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Real Courage in Motion

Joni Kwinter with Dafna, one of Israel's wounded war heroes who took part in the ride with a handbike, and other riders.

Joni Kwinter

Special Commentary

Toronto

1

t was called "Courage in Motion" and
that aptly describes the inaugural
five-day bicycle ride through north-
ern Israel to help the disabled veterans of
Israel.
The Sept. 14-18 event was hosted by
Aid to Disabled Veterans of Israel - Beit
Halochem/Canada. Disabled members of
Beit Halochem and able-bodied cyclists
from Canada and the United States cycled
more than 400 kilometers from Nahariya
to the Beit Halochem Centre in Jerusalem.

Beit Halochem has four centers in Israel
that provide disabled war veterans and
their families with cultural, sport and
rehab activities suited to their specific
needs.
The event served as a therapeutic activ-
ity for the Beit Halochem members as
well as a fundraiser for the organization.
Each able-bodied participant had to raise
a minimum of $2,500 to participate in the
ride. Between 15 and 40 members of Beit
Halochem participated in the ride daily.
The disabled cyclists included mobility
challenged individuals, single and double
amputees and blind riders. Mobility chal-
lenged athletes rode hand bikes. Blind
cyclists rode on the back of tandems.

As I attempt to describe the opportu-
nity and experience of cycling through
Israel with the Beit Halochem members,
the words hero, courage, strength and
optimism come to mind repeatedly. The
courageous spirit embodied in each of the
disabled cyclists and the uniqueness of
this event was immediately apparent each
morning as we prepared to ride. Since
many of the disabled are missing limbs,
part of their preparation involved attach-
ing their limb appropriately and having
aides secure the cyclists to their bikes.
While the assortment of prosthetic limbs
strewn about might at first glance seem
distressing, I was struck by the abundant
smiles and enthusiasm among the group

of veterans.
As we set out together each morning,
the disabled athletes faced the cycling
challenge with strength and optimism.
The Israelis maintained the true spirit of
their compatriots behind the wheel: wild
men! The climbs were slow and occasion-
ally, the Beit Halochem members required
assistance. We assisted the disabled riders
by riding alongside and talking to them,
sharing many laughs or dismounting our
bikes and walking alongside to give a little
push as needed.
Exhilarating descents followed the chal-
lenging climbs. The popular descent strat-
egy seemed to be for these crazy drivers to

Real Courage on page A37

Obama Wins, Muslims Divided

Philadelphia

A

li ibn Abi-Talib, the seventh-
century figure central to Shiite
Islam, is said to have predicted
when the world will end, columnist Amir
Taheri points out. A "tall black man" com-
manding "the strongest army on earth"
will take power "in the west!' He will
carry "a clear sign" from the third imam,
Hussein. All says of the tall black man:
"Shiites should have no doubt that he is
with us!"
An Iranian in Tehran sports a badge of
Barack Obama. (AP: Hasan Sarbakhshian)
Barack Hussein in Arabic means "the
blessing of Hussein!' In Persian, Obama
translates as "He [is] with us!' Thus does
the name of the American president-elect,

A36

November 20 • 2008

JN

when combined with his physi-
Relations, the Muslim Public
cal attributes and geography,
Affairs Council, the Islamic
suggest that the End of Times
Society of North America, the
is nigh — precisely what
Islamic Circle of North America
Iranian president Mahmoud
and the Muslim Alliance in
Ahmadinejad has been predict-
North America responded with
ing.
similar exuberance.
Back down on earth, the
Hamas and Islamist move-
Muslim reaction to Obama's
ments in Egypt, Jordan,
victory is more mixed than one
Iraq, India, Indonesia and
might expect.
Danie I Pipes
the Philippines delighted
American Islamists are
Spe cial
in Obama's election. Robert
Comm entary
delighted; an umbrella group,
Spencer of Jihad Watch gen-
the American Muslim Taskforce
eralizes that jihadists and
on Civil Rights and Election,
Islamic supremacists world-
opined that, with Obama's election, "Our
wide showed "unalloyed joy!' The New York
nation has ... risen to new majestic
Times finds public reaction in the Middle
heights!' Siraj Wahhaj, Al-Hajj Talib Abdur East mostly "euphoric." John Esposito of
Rashid, the Council on American Islamic
Georgetown University emphasizes the

Muslim world's welcome to Obama as an
"internationalist president!"
But plenty of other Muslims have other
views.
Writing in Canada's Edmonton Sun,
Salim Mansur found John McCain the
"more worthy candidate!' Yusif al-
Qaradawi, the Al-Jazeera sheikh, endorsed
McCain for opposite reasons: "This is
because I prefer the obvious enemy who
does not hypocritically [conceal] his
hostility toward you ... to the enemy
who wears a mask [of friendliness]:'
Al-Qaradawi also argued that twice as
many Iraqis died during Bill Clinton's two
administrations than during George W.
Bush's.
For tactical reasons, the influential

Obama Wins on page A37