LETTERS
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editor
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Eban's Words
Still Resonate
The passing of Israeli statesman
Abba Eban ("The Voice Of Abba
Eban," Nov. 22, page 31) and our
community's reflections on
Ambassador Eban's contributions to
the security of Israel and the Jewish
people make it fitting to recall the
powerful and eloquent words he
spoke at the 27th World Zionist
Congress, on June 15, 1968, in
Jerusalem:
"The [Arab] propaganda against
Israel portrays us as a caricature,
hook-nosed with tails, horns and
monstrous attributes outside the
human context. Nazism is deeply
embedded in the style and content
of the Arab war against Israel."
Sadly, Arab attitudes toward Israel
have not substantially changed in
the years since Ambassador Eban
spoke those words.
Morton A. Klein
.
national president,
Zionist Organization of America
New York City
u)
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The Courage
Of Seeds
The debate on Seeds of Peace
("Seeds: Misguided Myths" and
"Truly Zionist," Dec. 6, page 32)
shows a misunderstanding on the
part of Professor Raymond Tanter.
He paints a picture of right and
wrong without truly understanding
root causes.
He is right that nothing justifies
brutal terrorism, but does it mean
that all Moslems and Arabs are
fanatic extremists? Can't we reach
out to the moderate and the reason-
able in the Arab and Moslem world
so that they are not pushed them-
selves to despair and extremism?
One billion Muslims and 100 mil-
lion Arabs are not all terrorists. The
only way to encourage this vast pop-
ulace to debase their own extremists
and embrace Western values is to
reach out with dialogue and empa-
thy. This is exactly what Seeds of
Peace is doing.
I entirely agree with Counterpoint
writer Hannan Lis' depiction of the
facts and his views regarding Seeds
"
"
of Peace, an American enterprise
based on American values.
[Seeds of Peace] is the brainchild
of the late John Wallach who, as an
American Jew, understood that
rights of life, liberty and the pursuit
of happiness are not only Israeli and
Jewish rights, but also universal
rights of all of mankind — includ-
ing Palestinians who never terrorized
anybody.
It is time to realize that the tireless
past efforts of Israeli Prime Ministers
Yitzhak Rabin and Ehud Barak to
achieve peace for Israel were made in
the true spirit of traditional
Zionism. The Israeli peace camp
today is following this spirit by not
giving up on peace and by being
persistent and courageous in spite of
being a minority, just like the origi-
nal Zionists had courage in the pur-
suit of a Jewish state. -
Seeds of Peace is showing its own
courage — "courage in the pursuit
of peace." This is its message and
endeavor. It is Zionist. It is Jewish.
And it is American.
Asa Shani
Rochester Hills
Facts Challenge
Basis Of Seeds
It was truly tragic to read the general-
ization by Hannan Lis about Seeds of
Peace ("Seeds: Truly Zionist," Dec. 6,
page 32).
All the Israeli attempts at peace
have been met with constantly broken
treaties, war whenever the Arabs
thought they could annihilate the
Jewish state and the brutal killing of
women, children and other innocent
civilians in between.
Lis [vice president of the Detroit
Seeds chapter] also claimed that
opponents of his pipe dream, Camp
Seeds of Peace, presented no facts to
support their view. All that has ever
been presented are facts.
What facts could be more damaging
than: a founder of the camp, Saeb
Erekat, being Palestinian leader Yasser
Arafat's chief negotiator; the hiring of
Arab sympathizers to speak at their
fund-raisers, like Arafat spokesman
Yasser Rabbo and former U.S.
Ambassador to Israel and Egypt
Edward S. Walker Jr.; their honoring
a renowned anti-Israel politician like
Rep. John Dingell, D-Dearborn; or
having as one of their chief program-
mers for four years, Adam Shapiro,
who goes around the country spewing
the most hateful lies against Israel.
It was Shapiro and his organization,
called the Palestine Solidarity
Movement, which stood with Arafat
during the siege in Ramallah on
Arafat's headquarters. It was his
organization primarily speaking at the
"Second National Student Conference
on the Palestine Solidarity
Movement" just four weeks ago in
Ann Arbor.
What fine examples of the accom-
plishments of Camp Seeds of Peace. -
Leaders Theodor Herzl, Zeev
Jabotinsky, David Ben-Gurion,
Menachem Begin and, yes, Yitzhak
Rabin would turn over in their graves
visualizing these examples of Zionism.
What is truly tragic is the fact that
Seeds of Peace believers, another 54
years from now, will still live with the
very same pipe dream, refusing to
understand what true Zionism is all
about.
Now, the Labor Party in Israel has
repudiated former justice minister
Yossi Beilin and the leader of Peace
Now [the Israeli peace activists'
group] by ejecting them as representa-
di/es of the Israeli people to the next
Knesset.
Alex Skoczylas
West Bloomfield
Journal Editors
Earn Plaudits
Thank you for your splendid article
"Voices From Our Past" that show-
cased the 2002 journal Michigan
Jewish History (Nov. 22, page 38).
The editor of the outstanding fall
2002 issue was Aimee Ergas, who is
now on a year-long stay in the
Netherlands with her husband, Dr.
Tor Shwayder, and family.
The editor already at work on the
fall -2003 edition is Wendy Rose
Bice of Bloomfield Hills.
The Jewish Historical Society of
Michigan wants these two profes-
sionals to receive due public recog-
nition for their invaluable contribu-
tions to our community. We feel
fortunate to have the benefit of
their talent and dedication.
Judy Levin Cantor
past editor
Jewish Historical Society
West Bloomfield