Letters
Obama As President?
Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf, in his commen-
tary "Neighborly Conversation" (March 27,
page A35), describes Sen. Barack Obama
as "a leader willing to ask hard questions
and grapple with difficult answers." With
this in mind, what could be expected in
the area of Middle East policy from an
Obama presidency?
Firstly, one expects President Obama to
begin cautiously to remove all U.S. forces
from Iraq, possibly completing the remov-
al within 16 months of taking office. And
secondly, one expects President Obama
to move quickly to meet with Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to seek
ways of improving U.S.-Iranian relations.
Let us assume President Obama suc-
ceeds in both efforts, a best-case scenario.
What then?
With improved U.S. relations, Iran could
then proceed unimpeded to becoming a
nuclear power. Once it is, Iran could then
realistically threaten Israel with nuclear
annihilation. Should Iran act to carry
out its threat, it could also be setting in
motion a doomsday scenario. How con-
cerned should Sen. Obama be that his
well-intentioned Middle East policy could
lead to disaster?
Or, to put it another way, how does he
expect to persuade President Ahmadinejad
that a peaceful and tolerant Iran is in its
best interest when he has been unable to
persuade, over a 20-year period, his friend
and pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright to be a
tolerant human being?
Irving Warshawsky
West Bloomfield
A SAJE Encounter
On March 31, I attended the last of the
Seminars for Adult Jewish Enrichment
(SAJE) series, "Israel at 60: The Dream and
the Reality"
Actually, my brother and sister-in-law,
who live in Clarkston, were going to go
and I decided that if they come from
so far, I, who live within 10 minutes of
the Jewish Community Center in West
Bloomfield, would go and also be able to
share a different experience with them. In
a word, it was wonderful.
The presenter, Rabbi Sidney Schwarz,
was so knowledgeable and adept at
conducting an informative, interactive
workshop. I taught high school for more
than 30 years and have never experienced
anything even approaching such a produc-
tive session.
In addition, the community facilitators
— Kari Alterman, Don Cohen, Allan Gale,
Harvey Leven, Judy Loebl and a spon-
sor, Sue Birnholz — added tremendous
insight. I think I speak for others: We left
knowing that we were part of an amazing
community of thinkers, sharers and doers.
I highly recommend that more people
attend a SAJE event. Their programming
and choice of speakers are absolutely
first-rate! I would go out of my way to
hear Rabbi Schwarz again!
Judy Gelman
West Bloomfield
Clarifying Hillel
The article "Hind's New Strategy" (April
3, page C1)"has led some readers to con-
clude that Hillel has shifted its central
focus away from Jewish students.
Let us be very clear: Our raison d'etre
is to foster the identity of Jewish students
and to strengthen the global Jewish com-
munity. As our mission statement says:
"Hind's mission is to enrich the lives of
Jewish undergraduate and graduate stu-
r1LEFEET rcha Don't Know
Who are Hemen, Ethan, Jeduthun and Asaph who were
mentioned in the Hebrew scriptures?
-Goldfein
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ALEFBET'cha runs every other week.
d) Copyright 2008, Jewish Renaissance Media
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A6
April 10 • 2008
Veterans' Benefits Addressed
Jewish War Veterans and Ladies Auxiliaries came to Washington, D.C., from all
over United to discuss veterans' benefits and programs with Congress. The rep-
resentatives from Michigan were State Commander Gerald Order, Shelly Order,
State Auxiliary President Myra Gross and Bernard Gross. Shown meeting with
U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., are the Orders and Myra Gross.
dents so that they may enrich the Jewish
people and the world."
Our strategic plan calls on us to double
the number of Jewish students who are
involved in Jewish life and who have
meaningful Jewish experiences. Our
vision remains "to inspire every Jewish
student to make an enduring commit-
ment to Jewish life."
Julian Sandler, chairman
Wayne L. Firestone, president
Hillel: The Foundation
for Jewish Campus Life
Washington, D.C.
Coming Together
On April 1, Hillel of Metro Detroit's Jewish
Student Organization (JSO) at Wayne
State University, in conjunction with
the Muslim Student Association (MSA)
and the Coalition for Religious Dialogue
(CRD), presented "One Muslim. One Jew.
One Stage!'
Truly a hilarious and unique comedic
performance, the program demonstrated
the commonalities between Islam and
Judaism and showed that humor can be
found in both religions and cultures.
The program featured Rabbi Bob Alper
and Azhar Usman as "Comedy's Odd
Couple who tour in an effort to promote
tolerance and understanding. Throughout
the show, both comedians address their
counterpart with respect, and through
humor, break down the perceived barri-
ers that exist between Muslim and Jewish
cultures. The event was a great way for
students to come together to promote
cultural diversity in a non-traditional and
entertaining manner.
The collaboration between the JSO, MSA
and CRD demonstrates to the campus
the remarkable outcomes that can occur
when students come together. WSU has a
very culturally diverse population, and a
program of this magnitude embraces and
celebrates the unique campus community.
The night was an absolute success
with more than 200 students and faculty
from different religions and backgrounds
laughing together. All three organizations
formed a strong partnership and are look-
ing forward to collaborating in the near
future to continue the values of tolerance,
acceptance, and inter-cultural dialogue.
This past April Fools' Day was not only
one of laughter and humor, but also of
respect and relationship building.
Danniell Nadiv, president
Jewish Student Organization
Wayne State University
Detroit
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