NC J

frontlines >> letters

National

How 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.

Rabbis Say Iran Deal
Is A Terrible Option

The following letter from the local
Council of Orthodox Rabbis to Gary
Peters was written before the senator
announced his support for the president's
Iran policy on Sept. 8.

To the Honorable Gary Peters,
As Rabbis of the Council of Orthodox
Rabbis of Greater Detroit, the oldest
Rabbinic organization of Michigan, we
approach you with the request that you
reject the agreement made with Iran
concerning their nuclear ambitions.
We view the upcoming vote in
Congress as one of the most important
votes in recent history.
Many of the congregants that we
represent are either Holocaust survivors
or children of Holocaust survivors who
cringe at the thought of a nuclear Iran.
All in our community are deeply con-
cerned about such a possibility.
The agreement, which would give
Iran tens of billions of dollars and
thus allow them to increase terror and
bloodshed in the Middle East and else-
where, is reckless.
Proponents of the agreement con-
sider those who oppose it as being pro-
war when in reality the agreement as it
stands is that which is pro-war.
Recently, Sen. Chuck Schumer
eloquently stated the case against the
agreement. We are confident that you
are aware of his position and the rea-
sons that he listed for his opposition.
The Iranian government cannot
be trusted, and there are simply not
enough proper mechanisms in place
to verify their adherence to the agree-
ment. In addition, even if their govern-
ment would adhere to the agreement
(which we strongly believe will never
happen) at the sunset of the agree-
ment the Iranians would be virtually at
breakout time.
We are not in a position to know
whether the only other option stopping
them from acquiring a nuclear bomb
is through military action, but we
strongly believe that the present agree-
ment would lead to much more loss of
life than other options that exist.
We beg you to do all that is in your
power to nullify the agreement and
prevent an unprecedented tragedy from
taking place.
With esteem,

Rabbi Elimelech Silberberq
on behalf of the Presidium of
the Council of Orthodox Rabbis
of Greater Detroit
Southfield

Thanks To Those Who
Said, 'No Nukes For Iran'
Thanks to all who helped organize
and speak at the No Nukes for Iran
rally in Southfield on Aug. 26.
A special shout-out to Hannan Lis,
an influential Democrat and signifi-
cant backer of Sen. Gary Peters, for
having the integrity and courage to
speak at the rally, bucking the party
line to warn of the deal's many flaws
and dangers in light of Iran's threats
to America and Israel.

Celebrating
124 year

Yiddish Limerick

Susan Marwil/NCJW/
Greater Detroit President

Yom Kippur

Barbara Moretsky
committee member
No Nukes for Iran Rally
Bloomfield Hills

Our Michigan Senators
And The Iran Deal
In college as a young history major,
I had difficulty comprehending how
the leaders of Great Britain and
France of the 1930s could squander
the overwhelming leverage they col-
lectively held over Nazi Germany and
permit it to grow and strengthen to
the point where they were eventually
overwhelmed by a creation of their
very appeasement and abdication of
leadership.
I thoroughly considered that the
Free World had never seen anything
like the rise of fascism and, therefore,
their failed leadership was somehow
excusable.
Perhaps it is easy for us to judge
these failings as we all have the
benefit of hindsight through the
study of history and the tragic conse-
quences of their very deliberate, yet
ill-conceived foreign policy choices.
Yet, even those who lived in that very
moment were as bewildered as I was
at the Free World's tepid response
to Nazi Germany's early and easily-
countered provocations.
Joseph Goebbels, Hitler's propa-
ganda chief, reflected upon this in
later years when he wrote "... in 1933,
a French premier should have said —
and if I had been French premier, I
would have said it: `This man, author
of the book Mein Kampf in which this
and that is being said, has become
Reich chancellor. We cannot tolerate
this man in our vicinity. Either he
disappears or we march: This would
have been absolutely logical, yet it
was not done. We were allowed to
pass through the risk zone without
any restrictions, and we were able to
navigate all dangerous obstacles, and
when we had finished, well-armed,
better than they, we started the war:'

•
•
ome
Gr eater Detroit Section

Ehr davent mit kavana, * with awe
and with fear.
He also is fasting, Yom Kipper is
here.
Ehr gayt nisht ahaym, ** he's
staying in shul
He's doing the same every
year as a rule.
I think ehr is goat*** for at least one
more year.

* Ehr davent mit kavana — he
prays with intent
"Ehr gayt nisht ahaym — he
doesn't go home
*** ehr is goot — he is good

— Rachel Kapen

On behalf of NCJW/Greater Detroit
family, I wish you L'Shanah Tovah
Tikatevu. This traditional greeting for
Rosh Hashanah does not translate as
Happy New Year. Rather, it means "May
you be inscribed in the book of life for
a good year." The question is "what
is the meaning of a "good year"? A
rabbi once said that for whatever the
circumstance, there must always come
a time when we are faced with daunting
challenges. The 'secret' in all situations
isn't about our striving for happiness or
fun. It is in how we respond. In that
behavior, we shall discover the key to a
good year.
In this New Year please join me at
the following upcoming events.

• Shoes to Share Annual Shoe Drive

beginning October 11th with sorting
the week of October 19th

• Out and About

Tuesday, October 13th
Featuring docent led walking tour
of Quicken Loans & Dan Gilbert
Properties

• Hop on the Bus

I can't help but think of Goebbels'
post-hoc assessment when I read
the statements issued by our two
Michigan senators, Debbie Stabenow
and Gary Peters, in their "reluctant"
support of the Iran nuclear deal, as
if their "reluctance" will somehow
absolve them from their part in this
great calamity of their own making.
While reasonable people may
disagree about the adminstration's
Iran deal and our country's majority
opposition to it, our Michigan sena-
tors' support of a filibuster to prevent
this most seminal issue in my lifetime
from even coming to a vote in the
Senate corrupts their claimed vote of
conscience" and converted it into a
disgraceful vote of "party:'
When the consequences of this
agreement are eventually revealed,
it will be to their great shame, and
to our country's and our allies' great
peril.

"

Marc Weinbaum
Bloomfield Township

Letters on page 6

Thursday, October 15th
Featuring a sampling of
NCJW/Greater Detroit projects

• Fall Focus

Thursday, October 29th
Featuring Kym Worthy,
Wayne County Prosecutor

To register for the above programs,
please visit our website or call our office.

Warmly
Susan Marwil, President

We invite you to become a Member today!
Support the work of NCJW/Greater Detroit.
Visit our website or give us a call.

MISSION:
The National Council of Jewish Women
(NCJW) is a grassroots organization
of volunteers and advocates who turn
progressive ideals into action. Inspired
by Jewish values, NCJW strives for
social justice by improving the quality
of life for women, children and families
and by safeguarding individual rights
and freedoms.

16400 Lahser Road, Suite 306

Southfield MI 48033

248-355-3300

www.ncjwgds.org

lid

September 17 • 2015

5