Lakewood, NJ – It was a very short stint on the Jackson zoning board for one area resident, who served as an alternate for just eight days before resigning abruptly from the board.
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Larry Schuster announced his resignation on the Jackson Hot Topics Facebook page on Wednesday night, saying that his parental obligations to his minor daughter from a previous marriage prevented him from taking part in the meetings, which are held on Wednesday nights.
But according to the Asbury Park Press (http://on.app.com/2xTzgv3), Schuster’s resignation came just hours before board members and the media received copies of negative and sometimes crude comments that Schuster had made about Orthodox Jews on social media.
In a second Facebook post written tonight, Schuster defended his previous comments, acknowledging that before being voted to the board he had “commented on many of wrong doings by locals.”
The 49 year old Schuster wrote that his posts consisted of pictures that were available in the public domain, enhanced with “words or phrases” of his own.
“One religion was never singled out in any post of mine as I commented or posted on facts. If you anyone is so self absorbed that you feel this is directly attracted on a particular religion, race or creed, please know that you are flattering yourself and all I have to say is DEEZ NUTS.”
Schuster’s post was accompanied by several photos, one of which had a picture of several Lakewood women arrested in last spring’s fraudulent benefits sweep and labeled “House wives of Lakewood. Free health care social security and food stamps.” Two separate pictures, one of an obviously Jewish bearded man working on the eruv, and another featuring a picture of a smiling priest, both bore crude captions.
Informed by one Facebook poster that The Lakewood Scoop had written a story about his resignation, Schuster responded “Lakewood scoop can kiss my (obscenity), I don’t live in Lakewood and never have. If any resident of Lakewood in general is offended by Jackson news then close your eyes cupcakes and move along as it doesn’t pertain to you.”
Schuster had been the administrator of the closed Jackson NJ Uncensored Facebook group, where many of his comments appeared, until this morning. His wife, Amy, is currently listed as the administrator of the group whose description bears a disclaimer saying that all opinions and comments are “made in jest.”
Schuster insisted that his resignation was completely unrelated to his Facebook posts, which he said were also taken out of context.
“I didn’t know this was an issue,” said Schuster, co-owner of the Tom’s River Schuster’s Car Wash. “I heard nothing about this for a week until after I resigned.”
The Jackson zoning board has found itself in the media spotlight on several occasions in recent weeks. Board member Anthony Marano, who Schuster had been named to replace, was arrested in September on child pornography charges, meeting officers at his house with a gun. Former board member James Burrows also made news last month when he called for Lakewood Senator Robert Singer to leave his position or “to do the honorable thing and DIE!”
“This September 10 being suicide awareness day I implore senator Singer to step up and commit suicide,” wrote Burrows on Facebook. “He is nothing but the byproduct of a human body eating matzoh and gafelta [sic] fish.”
Burrows continued his tirade by calling for Ocean County Republican George Gilman, Ocean County’s republican chairman, to kill himself, ending his rant with a message to Lakewood residents reading “pay you far [sic] share you filthy (obscenity) cockroaches!”
Ironically, the same meeting that saw Schuster named to the zoning board also had one councilman calling for better screening of all applicants for township boards positions. No background checks were performed on Schuster or Jackson resident Scott Najarian before both men were given spots on the zoning board.
This guy is an anti semite. However, I do understand Jackosn and Toms River frustration.
How many of us would be happy if tons of African americans or Latinos moved into out neighborhood, development etc…?
Yes the overwhelming majorty of frum jews are honest and curtious. However, we are different and thats a fact . People choose to live in suburban neighborhoods for its quite serine settings and close nit community. When frum jews move in that all changes.
Just imagine you are a toms river goy with two kids and a dog. For the past few years, you go to your local park, there are two or 3 other families each with 2/3 kids. Everyone plays with each other and there is ample space for everyone. Then over the past 6 months 10 frum familes moved in to your neighboorhood. They all have children BH ken yirbu. And they average 5/6 children. Now you come to your local park, there are 40 children instead of 10. The jewish children won’t play with your child. And now your child needs to wait her turn for the swing ( could be a half hour), can’t run around freely on the slides since there are 30 other kids running up the slide the wrong way of course and just hanging around.
Part 1
Part 2
Scenario 2,
Now Imagine , you live in a suburban town, some families have children some are older, and don’t have some just have a dog, etc… A typical morning has a few school buses on the road but no major traffic jam. After all everyone goes to the same school and there are only a minimum amount of children. So you can go on errands, to the gym, to work etc… fairly easily and navigate around town. Now all of a sudden, 50 jewish familes move in.Everone of them has children kain eyn hara , kein yirbu. They have girls and boys. They each have 5/6 children not two children. They send to 20 differnet mosdos. Now school buses in your neighborhood increased 20 fold. You feel like you are in NYC and can’t get anywhere in the morning.
I want to be clear in both scenarios, us frum yidden are doing nothing wrong. We are law abiding, pay our taxes etc…. But understand that its extremely annoying to our neighbors. Whats the solution? I don’t know . But I get their concerns and often don’t think its anti semetic. In fact I hate when the park is crowded and my kid cries she wants that swing too.