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Keeping An Eye On
The Public's Opinion

It was in September 1991 that former President
George Bush angrily banged his fist on the table
proclaiming he was one little guy up against a
thousand lobbyists on the other side of Capitol
Hill.
What he was referring to was the effort by or-
ganized Jewish leadership to get the president
to reverse his stance against loan guarantees for
Israel.
History will show us that it won't be the loan
guarantees we'll remember. Instead, it was the
reaction to the angry President. Mr. Bush re-
ceived thousands of "atta boy" anti-Semitic let-
ters from all over the country. The president had
made a brutal miscalculation. His actions would,
like a stick inside a hornet's nest, stir up the very
worst this country had to offer.
Almost eight years later, we in Detroit's Jew-
ish community had reason to worry on two dif-
ferent levels. Last week, after we learned that
Southfield resident David Tenenbaum, an engi-
neer with the Tank Command in Warren, had
admitted to inadvertently giving information to
the Israelis, our reactions varied.
On the local level, it continues to be our hope

that this man will one day be able to move on
with a happy, healthy normal life. As of press
time on Wednesday, there had been no charges
filed against him.
Globally, there was a fear that the mere fact
that Mr. Tenenbaum was questioned by the FBI
would once again draw the vitriol from beneath
the surface. However, there have been no pub-
lic cries against U.S.-Israeli relations. Any com-
parisons with the Jonathan Pollard case have
been labeled grossly premature.
In the years since Mr. Bush and his secretary
of state, James Baker, were on watch, Jews have
made huge strides in position and stature with-
in the government and within society.
But the bigger gains have come from the pub-
lic at large, which seems less and less inclined to
accept careless charges of an anti-Semitic nature
as solutions for anything.
It is our hope that the David Tenenbaum sit-
uation results in a favorable ending for our com-
munity member. And it is our greater prayer that
we can all remain encouraged by the public's
seeming unacceptance of anti-Semitism as part
of its opinion.

DETROIT J EWISH NEWS

Leo Rosten's Legacy

Leo Rosten had a way with words. Particular-
ly Yiddish words and their sporadic confluence
with English words.
Mr. Rosten, who was best known for his 1968
classic The Joys Of Yiddish, died last Sunday
in New York City. He was 88.
Throughout the course of his writing career,
Mr. Rosten, who was born in the Polish town of
Lodz and immigrated with his family to the
United States at the age of 3, struck a chord
with American Jewish readers who were striv-
ing to make their mark in the goldeneh medi-
nah.
His first book, The Education of H*PM*A*N
K*A*P*L*A*N, which grew out of his short sto-
ries in the New Yorker magazine, demonstrat-
ed a keen understanding of Jewish emigres who
were trying to acclimate to American life.
In that work and dozens of other books of fic-
tion and nonfiction, Mr. Rosten wrote with
knowledge and warmth about his subjects. His
most celebrated character, Hyman Kaplan,
reappeared in a pair of sequels, 1959's The Re-
turn of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N and 1976's
0 K*A*P*L*A*N! My K*A*P*L*A*N, and be-
came a symbol of the American Jewish expe-
rience.
Said Yiddish scholar Sol Steinmetz: "Jews
who in the 1930s were ashamed of Yiddish, and
throughout World War II felt funny about rec-
ognizing their Jewishness, learned through peo-
ple like Rosten to feel proud of their Yiddishness
without fear or shame."
In 1968, Mr. Rosten employed his affinity for

culture and great ear for language to create The
Joys Of Yiddish, a staple in the library of every
Yiddishist and Judeophile. Written in a breezy-
yet-literate style, Mr. Rosten's ode to the ma-
maloshen made Jewish culture, linguistics and
nuances accessible to the everyday Jew and
non-Jew.
More than a dictionary or encyclopedia, Joys
was a life preserver for a language and culture
that becomes increasingly obsolete in assimi-
lated Jewish America. The book also docu-
mented the often humorous integration of
Yiddish and English words and jargon.
In his foreword, Mr. Rosten said that he wrote
the book "because there was no other way in
which I could have it. For many years I had
craved and sought and failed to find a lexicon
of just this type." He called Yiddish "the Robin
Hood of languages. It steals from the linguisti-
cally rich to give to the fledgling poor. It shows
not the slightest hesitation in taking in house
guests — to whom it gives free room and board
regardless of genealogy, faith, or exoticism."
As a result of Mr. Rosten's efforts, words such
as shlep and chutzpah are woven into the fab-
ric of today's American lexicon. But more im-
portantly, he made a lasting contribution by
inspiring generations of American Jews to in-
vestigate and become reacquainted with their
shoresh, or roots. Today's Yiddishkeit renais-
sance can be largely attributed to him.
We mark the passing of Leo Rosten with great
sorrow. To call him a mentsch would only be fit-
ting.

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Letters

Danto Needs
A Fair Chance

I am writing in regard to the ar-
ticle in The Jewish News titled "A
Mixed Bill of Health" (Feb. 21).
My sister was transferred to
Danto HCC from the Prentis
home where the care was very
good. We were angered about
Federation closing Prentis; how-
ever, I feel that the new facility
is trying its utmost to give prop-
er care to the newly arrived res-
idents.
I have found the staff very co-
operative, and I think that your
article was unfair in not giving
the Danto HCC a chance to get
fully organized.

Ethel Wasser
Southfield

Is Emphasis
Misdirected?

How disappointing it is that, once
again, you have seen fit to present
an article which is oh so critical of
facets of the Detroit observant
community ("Cleanliness Next To
Godliness?" Feb. 21).
It is, of course, unacceptable
for any food establishment,
kosher or nonkosher, to have the

type of insanitary and careless
situations which you spotlight in
the article. To paraphrase your
editorial in the same issue ("Re-
member the Most Important In-
spectors"), dirt, roaches and
rodents do not belong in any set-
ting.
For you to feature only kosher
bakeries, nursing homes and
butcher shops in the article, how-
ever, creates the impression that
such lack of care occurs only in
kosher places. It is well known
that many food establishments
can have severe problems with
cleanliness, and I am happy that
there are watchdogs to point out
those problems. None of us wants
to ingest filth.
What I find objectionable, how-
ever, is the highlighting of those
establishments which cater main-
ly to the observant community
and to the emphasis on the
"kosher does not mean clean"
mantra.
Since you feature very promi-
nently in your articles, columns
and advertisements all types of
nonkosher food venues, when will
we see an article examining the
myriad nonkosher restaurants in
this area and their health de-
partment problems?
At least then the picture will
EMPHASIS page 28

