Lakewood Bus Scam

Nigritude Ultramarine points out a scheme by Lakewood haredim to replace non-Jewish bus drivers (paid with government funds) to all haredi bus drivers. These haredi drivers will be paid with government money, as well, but haredim will also supplement the "frum" drivers' salaries by charging each family a certain amount of money per pupil. These extra funds will be laundered through the haredi schools and given to the haredi drivers.

Is this legal? Ethical? Good? As Lakewood Kollel Wife notes:

…The main organizer of this effort (I forgot his name, but ISTR that he is the eidem of R' Zimbal from Westgate) estimated that it would cost $5-$10 per child per month. I imagine that this is probably a typical low ball estimate, but haven't done any calculation myself. But in any event, for a large family it could easily work out to $500-$1,000 per year.

In addition to the costs involved, I don't see how this can be legally done. Even if it can, you can only imagine what the reaction of the average goy will be when he finds out (and like everything else, he will find out) that Jewish drivers are getting special subsidies that non-Jewish ones don't get, and to ensure that Jewish kids don't have to come into contact with non-Jews.

And note that the township busing is already a very hot topic to begin with.

People like to complain about anti-Semitism, and I'm sure when the inevitable fuss is made over this people will be all innocent. Eisav sonei l'Yaacov, yeah, that's what it is ...

I say a resounding "no" to all three. It is illegal, unethical and decidedly bad.

 

Comments

[ed]

Shmarya, how will you feel when this happens to you (from a commenter on kollel wife):

"My daughter came home one day a few months ago talking all about Jesus and the Virgin Mary...
It seems her driver had been spreading the gospel during her 45 minute ride home every night."

Huh????

[Shmarya]

Drivers who do that get fired, ed. And we do not paskin from the rare exceptions – we paskin from common occurance, and, I assure you, proseletizing bus drivers are not common.

[ed]

>Drivers who do that get fired, ed.

Thanks for admitting that REAL problems exist.

>And we do not paskin from the rare exceptions we paskin from common occurance, and, I assure you, proseletizing bus drivers are not common.

That's ONE EXAMPLE. There are many others.

[Shmarya]

Thanks for being insane, ed.

[ed]

Insane? You're the one whose cracked.

[chief doofis]

Let's get real. We all went to Yeshiva, boys, girls, adults, etc. We all had bus drivers. Some were good, some were bad. I remember two drivers who drove our bus in the 1960's. Neither was a good, or a bad, role model.

It's time these micro managers stopped worrying about EVERY darn factor in their lives. Exactly how much leg is showing, exactly how much of this , that , etc.

Who sees my child, who drives him/her. Exactly which books are o.k.

Most things that happen to us have no effect on us. If a driver talks about Jesus, and your child gets suckered into Christianity by a BUS DRIVER, then neither you nor his school can really have been effective!!

[Nigritude Ultramarine]

Thanks for being insane, ed.

Good ol' ed. Still crazy after all these years.