Opposite page,
left to right:

A highlight of the
evening was a per-
formance by the 30-
member Yeshiva Beth
Yehudah Choir,
directed by Rabbi
Rachmiel Stewart.

Gary Torgow, Yeshiva
Beth Yehudah presi-
dent, presents the
school's Golden Torah
award to Drs. Lynda
and Conrad Giles.

Giles, the video features firefighter Jerry
Eizen of Oak Park; Oakland County
Circuit Court Judge Alice Gilbert;
orthopedist Dr. Richard Krugel and his
wife, Sally, of Bloomfield Hills; and
college-aged ice speeds kater Elyse Sklar
of Farmington Hills.
Each spoke of the program's wel-
coming atmosphere and the opportu-
nity to meet with people from differ-
ent streams of Judaism, as well as the
mind-expanding curriculum.
"I'm certain the future of Judaism
rests with our learning institutions,"
Dr. Giles said. 'And nowhere is that
better represented than here at Yeshiva
Beth Yehudah."
Said Dr. Lynda Giles: "Throughout
the ages, it is only through being
completely dedicated to the study of
the Torah that the Jewish people have
survived the turbulent waters that
threaten to drown us. The Torah is
the secret of the existence of the
Jewish nation to this day."
In supporting Yeshiva Beth
Yehudah, a school that "stands tall and
strong today holding on to the princi-
ples and the teachings of the Holy
Torah," Detroit's Jewish community is
essentially "sustaining our-entire
nation," Dr. Lynda Giles said.

❑

At Home And Abroad

Sen. John Edwards outlines U.S. responsibilities
in the fight against terrorism for Yeshiva audience.

tional peacekeeping forces now in
Afghanistan must take greater initiative
in building a just society. By confining
their jurisdiction to the area around
e's one of the rising stars
Kabul, the nation's capital, the forces
in the Democratic Party,
now occupying the area leave most of
on every political pundit's
Afghanistan "in lawless disarray."
short list as a future presi-
"That is a mistake," he said, "and we
dential hopeful.
will pay for it when those fields of chaos
And, on Oct. 27, Sen. John
produce the next Osama bin Laden."
Edwards of North Carolina was in
On all these issues, the United States
Detroit, the guest speaker at Yeshiva
can't work unilaterally, Sen. Edwards
Beth Yehudah's 88th annual dinner.
said.
The 49-year-old Democrat
Despite his support for the
was the latest in an illustrious
blanket approval of action
list of judicial and political
against Iraq given to the presi-
leaders on the Yeshiva podium
dent on Oct. 11 — which
— past speakers have included
pointedly does not tie any U.S.
Vice President Dick Cheney,
action to resolutions or actions
Sen. Joseph Lieberman, former
by the United Nations — Sen.
New York Mayor Rudolph
Edwards said, "The fight against
Giuliani and former President
terror will never be won by us
Gerald Ford.
alone."
All of the speakers have
"As powerful as we are," he
pledged their support for Israel
insisted, "we cannot be every-
and for equal rights here in the
where and learn everything
United States, and Sen.
without cooperation from our
Edwards was no exception. But
friends and allies.
his speech touched on much
"Al Qaida alone is known to
more than purely parochial
operate in more than 60 coun-
interests. Instead, he spoke of
tries," he said. "We need the
the right of every human being
Guest speaker Sen. John Edwards stands between
cooperation
of intelligence and
to exist free of fear, in a demo-
Golden Torah honorees Drs. Lynda and Conrad Giles.
law enforcement agencies
cratic society.
around the world to cast a
"I believe that the first
global
net
for terrorists, to infiltrate
However,
he
said,
disarming
Iraq
responsibility of any government is the
and building democracy there after
their cells, learn their plans, disrupt
safety and security of its citizens," said
their operations, cut off their funds
Saddam's fall, are only part of the
the senator, who has held his post
and stop them cold."
effort to halt the spread of weapons of
since January 1999.
Within the United States, the sena-
In today's world, he said, that respon- mass destruction.
"If we're serious about dealing with
tor advocates the creation of a new
sibility imposes three major challenges:
this problem once and for all — and if terrorism-fighting agency, subject to
"first, to eliminate the threat of chemi-
strong safeguards against abuses of
we
want to prevent future threats like
cal, biological and nuclear weapons;
civil liberties, instead of "attempting to
Iraq from arising — then we must
second, to win the war on terrorism;
turn the -FBI into something it is not."
make non-proliferation a real priority,
and third, to promote democracy and
"With the right safeguards, a new
freedom around the world, especially in by working with the entire global
community," Sen. Edwards said, allud- agency can do a better job tracking
the Middle East."
terrorists and a better job protecting
ing to hot spots such as North Korea,
On the worldwide front, Sen.
our freedoms," he said.
the former Soviet Union, India and
Edwards was a co-sponsor of the
Sen. Edwards, who grew up in a
Pakistan.
bipartisan Senate resolution, approved
working-class
home and was the first
Oct. 11 by a vote of 77-23, which
in his family to go to college, ended
authorized the use of force in Iraq.
Building A Just Society
his Yeshiva Beth Yehudah speech by
Specifically, the resolution gave
pledging his support for equal oppor-
Putting out the fires of terrorism once
Senate permission for President
tunities and civil rights.
they occur is not enough, Sen. Edwards
George W. Bush to "use the armed
"We must remember this fundamen-
said. Establishing democracy is vitally
forces of the United States as he deter-
tal fact," he said. 'America's power
important in the effort to keep the
mines to be necessary and appropriate
makes it unique, but its principles and
world safe for our children's children.
in order to (1) defend the national
authority make it great." ❑
For example, he went on, interna-
security of the United States against

DIANA LIEBERMAN
Copy Editor/Education Writer

:a

the continuing threat posed by Iraq,
and (2) enforce all relevant United
Nations Security Council resolutions
regarding Iraq."
"As a member of the Senate
Intelligence Committee, I believe
[Iraqi leader] Saddam Hussein's regime
is a grave threat to America and our
allies — including our most important
ally and truest friend in the region,
Israel," he told the 2,200 Yeshiva sup-
porters at the Detroit Marriott
Renaissance Center.

2002

19