LETTERS

Defending Bush

Your editorial "Succeeding Against
Terrorism" (Oct. 15, page 55) seems
to signal a change from your usual
judiciousness regarding the threat
posed by Islamic fundamentalism.
On several occasions, your editorial
page has lamented how, after the ter-
ritorial and monetary concessions of
the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian
Authority continues to use state-run
schools to teach hatred of Israel. And
how, after Israel has for decades pro-
vided the Palestinians with hospitals,
employment and the highest standard
of living in the Arab world, they con-
tinue to murder Israelis.
You have also lamented how,
despite an outreach effort by local
Jewish community leaders, few lead-
ers of the Arab-American community
in Detroit have spoken out against
terrorism directed at Israeli civilians.
Now, in your zeal to make Sen.
John Kerry look good, you praise him
for having "the patience and willing-
ness to seek to replace the radical
Islamic schools, the madrassas that
recruit terrorists, with real schools
that give impoverished students real
tools for improving their lives and
their societies." A noble objective,
indeed, but surely you know it to be
impossible.
Furthermore, in your zeal to make
President Bush look bad, you ask,
"Would Bush go it alone in Iran,
too?" That implies that we entered
the current war in Iraq unilaterally.
Besides the fact that the United States
led a coalition of 30 countries, this
implication further demonstrates your
naivete about our enemies.
Keep in mind that President Bill
Clinton led the United States in a
NATO-sanctioned war that rescued
Bosnia-Herzegovina. Yet despite this
war that saved millions of Muslim
lives, Al Qaida still raised the neces-
sary money to carry out its attacks
against the World Trade Center.
Perhaps after the election, the
Jewish News editorial board will
return to its previous, well-deserved
skepticism of coddling the enemies of
the United States and Israel.
Yehuda Kranczer

Oak Park

Israel Public Affairs Committee has
noted Kerry's 100 percent pro-Israel
voting record on more than 60 votes
and congressional letters. He has
clearly stated, 'And I want you to
know that, as president, my promise
to the people of Israel is this: I will
never force Israel to make concessions
that cost or compromise Israel's secu-
rity."
The policies of the Bush adminis-
tration have certainly made Israel less
safe. Iraq has become a haven for ter-
rorists who are now protected and
supported by Islamic extremist
groups. President Bush ignored both
Israeli and American advisers who
warned about the real threat of Iran
and the potential for chaos and
fanaticism in the aftermath of an
invasion of Iraq.
Instead of finishing the justified
war in Afghanistan and using our per-
sonnel and money to really secure our
ports, power plants and other vulner-
able places, Bush took our country
into war based on his narrow and dis-
torted world view. It is also baffling
how people continue to ignore.the
close ties that Bush has with the
Saudi royal family.
As an American Orthodox Jew, I
am greatly troubled by the thought of
four more years of an administration
which does not respect the separation
of church and state, wants to compro-
mise our health by thwarting scientif-
ic research and protects special inter-
ests that wish to do away with the
past. 20 years of environmental pro-
tections.
Our country faces the biggest debt
ever and has had to compromise our
world leadership by borrowing from
countries such as China and Japan. It
is truly frightening to think what may
happen to further erode our civil lib-
erties and democratic principles for
decades to come if Bush will be able
to appoint more federal judges and
fill likely vacancies on the Supreme
Court.
If you care about all of American
society and our democratic values, as
well as the real security of Israel, there
is no choice but to vote for John
Kerry.
Marlene Gitelman

Ann Arbor

Vote For Kerry

Vote For Bush

I would not be voting for Sen. John
Kerry if I had evidence that doing so
would in any way jeopardize Israel's
security or sovereignty. The American

What have you done for me lately?
Heck, what have you done for me in
19 years? Sen. John F. Kerry is asking

the American public to make him the
leader of the free world. Yet, by any
standard, he has done nothing to dis-
tinguish himself as a leader in the
U.S. Senate. If you want to measure
the potential of Kerry to lead this
country, look at his record on the
issues during his Senate career.
Earlier this year, Kerry stated that
life begins at conception. Yet he voted
against the ban on partial birth abor-
tion. At what point does he feel a life
is worth protecting? If he truly
believes in protecting the unborn,
what legislation has Kerry brought to
the Senate floor to protect the sancti-
ty of life? None.
True leaders in government are
those who see a problem, develop a
solution and then put forth legislation
to solve the problem. It seems that
Kerry can look around the country
and find plenty of problems, yet has
shown almost no initiative in finding
solutions to these problems. Is that
the kind of "leadership" that America
wants at this critical point in the war
on terror?
On the other hand, over the past
3 1 /2 years, President Bush has provid-
ed strong leadership. Bush has shown
true leadership in racial equality by
appointing the most diverse cabinet
in presidential history. Bush proposed
and passed major reforms to Medicare
in an effort to modernize it and
extend prescription drug coverage to
seniors.
Bush was the driving force behind
the Patriot Act, which has made our
homeland safer and gives the intelli-
gence community a much-needed
tool in the war on terror.
When it comes to providing leader-
ship, there's one clear choice:
President George W. Bush.
Ben Havis

Farmington Hills

This Time, Kerry

I have been an independent voter
from the first time I voted and that
was in the 1976 presidential election.
I have voted both Republican and
Democrat and, in 2000, I voted for
George W. Bush.
I voted for Bush for the reason that,
at the time, I felt he would better
serve our country than Al Gore
would. And I have used those same
criteria in 2004 to decide between
President Bush and Sen. John F.
Kerry. And in this election, I feel Sen.
Kerry will best serve our country.
What has the president done for

our country in the last four years?
Some Jewish people would say, "He is
a strong supporter of Israel." Yes, but
so was Richard Nixon and he lied to
our country and had to resign from
office in order to escape impeach-
ment.
In the last four years under the
leadership of President Bush, we have
lost more than 1,000 lives in a war
that is unnecessary; we have alienated
some of our closest allies; the price of
oil has ballooned to $55/barrel and
$3 for a gallon of gas is not far off;
our health care system is in disarray;
and in Michigan, since 2001, we have
lost 120,000 jobs that will never be
coming back because they moved off
shore. And I could go on and on as to
why Bush does not deserve another
four years.
It is with these facts, and others
that I have not mentioned here, that I
call out to the Jewish community to
look beyond your partisanship and
ask yourselves the question, "Where
will the United States be in four years
if President Bush is re-elected?"
Sheldon Stone

Southfield

Backing Bush

My husband and I visited Israel in
August and, in Jerusalem, the West
Bank, Hebron and Safed we were
overwhelmed by one request from
soldiers, storekeepers and residents:
Please ask Americans to vote for
President George W. Bush. Our lives
depend on it!
Jocelyn Ruth Krieger

Southfield

No Trust In Kerry

The very essence of leadership is that
you have to have a vision. You can't
blow an uncertain trumpet.
Sen. John Kerry voted for the Iraq
war and then voted against funding
the military and reconstruction efforts
in Iraq and Afghanistan. Several men
who were prisoners of war said their
Communist captors used tapes and
transcripts of Kerry's anti-war testi-
mony in an effort to demoralize them
during interrogation sessions.
America is in the midst of a war
against terrorism. The U.S. is engaged
in a historic clash of civilizations with
the Islamic world. John Kerry has a
dismal record on defense for the past
19 years. He cannot be trusted.
Charles Kaye

Southfield

10/22
2004

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