EDITORIAL
Our Choice
After almost two years of jockeying by Democrats and
Republicans for their party's Holy Grail, in the end it came down
to a GOP nominee whom many considered lacking in a political
philosophy and a sense of self and a Democratic governor whom many
said is a passionless closet liberal. For most of the country, this has
been a campaign to endure, or ignore.
One could attribute this condition to the lack of serious discus-
sion of issues between the candidates, television's dominant need
of 20-second sound bites, or the electorate's unwillingness to explore
meaningful positions. Or a combination of the above.
But now is not the time for critiquing the process; this is the
time to make real choices.
And the choices between Bush-Quayle and Dukakis-Bentsen are
clear, although not on the Mideast, where both candidates have pledg-
ed strong support for the Jewish state and at times have sounded
as though they had the same pro-Israel speech writer. Dukakis is
untested in terms of foreign policy; Bush is credited for helping to
rescue Ethiopian Jews, but he also supported each of the Reagan
Administration's seven efforts to sell strategic arms to Arab states,
and he was quick to try to place blame on Israel during the Iran-
Contra episode.
Overall, though, American Jews will have to focus on domestic
matters to decide who will best lead this country into the last decade
of the century.
For all of his folksy manner and promise to lead a "gentler" coun-
try, George Bush has run a particularly nasty campaign, emphasiz-
ing artificial issues like patriotism and prison furloughs. If he has
shown any consistent commitment, it is to the expediency of the mo-
ment — not to any overriding political philosophy, regardless of its
label.
By contrast, Michael Dukakis has led a pedantic, almost scholarly
effort. He has clearly been outmaneuvered by the Bush campaign.
But Dukakis' record in Massachusetts, where he has been, on the
whole, an effective, creative governor, is more encouraging. He has
increased employment, balanced budgets, aided the homeless and
defended civil liberties. Despite the pollution in Boston Harbor,
Dukakis has a credible record on the environment.
Unlike Bush, Dukakis' instincts are egalitarian: He has proposed
an innovative program to help the middle-class pay for college. He
backs the Equal Rights Amendment. Unlike Bush, he would not ap-
prove Pentagon budgets with a reflexive jerk of his knee. Unlike
Bush, he would rejuvenate the war against drugs and the drug cartel.
And unlike Bush, he has chosen a running mate whose presence
in the wings does not give the nation the jitters.
Dukakis has the character, the morals, the perspective and, to
borrow one of Bush's favorite words, the values to be president. One
commodity he does lack is the ability to be an electrifying, charis-
matic president. Excitement is not Dukakis' middle name. But
neither is it Bush's. This presidential race should be won by the man
who will govern with honor and competence. That man is Michael
Dukakis.
Unshattered Glass
The fiftieth anniversary of Kristallnacht next Wednesday
presents a challenge to the Jewish community.
On Nov. 9, 1938, the Nazis unleashed a planned attack against
the German Jewish community, destroying hundreds of Jewish-
owned businesses, 171 homes and 267 synagogues. Thirty-six Jews
were killed and 36 seriously injured by the "spontaneous" Nazi mobs.
Thirty thousand Jews were arrested and sent to concentration camps.
To many, Kristallnacht — the Night of Broken Glass — marks
the start of the Nazi Holocaust against the Jews. From this date,
there was no turning back from an inevitable path that led to the
destruction of six million.
Fifty years later, Jews have been offered a beautifully symbolic
way to remember our martyred brethren. A yahrzeit candle in a liv-
ing room window would serve as a reminder to Jews and non-Jews
of the infamy of hatred.
LETTERS hit
Shultz Peace Plan
Hard To Swallow
Who deserves the Jewish
vote? Do we have a real
choice? As far as Israel is con-
cerned, they are bipartisan.
They are both ready to hang
us.
Both parties support
George Shultz's Middle East
policy. In America, no one
would dare question that
security is the pre-condition
for peace. But for Israel, they
have a different story. Shultz
and his pro-Arab State
Department have decided:
Israel must surrender land to
its enemies, including its
capital Jerusalem .. .
6
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1988
So the State Department
goal is to get Israel, any way
they can, to go back to those
good old days, the way it was
before 1967. In those days,
there had been hundreds of
Arab raids across the
elongated armistice lines
"guaranteed" by the Great
Powers. Day after day, for
years, freight trains blown up,
farmers murdered in their
fields, soldiers ambushed and
killed, children attacked by
snipers, mines laid .. .
Don't worry, our George
Shultz State Department
tells us. That won't happen
again. When Israel is again
crowded into the coastal low-
lands, they will be safe and
secure — forever — because
the Arabs will not be their
enemy anymore. The Arabs
will have signed a piece of
paper promising "peace."
That is hard to swallow.
ly glossed over Jackson's anti-
Semitism and the anti-
Semitism of some of his
delegates.
What is scary is that the
Democrats let an anti-Semite
so close to the presidency.
Hymie Cutler
Chairman, Michigan Committee
for a Safe Israel
Dr. Ivan C. Schatten
Southfield
Editorial Was Soft
On Jackson Factor
Your editorial on the
"Jackson Factor" (Oct. 21)
soft-pedaled Jackson's anti-
Zionism and you recommend-
ed that we leave Jackson out
of this election.
Furthermore, you complete-
Jews Are Urged
To Vote Tuesday
I commend the editorial
that appeared in The Jewish
News on October 7, regarding
the U.S. Presidential election
and its meaning for the
Jewish community. It is
noteworthy that both parties'
candidates are placing great
emphasis on addressing
Jewish concerns. This
reflects, in part, the recogni-
tion that American Jews play
active roles in the political
process and have deep-felt
Continued on Page 12
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