Editorials and Letters to the Editor are posted and archived on JN Online:
www.detroitjewishnews.com

Teen Trip Only A Beginning

ane and D. Larry Sherman's generous
gift of $1 million to endow teen travel
to Israel will help countless families
who otherwise couldn't afford the cost
of sending a child to the Jewish homeland.
But if such travel is to be more than a subsi-
dized vacation, participants must be inspired
to stay in touch, explore their roots and pursue
:
Jewish study. They need to know that we, as a
/
community, truly care about their Jewish iden-
tity and are prepared to nourish it after they
return home.
Key sources of that nourishment include
our day, congregational and supplemental
schools as well as our camps and youth groups.
All are on the radar screen of the Jewish Life
Fund, locally co-administered by the Jewish
\ - Federation and the United Jewish Foundation.
/
As a community, we must pursue these two
questions: How will teens sustain the excite-
ment about Judaism they develop in Israel?
How will they parlay that excitement into
communal involvement?
The answers lie in innovative synagogue and
communal programs that build Israel experi-
ences around local Jewish learning opportuni-

ties. The Michigan/Israel Connection's Come
Back/Give Back program is a prime example.
It offers a host of post-trip activities and talks
so teens returning from Israel can continue to
learn about Israel and be involved communal-
ly.
We urge Federation to consider a Teen Divi-
sion to supplement the work of synagogue and
communal youth groups and their regional
affiliates. Federation, more than any other
agency, has the reach and resources to bring
together teens from different backgrounds.
Meanwhile, we know the Shermans will
keep watch on their investment to assure that
Detroit teens who become hooked on Israel's
beauty and spirituality aren't unhooked by apa-
thy and rejection back home.
Visiting Israel at any age can be uplifting.
But visiting it as a teenager can set the stage
for maturing Jewishly during the highly
impressionable years of youth group, college,
dating and marriage.
That's why it's so important that teen travel
to Israel isn't a moment frozen in time, but a
stepping stone to becoming a caring, active,
proud Jew.1-7

Romance And Reality

N

ear the end of Ernest Hemingway's
The Sun Also Rises, one major char-
acter, Lady Brett Ashley, tells anoth-
er, Jake Barnes, that they could have
had
a
wonderful
life together. "Wouldn't it be
\ _
pretty to think so," he replies.
That difference between hopeful romanti-
cism and clear-eyed realism has been on our
minds as Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak
comes to meet with President Bill Clinton.
To be sure, his visit is a vital step in keeping
the Mideast peace-process breathing. The
American role of nudging,
monitoring ..., and
0
shepherding the complex and emotional effort
,has provided critically needed life support dur-
ing three years of barely concealed hostility
between Clinton and former Israeli Prime
Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. The meeting
can clarify the relationship between Barak and
Clinton on a range of important details.
But those looking for quick fixes to a gener-
ations-old conflict should be cautious — as
Barak himself has repeatedly warned.
Indeed, at times the Clinton administration
-- will wonder if much has changed since the
Netanyahu days. Barak, with more than three
decades in the Israeli military, is far from one
to compromise the Jewish stare's security.
We like what the prime minister has done
so far to build a broad coalition at home,
preparing Israelis to vote on a comprehensive

.

l.,

IN FOCUS

At The Helm

Emily Jampel is the new president of the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit's Young Adult Division, having been on
the board for five years. Her other affiliations include the Jew-
ish Community Council/New Leaders Project and the B'nai
B'rith Leadership Network. Jampel is an assistant attorney gen-
eral for the state of Michigan.

LETTERS

peace package with the Palestinians, Syria and
its proxy-neighbor Lebanon. And we like his
early blitz on peace — after less than two
weeks in office, he has met American, Egypt-
ian, Jordanian and Palestinian leaders.
And if you can't have romance during the
honeymoon, when can you?

Ehud Barak's

honeymoon
•111 L„ _ .
will UC 311U1 L.

But we, and he, must remember that hon-
eymoons end all too quickly and that the
underlying tensions of the region will not be
dissolved by gestures alone. Similarly, Israel's
internal social divides will demand attention
that can distract not only from the peace
process but also from the needed strengthen-
ing of Israel-Diaspora ties -- another area in
which we American Jews have a significant
role to play
We are ready to offer our hearts for Barak,
the conquering hero, as we have always offered
it to the State of Israel. But our brains still
function too, and it tells us that visions of
loveliness are not always the guarantee of hap-
piness ever after. ❑

How Far Do
Rights Extend?

Alan Dershowitz ("Creators of
Hate," July 9) defends
Matthew Hale by arguing
that Hale has a right to prac-
tice law no matter how objec-
tionable his speech. But call-
ing his statements objection-
able is a gross understatement.
The right to free speech is
clearly intended to protect
political speech and does not
give license to slander or to
conspiracies to break the law.
Hale's speech crossed the line
between objectionable and
criminality by advocating the
breaking of the law. Shouting
"holy war!" in front of an
impressionable zealot like
Benjamin Nathaniel Smith is
essentially the same as falsely
shouting "fire!" in a theater.
Dershowitz can make a
case for reasonable doubt by
claiming that Hale was calling
for political war. This may be
acceptable for an ordinary cit-

izen who is entitled to the
benefit of the doubt, but the
Constitution sets a higher
standard of "good behavior"
for the judges comprising the
judicial branch. By this
precedent, the Illinois Bar is
justified in applying the same
standard to all officers of the
court.
As an officer of the court,
Matthew Hale must swear to
uphold the Constitution and
•, -

the law, which are rounaea on

principles like "all men are
created equal" and "equal pro-
tection under the law." Does
Hale's actions give credence to
a belief that he would honor
that oath? Is it not reasonable
to expect a person supposedly
qualified to be an officer of
the court to understand the
innuendo of his rhetoric and
its power to provoke violence?
A jury of Hale's peers in
the bar association should be
allowed to set reasonable stan-
dards of "good behavior" and
judge his fitness to practice
law. Dershowitz's fears of

7/
19

Detroit Jewish News