frontlines >> letters

}low to Send Letters

We prefer letters relating to JN articles. We reserve the right to edit or reject letters. Letters of 225 words or less are considered first. Longer ones will
be subject to trimming. Letter writers are limited in frequency of publication. Letters must be original and contain the name, address and title of the
writer and a day phone number. Non-electronic copies must be hand signed. Send letters to the JN: 29200 Northwestern Highway, Suite 110, Southfield,
MI 48034; fax (248) 304-8885; e-mail, letters©the jewishnews.com . We prefer email.

J Street Is A Legitimate
Player In The Community
The Jewish News editorial board makes
the right call in recognizing J Street's role
as a legitimate player in the Jewish com-
munity ("Right Or Wrong, J Street Carves
A Political Niche," June 5, page 37).
One needs only to examine the turnout
of J Street's 2013 Conference, attended by
thousands of Jewish activists, rabbis, Israeli
lawmakers from the left and the right —
even Vice President Joe Biden — to realize
that this question was put to rest long ago.
Yet, while the editorial board is correct
to acknowledge that our community des-
perately needs a debate on Israel, it goes
out of its way to indulge in old smears
about J Street. These comments have no
grounding in reality and, in fact, prevent
American Jewry from engaging and argu-
ing about Israel's political situation in the
same lively way that Israeli Jews do every
single day.
While there is no room for a worthy
rebuttal in this letter, it's important to
acknowledge the reason why J Street
has risen to such prominence, especially
amongst those who make up the next
generation of American Jewish leaders. It's
because J Street is one of the only Jewish
organizations truly committed to achiev-
ing a two-state solution, the only way to
secure Israel's long-term future as both a
democratic and Jewish state.
Even Israel's own military establish-
ment has argued that indefinite control
over the West Bank significantly under-
mines Israel's security position. What
Israel needs is a peace treaty with its
Palestinian neighbors, one that establishes
security through internationally recog-
nized borders, as past agreements with
Egypt and Jordan accomplished.
That was the goal of Secretary of State
John Kerry in his latest attempt to resume
talks, the goal of Presidents Clinton, Bush
Sr. and Jr. during their administrations and
is the mission of J Street. It's also the goal
shared by a large majority of American
Jews who love Israel and don't want to see
it in an eternal war with its neighbors.
We all know that the Palestinians are cer-
tainly not the perfect partners for an ideal
peace. But, we don't make peace with our
best friends; we make peace with our ene-
mies, and if we continue to wait, we will be
subjecting the next generation to war and
suffering. These are the partners that we
have, and it's important to continue to work
each and every day for the vision of peace.
For those of us that care about Israel, we
must continue the hard work necessary to
bring about a two-state solution. For those
that write editorials for Jewish newspapers,
it's important to recognize that many of us
in the mainstream of our community are J
Street supporters who will not be silenced.

J Street Is In Denial
On Peace Prospects
After her nephew's tragic death from flu,
my great-aunt Carolyn tried to convince
others that disease exists only in our
mind. If we deny the existence of evil, evil
will not exist. My aunt died probably 10
years before her time, having never seen a
doctor for an undiagnosed medical condi-
tion. By her example, I learned that "deni-
al" is a dysfunctional coping mechanism.
Enter J Street. The major premise is
that "if I'm nice to you, you will be nice to
me," based on pop-psychology. "Change
yourself, and you change the world:' That
only works if the world agrees with your
point of view. Whatever happened to the
12-Step saying, "The only person I can
change is myself'
J Street wants us to believe that if
Israel withdraws from the West Bank,
the Palestinians will make peace. Quite
simple, right? Simple like "denial." In the
political world, it is a recipe for national
suicide. But sadly, J Street's grandiose fan-
tasy feels so good!
J Street's seductive message is that "if I
change myself, I have the power to change
others:' Sorry, reality doesn't work that
way, and we call it "moral narcissism:' In
addition, it's easy to be an "arm-chair quar-
terback" when you have never experienced
danger first-hand, as Israelis do daily.
Reality consists of the Hamas Charter:
"The Islamic Resistance Movement
[Hamas] believes that the land of Palestine
is an Islamic waqf [endowment] conse-
crated for future Muslim generations until
Judgment Day. It, or any part of it, should
not be squandered: it, or any part of it,
should not be given up ..." (Article 11).
Don't fool yourself. They mean what
they say, and they say what they will do.
So, let's say that J Street is a bit off, and
just needs to be brought into the fold to get
straightened out. Enter George Soros, the
financial force behind the organization.
George Soros has publicly stated that Israel
is at fault for all the problems in the Middle
East. So, should George Soros be a player in
the major American-Jewish scene? It's like
inviting cancer into a healthy body.
Through J Street, Soros will try to
destroy us from within. Thus, I am in
total agreement that J Street is "beyond
the pale" and should not ever be included
in the Conference of Presidents of Major
American Jewish Organizations.
No one can change J Street, but J Street.
And J Street cannot change the waqf. The
Waqf generates the refusal to accept the
sovereignty of Jews anywhere, and we
have to face that grim reality. Period.
In conclusion: J Street is a delusional
organization that intends to destroy the
American-Jewish support for Israel from
within.

Gerald H. Acker

Ruth Katsnelson

Southfield

West Bloomfield

Ask Attorney
Ken Gross
about...

Your Legal
Issues

Check Out The JN's
Daily Blog From Israel

Next week, the JN's Keri Guten Cohen
and Don Cohen will be participating
in a summit for diaspora media spon-
sored by the Israeli government.
Starting June 22, they will blog news
from the summit, views from Israelis,
news of Detroiters in Israel and inter-
esting tidbits and photos in daily posts
at www.thejewishnews.com and on the
JN Facebook page. Read it every day!

Yiddish Limerick

Reuven
Rivlin

Israel's New President

Dos vartn* is over, dos entfer'' is

here.
It's Rivlin the prez, zahy freilakh
un*** cheer.
To Peres so sadly mir zogn****
goodbye.
Un hofn"*** that Rubi is
truly our guy.
Now borkh habo****** Rubi, from

oondz un tzu dir.*******

* Dos vartn — the wait
** dos entfer — the answer
*** zahy freilakh un — be happy
and
**** mir zogn — we say
***** Un hofn — and hoping
****** borkh habo — welcome
******* oondz un tzu dir — us
and to you

— Rachel Kapen

See a related story on page 32.

Letters on page 6

How Much Can You

Afford to Lose?

My guess is "Nothing!" Let's
talk Wealth Accumulation

and Preservation. To me,
"Accumulation" is saving

future income so that it
grows over time via investment. To
maximize what you can save, you
must minimize expense. Here, "debt
elimination" is critical. If you pay high
interest on credit card debt, every
dollar spent on interest is another
dollar that does not go to savings and
you lose the dollar and the growth over
time if it was invested. By now, you
should know we can help to eliminate
debt. Wealth "Preservation" comes
after - once you have the money, you
need to plan so that it is not exhausted
by nursing home care. As a result of
the tremendous response received,
THAV GROSS along with SIMASKO
LAW are repeating the special FREE
Seminar- "Protecting You Life's
Work" to focus on preservation -
addressing the problems you and your
parents face in their elder years. It's on
July 16th at THAV GROSS's Seminar
Room in Bingham Farms,- from 6:30
to 8 PM. To register and learn more go
to www.CannotAffordtoLose.com or
call us at 888.235.4357. This Seminar is
not about debt, it's about keeping your
money!
THAV GROSS has been solving

its clients' business, tax and financial
problems since 1982. Be sure to tune
in to the Financial Crisis Talk Center,
on Radio and now on TV - Saturday's
at 9:00 AM - on WDFN 1130 AM, "The
Fan," and Sunday's at 11:00 AM on
MyTV20.

We are unique - catch the radio show
& visit our websites to see why!

THAV GROSS

888.235.4357 (HELP) or
248.645.1700

For information, visit us online at

thavgross .com • fctalkcenter.com
30150 Telegraph, Suite 444
Bingham Farms, MI 48025

Were a premier debt relief agency helping people file for Bankruptcy Protection.

June 19 • 2014

5