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West Bloomfield Primary
Jewish Libertarian
Running For Congress
Jewish organizations sponsoring a
candidate forum for Michigan's 14th
Congressional District won't let the only
Jewish candidate speak.
I'm the Libertarian Party candidate and
the only Jewish candidate for that office.
My website is www.LeonardSchwartz.us .
They invited the Republican candidate
to speak even though he is running unop-
posed in the August primary. Their refusal
to let me speak is unfair.
The Libertarian Party is America's most
Jewish-friendly political party. On the
ballot for only 40 years, it had a Jewish
candidate for president once and Jewish
candidates for vice president 4 times.
Leonard Schwartz
Oak Park
Correction
• In the sidebar to the "Taking Back The
Capitol" story last week (page 12), the
headline was incorrect in stating that all
the Republican politicians interviewed
were Jewish. State Rep. Marty Knollenberg,
a candidate for Oakland County treasurer,
is not Jewish.
Yad Ezra Sponsors
Greeting Card Contest
For all children up to the age of 15 who
are looking to tap into their creative side,
Yad Ezra is sponsoring its annual Rosh
Hashanah Greeting Card Contest.
Participants are divided into four
separate age categories and must submit
original designs that incorporate themes
of Rosh Hashanah. The artists should use
8x10 paper and mail their illustrations
to Yad Ezra (2850 W. 11 Mile, Berkley, MI
48072) by July 26.
The winning designs will be printed
onto greeting cards, and Yad Ezra will
then sell those greeting cards in time for
the holidays. For information, contact Yad
Ezra at (248) 548-3663, or C.J. at cjapel@
yadezra.org .
JCC Set To Host
'Wallenberg' Author
The Jewish Community Center of
Metropolitan Detroit's Institute for Retired
Professionals (IRP) and Seminars for
Adult Jewish Enrichment (SAJE) will host
Morris Wolff, international attorney and
author of The Life and Goodness of Raoul
Wallenberg: Newly Discovered Facts, at 7:30
p.m. Wednesday, Aug. I, at the JCC, 6600
West Maple Road in West Bloomfield.
Wolff, former chief district attorney
for Philadelphia, is a recipient of the
1993 United Nations Peace Award for
Humanitarian Services. Following a
request from Raoul Wallenberg's half-
W
est Bloomfield Township
board Democratic primary
candidates Larry Brown,
Cathy Shaughnessy and Jonathan
Warshay took issue with a few items
in the JN's candidate roundup "Heated
Race" about the township election in last
week's issue.
Township clerk Shaughnessy says that
she and township supervisor Michele
Economou Ureste are not "foes:' as their
relationship was depicted in the article.
Regarding a legal matter, the IN story
stated that Economou Ureste and trustee
Steve Kaplan sued the township and
Shaughnessy and trustees Larry Brown,
Howard Rosenberg and Gene Farber over
the keeping of closed session minutes.
The lawsuit was brought on the following
four issues:
• whether the supervisor had the sole
power to nominate a police chief;
• whether the supervisor had the sole
power to fire a department head;
• whether the three-person labor
committee (trustees Farber, Brown and
Rosenberg) created by the board in 2009
to handle contract negotiations was
legal;
• whether trustee Larry Brown could
legally defer the income from his trustee
stipend ($125 per meeting) to a town-
ship benevolent fund established to help
needy residents pay water bills.
Economou Ureste and Kaplan lost
on all issues in Oakland County Circuit
Court and the decision was affirmed by
the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Also in the JN story, in the section
profiling township supervisor candidate
Jonathan Warshay, it quoted him saying
his opponent, the incumbent Economou
Ureste,"shouldn't be involved in suing
other board members."
brother Guy von Dardel, Wolff sued the
former Soviet Union for the release of the
Swedish diplomat, who saved thousands
of Jews during World War II.
There is no charge for IRP members; for
advance reservations, call the IRP office at
(248) 967-4030, or email irp@jccdet.org .
The cost for non-IRP members is $6.
For advance tickets, call the Berman box
office at (248) 661-1900 or visit
www.theberman.org .
Tickets also will be available at the door.
Jewish Environmental
Initiative Is Formed
The Nathan Cummings Foundation
and the Morningstar Foundation have
The story then quoted Economou
Ureste saying the suit was necessary
because four board members were "mis-
using public taxpayer funds."
Warshay responds that the only
"funds" in question were the $125-per-
meeting stipends designated for trustee
Brown, which he deferred receiving,
and that the circuit and appellate courts
ruled that no laws had been violated by
Brown or the other three board mem-
bers.
In another point involving legal pro-
ceedings, the JN story stated that trustee
Brown "sued his colleagues twice, includ-
ing Economou Ureste for slander; the
case was later dismissed in court." Brown
did sue Economou Ureste for slander and
the case was later dismissed, however,
the second lawsuit he filed was against
the West Bloomfield Police Department
for refusing to comply with a Freedom of
Information Act request. The requested
information was provided to Brown
before the case went to court.
Also, the IN story said that Brown
"admitted to having a business relation-
ship with Richfield:' the township's single
waste-hauling company. Brown said this
was incorrect. Brown said that to avoid
the appearance of any impropriety, he
disclosed that he had an unconnected
business relationship with Dan Garmin,
who did some public relations consulting
for Richfield. Brown says he did not con-
duct any business with Richfield, nor did
he stand to profit from the township's
contract with Richfield.
On another matter, treasurer can-
didate Gene Farber is running on the
Democratic Party primary ballot. He in
not running on the ballot as an "inde-
pendent" as the story may have implied
at one point. E
awarded the Green Hevra, a new network
of U.S.-based Jewish environmental
organizations, $65,000 in seed funding.
With these funds, the group will lay the
groundwork for strategic collaboration
across the Jewish environmental move-
ment in 2012.
"We believe that the global sustain-
ability challenge is analogous to the civil
rights campaigns of an earlier time," said
Sybil Sanchez, director of the Coalition
on the Environment and Jewish Life, the
organization charged with administering
the group.
The day after Earth Day, the Green
Hevra gathered to identify strategic
opportunities.
Ask Attorney
Ken Gross
about..
Your
inancial
Issues
Yes, but more
importantly, the
IRS, on May 21st,
announced major
changes to the Offer in
Compromise Rules. At long
last, these changes make it far
more possible to compromise
tax than under the old
law In fact, the old Offer
in Compromise laws were
frequently misused by many
of the "tax relief firms" that
promised gold and delivered
chop liver. The new changes
are important and if you have
lingering tax debt, you should
see if you qualify for this
program. Even if you don't,
we can work out reasonable
installment payment plans
that are affordable.
THAV GROSS has been
solving its clients' business,
tax and financial problems
for 30 years. Be sure to tune
in to the Financial Crisis Talk
Center, Saturdays at 10 AM
on the New Talk Radio 1270
WXYT AM.
We are unique — catch the radio show
& visit our websites to see why!
0 THAV GROSS
888.235.4357 (11E1 P) or
248.645.1700
For irtformation, visit us °ohne at
thavgross.com - felaikeenter.earn
30150 Telegraph. Suiie 444
Bingham Farms, MI 48025
We'rea pevager debt relief age. y hetAug ftetV/k itte fix-iiarekrt
Prt-
tion
174;1980
July 5 « 2012
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