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Editorials are posted and archived on JN Online:
www.detroitjewishnews.com
Wisdom, Compassion And Service
hey've lost the zip in their step, but not
their zest for volunteerism and spirit of
good will. All eight are older than 80,
but continue to brighten the lives of
others as role models.
Buoyed by the Jewish ideal of tikkun olam, of
repairing the world, they have toiled without fan-
fare, fueled by heartfelt concern, not a thirst for
plaudits.
Their lives have been a blessing, and
we, Detroit Jewry, are blessed to still
have them among us.
And so we honor the newest
inductees into the Jewish Apartments
and Services' Senior Adult Hall of
Fame: Rabbi M. Robert Syme, Lillian Bernstein,
Dr. Irving Panush, Rosevelyn Lieberman, David
Tanzman, Gretl Frank, Paulette Borin and Rose
Korinsky.
The Jewish News is privileged to be one of the
founding sponsors of the ninth annual induction
brunch on Sunday, May 5, at the Meer Jewish
Apartments in West Bloomfield.
Collectively, the honorees have built a portfolio of
skill, wisdom, compassion, service and achievement
over 666 years — a stunning record of success.
The respect they've earned is manifested by
what they've done as octogenarians, but it has
been influenced by what they've done over
Dry Bones
decades. There's nothing "token"
about their induction into the hall
of fame. Whatever twists fate has
dealt, they've stayed active and
stayed advocates for a host of wor-
thy causes.
We should revere them, not just
celebrate their activism. In the shift-
ing sands of a fast-paced world,
these spunky seniors
have tapped into the
marrow of their soul to
stay on course and make
a difference.
In a distinctive way,
they have left an indelible imprint
—assisting, nurturing, teaching,
inspiring and loving — always with
a sense of, and appreciationfor,
their Jewish identity. They selflessly
give because it's a mitzvah, not for
any gain.
Character, grit, drive and leader-
ship aren't traits unique to the
young. We all have something to
give, no matter our age.
But to be a steady, meaningful
giver when "over 80" is to be some-
one special. ❑
EDIT ORIAL
Keeping Score
I
t is not going to be very productive to argue
over who won or lost in the latest maneu-
vering among Ariel Sharon, Yasser Arafat
and George W. Bush.
Yes, the Palestinian leader and unrepentant ter-
rorist is being released from his semi-captivity at
little apparent direct cost and with his standing in
the Arab world somewhat enhanced.
But Israel's message that it can seize
him whenever it chooses cannot have
been lost on thoughtful Palestinians
and Arabs elsewhere.
Once again, both the Israeli prime
minister and the U.S. president backed down in
their dealings with a terrorist regime, but in truth,
each had drawn some lines that were ultimately too
difficult to live with. Resolving the sieges in
Ramallah and Bethlehem is absolutely necessary to
restart any political process. And Israel's military
ability to search for and capture terrorists, and thus
lower the level of violence, may actually have been
enhanced by the post-Passover operations.
The precision of its quick and apparently success-
ful raid in Hebron — in reaction to the murders of
four settlers in Adora — is a case in point. With
Arafat either unwilling or unable to stop the terror-
ist plots using his own forces, Israel may well have
to accept the challenge of being the actual security
operation for the West Bank and Gaza.
The deal to use American and British wardens
to supervise the incarceration of the six men con-
victed in the "trial" in Ramallah — what a won-
terful judicial process with no reported testimony
and no public oversight, hence no record of the
men's real crimes! — could be a first
step toward the Palestinian goal of
"internationalizing" the conflict. But it
doesn't have to be, and the U.S. and
Great Britain should be able to keep
the process narrowly focused on the
goal of not letting those killers out of prison. The
small force of observers that have been in Hebron
under the Oslo agreement had not been manipu-
lated into being a military presence behind which
the Palestinians can hide.
In any event, the wardens are far less worrisome
than the United Nations proposed investigation
of what happened in Jenin. Originally, the mis-
sion was chartered as a "fact-finding" process, but
Secretary General Kofi Annan seems intent on
having it reach legal conclusions that, given the
U.N.'s record of blatant hostility toward Israel,
can only have one outcome. Israel, which has
nothing to hide in the conduct of its troops in
EDIT ORIAL
Jenin, was correct to allow the original fact-find-
ing process and is equally correct in its current
efforts to prevent any expansion of the role.
While we are not holding our breath, wouldn't it
be a refreshing change for a U.N. body to report
that it can find not a scrap of evidence for the
Palestinian massacre claims.
The large truth is that, for now, small steps are
all that are likely or desirable. The level of dis-
trust between Israelis and Palestinians essentially
forecloses any long-term solutions, much less a
permanent peace agreement. Even getting back to
the level that allowed the Oslo accords a decade
ago is going to be very, very difficult because
every suicide bombing or killing of settlers will
draw an Israeli military response. It would be the
human thing if Arafat would direct his forces to
cut down on the terrorism, because that would
open the door to broader security cooperation
between Israel and the Palestinians. Maybe that
will happen, but for now the Israel Defense
Forces have to remain as the Palestinian police.
Instead of worrying about who won or lost
what in the siege of Ramallah, Israel and its
American supporters should be glad that the level
of violence may actually be going down. That
would be a step in the right direction. ❑
5/3
2002
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