Opinion
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The Missing Center
srael's Labor Party leader Benjamin Ben-
Eliezer has set his country off on a path that is
one part opportunity and two parts danger.
The opportunity is that a new national
consensus can be shaped on the key questions of
peace with the Palestinians, the fate of the settle-
ments and rebuilding the battered economy. The
dangers are that the bitter political factionalism will
intensify, handcuffing whoever is prime minister or,
worse, that the outcome will bolster the parties that
oppose any peace negotiations with the Palestinians,
thereby practically guaranteeing the bloody fighting
will continue.
By withdrawing Labor's support from Ariel
-Sharon's national unity government, Ben-
Eliezer essentially forced on Sharon the
decision to dissolve the Knesset and to
hold elections within 90 days, well before
the current Knesset terms are scheduled to end a
year from now
Polls for Israeli media say that a strong majority of
Israelis still believe that a Palestinian state is both
necessary and desirable. But the polls also show con-
sistent backing for strong measures to thwart the
Palestinian terrorism of the last two years. Thus, the
stage is set for the gap between the Israeli left and its
right to widen at a time when the nation needs a
centrist pulling together.
Seeking leadership of the Labor Party, Ben-
Eliezer and his two party rivals could easily lock
themselves into commitments about negotiating
with the Palestinians, even if Yasser Arafat remains
as the Palestinian leader. Just as dangerously, they
are likely to further Palestinian belief that they can
get their state and the removal of most Israeli set-
tlements without making any meaningful or
enforceable efforts to guarantee Israel's security.
And Labor's ultimate platform is likely to include
promises for social services that the beleaguered
economy can't sustain.
I
Having shed Labor from the gov-
ernment, Sharon will not have to pre-
tend interest in its policies. And to
stymie leadership competition from
former prime minister Binyamin
Netanyahu, Sharon will move toward
even tougher restrictions on the
Palestinians and further away from
any sort of action that could be con-
strued as negotiations. Even if Sharon
resists Netanyahu's program for tax
cuts and privatizing some national
enterprises, the final Likud election
platform will shift even further right-
ward.
And in the interim before
elections, substantial dam-
age could be easily done.
Sharon's choice to succeed Ben-Eliezer
as defense minister is Shaul Mofaz, a
committed fan of using military force
to impose quiet on Palestinian com-
munities.
As chief of staff until last July,
Mofaz was all for forcing Arafat into
exile, and his appointment cheers the
hawks who have applauded the Israel
Defense Forces' enforcement of cur-
fews. And without Labor pressure to
roll back incentives for settlement
growth, the issue which Ben-Eliezer
used as the pietext to get out of the
Cabinet, the new budget will contin-
ue to spend in the West Bank tax dol-
lars that could be better used for
communities inside the Green Line.
Still, elections are funny processes. It is possible
that after all the maneuvering, the major parties
may recognize that their own long-term interest,
like the country's, requires building a centrist appeal
Dry Bones
EDIT ORIAL
A Golden Couple
heir devotion to Jewish communal work
is highly commendable, but their service
to helping integrate Jewish learning into
our lives is truly inspiring.
So we're delighted to see Drs. Lynda and
'Conrad Giles receive the Yeshiva Beth
Yehudah's Golden Torah Award, the 88-
year-old day school's highest community
honor.
Yeshiva president Gary Torgow put it well:
"Together, this remarkable couple have — and con-
tinue to — set the highest examples of commitment
and dedication to everything dear to our people."
The Giles are smart, determined and know how
to get it done. They get involved and aren't slaves to
theory. Their golden gifts to Detroit Jewry — the
academic excellence and quality of achievement they
encourage in children — reflect their passion to
T
strengthen Jewish identity by helping spread the
goodness of Torah from generation to generation.
Lynda, a psychologist, is former president of the
Agency for Jewish Education and founding co-chair
of the Alliance for Jewish Education, both
affiliates of the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit. Lynda worked
closely with Robert Naftaly and Harlene
Appelman to create the vision- and policy-setting
alliance in 1999. She remains a respected leader as it
grapples with such basic issues as finding and paying
teachers, and developing and enriching curriculum.
Connie, an ophthalmologist, earned his commu-
nal service spurs in the world of federations, but has
become an articulate spokesman for Jewish learning
thanks to his experience with Yeshiva's Partners in
Torah program. The program, matching him with a
Torah study partner, has deepened his appreciaton
EDIT ORIAL
that includes both a viable peace option and a sensi-
ble plan for government spending and economic
recovery.
In the coming months, the candidates will have
an opportunity to rebuild Israel's missing political
center. Let us hope they do. ❑
for the traditions and teachings of our people.
With the Alliance under Lynda a national model,
and the federated world having reinvented itself in
part through Connie's stewardship, it's no stretch to
say their collective imprint on Jewish learning and
living Jewishly is indelible.
The Gileses, each in their own special way, have
become ambassadors for the Jewish ideal that it's
better to learn and grow than dwell in the quick-
sand of thinking you know it all.
They understand that Torah study, tailored to
individual desires, ultimately is what unites us as a
people and binds us to Israel, our beloved home-
land. They understand that we are connected as
much by knowledge as by belief.
Yeshiva Beth Yehudah's Golden Torah Award is a
fitting honor for Lynda and Connie Giles, who give
of themselves in support of the rhythm and embrace
of our holiest of scrolls. ❑
Related story: page 28
11/8
2002
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