BAG A SUBSCRIPTION PURELY COMMENTARY The Cohns Continued from Page 2 marked with appreciation to add this new mark of respect for a distinguished family by adding to the record the new acclaim for the Cohn name. 'What's 'Ordinary' In Conscience? In the early days of June, in Louisiana, on the morning after the third-in-a-week electrocution of prisoners condemned by the state's cap- ital punishment law, a war- den and a prison guard were asked for their impressions of the occurrences. "Normal" is the term used by one of them. "Ordinary" commented an- other. What do the two words mean, in our time? Do they acquire new meaning when the conscience of mankind is being tested, with the death penalty assuming "normal- ity" and "ordinariness?" Random House Dictionary of the English Language ad- vises: "Ordinary — out of the usual kind. Not exceptional, commonplace.. ." "Normal — conforming to the standard or the common type, as usual, not abnormal, regular, natural. .." Does this create shock? Are these sufficient definitions? Scriptures also have defini- tions relating to punishment of humans by humans: Genesis 9:6: "Whoso sheds man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed." And in the Mishnah Mal- lot, humankind in all ages, all generations, is ad- monished: "A Sanhedrin that effects one execution in seven years is branded a murderous court. Eliezer ben Azariah: One in seventy years. Tarfon and Akiba: Were we mem- bers of a Sanhedrin no one would ever be put to death. Simeon ben Gamaliel: They would multiply murderers in Israel!" Whose definitions will influence our courts and the conscience of mankind? Such are the questions that need be addressed to all who are asked to sign petitions sup- porting the death penalty. There is always the sense of horror and condemnation of the crimes which forced imposition of the death pen- alty. But is an execution in the electric chair as "ordi- nary" and "normal" as de- fined in the dictionary? Mankind and its humanism are gravely tested by the executioners' definitions! President Herzog Hits Vigilantism In Israel Subscribe To The Jewish News Today And Receive A Sturdy Tote Bag With Our Compliments! For starters, there's our new tote bag. It's roomy .. . perfect for workout clothes, books, diapers, knitting. West Bloomfield to the West Bank. There are also new entertainment and singles sections, an amazing marketplace of goods and services for sale and the most comprehensive array of advertising informa- tion in the area. Most important, you'll receive The Jewish News every Friday in your mailbox for 52 weeks, plus our special supplements. We bring you the latest — from A great newspaper and a complimentary tote bag await you for our low $24 I2-month subscription rate. If you ever need a reason to become a Jewish News subscriber, now you have two. Bag A Subscription To The Jewish News Yes! Start me on a subscription to The Jewish News for the period and amount circled below. Please send me the tote bag. This offer is for new subscriptions only. Current subscribers may order the tote bag for $5. Allow four weeks delivery. Please clip coupon and mail to: JEWISH NEWS TOTE BAG 20300 Civic Center Dr. Southfield, Mich. 48076-4138 NAME ADDRESS CITY (Circle One) STATE ZIP 1 year: $24 — 2 years: $45 — Out of State: $26 — Foreign: $38 Enclosed $ ROIT JEWISH NEWS Tel Aviv (JTA) — President Chaim Herzog sharply criticiz- ed the "dangerous phenomenon" of people taking the law into their own hands and noted that some of the law- breakers were doing so under the guise of religion. Speaking at a Tel Aviv University Law School gradua- tion on Thursday night Herzog said: "These are deeds of the ut- most severity, deserving of denunciation and condemnation. "They not only constitute legal offenses, but even denial of the states authority, and directly help the terrorist organizations and our enemies, who are striving to prove that peaceful coexistence is impossi- ble under Israeli rule. "A peculiar situation has emerged in which, by their acts, breakers of the law from both sides undermine the State's authority and subvert its role." The Hadashot afternoon dai- ly reports that three officers and 27 soldiers who completed their three-week reserve duty in Hebron on Wednesday, issued a public statement describing what they saw dur- ing their service. The reservists, who belong to various parts of the political spectrum, wrote in the statement: "We can testify to grave viola- tions of order, provocations and attacks against Arabs perpetrated by children, youth, women and men from Beit Hadassa and Tel Rumeida and the Beit Romano Yeshiva." In their statement, the reser- vists call on the Defense Minister and the government to put an end to these phenomena. U.S., Israel Station Accord Washington (JTA) —President Reagan and Israeli Com- munications Minister Gad Yaacobi stressed the growing partnership of the United States and Israel last week as the two countries signed an agreement for the building of a Voice of America relay station in the Negev. "With this signing the our special historic relationship will be given another dimen- sion," Reagan said after presiding over the signing at a White House ceremony. The relay station was a source of controversy in Israel when the U.S. first proposed it two-and-a-half years ago. Many in Israel feared it might harm the cause of Soviet Jewry since it will allow enhanced broad- casting to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.