Thoughts

A MONTHLY

MIX OF IDEAS

George Cantor's Reality Check column will return next week

The Gift Of A Miracle

New York/JTA

E

ach year at Chanukah, we spin
the dreidel, reminding ourselves
that "a great miracle happened
there' With faith and activism, the
Maccabees led our people to a great vic-
tory and assured the survival of the Jewish
people in ancient days.
With faith and activism, we, too, can
make miracles happen in our own time.
We can assure the survival of millions of
children in Africa who unnecessarily fall
prey to the deadly bite of malaria-infested
mosquitoes. We can make a great miracle
happen there for the cost of a $10 bed net.
The global challenges we face are stag-
gering. Around the world, more than
800 million people go hungry every day
— 300 million of them children. More
than 1 billion people lack access to clean
drinking water and 2.6 billion live without
decent sanitation. And every 30 seconds a
child in Africa dies of malaria.
In an age of unprecedented prosperity,
science and technology, there is no excuse
for the ongoing plagues of starvation and
famine, illiteracy and diseases borne of
ignorance. And yet, the amount of aid

flowing to Africa from all the
Foundation's Nothing But Nets
nations of the world totaled
campaign, the Reform move-
less than the amount of annual
ment has made a commitment
bonuses Wall Street gave to itself
to provide 50,000 nets to
this year.
save 50,000 families from the
Determined to do better,
anguish of malaria.
Judaism's Reform movement is
Soon, we will make our first
working to bring relief to the
delivery of nets to a refugee
millions of African refugees
camp in Uganda, completely
who face not only the threats of
"covering" the camp of 18,000
continuing violence and hunger,
Rabbi Marla
victims from Sudan, Rwanda
Feld man
but also the threat of malaria
and, most recently, victims of
Com! nunity
that rages in refugee camps.
the current crisis in Congo.
Vi ew
Around the world, malaria
This is a critical time, as the
infects nearly 500 million
rainy season makes malaria-
people each year, kills more than 1 mil-
infested mosquitoes insidious.
lion of those and is the leading killer of
The sad truth is that there would be no
children in Africa. The economic impact
nets delivered to this camp if it were not
of this illness — $12 billion annually
for the Reform movement's Nothing But
— undermines the capacity of impov-
Nets fundraising efforts.
erished nations to climb out of debt and
Much attention has been devoted to
overwhelms their medical infrastructure.
malaria in recent years, with billionaire
Yet malaria is entirely preventable. The
philanthropists such as Bill Gates and the
use of insecticide-treated bed nets alone
World Bank pouring funds into the cause.
can reduce malaria rates by 90 percent in
They are focusing on combating this par-
areas with high coverage. One bed net can
ticular disease because it is an achievable
keep an entire family safe from malaria for goal. We actually can eliminate malaria
up to four years.
deaths around the world — we've already
So in partnership with the U.N.
done so in this country and in most other

-

western nations.
In Zambia, Ethiopia and Rwanda, when
they instituted a comprehensive plan that
included the use of insecticide-treated
bed nets and both indoor and outdoor
spraying, they reduced malaria rates by
50 percent in just two years. In Sri Lanka,
malaria rates were reduced from 400,000
cases per year to fewer than 200 cases
and resulted in no deaths last year. A great
miracle really can happen there.
Cynics may claim that one individual
cannot save the world, yet Judaism obli-
gates us to try, reminding us that saving
a single life is the equivalent of saving the
entire world. At the bargain price of just
$10, every one of us has the capacity to
save a life. There is no better gift to give
this Chanukah season than the gift of a
miracle. Send a net; save a life. ❑

Rabbi Marla Feldman is director of the Joint
Commission on Social Action of the Union for
Reform Judaism and Central Conference of

American Rabbis. She's a former staff member

of the Jewish Community Relations Council of
Metropolitan Detroit.

The Bush I Know

Washington/JTA

p

resident Bush and first lady
Laura Bush watched Monday
night, Dec. 15, as the grandsons
of Harry Truman and David Ben-Gurion
lit a menorah on the State Floor of the
White House.
It was the eighth year the president has
devoted an evening to celebrate Chanukah,
and more than 600 Jewish friends and
guests celebrated with him. The White
House served kosher food and the Marine
Band played Chanukah favorites.
Cynics will say it's easy for presidents
to do these kinds of events — that's what
all presidents do, after all. They hold nice
parties and make people feel good and
important.
But with this president, the Jews are
different — they really do matter to him.
I know because I saw it firsthand on
his staff and as his liaison to the Jewish
community. I saw his eyes well up while
watching the Holocaust-themed movie
Paper Clips in the family theater. I know

how moved he was by meeting
have known it.
with Soviet Jewish refuseniks,
I recall sitting in a meeting
Holocaust survivors and the
where a high-level aide was
parents of slain journalist
trying to excuse the antics of
Daniel Pearl.
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
There was one meeting
The president cut him off, say-
in particular — with Jews
ing clearly, "The guy's a bust."
from around the world, Jews
End of discussion.
who had made their home in
Here was a president who
America after years of suffering
would buttonhole lead-
at the hands of tyrants in Cuba,
Noam
ers of other nations over
Uganda, Zimbabwe, Venezuela,
Neusner
anti-Semitism in their own
Iran and some of the other
Special
countries. In one incident, the
recent or current bastions of
Commentary
president complained to the
anti-Semitism. One by one, they
leader of Estonia about a statue
recalled their struggles to simply live and
erected to a nationalist guilty of Holocaust
pray as Jews and how America alone gave
war crimes.
them that right. The president walked out
"Get rid of it:' Bush said.
of the meeting shaking his head, appalled
Imagine, amid the happy and polite talk
by the special hatred tyrants have reserved of diplomatic meetings, a leader actually
for the Jews. Always the Jews.
confronting another over some meaning-
His critics said he was morally absolute
less Jew-haters.
— "you're either with us or against us"
Israel has fought two wars during Bush's
was not one of their favorite phrases. But
eight years as president — an interior war
that moral clarity could be an incredibly
against terror and a war against Hezbollah
powerful force, and Jews above all should
— and both times the Jewish state came

under intense pressure to hold back. But
Israel had no friend as loyal and certain as
the United States. Bush capped his friend-
ship with Israel in May at the Knesset,
delivering one of the most pro-Zionist
speeches ever.
"Israel's population may be just over 7
million:' he said, "but when you confront
terror and evil, you are 307 million strong
because the United States of America
stands with you."
Of course, the president didn't eradicate
anti-Semitism or the threats faced by
Israel. Far from it; moderate and conserva-
tive critics say he didn't do enough to con-
front Iran, while liberals say he was overly
bellicose. Many argue that his push for
Palestinian elections empowered Hamas.
Fair enough. But those criticisms do
not explain the president's unpopularity
among American Jews. He captured less
than a quarter of the Jewish vote in 2004,
and his approval ratings among Jews now
is minuscule.

The Bush I Know on page B2

December 25 • 2008

B1