EDITORIAL Telling Loss His stories were legendary, as were stories about him. And even though illness had slowed University of Michigan Dean Emeritus William "Bill" Haber in recent years, his smiling presence and acumen in the local and international Jewish scene will be sorely missed. He was a rare breed, a brilliant academician who was equally at home in the world of scholarship and the world of practicality. Dr. Haber symbolized the World ORT Union, which he led for more than three decades. The. Oganization for Rehabilitation through Training was a continuation of his European work after World War II to resettle Jewish refugees. He traveled throughout the world for ORT and, in its formative years, was the guest speaker-storyteller for the annual fund-raising brunch for Detroit Men's ORT. The diminutive Haber, with his regaling tales and wonderful sense of humor, helped bring a growing audience to Men's ORT each year. His economic and administrative expertise pushed the Univer- sity of Michigan economics department into the national forefront. His experience and charm were officially retained by the U-M ad- ministration for a decade after his retirement in the specially created position of adviser to the university's executive officers. Bill Haber leaves an important legacy to his state, the nation and the world. modation, and he may be their next target, or b) the perpetrators are his colleagues, his partners in crime, and he can appear magnanimous while throwing the U.S. off the true track. In any event, in Washington's understandable eagerness to track down the terrorists responsible for this most recent airplane bomb- ing, let her not forget that the PLO has more than two decades of innocent blood on its hands. The truth is that there are no easy shortcuts to prevent airplane bombings. What is needed, as Israel's national airline, El Al, has proven, day in and day out for many years, is intensive, meticulous screening of passengers and baggage, regardless of the inevitable inconveniences. That is the price that must be paid in this age of terrorism. Finally, one must ask what the United States would do if it iden- tified the terrorists responsible? Increased security is easier than the resolve needed to retaliate against the perpetrators of such crimes and the nations that sponsor these groups. When hundreds of U.S. Marines were killed by a terrorist bomb near Beirut more than five years ago, President Reagan talked tough but took no action. This only emboldens the terrorists to strike again. One can only imagine their reaction to the news that Yassir Arafat is hot on their trail. AM FiVILLY ABLE 70 ANNOUIC THE illiiiiliall11 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 IN FiNME. PEREZ; iND NEW GOVERNMENTS ' iir-Nrii MR TIE NEW POST OF I APPOiNTEES. fr -,----. --_, _-=- MiNiSTER OF Xi4 Vu.„ Sherlock Arafat We didn't know whether to laugh or cry when we read reports of Yassir Arafat's offer to help the United States track down the perpetrators of the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing. The news strikes us as a variation on the joke about the defini- tion of chutzpah: when a young man kills his parents and then pleads for sympathy from the judge because he is now an orphan. In this case, -which is all too real, the leading Middle East ter- rorist, responsible for deaths of hundreds of men, women and children, now offers a grateful United States his assistance in track- ing down those who have carried out this dastardly deed. One need not be a cynic in this it-takes-one-to-know-one scenario to conclude that Arafat is eager to help because either a) the perpetrators are indeed his enemies, displeased with his soothing talk about accom- Mixing Facts And Opinions The article about Miriam Huffstutter ("Local Woman Asks Israel To Change Law of Return," Dec. 16) was most disturbing. Huffstutter speaks with conviction however, much of her infor- mation is totally inaccurate. To begin with, the effort to ammend the Law of Return had nothing to do with chang- ing Halachah. Rather, it was an effort to change the Israeli definition of "who is a Jew." The famous "Brother Daniel" case in Israel's early years made it quite clear that Israel's definition of Jewishness is not bound to HalaChah's definition. Israel is not a halachic theocracy. Huffstutter states that Con- servative rabbis do not accept Reform conversions. As a 6 FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 1989. FIR DEFENSE, RABIN; - di tiotilu ti o MOM MiNIMAREAL54 illiiiii 1 , : '•-:--, 1. . .0/ I )0,I go " C """ • LETTERS Reform rabbi, I have never en- countered a Conservative col- league who would not accept my conversions, which in- clude immersion in a mikveh. In fact, a Conservative rabbi is usually part of my batei din. Also, contrary to Huffstut- ter's blanket claim, every Reform and Conservative rab- bi I know does tell prospective converts that the Orthodox will not recognize their con- version. I would agree that any non-Orthodox rabbi who fails to do so is doing the pro- spective Jew by Choice a tremendous disservice. Though the "offending rab- bis' " side of the story is not presented, it would appear that Huffstutter may have had a bad experience with the rabbis she encountered. Nonetheless, generalizing about approximately 3,000 non-Orthodox rabbis based on hernegative experience with one or two is both ludicrous and irresponsible. Huffstutter says Reform and Conservative rabbis "sur- vive by preying Upon the ig- norance of their people." I would suggest that in trying to built up Orthodoxy by at- tacking Reform and Conser- vative Judaism, it is Miriam Huffstutter who is preying upon the ignorance of those who might mistake her stri- dent, personal opinions for facts. Rabbi Daniel Pernick Pearl River, N.Y A Comment On `Crisis In Aging' In response to the Dec. 23 article "Crisis In Aging" and its special report on our mother, Hermine Weber, we would like to make the follow- ing comment: It is hard to express feelings of love, respect, appreciation, kindness, goodness or gratitude. Words are hardly adequate to describe family warmth and concern for each other. Mother has been, and always will be, the crown of our lives and at all times the very best of care will be made available to her. Alex and use Roberg Oak Park Both Sides Guilty On Who Is A Jew The question "Who is a Jew" has gotten a great deal of attention. But the more in- teresting question may be "Who is authorized to decide `who is a Jew?' " Reform and Conservative Jewish leaders have con- demned those Orthodox leaders in Israel who would arrogate to themselves this authority and who would ex- ercise that authority in a manner that would strictly and narrowly define who is a Jew within the limits set by Halachah. Less than two years ago, the leaders of Reform Judaism, in a similar display of disregard for their co-religionists, ar- Continued on Page 11 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.