8 | MAY 11 • 2023 

PURELY COMMENTARY

letters

Successful Event
The March 23 “Point/Counterpoint” 
event at the Berman Theater featuring 
Professor Howard Lupovitch (Wayne 
State University professor of history and 
director of the Cohn-Haddow Center for 
Judaic Studies), David Bernstein (founder 
and president of the Jewish Institute of 
Liberal Values) and Rabbi Aaron Starr 
(rabbi of Congregation Shaarey Zedek) 
stirred 350 attendees with a lively debate 
regarding David Bernstein’s recently 
released book Woke Antisemitism — How 
a progressive ideology harms Jews.
The program committee consisted 
of Malka Littman, Ronna Ross, Linda 
Cohen, Eugene Greenstein and Ed Kohl.
The discussion may be seen at www.
youtube.com/watch?v=-v6Pl6g7QYE
 We thank the West Bloomfield Jewish 
Community Center, the Berman Theater, 
the Jewish Community Relations Council 
and Zionist Organization of America–
Michigan for their program support.

— Ed Kohl 

West Bloomfield

Kudos to ‘Apple Tree’
Kudos to the JN for including the 
supplement “The Apple Tree” in the 
April 27 edition. It is a wonderful tool 
that kids can use to learn while having 
fun. It not only offered information 
on nature, a coloring page and how-to 
projects, but kids also learned about the 
importance of Yom HaAtzmaut (Israel 
Independence Day) and what Israel means 
for the Jewish people. 
At the same time “The Apple Tree” 
introduced Jewish religious topics such 
as the blessing offered once yearly when 
fruit trees begin to blossom, counting of 
the omer and the mitzvah of welcoming 
guests (hachnasat orchim). 

— Esther and Erwin Posner

Southfield
Clarifi
 cation
In the story “Preserving Our History,” 
(April 20, Page 14), we inadvertently 
excluded the Lillian & Professor Samuel 
Levin Archives at Congregation Shaarey 
Zedek as one of the community’s Jewish 
history resources. 

The navigational app Waze was 
developed in 2008 and sold to 
Google in 2013. Today, it boasts over 
100 million users.

DEFENSE
Israel is a country that has 
experienced existential threats 
and military conflict while being 
surrounded by hostile enemies. 
Military conscription has been 
mandatory since independence, 
but in addition to the motivated 
conscripts, the IDF has understood 
that technology superiority is 
essential. 
The Iron Dome missile defense 
system has saved countless Israeli 
lives during rocket attacks on 
civilians, with a 90% success rate of 
missile interception. The Israel-made 
tank, the Merkava, first developed 
in the late 1970s, is considered one 
of the best battle tanks in the world, 
with its innovative crew protection 
system and ergonomics, sophisticated 
suspension system and advanced 
electronic firing system.

HEALTH
An IDF medic created the 
Emergency Bandage, an elasticized 
bandage creating pressure on the 
wound that has significantly reduced 
death from trauma or hemorrhaging 

on the battlefield. 
A former military missile engineer, 
Dr. Gabbi Idan, developed the 
PillCam after miniaturizing missile 
technology. The medical invention is 
a capsule-covered camera that can be 
swallowed by a patient to diagnose 
gastrointestinal illness. 
After an accident that left Amit 
Gofer a quadriplegic, he invented 
ReWalk, a robotic exoskeleton that 
allows wheelchair users to walk, 
climb up and down stairs, and see 
people eye to eye.
 As Israelis are celebrating a most 
significant year of independence, 
they seem deeply committed to 
another 75 years of innovation and 
creativity. 

Naomi Miller is director of Israel 
Partnerships for the Michigan Israel 
Business Accelerator. This essay was first 
published in its newsletter.

ISRAEL AT 75; THE INNOVATION NATION 
continued from page 6 

Drip 
irrigation

The Iron 
Dome

We Are Now Back in
West Bloomfield.