Nelson Marans
Silver Spring, MD
Facts, Not Innuendo
Isaac Kohn’s wry takedown of President Obama perfectly conveyed the pickle we’re all in with such a feckless “leader” in the White House (“No Strategy, No Clue,” op-ed, Sept. 19).
Although I’m a political conservative, I don’t subscribe to the off-the-wall rants one finds on all too many right-wing blogs about Obama not being an American and/or being a secret Muslim. In fact, such nonsense, long discredited, only makes those who purvey it look ignorant and hysterical in the eyes of most intelligent people and obscures the very real arguments one can bring against this administration.
I’ve always appreciated your newspaper’s refusal to stoop to name-calling and innuendo in your criticism of Obama. Your editorial writers, op-ed contributors, and regular columnists have plenty to say about Obama – most of it uncomplimentary – but based on facts, not on inane conspiracy theories peddled by many of the same people who see Jews behind every world problem
Jeffrey Schwartz
(Via E-Mail)
Obama After The Midterms
Your Sept. 12 editorial “A President Who Governs Unilaterally – and the Implications” expressed justified concern as to “how much pressure a largely unrestrained President Obama would exert on Israel in order to get it to go along with U.S. wishes.”
Despite the upcoming midterm elections, Obama in recent months blamed Israel for the end of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations; pressured Israel to refrain from defeating Hamas in the Gaza war; held back delivery of Hellfire missiles; and continued sending $500-million annually to the Palestinian Authority even though some of that money is paid to imprisoned Palestinian terrorists.
Obama has never even asked the PA to stop naming streets and parks after terrorists who have killed Americans (such as Dalal Mughrabi, the murderer of Gail Rubin, the niece of the late U.S. senator Abraham Ribicoff).
If this is how Obama has treated Israel before the midterm elections, there is good reason to fear that the situation will worsen once those elections are over.
American Jewish and Christian friends of Israel need to prepare now for what are likely to be tense times ahead. Minor differences of opinion and the narrow interests of individual organizations must be set aside in order to focus on helping Israel in its hour of need.
Moshe Phillips
Benyamin Korn
Members of the Board
Religious Zionists of America