group.”
So far, so good.
You promoted yourself to prominent organizations in the Orthodox Jewish community—Agudas Yisroel, HASC, COJO--as a well-connected political “Maven,” who could reach out to the top political leaders in New York and be an advocate for the Orthodox Jewish community.
Very good, indeed!
But, along the way, something happened. You forgot who you are, and where you belong—You switched sides!
Instead of being an advocate for the Orthodox community to the political leaders, you were seduced by the power and the glory and the glamour of political life, to become an advocate for the politicians to the Jewish community.
And that makes all the world of difference, both for you personally, and for the Orthodox Jewish community.
You are now bringing the Pagan Avodah Zorah into the heart of our communities, kashering the people who are determined to undermine all religion and all the traditional standards of decency, including ours.
Since when do Orthodox Jews celebrate Tu-Bisevat with advocates of Gay Marriage, as you celebrated with Christine Quinn in your home, making a parody of a holy occasion?
Since it is so obvious to anyone who looks at you that you are a Hasidic “Rabbi,” don’t you realize that you have a special responsibility to represent Hasidic Jews in a way that brings honor to our community?
Don’t you think it is a Chilul Hashem—a disgrace of our Torah—for such an obviously religious Jew to be hobnobbing and advocating for someone who most religious gentiles consider to be an extreme opponent of the most elementary Biblical value—the sacredness of the marriage bond.
Did you ask an Halachic Shaila from a competent Rav before you made this drastic move? Did you ask your father, the Lisker Rebbe?
So, Quinn has pledged to throw some money at our community. Do we sell our souls for a few Shekels? Do we have the right to strike a Faustian bargain at the expense of Chilul Hashem—the desecration of G-D’s name, and the desecration of the name of His people among the nations of the world?
Ezra, for the sake of your eternal soul, and for the sake of our Orthodox Jewish community, I believe that you have an obligation to resign immediately from the Quinn campaign.
Ezra: You don’t belong there--and neither do we!