Zw a ‘ ,. PLEASE.., CRY FOR ARGENtriri4r 4ROVESMX; m Wit.44 , Causeless Hatred, Again How painful it is to see the worst aspects of the Jewish past reappearing. Sunday, Tisha B'Av, we mourned the destruction of our two Temples. The Talmud tells us the second of these calami- ties was brought about by causeless hatred, by Jews bickering among themselves. Against this historical backdrop, we are wit- nessing increasingly disturbing scenes. A female soldier crying as she pulls an Israeli woman off a West Bank hilltop. A military judge declar- ing with disgust and rage that he no longer can serve his government. Prominent rabbis vali- dating Jewish law's approval of religious soldiers defying their democratically elected government. Even Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, a West Bank leader long praised for his voice of moderation, is in the forefront of civil protest. He and many others, based on their reading of the Bible, adamantly believe that Jews should never re- linquish the West Bank, known as Judea and Samaria. He protests peacefully; we fear that some around him will not always do so. At issue, of course, is the implementation by the Rabin government of expanded Palestinian self-rule. Some say such policies will lead to the forced evacuation of Jews — by a Jewish gov- ernment — from the biblical heartland of the Jewish people. These protesters do not represent all of the es- timated 150,000 Jews of the West Bank, which includes areas now incorporated into united Jerusalem. Many West Bank residents, origi- nally coaxed to the region by cheap housing, await incentives to purchase homes inside the pre-1967 borders. Recognizing the tensions, leaders of the West Bank protesters last week observed a two-day "cease-fire" with the government and met with Mr. Rabin. This week, the protests resumed. At the same time, the government is spend- ing millions of dollars on safer roads to the West Bank's Jewish settlements. In addition, securi- ty for their residents remains a prime factor in negotiations with the Palestinian Authority. Nonetheless, Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in- creasingly appears to be brushing off the settlers as insignificant. For their part, the protesting settlers are threatening civil war and promising vigilante re- taliation if harm comes their way. They should be demanding that Mr. Rabin keep his bargain with the overall Israeli electorate — that no ex- isting settlements will be dismantled and that security will be ensured. The settlers can, through legal means, oppose the government. And when they use illegal means, they must pay the price. With tempers flaring, neither side seems ca- pable of prolonged discussion with the other. Both Mr. Rabin and the settlers would do well to re- member the lessons of causeless hatred of long ago. They must each ensure that what some have come to see as our third Temple, the modem state of Israel, is not damaged beyond repair. Letters No Barr-ing Jew By Choice I find it interesting that Mr. Lei- der (Letters, Aug. 8) found the Editor's Notebook of July 28 about the Tom Arnold wedding to be in poor taste and offensive to various portions of our com- munity. My reading of that ar- ticle was, if anything, a rebuke to the rabbi who failed to take the opportunity of this wedding to teach at least one more per- son about the traditions of our faith. I came away from that article thinking that Mr. Arnold had made major advances in incor- porated Jewish observance into his life, rather than dwelling on any shortfall. We as a communi- ty need to focus on progress made instead of frequently shouting about whatever we perceive to be lacking in the observance of oth- ers. Persons convert to Judaism for countless reasons, although a Jewish spouse eases the process somewhat. Why should it be a cause for comment that Mr. Arnold "...still wants to include "mode or way of thought" and most certainly not in regards to intelligence. The meaning of my statement was: "The mode or way of thought of many of the people in the Walled Lake School Dis- trict (regarding school millages) is different than the majority of the people living in the West Bloomfield School District." Inci- dentally neither I nor my com- pany were in any way involved in the development of the Timbers Edge Subdivision as stated in the article. I can appreciate the frustration Karen Minturn Brown of so many people who worked to Livonia support the last three Walled Lake millage elections when they were not supported by the ma- jority of the voters in that district. I certainly did not or do not ques- Use of 'Mentality' tion the intelligence or motives of the voters in the Walled Lake Misunderstood School District, and I regret us- Unfortunately, it is all too easy to ing a word that could be so easi- misinterpret statements in news- ly misunderstood. I certainly do paper articles. In the phone con- apologize to anyone who might versation with Julie Edgar about have been offended by any state- housing in Walled Lake and West ments made. Bloomfield School districts, I used Herman Frankel the term mentality as defined in West Bloomfield the Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th edition, to mean Jewish traditions in his life..."? He is, after all, a Jew. Joining a people who are hated and perse- cuted by many others is not a phase, to be outgrown when the marriage is over. Those of us who have made a positive choice and put forth significant effort in or- der to become Jewish do not take this commitment so lightly. It is a lifetime commitment, made without consideration of reversal. I am a Jew, and a Jew I will re- main, regardless of other cir- cumstances. Letters Gems Of Wisdom Are Sought I am gathering the sayings, ex- pressions and cliches of Jewish mothers and grandmothers to preserve them through publica- tion. Jewish matriarchs use these gems of wisdom and humor to guide families through day-to-day situations as well as life-shaping occasions of simchah and sorrow. Here are two of my favorite ex- amples: "If two people tell you you're drunk, go to bed, " courtesy of Dr. Rachel Dulin of Chicago; "If it was meant to be, it will be," cour- tesy of Janet Price of Kansas City. If you'd like to share and pre- serve the sayings of your family matriarchs, please send sayings to me at the address below, along with the name of the matriarch and whatever information about her you are willing to share. Please also include an address and tele- phone number where you can be reached. The families of those women whose quotes are used will receive a copy of the work once it is published. Thank you for shar- ing. Sandra E. Price, 1401 West Rovey Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85013. Sandra Price Phoenix Wrong Picture Of Education I'm a student at Walled Lake Western High school. I read the article "Puddle Jumpers" on the front page of The Jewish News on July 28, 1995. What was written in the article is not totally true. Just because the bond did not pass does not mean that your child will not get a good educa- tion. My family did not move be- cause of it. There had to be other reasons. I am getting as good an education as the students going to West Bloomfield schools. There are still a lot of Jewish students whom I go to school with. I am proud to be going to Walled Lake schools. There is nothing wrong with going there. The week of July 21, 1995, your front page had an article on Shaarey Zedek expanding its He- brew school in West Bloomfield. The week of July 28, 1995, there was an article about Beth Achim opening a Hebrew school in Walled Lake on page 15. Anoth- er article on page 16 the same day, "Singer's Gaffe Floors Audi- ence," reported that a remark by David Clayton Thomas places a bad outlook on West Bloomfield. It is obvious that the paper is slanted to publish only good things in West Bloomfield on the front page. There are many good things going on in other Jewish communities that do not get printed on the front page. Elissa Riger Walled Lake Menorah House Has A Way To Go In response to Ruth Littmann's article titled 'The Night They Rat- ed Wronski's" (Aug. 4) I would like to give a firsthand prospective. My father has been a resident of Menorah House since March 1994 when it was still Mt. Ver- non Nursing Home. We moved him there from Teitel Federation Apartments when he could no longer be maintained by Adult Day Care and afternoon and evening help. First, Mt. Vernon had no activ- ities, no kosher food, help that was always changing and a depressed atmosphere. I know this because my sister and I visit every day. Second, nursing homes are not pleasant places. However, my fa- ther has wonderful caring people around him at Menorah House. Everyone knows his name from the housekeeping staff, to the aides, nurses, social workers, physical therapists and activities directors. Third, Frank Wronski and staffhad a meeting with resident families in which he said, "Don't tell us what is going better, tell us what else needs to be done." I am not saying that Menorah House is perfect. It has no air-con- ditioning, but it has a director who knows every patient's name. It has a nursing home smell, but it has an outstanding activities director. It does not have table- cloths for meals, but it has a car- ing and compassionate staff. Until salaries are raised for nursing-home attendants to a de- cent working wage, until people stop feeling nursing homes are a warehouse for the old, nursing homes will not improve. I think that Menorah House has a way to go, but with family input or caring strangers, each resident can have a decent quality of life. Irma Starr Director, Space For Changing Families