EDITORIAL
A Good Investment
The return on every investment is relative, as our Close-Up story
on Page 26 aptly points out. Reading Ken Schachter's report on the
annual Israel Bond High Holiday appeals might lead one to believe
that Israel Bonds are not the best investment. Quite frankly they
are not, if the only return to be considered is monetary.
Israel Bonds, however, have another return: They forge stronger
links between the people of Israel and Jews of the Diaspora. They
have provided a means for the Jews of Detroit and Jews around the
world to participate directly in the building of Israel.
Not everything has a dollar value. By adding support for Israel
to the monetary interest earned by Israel Bonds, one finds a return
that makes these instruments a worthy investment for Detroit Jewry.
The Bond organization's campaign now moves beyond the holi-
day programs to synagogue dinners and parlor meetings, as well as
individual sales through the Israel Bonds office. This investment in
Israel deserves our support.
answer the question a candidate wished had been asked. Bush, for
instance, never did answer the query about whether he would ask
Ronald Reagan for permission to tell the American people about the
advice he gave the President about the scheme to sell arms to Iran.
Also missing was opportunity for the candidates to correct what
they perceived as distortions by their opponent. Dukakis, for instance,
never clarified whether, as Bush charged, he had used that dreaded
phrase, "card-carrying," to describe his membership in the American
Civil Liberties Union.
And too little time, approximately 18 minutes, was devoted to
foreign affairs. Also, of the six questions asked about foreign affairs,
not one touched on resolving Israel's relations with Arabs and Palesti-
nians, especially in light of the intifada of the West Bank and Gaza.
We hope that some of these deficiencies will be remedied in the
next Bush-Dukakis debate, which is scheduled for either Oct. 13 or
14.
Debate Oomph!
For about 100 million Americans, the 90 minutes between 8:00
p.m. and 9:30 p.m. on Sunday evening went remarkably quickly. The
Bush-Dukakis debate they watched may not have set off any great
fireworks, but it had something that few, if any, of the presidential
debates held since 1960 can lay claim to: A fair amount of substance.
During the debate, some decent questions were asked, issues were
addressed by the candidates, (issues were ducked, also), and signifi-
cant differences between the standard-bearers were delineated on
such issues as housing, drugs, abortion, foreign affairs. Dukakis got
his dander up about the "patriotism" issue and Bush got in an ob-
viously planned quip about the eco-mess in Boston Harbor. And we
finally saw the two men as they stood face-to-face under pressure.
But some crucial elements were missing from the debate. One
was the ability of the four-person panel to interrupt the candidates
and tell them to address the question that had been asked, not
LETTERS
Borman Hall Needs
Prayer Books
On Sept. 12 I attended the
holiday services at Borman
Hall as I have done for the
past several years. I was
amazed to learn that the
synagogue was short of
prayer books for both the
residents and the guests and
that this situation has existed
for quite a long time with
nothing being done about it.
A majority of the prayer
books in service at present
should be retired and replac-
ed. I am sure that many
synagogues and various
organizations could donate
prayer books to Borman Hall
or perhaps start a fund to pur-
chase some .. .
Marcus B. Sonne
Oak Park
The Transfer Idea
Is Not A Kindness
Michael Dallen's proposi-
tion (Opinion, Sept. 2) that
the "kindest" thing Israel can
do to the Palestinian people is
6
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 1988
to forcefully remove them
from their homes has the
philanthropic bent of Josef
Mengele's euthanasia policy.
Such graciousness deserves
top billing on the year's list of
oxymorons.
Unbeknownst to Mr. Dallen
is the fact that the 22 Arab
nations that he refers to in-
cludes the recognition of a
Palestinian State.
Joseph Borrajo
Dearborn
Israeli Chickens
Becoming Immoral?
A misprint or a Freudian
slip?
In your highly informative
piece by Lee Hadar ("High
Tech Nets Gain in Israel
Agriculture," Sept. 9), the
author is quoted as reporting
that "Israeli scientists have
developed a new breed of
chicken that has 6 percent
less fat than do her feathered
friends elsewhere. The scien-
tists have shown that slim-
mer chickens lay more eggs,
(but) have a lower morality
rate?'
Chicken-hearted critics of
Israel will undoubtedly at-
tribute it to the corrosive in-
fluence of the "Intifada."
Ezekiel Leikin
Southfield
Dial-A-Shofar
Not An Answer
On the burface, it would
seem that the Dial-A-Shofar
for shut-ins (Sept. 9) is a
wonderful idea whose time
has come. However, there are
several weaknesses in the
concept.
We certainly should provide
for the spiritual needs of folks
who cannot come to the syn-
agogue to hear the sounding
of the Shofar, but this is not
the way to do it .. .
The problem that the Troy
Jewish Congregation is try-
ing to deal with is one that
has been on the agenda for
months, at meetings of the
Michigan Board of Rabbis.
What this community needs
is a community-wide chaplain
to deal with the religious
needs of the unaffiliated, the
infirm, the shut-ins in our
community.
Such a religious func-
tionary, bolstered by a staff of
learned layman or teachers,
should bring the spirit of
Jewish living to those who
are not so fortunate as to be
able to take care of their
needs by themsevles.
Rabbi Jack Goldman
West Bloomfield
Judaism Founded
By Belief In God
The Sept. 16 opinion piece
causes me much concern.
Whether Mr. Sherwin Wine
or his movement cares to
acknowledge it, Judaism is a
religion founded by our
forefather, Abraham, with the
principle tenant being the
belief in one God. This was
formalized with the giving of
the Torah at Sinai and
through our father, Moshe
Rabbe'nu.
I, therefore, find it personal-
ly offensive for an individual
such as Mr. Wine to challenge
the question of who is a Jew
and to attack the Orthodox
position. It is through Or-
thodoxy and its adherence to
the Halachah that is passed
down through the genera-
tions from Sinai that Judaism
has managed to continue to
the present time .. .
Only if a conversion is done
in the manner prescribed by
our Orthodox tradition does a
person become a part of our
people . . . Those individuals
denying the existence of God,
Continued on Page 10
Let Us Know
Letters must be concise,
typewritten and double-
spaced. Correspondence
must include the signa-
ture, home address and
daytime phone number of
the writer.