Hopeful Sign (I)
Lawyer David Friedman seems to be an ideal choice for the position of U. S. ambassador to Israel (Dec. 23 news story, page 3).
First, he is a strong advocate for finally moving the U. S. embassy to Jerusalem, which of course is long overdue.
Second, his selection is vigorously opposed by J Street for the obvious reasons, considering the anti-Israel stance of that organization.
Hopefully his confirmation will be without debate and for once we will have an ambassador to Israel who appreciates the Jewish state and will have empathy for the dangers facing that nation.
Nelson Marans
New York, NY
Hopeful Sign (II)
Is Donald Trump’s election good for the Jews? If the question is confined to American Jews, yes, of course it’s good – and will be good for Americans of all religions and races.
If the question refers to Israel and its Jewish citizens, yes, it’s also good. Trump has already demonstrated his friendship by his choice of David Friedman as ambassador to Israel. Additionally, he is on record as stating that the UN resolution hammering Israel over settlements was wrong, as was the decision by the U.S. to abstain from voting.
Obviously, Trump’s next significant move will be to relocate our embassy
from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, where it has legally and emotionally belonged
since 1948. When this is implemented, what will be the reaction of those in the American Jewish community who enjoy bashing, demeaning, and denigrating Trump with empty rhetoric and unsubstantiated charges of anti-Semitism?
I’m overjoyed that Trump won and believe he will prove to be the best friend our people in Israel have had in many years.
Myron Hecker
New City, NY
‘Safe Spaces,’ But Not For Jews
The blatant bias in according “safe spaces” to which Jewish students appear to be “disinvited” is reprehensible and must be vigorously rejected (“Safe Spaces for – Almost – Everyone,” op-ed, Dec. 23).
But it also seems that too many university and college faculty and administrations are engaged in “infantilizing” their students and thereby precluding their eventual ability to face and function in the real world.
This real world harbors a virulent anti-Israel bias, the latest evidence being Friday’s UN Security Council resolution criticizing Israel’s settlement activity – this while the region is awash in brutal savagery responsible for the gruesome deaths of men, women, and children, and the creation of millions of refugees.
Fay Dicker
Lakewood, N.J.
The ADL’s Political Partisanship
Re “U.S. Jewish Organizations and Anti-Trump Partisanship” (op-ed, Dec. 16):
The ADL was founded in 1913 as an offshoot of B’nai Brith in reaction to the overt anti-Semitism of the period. The ADL’s goal, as stated in its charter, is “to end the defamation of the Jewish people [and] to secure justice and fair treatment for all citizens alike.”
Its core mission has always been to combat anti-Semitism and it had done that quite well – until recently.
In July 2015, Jonathan Greenblatt, a former Obama aide, became the ADL’s director after the retirement of Abe Foxman. As the op-ed article pointed out, Greenblatt has been a critic of Israel’s policies. That is well beyond the ADL’s charter and primary mission; i.e., to combat anti-Semitism. If anything, such criticism could serve to encourage anti-Semitism.
Greenblatt makes light of the anti-Semitic platform of the Black Lives Matter movement. But isn’t anti-Semitism what the ADL seeks to combat?
We further question Greenblatt’s qualifications to lead the ADL when he claims the current level of anti-Semitism in the U.S. is worse than at any time since the 1930s. Really?
Anti-Semitism may still exist, but it is nothing like what it was back then – thanks in large measure to the earlier efforts of the ADL and other such organizations.
Further calling into question Greenblatt’s qualifications to lead the ADL was his initial support of Congressman Keith Ellison, a Muslim who has had close ties with the avowedly anti-Semitic Louis Farrakhan. Didn’t Greenblatt know of Ellison’s background before endorsing him as the next chair of the Democratic National Committee? Almost everyone else did.
Helen Klein
George Epstein
Los Angeles, CA
The View From Netanya
I was born and grew up in the city of Philadelphia. My husband and I, ardent Zionists, came to live in Israel 34 years ago and loved our life here very much. We came as starry-eyed leftists, true liberals, the kind who want Jews to be a “light unto the world.
Unfortunately, living among militant Muslims with their constant resort to violence soon changed our minds. Not content with bloodshed, our neighbors have been using the media, skillfully manipulating news coverage with lies and distortions. At this point their brainwashing skills have even affected many of our nearest and dearest fellow Jews.
What are you to believe when the newscasts constantly portray the Palestinians as poor, helpless victims who only want a state of their own (in an already tiny Israel, smaller than the state of New Jersey)?
Never is it pointed out that there already are a great many Muslim-ruled countries in the world. Never is it pointed out that there is very little peace in those Muslim countries as they have a religious schism between two sects, Shiite and Sunni. And democracy is a completely foreign concept to them.
Giving them the territory they want, right in our heartland, with higher elevation to give them the ability to fire on our airport and coastal cities, would be an act of national suicide.
It is so hard for us to see that intelligent Americans can be so easily misled by Palestinian propaganda and see the Arabs as victims. All we hear is “settlements,” “settlements.” The truth is, the great majority of Israelis would give them up in return for genuine peace. But just look at what happened when Israel got out of Gaza. All we can see when we look at Gaza now is another Aleppo. That’s tomorrow’s Palestinian state, God forbid.
Please think through and share what I have pointed out here. The people of Israel want peace with all our hearts. All we need is a sincere partner.
Ida Plaut
Netanya, Israel