THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010 4 ADAR, 5770 SHABBAT: FRI 6:01 – SAT 7:01 CINCINNATI, OHIO VOL. 156 • NO. 30 SINGLE ISSUE PRICE $2.00
SPECIAL SECTION Kids/Summer Camps Page 12
NATIONAL Will Israel’s response to Goldstone be enough? Page 7
Dr. Hodes visits Cincinnati this Monday Dr. Rick Hodes—who was appointed by the American Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) in 1990 to provide medical care to Ethiopian Jews awaiting immigration to Israel—will be in Cincinnati on Monday, February 22 for a series of briefings with community leaders and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) physicians and administrators. In addition to his work with Ethiopian Jews, Hodes also pro-
vides general medical care in a nonsectarian JDC program at Ethiopia’s Mother Theresa Mission where he works with heart disease, spine disease and cancer patients. A 1982 graduate of the University of Rochester Medical School who trained at the Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Hodes will meet with CCHMC representatives Monday afternoon. In 2009, Hodes worked with an 18-member delegation from Cincinnati—led by Dr.
Marc Levitt—who traveled to Ethiopia on a medical mission to perform 24 colorectal surgeries. (Dr. Levitt is the Associate Director of the Colorectal Center for Children at CCHMC.) Ethiopia has 80 million people and only four pediatric surgeons. Over 45 percent of newborns die and over 50 percent of the population is under 20 years old. Dr. Hodes’ work in Israel through the JDC is accomplished with funds
raised through the annual campaigns of the Jewish Federations of North America in partnership with United Jewish Communities. On Monday morning, the Jewish Federation’s Young Leadership cabinet members will join Dr. Hodes for a breakfast briefing. At noon, several community leaders both from within and outside of the Jewish community will
HODES on page 19
Party Planning Showcase at the J, March 7 The fifth annual Party Planning Show Case is a little over two weeks away. On Sunday, March 7, the show case will bring a variety of vendors who provide supplies and services for major parties together under one roof – the J – for five hours beginning at 11in the morning. For those planning a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, wedding, sweet 16 party, corporate event, graduation or any other major party, the event offers an efficient way to discover new party
The Party Planning Showcase provides party-throwers the ideas, products and services to create a memorable event.
concepts and new vendors. This year offers a lineup of vendors, still growing, that includes caterers, photographers, DJ’s, and caterers as well as of flowers and balloons. Now in its fifth year, the event has grown into what the organizers call an “extravaganza,” with raffle prizes and free food. And this year there will be a fashion show at 1 p.m. It is the one place, once a year, that all event planning can be dome in one location on one day. Admission and parking are free.
Protesters arrested at California university by Lisa Armony Guest Author
ISRAEL NIF fracas: Defending Israel or destroying democracy? Page 10
LOS ANGELES (L.A. Jewish Journal) — Israel’s ambassador to Washington was heckled throughout much of a speech on the University of California, Irvine campus, leading to the arrest of 12 protesters, including the president of the campus chapter of the Muslim Student Union. The ambassador, historian
Michael Oren, came to the Orange County campus Monday to address an overflow crowd of more than 600 students, faculty and community members at the UCI Student Center on the subject “U.S. - Israel Relations: A Historical Perspective.” He was interrupted 10 times by boisterous hecklers and dozens of jeering students before the antiIsrael protesters walked out en masse to stage a demonstration
outside. Security was tight on the campus, where the Muslim Student Union has been extremely active in staging anti-Israel protests, and where multiple clashes and unrest between anti- and pro-Israel demonstrators have occurred at public events. In 2007, anti-Israel protesters unfurled provocative banners and heckled conservative political analyst Daniel Pipes of the Middle
East Forum during a lecture titled “The Threat to Israel’s Existence.” With rumors circulating of students’ plans to disrupt Oren’s speech, university officials spoke to Muslim Student Union members before the event in an attempt to ensure civil discourse, according to Shalom Elcott, chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation Orange County.
PROTESTORS on page 19
Bernard Lander, Touro founder, dies by Uriel Heilman Jewish Telegraphic Agency
DINING OUT Noce’s Pizzeria ‘slicing up’ the competition Page 14
NEW YORK (JTA) — Rabbi Bernard Lander, who died Monday from congestive heart failure at the age of 94, was not a man who cared much for appearances. The executive offices of the international academic institution he founded, Touro College, are housed in a nondescript building on 23rd Street in Manhattan, and the
paint job in the hallways looks like the color was chosen back in the Eisenhower era. But the building’s modest appearance, like its founder’s, is deceptive. It represents the headquarters of a vast educational empire whose domain stretches from China to the Middle East and all the way into the heart of Borough Park, Brooklyn. Lander, a soft-spoken gentleman who looked more like a synagogue
candyman than the relentless builder and scholar who presided over Touro for nearly its entire existence, over the course of four decades turned what was a private dream into an international academic institution. In building the college, his mission was as much about sustaining Jewish tradition as it was with providing education. Lander’s career as an overachiever began early. He started as
a rabbi in Baltimore at 22 after receiving his rabbinical ordination from Yeshiva University. While serving as a rabbi, Lander commuted to his native New York to pursue a doctorate in sociology at Columbia University. Upon finishing his studies, Lander was appointed by the governor of Maryland to conduct a study on youth crime in the Old Line
LANDER on page 20
LOCAL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
3
ATTENTION KIDS It’s time to start thinking about the 2010 Passover cover coloring contest. . . Look for the contest entry form in next week’s issue.
DEADLINE IS FRIDAY, MARCH 19 ALL ENTRIES MUST BE NO LARGER THAN
18 WEST
8.5”
WIDE BY
11”
HIGH .
THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE NINTH STREET, SUITE 2 • CINTI, OH 45202
Movie Night Brought to You By: B’Nai Tzedek • Beit Chaverim • Ohav Shalom When: Saturday, February 20 Where: Congregation B’Nai Tzedek/ Beit Chaverim 6280 Kugler Mill Rd. Time: 7:00 PM - Havdallah 7:30 PM - Movie 9:00 PM - Discussion Attendees from Wise Temple at RAC: (L-R) Rabbi Michael Shulman, Phil LaFrance, Nathan Spektor, Brianna Pecsok, Rosie Levy, Alyssa Stieha, Dana Roth, and Megan Wells.
Wise students lobby Congress Left to Right: Rabbi Michael Shulman, Phil LaFrance, Nathan Spektor, Brianna Pecsok, Rosie Levy, Alyssa Stieha, Dana Roth and Megan Wells. Juniors and Seniors from Isaac M. Wise Temple traveled to Washington, D.C. for a four day weekend in late January to participate in the L’Taken Seminar on lobbying and the legislative process, sponsored by the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC). Every year over 100 congregations in the U.S. send their high school students to learn about issues of social justice from experts. For the Wise students, the crowning activity was a visit to the offices of Senator Voinivich and Representatives Driehaus and Schmidt. The trip began on Friday, Jan. 29 with a flight to Washington, D.C. That evening, after a Shabbat meal and services, there was orientation. Specifically, the mission for the trip was to explore various social action issues with the assistance of Jewish and non-Jewish experts, and then to use this newfound expertise to write speeches that would urge members of congress to take action. Topics covered included homelessness, civil liberties, the immigration reform, campaign finance reform, health care and anti-discrimination laws. The next day began with a simulation of the lobbying experience. The point was to develop lobbying skills powerful enough to sway members of congress to vote a particular way.
Letters, phone calls, op-eds, television commercials, demonstrations and donations to politicians were all simulated. The effectiveness of each student’s efforts to persuade real members of congress were then judged by “senators and their staffs.” Later that day, the group visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, followed by a trip to Five Guys for burgers and fries. Back at the hotel, the group entered the first of two Program Shuks. In the shuk (Hebrew for “market”) students chose political issues they wanted to explore with legislative assistants from the RAC, all experts in their particular issues. In some instances, expertise was conveyed through games and stories. On Sunday, Jan. 31, the day began with talks on Jews’ responsibility and connection to Israel, the background of current circumstances, the significance of U.S. support of Israel and the importance of visiting the Jewish State. A second Program Shuk followed, after which the group toured Smithsonian Museums on the National Mall, including the National Air and Space Museum and the Museum of American History. At the American History Museum, a surprise awaited: a large display on the Wise congregation and on Isaac M. Wise. This included a floor to ceiling color photo of Plum Street Temple, a portrait of Rabbi Wise, and various pictures and artifacts from the Temple.
After dinner and skating at Pentagon Row, the Wise group joined the other congregations from Ohio, to prepare to lobby Ohio members of congress the next day. Speeches were written on the environment, gay and lesbian rights in the workplace, supporting the Peace Process in Israel as well as Immigration Reform, including the DREAM Act for children of illegal immigrants. On the final day of the long weekend, the group visited Capital Hill. There they met with a Voinivich staffer, who listened to the students’ speeches. Commented Rabbi Michael Shulman, of Wise, who led the expedition, “Using facts, personal stories and Jewish texts, our students really let her have it! Articulately and accurately, our students outlined the positions of the Reform Movement with conviction and finesse, I couldn’t have been more proud!” The group then lobbied Representatives Driehaus and Schmidt. Later that day they flew home. Said a very pleased Shulman, “As Jews, we have a responsibility to make our voices heard; especially when so many are unable to do so. There is power in that voice, for even high school students can have a profound impact on the legislative process and on the lives of so many others. Mazel Tov! A job well done to our participants, Nathan Spektor, Phil LaFrance, Rosie Levy, Brianna Pecsok, Alissa Stieha, Megan Wells and Dana Roth.”
Features Include: FOR MY FATHER: A Romantic Thriller About A Suicide Bomber Who Gets A Second Chance SIXTY SIX: A Comedy-Drama, British Coming of Age Movie Cost: $6/person • Contact : 984-3393 • Light Snacks and Raffle
4
LOCAL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Inclusion Shabbat at NHS, Feb. 20 The focus of this morning Shabbat service at Northern Hills Synagogue (NHS) will be the needs of Jews who are often excluded from religious and community life – many because of physical disabilities. As part of the service, the congregation will discuss its efforts to deal with inclusion of
people with physical challenges, a focus of a previous Inclusion Shabbat. There will be several breakout sessions to discuss aspects of inclusion. Said Rabbi Gershom Barnard, spiritual leader of the congregation,“February is Jewish Disability Awareness month, and we are pleased to mark it with our
Inclusion Shabbat. NHS has been recognized by the Kesher Jewish.Inclusion Network and by the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism for its efforts to be accessible and inclusive. We have a religious mandate for inclusiveness. In the Book of Deuteronomy, we read, ‘You are standing here before the Lord
your God ... all the people of Israel,’ and we try hard to fulfill that mandate.” The entire community is invited to attend. Services begin at 9:30 a.m. A congregational lunch will follow. There is no charge. For more information, contact Northern Hills Synagogue.
Wise Temple offers Shabbat service for young children The Isaac M. Wise Temple offers a “Tot Shabbat” experience at least once a month, for families with young children. The reasoning underlying the service is that, for most small children, a regular Shabbat evening service is too long for the attention span of children; it seems nearly impossible for them to remain quiet for the duration of the liturgy. So capturing the attention of the children is the objective of the
service; it’s called a “Wise Tyke” Shabbat. The Wise Tyke evening officially begins at 6:30 p.m. For those who arrive early, there are snacks and coloring pages available for the children. The service is led by one of the Wise Temple rabbis, or by Wise Temple’s Director of Education and Lifelong Learning, Barbara Dragul, as well as by the Wise Tyke song leader, Steve
Pollak. Wise Tyke services feature the prayer book, Gates of Wonder, which is the Reform Jewish movement’s Shabbat liturgy for young children. During the service, there is an opportunity for the children to join in a Torah parade in which they can select musical instruments or can carry a small stuffed Torah doll. Following the parade, the service leader shares a Shabbat
story, and then concludes the service with the traditional Shabbat blessings over the candles, juice and challah. From time to time, the evening is extended with a special craft that the children can make. Wise Tykes is open to Wise Temple congregants and guests. Older siblings, parents, grandparents and other family members are welcome to join the children. For more information, contact Wise Temple.
Movie Night on Feb. 20 sponsored by B’nai Tzedek, Beit Chaverim and Ohav Shalom On Saturday, Feb. 20, congregations B’nai Tzedek and Beit Chaverim will host a movie evening, co-sponsored with Ohav Shalom, that will feature a selection of two movies. One is the lauded Israeli film, “For My Father”; the other is about the Jewish experience, “Sixty Six.” “For My Father” (Sof Shavua B’Tel Aviv) is the story of Tarek, a Palestinian forced on a suicide mission to redeem his father’s honor. When the trigger on his explosive
vest doesn’t work, he is given a second chance. He spends the weekend in Tel Aviv waiting for the repair of his vest, and to his surprise connects with several Israelis on the outskirts of society, falling in love with Keren, an orthodox-raised rebel. The film was nominated for seven awards in Israel’s version of the Oscars. The second movie choice is “Sixty Six,” a semi-autobiographic story directed by British director Paul Weiland, by the producers of the “Bridget Jones” movies. In this
coming-of-age story, Bernie Reuben looks forward to his Bar Mitzvah with growing excitement, anticipating the day that he is finally noticed by his family, only to have his plans derailed as the World Cup Final is scheduled to take place on the same day. The evening will start at 7 with a Havdalah service and will include refreshments and a raffle. Following each movie, discussion leaders will engage audiences in an optional dialogue about the themes
and questions raised by each movie. The movie night is open to the public. This is the second movie event this year jointly sponsored by the three congregations, to bring Jewish themed movies to the community. It is part of a developing three congregational collaboration to provide innovative adult education programming. For reservations and more information, call any of the three sponsoring congregations.
NHS, Ohav Shalom celebrate Purim together Northern Hills Synagogue and Congregation Ohav Shalom will team up to celebrate the Purim holiday on Saturday evening, Feb. 27 and Sunday morning, Feb. 28. On Saturday evening, members of the two congregations will gather at Northern Hills, for evening services followed by the reading of the Megillah, the Book of Esther, featuring Northern Hills’ awardwinning Purim PowerPoint. Adults and children alike are invited to come in costume and make as much noise as possible when the name of the evil Haman is mentioned. Following the reading, there will be a special program for adults, a Purim Murder Mystery.
Refreshments will be served. There is no charge for the evening. Then on Sunday morning, members of Ohav Shalom and Northern Hills will — together — attend morning services at Ohav Shalom. Services will include the reading of the Megillah. Following services, Ohav Shalom’s Purim Carnival will commence. There will be games and lots of activities for children, along with a raffle and silent auction. Lunch will be served — included in the menu are hamantaschen, the traditional three-cornered pastry unique to this holiday. For adults, there is a charge for
lunch; children eat for free. The festival of Purim commemorates the saving of the Jews of the ancient Persian empire from destruction at the hands of the evil Haman. As recorded in the Book of Esther, the plot was foiled by the efforts of Esther, the Queen and a secret Jew, and her cousin, Mordechai. For thousands of years, Jews have celebrated their deliverance from this evil plot with an especially joyous celebration. “Purim is a great time to get together to rejoice and celebrate our Jewish history. Dressing in costume gives us a chance to step out of our comfort zones and fulfill the obliga-
tion of changing your perspective and looking at the world differently,” observed Tracy Weisberger, director of programming and education at Northern Hills Synagogue and Principal for the Kehilla school. “Though this is a first for the two northeast suburban Conservative congregations, this is a natural step to take given the growth of Kehilla, the combined religious school that now serves the youth from the two congregations,” commented Jeff Basin, former president of Northern Hills. For more information, contact either Northern Hills Synagogue or Congregation Ohav Shalom.
LET THERE BE LIGHT
The oldest English-Jewish weekly in America Founded July 15, 1854 by Isaac M.Wise VOL. 156 • NO. 30 Thursday, February 18, 2009 4 Adar, 5770 Shabbat begins Fri, 6:01 p.m. Shabbat ends Sat, 7:01 p.m. THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE CO., PUBLISHERS 18 WEST NINTH STREET, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OHIO 45202-2037 PHONE: (513) 621-3145 FAX: (513) 621-3744 publisher@americanisraelite.com editor@americanisraelite.com articles@americanisraelite.com production@americanisraelite.com HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher 1930-1985 MILLARD H. MACK Publisher Emeritus NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher AVI MILGROM MICHAEL McCRACKEN Assistant Editors ALEXIA KADISH Copy Editor JOSEPH D. STANGE Production Manager LEV LOKSHIN JANE KARLSBERG Staff Photographers JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor ROBERT WILHELMY Restaurant Reporter MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM RABBI A. JAMES RUDIN RABBI AVI SHAFRAN Contributing Writers CHRISTIE HALKO Office Manager
THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE (USPS 019-320) is published weekly for $40 per year and $2.00 per single copy in Cincinnati and $45 per year and $3.00 per single copy elsewhere in U.S. by The American Israelite Co. 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, OH. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE, 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037.
The views and opinions expressed by American Israelite columnists do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the newspaper.
LOCAL/NATIONAL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
AJC’s Isaacson to speak on international diplomacy for Jews Jason Isaacson, director of government and international affairs in AJC’s Washington office, will brief the community on the role of AJC staff overseas and the meetings of lay leaders with government officials from almost 100 countries. He will speak Monday, March 1, from 7:30 to 9 p.m., at the JCC. American Jewish Committee specializes in pursuing Jewish security through global Jewish advocacy. Isaacson is an expert advocate on U.S.-Israel relations and the search for Middle East peace. He has worked for AJC since 1991 and oversees AJC’s international diplomacy to heads of state, foreign ministers, ambassadors and NGOs to ensure the welfare and security of Israel and Jews around
National Briefs
Ex-Rep. Charlie Wilson dies at 76 WASHINGTON (JTA) — Charlie Wilson, the U.S. congressman who used his Israel connections in his bid to arm the Afghan resistance in the 1980s, has died. Wilson died Wednesday at a hospital in his native Lufkin in east Texas of a heart-related disease. He was 76. Wilson’s exploits, as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee, in securing funding for Afghans battling Soviets in the 1980s became the stuff of a book and a Hollywood movie, “Charlie Wilson’s War.” His credibility as a solidly proIsrael congressional appropriator gained him entry into Israel’s defense establishment, which he drew into a complex plan to run high-tech weapons to the rebels. “Only someone with Charlie Wilson’s charisma and talent could tie the many competing interests that he worked with together around common causes,” the National Jewish Democratic Council said in a statement. “Of special importance to the Jewish community was his staunch sup-
Jason Isaacson will speak at the J on March 1.
port for Israel, as manifested in part by his long and close relationship with senior Israeli diplomat Zvi Rafiah — which was profiled in detail in the movie ‘Charlie Wilson’s War.’” Wilson retired from Congress in 1996, but remained close to the Jewish establishment. He was a guest in 2008 at the NJDC reception at the Democratic convention in Denver. Mumps outbreak hits Jewish boys NEW YORK (JTA) — An outbreak of mumps in New York and New Jersey has affected more than 1,500 people since June, mostly Jewish boys ages 7-18. A report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the children with the mumps have high vaccination rates, but that the spread of the disease is likely due to the Orthodox Jewish community’s large families and exposure in boys’ yeshivas, where the boys study together up to 14 hours a day. In New York, some 40 percent of the cases were among men aged 18-30 in Brooklyn’s Orthodox Jewish communities of Williamsburg, Borough Park and Crown Heights, according to the New York Daily News. The mumps vaccine is not as effective as the vaccine for measles and rubella, according to the CDC. All three vaccines are bundled in one shot, which is given in two doses. The outbreak has been traced
the world. Before his career at AJC, Isaacson worked as a legislative aide to a senator and as a political writer, editor and bureau chief. Also, he has lectured at the Diplomatic Institute of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry and written frequent reports on international topics, including OneSided, an annual review of UN resolutions on the Middle East, most of which are hostile to Israel. The event seeks to highlight AJC’s efforts to speak out for Israel, to condemn anti-Semitism and to convince nations to stop trading with Iran. The event includes a dessert reception (dietary laws observed). For information on costs and to make reservations, call the AJC office. to an 11-year-old boy who after returning last June from a trip to Britain, where he was exposed to a mumps epidemic, attended a summer camp for Orthodox Jewish boys in New York’s Sullivan County. The boy passed on the disease to campers and staff, who brought it back to their home communities.
The American Israelite is currently seeking a
Sales Represenative • High Commission • Full or Part Time • No Experience Required To apply, call Ted Deutsch at (513) 621-3145 You can also send your resume to publisher@americanisraelite.com or The American Israelite 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2 Cincinnati, OH 45202
5
6
NATIONAL
It started with tiredness and a stomachache. All kids get stomachaches, but this one did not go away. It lingered. It lingered through many doctor visits and tests. One inconclusive exam and head scratch after another. Eventually someone put the picture together and the answer came back; cancer. Stage IV neuroblastoma primarily located in the stomach, but had also found its way to many other places. Shockingly strange that a little eleven-year-old girl bursting with the vibrancy of potential and life as she is about to transit from child to youth should face this kind of challenge. It would be easy to fall into the litany of cancer’s ravages; the tubes and knives and multi-syllabic medications that all whisper a hope of recovery. But the road of life has forked and while there is no return to how it was before, what lies ahead is a story yet to be told. Cancer commands our attention, but as Hannah has shown us in the past eight months, it does not command one’s spirit. Hannah Max is an amazing little girl. Part American, part British and grown on Dutch soil; she is the daughter of Randy Max and Rachel Browne, two orchestral musicians. She has never been without music moving through her bones. While she grew up amongst violins, pianos and percussion, and had the natural gift of perfect pitch, music was not the love for her that it was for her parents. Hannah has a different kind of mathematical mind. Wickedly sharp with numbers and puzzles, and a bit of a shark with cards, she has a wit that seems impossibly dry for her now twelve years. Unlike many kids that wrinkle up their nose at strange or new foods, Hannah is known for diving into sushi, and fearlessly adventures her way through thinly sliced fish! It has been an increasingly difficult journey as she graduated to ever more powerful doses of chemotherapy that shrunk the tumor to an operable size, and then a tidal wave of chemo, along with stem cell re-infusion, in an attempt to clear out any remaining traces of cancer. The equanimity and spirit of gratitude that Hannah has shown in the face of such adversity touches all of those around her. As her grandmother, Carol Max of St. Louis, often points out “Hannah is unstoppable.” Even as she travels the path of chemo and is no stranger now to scalpel and suture, she would return to school as soon as she was released from the hospital, and would muster her strength to spend an hour or so saddled up on the back of a horse; her most favorite place to unwind a blue-skied afternoon. “She is just an amazing little girl!” At this juncture there is little else that can be done for Hannah in Holland, but there is a ray of hope that shines from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) where an innovative program, run by Dr. John Maris, focuses specifically on the treatment of neuroblastoma in children. This experimental program holds promise not just for Hannah, but for those in the future who could benefit from the development of this unique method of treatment. The cost of the treatment is enormous, hundreds of thousands of dollars. A special fund has been created to help Hannah receive her treatments in Philadelphia.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO HELP? You can do so by donating to the Hannah Max Benefit Trust Fund. Send a check payable to: “Hannah Max Benefit Trust Fund” Attn: Michelle Eldridge Southwest Bank 12452 Olive Blvd. St Louis, MO 63141 If a tax deduction is important, please visit the Vetri Foundation, an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) charity, at www.vetrifoundation.org/events/hannah-max-benefit
When donating to the Vertri Foundation please make sure to note on the memo line: FBO Hannah Max.
For more information or to make a donation online, please visit
www.helphannahmax.com This advertisement is sponsored by The American Israelite for tzedaka.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Breaking down the Im Tirtzu report on New Israel Fund by Ron Kampeas Jewish Telegraphic Agency NEW YORK (JTA) — For years the New Israel Fund has been battling with critics who accuse it of funding groups working to delegitimize the Jewish state. A new report from the Israeli grass-roots student group Im Tirtzu appeared to raise the stakes, however, as part of a campaign to blame NIF for the Goldstone report. In a controversial ad appearing in Israeli newspapers featuring a caricature of NIF President Naomi Chazan sporting a horn, Im Tirtzu stated, “Fact! Without the New Israel Fund, there could be no Goldstone Report, and Israel would not be facing international accusations of war crimes.” In fact, according to Im Tirtzu’s own study, 16 NIF-affiliated groups comprise just 14 percent of all the sources for the Goldstone report. Another analysis in the Im Tirtzu report alleges that 92 percent of all Israel-based negative reporting in the Goldstone report comes from the NIF groups. Some reporting has confused the two figures, and incorrectly casts Im Tirtzu as blaming the NIF for 92 percent of the entire Goldstone report. Im Tirtzu co-founder Ronen Shoval is careful to correct the mistaken impression in interviews, but says the overall takeaway is correct — the Israelibased reporting is much more damaging than that coming from other sources. “When Hamas accuses Israel of war crimes, you shrug,” he says. “When Israeli groups do it, you stop and look.” Shoval said the groups’ status as indigenous Israeli human rights groups compounded their sin of cooperation with the Goldstone commission, the body created by the U.N. Human Rights Council to investigate allegations of war crimes. “The whole relevancy of the Goldstone report is that it gets its legitimacy from Israeli groups that accuse Israel of committing war crimes,” Shoval said in an interview. “People give money because of its friendly name, the New Israel Fund.” Im Tirtzu acknowledges that the 16 NGOs named in its report are a small portion of the more than 300 groups funded by the NIF, many of them having to do with building infrastructure, assist-
JTA
This controversial Im Tirtzu ad in Israeli newspapers, featuring a caricature of New Israel Fund President Naomi Chazan sporting a horn, is part of a campaign to blame NIF for the Goldstone report.
ing immigrants, and defending the rights of women, the disabled and religious and ethnic minorities. But the distinctions seem to mean little to Im Tirtzu; its Web site, in Hebrew, lumps the groups together, describing NIF as “investing in and developing hundreds of extreme leftist groups operating in various sectors.” The NIF and its affiliated groups have pointed out what they say are errors of fact in the Im Tirtzu report. Im Tirtzu, for instance, claims that “hardly a word was heard from the organizations” when Sderot, the Israeli town near the Gaza Strip, was afflicted by rocket fire in the years before the Gaza war. In fact, Shatil, an infrastructure-building group and the NIF’s flagship in Israel, runs a number of projects in Sderot, as do other NIF affiliates. Shatil ran a public forum in Sderot in the war’s immediate aftermath to make heard the concerns of its residents. Shoval dismisses this as beside the point, saying, “Check the Goldstone report for a single mention of Sderot from an NIF group and get back to me.”
Groups like B’Tselem, a human rights monitor, dispute the Im Tirtzu report’s repeated allegations that they “accuse the IDF of war crimes,” instead saying that they uncovered allegations of abuse and left it to the relevant authorities — in Israel and overseas — to delve further. “B’Tselem is not a commission of inquiry,” said Uri Zaki, who directs the group’s Washington office, adding that B’Tselem was compiling facts and seeking independent action. “There should be an investigation inquiry or committee,” he said. “That is what Israel is required to do.” The Im Tirtzu report often cites material predating the Gaza war to make the claim that the groups are unreliable. In the case of B’Tselem, for instance, the report refers to a 2006 dispute over whether a Gazan killed in an IDF action was a terrorist or a fisherman. Zaki said B’Tselem stands by the accuracy of its Gaza war reporting. The Israeli government in a report earlier this month acknowledged using the group as a source.
NATIONAL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Im Tirtzu founders say their fight is against anti-Zionists, not left-wingers by Ben Harris Jewish Telegraphic Agency NEW YORK (JTA) — For more than three years Ronen Shoval and Erez Tadmor, classmates at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, have been building Im Tirtzu into a nationwide student network with chapters at nine Israeli universities. But it wasn’t until last week, when the group ran an advertisement in several Israeli papers claiming that the much-maligned Goldstone report on Israel’s conduct of the Gaza war last winter would have been impossible without the contributions of Israeli NGOs supported by the New Israel Fund, that the pair found themselves in the international spotlight. Tadmor and Shoval describe themselves as bookish, entrepreneurial types who have identified a gap in the Israeli psyche. “All my life, when my friends went to parties, I read Jabotinsky and Herzl,” Tadmor said. “This is my character, my nature.” The controversy over the attacks against NIF has thrust Im Tirtzu into a long-simmering dispute over where criticism of the Jewish state crosses the line into treason and anti-Zionism, while making the organization vulnerable to charges it is merely part of a wider effort to intimidate and silence the Israeli left and its American Jewish backers. On the latter point, Shoval and Tadmor, both 29, make no apologies. They say that some on the
Courtesy Ronen Shoval
Ronen Shoval, the chairman and co-founder of Im Tirtzu, insists that his group is “fighting about the identity” of Israel.
“We are fighting about the identity of the state,” Ronen Shova left end of the political spectrum have lost their commitment to the idea of a Jewish state. NIF’s defenders have sought to portray the duo as ideologues advancing a right-wing political agenda, but both say that Im Tirtzu is a centrist organization aimed at boosting Zionist ideals across the political spectrum. Tadmor volunteers for the Likud Party and once worked as a reporter for a nationalist newspaper. Im Tirtzu has previously received funding from John Hagee Ministries and supporters of the settlement movement. And both founders profess admiration for Vladimir Jabotinsky, the ideological father of the movement that espoused the concept of Greater Israel extending into what is now Jordan and eventually produced the Likud Party. Shoval insists that Im Tirtzu has nothing to do with the tug of war between left and right nor the fight over land captured by Israel in 1967. “We are fighting about the identity of the state,” he said, adding, “You can be a very good Zionist and say we must leave almost all the territories. And you can be a good Zionist and say we must stay in all the territories.” In their bid to spark what they describe as a second Zionist revolution, the pair has demonstrated a willingness to play rough (see: anti-NIF campaign), but also to play for laughs (in a satirical YouTube video) and merchandising revenue (want a Herzl, BenGurion or Begin T-shirt?). Shoval, a high-tech executive, is cagey about his future plans, a subject of speculation in the wake of the NIF incident. While he won’t rule out a future in politics, he maintains the moment is not yet ripe. “I don’t think that I’m ready for it, I’m too young,” Shoval said. “If I’ll do it, it will be in the future. Not tomorrow.”
7
Will Israel’s response to Goldstone be enough? by Uriel Heilman Jewish Telegraphic Agency NEW YORK (JTA) — With Israel’s submission of its formal response to the Goldstone report on the Gaza war, the question now is: Did the response suffice? On Jan. 29, the Israeli government offered its reply to the U.N. report last fall by retired South African judge Richard Goldstone that accused Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes during their three-week war in Gaza a year ago. Israel’s 46-page reply addressed the specific allegations cited in the Goldstone report and, in Israel’s mind, fulfilled the report’s demand that Israel carry out a credible investigation of its wartime conduct. “This Israeli document expresses Israel’s full commitment to carry out credible independent investigations that meet the standards of international law,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement last Friday, after the U.N. General Assembly met to discuss it. But the jury’s still out on whether the United Nations will agree. When he presented Israel’s reply to the U.N. General Assembly last Friday, U.N. Secretary-General
Rahim Khatib / Flash90 / JTA
Israel rebutted the substance of the report on the Gaza war by Richard Goldstone, left, shown meeting in June 2009 with Ghazi Hamad of Hamas at the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.
Ban Ki-moon said he understood that Israel’s process of investigation was “ongoing” and therefore “no determination can be made on the implementation” of the Goldstone recommendations. The question now isn’t whether or not Israel committed war crimes during its offensive in Gaza, which killed 1,100 to 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis; the Israeli investigation found that Israel’s wartime action did not deviate from international norms. The question is whether Israel’s
reply met the standards outlined by Goldstone of a credible investigation. In his report, which was published last September, Goldstone noted that Israel had not shown the capacity to investigate itself in the past. He called for the matter to be turned over to the International Criminal Court if Israel and Hamas did not undertake credible investigations of their own within six months. RESPONSE on page 21
MODELS WANTED for Fashion Show and, No, you don’t have to be a model. We are currently looking for volunteers to model the latest Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Sweet 16, Prom and Graduation party fashions from Kotsovos Furs & Fine Apparel during the 2010 Party Planning Showcase at the JCC on March 7th. If you’re interseted or would like more information, please contact Victoria at 791-3877 or kotsovosapparel@gmail.com
8
NATIONAL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Jewish-Muslim study course grounds interfaith dialogue in sacred text by Sue Fishkoff Jewish Telegraphic Agency BERKELEY, Calif. (JTA) — Judaism is a harsh, exacting faith condemning rebellious children to death by stoning. Islam exhorts Muslims to kill non-believers. Neither statement, according to many Jewish and Muslim scholars, is true. But they are among the most persistent charges laid at the feet of Judaism and Islam by those who are unfamiliar with the basic holy texts of the other’s faith. Hampered by such ignorance, how can Jews and Muslims engage in real interfaith dialogue? A new graduate-level course in Berkeley, billed as the first of its kind, aims to rectify this failing, at least for the 40 or so students enrolled. “Madrasa/Midrasha: MuslimJewish Text Study,” a nine-week course spearheaded by the Progressive Jewish Alliance and run by the Center for Jewish Studies and the Center for Islamic Studies of the Graduate Theological Union, introduces students of both faiths to the methodologies and foundational content of the Koran, Torah and Talmud. Each session is co-taught by a Jewish and a Muslim scholar. The course also is open to the public. The field of Jewish-Muslim dialogue and engagement is growing fast. According to a not-yet-published survey by the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement in Los Angeles, 13 of 18 groups involved in this work were launched in the
A.H. Sellars
Naomi Seidman, left, explains the layout of a Torah page to a Muslim-Jewish text study class in Berkeley while co-instructor Hatem Bazian looks on, Feb. 2, 2010.
past seven years, and six of them in the past two years. The new Berkeley program stands out from the pack by its focus on rigorous text study. While 50 percent of the interfaith groups surveyed indicated they would like to do comparative study of sacred texts, experts in the field say very few actually engage in such work beyond one workshop, and none do so at the graduate level. “This Berkeley program is very special,” says Rabbi Reuven Firestone of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles, which two years ago partnered with the University of Southern California and the Omar Ibn Al-Khattab Foundation to form the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement.
In January 2009, Firestone cotaught the text study section of a pilot program in joint text study and interfaith relationship-building run by the center and NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change. The joint text study was conducted similarly to the new Graduate Theological Union course, although it was not part of a graduate level program. The center is looking for funding to replicate the course for other institutions. Neither Firestone nor organizers of the Berkeley course know of similar initiatives elsewhere. Instructors in both courses say that bringing together adherents of both faiths in text-centered dialogue defuses some of the tensions that typically crop up in interfaith
groups by focusing attention in a third direction: the page of a book. “The experience of reading a Torah story we know as it appears in the Koran, seeing where it overlaps and differs, is very moving,” Firestone says. “It elicits questions. Your dialogue partner becomes the representative of a deeply fascinating religious tradition” rather than someone you’re trying to persuade of the rightness of your cause. At the Berkeley course’s first meeting Feb. 2, Professor Naomi Seidman, director of the Center for Jewish Studies at GTU, shows the class a page from Genesis, demonstrating how one line of Torah might be surrounded by pages of commentary. “The Torah is always read through the lens of rabbinic literature,” she explains. Flipping to Exodus, she reads the Hebrew, “Ayin tachat ayin,” and continues in English, “an eye for an eye, that’s the ‘proof text’ that the God of Israel is a vengeful god.” In fact, she points out, Judaism never understood that dictum literally, but follows the Talmudic interpretation that such crimes demand appropriate monetary compensation— an interpretation that is at the root of contemporary tort law. Hatem Bazian, a senior lecturer in Near Eastern and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, and Seidman’s coteacher for the night, provided similar insight into the Koran, believed by Muslims to be the word of Allah as revealed to his prophet
Muhammad. Muhammad had four main functions, Bazian begins — prophet, head of state, judge and military commander. One cannot understand a passage from the Koran without determining in which function Muhammad proclaimed it. If he was speaking as a prophet, the ruling has universal applicability, whereas if he was speaking as a judge, it might apply only to the case before him. Misapplying such rulings can lead to grave wrongs, Bazian suggests, such as nation-states that don’t protect the rights of all citizens. Munir Jiwa, founding director of the GTU’s Center for Islamic Studies, says that when Jews and Muslims explore their sacred texts, they discover deep bonds of intellect and faith — for example, shared assumptions about the primacy of religious law that is absent from Christianity. This can bring them closer as two minorities in a Christian-dominated culture. When Bazian discussed an Islamic ruling on ablutions after touching one’s genitalia during the first evening’s class, the Jewish students “didn’t think it was weird,” Jiwa points out, because Judaism, too, regulates bodily functions via religious rituals. “This course allows us to struggle with our texts in a scholarly way, as well as faith practitioners,” he says. “People walked out that first night amazed by the commitment to learning they saw in each faith.”
Haiti response spurs new fundraising tool: Texting by Tamar Snyder Guest Author NEW YORK (New York Jewish Week) — Over the course of the past year, The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s Next Gen initiative had been looking into launching a mobile giving campaign. When an earthquake devastated Haiti last month, suddenly the race was on to get it up and running immediately. The entire setup process took less than 48 hours, and JDC announced its text-to-donate campaign at “Help Haiti Now,” an emergency benefit held Jan. 19 at a popular music venue. In addition to the minimum $36 donation, attendees were asked to text “JDCHAITI” to 85944, which would result in a $10 donation added to their cell phone bills.
The event raised $8,200, and up to $3,600 raised through texting will be matched dollar for dollar by the owners of the Havana Central restaurant chain. Among Jewish organizations, the American Jewish World Service and the JDC are among the first to try mobile giving campaigns. The UJA-Federation of New York has launched the Chai Society, which enables recent college graduates to donate $18 a month to the UJA by texting the word “Chai” to 58126. But in wider U.S. nonprofit circles, mobile phone giving is reaching a tipping point, says Lucy Bernholz, a longtime adviser to philanthropic foundations and a well-respected blogger and analyst of philanthropic trends. The question is how successful these campaigns are and whether other Jewish organizations will
jump on the bandwagon. Industry analysts say that mobile giving is growing at a far quicker pace than online giving. In 2008, when mobile giving first got off the ground, $500,000 was donated via text messages. Last year the number increased to $3 million. But last month, in the wake of the Haiti earthquake, the Red Cross alone raised more than $30 million via $10 text message donations. The organization had raised $200,000 through mobile giving during the 2008 hurricane season. “The tragedy in Haiti has raised the awareness among the general population of the ability to make a donation very quickly through a mobile phone,” says Douglas Plank, CEO of MobileCause, which is among about nine service providers in the United States that are approved by the Mobile Giving
Foundation. Only 500 of the more than 1 million U.S. nonprofits are running text-to-donate campaigns, but Plank envisions a large increase in the coming year. “The heightened awareness of mobile giving has caused nonprofits that support Haiti and those that don’t to realize that this is a viable fund-raising tool that they need to start using,” he says. “With just a few clicks, you can initiate your campaign.” The costs for running text-giving technology have fallen in recent years. MobileCause, for example, offers packages that run from $99 to $250 a month. Part of the appeal of mobile giving is its “ability to bring in brand new supporters at a low adoption rate,” Plank says. There are downsides to mobile giving campaigns, including the
fear that potential donors will ease their conscience with a quick $10 text donation and not bother to make a larger gift. That presents a dilemma to organizations such as the American Jewish World Service, which has an average online gift of $100 to $115. While the organization is experimenting with a text-todonate campaign to benefit the Haiti relief efforts (text “AJWS” to 25383), it has opted not to publicize the texting number on its Web site. “If we encouraged people to text, it’s $10," says Riva Silverman, the director of development for AJWS. "If they’re already on the donate page, why would we shoot ourselves in the foot?” The point of the mobile giving campaign, she says, is to reach people who otherwise wouldn’t go to the group's Web site to donate.
INTERNATIONAL
9
In a changing Europe, debate about state crosses by Ruth Ellen Gruber Jewish Telegraphic Agency ROME (JTA) — Is the cross purely a religious sign or a symbol of national heritage? The question is part of an ongoing debate over European identity that has taken on increasing significance in recent years with the influx of Muslims and other immigrants into Europe. Muslim immigration in particular has prompted many countries to debate whether attitudes toward their Christian symbols, which some European states display on their flags, need to adapt to reflect the new multiethnic nature of their societies. On the flip side, some have argued that more than ever, Europe now needs to cling to its traditional, national symbols and reassert its Christian origins. There is “an increasing identity neurosis in the European nationstates,” Swedish Jewish writer Goran Rosenberg said. “To counter this neurosis, a pluralistic narrative of Europe’s identity is essential.” The debate is not new. In the early 2000s, Italy, the Vatican and several other states tried unsuccessfully to have an explicit reference to Europe’s “Christian roots” included in a planned but never implemented constitution for the 27-nation European Union. The debate was reignited last November when the European Court of Human Rights, or ECHR, ruled that the display of crucifixes in Italian public school rooms is a violation of religious freedom. The case had been brought by a mother of two near Venice who had fought the case unsuccessfully in the Italian justice system for nine years. After a storm of protest in Italy and other countries, the Italian government officially appealed the ruling at the end of January, filing a toughly worded brief that defined the crucifix as “one of the symbols of our history and our identity.” Christianity, it said, “represents the roots of our culture, what we are today.” The display of the crucifix in schools “should not be seen so much for its religious meaning, but as reference to the history and tradition of Italy,” the brief said. The debate has posed a dilemma for Europe’s Jews. Some see it as an opportunity to assail the use of Christian symbols in official state forums, such as courthouses, as problematic, while others acknowledge that the symbols have a
national as well as religious nature. “The cross is certainly more than a religious symbol,” Rosenberg said. “It appears for instance in many national flags — Sweden, Denmark, Finland and others — and is thus part of the national landscape to an extent that we tend not to see it.” But Lisa Palmieri Billig, the American Jewish Committee’s liaison with the Vatican, argues that using Christian icons as symbols of national identity can be dangerous. “To transform the cross, or any other religious symbol, into a symbol of national identity voids it of its spiritual significance and feeds currents of extreme nationalism,” she said. “Keeping the apparatus of religion and state separate guarantees the freedom and independence of both,” she said. “By nationalizing the cross, the road is paved for future conflict with the growing European Islamic population.” Far from being “part of Italy’s cultural tradition,” the presence of crosses in Italian public schools dates from a 1929 agreement between the Vatican and the fascist regime that regulated religious practice in the country, according to Palmieri Billig. Italy has not had any official state religion since a 1984 reform. When Italy appealed the European court ruling against the display of crucifixes in Italian public schools, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini characterized the case as one of national self-determination in the face of European integration. “I consider this a battle to affirm our identity,” he said this week in the Vatican’s official newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano. “The government intends to uphold the right by which every sovereign state has to be free and continue to be so in deciding how to reconcile the secular with the sacred, in accordance with its history and culture.” European countries differ widely on issues of church-state separation. France, for example, is strictly secular. A 2004 law banned students from wearing the Muslim headscarf or other religious symbols in public schools. Last month, a parliamentary panel called for a ban on women wearing the full Muslim face veil in government offices, on mass transit and in public hospitals. In England, Anglicanism is the established state church, with the monarch its titular head, though church attendance is very low in the country.
10
ISRAEL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
NIF fracas: Defending Israel or destroying democracy?
Yossi Zamir / Flash 90
Jewish right-wing activists dressed as Arabs demonstrate in Jerusalem against the New Israel Fund, Jan. 30, 2010.
by Leslie Susser Jewish Telegraphic Agency JERUSALEM (JTA) — A campaign against the New Israel Fund — a U.S.-based organization that funds civil society activists in Israel — has sparked a fierce debate over the limits of free speech, the financing of NGOs, the dictates of loyalty to the state and, ultimately, over the fundamental values of Israel’s Zionist democracy. The questions cut close to the bone on both sides of the ideological divide. For example: Are leftwingers using Zionist money to undermine the foundations of the state? Or, are right-wingers trying to gag nongovernmental organizations critical of Israeli policies and actions? And to what extent are the government and its agencies involved in trying to silence their critics? At the center of the storm is the Goldstone report on alleged Israeli war crimes during the fighting in Gaza last winter. Most Israelis see the report as biased, based on flimsy evidence and false assumptions, and part of a concerted international campaign to delegitimize the Jewish state. The attack on the New Israel Fund was part of an angry Israeli backlash against Goldstone. But was it a bona fide attack on an organization accused of undermining Israel’s international standing or a premeditated onslaught against civil society? The campaign against the NIF was conducted by an organization called Im Tirtzu, which describes itself as “an extra-parliamentary movement to strengthen Zionist values” and boasts a video endorsement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It claimed that 16 NIF grantees — among them Physicians for Human Rights
and B’Tselem, human rights organizations active in the Palestinian territories; Breaking the Silence, a group of soldiers reporting on Israeli army violations of moral norms; and ACRI, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel — had provided Goldstone with material contributing to false charges against the Israel Defense Forces in informer-like actions that were tantamount to betrayal in a wartime situation. “The results of these groups’ activities caused significant diplomatic damage to Israel and harmed the country’s capacity to defend itself militarily,” Im Tirtzu said, adding that NIF was largely to blame because it had funded these “anti-Zionist” organizations. In late January, young Im Tirtzu members dressed as Hamas fighters demonstrated outside the Jerusalem home of NIF President Naomi Chazan waving placards depicting Chazan with a horn emerging from her forehead. The text on the placard read: “Fact! Without the New Israel Fund there could be no Goldstone Report and Israel would not be facing international accusations of war crimes.” The horn was a play on words, the Hebrew “keren” meaning both fund and horn, but critics say it also had obvious anti-Semitic connotations that many found offensive. Im Tirtzu used the image as well in advertisements placed in several Israeli newspapers. The Zionist Organization of America has seconded the criticisms of the NIF. The New Israel Fund says it knows that many of the minority rights groups it backs in the name of empowering the disenfranchised and fighting discrimination in Israel also take positions that the NIF does not endorse, such as calling for an end to Israel’s Jewish
character. NIF officials say that while they do not agree with everything their grantees do or say, revoking their funding would be inimical to NIF’s goal of promoting free speech and strengthening Israel’s minorities. “They’re using me to attack in the most blatant way the basic principles of democracy and the values of Israel’s declaration of independence; values of equality, tolerance, social justice and freedom of speech,” Chazan declared. In dismissing the Im Tirtzu case against the NIF as baseless, Chazan said that the materials the groups allegedly transferred to Goldstone are mostly in the public domain. And even if they were not, it would be the duty of the groups to pass on what they know — that is their raison d’etre as human rights groups. Far from giving succor to Israel’s enemies, the grantees were trying to create a better Israel, Chazan said. The NIF and its defenders note that its work goes well beyond organizations focusing specifically on Palestinian rights. It also funds civil society groups dealing with a host of domestic Israeli issues, such as providing women’s shelters, supporting Ethiopian immigrants and challenging the Orthodox monopoly on Jewish religious practice. In early February, a group of leading Israeli academics, writers, actors, directors and political activists, including novelists Amos Oz and A.B. Yehoshua, placed a full-page ad in Haaretz expressing “disgust at the campaign of incitement and hatred” being waged against Chazan, the NIF and the organizations it supports. Several U.S. Jewish groups on the left side of the political spectrum issued their own statements slamming the anti-NIF campaign on similar grounds. The tenor of the anti-NIF campaign was criticized as well by Abraham Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League. In late January, 13 of the 16 NIF grantees slammed by Im Tirtzu fired off a letter to President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin complaining that the Im Tirtzu attack on the NIF was part of a larger pattern encouraged by “senior government officials.” In other words, it was more than a one-off campaign by a young, marginal group but part of an anti-democratic trend for which the government was setting the tone. NIF on page 21
Israel Under the Radar: Free upgrades, divorces down, plug-in cars by Marcy Oster Jewish Telegraphic Agency JERUSALEM (JTA) — Here are some stories from the past few days in Israel that you may have missed. Israeli divorces down The number of Israeli Jews who divorced in 2009 dropped by 2.3 percent over the previous year, Israel’s Rabbinic Court announced last week. Rabbi Eli Ben-Dahan, director general of the Rabbinic Court Administration, told the Jerusalem Post that the drop probably occurred because couples could not afford the financial cost of separation. While divorce rates fell between 3 percent and 7 percent in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Rishon Lezion, the rate in Jerusalem rose by 4.2 percent. In all, 9,986 Jewish couples divorced in Israel in 2009. Last year marked the first since divorce rates began to be tracked in Israel that the rate declined. Tracking began in 2003. The cases of 162 women who had been unable to divorce because their husbands refused to grant them religious writs of divorce known as “gets” were concluded in 2009, but another 180 such cases remain open, according to the court. About 20 women are officially classified as agunot – women “chained” to recalcitrant husbands refusing to grant them gets. These women have exhausted all alternative options to obtain divorces, and their husbands are either in hiding or in prison for refusing to grant a get. A number of couples remain married with cases open because wives have refused to accept gets from their husbands. Free upgrades Legislators aren’t known for pleading and cajoling, but like all airline passengers they occasionally find themselves resorting to such tactics in requesting upgrades to business class. Israel’s Knesset members came very close this week to never having to whine again — at least at the airport check-in desk. On Monday, the Knesset’s director general issued new regu-
lations stipulating that all lawmakers who travel to foreign countries on official business can fly business class. But Tuesday, following heavy criticism, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin froze the implementation of the decision while members of the ethics committee and house committee review the new plan. Until now, Knesset members could get an upgrade only on flights longer than six hours, and only with a specific request. The bill is footed by the Israeli taxpayer. Several unnamed lawmakers told the Jerusalem Post Monday that the new regulations were “realistic and purposeful,” saying that they had been harassed by the passengers in economy class. Other lawmakers decried the move, saying that the Knesset should tighten its belt at a time when many citizens are doing so. In reality, Rivlin’s office told the Jerusalem Post, fewer than a dozen Israeli lawmakers actually have traveled in economy class in recent years. “Knesset members attend discussions that require great alertness,” Rivlin told Army Radio in defending the decision. “Just now, a delegation left for talks in the U.S., and they were meant to attend meetings the minute they landed. The same thing happens with flights to Europe. Last week Knesset members had to participate in a symposium in Poland just after they landed.” Plug it in and go Beginning next week, Israelis will be able to test drive the fully electric cars that are expecting to debut in Israel by March 2011. Project Better Place, which is building electric car battery recharging and switching stations across the country, opened a visitors’ center near Tel Aviv last week to showcase the electric car concept. The center, which was created in a renovated oil tank at a fuel depot near Tel Aviv, includes a driving course to allow visitors to test drive the refitted Renaults. Better Place already has signed agreements with 92 Israeli companies to convert a portion of their car fleets to electric vehicles once the electric cars hit the road.
PARTY PLANNING
SHOW CASE 10 SUNDAY, MARCH 7 11-4 @ THE NEW JCC 8485 RIDGE ROAD, CINCINNATI, OHIO 45236
From Caterers to DJs, the Party Planning Showcase has everything you need to make your event something to celebrate! Come join us for this FREE extravaganza and learn what’s new and what’s hot. Don’t miss out on the Booths, Raffle Prizes and FREE Food plus everything you’ll need to throw the best party ever, no matter the occasion.
Showcasing only the best Balloons, Cakes, Caterers, DJs, Flowers, Photographers & More! Whether you are planning a Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Wedding, Sweet 16, Prom or Graduation Party, the Party Planning Showcase will be the only place to be. FREE ADMISSION. Sponsored by The American Israelite & Artrageous Desserts
To reserve booth space or for more information, contact Teri Scheff at 793-6627 / dezert@aol.com or Ted Deutsch at 621-3145 / publisher@americanisraelite.com
12
KIDS/SUMMER CAMPS
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Camp Livingston offers new Israel program For the first time, Camp Livingston will offer a five-week Israel program open to those entering their junior and senior years of high school. The program will run from July 2 to Aug. 8. Participants will spend their
first Shabbat at camp and then travel together to Israel for four weeks. They will return to camp for the final days of the session. Participants will share their experience with the rest of camp through a presentation during the last days of the session.
Camp Livingston will travel with two other JCC camps from the east coast: Pinemere Camp and Camp Kingswood. The camps will tour Israel through JCC Maccabi Israel, the program provider. A special feature of the trip
will be a Shabbat in Cincinnati’s sister city in Israel, Netanya. Said Edana Appel, assistant camp director, “Campers are getting the camp experience as well as the Israel experience.” Camp Livingston offers a variety of summer experiences
lasting from two to eight weeks for children in grades 3 through 12 that include activities in the arts, sports and the outdoors. Scholarships and first time attendance grants are available. For more information contact camp Livingston.
6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
Camp at the J Listings for 2010 CAMP AT THE J: WHO: From 18 months through eighth grade. Camp at the J programs are open to the public; J Members pay discounted fees. ACTIVITIES: These may include sports, arts and crafts, instructional and recreational swimming, music, Shabbat celebrations, nature, drama, special events, outdoor cooking, archery, hiking and more. WHEN: JCC camps run June 14 – August 20, in 6-week, 3-week or 1-week sessions.
LITTLE HIKERS CAMP Age Range: Ages 18 mos. – PreK Dates: 6 weeks: June 14 - July 23 (no camp on Monday, July 5) (3 or 5 days/week) Price: Public: $730/3 mornings; $1,070/5 mornings; J Member: $630/3 mornings; $920/5 mornings (J Members save more when registered by March 3, 2010) Time: 9:30am - 12:30pm Extended Day Camp: After camp programs (12:30 – 3:25pm) available for an extra fee. 1-WEEK LITTLE HIKERS CAMPS Age Range: Ages 18 mos. – PreK Dates: (choose 1 – 3 weeks) July 26 – 30, August 2 - 6, August 9 13 Price: Public: $205; J Member: $155/week Time: 9:30am - 12:30pm Extended Day Camp: After camp programs (12:30 – 3:25pm) available for an extra fee. TRAILBLAZERS CAMP Age Range: Entering grades K - 3
Dates: 6 weeks: June 14 - July 23 (no camp on Monday, July 5) Price: Public $1,540; J Member $1,340 (J Members save more when registered by March 3, 2010) Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
sessions (J Members save more when registered by March 3, 2010) Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
THEATER CAMP
Age Range: Entering grades 6 - 8 Dates: July 26 – 30 (1 week travel to the Great Lakes area) Price: Public: $650; J Member: $600 (includes transportation, overnight accommodations, attraction admissions & meals) Time: Monday drop off: 9:30am; Friday pick up: 6:00pm
Age Range: Entering grades 4 – 8 Dates: Two 3-week camp sessions: June 14 – July 2 (no camp on Monday, July 5); July 6 - 23 Price: Public: $850/one session; $1,540/two sessions; J Member: $750/one session; $1,340/two sessions (J Members save more when registered by March 3, 2010) Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee. SPORTS CAMP Age Range: Entering grades 4 – 8 Dates: Two 3-week camp sessions: June 14 – July 2 (no camp on Monday, July 5); July 6 - 23 Price: Public: $925/one session; $1,690/two sessions; J Member: $825/one session; $1,490/two sessions (J Members save more when registered by March 3, 2010) Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
New TWEEN TREK TRAVEL CAMP
BASKETBALL CAMP Age Range: entering grades K - 8 Dates: July 26 - 30 (1 week) Price: Public: $270; J Member: $220 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee. SOCCER CAMP Age Range: entering grades K - 8 Dates: August 9 - 13 (1 week) Price: Public: $270; J Member: $220 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
New MAD SCIENCE CAMP Age Range: entering grades 2 – 3 &4-6 Dates: Grades 2 – 3: August 9 – 13; Grades 4 – 6: August 2 - 6 (1 week) Price: Public: $325; J Member: $275 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
NEW GOLF CAMP Age Range: entering grades 4 - 8 Dates: August 16 - 20 (1 week) Price: Public: $315; J Member: $265 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
DRAMA-RAMA CAMP Age Range: entering grades K – 2 &3-6 Dates: Grades K – 2: August 9 – 13; Grades 3 – 6: July 26 - 30 (1 week) Price: Public: $270; J Member: $220 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee. HORSEBACK RIDING CAMP
New JUNIOR MAGICIAN CAMP Age Range: entering grades 2 - 4 Dates: August 16 - 20 (1 week) Price: Public: $325; J Member: $275 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee. New YOUNG REMBRANDTS ART CAMP
Age Range: entering grades 1 – 3 &4-8 Dates: Grades 1 – 3: August 2 – 6; Grades 4 – 8: August 9 - 13 (1 week) Price: Public: $345; J Member: $295 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
Age Range: entering grades 4 - 8 Dates: July 26 - 30 (1 week) Price: Public: $300; J Member: $250 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
Age Range: entering grades 4 - 8 Dates: August 16 - 20 (1 week) Price: Public: $270; J Member: $220 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 6:00pm) available for an extra fee.
TRIPS CAMP
New SPORTS ADVENTURE CAMP
COOKING CAMP
Age Range: Entering grades 4 – 8 Dates: Two 3-week camp sessions: June 14 – July 2 (no camp on Monday, July 5); July 6 - 23 Price: Public: $925/one session; $1,690/two sessions; J Member: $825/one session; $1,490/two
Age Range: entering grades K - 8 Dates: August 2 - 6 (1 week) Price: Public: $270; J Member: $220 Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm Extended Day Camp: Before (8:00 - 9:30am) and after (3:30 -
Age Range: entering grades K - 2 &3-6 Dates: Grades K - 2: July 26 – 30; Grades 3 - 6: August 2 - 6 (1 week) Price: Public: $325; J Member: $275
New YOUTH WILDERNESS CAMP
KIDS/SUMMER CAMPS
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
13
Wide choice of camping experiences this summer at the J Parents across the community can now enroll their children in Summer Camp at the J, whether they’re JCC members or not. Summer camp programs are for kids from 18 months through children entering eighth grade. A variety of sports, arts and crafts activities as well as Shabbat celebrations are offered. This summer, the J will offer several new camps as well. For kids entering grades 6 – 8, there is the new Trek travel camp for one week. Tweens from JCCs in Indianapolis, Louisville and Dayton will join Cincinnati campers for a trip to the Great Lakes area for canoeing and tours of various attractions including the Belle Isle in Detroit, Cedar Point and the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame. Also, for grades 2 through 8, there will be six new, one-week camps — S’More camps — with a variety of activities that involve golf, magic, art, sports, science and the outdoors. These new camps are in addition to the J’s regular S’More Camps for campers interested in soccer, basketball, drama, horseback riding or cooking. For kids entering grades 4 – 8, there are special interest, Quest Camps, as well as Sports Camp, Trips Camp and Theater Camp. Trailblazer Camps are for younger kids entering grades K – 3 in which activities are centered around the J’s indoor water park. Finally, for even younger kids, the J will offer a 6-week session for Little Hikers (ages 18 months – pre-K), with lots of time at the playground of the Early Childhood School and visits to the wading pool and splash pool. Also, children three and older get Red Cross
certified swim lessons. Howard Liff has enrolled his children in Camp at the J for the past two years. “My kids love all the Camp at the J programs and activities. I think it’s great that they also get instructional swim lessons all summer long. It’s definitely a great value!”
J camps run June 14 – August 20, in 6-week, 3-week or 1-week sessions — all with extended day options.
Financial assistance is available to any family who qualifies, when they register before April 15. Parents can get more informa-
tion about Summer Camp at the J at Parent Information Night on Wednesday, March 3. For more information, contact the J.
14
DINING OUT
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Noce’s Pizzeria ‘slicing up’ the competition by Bob Wilhelmy Restaurant Reporter Perhaps you have heard of “New York style” pizza. Not sure anybody knows exactly what that is, but Jay Noce and his three partners are bringing a new pizza offering to the high-quality end of the pizza business in Greater Cincinnati. It’s pizza by-the-slice. Noce at age 33 is a 15-year veteran of the restaurant biz. He’s from New York State, and he spent most of his work time in pizzerias there. He knows the Big Apple type pizza business inside and out. One key feature of that business back home, which is uncommon here in River City, is pizza by the slice. In fact, the quality pizza places in Greater Cincinnati don’t offer it at all. “We always have several different pizzas ready and set out for our customers who want a slice or want a couple slices of different kinds,” Noce said. “We pop it in the oven for a minute and it’s ready for them. In New York, that’s the way pizzerias do business, and people love it. The same here, too; we’ve had a really good reaction from our customers to the by-the-slice approach.” Note also that you can order a whole pizza at Noce’s Pizzeria, and the large pizzas are huge. A large cheese pizza is $12.99, as is a large white garlic pizza. There is an extensive list of toppings you can add for $2.50 each, including mushrooms, peppers (red, green, banana, jalapeño), onions, green or black olives, spinach, pineapple, broccoli, anchovies, and more. Or you can do a deluxe, custom specialty pizza with five toppings for $19.95. The photo above gives you a sense of the size of Noce’s pizzas. In the by-the-slice category, Noce’s offers a generous slice of pizza, the cheese variety for $2.50 and slices of specialty pizzas for $3.50. The attraction of by-the-slice pizza is 3-fold. First, the customer can walk up to the counter, see the pizzas on display and pick a slice. Personally, I appreciate the opportunity to see an item before ordering it. Second, you’ll get your slice in a minute or two, instead of waiting as much as 15 to 20 minutes for a pizza to be assembled, placed in the oven and baked, even if it’s a “personal” size pizza. Third, customers can have a variety of at least three different pizza types by ordering one slice of each variety on display for by-the-slice customers. “We do our pizzas on the stone of the oven,” said Noce, contending that approach was a better way to bake a pizza than doing them in
Jay Noce is showing off one of the giant by-the-slice pizzas that distinguish his Cincinnati restaurants from others offering pizza and Italian cuisine in a casual setting in this tri-state marketplace.
pizza pans or on conveyors in track ovens. Those non-stone methods are common in pizza places where lesser quality product is offered, according to those who know the quality standards of restaurant pizza making. As with those New York pizzerias, Noce’s offers more than just pizza. There are chicken wings, in mild, medium, hot, BBQ, spicy garlic, or spicy BBQ. Prices range from $8.99 to $22.99 for 12 to 36 wings respectively, in any flavor. The menu includes cold and hot subs, 8-inchers, and you can load them up a dozen different ways. The subs range in price from $5.25 to $8.50, and each sandwich includes chips. Along with subs, there are rolls, calzones and strombolis in the sandwich department, averaging between $6 and $7. In addition to the hand-held foods offered at Noce’s, you will find a sizeable list of pasta and
baked dishes. Among the most popular are the spaghetti and ziti entrees, each $6.99, and the baked ziti, at $7.99. The pasta offering includes eggplant parmesan as well as chicken cacciatore, at
$11.99, a pasta Alfredo, and a broccoli Alfredo version, both for $9.99. When you go to Noce’s, you will find weekly and daily specials on pizzas and daily pasta specials
as well. For instance, Monday to Wednesday, a carry-out large cheese pizza is $9.99, a $3 savings. Or buy two large specialty pizzas for $31.99, or $7.91 savings. Daily specials include: two slices of cheese pizza and a drink is $4.99, or the same deal with specialty pizza slices is $5.99. Noce’s Pizzeria now operates two locations, one in Montgomery and another in Cheviot, and is planning to open two more local restaurants in the near future. The Montgomery location is in a strip center very near Carlo & Johnny’s Steakhouse. Hours of operation are: Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, to 11 p.m.; and Sunday, 12 noon to 9 p.m. Noce’s Pizzeria 9797 Montgomery Road Cincinnati, OH 45242 513-791-0900 4105B North Bend Road Cincinnati, OH 45211
DINING OUT
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
15 Dine-In / Take-Out / Delivery
DINING OUT
✳EXOTIC DISHES✳ ✳ADJUSTABLE SPICE SCALE✳ ✳FABULOUS DRINKS✳ ✳VEGETARIAN - FRIENDLY✳
9797 Montgomery Rd
Andy’s Mediterranean Grille
Izzy’s
Parkers Blue Ash Grill
At Gilbert & Nassau
800 Elm St
4200 Cooper Rd
4858 Hunt Rd • Blue Ash, 45242 (513) 891-8900 • Fax 834-8012
2 blocks North of Eden Park
721-4241
Blue Ash
www.BangkokTerrace.com
nocespizzeria.com
281-9791
612 Main Street
891-8300
"Top 100 Chinese Restaurants in America"
3 Course Dinner for 2 for $25
(513) 791-0900
241-6246 Apsara
5098B Glencrossing Way
Pomodori’s
4785 Lake Forest Dr
347-9699
121West McMillan
Blue Ash
1198 Smiley Avenue
861-0080
554-1040
825-3888
7880 Remington Rd
300 Madison Avenue
Montgomery
Bangkok Terrace
Covington
4858 Hunt Rd
859-292-0065
794-0080
CINCINNATI ENQUIRER: Banquets
Rusty’s Ristorante Johnny Chan 2
8028 Blue Ash Rd
11296 Montgomery Rd
Deer Park
Carlo & Johnny
The Shops at Harper’s Point
793-6881
9769 Montgomery Rd
489-2388 • 489-3616 (fx)
Cincinnati
1/2
. Sushi Bar . Full Bar, Liquor . Sunday Brunch
(513) 489-2388
K.T.’s Barbecue & Deli
4858 Cooper Rd
8501 Reading Rd
Blue Ash
Embers
Reading
791-2223 • 791-1381 (fax)
8120 Montgomery Rd
761-0200
Montgomery
CATERING NOW AVAILABLE! Intersections of Gilbert & Nassau
513-281-9791 www.andyskabob.com
Ask about our Specials!
Stone Creek Dining Co.
984-8090
Marx Hot Bagels
9386 Montgomery Rd
9701 Kenwood Rd
Montgomery
Ferrari’s Little Italy & Bakery
Blue Ash
489-1444
7677 Goff Terrace
891-5542
Madeira
American Cuisine with an Italian Flair
Tandoor Mecklenburg Gardens
8702 Market Place Ln
302 E. University Ave
Montgomery
Gabby’s Cafe
Clifton
793-7484
MONDAY ITALIAN NIGHT! LIVE MUSIC ON SATURDAY NIGHT! Open for lunch & dinner everyday
515 Wyoming Ave
221-5353 the Palace
515 Wyoming Ave • Wyoming, OH 513-821-6040 • gabbyswyoming.com
Wyoming 821-6040
Add Wine for $15
Slatt’s Pub
936-8600
272-2220
Chinese Restaurant News - 2004
The Shops at Harpers Point . 11296 Montgomery Road
Blue Ash 891-8900 • 834-8012 (fx)
ANDY’S STIMULUS PACKAGE
Molly Malone’s Irish Pub
601 Vine St
6111 Montgomery Rd
Downtown Cincinnati
Montgomery
(in the Cincinnatian Hotel)
531-0700
381-3000
Noce’s Pizzeria
Trio
9797 Montgomery Rd
7565 Kenwood Rd
Cincinnati
Kenwood
791-0900
984-1905
GREAT CASUAL DINING In the Heart of Kenwood
984-1905 • 7565 KENWOOD RD
www.triobistro.com
Izzy’s
bigg’s
Kroger
Marx Hot Bagels
612 Main St Downtown 800 Elm St Downtown
Ridge & Highland
Hunt Rd.
9701 Kenwood Rd.
Blue Ash
Blue Ash
The American Israelite is available at these fine locations.
OPINION
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
Caleb’s Gift When I was a teenager, a long, long time ago, I felt self-conscious about praying in public places like airports. On at least one occasion I entered a phone booth (remember those?) while awaiting a flight, closed the door (yes, they had doors) and spoke to the Creator of the universe through the telephone mouthpiece. (In its own strange way, it enhanced the experience.) But it didn’t take long for me to realize that praying was nothing of which to be ashamed. And in subsequent years, when there was no other option, I performed my share of religious devotions, even with tallit and tefillin, in an assortment of public places. When on a plane, though – and this has been my practice since well before 2001 – I engage my seatmate in some conversation first, to try to establish my normalcy credentials, and then explain what I am about to do. Caleb Leibowitz, the young man whose tefillin-donning inadvertently caused the diversion of a flight from New York to Louisville, Kentucky a few weeks ago, acted in a similar responsible way. Seated nearby was his sister; presumably she knew what he was doing. And, according to the boy’s father, quoted in the January 25 daily Hamodia, when a flight attendant inquired about the leather straps and the small boxes on the boy’s arm and head, he politely explained to her that it was a religious ritual. Some have sought to blame the attendant for then reporting the still-suspicious-to-her goings-on to the captain. But while most experienced attendants have probably seen tefillin, there are surely neophytes who haven’t, and she may well have been one of them. (Agudath Israel of America has tried to sensitize the Transportation Security Administration to the religious practices of Orthodox Jews, and has reached out to airlines as well, offering a brochure explaining Orthodox laws and customs.) In any event, security protocol apparently required the pilot to land the plane at the next available airport, in this case, Philadelphia, and the rest was history – or, at least, a few days of grist for news organizations, which posted the story of the suspect tefillin before the plane had even landed. (There was considerable amusement value in some news reports too. A Philadelphia law enforcement official soberly informed television viewers how the “devices” worn by Mr. Leibowitz were called “olfactories.”) Although the halachic parame-
CORRECTION In the Feb. 4, 2010 issue, on
ters of what constitutes Kiddush Hashem, or “sanctification of G-d’s name,” are complex, the term is colloquially used to mean a Jew’s act that impresses others and generates positive feelings. That is not to say, though, that any act resulting in such feelings is a Kiddush Hashem – or, conversely, that an act resulting in negative feelings in others cannot be proper, and even a Kiddush Hashem. For an example of the latter, we need look no further than a few weeks hence, when the Book of Esther will be publicly read on Purim. It describes how Mordechai refused to bow to Haman. The Midrash explains that the Purim villain wore an idol around his neck, the reason for Mordechai’s refusal. Many Jews at the time were disapproving of Mordechai’s decision – after all, they argued, it will only stoke Haman’s hatred and render all Jews even more vulnerable! Nevertheless, it was the right decision, whether or not it was a popular one. Haman’s hatred was indeed stoked, but in the end it led to his downfall. Caleb Leibowitz did something right, too, on the plane that morning. He donned tefillin with pride and explained politely what he was doing. And most people recognized that Mr. Leibowitz was a shining example of an observant Jew, an example only reiterated when law enforcement personnel described him as “completely cooperative” throughout. And if his tefillin-donning frightened a flight attendant or bothered others, or if the image of a young Jewish man kneeling on a tarmac in handcuffs brought anyone to think of Mr. Leibowitz as some wrongdoer, that’s unfortunate. But no amount of misguided disapproval can change the fact that G-d’s name was sanctified by his performance of a mitzvah. It was a Kiddush Hashem with ramifications, too, a gift that kept on giving. As the New York Jewish Week reported recently, an annual program among the Conservative movement’s Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs that encouraged members to don tefillin experienced a huge surge of interest in the wake of the phylactery fiasco. A movement spokesperson noted that the international “World Wide Wrap” event “had 5000 participants the first years and the number has been consistent ever since.” This year, though, he added, nearly 9000 men had pledged their participation. May Caleb’s gift continue to give. (Rabbi Shafran is director of public affairs for Agudath Israel of America.) page 6, the photograph on that page incorrectly identified Eliezer Schnall as “David Schnall.”
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Do you have something to say? E-mail your letter to editor@americanisraelite.com
Dear Editor, As Iran prepares for the 30th anniversary of the overthrow of the Shah, the Jewish community is deeply concerned by the threat of a nuclear Iran poised to attack Israel. American Jewish Committee turned to a wellknown expert to examine the current state of U.S.-Iranian relations as well as human rights in Iran. Dr. Haleh Esfandiari, director of the Middle East Program of the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, D. C. spoke in Cincinnati recently. Her talk was part of an on-going series of the Xavier University Brueggeman Center for Dialogue entitled “Exploring Critical Issues.” Her visit was cosponsored by American Jewish Committee and the Foreign Policy Leadership Council. Dr. Esfandiari is a respected Iranian-American author and academician, who was held captive by the Iranian government in 2007, accused of spying for the U.S. and Israel. She lectures throughout the United States on democratic and political developments in the Middle East, Middle Eastern women's issues, and contemporary Iranian intellectual currents and politics. In a soft voice, Dr. Esfandiari held a Cincinnati interview prior to her public appearance. She believes that “engagement
between the United States and Iran is the key to limiting Iran’s nuclear ambitions and solving its human rights problems. The policies of the past thirty years of enmity have produced only misunderstanding between the two nations. Americans cannot expect a miracle, however. The long history of sanctions and animosity cannot be overturned in one day or one year.” AJC and many others in the Jewish community believe that engagement has not succeeded, so sanctions are essential at this time. The Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act (H. 2194) passed the U.S. House of Representatives last fall. The measure would place diplomatic pressure on the Islamic Republic by requiring the president to impose tougher economic sanctions on foreign firms and individuals involved in the export of refined petroleum products to Iran. At the end of January 2010, the Senate passed the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2009 (S.2799). AJC is now calling on members of Congress to reconcile the two bills, so President Obama can sign the final version. At the same time, AJC is advocating that countries such as Germany stop doing business in Iran’s energy sector and selling equipment that is used for military as well as civilian purposes.
Asking Russia and China to increase diplomatic and economic pressure on Tehran is much more challenging. Heightened sanctions would pressure Iran to accept the incentives that the international community is offering for it to suspend its nuclear program. Dr. Esfandiari knows firsthand how Iran endangers human rights. On December 30, 2006, she was robbed at knifepoint by three men while on the way to the Tehran airport after visiting her ailing 93-year-old mother in Iran. The men threatened to kill her; then they stole her baggage and both her U.S. and Iranian passports. Consequently, she was not permitted to leave the country. On May 21, 2007, Iran’s state TV announced that the government of Iran had charged her with seeking to topple its Islamic establishment.She was detained, in solitary confinement, in Iran’s Evin Prison for more than 110 days and subjected to long days of interrogation.Pacing in her cell and writing articles in her head kept her sane. My Prison, My Home: One Woman’s Story of Captivity in Iran is Dr. Esfandiari’s account of her imprisonment in Iran. A widespread campaign by Washington scholars and members of Congress demanded her release. Her former students at Princeton University, including LETTERS on page 22
TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE of this week’s Torah portion This Week’s Portion: Terumah (Shmot 25:1—27:30) 1. How many arks were in the Mishkan? a.) One b.) Two c.) Three 2. What went around the table in the Mishkan? a.) Chairs b.) Bread c.) Crown 3. How many figures of angels were in the Mishkan?
a.) One b.) Two c.) Three 4. How many Menorahs were in the Mishkan a.) One b.) Seven c.) Ten 5. How many altars were in the Mishkan? a.) One b.) Two c.) Three
Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise
1. A 25:10 The Torah always refers to the ark in the singular. Rashi says there were three meaning two boxes of gold and a middle box of wood 2. C 25:28 The table symbolized royalty and wealth. The table was a source to receive Hashem's blessing and bring sustenance to the world. Ramban 3. B 25:19 4. A 25:31 5. B In the temple built by King Solomon, there were 11 Menorahs and 11 Tables. Ten he built and the one set built by Moshe. King I chapter 7. There were two arks. One that had been in the Mishkan and was then in the Temple, and a second one that went out to war.
by Rabbi Avi Shafran Contributing Columnist
Answers
16
JEWISH LIFE
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
17
Sedra of the Week by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
Shabbat Shalom: Parshat Terumah Exodus 25:1-27:19
Efrat, Israel: — “Speak to the children of Israel: ‘let them take for Me a gift-offering….’” (Exodus 25:2) The central commandment of this week’s Biblical portion and indeed for the last five portions of the Book of Exodus is: “They shall make for Me a Sanctuary so that I may dwell in their midst.” (Exodus
G-d for whom the gifts had originally been made. The importance of this teaching was brought to my attention in my former community in New York when a disagreement erupted over the right of a synagogue member who came late to the service to ask a visitor who was sitting in his seat (marked with his name) to please vacate it. As there was no other vacant seat in the Sanctuary at that time, the argument became very intense and almost led to a fist-
There is, however, one difficulty in the textual expression: G-d tells Moses to ask the Israelites to “‘take’ for Me a gift-offering” (v’yik’hu). Ought not the word have been to “give” rather than to “take” for Me a gift-offering? 25:8). Our sacred text exquisitely describes in the minutest detail, the manner and the materials of construction employed for the outer building of the Sanctuary as well as its sacred objects. This entire Sanctuary enterprise was completely “funded” by voluntary donations of the Israelites (25:2), and proved to be the most successful fundraising campaign in history; Moses even had to ask the people to cease bringing gifts because the supply had exceeded the need. (Exodus 36: 5-7). Apparently, the desert generation had not yet heard about endowment funds! There is, however, one difficulty in the textual expression: G-d tells Moses to ask the Israelites to “‘take’ for Me a gift-offering” (v’yik’hu). Ought not the word have been to “give” rather than to “take” for Me a gift-offering? The Italian commentator Rabbi Ovadiah Sforno (1470 – 1550) writes, that G-d was saying to Moses, “Tell the Israelites that I would like the gabbaim or trustees of the Sanctuary to collect gifts from each individual.” Rav Haim of Brisk adds that the trustees would then take the donated materials and properly dispense them for use in the Sanctuary. This procedure, rather than having the people themselves give directly to the Sanctuary was necessary in order to teach the Israelites that no one individual privately owned any specific “piece” of the Sanctuary, which belonged in a certain sense to the entire nation of Israel, and really to
fight! The lesson was strengthened when a member of one of the Synagogue communities in Efrat removed “his” bima (the Torah table which also served as the Cantor’s lectern) from the Sanctuary because he felt that the individual in whose honor he had dedicated the bima had been wronged by the shul’s gabbaim. No accoutrement of a Sanctuary may belong to any individual, no matter how large a donation he or she might have made in order to dedicate it. The donor gives his offering to the trustees, and they then take from the Sanctuary funds to provide the whatever objects are necessary. Allow me to suggest an alternative explanation for the command, “Let them take for Me a gift-offering.” One of the outstanding disciples of Rav Yisrael Salanter, (18101883) initiator of the Ethicist (Mussar) Movement, was Rav Yosef Yozel of Novardok. This great Talmudic sage began a network of Yeshivot throughout Europe – there were 180 of them before the Second World War and only one survived the holocaust – dedicated to teaching the students to denigrate fashion and popular opinion in favor of total dedication to following G-d’s “wishes.” Rav Yosef-Yoizel had a student who seemed impervious to the unique spiritual and even iconoclastic attitudes of the Yeshiva, and was asked to leave. He was accepted to another Yeshiva in a neighboring town, where he managed to
remain for the required period of study. Upon leaving that Yeshiva, he became a very successful businessman. Rav Yosef – Yoizel asked to meet with him – and emerged with a million-ruble donation to start a new “Norvadok” Yeshiva. The Dean of the yeshiva who had accepted Rav Yosef–Yoizel’s “reject,” excitedly made an appointment with his former student, expecting to receive at least two million rubles; after all, he had looked after him when the student had no place to go. To his chagrin, he received a mere 36 ruble donation. In perplexed disappointment, he requested for an explanation. “I will explain the matter to you,” said the businesswoman. “Rav Yosef – Yoizel came to my home in the midst of a snowstorm. He walked straight into the salon, paid no attention whatsoever to the elegant furnishings, dirtied my expensive carpet with his muddied shoes, and immediately began to speak of the spiritual and ethical power a new Novardok Yeshiva would add to the Jewish world. In his presence, all of my material wealth seemed meaningless unless it could be used to enhance our Jewish mission. I felt he was giving me a gift, a great opportunity to use my money wisely, and so I gladly took the opportunity to make my donation. “When you entered my home, on the other hand, your eyes widened as you looked around at my art collection and my thick carpets. You removed your boots at the door and seemed to walk on egg shells so as not to damage in any way my furnishings. You prefaced my name with the title Reb, not because of my learning, but because of my money. In your presence, beloved Rebbe, I came to value my money even more, and so I was loathe to give away any more than 36 rubles…” A number of years ago I visited a congregant in a hospice. He was a well-know philanthropist, whose many material assets could not bring him good health. “Apparently,” he said, in the full knowledge that he would soon be leaving this material world, “the only money I really have is whatever I gave away to good causes.” Many investors in the stock market or with Ponzi-like scheme investment brokers, are not coming to the same realization. To give to a good cause is really to “take” on the highest level, because it enables our assets to live even beyond our lifetime. Shabbat Shalom Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi - Efrat Israel
3100 LONGMEADOW LANE • CINCINNATI, OH 45236 791-1330 • www.templesholom.net Richard Shapiro, Interim Rabbi Marcy Ziek, President Gerry H. Walter, Rabbi Emeritus Friday February 19 6:00 pm Shabbat Nosh 6:30 pm Shabbat Evening Service
February 26 6:00 pm Shabbat Nosh 6:30 pm Shabbat Evening Service
Saturday February 20 10:30 am Shabbat Morning Service
February 27 10:30 am Shabbat Morning Service
Mazel Tov To: Rabbi Gerry and Carenjean Walter on the birth of their grandson,. Eli Simon Katz. Eli’s proud parents are Stacy Walter and Steve Katz.. Sincere Sympathy To: Martin Simon on the death of his wife, Lori Simon Rabbi Rick Shapiro on the death of his mother, Billie Valez
18
JEWZ IN THE NEWZ
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist SILVERMAN’S NEW BEAU Last year, SARAH SILVERMAN, 39, broke-up with talk show host Jimmy Kimmel (who isn’t Jewish) after a five year relationship. Now she is talking about her new boyfriend, ALEC SULKIN, 39, a writer and producer of the animated TV series, “The Family Guy.” Silverman told “Page Six Magazine”: “[Sulkin] is so awesome… not my typical fare. He’s really skinny. Usually I like pudgy, macho-ish guys. But I think I mistook macho-ish for strong, emotionally. And I think it’s really the opposite. I think he’s the first guy in a decade who’s given me any kind of compliment, like saying I’m pretty or anything.” Sulkin issues funny Twitter tweets almost daily. Here’s a recent one: “Jewish moms make their sons feel special; then we spend the rest of our lives proving them wrong.” Like Silverman, Sulkin grew up in a middle class Jewish home (she in New Hampshire; Sulkin about 50 miles away in a Boston suburb). It appears that Sulkin’s family was affiliated with a Reform synagogue, while Silverman’s family was just “culturally Jewish.” They both have siblings who choose more ‘serious’ career paths — Silverman’s oldest sister, Susan, surprised her family by becoming a liberal rabbi and now lives on an Israeli kibbutz in the Negev with her husband and five children. Sulkin’s half-sister is KATHERINE KOPELMAN BORGWARDT, 50, a Pulitzer Prize nominated historian and university professor. (Same Jewish mother; different Jewish fathers.) Katherine, who has a raft of degrees from top schools, is a former practicing attorney who now does scholarly work on the history of human rights. BAR MITZVAH EMBARRASSMENT? Somebody leaked the news and, in the past week, a number of media sources are reporting that MARK HOFFMAN, the president of cable business news channel CNBC, has commissioned a lavishly produced video for the upcoming bar mitzvah of one of his three sons. The video features bar mitzvah greetings from NBC anchor Brian Williams, CNBC “Mad Money” host JIM CRAMER, and New York Yankees superstar player Derek Jeter. CNBC spokesman Brian Steel
defended the video, saying: “It was long ago company-approved and [Hoffman] will be paying for it out of his own pocket. He hopes family and friends really enjoy the video on his son’s special day.” Still, I think Hoffman, who was named CNBC president in 2005, made a mistake making this video and the news of it is an embarrassment. It smacks of excess and the use of connections for personal gain — not popular during our “Great Recession” following the Wall St. meltdown. Plus CNBC has been taken to task by JON STEWART and others for being too willing to believe whatever the “fat cats” behind the meltdown told them about their companies and, thus, failed to report in early 2008 and before on the signs of the impending crisis. CNBC has admitted that there was at least a partial failure in their stated mission to provide investors with well-researched info about corporate America. In light of all this, it isn’t politic for the station’s president to do anything that makes him seem like a “fat cat.” TV NOTES Many media sources are reporting that GUY OSEARY, 38, the Israeli-born founder of Maverick Records and Madonna’s manager, is the favorite to replace Simon Cowell as a judge on “America’s Idol” when Cowell, as planned, leaves the show at the end of this season. (Cowell’s late father was Jewish — but Cowell didn’t know this until a few years ago when a British paper gave him the news. He declared himself “pleased” with the news.) One of the most memorable commercials during the Superbowl was one for Snickers candy bars — it featured the (faux) football tackling of two ancient performers — Betty White, 88, and ABE VIGODA, also 88. Vigoda, who was born in Brooklyn to Russian Jewish immigrant parents, has become something of a pop culture icon. His status stems from his good-natured reaction to a false report published in “People” magazine in 1982 that he had died. Since then, the state of Abe Vigoda’s health has become a running joke for many comedians and Vigoda has joined in it. Conan O’Brien frequently brought Vigoda on as a guest. He even made a cameo appearance on the last episode of the “Tonight Show” that O’Brien hosted. Vigoda’s other big breaks were his casting as Sal Tessio, one of the principal lieutenants of the mafia chieftain in “The Godfather” (1972), and his role as the crusty police officer Phil Fish on the hit
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
FROM THE PAGES 100 Years Ago Word has been received here of the death, at Pine Bluff, Ark., of Solomon Altschul, aged 86 years. He was the father of Mrs. Sol Fox. The automobile show, under the auspices of the Automobile Club, at Music Hal, Feb. 21 to 26, promises to be the most attractive event of the season. In addition to the 60 exhibits there will be concerts, a tropical garden and excellent café service. The issuing of $250,000 worth of bonds by the Board of Education,
to build a schoolhouse at Alms Place and Locust Street, exclusively for colored children, is virtually a reestablishment of separate schools, which were abolished twenty-five or thirty yeas ago. The late Rabbi Isaac M. Wise, who was at that time a member of the Board of Examiners of Public School Teachers, opposed their discontinuance. Being questioned by a colored political leader, an attorney, as to how he (Dr. Wise), in view of his well-known friendly
attitude toward the colored people, could justify his position on the question, he replied that it was just because of this that he had taken it. Mainly, he added, because there were a large number of colored teachers employed by the city who would lose their positions if the proposed action were taken and one of the few avenues of the higher class of employment that were open to colored people would be closed. — February 17, 1910
75 Years Ago Miss Cecile Cohen will present the following pupils in a piano-forte recital at Wurlitzers Auditorium, Feb. 24: Janet Loewenthal, Irma Ruth Kraus, Jerry Lavender, Jr., Geraldine Wasserman, Marjorie Klein, Ruth Kaplan, Janice Bloom, Lois Litwin, Madelyn Levine, Betty Ann Kodish, Shirley Brook, Paul Parker, Miriam Siegel, Marilyn Rose, Dorothy Rouda, Shirley Jane Stillpass, Gerald and Melvin Nadler, Garnet Schmidt, Carolyn and Natalie Cohen, Charlotte
Litwin, Charles Denning, Jr., Irving and Anyce Getzug, Annette Solomon, Sara Fogel, Beverly Litvin, Jean Mildred Silverstein, Dorothea Hamilton and Shirley Rosen. Mr. and Mrs. B.H. Brunswick, of 2331 Park Avenue, were at home on Monday, Feb. 18, on the occasion of Mr. Brunswick’s 75th birthday. Coming from New York especially for this event were Mrs. L. Warshauer, Mrs. Fred Rauh and Mr. Julius Reis. Mr and Mrs. Brunswick
have one daughter, Mrs. Edwin Guthman, who with Mr. Guthman and their two daughters, Claire and Louise, assisted her parents in dispensing the hospitalities of the day. Morris Straus, 61, of 3629 Reading Road, passed away Sunday Feb. 17. He leaves his widow, Mrs. Rose Goldamer Strauss; a son, Lucien G. Strauss; his mother, Mrs. Joseph Strauss; and two brothers, Samuel B. Strauss, Cincinnati and Manny Strauss, New York. — February 21, 1935
50 Years Ago Dr. Thomas Wartik , son of Mrs. A Wartik, has been named head of the department of chemistry at Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Wartik studied at the University of Cincinnati and later at the University of Chicago. His wife is the former Miss Louise Dreifus, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Philip Dreifus. Jewish Hospital births include: Mr. and Mrs. Marvin H. Kraus (Geraldine Friedenn), 4505 Barbara
Place, son Christopher, Sunday, Feb. 14. The infant has a brother, Jonathan David. The grandparents are Mrs. and Mrs. Reuben Friedenn of Zanesville, and Mr. and Mrs. Max F. Kraus of Cincinnati. Mr. and Mrs. Jule B. Mayer, 3959 Ardore Avenue, announce the forthcoming bar mitzvah of their son, Michael, Saturday, Feb. 27, at 9 a.m., at Ohav Shalom Synagogue. A kiddush will follow the services.
Mrs. Lillian Newman, 4383 Kalma Court, passed away Sunday, Feb. 14. She is survived by her husband, Sidney J. Newman; two daughters, Mrs. Sue Jordan of Bloomington, Ill., and Mrs. Lorna DeSosa of New York city; a son, Julius N. Rosenthal of Vista, Calif.; a sister, Mrs. Louise Plotz of New York city; a brother, William Winston, of Lawton, Okla.; and seven grandchildren. — February 18, 1960
25 Years Ago Dr. Lawrence C. Goldberg, of 7400 Aracoma Forest Drive, passed away Feb. 5. He was a past president of the Cincinnati Dermatological Society and the Noah Worchester Dermatological Society. He was also a member of Losantiville Country Club, the Cincinnati Club, the Masons, B’nai B’rith and Wise Temple. Dr. Goldberg is survived by his wife, Estelle; two daughters,
Laura Beth and Sue PearlmanEaton; a son, Ronald Pearlman; and three grandchildren. The Jewish Community Relations Council and the Jewish Federation recently appointed Gloria Haffer to serve as chairman of the Cincinnati delegation to the Government Affairs Committee of Ohio Jewish Communities legislative reception. In announcing the appointment, JCRC president Burton
Perlman stated, “Mrs. Haffer is uniquely qualified to lead the Cincinnati Delegation to this important event. As vice president of the GACOJC and chairman of the GACOJC Evaluation Committee, she has displayed her commitment to the organization. She understands the legislative process and appreciates the importance of a visible Jewish presence at the state level.” — February 14, 1985
10 Years Ago “It is the intent of this entire community to maintain the ongoing operation of the Jewish Community Center of Cincinnati,” was the joint message this week from leaders of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and the JCC. “We are unified in our commitment to ensure that the Jewish Community Center remains viable and active until we are ready to open the doors in a new building,” affirmed Harry Davidow, president of the Jewish Federation, and Scott
Mattis, president of the JCC. “Our plan continues to be that we will jointly announce a site location of the new JCC in spring 2000, and we will share architectural concept designs with the public in early summer.” Due to heart failure, Judge Gilbert Bettman, 82, succumbed at the Jewish Hospital on Saturday, February 12, 2000. Judge Bettman was a great-grandson, through his mother’s side of the family, of Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, the founder of
American Reform Judaism, the Hebrew Union College, and The American Israelite. Judge Bettman is survived by his wife, Marianna Brown Bettman; a son, Gilbert, Jr. of Los Angeles; two daughters, Louise Bettman of Clifton and Helen Cohen of Houston, Texas; a sister, Carol Lazar of New York City; a brother, Alfred Bettman of Petaluma, California; and three grandchildren. — February 17, 2000
CLASSIFIEDS
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS Big Brothers/Big Sisters Assoc. (513) 761-3200 • bigbrobigsis.org Beth Tevilah Mikveh Society (513) 821-6679 Camp Ashreinu (513) 702-1513 Camp at the J (513) 722-7226 • mayersonjcc.org Camp Livingston (513) 793-5554 • camplivingston.com Cedar Village (513) 336-3183 • cedar-village.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Halom House (513) 791-2912 • halomhouse.com Hillel Jewish Student Center (513) 221-6728 • hillelcincinnati.org Jewish Community Center (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org Jewish Community Relations Council (513) 985-1501 Jewish Family Service (513) 469-1188 • jfscinti.org Jewish Federation of Cincinnati (513) 985-1500 • shalomcincy.org Jewish Foundation (513) 792-2715 Jewish Information Network (513) 985-1514 Jewish Vocational Service (513) 985-0515 • jvscinti.org Kesher (513) 766-3348 Plum Street Temple Historic Preservation Fund (513) 793-2556 The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 Workum Summer Intern Program (513) 683-6670 • workum.org CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 335-5812 Beth Israel Congregation (513) 868-2049 • bethisraelcongregation.net Congregation Beth Adam (513) 985-0400 • bethadam.org Congregation B’nai Tikvah (513) 759-5356 • bnai-tikvah.org Congregation B’nai Tzedek (513) 984-3393 • bnaitzedek.us Congregation Ohav Shalom
(513) 489-3399 • ohavshalom.org Golf Manor Synagogue (513) 531-6654 • golfmanorsynagogue.org Isaac M. Wise Temple (513) 793-2556 • wisetemple.org Isaac Nathan Congregation (513) 841-9005 Kehilas B’nai Israel (513) 761-0769 Northern Hills Synagogue (513) 931-6038 • nhs-cba.org Rockdale Temple (513) 891-9900 • rockdaletemple.org Temple Beth Shalom (513) 422-8313 • tbsohio.org Temple Sholom (513) 791-1330 • templesholom.net The Valley Temple (513) 761-3555 • valleytemple.com EDUCATION Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com Cincinnati Community Kollel (513) 631-1118 • kollel.shul.net Cincinnati Hebrew Day School (513) 351-7777 • chds.shul.net HUC-JIR (513) 221-1875 • huc.edu JCC Early Childhood School (513) 793-2122 • mayersonjcc.org Mercaz High School (513) 792-5082 x104 • mercazhs.org Reform Jewish High School (513) 469-6406 • crjhs.org Regional Institute Torah & Secular Studies (513) 631-0083 Rockwern Academy (513) 984-3770 • rockwernacademy.org ORGANIZATIONS American Jewish Committee (513) 621-4020 • ajc.org American Friends of Magen David Adom (513) 521-1197 • afmda.org B’nai B’rith (513) 984-1999 Hadassah (513) 821-6157 • cincinnati-hadassah.org Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org NA’AMAT (513) 984-3805 • naamat.org National Council of Jewish Women (513) 891-9583 • ncjw.org State of Israel Bonds (513) 793-4440 • israelbonds.com Women’s American ORT (513) 985-1512 • ortamerica.org.org
HOME IMPROVEMENT
19
SENIOR SERVICES
RICHEY CONSTRUCTION Carpentry, Remodeling Repairs, Gutters, Siding, Windows, Roofing, Decks, Tile, Drywall, Painting, Kitchen, Baths
731-9721
• Up to 24 hour care • Meal Preparation • Errands/Shopping • Hygiene Assistance • Light Housekeeping
Shomer Shabbat
513-531-9600
References. Insured.
HODES from page 1 join Dr. Hodes for lunch at the home of Hank and Anita Schneider. (Mr. Schneider was a participant on the 2009 Ethiopian medical mission.) Monday evening, Dr. Hodes will brief Federation board members, contributors to Operation Promise, Federation’s P2K committee members and members of Federation’s Healthcare Professionals Advisory committee on activities related to his work on behalf of the JDC. The evening event will take place at the home of Alison and Bret Caller. Hodes’ entire career has been PROTESTORS from page 1 The Muslim student group had issued an e-mail earlier in the day condemning Oren’s presence on campus. Signs at the entry to the ballroom where Oren was to speak stated that no signs, posters, banners or flyers would be allowed inside. Oren, a New Jersey native and best-selling author of two authoritative books on the Middle East, was less than two minutes into his talk when the first heckler jumped up and shouted, “Propagating murder is not an expression of free speech,” followed by thunderous applause and cheers from protesters seated in groups throughout the audience. Oren continued to talk, only to be interrupted every few minutes by another protester and more cheering and boos. Many audience members also cheered Oren. By the third interruption, police began escorting individual protesters out of the room. Opponents of Oren’s speech could be seen text messaging one another and using their cell phones to videotape the speech and the audience. Mark Petracca, the event moderator and chair of the school’s political science department, urged a halt to the interruptions. “This is no way for our undergraduate students to behave,” a visibly upset Petracca said from the
devoted to providing medical care to the poor— often paying for medical services for his patients himself. He was inducted into the Medical Mission Hall of Fame in Ohio in 2006, and was named a “CNN Hero” by the news organization in 2007. In 2008, the American College of Physicians awarded him the rare title of “Mastership,” in recognition of “exceedingly stellar career accomplishments.” He was also recently the subject of a highly acclaimed documentary entitled, “Making the Crooked Straight,” about his spine surgery work. HBO has acquired the film, and it will air in March 2010. podium, calling for respect and civility. “Shame on you.” Fed up after several interruptions, Israel supporters called for detractors to leave while protesters responded with jeers. Oren walked off the stage after the fourth interruption, as university officials admonished protesters for their behavior. Petracca and the school’s chancellor, Michael Drake, said they were embarrassed on behalf of the university. “We do not value heckling; we do not value those who do not share our values of respect,” Drake said. “The principles that make us a great university have been violated this evening.” Many Jewish audience members sang songs in support of Israel as they waited for the program to resume. Oren returned to the stage nearly 20 minutes later, asking for a show of hospitality, which he said typifies Middle East culture. When dozens more protesters stood up and left the room as a group several minutes later, with only a few staying behind, Oren told the remaining audience members he wished that his detractors had stayed because he felt they needed to hear what he had to say. Shouts and chanting could be heard from the street as Oren resumed his presentation uninterrupted.
20
ARTS & ENTERTAIMENT
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
2010 Jewish and Israeli film festival’s, ‘A Matter of Size’ delivers laughs and maybe more by Avi Milgrom Assistant Editor The Jewish Federation’s 2010 Jewish and Israeli Film Festival began in late January with a comedy, “A Matter of Size.” Its marketing campaign punches out with frank images of Jewish sumo wrestlers. Nominated for 14 Ofir Awards, Israel’s “Oscars,” and picked up by the Weinstein brothers for a U.S. remake, “A Matter of Size” is a funny film that must be taken seriously. Dimension chief, Bob Weinstein, thought it “touchingly funny” and “a relatable story,” and Alissa Simon wrote in “Variety,” “...ludicrously funny and beautiful…co-helmers Maymon and Tadmor display a finely honed visual sense and superb comic timing.” Co-directed by Erez Tadmor and Sharon Maymon, who wrote the script with Danny Cohen-Solal as well, this Israeli film is taken by most reviewers as a “feel-good comedy” with “echoes” of “The Full Monty” or “Calendar Girls” – a reference to the unabashed disLANDER from page 1 State. The gubernatorial appointment would be the first of many government posts. At 27, Lander was appointed by New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia to become one of New York’s three human rights commissioners. In the ensuing years Lander would serve as a consultant to Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson, advising the successive administrations on poverty-related issues. All the while, the young sociologist was holding down a job as a university professor, first at Columbia and then at Hunter College. Associates and friends said the drive that spurred Lander to found Touro had more to do with his religious upbringing on Manhattan’s Lower East Side and in Washington Heights than his early career. While Lander’s professional occupations may have given him the skills and contacts necessary to build a university, the experiences of his upbringing instilled in him the determination to create a Jewish-sponsored independent institution of higher and professional education. “I think Dr. Lander is haunted,” David Luchins, a professor in Touro’s political science department, said in an interview several years ago. “He grew up in a generation in America where the
play of undeniably fat men, scantily clad in loin cloths fabricated into sumo fighting mawashi. Another reviewer noted similarities with the “The Karate Kid” because of the plotline involving Asian tutelage that helps a poor schlep overcome his insecurities. But the comparison to Hollywood runs deeper than that—surprisingly so in an Israeli film—with a plotline that follows the industry’s formula of boy meets girl — boy loses girl — boy wins girl back. The capacity audience at the J demonstrably enjoyed the movie, delivering among themselves a steady stream of hearty laughs throughout the movie. Only once did the enjoyment seem to fade as the film fell momentarily into a somber moment that was consistent with the “formula.” To the non-Jew this may look like a superficial feel-good comedy. But if “A Matter of Size” is googled – sans any reference to it being a film – a whole new concept emerges: male self-image and its reliance upon one singular organ. Is it just serendipitous irony
that throughout 92 minutes of men squatting, bending over and thrusting—that their heroic displays of the male form re-shaped by huge reserves of fat hides only one body part? Or is it serendipitous irony that the mother of the very fat hero, Herzl, tells her son, “You’re getting too fat; I can’t stand to look at you!” before letting him know there’s more couscous in the frig? Surely one cannot argue that the portrait of an Israeli diet workshop leader, Geula, who makes Darth Vader look like a better choice for a babysitter, cuts a critical swath of dialogue throughout the film. In a film that garners laugh after laugh, as poor Herzl is forced to confront his self-image from “communing” with his Jewish fellows, Geula – the one person from whom we in the U.S. would seek solace – delivers the blow that surely brings the subtext to the surface. After banishing Herzl from her group for arresting the progress of the other members, Geula leaves an “endearing” message on Herzl’s
answering machine, “It hurts me to see you turning yourself into a whale. Bye bye sweetie.” Finally, there is the overarching symbolism of sumo wrestling that brings the image of Israel as a huge mixing pot of Jews with different ideas and ways — and ready to argue about them — so forthrightly into consideration: The agent of transformation in this film is a sumo wrestling coach – a fit and trim Japanese owner of a sushi restaurant – who is a Makuya Japanese Zionist, named Mr. Miyagi! But the wrestling image runs deeper. In sumo wrestling the object is to shove the opponent out of the ring. As Herzl learns, to do this successfully, he has to be stronger, more skillful – and much fatter. So Herzl is bounced from the surgically deep barbs of his mother and the evil Geula for being too fat and the stern discipline of a Japanese sumo expert who demands the attainment of prowess and more weight. Herzl escapes this meat grinder only by confronting his fatness,
accepting it and moving – or shoving – ahead with it. Only then can he find peace with Geula and his mother …and love. Is this not the tribe at work? Is it not our “11th commandment” that we shall have no false selfimage – unwritten because we are physiologically commanded to enforce it? In the end, Herzl triumphs in the sumo ring; his self-image finally intact after successfully fighting a barrage of brutal – verbal – jabs as only the tribe can deliver. Indeed, it was barb after barb that got laughs. As the film ends Herzl has won back his girl and faces one last test of his self-image—as does his big lover. Should they make love with or without the light on? The one thin strand of protection for his selfimage is threatened: the mawashi must come off. The light is clicked on. The light is clicked off…….Then the light is clicked...... Is this film really .... a matter of size? Or does it expose —for all to view — how the tribe delivers winners as only the tribe can?
Orthodox community was decimated spiritually. He saw a generation that when they left the cloisters of the synagogue and went off to secular universities they were lost to Judaism. The best and brightest minds were lost.” At an Orthodox Union convention in 1964, Luchins said that Lander called college campuses the “crematoria of the Jewish community” in America. “I think he’s almost obsessed with helping ensure that every possible effort be taken to bring Jewish education to every imaginable person that can be serviced by it,” Luchins said of Lander. Touro wasn’t Lander’s first experience creating academic programs. In 1955, Lander was hired by Yeshiva University to establish some of the school’s graduate programs, which he did until he left in 1971 to start Touro. Lander believed that the problem with the university melting pot, which was turning religious American Jews into secular humanists, was its repression of student individuality. In a sociological analysis Lander undertook in the wake of the Kent State riots of 1970, the rabbi-professor found a correlation between the size of universities and the prevalence of student rioting: The larger the school, the more likely it was to experience widespread unrest. “My conclusion was that
American students were subliminally rebelling against the depersonalization of American colleges,” Lander told me in an interview several years ago. “Students wanted to be recognized as human beings instead of being Social Security numbers.” Many of the key players who organized the student riots were Jews.” Touro, which was created in part on the model of more than a dozen small Catholic colleges interspersed throughout New York, was Lander’s way of enabling traditionminded Jews to acquire a college education without having to go through the secularizing and depersonalized university machine. “I saw this as a new kind of religious-oriented college,” Lander said. “Touro’s philosophy and mission was first to rebuild Jewish life and, separately, to serve the larger society — each in its own setting.” Touro College was born in an old 50,000-square-foot building on 44th Street in Manhattan that was donated by the federal government. In the years since, rather than draw students from afar to a centralized campus in the city, Touro set up shop in the communities from which it sought to draw students. There is a Harlem campus that serves the local Hispanic community, a Brooklyn campus whose student body is comprised largely of Russian-speaking Jews, a yeshiva in Kew Gardens Hills, Queens,
and a men’s college in Borough Park that caters to Chasidic yeshiva students, among others. Lander said the lesson he learned from a lifetime in education was that “You don’t mix one with the other.” The reason, he said, was to ensure that each of Touro’s institutions is specially tailored to meet the needs of the population it serves. More than any other community, however, Touro was built to benefit Jews. The college bills itself as a “Jewish-sponsored institution” that was “established primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage and to serve the larger American community.” Touro’s student population of more than 10,000 is said to be mostly Jewish (the college says it does not keep official statistics), and its sites are located in areas with Jewish population centers — New York, California, Florida and Israel — as well as in China and Russia. Part of Lander’s philosophy was to make it as easy as possible for students to get their education by establishing sites in their neighborhoods, opening night schools and, some said, maintaining lessthan-rigorous academic standards. Lander said that by making the process of getting a college education or professional training as convenient as possible, Touro was able to bring advanced schooling to many who otherwise would not
have sought it. A significant proportion of those are haredim, or ultraOrthodox Jews, who view the idea of college itself as treif. So Lander came up with creative ideas to attract them to his schools. Rather than labeling his Borough Park school a college, he called it Machon L’Parnassa, which means Institute for Making a Living. The college’s School for Lifelong Education, which was created specifically with the Chasidic community in mind, aims to prepare students for “meaningful employment or graduate study,” according to Touro brochures — code language for a college degree. “Haredim don’t want to go to an institution called a college,” Lander told me. Lander also sought to provide non-Chasidic Orthodox Jews with opportunities to study Torah. The college’s institution in Kew Gardens Hills, the Lander College for Men, combines morning yeshiva study with afternoon college courses, much the same way as does Yeshiva College. Lander also started a yeshiva in Queens, Yeshiva Ohr Hachaim, which is in an ornate building constructed entirely from Jerusalem stone, and a religious high school, Yesodei Yeshurun. Touro also runs an elementary school in the neighborhood, Yeshiva Dov Revel.
NEWS
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
RESPONSE from page 7 After the General Assembly formally endorsed the Goldstone report last fall, the secretary-general gave the parties until Jan. 29, 2010 to demonstrate that they were implementing its recommendations. Israel’s point-by-point response to the accusations leveled in the Goldstone report represented a shift in strategy by Jerusalem. During the course of Goldstone’s fact-finding mission, Israel refused to cooperate on the grounds that the report’s mandate from the Genevabased U.N. Human Rights Council was inherently biased against Israel and that no good could come of it. Israeli officials at first set out to discredit the report, casting it as a one-sided broadside against the right of the Jewish state to defend itself. Israeli President Shimon Peres called the report a “mockery of history” for equating Israel’s actions with those of Hamas, the terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip. But once the report gained traction internationally and was adopted by the General Assembly last November, Israel had little choice but to comply with the Goldstone NIF from page 10 They gave some examples: Interior Minister Eli Yishai backing claims that organizations which help refugees and asylum seekers “aim to destroy Israel”; Netanyahu denying the legitimacy of Breaking the Silence testimonies on the Gaza war; Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya’alon referring to Israeli human rights organizations as “enemies from within.” Others see the specter of an impending clampdown against civil society. Anat Hoffman, chair of Women of the Wall and director of the Reform movement’s Israel Religious Action Center, an NIF grantee, was questioned and fingerprinted by police in early January after taking part in an allfemale prayer session at the Western Wall that involved the use of a Torah. A week later, ACRI director Hagai El-Ad was arrested while monitoring a protest against Jewish settlement in the Arab neighborhood of Sheik Jarrah in eastern Jerusalem, and released as soon as the case went to court. Were these isolated cases of police folly or part of a pattern dictated from above? There is no hard evidence to suggest that the Netanyahu government is planning to curb civil society or that the police action had the prime minister’s blessing. What is clear is that Netanyahu is deeply concerned by what he calls
recommendation that Israel launch its own investigation of the incidents cited if Israel wanted to avoid further U.N. action. With its response Jan. 29, Israel rebutted the substance of the report’s accusations — a move Israeli officials hope will silence some of the criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza. For its part Hamas, which was treated as an equal party to Israel in the Goldstone report, has sent mixed messages. In its formal, 55page reply to the United Nations, also on Jan. 29, Hamas said it did not intentionally target Israeli civilians during the war. (The Goldstone report did not demand accountability for Hamas’ actions firing rockets at Israeli cities during the years prior to the war, which Israel said precipitated its invasion of Gaza.) But this week, Hamas officials said they do not apologize for targeting Israeli civilians. Palestinian officials with Hamas’ rivals in the West Bank, the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority, accused Hamas of double-speak. In Gaza, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights dismissed the reports submitted by Hamas and Israel to the United Nations as lacking credibility. “Goldstonism” — moves in the international community aimed at delegitimizing Israel. The prime minister says he sees three existential threats: Iran; a Palestinian state without adequate security arrangements; and rampant Goldstonism. That means that Israeli organizations the government feels contribute to delegitimization of the state could be seen as serious threats to national security. But the government does not seem to be considering operative moves against them. Moves, however, are afoot in the Knesset. The Law Committee, headed by Yisrael Beiteinu’s David Rotem, whose party has proposed that Israeli citizens take loyalty oaths, has set up a subcommittee to examine the sources of funding of NGOs active in Israel. Some of the committee members aim to ban funding by foreign countries, which is seen as interfering in Israel’s internal affairs. Most of that funding is from European countries for left-wing NGOs. Otniel Schneller of the Kadima Party wants to go a step further, proposing the establishment of a full-fledged parliamentary commission of inquiry to probe the conduct of the NIF and its grantees. Schneller says he is against the absurdity of Israeli civil society “paying organizations like Physicians for Human Rights to slander us,” and wants to stop the NIF from supporting antiZionist groups.
CHANGE
OF
21
ADDRESS
If you are moving or have moved, please fill out the form below and mail to: The American Israelite 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2 Cincinnati, OH 45202-2037 You can also change your address by e-mailing publisher@americanisraelite.com
Tired of reading someone else’s copy of The American Israelite? To receive your own copy is as easy as 1, 2, 3. Just fill out, cut out, and send in the form below. NAME ADDRESS CITY
STATE
CHECK TYPE OF SUBSCRIPTION
1 YEAR, IN-TOWN
CHECK TYPE OF PAYMENT
CHECK
CARD #
VISA
ZIP 1 YEAR, OUT-OF-TOWN
MASTERCARD
LIFETIME
DISCOVER
EXP. DATE
SIGNATURE (REQUIRED)
1 Year, In-town Subscription—$40 1 Year, Out-of-town Subscription—$45
U.S. MAIL
Lifetime Subscription—$500 Fill out the form and mail to: THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE 18 W. 9TH STREET, SUITE 2 • CINCINNATI, OH 45202-2037
22
OBITUARIES
DEATH NOTICES WITTSTEIN,Rabbi Joel Ira, 74, died on January 28, 2010; 13 Shevat, 5770. RICHMAN, Jerome, age 73, died on February 3, 2010; 19 Shevat, 5770. ADAMS, Roy, age 94, died on February 7, 2010; 23 Shevat, 5770. BLUESTEIN, Joan, age 89, died on February 10, 2010; 26 Shevat, 5770. DEVER, Doris ACH, age 71, died on February 10, 2010; 26 Shevat, 5770. LEVY, Martin B., age 82, died on February 22, 2010; 27 Shevat, 5770.
OBITUARIES WITTSTEIN, Rabbi Joel Ira Rabbi Joel Ira Wittstein, spiritual leader of Temple Israel in London, Ont. since 1987, died at his home on January 28, 2010 of cancer. He was 74. A native of Cincinnati and a student of classical languages, the rabbi originally studied in Cincinnati to become a teacher. He began his rabbinic studies in the early 1960s, but did not complete them until 1975. In the interim, he spent time in Israel, studied on a Fulbright Scholarship in Greece teaching high school English, and returned to Cincinnati teaching at Walnut Hills High School and eventually becoming a Jewish educator. For his doctorate in education at the University of Cincinnati, Rabbi Wittstein researched moral development in early childhood. Rabbi Wittstein completed his rabbinic studies in Cincinnati, at Hebrew Union College. but he didn’t pursue a congregational career until later, instead deciding to devote the next few years to Jewish education.
Serving at Isaac M. Wise Temple, he met – and hired – Ailene, also a Jewish educator. They married in 1981, a second marriage for both. The same year, they moved to West Bloomfield, Mich., where they worked at Temple Israel before moving to St. Ignace, Mich. to open up a bed and breakfast. It wasn’t until they were living in St. Ignace that Rabbi Wittstein “fell in love with that whole role” of serving a congregation, after being asked to fill in for a colleague at a synagogue in Sault Ste. Marie, Mrs. Wittstein told The Canadian Jewish News. He was soon also serving the needs of a congregation in Petoskey, Mich. Karen Ross, who now lives in Toronto, chaired the committee that hired Rabbi Wittstein for what would become Temple Israel, a fledgling congregation in London, Ontario, known at the time as the London Jewish Family Association. “He just seemed very easy to talk to, totally unpretentious… He was not a chatty person at all, but if you asked him a question, you got a really knowledgeable, well thought-out answer,” said Ross. Under Rabbi Wittstein’s leadership, Temple Israel grew from 40 families to 140. Rabbi Michal Shekel, who has been serving as the temple’s interim rabbi since last year, said Rabbi Wittstein was “quite a force in that community. He was a man of integrity and a fabulous role model.” Rabbi Wittstein will be remembered not only for his congregational leadership and personal integrity, but also for his interfaith and interdenominational work in the greater London community. In addition to teaching Hebrew at Huron University College at the University of Western Ontario (UWO) for some 20 years – as he had at the University of Cincinnati – Rabbi Wittstein co-founded the Centre for Catholic-Jewish Learning at King’s University College at UWO. He also established Abraham’s Café, a project to
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2010
community of friends who were there with her every step of the way, with help, kind words and loving actions. Judy loved people and loved music and both helped her through the rough times. Judy's voice will be heard and her spirit will be felt in the lives of those she touched throughout her life. Donations can be made to her two favorite organizations; Temple Beth Shir Sholom, 1827 California Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90403, and The Seeing Eye, 10 Washington Valley Rd., Morristown, NJ 07963. Services were held at Mt. Sinai-Simi Valley on Monday, February 8, 2010.
Rabbi Joel Ira Wittstein
ADAMS, Roy
foster dialogue and understanding among Jews, Christians and Muslims. The rabbi was an accomplished poet, classical music lover, avid pool player, and “a mensch,” Rabbi Daniel Gottlieb told an estimated 650 mourners at his funeral at the London Jewish Community Centre. “[H]e was a gentle soul, compassionate and caring, empathetic and loving.” Rabbi Wittstein is survived by his wife Ailene, sons Eric and Ilan Wittstein, of Brooklyn and Baltimore respectively; Eric and Jonathan Avner, of Cincinnati and Austin, Texas, respectively, and five grandchildren. Friends who wish may make memorial donations to Temple Israel_in the name of “Camp George Summer Scholarships” (www.templeisraellondon.ca)_or to The Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound (www.festivalofthesound.ca).
Roy “Pop” Adams, age 94, passed away on February 7, 2010 – the 23rd day of Shevat, 5770. Born in Norwood, Ohio, on September 15, 1915, he was a son of the late Ida (Levy) and Frank Adams. Mr. Adams was preceded in death by his wife, Fannie Adams, his son, Steven Adams, and his brother, Julian Adams. Mr. Adams is survived by his daughter, Judy Adams, his grandchildren, Scott (Huan) Adams and Jeff (Ann) Adams, his greatgrandchildren, Jay, Dylan, Zachary, Noah and Hailey Adams, and his daughter-in-law, Harriet Adams Gillette. While growing up in Norwood, Mr. Adams attended Sharpsburg Elementary school. Later his family moved to Eaton Lane in Avondale, where he went to school and was elected the mayor of Avondale Middle School. His high school years were spent at Hughes High, and after he graduated he went on to attend Business College at the University of Cincinnati night school. After two years completion Mr. Adams entered the U.S. Army and was sent to Bournemouth, England as a lieutenant. With an official discharge, Mr. Adams came back to settle in Ohio. He and his wife Fannie moved to Bond Hill, where his son Steven was born, and later their daughter Judy. They eventually bought their first home at 1530 Northwood Dr. in Roselawn where they stayed for 32 years. With the help of his father,
STEARN, Judy Ann Deckelbaum Judy Ann Stearn, September 22, 1950 - February 4, 2010, surrounded by the family that loved and cherished her, took her last breath, succumbing to cancer after a courageous two year battle. She leaves behind her loving husband, Michael, her precious daughter Mindy, her brothers, Murray (Leslie) Deckelbaum and David (Emily) Deckelbaum, along with nephews and great nieces and nephews. She also leaves a tremendously loving and caring LETTERS from page 16 University of Cincinnati Professor Elizabeth Frierson, waged an Internet campaign to “Free Haleh.” Finally, on August 21, 2007, she was released on $333,000 bail, after her mother handed over the deed to her Tehran apartment. She returned to her suburban Washington home, which she shares with her husband, Shaul
Bakhash, a professor of Middle Eastern history at George Mason University, who is Jewish. “I have not been able to return to Iran since that time,” Dr. Esfandiari said. Dr. Esfandiari believes “the current protests of the Iranian students against their own government are limiting the ability of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejadto pursue his nuclear ambitions. President
Roy “Pop” Adams
Frank Adams and brother, Julian Adams, the steel business known as Frank Adams and Co. was founded in 1947. The family business existed until it was sold in l987 to Rumpke Recycling Company. Upon retirement Mr. Adams was active spending quality time with his family and friends. He enjoyed reading to his greatgrandchildren, playing golf and volunteering for various charities. His love for the game of golf put him in charge of helping to plan the old Crest Hills golf course, where he served as a member of the board. Mr. Adams took a fond interest in helping with the initiation of a committee to oversee the less fortunate, which later was known as “Shomrim.” He and his brother were very active at the Jewish Community Center, and participated in regular attendance at Adath Israel. According to family members, Mr. Adams was a gentleman who was extremely warm to everyone – whenever he was asked to help he was always respectful, caring and kind. The family will fondly remember his advice, saying always to take things in stride, and not to let things get the best of us. He was considered a great friend, teacher, father and grandfather. Funeral services were held for Mr. Adams on Tuesday, February 10, at Weil Funeral Home. Memorial contributions may be sent to the Steve Adams Fund in care of the Jewish Community Center, 8485 Ridge Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45236; 513-761-7500. Obama and Secretary of State Clinton have been very forceful in expressing their support of the protest. They have spoken out strongly against Iran’s abuse of the students’ human rights. This is the right course for AmericanIranian relations,” Dr. Esfandiari concluded. Andrea Herzig and Barbara Glueck AJC Cincinnati Office
WONDERFUL WEDDINGS 2010 S PECIAL S ECTION If your business/organization wants to reach the greater Cincinnati Jewish community regarding weddings, this is the issue to do it! • Bands/DJs • Banquet Halls • Bridal Shops • Caterers • Event Rentals • Florists • Photographers To advertise, contact Ted Deutsch at 621-3145 or publisher@americanisraelite.com Deadline is February 25th Publishes on March 4th