views essay letters Iran’s Bad Year I ran is deter- mined to be the leader of the Middle East and it’s working hard to earn this title. The Shi’ite regime has been attempting to Kobi Erez create a territorial continuity expanding from Tehran to the Mediterranean Sea, and it’s getting closer to realizing that goal. This is espe- cially true after the nuclear deal Iran made with the U.S. and the billions of dollars that came with it. This money has been used to fuel Iran’s proxy Shi’ite terrorist organizations that are fighting against the Sunni Muslims and Israel in Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon and Gaza. Of course, investing vast resources in military expansion instead of in its people has come with a price. Iran’s economy is now crippled. Iranian currency, the rial, has fallen to a new low of 90,000 to the dollar. Over 12 percent of Iranians are unem- ployed, inflation has skyrocketed and imports are too expensive for most citizens to buy. In addition, Donald Trump’s decision to exit out of the Iran nuclear deal will have a major effect on Iran’s economy, reinstating sanctions and forcing international businesses and investors to flee the country. President Trump’s decision will also result in a significant reduc- tion in Iran’s main revenue asset — oil exports. This recent economic disaster has prompted thousands of Iranians around the country to take to the streets and protest against their government. Videos of Iranians angered by Iran’s investment in ter- rorist organizations have emerged on the internet showing protestors shouting, “Death to Palestine,” “No to Gaza, no to Lebanon,” and “Invest in us — not in Syria.” The Iranian gov- ernment tries to suppress the protes- tors, arresting them and even killing them, but the regime understands that bullets alone will not deter peo- ple who have nothing to lose. The most recent set of protests is only one link in a chain of protests that have been erupting in Iran every few months over the last year and a half. Iranian women have been demonstrating against their Islamic government, violating one of its most fundamental rules by pulling off their headscarves in some of the busiest public squares and burn- ing them in front of cameras. These images have spread across social media, inspiring other women to do the same, even at the expense of vio- lent attacks and arrests. History has taught us that giving in to a bully in hope that he will back off only convinces him to become a bigger bully with hope for an even greater reward. In 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain believed that if he would just appease Hitler by letting him take Contributing Writers: Ruthan Brodsky, Rochel Burstyn, Suzanne Chessler, Annabel Cohen, Don Cohen, Shari S. Cohen, Shelli Liebman Dorfman, Adam Finkel, Stacy Gittleman, Stacy Goldberg, Judy Greenwald, Ronelle Grier, Esther Allweiss Ingber, Allison Jacobs, Barbara Lewis, Jennifer Lovy, Rabbi Jason Miller, Alan Muskovitz, David Sachs, Karen Schwartz, Robin Schwartz, Steve Stein, Joyce Wiswell Arthur M. Horwitz Publisher / Executive Editor ahorwitz@renmedia.us F. Kevin Browett Chief Operating Officer kbrowett@renmedia.us | Editorial Managing Editor: Jackie Headapohl jheadapohl@renmedia.us Story Development Editor: Keri Guten Cohen kcohen@renmedia.us Arts & Life Editor: Lynne Konstantin lkonstantin@renmedia.us Digital/Social Media Editor: Hannah Levine hlevine@renmedia.us Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello smanello@renmedia.us Senior Columnist: Danny Raskin dannyraskin2132@gmail.com Contributing Editor: Robert Sklar rsklar@renmedia.us | Advertising Sales Sales Director: Keith Farber kfarber@renmedia.us Account Executives : Martin Chumiecki, Wendy Flusty, Annette Kizy Sales Manager Assistant : Karen Marzolf | Business Offices Billing Coordinator: Pamela Turner control of the “Sudetenland,” Hitler would refrain from further con- quests. This move actually convinced the German leader that the Allies were too weak to stop his planned invasions of European countries. The Oslo agreement, the disen- gagement from Gaza and the Iran deal have all proven that trying to appease terrorism only leads to fur- ther bloodshed. The Palestinian gov- ernment and the terror group Hamas receive billions of dollars to help the Palestinian people but use them instead to promote terrorism and to pay families of terrorists. Just in the past three months, Hamas has spent more than $45 million in their riots along the Gaza-Israel border that resulted in 700 fires and the burning of 2,300 acres of Israeli forests, 2,000 acres of Israeli agricultural land and hundreds of acres of open fields. Now that Iran’s economy is weak- ened, it is imperative that the U.S. and Israel block efforts by European countries to lift sanctions on Iran and to offer financial relief. An eco- nomically weak and unstable Iranian government will prompt Iranian protestors to continue their struggle to divert money invested in terror- ism back to the Iranian people and perhaps even bring a change the current regime, one that we know is determined to destroy Israel and the U.S . • Volunteering For Israel Regarding “Volunteers For Israel Starts New Program” ( July 19, page 5), VFI offers three exciting ways to volun- teer on an IDF Army Base in a civilian capacity and also tour Israel. These programs are: VFI Plus, VFI Plus Advanced and VFI Plus Archaeology. The VFI Plus programs offer unique opportunities to tour and volunteer while immersing one’s self in Israeli culture. A five-minute video describing the programs can be found at www. tinyurl.com/vfiplus. Volunteers for Israel is associated with Sar-El, a nonprofit organization that administers the program in Israel and offers a way to contribute to the State of Israel in a very direct way. I’m the Great Lakes regional man- ager and have been involved in orga- nizing and leading these exciting new additions to VFI’s program options. For more information, contact me or Ed Kohl at michgan@vfi-usa.org, call (248) 420- 3729 or visit the VFI-USA website www.vfi-usa.org. Carol Kent West Bloomfield Correction: Maverick Levy, quoted in “Teen Mentor” (Aug. 2, page 10), is a student at Michigan State University, not University of Michigan. Kobi Erez is executive director of the Zionist Organization of America-Michigan Region. | Operations Manager Tara Lennon tlennon@renmedia.us | Production By FARAGO & ASSOCIATES Manager: Scott Drzewiecki Designers: Kelly Kosek, Amy Pollard, Michelle Sheridan, Susan Walker | Detroit Jewish News Chairman: Michael H. Steinhardt President/Publisher: Arthur M. Horwitz ahorwitz@renmedia.us Chief Operating Officer: F. Kevin Browett kbrowett@renmedia.us Controller: Craig R. 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