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Pollard's Guilt
Not At Issue
Jonathan Pollard was convicted of spy-
ing for a foreign power. Period ("The
Spy In The Shadows," Aug. 16, page
14). It doesn't matter that he is Jewish
or that he thought he was helping
Israel. It is against the law to pass clas-
sified information to anybody not
properly cleared, and Mr. Pollard
freely admits passing such information
to our ally, Israel.
It is really amazing that there was
not a wave of anti-Israel feeling in this
country because of what Mr. Pollard
did.
Imagine how we would feel if an
Arab-American were convicted of giv-
ing classified information to, for
instance, Iraq or Saudi Arabia. I think
that all Americans, Jews and others,
would be enraged, and rightfully so.
It is very shortsighted to seek
clemency for Jonathan Pollard, an
admitted spy, simply because he spied
for Israel. Give the case a rest. Mr.
Pollard is where he, and all other spies,
belong.
And, yes, I most emphatically do
believe in a strong Israel, and I sup-
port the Israelis in the current
Palestinian uprising. I think the
Israelis are showing very admirable
restraint.
Zachary M. Davies
Oak Park
Pollard Not
Above Law
The debate about the sentence of
Jonathan Pollard is an example of a
certain segment of Jewish Americans
placing greater importance on Israel
than on the United States ("The Spy
In The Shadows," Aug. 16, page 14).
This man committed treason
against a country of which he is a
citizen. The fact that he committed
the crime for Israel does not, and
should not, provide grounds for
leniency.
Let us not lose sight that treason
has traditionally been viewed as one
of the worst crimes an American citi-
zen can commit. This man unilater-
ally decided that Israel had a right to
receive classified information without
regard to the national security of our
country. American lives may have
been placed at risk due to the ideo-
logical views of one man.
I fully support Israel's right to
exist, but the existence of the United
States is of greater importance to
Americans. No one person is above
the law. We cannot blindly be in
favor of every action that will poten-
tially help Israel, especially when
such actions risk the security of our
country.
Gary L. Fineman
Farmington Hills
Crohn's Story
A Moving Read
I just finished reading your article on
the CCFA Michael Yendick Camp
("First-Time Fun," Aug. 16, page
39), which brought tears to my eyes.
As a Crohn's patient myself with
two grown sons with the disease and
a sister and two nephews [having it]
as well, I cannot say how truly won-
derful all the people are who have
been instrumental in giving these
children one week of a camp experi-
ence, where they can just be them-
selves and make new friends with
other kids who are afflicted with the
same disease. How I wish there was
such a place I could have sent my
kids 20 years ago.
It really is hard to believe, but true,
how many people do not even know
what Crohn's disease is. Doing this
article perhaps will educate the com-
munity to the trials people must
endure who have this debilitating
disease. Perhaps they will remember
the article enough to contribute
money to CCFA [Crohn's and Colitis
Foundation of America], so camps
such as this one can continue to
make children "forget" at least for a
week that they have a chronic illness.
Thanks again for the inspiring
article.
Roz Bressler
Farmington Hills
Theater Wanted To
Host Entertainer
We'd like to thank the Jewish News for
being a wonderful supporter of
Detroit's fabulous Fox Theatre. Your
staff is wonderful to work with; how-
ever, we'd like to make a couple of
clarifications regarding your recent
article on Michael Feinstein and the
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
("Pulling The Plug," Aug. 9, page 70).
The article states, "After Clear
Channel pulled the plug, promoters
in Detroit, Columbus, Los Angeles
and Seattle followed suit."
This is untrue. The tour canceled
its Detroit appearance. Our organiza-
tion was ready to move forward with
Mr. Feinstein and the Israel
Philharmonic Orchestra's Aug. 24 per-
formance. Detroit had the strongest
tickets sales of all markets and our
performance was still more than a
month away.
The article also states, "With a seat-
ing capacity of 5,000, the Fox Theatre
has been known to cancel events due
to low ticket sales."
We book and execute world-class
events on a weekly basis and are hard-
ly known for canceling events. We
can't recall the last time an event has
been cancelled at the Fox, let alone by
the Fox. Occasionally in this industry,
events are canceled; most often, the
circumstances are beyond a venue's
control.
We're very sorry Michael Feinstein
and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
(IPO) decided not to perform at the
Fox Theatre this month. We looked
forward to their appearance, and
worked hard, in conjunction with Mr.
Feinstein and the IPO, to make this
scheduled stop in Detroit spectacular
and memorable.
Kathleen Kennedy
director of public relations,
Fox Theatre
Detroit
Shaarey Zedek
Earns Plaudits
Congregation Shaarey Zedek should
be commended for hosting the
Midwest French Consul General [the
Hon. Dominique Y. Decherf] during
a special Shabbat afternoon service
and discussion this past July.
More than 200 members of the
Jewish community came to learn
about the current political atmos-
phere and what many perceive to be
an escalation of anti-Semitism.
Sponsored by the American Jewish
Committee Metropolitan Detroit
Chapter, the program was further
enhanced by a report from Barry
Jacobs, director of strategic studies in
the AJC's office of government and
international affairs.
The American Jewish Committee
thanks Jay Knoll, the afternoon's
chairman, and Rabbi Leonardo
Bitran of Congregation Shaarey
Zedek for their participation in the
program.
Sharona Shapiro
Michigan area director;
American Jewish Committee
Bloomfield Township
TIES THAT BIND from page 5
"We're hoping the closed, more secure setting will
bring people back to Ben Yehudah. That would be
the best proof that we're all together and will not
leave the city."
His wife bristles at even the question of whether
her family ever considered moving on.
"There is no other place to be for us," Ronit said.
"We will never leave our country. I didn't move
from Iran to Israel to not live there forever."
Coming Together
During their two-week stay in Oak Park, the
8/23
2002
6
Ghatans were houseguests of Ruth and Benno Levi
and their daughter, Reggie. "We had thought we
would go to a hotel, but the Levis and others have
been so accommodating," Ronit said.
For the Levis, hosting the Ghatans was a mitzvah
and more.
"We feel a very strong connection to the Jews in
Yerushalyim, especially during the ongoing tragedy,"
Reggie Levi said, "and we wanted to show the
Ghatans that we care about them — that they're
not alone."
Local families took turns hosting the Ghatans for
dinner and taking them to downtown Detroit,
Greenfield Village in Dearborn and shopping malls.
The visitors observed Shabbat at Young Israel of
Oak Park.
I loved how Reggie summed up the Ghatans'
visit.
"It goes beyond just showing support. We can go
to Israel, but even when we can't, we can still make
them feel that we're one people — that we're one
big family who will help each other."
She added, "By the way, we've made some nice
new friends in Yerushalyim."
❑