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Who Needs It?

W

hen it comes to things anatomical and tech-
quarters with a snorer. Much of the noise is attributable to that
nological, I have observed that there are items
little "thingy" at the back of the throat called the uvula. This
that are truly not needed, so why must we suf-
extension of the soft palate reverberates and adds to the snor-
fer with and from them?
er's output. There are operations to shorten this fleshy piece;
In the body, there are certain "appendages" which no lon-
but, again, who needs the knife?
ger serve us, but can be discomforting when they "act up"
At the top of my technological get-rid-of list is the photo-
and/or need removal.
phone. Wasn't it bad enough to have people talk while driving?
Consider the appendix. There it sits — or hangs — at the
Now they can have their attention taken by looking at the caller
end of the large intestine. It has no known function.
or whatever "cute" picture is being transmitted. (One conver-
It can become inflamed and need removal, but usu-
sationalist I heard described the lovely picture of her dog that
Sy Ma nello
ally this will only happen if you are on a camping trip in
appeared on the screen when anyone called from her home
Editor ial
a remote area or on a pilgrimage to a third-world country.
phone.) And car insurance isn't high enough now?
Assist ant
Do any of us really need an abdominal scar? It's hardly a
Speaking of cars, we might as well do away with turn signals.
badge of honor and rarely has a scintillating tale to go with
They are so often ignored, not used or used in opposition to
it unless it was removed by someone using a Boy Scout knife on someone
what the driver is doing, they may as well not be there. (At least I do not
on an old blanket atop Mt. McKinley.
let personal prejudice enter into my writing.)
Getting right to the bottom of things, let us consider the coccyx bone.
Can you tell when your dog is hungry or needs to go out or is happy to
This minor protrusion at the end of the spine — which some feel is the
see you? Well, for those of you still in the dark, you can purchase a device
last vestige from our tail-bearing ancestors — serves only to cause pain
that clips to the animal's collar and "interprets" on a digital screen what
and suffering to those who happen to fall on that area. Do you relish car-
the barks mean. This strikes me as being as effective as the magic eight
rying around a whoopee-like cushion to be able to sit comfortably? Do you ball was in solving life's crises.
yearn to figure out how to take a sitz bath without "sitzing?" I think not.
Well, on second thought, let's keep all these things. After all, without
When it comes to suffering. Think of the person who shares sleeping
them, I'd have nothing to write about. 71_.

-

U-M Support For Israel
Blue and white balloons, tables filled with literature, Israeli music,
Israeli food and students wearing "Michigan Zionist" T-shirts signaled
Israel Diag Day on Nov. 6 at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Crowds of students stopped to learn more about Israel and sample
hummus and falafel.
Israel Diag Day was sponsored by the Israel IDEA along with
StandWithUs-Michigan. It also received university funding.
The Israel IDEA is a pro-Israel advocacy group dedicated to edu-
cating students. This year, it has hosted other advocacy events and
screened the film Obsession about radical Islam. Next month, it is
hosting speaker Brigitte Gabriel, a pro-Israel Lebanese Christian.
The Israel IDEA, led by a core of eight, was founded last year by
four students, three of whom are from Metro Detroit: Brad Stulberg,
David Kurzmann and Aaron Ellias.
Israel Diag Day netted more than $425 to be sent to northern Israel
to help rebuild areas damaged by Hezbollah shelling. Also at the event,
both Jews and non-Jews wrote supportive letters to Israeli soldiers.

- Ezra Drissman, special writer

won a radio station dance contest.

JBlog

Jeff Klein offers his
Perspectives on everything
from dating to this week's
+column on the merits of
Internet dating. Always
thoughtful, often provoca-
tive. Or perhaps you'd rather
read about the adventures
of Laurie Freeman's China
Punim, 4-year-old Amanda?
Only at JNonline.us . Just
click on JBlog on the menu
on the left.

,

Latest From Israel

Want the most current
news from Israel? Check
our streaming news from
tYnetnews.com for con-
Ainuous updates and longer
news, opinion and feature
stories.
Just visit JNonline.us and
click on a scrolling story on
the left.

Winning Essays

Students with the Israel IDEA, a pro-Israel advocacy group, offer

information about Israel on the U-M Diag.

Winning Dancer

Cady Tobias, 7, of Farmington Hills sent in a 30-second dance video to
the Magic Dance Showdown through radio station Magic-FM (105.1) and
was selected as one of 10 semi-finalists. Through an online vote, she made
it as one of five finalists. After another online vote, she was the winner.
Her prize was a trip for four to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
Cady will go with her parents, Joshua and Alyssa Tobias, and her brother
Charlie, 2.
Cady is a second-grader at Forest Elementary School. She learned dance
from her mom, a dance
teacher, and from four years
of instruction at Studio A in
Walled Lake.
During the two weeks of
the contest, Cady appeared
at a Kroger in Macomb
Township with the other
semi-finalists and then at a
Kroger in Livonia with the
finalists.
Cady Tobias, 7, of Farmington Hills

Mienline
This Week

'Why I Like My Camp'

Had a great time last summer at camp? Tell us about it in 100
words or less and we'll publish your response in the Dec. 7
Jewish News Camp section.

Send us your submission via e-mail (required) to ahitsky®the-
jewishnews.com by Tuesday, Nov. 28. We can't guarantee that
we can run every one in the JN, but we'll include as many as
possible, and all of them will go on JNonline.us . Please include
your name, current age, address and daytime telephone number.

If you have a photo of yourself doing something at camp, please
send it along. If you send a photo via e-mail, it must be in a JPG
or TIF format at 300 DPI. If you send a photo via mail, send to
Alan Hitsky, the Jewish News, 29200 Northwestern Hwy., Suite
110, Southfield, MI 48034. Please include your name and those
of anyone else in the photo.

More than 130 students
entered the Jewish Book
Fair's high school essay con-
test tied to a kick-off speech
by author Elie Wiesel. The
topic: Why is Elie Wiesel's
book Night relevant today?
Read the winning essays.
Just click on Web Extras
on the menu on the left.

Last week's poll results:
Are you happy with the
configuration of the next
Congress resulting from the
recent election?
Yes 31%
No 69%

This week's poll question:
Democratic senators are
split on a resolution calling
for some troop withdrawals
from Iraq within six months.
Do you agree with Sen. Carl
Levin, D-Mich, that it's the
best strategy?

Visit the JNonline.us
homepage to cast your
vote.

- Sy Manello, editorial assistant

November 16 • 2006

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