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Top row (L - R): Rabbi Michael Shulman, Amanda Young, Erin Rose Levy, Aaron Markiewitz, Nathan Markiewitz, David Mintz, Eliot Schwartz, Dana Roth, Julie Berger; Middle row (L - R): Barbara Dragul, Director of Education & Lifelong Learning, Emma Burgin, Rory Hartmann, Aaron Natarus, Nathan Spektor, Josh Kaltman, Leah Schwartz, Rabbi Ilana Baden, Rabbi Lewis Kamrass; Front row (L - R): Lori Kaufman, Megan Wells, Kelsey Drapkin, Alissa Stieha; Four of the graduates are missing from the picture: Jessica Shokler, Samantha Bernfeld, Adam Buck and Jessica Lindner
The Wise Temple Kulanu—CRJHS graduates With new investments, Israel again is looking to Africa
DINING OUT
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The Isaac M. Wise Temple is proud to celebrate with the 22 high school seniors who recently completed their studies at Kulanu, Cincinnati’s Reform Jewish High School. “This is an incredibly impressive group of students,” commented Rabbi Lewis Kamrass. “Each of them has given so much to our community. While we will definitely miss them next year, we know that they are all off to great things. We wish them continued success and fulfillment, and trust that they know that they always have a home here at Wise Temple, no matter where they are in life.”
The students marked their official graduation from Kulanu on two different occasions. On Sunday, May 22, they joined their fellow students from other congregations in the school’s joint ceremony at Valley Temple. In addition to this, the students came together for a congregational celebration on Friday, May 20 as part of the Wise Temple Shabbat worship service. In preparation for the Shabbat experience, the students were asked to write about what Judaism means to them. These writings were compiled into a booklet that was distributed to the congregation at this service. The students wrote about the
importance of Jewish community. As one senior noted, “To me being Jewish means that I am always connected to a culture and no matter where I go, I know that there will be a community to support me.” The students also addressed how much they enjoyed and learned from various Jewish experiences and activities. These included their early education in Wise Temple’s Open Room program, their trips to Israel, their summers at Jewish overnight camps, and their work as madrichim (teaching assistants) at the Wise Temple Religious School. As the students prepare to move on to their next chapter in life, they
anticipate continuing their commitment to Jewish learning and engagement. Another student shared, “Judaism has provided a strong backbone in my life as I have grown up in Cincinnati. I look forward to journeying out into the world and hope to get a clearer understanding of Judaism and how it best fits into my life.” The students will be attending a wide range of colleges and universities, including The Ohio State University, UC, Dartmouth and Emory. Wise Temple will keep in touch with each of these students through monthly emails, holiday packages and rabbinic visits to the nearby colleges.
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In Buenos Aires, a mayor facing a Jewish challenger taps a rabbi to lead his party’s list
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Reconstructionist Congregation B’nai Tikvah Celebrates New Building, Honors Founder
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MatureLiving 2011 SPECIAL SECTION.
REACH THE JEWISH SENIOR COMMUNITY WITH YOUR ADVERTISING MESSAGE Deadline for ad submission is Thursday, July 21 Publishes on Thursday, July 28 To Advertise or For More Information, Contact Ted Deutsch at 621-3145 or publisher@americanisraelite.com
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The American Israelite website adds photo gallery Plus this week’s Facebook Fan of the Week The American Israelite website has recently added a new photo gallery tab to its homepage. Now the website’s viewers can check
out the photos of recent and past Cincinnati Jewish related events whenever they wish to do so. To view the photos, go to The American Israelite’s homepage and scroll down to the last tab. Click on it and it will open to a gallery of events. There is an option to see photos in the galleries one at a
time, and also clickable arrows under each photo to allow a more linear viewing. Remember to stick with the oldest for what’s new. Also, congratulations to Rabbi Berel Cohen, this week’s new Facebook Fan of the Week. Don’t forget to “like” us, for your chance to be Fan of the Week!
Sing in Shabbat at Rockdale, June 17 Congregants and friends of all ages can welcome Shabbat in song on Friday, June 17 at Rockdale Temple. This special Rock Shabbat service, which starts at 6:15 p.m., pulls from familiar songbooks of Jewish camp experience, folksongs and contemporary music. Rabbi Sissy Coran will offer birthday blessings for the month and a summer dinner will follow the service. All are welcome, beginning at 5:45 p.m. for Shabbat Nosh. For details
on the 7:15 p.m. dinner, call Rockdale Temple. All generations seem to resonate with the “ruach,” says rabbinic intern Meredith Kahan, who directs the six-person combo of congregants ranging from teens to a dad of teens. “Our goal is not to perform, but to make an experience people can be a part of.” Hand percussion instruments are passed out, too, creating an especially fun moment for children (of all ages!)
who have more musical energy to offer than their voices alone. Rock Shabbat is a monthly event at Rockdale, and the special prayerbook containing song lyrics is augmented by handouts with new songs from time to time in both English and Hebrew. Those unfamiliar with Hebrew find that singing it (in transliteration even) makes it feel more accessible. To learn more about Rockdale, visit their website.
Swim year-round with a membership at the J The summer heat is here and the Mayerson JCC outdoor pool is open to members. Summer is an excellent time to join the J since members enjoy unlimited access to both the outdoor pool and the yearround indoor waterpark. A special discount membership offer runs through August, which gives new JCC members a significant savings as well as a chance to enjoy member advantage benefits in the summer and fall. A heated outdoor pool with a diving board and surrounding deck, in addition to the 12,000 square foot indoor waterpark, provides year-round swimming opportunities for members of the J.
Water aerobics and swim lessons are also available throughout the year. Members of the J pay discounted fees for all programs and enjoy many other advantages. These include unlimited use of the J facilities, advance registration privileges, free group exercise classes (more than 90 per week, including aquatics exercise) and free monthly member movie nights throughout the year. Membership is month-to-month and does not require an annual contract. “Anyone can become a member of the J and our summer membership deal is a great offer,” said membership and fitness director,
Join the Summer Picnic at Ohav Shalom Congregation Ohav Shalom is hosting its annual Summer Picnic on Sunday, June 26. This will be a lively summer evening of food, family fun, drinks and games. Starting at 5 p.m., guests will enjoy an all-you-can-eat picnic dinner and will be invited to participate in a Cincinnati Reds-themed raffle with great prizes such as an autographed Scott Rolen baseball, four single tickets to a Reds Game, and more. The event is chaired by Ken Germain, chair of the Ways & Means Committee. “This will be a special evening for our Ohav family and for the public, who will be able to spend a great evening with friends over a delicious dinner. And
join us for badminton, basketball, cornhole, horseshoe, board games and bingo. The games that will appeal to all ages,” notes Germain. To keep the energy going, the evening will culminate with the big annual sweepstakes, a long-term tradition at Ohav Shalom. There will be a top cash prize, a second prize, followed by two prizes for third place. Winners need not be present. Sweepstakes tickets are available from the Ohav Shalom office. There is a cost to attend the evening event, which includes the picnic dinner. Children under age 2 are free. The event will take place at Ohav Shalom and is open to the public.
Larry Mestel. “New members who sign up before the end of August will save on the enrollment fee and joining early gets extra savings.” Visit the J’s website for more information about becoming a member.
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Sarah’s Place offers ‘Women Empowerment Weekend’ Sarah’s Place is proud to announce another “first!” This July 4 weekend, Sarah’s Place will be hosting a first-ever “YJP Women’s Empowerment” Weekend Retreat. Sarah’s Place is known for unique, inspiring women’s programming and retreats. Testimonials left behind after the recent Mother-Daughter Retreat made it clear that it was another
major hit. In one young woman’s words, “This place is a miracle and promotes nothing but the light in Judaism.” Another wrote about the weekend as, “… a defining moment we will remember forever.” The Sarah’s Place team is gearing up to present an equally inspiring, fun weekend for women ages “21-30 -something.” The YJP Women’s
Empowerment Retreat will feature Holy Pavlov, founder of Shearim College in Jerusalem. She is known for her ability to present sophisticated, profound insight into almost any topic with incredible clarity. Among other talks she will be presenting this weekend will be: “SelfEsteem, Self-Respect and Seeing the Greatness in Others” and “The Acquisition of Happiness.”
Sarah’s Place retreats are known for incredible food, pleasant accommodations, spirited discussions and moving emotional bonding, enhancing old friendships and kindling new, lasting bonds. Women interested in the YJP Empowerment Weekend or in any other Sarah’s Place programming are directed to the Sarahs Place Cincy website.
Michael W. Hawkins receives Judge Learned Hand Award Cincinnati lawyer Michael W. Hawkins will receive the prestigious Judge Learned Hand Award on Tuesday, June 28 at a dinner held in his honor at the Hilton Netherland Plaza Hall of Mirrors. According to the American Jewish Committee, who is hosting the event, Hawkins will be honored for being a compassionate humanitarian, whose devo-
tion to diversity and to international relief efforts is noteworthy. The AJC has an abiding interest in justice and fairness, qualities, which the late Judge Learned Hand demonstrated in his thousands of judicial opinions. AJC Cincinnati has only presented this award once before, when Wm. T. Robinson III was honored. Other AJC offices
regularly present such awards to outstanding attorneys. The keynote speaker will be the Honorable Nathaniel R. Jones, a retired judge who formerly served on the U.S. Court of Appeals. Cochairs of the event are James A. Miller and George H. Vincent. Chip Harrod, recently retired executive director of Bridges, will
deliver the invocation, and Rabbi Julie Schwartz of Hebrew Union College, will offer the benediction. The reception will begin at 6 p.m. and dinner and the program will begin at 7 p.m. There is a cost to attend the event. Please contact the American Jewish Committee for reservations by June 21.
Scott Miller
Jewish victims and survivors report in their interviews and memoirs, but they teach us something new as they also create a broader understanding of the tragic events of the Holocaust by adding the perspectives of nonJewish populations,” says Miller. At “Witness, Collaborator or Perpetrator,” Miller will present portions of the Museum’s video collections of non-Jewish eyewitnesses to Nazi persecution. The testimonies have been collected from people in Poland, Ukraine and Lithuania who discuss their recollections of their Jewish
to watch circus performers— getting to be a circus performer!” noted Julie Robenson, Shalom Family event coordinator. “How often do kids, or grownups for that matter, get the opportunity to be on a real flying trapeze, or have the chance to try other traditional tricks and stunts such as this in a safe environment where they can feel the fun and exhilaration of what it’s like to be in the circus!” she asks. “This event is being arranged exclusively for Shalom Family, and thanks to the generosity of The Mayerson Foundation we are able to offer this amazing interactive experience to families in our
Be a clown with your kids and Shalom Family!
Jewish community at no cost.” The event also includes a free Graeter’s ice cream bar and other circus snacks, moon bounces, face painting, balloon sculptures and free clown wigs and noses to the first 200 children whose families RSVP by June 20. Grandparents
“LET THERE BE LIGHT” THE OLDEST ENGLISH-JEWISH WEEKLY IN AMERICA - EST. JULY 15, 1854
VOL. 157 • NO. 47 THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011 14 SIVAN 5771 SHABBAT BEGINS FRIDAY 8:48 PM SHABBAT ENDS SATURDAY 9:49 PM 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 production@americanisraelite.com RABBI ISSAC M. WISE Founder, Editor, Publisher, 1854-1900 LEO WISE Editor & Publisher, 1900-1928 RABBI JONAH B. WISE Editor & Publisher, 1928-1930
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neighbors being singled out for persecution or deportation. In some cases the witnesses participated in the crimes. The program, being presented in partnership with Adath Israel Congregation and the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education, is being held on Monday, June 20 at 7:30 p.m. at Adath Israel Congregation. It is free and open to the public, but reservations are required by calling or emailing the Museum’s Midwest Regional Office. Media interested in attending the event should contact Andy Hollinger.
Shalom Family’s Circus Sundae lets kids be stars of show Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls…now you can run away with the circus without ever leaving Cincinnati when Shalom Family presents Circus Sundae, a free event for families in the Jewish community with children 10 and under. The “biggest show on earth for little ones,” this event will allow kids (and parents, too) the chance to experience life under the big top, where they’ll soar to great heights on the flying trapeze, balance on a tight rope, learn to juggle, stilt walk, spin plates and just plain clown around on Sunday, June 26 at 3 p.m., outdoors at the Cincinnati Mills Mall. “What’s more fun than getting
The American Israelite
HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher, 1930-1985
USHMM presents ‘Witness, Collaborator, Perpetrator’ The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is collecting the testimonies from non-Jews who witnessed crimes committed against their Jewish neighbors during the Holocaust. Scott Miller, the museum’s director of curatorial affairs, will discuss the importance of gathering these testimonies before the eyewitness generation disappears along with the unique perspective they add to our understanding of the Nazi campaign of genocide against Europe’s Jews. “These interviews serve not only as corroboration of what
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NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher BARBARA L. MORGENSTERN Senior Writer NICOLE SIMON RITA TONGPITUK Assistant Editors ALEXIA KADISH Copy Editor JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor STEPHANIE DAVIS-NOVAK Fashion Editor MARILYN GALE Dining Editor MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM IRIS PASTOR RABBI A. JAMES RUDIN ZELL SCHULMAN RABBI AVI SHAFRAN PHYLLIS R. SINGER Contributing Columnists LEV LOKSHIN JANE KARLSBERG Staff Photographers JOSEPH D. STANGE Production Manager
are welcome. Space is limited and will fill up. For more information or to RSVP please visit the Shalom Family website. The web address is located in the Community Listings Directory in the back of this issue. From Hocus Pocus Purim and The Teddy Bear Picnic, to the Sweet Treat Family Fun Factory and Galaxy a Glow Go, Shalom Family offers the biggest family events in the Jewish community at some of the most popular familyfriendly venues in town, providing a great way for parents and children to spend quality time together while getting the chance to meet other families just like theirs.
MICHAEL MAZER Sales ERIN WYENANDT Office Manager
THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE (USPS 019-320) is published weekly for $44 per year and $2.00 per single copy in Cincinnati and $49 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 the columnists of The American Israelite do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the newspaper.
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Adath Israel offers Hazak trip to Chicago, Springfield “A fantastic experience awaits those area seniors who wish to join us on our overnight trip next month,” said Miriam Elfenbaum, president of the Adath Israel Hazak 55-Plus Group. The bi-yearly bus trip, which is being offered this year on July 24-25, includes a visit to the University of Chicago’s small archeological museum before heading to the suburban Drury Lane Oakbrook theater complex for dinner and a show. The
theater is well-known for its artdeco style, and is also reminiscent of Cincinnati’s former Albee theater. The professional show will be Neil Simon’s semi-autobiographical comedy “Broadway Bound.” Overnight will be spent at the Hilton Garden Inn at the complex. “This is Hazak’s fifth overnight trip since 2002,” noted Elfenbaum, “that has been capably led by Rita and Arnold Wasserman and Penina Frankel. Those who have traveled
with us are always delighted to be a part of our tour.” After a private breakfast, the group will travel to Springfield where a docent will guide them through the Lincoln Museum before heading to Indianapolis for dinner at the renown Shapiro’s Deli. Several spots are still available, but time is of the essence to secure a place. For further information, please call the Adath Israel office immediately.
Rockwern’s annual meeting looks back On Monday, June 13, about 20 parents and administrators of Rockwern Academy met in the school’s Boymel Synagogue for the Jewish day school’s annual meeting. Following the conclusion of the school year the previous week, the 2011-2012 board of directors were motioned and accepted. The new board includes Ben Schneider as president; Julie Torem as secretary; Steven Miller as treasurer; Kim Heiman as vice president (advancement); Gayle Warm as vice president (committee on trustees); and Stacey Fisher as
immediate past president. The successes of the previous school year were brought up — such as the national and international attention brought to the school with the Three Cups of Tea program in 2010 and various volunteer work done by the students. This fall, the school will have a “School of Contribution” banner on display for all the work done by the students outside of the classroom. According to Nina Croog, academically, the students are doing better than the local public school kids. Dr. Susan Moore, the current
interim Head of School, noted her hope for the future is seeing Rockwern as a leader among Jewish day schools—setting the standards which others follow. Earlier in the evening, the D’var Torah was given by Rabbi Sissy Coran, who mentioned “having faith in the future.” Gratitude was extended to the PTO members as well as board members for their work throughout the year. Guy Peri and his committee were thanked for their help regarding the Annual Tribute Dinner, this year honoring the Guttman Family.
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Lauren Kahn, bone marrow donor Shuttering of Yale By Lauren Kahn Guest Writer In March 2009, the Hillel at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio hosted, at the time, the largest bone marrow drive ever on a college campus—swabbing over 2,500 students and faculty in just a couple of days as part of their “Got swabbed” campaign. I was somewhat involved with Hillel and was encouraged to participate so I went with my best friend and we both got our mouths swabbed. To be honest, I didn’t know much about either the swabbing or the bone marrow donation process. It’s one of those things everyone is somewhat familiar with, but most people don’t necessarily know much else about, except that it helps save lives. Personally, all I knew at the time was that the chances of ever being someone’s bone marrow match were extremely rare, and that it involved needles, pain and surgery. Being squeamish, this was enough to keep me from asking too many questions. What sticks out most in my mind was that as we headed out, I joked, “Watch, with how much I hate blood and all that, I’m totally going to end up being that needle in a haystack that’s a match.” It was only this past March 2011 that I received an email that said I was a potential bone marrow match for a patient. My first thought was that it must have been a mistake. As I started to realize the sheer magnitude of even being a potential match, I had so many questions and my anxiety kicked in. Despite my initial response, I
was overwhelmed by so many other feelings of complete gratitude, excitement and joy. I just simply could not believe that such an amazing opportunity—to help save someone’s life—might be in my very hands. So as soon as I got out of class, even before I had made it back home, I called the donor center and found out a lot of information about the donation process and what the next step would be if I chose to proceed. In the midst of trying to grapple that I was just a 1 in 2.7 million match in their registry, the woman from the donor center told me that the only information they could give me about the patient was the age, gender and disease. She warned me that she didn’t want it to put pressure on me, but that my match happened to be a 2-year-old little girl with leukemia. All I could think about was how young and completely helpless she was. At that age, life is still so new. I knew that this girl had probably already seen more needles in two years than I would ever see in my whole life. I knew that I had to get over my fears and do this because not only was it so insanely rare and special to have this opportunity, and not only was it the mitzvah of a lifetime, but this little, precious life was all of a sudden in my hands, and it consumed me in a way like nothing else ever had before. Within the next couple of weeks, I had filled out lots of paperwork and health questionnaires, and had given blood at the student health center for confirmatory typing and testing. The first of many blood samples were sent to the
patient’s doctor and used to more accurately identify and confirm the match, and to check for any diseases. Once you are a potential match, there is only a small chance that you will be the best match. Apparently, there are often multiple matches for patients so further testing is done to find out who the closest match is, but in this case, I happened to be the one and only. I was out to dinner with a friend when I finally got the call confirming that I was a close enough match to donate. Although the news came with anxiety, I was ecstatic and that night turned into a sort of celebration for this little girl. After a long waiting period, I had started to accept that they found a better match, that I wouldn’t be cleared, or worse- that the little girl was just simply too sick for a transplant. I knew not to get my hopes up because at this point I had become so emotionally invested that I would be devastated if anything happened. Finally, I got the phone call and they told me that I was cleared to move on to the next step in the process, which was an information session via phone (it’s normally done in person, but the closest place for me to donate was in Pennsylvania). Because the patient was so young, I was asked to donate via the surgical procedure, which is often the less preferred method of donors. Both methods seemed equally torturous, but each had its pros and cons. The PBSC (peripheral blood stem cells) donation involves a four to six hour process, in which blood is taken through one arm, processed DONOR on page 19
ATTENTION: PARENTS If your child entered the 2011 Passover Coloring Contest and you would like to pick up the artwork, please stop by Marx Hot Bagels this week.
2011 Passover Cover Coloring Contest entries can be picked up at Marx Hot Bagels — 9701 Kenwood Road, Blue Ash
program on anti-Semitism raises hackles
By Ron Kampeas Jewish Telegraphic Agency WASHINGTON (JTA) — Did Yale’s program on anti-Semitism die a natural death from lack of academic vigor, as the university says? Should it have been saved, as two major Jewish groups are arguing? Or was it killed for being politically incorrect about Muslim antiSemitism, as alleged by others? The decision to terminate the Yale Initiative for the Interdisciplinary Study of AntiSemitism came after its routine five-year review, according to a statement from Donald Green, who heads Yale’s Institution for Social and Policy Studies, the body that oversees the antiSemitism initiative and other interdisciplinary programs. The anti-Semitism initiative, Green said in a statement sent to JTA, failed to meet the institution’s criteria of delivering an “outstanding” performance in the promotion of “interdisciplinary research and instruction at Yale.” The American Jewish Committee said the anti-Semitism initiative’s termination would “create a very regrettable void.” AJC’s director David Harris said it “has been impressed by the level of scholarly discourse, the involvement of key faculty, and the initiative’s ability, through conferences and other programs, to bring a wide range of voices to the Yale campus.” In a statement, the AntiDefamation League said termination should not have been the only option, whatever the initiative’s problems. “What was required was a concerted effort to work out the problems rather than ending the program,” the ADL’s national director, Abraham Foxman, said in a statement. “Especially at a time when anti-Semitism continues to be virulent and anti-Israel parties treat any effort to address issues relating to anti-Zionism and antiSemitism as illegitimate, Yale’s decision is particularly unfortunate and dismaying.” Green said that other programs that the Institution for Social and Policy Studies oversees, like the Study of American Politics and the Field Experiments Initiative and Agrarian Studies, have survived because “they have generated an extraordinary number of research articles in top-tier academic journals.” Still others, like the Ethics, Politics and Economics major and the Interdisciplinary Bioethics Center, survive because they draw hundreds of students to their sem-
inars, he said. Others — such as the Center for the Study of Race, Inequality and Politics and the Program on Nonprofit Organizations — were terminated because, like the anti-Semitism initiative, “they failed to meet high standards for research and instruction,” Green said. In the case of the anti-Semitism initiative, Green said: “Little scholarly work appeared in top-tier journals in behavioral science, comparative politics, or history. Courses created in this area did not attract large numbers of students.”
Courtesy of YIISA
Itamar Marcus, the director of Palestinian Media Watch, addresses a conference organized by the Yale Initiative for the Interdisciplinary Study of AntiSemitism on Aug. 23 2010. Yale recently shut down the initiative. The appearance by Marcus, a right-winger, had sparked criticism of the conference.
Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, a group that fights anti-Israel bias on college campuses, suggested that Yale was buckling to pressure from Iran, whose Intelligence Ministry in January 2010 placed Yale on a list of 60 institutions it considered part of a U.S.-IsraeliBritish plot to “subvert” the Islamic Republic. “By focusing attention on Islamic anti-Jewish hatred and on the genocidal agenda of Iran, YIISA clearly angered some faculty and administrators on campus who orchestrated this attack,” Scholars for Peace in the Middle East said of the anti-Semitism initiative. “Iran’s placing of Yale on their list of institutions to hate last year was looked at not as a badge of honor but as a problem. Some members of the Yale Corporation Board, the administration and the faculty seem to have forgotten that Iran is being embargoed by the United States.” YALE on page 20
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
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Democrats launch major pro-Obama pushback among Jews By Ron Kampeas Jewish Telegraphic Agency WASHINGTON (JTA) — President Obama is a stalwart friend of Israel. That’s the message some top Democratic Jewish figures are promoting to push back against the notion that Obama is out of step with the pro-Israel and Jewish communities. Within the next two weeks, two figures associated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee — past AIPAC president Amy Friedkin and board member Howard Green — will be among the hosts for a major fundraising event for the president, charging $25,000 per couple. The target of 40 couples — bringing in $1 million — is close to being met, insiders say. Notably, the organizers have received a nod from the AIPAC board’s inner circle to solicit donations. Last week, top Jewish Democrats, including Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Democratic National Committee chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (DFla.), blitzed the media with Op-Eds denying any split with the president in the wake of his call last month to base Palestinian-Israeli negotiations on 1967 lines with mutually agreed land swaps. And the White House has taken the unusual step of posting a lengthy defense of Obama’s Israel record on its website. Some of the Op-Eds were coordinated, insiders said, and meetings will take place over the coming weeks to hammer home the message. “The White House has a very strong record to defend, and the objectives are misrepresented and in some cases maligned, so yes the White house is pushing back,” said Robert Wexler, the former Florida congressman who was Obama’s chief Jewish proxy during the 2008 campaign. Wexler wrote one of two proObama Op-Eds in the South Florida Sun Sentinel in recent days. Florida, a swing state with a substantive Jewish population, has been a key Jewish battleground in recent years. Republicans have taken notice, and they have attributed the pushback in part to the success of attacks on the president by conservative groups. The Republican Jewish Coalition has targeted Jewish voters with automated phone calls, and a group called the Emergency Committee for Israel is running an ad thanking congressional Democrats it claims have split with Obama over his Israel policy. “Clearly, the White House is play-
Courtesy of Ron Kampeas
Former Florida Rep. Robert Wexler, right, shown speaking at Obama inauguration festivities in January 2009 with former Jewish War Veterans chief Ed Goldwasser, is among Democrats speaking out forcefully now on President Obama’s Israel policies.
ing defense after President Obama inserted himself into Middle East policy that put him at odds with Americans who support a strong Israel,” Reince Preibus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, said in an e-mail to JTA. Democrats say two distortions have fueled their fury: The notions that Obama broke with U.S. policy to force Israel back to the pre-1967 lines and, as a result, that Jewish voters, a key base, is slipping away from the Democrats. A flurry of media stories in recent weeks have suggested that Obama is losing Jewish donor support, although few past donors to the president are reported to be reconsidering their support. Where the Jews stand on Obama matters not just because of the Jewish vote, which is significant in key swing states such as Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio, but also because of Jewish money. The 2012 presidential election will be the first since a Supreme Court ruling allowing unlimited corporate giving to candidates. The Obama campaign has said it will need more money than ever because big business tends to lean Republican. Obama captured 78 percent of the Jewish vote in 2008, and estimates over the years have reckoned that Jewish donors provide between one-third and two-thirds of the party’s money. “Every two or four years Republicans say, ‘This is the year Jewish voters, or donors, or activists, are going to trend Republican,’” said Steve Rabinowitz, a strategist who advises Democrats and Jewish groups. “Every November it turns out not to be true.” DEMOCRATS on page 20
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From nut allergies to gluten, Weiner’s downfall a Jewish camps and schools struggle reminder of perils of with dietary limitations Jewish pride By Sue Fishkoff Jeish Telegraphic Agency
By Alex Weisler Jewish Telegraphic Agency
SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) — No one goes to summer camp for the food. And school lunches? Used to be fried mystery meat and a side of bogus mashed potatoes, if you were lucky. But that was before the healthy eating movement — and allergies — changed how camps and schools across America think about the food they serve their children. Dining halls now feature salad bars and fresh produce, even homemade bread. The Reform movement’s Kutz Camp, a leadership camp in Warwick, N.Y., for teenagers, is launching a state-ofthe-art dining program this summer that has banned canned vegetables and machine-made drinks, and includes a salad bar featuring at least three types of lettuce and 10 vegetarian toppings. “Parental expectations have changed,” says Paul Reikenbach, head of camping for the Union for Reform Judaism. “They want to have healthy choices and healthy menus. And the kids themselves are much more sophisticated about their food choices.” Whereas 10 to 15 years ago the battle was for high-quality vegetarian meals, today the preoccupying concern is the ever-increasing array of dietary needs and restrictions. Nut allergies. Soy allergies. Lactose intolerance. Gluten allergies. Combine them with the vegetarians, the vegans, the organiconly eaters and the varying levels of kashrut observance, and it’s clear that putting food on the table for today’s Jewish children is no simple feat. At Kutz Camp, the peanut butter and jelly is now kept in a separate area of the dining hall to avoid cross-contamination. “It’s our responsibility to keep everyone happy and safe,” says
NEW YORK (JTA) — He was supposed to be one of Congress’ rising stars, a Jewish boy from Brooklyn with great ambition and promise. A truculent Democrat with a penchant for media attention, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) was an unabashed liberal on domestic affairs and a hard-liner on foreign policy, particularly Israel. Like his predecessor in his U.S. House of Representatives seat, Sen. Charles Schumer, Weiner had larger ambitions — in his case, mayor of New York City. But then came his shamefaced news conference Monday, when the 46-year-old congressman, who was married last year, admitted to
Courtesy of Courtesy Kutz Camp
Members of Reform Kutz Camp’s 2011 summer staff enjoy lunch at camp.
camp director Melissa Frey. “If one teen drops a peanut butter knife into the salad bar, it could be very dangerous for someone else.” “When I started here 24 years ago, we were just learning about lactose intolerance,” says Anne Tursky, assistant executive director of the New Jersey Y Camps. “We heard about Lactaid and dairy-free ice cream. Then came the peanut allergies eight to 10 years ago. We went from having jars of peanut butter on the table to putting out individual packets. “Then we had a camper allergic to soy, so we had to start reading every package to see what was in them.” Most of the push for allergy-free meals comes from worried parents. Johanna Shlomovich, director of student services at the Ramaz School in Manhattan, meets regularly with a parents’ nutrition committee to go over meal planning for the Orthodox day school’s 1,100 students. She estimates that the school prepares 20 specialized meals daily, ranging from diabetic to dairy-free. “We are nut-free and sesamefree, to keep all our children safe,” she says. “All our food service workers go to allergy training sev-
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eral times a year. They check all the packaging.” Finding kosher-certified foods that meet the varied health concerns is an ongoing challenge, Shlomovich says. Ramaz could not find a kosher brand of granola that was also free of nuts and sesame, so now the school prepares its own. And parental demands keep growing. “I have a couple of parents pushing for everything to be organic,” Shlomovich says. “But that’s cost prohibitive. It’s always a balance between budget and the parents’ nutritional demands.” Now there is both greater awareness of allergies and food intolerances, and the actual occurrence of those allergies is on the rise, experts say. Anita Redner, the head nurse for the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston for 19 years, says the number of allergies she sees has skyrocketed along with the incidence of asthma. “All the medical literature is pretty clear that there’s been an actual rise in real allergies and in asthma,” she says. “I don’t think there’s any doctor that would say otherwise.” Redner’s school has one student with diabetes, several with gluten allergies and others with similar dietary restrictions. The school does not have a regular lunch program, but allows parents to opt in or out of Friday pizza lunch and infrequent meals brought in from a kosher Chinese restaurant. “We provide the parents with all the information they need about the vendors, and the responsibility is on them to opt in or have the kids bring their own lunch,” she says. LIMITATIONS on page 19
lying about sending a lewd photo to a woman he met on the Internet. It was the culmination of a week of dissembling since the conservative blog in the Big Government website had posted the photo. In all, Weiner confessed to carrying on inappropriate online relationships with six women. He said he would not get a divorce from his new wife — Huma Abedin, an aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who is Muslim — nor would he resign. In the Jewish community, which long had regarded him with pride, Weiner’s spectacularly public downfall was a reminder of the perils of associating a particular person’s successes or failures with his Jewishness. WEINER on page 22
Andrew Breitbart, the unabashedly ‘biased journalist’ By Jonah Lowenfeld The Jewish Journal LOS ANGELES (The Jewish Journal) — The TV cameras at the Beverly Hilton Hotel’s ballroom were there to cover a foreign policy speech by Newt Gingrich, but during the cocktail hour, all eyes at the Republican Jewish Coalition’s Summer Bash were on Andrew Breitbart. While Gingrich was mingling privately at the June 12 event with major RJC donors, Breitbart, the self-described “biased journalist” who broke the still-brewing Anthony Weiner sexting scandal, was working the main room, drinking in the adulation from fans who had paid $250 to attend.
National Briefs Idaho Chabad center vandalized (JTA) — The Chabad Jewish Center of Idaho in Boise was vandalized with anti-Semitic graffiti. A spray-painted message discovered on the building on June 11 read “Zionism = Racism.” Boise Police Lt. Kent Lipple told the Idaho Statesman that the vandalism would be considered a
Two women in cocktail dresses asked Breitbart to pose for a picture with them. He obliged, putting his arms around their shoulders. “Don’t use this against me,” he quipped as the cell phone camera clicked. With “Weinergate,” the story of the New York Democratic congressman’s fall from grace, still in the news, Breitbart’s name was on everybody’s lips. Breitbart’s Conservative Web site, biggovernment.com, was the first to publish an explicit photograph sent from Weiner’s Twitter account that turned out to have been sent by the lawmaker. BREITBART on page 22 hate crime since its message was specific to a particular religion. The Boise community has supported the Chabad center with phone calls, emails and visits, Chabad emissary Rabbi Mendel Lifshitz told the Idaho Statesman. Volunteers have offered to repaint the building’s wall. Gingrich says he’d move embassy on first day WASHINGTON (JTA) — Newt Gingrich said he would move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem on his first day in office as president. NATIONAL BRIEFS on page 22
INTERNATIONAL • 9
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
In Buenos Aires, a mayor facing a Jewish challenger taps a rabbi to lead his party’s list By Diego Melamed Jewish Telegraphic Agency BUENOS AIRES (JTA) — Rabbi Sergio Bergman, already one of Buenos Aires’ most prominent spiritual leaders, has become one of the Argentine capital’s most highly visible political candidates. Bergman was tapped by the city’s incumbent mayor, Mauricio Macri, to lead his PRO party’s list for the municipal legislature. As the top candidate on the centerright party’s slate, the rabbi is virtually assured of securing a spot in the city legislature in the July 10 municipal elections. Meanwhile, Macri’s main challenger for the mayoralty is Jewish. Daniel Filmus, a former Argentine education minister, will be facing off against Macri for the city’s top job for a second time. Argentina’s president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, picked Filmus to run as the candidate of her center-left Victory Front. That the president and the mayor both would tap Jews as key political partners in Argentina’s largest city has not escaped notice among
Courtesy of Eliana Krumecadyk
Rabbi Sergio Bergman (with microphone) speaks as he stands alongside Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri (left) and two other politicians at a May 23 event introducing the PRO party's candidates for municipal elections.
members of the country’s Jewish community. Depending upon what definition of Jewish identity is used, estimates of Argentina’s Jewish population range from 180,000 to 280,000. It is Latin America’s largest Jewish communi-
ty, but it has suffered the sting of anti-Semitism during its history. “This is a very shocking moment, an unprecedented situation,” said Aldo Donzis, president of DAIA, Argentine Jewry’s primary umbrella organization. “Had a similar
panorama occurred during my teenage years, the Jewish community would have been terrified, assuming this situation to be highly risky, given that if any of the candidates were to obtain an official post and subsequently make mistakes, antiSemitism would violently arise.” The selection of a rabbi to head the mayor’s list for city legislature has elicited particular notice — from Jews and non-Jews. Bergman, the senior rabbi of the traditional Congregacion Israelita Argentina, is the founder of Active Memory, a group that demonstrated every Monday for a decade in front of Argentina’s Supreme Court seeking justice for the victims of the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center. The Pagina12 newspaper published a full-page article on his selection headlined “A head of the list that comes with a kippa.” Asked why he is becoming involved in politics, Bergman told JTA that Argentine society is “in a deep crisis of values,” adding that “I believe that Torah can also be taught in the legislature.” MAYOR on page 20
International Briefs Jewish indigenous woman honored in Australia SYDNEY, Australia (JTA) — A Jewish Indigenous woman was awarded a top honor in Australia. Lisa Pulver, the co-founder and director of the Muru Marri Indigenous Health Unit at the University of New South Wales, was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the annual Queen’s birthday honors list announced Monday. Pulver also is a professor of indigenous health at the university. Pulver is president of the Newtown Synagogue, in Sydney’s inner west, and a board member of the Lowitja Institute, Australia’s premier Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led health research body. In 2004, she addressed the British House of Commons on the state of Australian indigenous health, an experience she described as a “defining moment” of her career. INT’L BRIEFS on page 21
10 • ISRAEL
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With new investments, Israel again is looking to Africa By Dina Kraft Jewish Telegraphic Agency HERZLIYA, Israel (JTA) — Soon after Israel itself was born, it began investing significant resources in development assistance in Africa. Israel’s official development work there waned over the decades, but in recent years Africa again has become a target for Israeli development work by nonprofit organizations and corporations. Particularly in areas like water resource management, agriculture, renewable energy, infrastructure and telemedicine, experts say Israel has much to offer the developing continent. “In the same way we are a hightech power, we can become a development tech power, because our problems are their problems and our expertise fits their needs,” said Aliza Belman Inbal of Tel Aviv University’s Hartog School of Government and Policy. New thinking is beginning to take root that it is in Israel’s interest both economically and as a tool to boost its international standing to again look toward Africa. “So many things we do are so relevant for these countries,” she
said. “We have the capacity to help Africa in ways other countries cannot and to help build a positive agenda to show Israel can offer good to the world.” Early Israeli leaders such as Golda Meir had dispatched agricultural and other experts across Africa in a policy that mixed altruism with the hope that newly independent African states might become staunch allies. The burgeoning interest of Israeli humanitarians, businesspeople and government officials in Africa can be seen in Israeli medical missions which have gone to the furthest reaches of war-ravaged Democratic Republic of Congo and business pouring resources into developing Africa’s booming cellular phone market, which is the fastest growing in the world. Small nongovernmental organizations are getting involved, like Jewish Heart for Africa, which introduced Israeli solar technologies to produce electricity in orphanages, schools and clinics in Uganda, Tanzania and Malawi. “Israelis really do like to share their know-how, and we believe in helping build African communities,” said Shachar Zahavi, execu-
Courtesy of Jewish Heart for Africa
Sivan Borowich Ya'ari, Jewish Heart for Africa founder and president, teaching about solar energy at Lubuulo Primary School in Uganda.
Courtesy of Jewish Heart for Africa
Solar panels made with Israeli technology being installed at the Natan School in Nawansekese Village, Uganda, as part of a project sponsored by the organization Jewish Heart for Africa.
tive director of IsraAID, a consortium of Israeli and Jewish aid organizations that work in developing countries, including those like Japan and Haiti that require disaster assistance. “We are seeing both a younger generation of Israelis who, during their post-army travels want to do something meaningful with their time abroad, seek out volunteering,” Zahavi said, “and at the same time we are seeing more and more companies looking to build and adapt their products for the developing world.” On May 29, several hundred people gathered in Herzliya for an IsraAID-organized conference on Israeli involvement in Africa. Bob Geldof, the Irish rock singer who staged the 1985 Live Aid concert for famine relief in Africa and its 2005 counterpart advocating for debt relief, delivered the keynote address. “It’s a great thing you are doing today because the world knows that this region is convulsed in its own problems,” Geldof said. In his speech, he urged Israel not to use the Israeli-Arab conflict as an excuse to refrain from engaging in the developing world. “The Jewish people for centuries have used their intellect and culture to be open — that’s what you guys do,” said Geldof, who had a Jewish grandmother. “Do not be forced from turning away from the world.” Israel’s development aid to Africa shrunk to its current low levels following the 1973 Yom Kippur War, when most African states severed ties with Israel. That ended a period in which Israel sent some 5,000 experts in agriculture, water management and other fields throughout the developing world. Mashav, the Israeli government agency responsible for aid programs, was one of the largest departments in the Foreign Ministry in the 1960s, but its budget has shrunk drastically. Today, Israel gives markedly less in overseas aid according to gross national income than most of its counterparts in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Israel currently has relatively little trade targeted toward Africa. In 2010, Israeli exports to Africa excluding diamonds reached $1.3 billion, as compared to $8.4 billion to Asia or $12.7 billion to the United States, according to Dan Catarivas, director of the foreign trade division of the Israeli Manufacturers Association. But Africa’s potential as one of the world’s fastest growing economic areas is beginning to attract attention by Israeli and international firms. AFRICA on page 21
Courtesy of Sheila Shalhevet
Laura Kafif, the house mother at Save A Child’s Heart, visits with one of her charges, Zeresenay Gebru, as he recovers from heart surgery at Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Israel, May 31, 2011.
Fixing broken hearts in Israel By Dina Kraft Jewish Telegraphic Agency HOLON, Israel (JTA) — Just two days earlier but a world away, eight year old Salha Farjalla Khamis said goodbye to her parents and four siblings in her village on the African island of Zanzibar. Later, in a hospital in the Tel Aviv suburb of Holon, tears roll silently down her cheeks as she watches an Israeli nurse attach the wires of an EKG monitor to her small body. “Momma!” she cries out as the Israeli nurse, an immigrant from the former Soviet Union, tries to soothe her in a language the little girl does not understand. “Don’t cry, no pain,” the nurse says in broken English. Khamis is on her second trip to Israel for an operation to remedy a heart defect that she has had since birth. Brought by the Israeli humanitarian organization Save a Child’s Heart, she is one of 2,600 children who have benefitted from the program launched by an American Jewish immigrant to Israel to provide cardiac surgery for children from the developing world. The story of the effort begins in 1996, when a charismatic cardiac surgeon from Maryland named Amram Cohen starts treating patients from outside Israel and using his home, and those of his patients and friends, to host them. Since then, patients from 42 countries have been helped by the organization, nearly half of them Palestinian children from the West Bank and Gaza. Others have come from Iraq, Nigeria and Romania. Save a Child’s Heart also trains medical staff from developing countries, and leads surgical and teaching missions abroad. Dr. Lior Sasson, the organization’s lead surgeon and head of the cardiothoracic surgery department at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, operates on the children on his own time. He helped perform
the organization’s first surgery 15 years ago with Cohen, who was then his mentor. Just six years later Cohen, who had operated on some 600 children through Save a Child’s Heart, died of high altitude sickness while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, a country from which many of the treated children come. This August, the organization will hold a fundraising climb in Cohen’s memory at Kilimanjaro that it hopes will bring in $1 million. “These are children who would otherwise be doomed to die within a few years and suddenly are getting their lives back and their parents again live with hope,” Sasson tells JTA in a sunny waiting room just after completing a surgery. “And when it comes to the Palestinian kids, you see how Palestinian families go from seeing Israelis as sworn enemies to seeing how we all join forces to save these kids together. It’s better than 1,000 diplomats. We are working with people. They get to know us, we get to know them.” In May, the organization was recommended for special consultative status with the U.N. Economic and Social Council. If granted, Save a Child’s Heart will be able to participate in various U.N. forums, including the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. Every week, new arrivals from around the world arrive at a large stucco house surrounded by palm trees at the end of a quiet, residential street in Holon — their home during their time in the country. On a recent morning, Khamis’ group from Zanzibar arrives shortly after dawn. They sit clustered together, still bleary eyed from the long trip. Children under age 4 were accompanied by their mothers cloaked in bright African print scarves and dresses. These mothers also become caretakers to the older HEARTS on page 21
SOCIAL LIFE • 11
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
RECONSTRUCTIONIST CONGREGATION B’NAI TIKVAH CELEBRATES NEW BUILDING, HONORS FOUNDER
ANNOUNCMENTS
At a recent special Shabbat service, some 80 friends, family and congregants gathered in the new sanctuary of Congregation B’nai Tikvah in West Chester Township to honor Hamilton, Ohio, attorney Carl Morgenstern, 88, principal benefactor of the new building. Rabbi Bruce Adler, who has been recognized for his excellence with an honorary doctorate from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College near Philadelphia and who also is a talented composer and musician, conducted services with original and ancient Hebrew melodies and prayers. Rabbi Bruce’s wife, Rabbi Donna G. Adler, a HUC-JIR graduate, serves as the congregation’s educational director. Carl Morgenstern, a 1948 Harvard Law School graduate, practiced law for more than 50 years in Hamilton and the celebration drew many of his long-time clients, lawyers and judges. Photos continued on p.12
Hannah Schlesinger
BIRTH r. Scott Schlesinger and Ann Marie Santarseri of Hoboken, N.J. announce the birth of a daughter, Hannah Rose.
D
Carl Morgenstern with grandchildren Scot and Beth Krumbein
Julie Katsanis Wilson, Esq., chief assistant/public information officer for Hamilton County, and Mark S. Krumbein
Grandparents are Gwen Schlesinger Ferguson and Bob Schlesinger of Amberley Village, Alan Schlesinger of Anderson Township and Andrew and Diane Santarseri of Middletown, N.J.
12 • CINCINNATI SOCIAL LIFE
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RECONSTRUCTIONIST CONGREGATION B’NAI TIKVAH CELEBRATES NEW BUILDING, HONORS FOUNDER
Rabbi Bruce Adler, Beth Krumbein and Barbara Morgenstern lighting the shabbat candles
Paul DeMott Jr., grandaughter Beth Krumbein and grandson Scot Krumbein
Carl Morgenstern honored congregants Dr. Robert J. Larson and Mordechai Higgins for their heroic efforts in overseeing the construction of the new building.
Rabbi Donna G. Adler,, in lavender, Congregation B’nai Tikvah educational director
The stained glass window above the bimah is dedicated to Marilyn Estelle Morgenstern, of blessed memory, Carl’s wife of 49 years. BeauVerre Studios in Middletown, Ohio, manufactured the window.
From left, Paul DeMott, Jr.; Carl Morgenstern’s grandson Scot Krumbein with his father, Mark S. Krumbein, and his other grandfather, Milton Krumbein
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
From left, Barbara Morgenstern, Patty Thomas, Carl Morgenstern and Tracy Thomas
CINCINNATI JEWISH LIFE • 13
Rabbi Bruce Adler, also a talented composer and musician, conducted services
Mordechai Higgins thanked Carl Morgenstern for his devotion to the congregation
Photographer Jack Woods was among those who paid tribute to his long-time legal counsel and friend of 50 years
Barbara Morgenstern all wrapped up in the family tallilt with her daughter Beth Krumbein. Congregation B’nai Tikvah sponsors many fun family activities, such as the tallilt-making workshop
14 • DINING OUT
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Baba India By Sondra Katkin Dining Editor How fortunate that I begin my restaurant commentary with a success story. Years ago, Ambar India Restaurant, located in Clifton near the Esquire movie theater, was so successful that customers wanted owner Jessy Singh to open in their neighborhoods. Now there are three more: Kanak India in Montgomery, Guru India in Crescent Springs, and Baba India in Oakley, all doing well. I recently visited Baba India in Oakley. A lovely garden lined with roses and cone flowers surrounds the low white brick building with an adjacent umbrella and fan cooled patio for outdoor dining. An expansive parking lot allows customers to be off the street. When I entered, the exotic, fragrant aromas whetted my appetite. The former Hardy’s Hamburgers bears little resemblance to its previous life. Comfortable booths and padded chairs surround tables covered by white cloths with glass protection, not sharp-edged paper. The dark green rugs, maroon wood chairs and tan walls create a comfortable ambiance. There are windows on three sides, giving the area a bright, open feeling, with a view of the vibrant Oakley business and historic district. My hostess, Preet Haur, the manager and accountant, told me they have a “great friendly staff” which was evident in the easy camaraderie I observed. Preet was occupied supervising, making sure everything was perfect. The buffet reflected her attention, displaying an eclectic variety of meat and vegetable dishes with salad, soups and desserts. There were several chicken dishes, some with no cream or butter, and others a bit richer. The owner, Mr. Singh, is from Punjab in Northern India and his cuisine bears that influence. The talented cook, Gurbinder Singh, with over six years experience, trained at Ambar India so diners will find a continuity of flavors in the restaurant group. I began by learning a bit of Indian food vocabulary. Aloo refers to potatoes. There are several dishes which feature aloo. Aloo tikka tastes very similar to a spicy potato knish with a crispy crust. I discovered that its crust is made with garbanzo or chick pea flour as is the equally delicious vegetable pakora, a crispy fried crust surrounding cauliflower, potato and spinach. This will please the gluten intolerant among us. Many other dishes and desserts they offer are also gluten free. Preet informed me that there was only one spicy dish on the buffet, usually indicated by vindaloo or chili in the description; the others
(Clockwise) Buffet selections; Manager, Preet Kaur and cook, Gurbinder Singh; View of Baba India.
were mild or medium. Another very tempting buffet item was the potatoes with lightly cooked cabbage and peas. One can just look at it and know there is going to be a crunch for lunch. Their fresh vegetables are bought locally and they grow their own mint and cilantro. Those herbs were subtle flavors in the refreshing raita, the yogurt dish used to counteract the spicier foods. One spice, turmeric, which along with paprika, gives the tasty chicken tandoori its lovely color, has been recommended by the National Institutes of Health as an excellent anti-inflammatory, and Dr. Andrew Weil, renowned expert on wellness says we should include this in our diet. Preet added, “the fresh garlic, onion and ginger we use are really good for your health.” The soups, dal (a traditional lentil) or tomato (a sweeter mixture), are a pleasant way to start the meal. It’s so nice to know that whatever the weather, there will always be soups at Baba India. Also lettuce, tomato, carrots and green pepper are plentiful, and salad lovers will not be disappointed.
Of course they offer the wonderful naan, the ubiquitous Indian flat bread that differs from the Middle Eastern pita because it’s al dente with an elasticity reminiscent of the latex-like New York style pizza crust. If you like your food to fight back, you’ll love this. In addition they also serve papadam—not an Indian curse, but a crisp, thin, tasty lentil wafer, also gluten free. Their signature dish, chicken tikka, is both beautiful with the lovely reds and greens of tomatoes and peppers, and dramatic as it arrives at the table seriously sizzling in its hot plate. My husband and I have ordered this many times and have never been disappointed. It is moist, tender and cooked to order. Another dish we enjoy is rice biryani. This could be a complete vegetarian meal, of which they have many to choose from, or it can include the meat of your choice. The rice is blended with vegetables, raisins and nuts and has so many complex flavors you regret the number of people you promised to share it with. For dessert there was a new
experience waiting for me on the buffet. It was like carrot pudding with a creamy silk like texture, an unusually good idea. Rice pudding is always available and is a creamy, smooth comfort food. A mango custard also looked luscious. So much to eat, so little tummy room. Preet indulged me with my favorite Indian dessert which I haven’t tasted with that quality in years. It’s called Ras Malai, a simple cheese patty in a cream sauce. At first bite, as the cream spreads on your tongue and mixes with the smooth cheese, you know you’re on a special “foodie” high. If you have no background in Indian food, the best thing is to try the lunch buffet. There you will find a reasonably priced potpourri of flavors without making a huge commitment in selection or money. The buffet at Baba India has so many enticing foods to taste, I could do it all over again. Preet explained that Baba means respected one, and that is also the theme for the other restaurants in the group, reflecting the owner’s attitude toward the food he serves his customers.
There are good choices of both alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages available—wines by the glass or half bottles, and mango lassi similar to a refreshing fruit smoothie. One aspect of dining out that I share with most people is an appreciation for a reasonable sound level. At Baba India, during the crowded lunch hour, Preet and I could converse easily. She is an accomplished manager with an accounting and finance degree. With two young children, she also finds the time to volunteer to translate at University and Good Samaritan Hospitals. She was a delight to talk with and the restaurant was a delight of degustation — twin pleasures that bear repeating often. Baba India, which has many outstanding reviews on the Internet extolling its savory tandoori oven dishes and exotic curries, is open Monday through Saturday for dining or carryout. Baba India Restaurant 3120 Madison Road Cincinnati, OH 45209 513.321.1600
AMERICAN CUISINE WITH AN ITALIAN FLAIR
DINING OUT • 15
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
OPEN LUNCH & DINNER EVERYDAY
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Gabby’s Cafe 515 Wyoming Ave Wyoming 821-6040 Izzy’s 800 Elm St • 721-4241 612 Main St • 241-6246 5098B Glencrossing Way 347-9699 1198 Smiley Ave • 825-3888 300 Madison Ave Covington • 859-292-0065 Johnny Chan 2 11296 Montgomery Rd The Shops at Harper’s Point 489-2388 • 489-3616 (fx) K.T.’s Barbecue & Deli 8501 Reading Rd Reading 761-0200 Kanak India Restaurant 10040B Montgomery Rd Montgomery 793-6800 Marx Hot Bagels 9701 Kenwood Rd Blue Ash 891-5542 Mecklenburg Gardens 302 E. University Ave Clifton 221-5353 MEI Japanese Restaurant 8608 Market Place Ln Montgomery 891-6880 Morton’s 441 Vine St (Carew Tower) Downtown 621-5111 Oriental Wok 2444 Madison Rd Hyde Park 871-6888
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Sonoma American & Med. Grill 3012 Madison Rd Cincinnati 376-9941 Stone Creek Dining Co. 9386 Montgomery Rd Montgomery 489-1444 Sugar n’ Spice 4381 Reading Rd Cincinnati 242-3521 Sukhothai Thai Cuisine 8102 Market Place Ln Cincinnati 794-0057
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16 • OPINION
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What is more, the responsum is 30 years old, dating to a time when dangers of tobacco were suspected but their full gamut and seriousness not yet fully appreciated. The ad was strikingly diametric to the usual bus-ad fare, the touting of consumer goods, entertainment, diversions and worse. And its tag line appeared not only in English but in Spanish too. Which is what got me thinking about becoming a stool pigeon. There was a time when smoking was regarded as a harmless pastime — even a healthy one. (“More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette!” boasted one 1940s ad.) And even in less distant times, the inhalation of burning tobacco smoke has been seen as an unhealthy habit but not a potentially suicidal one. These days, though, no one denies that smoking is a major risk factor for an assortment of dire ailments, including heart disease and lung cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more deaths are caused each year by tobacco use than by illegal drug and alcohol abuse, vehicular injuries, suicides, and murders. Combined. “Smoking,” the CDC notes, “harms nearly every organ of the body” and contributes not only to heart ailments and a broad host of cancers, but to strokes and reproductive problems as well. And yet there are parts of the
Rabbi Shafran is an editor at large and columnist for Ami Magazine. This column is reproduced with permission from Ami Magazine.
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T EST Y OUR T ORAH KNOWLEDGE THIS WEEK’S PORTION: SHLACH L’CHA(BAMIDBAR 13:1—15:41) 1. Who was punished to be like shepherds? a) The Children of Israel b) Spies c) Moshe and Aaron
of Hashem”? a) Not keeping Shabbat b) Not honoring parents c) Worshiping idols
2. Did The Children of Israel try to enter Israel after Hashem decreed forty years in the desert? a) Yes b) No
4. Which color is mentioned in the mitzvah of tzizit? a) Red b) White c) Blue
3. Which sin is a “disgrace of the word
5. What does the word “tzizit” mean?
4. C 15:38 Blue is similar to the sea, the sky, and the throne of Hashem. Midrash 5. Tzizit can mean the threads which hang from a talit. Also, it means an object which is looked at. It reminds us to perform the mitzvoth of Hashem. Rashi
I snitched on some fellow Jews not long ago. To a government agency yet. It did leave a strange taste, but I think it was the right thing to do. What prompted my unprecedented role as informant was the sight of an advertisement on the side of a New York City bus. It featured, if that’s the right word, the face of a wizened woman in a sickbed, oxygen tubes protruding from her nose, her eyes seeming to gaze at the angel of death himself. The caption read: “Dying from smoking is rarely quick… and never painless.”
observant Jewish world that seem impervious to the fact, or at least late to the realization, that smoking not only takes a medically measureable toll on all who indulge in it, but causes many people to die much sooner than they would have had they not come to nurture the bad habit. There is a well-known responsum from the revered Rav Moshe Feinstein, of blessed memory, in which the renowned decisor stopped short of forbidding smoking as a matter of clear-cut halacha. But not every inadvisable act, not even every dangerous one, is necessarily forbidden by halacha. What is more, the responsum is 30 years old, dating to a time when dangers of tobacco were suspected but their full gamut and seriousness not yet fully appreciated. Perhaps more germane, the halachic rationale for not forbidding smoking is a Talmudic principle: When it comes to common (hence not necessarily subject to prohibition) but foolish behavior, shomer pesayim Hashem — G-d protects fools (Psalms 116:6). And so, to return to my first and likely last act of stoolie-hood, shortly after seeing the bus ad, I contacted the New York City agency responsible for it and informed a bureaucrat that the Orthodox Jewish community in, among other places, southern Brooklyn and Williamsburg, harbors a good number of smokers — with a fairly high collective intelligence quotient. Might it be possible, I asked, for buses servicing those areas to sport ads similar to the one I saw and, in order to seize the attention of the local population, with Yiddish translation rather than Spanish? I don’t know if my suggestion fell into fertile soil or on deaf ears. I’m not even sure if the bus ad campaign is still active; I haven’t seen the wizened lady of late. But every time I see people — especially yeshiva students, who may soon be married (or may have recently been) and who have their lives ahead of them and are not yet likely nicotine-addicted — sucking on cigarettes, I fantasize the bus of my dreams suddenly materializing and driving slowly by. And, seeing the ad on its side, the young men are reminded that with every inhalation of carbon particulates, tar, carbon monoxide, nicotine, formaldehyde, ammonia, hydrogen cyanide, arsenic, and DDT, they are not only flirting with, G-d forbid, prematurely widowing their wives and orphaning their children but are proclaiming themselves for all the world as fools.protection for the future.
of Israel. They tried to enter by force or without any direction from Hashem.(verse 44). They were defeated by the Canaanites. (verse 45) 3. C 15:31. The verse does not openly say which sin. Verses 22-31 speak about the sin of idolatry because it is equal to all the sins of the Torah. Rashi
By Rabbi Avi Shafran Contributing Columnist
Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise
ANSWERS 1. A 14:33 The Children of Israel were punished by “wandering” for 40 years in the desert because they wanted to appoint a leader to go back to Egypt. Sforno 2. A 14:40-45 After the story of the spies, The Children of Israel were on the southern border
‘Call Me Informant’
JEWISH LIFE • 17
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
Sedra of the Week
SHABBAT SHALOM: PARSHAT SHELACH NUMBERS 13:1-15:41
by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Efrat, Israel — “…And you shall strengthen yourselves, and you shall take from the fruits of the land. And the days were the season of the first grapes.” (Numbers, 13:20) Between the lines of the Bible, we glimpse the profound difficulties — and even tragedy — of Moses, the greatest prophet in history, as a leader who sees himself losing the fealty of the Hebrew nation. Moses feels that he is failing to direct the people he took out of Egyptian bondage toward the very goal of their exodus: the conquest of and settlement of the land of Israel. Where has he gone wrong, and why? From the very beginning of his ministry, when the Hebrews were at the lowest point of their Egyptian oppression, G-d instructs Moses to raise their depressed and despairing spirits with five Divine promises: “Therefore, say to the Israelites, ‘I am the Lord. I will take you out from under the burdens of Egypt, I will save you from their slavery, I will redeem you with an outstretched arm…I will take you to Myself as a nation… and I will bring you to the land which I have sworn to give to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; I shall give it to you as a heritage; I am the Lord.” (Exodus, 6:6-8). Now Moses has already succeeded – thanks to the Divine miracles – in fulfilling the first four Divine “redemptions.” Only the final one is lacking: the entry of G-d’s nation into His land. What causes the Israelites to delay and even demur in fulfilling this final stage of redemption? It cannot only be that the 10 scouts were frightened by the superior strength of the Canaanite residents. “We cannot go forward against these people… they are too strong for us” (Numbers, 13:31), since a war against the Canaanites was no greater trial than standing up to the superior power and might of Egypt, or diving into the Reed Sea. If G-d (through Moses) had demonstrated His ability to deliver them from the hands of the Egyptians, why do they now balk at taking on the Canaanites? Apparently, something has
changed during the intervening year between the splitting of the Reed Sea and the proposed conquest of the Promised Land. As we have seen in last week’s commentary, the Hebrews have intensified their complaining, not only asking for water — an existential need — but now by lusting after a more varied menu, from meat to fish and from cucumbers to garlic (Numbers, 11:4,5)! Moses is at his wits’ end; can it be that the Hebrews — after all the trials that they have successfully overcome — are now whining for the stinking sardines which they used to gather at the foot of the Nile during the period of their persecution and enslavement (ibid, 11:5)? He feels totally inadequate to deal with them, preferring death at G-d’s hands to responsibility for leading such an ungrateful people (ibid, 11:11-15). G-d commands Moses to assemble 70 elders in the Tent of Communion, appointing them as his assistants in leading the people. G-d will cause some of Moses’ spiritual energy to devolve upon them, enabling the greatest of prophets to share his awesome responsibility of leadership (11:16,17). At the same time, G-d will send quails to allay the people’s lust for meat. But then, in this week’s Biblical portion, Moses seems to make a gross miscalculation by sending out a reconnaissance mission, either initiated by G-d as an initial foray in order to map out the Israelites’ route toward conquest (Numbers, 13:1,2), or instigated by the people who wanted a report about what kind of enemy awaits them on their way to Israel (Deuteronomy 1:22). Moses apparently felt that this “new” Israelite mentality of kvetching and lusting was indeed impelled, even inspired, by food. He therefore exhorts them, as they survey the terrain of the land and of the nature of the enemy — to “strengthen themselves, and take from the fruits of the land,” to show to the Hebrews (13:20). Hopefully, the nation will be so excited by the huge and luscious grapes that they will embark on their conquest with alacrity! Apparently, what is actually now grabbing their attention is a gourmet diet. What Moses fails to appreciate, I believe, is that the real problem lies not with an Israelite drive for nutritional pleasure but with his own form of “distance” leadership — whether from the lofty heights of Mount Sinai or the inner sanctum of the “Tent of Communion,” you will remember that Moses had ini-
tially rejected G-d’s offer of leadership because, “I am a man who is heavy of speech and heavy of tongue” (Exodus, 4:10). This cannot simply mean that he stuttered and stammered — because G-d immediately answers by saying, “Is it not I who gives (or takes away) speech?” Nevertheless, Moses continues to reiterate his problem of being afflicted by “stopped-up lips” (“aral sfatayim”). I would maintain that Moses is actually saying that he is a man of heavy speech rather than friendly small talk, a prophet who is in almost constant contact with the Divine in issues of theology and law, morality and ethics. Moses is not a man of the people, a man of small talk and infinite patience who can “sell” G-d’s program to the Israelites by sugar-coating it. As the Bible itself testifies, “The Israelites did not listen to Moses because of his (Moses’) lack of patience (“kotzer ruah”) and difficult Divine service” (Ralbag’s interpretation to Exodus, 6:9). Moses, the “man (or husband) of G-d” (Deut. 33:1) as well as the “servant of the Lord,” remains “distant” from the people; he is a prophet for all the generations more than a leader for his generation. Indeed, Moses never walked among the people in the encampment; instead, he dedicates his time to speaking to the Lord in the Tent of Communion, far removed from the encampment (Leviticus, 1:1; Numbers, 7:89). It is Eldad and Medad, the new generation of leader-prophets, who prophesy from within the encampment itself — and in the midst of the people (Numbers, 11:26). Moses’ greatest asset – his closeness to G-d and his ability to “divine” the Divine will — is also his most profound tragedy, the cause of his distance from the people, his remoteness from the masses. A congregation needs to constantly be re-inspired and recharged with new challenges and lofty goals if they are to be above petty squabbles and materialistic desires. The kvetching is not because they really want the leeks and the onions; it is because they don’t know what they want. As they prepare to enter the Promised Land, they actually need — as we all need — a mission, a purpose for being. This, however, will have to await a new leader, who may be less a man of G-d but more a man of the people. Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi - Efrat Israel
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IN THE
By Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist NEWISH AND CRITICALLY PRAISED The following two films opened in limited release in the last month and may not play a theater near you. But make a note about them and look for the DVD/streaming video release if they don’t open near you. “Beginners,” a comedy/drama, is largely based on the life of director/writer Mike Mills, a graphic designer making his feature film debut. A few months after his father’s death, Oliver (modeled after Mills; played by Ewan McGregor) meets Anna, a pretty French Jewish actress (played by French Jewish actress MELANIE LAURENT, 28, a co-star of “Inglorious Basterds”). Oliver’s love for Anna brings up memories of his father, Hal, that are shown in flashback. After 44 years of marriage, the death of Oliver’s mother allows Hal (Christopher Plummer) to live very openly as a gay man. Mills’ real life mother was Jewish, but she wed his father in a church and rarely mentioned being Jewish. Likewise, in the film, Hal tells Oliver, “She (Oliver’s mother) took off her Jewish badge, and I took off my gay badge, and we got married.” In real life, Mills dated a French Jewish woman, but didn’t marry her. However, Ewan McGregor, in real life, has been married to EVA MAKARIS, a French Jewish production designer, since 1995 and they have four daughters. Their children are being raised Jewish and the whole family has visited Israel at least twice. “Midnight in Paris is being praised by most critics as one of WOODY ALLEN’s most charming films. Owen Wilson plays Gil, a “Woody-like” character who travels to modern Paris with his family and fiancée (Rachel McAdams). Nostalgic for the “golden age” of Paris in the ‘20s, Gil is magically transported to that era where he meets luminaries like GERTRUDE STEIN and Salvador Dali (ADRIEN BRODY, 38) and develops a crush on a woman who keeps company with Picasso and Hemingway (played by COREY STOLL, 35, a co-star of Law & Order, Los Angeles). ANOTHER HUGE SPIELBERG/ABRAMS HIT “Super 8,” which opened in most theaters last Friday, June 10, is shaping up as the critical and
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box-office champ of the summer. Written and directed by J.J. ABRAMS, 44, (“Lost”), and produced by STEVEN SPEILBERG, 64, the film is set in a small Ohio town in 1979. Four teenagers are making a film with their Super 8 home movie camera, hoping to get it into a Cleveland film festival. They film a train crash in town and, soon thereafter, strange things begin happening to the townspeople. NOAH EMMERICH, 46, plays Colonel Nelec, the army’s tight-lipped representative in town following the train crash. Emmerich has been in about 25 movies in the last 20 years, but I always remember him best as Jim Carrey’s best friend in “The Truman Show.” Noah’s brother, TOBY, is a leading film studio executive, and his late father, ANDRE EMMERICH (19272007), was a very famous New York art gallery owner. Born in Germany, Andre and his family fled the Nazis (1933) and settled in Holland where they got to know ANNE FRANK and her family. Andre and his parents were lucky enough to leave Holland in 1940 for America. TV NOTES I always like to “check-in” with actors who once had a sizzling career and now rarely appear on the screen — often just to see how they now look. So, I was a bit intrigued to see that HELEN SLATER, 47, was co-starring in a Hallmark Channel original film, “Rock the House,” (airs Saturday, June 18, at 9PM). The movie centers on a busy lawyer dad who neglects his teenage daughter until he re-discovers his love of playing rock music. Slater plays his exwife and the mother of the teenager. Slater, a Long Island native, was the pretty willowy blonde who co-starred in several big ‘80s hits including “Supergirl” and “Ruthless People.” For unclear reasons, her career then faded into smallish TV and film roles. Slater, however, has landed a major supporting role in the ABC Family Channel series, “The Lying Game,” which is set to premiere in August. Steven Spielberg is the producer of the new TNT series, “Falling Skies,” which starts on Sunday, June 19, at 10PM. The plot is fairly familiar: Space aliens invade the Earth, conquer it, and a group of human survivors form a resistance movement. “Skies” co-stars NOAH WYLE, 40, (“E.R.”). Wyle’s father is Jewish. His mother isn’t Jewish.
FROM THE PAGES 100 Y EARS A GO Nathan and Miss Ruth Marcuson were married at the residence of the bride’s parents, 743 Wayne Street, Walnut Hills, Tuesday evening. Dr. Grossman performed the service. Dr. Morris Gruenebaum received a cablegram from Frankfurt, Germany, announcing the death of his father, Julius Gruenebaum. The deceased is a brother of Mr. Leopold Gruenebaum, of Albany Avenue. Mr. and Mrs. S.E. Pushin and family have returned to Cincinnati, after residing in Florence, Ala., for six years. They will be glad to see their friends at their home, 3131 Hackberry Street, East Walnut Hills. The Misses Gussie W. Freiberg, Dorothy Lowman, Charlotte Westheimer and Martha F. Beckman sailed from New York last Tuesday on the S.S. New Amsterdam for a tour of Europe, paying special attention to the art galleries and art studies under the chaperonage of Miss Fairweather. Mr. and Mrs. Aaron Stix, Mrs. N. Henry Beckman and Mrs. L. J. Goldman leave Thursday for New Haven to attend the Yale commencement exercises. Among the young Cincinnatians to be graduated are Robert Goldman, Hans Stix and John Wachman in the Academic department, Harold Beckman in the Scientific department. — June 15, 1911
75 Y EARS A GO Mrs. James G. Heller will leave next week with her daughters, the Misses Cecile, Claire and Joan, and Marjorie Steiner, for Camp Quisisana, Center Lovell, Maine, where she and Dr. Heller have taken a cottage. The children will spend a few days there before going on to Camp Vega, at Echo Lake. Mrs. Heller’s mother , Mrs. Helen Bettmann, will summer at Charlevoix, as is her usual custom. Also attending Camp Vega, which is directed by Mrs. George Cohen, of New York, Dr. Heller’s sister, are the Misses Agnes Goldman, Madelyn Rosenthal, Harriet Stix, Virginia Stix, Frances Huttenbaur and Marian and Alice Jonap. The marriage of Miss Barbara Ann Jacob, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Simon Jacobs, of Avon Fields Lane, and Mr. Richard Lauer, a son of Mr. and Mrs. Clarence D. Lauer, will take place Saturday evening, June 20th, at Losantville Country Club. Dr. James G. Heller will officiate. A number of prenuptial affairs have been given during the past few weeks honoring this couple. Mrs. Albert I. Strauss announces
the engagement of her son, Mr. Carl A. Strauss, to Miss Eleanor Mendelson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Julius Mendelson, of Brooklyn. Miss Mendelson is the house guest of Mrs. Strauss for several weeks. She attended the Chatelard School in Switzerland, Packer Institute in Brooklyn, and completed her education at Smith, graduating from the institution in 1934. She is associated with Macy’s in New York City. Mr. Strauss is a graduate of Williams College and will complete his studies at the School of Architecture, Harvard University, next year. — June 18, 1936
50 Y EARS A GO Faculty members from the UC Medical Center participated in meetings last week of the third World Congress on Psychiatry in Montreal. They include Dr. Maurice Levine, director of the department; Mrs. Barbara B. Aranoff, and Drs. George R. Ashman, Goldine C. Gleser, George Kalman, Stanley M. Kaplan, R. Stuart Kravetz, Paul H. Ornstein, William E. Powles, W. Donald Ross and Roy M. Whitman. Reorganization of one of Cincinnati’s oldest law firms, Dinsmore, Shohl, Dinsmore & Todd, is announced. Frank F. Dinsmore and Walter M. Shohl, founders of the original firm, announced that the new partnership will be called Dinsmore, Shohl, Coates & Deupree and that they will continue with the firm as counsel. Partners are Richard W. Barrett, Richard W. Todd, Joseph C. Dinsmore, James O. Coates, Richard R. Deupree, Jr., H. Truxtun Emerson, Jr., and William L. Blum, Harris K. Weston, Jack G. Evans, Powell McHenry, Nolan W. Carson and John E. McDowell. — June 15, 1961
25 Y EARS A GO The Jewish Federation’s Leadership Council held its annual meeting Wednesday, May 28 at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. The evening featured the election of officers and Executive Committee. Joel Schindler accepted the nomination for a second year as president of Leadership Council. He remarked, “Our one year has been very successful. The development seminars were original and well-planned, which helped attract a diverse cross section of people. Our biggest success of the year has been the Leadership Council Division of the
Jewish Welfare Fund. To date we have raised $40,000. Programming and fund raising go hand in hand to prepare people to be leaders in the Jewish community.” Leadership Council’s new officers are: Steve Pentelnik, president designate; Jane Garfield, vice president; Alan Solinger, vice president; Ronn Mervis, treasurer; Lenny Dave, secretary; and Rick Sarason, past president. Elected as Executive Committee members are: Sharon Bayern, Barbara Binik, Rochelle Binik, Janet Califf, Martha Dave, Janet Helfgott Emmer, Bob Frohman, Ron Kabakoff, Gayle Levine, David Mabo and Edie Solomon. Elizabeth M. Kruke of Dayton, formerly of Cincinnati, passed away June 12. She is survived by a daughter and a son-in-law, Elaine and Joseph Bettman; two brothers, John and George Maurer; grandchildren, Melissa and Tim Sweeney, Randi, Marc, Jay and Todd Bettman; and one greatgrandson, Daniel. — June 19, 1986
10 Y EARS A GO Rabbi David Ellenson, the I.H. Grancell professor of Jewish Religious Thought at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religions (HUC-JIR) Los Angeles School, will become the eighth president of the seminary July 1 of this year. Burton Lehman, chair of the board of governors of HUC-JIR, announced June 5 that the board unanimously chose Ellenson to serve as the institute’s chef executive officer, overseeing its four campuses in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, New York and Jeruselam. Samuel Borstein, 83, passed away the Shabbat before Shevuoth, May 26, 2001. Borstein was born in Charleston, W.V. He was the son of the late Anna (Kaplan) and Jacob Borstein. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Dorothy Borstein, and their children: Reva (Gary) Jacobs of Atlanta and Victor Borstein of Cincinnati. Surviving grandchildren are: Matt (Diane) Jacobs of San Francisco, Greg Jacobs of Atlanta and Dr. Michael Jacobs of Denver, Colo. Also surviving Mr. Borstein is a brother, David Borstein, of Jacksonville, Fla. Other survivors are his two sistersin-law and his mother-in-law, Betty Parente of Cincinnati. Predeceasing brothers and a sister were: Mose Paden, Saul Padlinsky, Leon Borstein and Isidore Borstein, all of Charleston, W.V., and Sarah Stiefel of Washington, D.C. Mr. Borstein is also survived by an extended family consisting primarily of nieces and nephews. — June 14, 2001
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
CLASSIFIEDS • 19
COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS Access (513) 373-0300 • www.jypaccess.org 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) 754-3100 • cedarvillage.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Fusion Family (513) 703-3343 • www.fusionnati.org 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 Shalom Family (513) 703-3343 • www.myshalomfamily.org The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 Workum Fund (513) 899-1836 • workum.org YPs at the JCC (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org
CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 984-3393 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 Congregation Sha’arei Torah shaareitorahcincy.org Golf Manor Synagogue (513) 531-6654 • golfmanorsynagogue.org Isaac M. Wise Temple (513) 793-2556 • wisetemple.org 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 Chai Tots Early Childhood Center (513) 234.0600 • chaitots.com Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com 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 Kehilla - School for Creative Jewish Education (513) 489-3399 • kehilla-cincy.com 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 Discovery Center (513) 234.0777 • jdiscovery.com Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org Jewish War Veterans (513) 204-5594 • jwv.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
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production@ americanisraelite.com DONOR from page 6 through a machine that filters out the stem cells, and then the leftover blood is returned through the other arm. The other option, which I did, is a surgical procedure where the donor is put under anesthesia and a needle is injected in both sides of the back of the hip bone (the middle lower back) from where they extract the bone marrow. Because of the anesthesia and the fact that it actually involves surgery, it has more risks (albeit unlikely), more pain and a longer recovery time. Despite the greater setbacks compared to PBSC donation, my feelings regarding blood, needles, etc., made the second option seem much more appealing, and I honestly felt at least a little relief knowing that I’d be asleep the whole time. The surgery was scheduled for the end of May and my physical in Pennsylvania was scheduled for a few weeks before. I was nervous and neurotic, yet excited, when I went to the hospital for my presurgery physical, EKG, chest xray and blood tests. That trip was when the reality and sheer magnitude of what I was doing completely set in. I made it a point to stay focused on the image in my head of a little girl and her family anxiously awaiting the biggest, most precious gift I would ever be able to give somebody. Thinking about this girl and her family is truly what kept giving me the strength and courage throughout this whole process to move on and face my fears. I mindlessly registered on that ordinary day two years ago unaware that I was even making a difference, and because of it I had the chance of a lifetime to help save a little girl’s life. LIMITATIONS from page 8 One of the more serious allergies is to gluten, the protein found in grains such as wheat, barley and rye. Many Americans today tout the supposed health benefits of a gluten-free diet, but for sufferers of celiac disease — an estimated 1 percent of the population — avoiding gluten is not an issue of choice. Even a tiny amount of gluten can trigger a severe autoimmune reaction and sometimes long-term health problems. Camp and school directors have become hyper-aware of the needs
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(513) 531-9600 This experience has positively affected and changed my life so much in just a few months and I am so grateful for it. It is a truly overwhelming feeling to share such a unique connection with someone because of something buried deep within our biology. I feel such a bizarre closeness with someone who could not be any more of a stranger, yet is someone I have come to know very well in these past three months. I don’t know her name, where she’s from, or what she looks like, but she has not left my mind since I found out that she existed. I eagerly await the updates about her transplant, and hopefully the letters that will be exchanged between her parents and myself in the coming months. I pray every day that she survives this and can live the long, healthy, happy life that she deserves. If all goes planned and her parents agree to be in contact with me, a year from now I might be able to meet her. Until then, I’ll be reminding myself every single day of how lucky and grateful I am to be a part of this cause and a part of the tikkun olam that I have grown up yearning to be a part of. Whether you ever end up being a match or not, we can all help to heal the world simply by registering and getting the word out. When it comes to bone marrow, there are always lives to be saved and awareness to be made. (Lauren Kahn is graduating from Ohio University with a degree in Multicultural Studies, with a certificate in Jewish Studies. She is the daughter of Bill and Nancy Kahn, granddaughter of Judy Kahn and the late Sylvan Kahn and Jule Gildenblatt and the late Roslyn Gildenblatt. of children with celiac disease. Most ask parents to provide their own food for the children, or in the case of overnight camp, pay for the cost of procuring gluten-free food. But that’s expensive and tends to isolate the affected children. At some institutions, inclusivity trumps inconvenience. The early childhood classes at Ramaz bake once a week, Shlomovich says, and if even one child is sensitive to gluten, the entire class will bake gluten-free muffins. The same is true of other food allergies. “Every child must be able to take part and enjoy,” she says.
20 • NEWS YALE from page 6 However, Yale officials said at the time of Iran’s announcement that the listing would have little effect on the university, and professed to be baffled as to why Iran targeted Yale. The Yale Daily News speculated that any statement by a Yale professor or student could have earned the university its place on the list, and that Iranian authorities might even have mistakenly assumed that an Iranian human rights group based in New Haven was affiliated with Yale. Edward Beck, the president emeritus of Scholars for Peace in DEMOCRATS from page 7 Republicans made clear that they see a new opening now given the “1967 lines” brouhaha. “We’re stepping up our game with Jewish donors and other potential Jewish supporters that feel like Obama turned his back on them,” an RNC official who is not authorized to speak on the record told JTA. Obama’s appointment earlier this year of Wasserman Schultz as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee came in part in response to concerns that Republicans were making headway among Jews. Wasserman Schultz also contributed an Obama defense to the South Florida Sun Sentinel over the weekend. “They’re taking proactive steps they ensure they get in front of this,” said a Democratic operative close to the Jewish community who requested anonymity. “They’re explaining to the Jewish MAYOR from page 9 He dismissed the notion that his candidacy could put the Jewish community at risk. “If the society knows us better, the level of anti-Semitism will become lower,” Bergman said. “I have many non-Jewish voters. The only doubt today is if Jews will vote for me. “What I can assure is that I can be criticized for many things, but not for being a rabbi. I receive criticisms that I’m on the right or that I ask for law and order, but nobody criticizes me for being Jewish. If I receive attacks for being a rabbi, the first to come out to defend me are the nonJews.” On the other side of the partisan divide is Macri’s rival, Filmus, who served as education minister under the country’s previous president, Nestor Kirchner, the late husband of Argentina’s current leader. While more secular than Bergman, Filmus has not shied
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the Middle East, called the shuttering of Yale’s anti-Semitism initiative “an egregious act, an affront to academic freedom.” Kenneth Marcus, who directs the Initiative on Anti-Semitism at the San Francisco-based Institute for Jewish and Community Research, called the Yale program “a first-rate, world-renowned research institution.” Yale’s anti-Semitism initiative “has quickly emerged as the leading university-based antiSemitism research institute in North America,” said Marcus, a former staff director of the United States Commission on Civil Rights. “The idea that its closure
could be based in any part on academic merit is simply preposterous.” Yale’s anti-Semitism initiative stirred controversy last August when its signature conference featured as a keynote speaker Itamar Marcus, who heads Palestinian Media Watch, a group seen by Palestinians and some liberal pro-Israel groups as right wing. When Marcus delivered a keynote lecture titled “The Central Role of Palestinian Anti-Semitism in Creating the Palestinian Identity,” Ma’en Areikat, the Palestine Liberation Organization”s envoy in
Washington, wrote to Yale to say that lectures by Itamar Marcus and others were “racist propaganda masquerading as scholarship.” Much of the conference”s program, however, was made up of sessions examining a broad range of topics related to anti-Semitism featuring noted scholars, such as Deborah Lipstadt, the Holocaust historian. After learning that Yale’s antiSemitism initiative was to close, Lipstadt posted a message on Twitter calling the decision “weird” and “strange” and saying that the program “ran first-rate events.” The New York Post ran an opin-
ion article by Abby Wisse Schachter accusing Yale of shutting down the program “almost certainly” because the initiative “refused to ignore the most virulent, genocidal and common form of Jew-hatred today: Muslim antiSemitism.” Thomas Conroy, a Yale spokesman, said in an email to JTA that Yale is “ready to provide support for working groups studying anti-Semitism” and noted that the university “has long been a leader in Judaic research, teaching and collection.” He mentioned its Judaica collection and its archive of video Holocaust testimony.
audience what’s going on so it doesn’t become a problem down the road. It’s better to get ahead of this and tell people what’s actually been said than play catch-up.” The White House posting begins by addressing the “1967 lines” controversy. “This territorial formula, which has been used in IsraeliPalestinian negotiations for decades, means that the parties themselves will negotiate a border that is different than the one that existed on June 4, 1967 to account for the changes that have taken place over the last 44 years,” it said, adding that the formula “is fully consistent with the positions of earlier U.S. Administrations, including the 2004 Bush-Sharon letters.” In fact, while previous administrations — including President George W. Bush in his letter to then-Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon — have acknowledged the 1967 lines as an aspiration for
the Palestinians, Obama has gone further in embracing them as a basis for talks. That frustrated Israelis who say it narrows their options by setting parameters. In the same May 19 Middle East policy speech, Obama also set restrictive parameters for Palestinians, for instance, in declaring that their state would not be militarized. The difference between Obama and his predecessors is not as drastic as Republicans have portrayed, however, especially in statements like the one recently from RNC Chairman Reince Priebus that refer only to the “1967 lines” without noting “mutually agreed swaps.” “It’s not a good comment that the other side seized control of the narrative by lying,” one prominent Jewish Democrat said. The White House is convening meetings of top Democrats in the coming weeks and months to coordinate message discipline. Jewish Democrats are frustrat-
ed with their inability to bury perceptions that Obama has distanced himself from Israel, noting especially that officials in both countries agree that the defense relationship is closer than ever. “I expected my attention to be in the Midwest, not in the Middle East,” is how Emanuel, Obama’s former chief of staff who just began his term as Chicago mayor, began his Op-Ed in The Washington Post last week. Democrats say their concerns extend to the nature of the U.S.Israel relationship, which for decades has been predicated on bipartisan support. Wasserman Schultz forcefully raised the issue in a meeting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held with top Jewish representatives of both parties last month. Matt Brooks, the director of the Republican Jewish Coalition, shot back with a public letter accusing Wasserman Schultz of trying to gag debate by suppress-
ing legitimate criticism of Obama. Mark Mellman, a top Democratic pollster, dismissed talk of a “gag order.” “They have the right to say whatever they want, but Democrats have the right to say it’s not wise,” he said. Noah Pollak, the director of the Executive Committee for Israel, has acknowledged that Obama’s policies are not substantially different from his predecessors. The president’s problem, he said, has more to do with optics that suggest his hostility to the Netanyahu government. Pollak noted that the 1967 lines parameters came on the eve of Netanyahu’s visit. “Obama has proven over and over again he is incapable of having a good meeting with the prime minister,” Pollak said. “The issue is why do this and tell the prime minister just before he’s about to fly to Washington? It guarantees a sour visit.”
away from his Jewish identity. He sent his youngest daughter to the Jewish ORT high school and, as education minister, organized a 2005 ceremony commemorating Holocaust Memorial Day. Filmus also announced the Argentine government’s decision “to teach children about the Holocaust in all the schools throughout the country because this will help us build a better society and prevent history from repeating itself.” Another Jewish mayoral hopeful is Jorge Telerman, who had been the city’s vice mayor before taking over as mayor for nearly two years following the 2006 impeachment and removal from office of Anibal Ibarra. Running to retain the office in 2007, Telerman placed third behind Macri and Filmus. A poll of Buenos Aires voters published May 29 showed Macri leading with the support of 32.9 percent of voters, followed by Filmus with 24.9 percent. Telerman was a distant fourth with 4.8 percent.
Amid the proliferation of prominent Jewish candidates, Buenos Aires voters also will have the opportunity to cast their mayoral ballots for a neo-Nazi: Alejandro Biondini of the Social Alternative party. He has openly espoused anti-Semitism and his previous party, New Triumph, was banned by Argentina’s Supreme Court in 2009. The country’s electoral court rejected calls recently from members of the Buenos Aires legislature to ban Biondini from running for mayor — a request that was backed by DAIA and other Jewish groups. Yet in contrast to the high-profile candidacies of Filmus and Bergman, the controversy surrounding a fringe figure like Biondini is little more than an electoral sideshow. Indeed, the prominence of Jews in Argentine politics today is all the more striking in light of the nation’s history. Argentine Jews are a small minority in an overwhelmingly Catholic country. In the decades
after World War II, they found themselves living in a country that became notorious as an all-toowilling refuge for prominent Nazis who had escaped justice in Europe. Under the right-wing military junta that ruled the country from 1976 to 1983, Jewish dissidents and leftists were targeted for persecution. While Argentine Jews have been active participants in Argentina’s business, cultural and academic spheres, they have not been prominent traditionally in its political life. Two traumatic events brought the Jewish community greater visibility in the public sphere: the bombings in 1992 and 1994, respectively, of the city’s Israeli embassy and the AMIA Jewish community center — both carried out by Hezbollah at Iran’s behest, Argentine prosecutors eventually concluded. In loudly demanding that the perpetrators of the two terrorist attacks be brought to justice, Argentina’s Jews moved decisively into the public eye.
Today, prominent Jewish politicians are not unusual. Argentina’s current foreign minister, Hector Timerman, is the son of a famed dissident, the journalist Jacobo Timerman. The elder Timerman was imprisoned by the military junta and eventually fled for Israel before returning to Argentina following the restoration of democracy. Argentine Jewish politicians benefitted from changes in Argentine society, which has become more secular, argues University of Buenos Aires sociologist Daniel Scarfo. He noted the 1994 constitutional reform removing the requirement that the country’s president be a Catholic. “The religion of the candidates is less relevant to the majority,” Scarfo said. “On the other hand,” he added, “it seems healthy for political life in a democracy, the resurgence of the voices of the Jewish culture that in this country had been severely repressed during the times of dictatorship.”
FIRST PERSON • 21
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011
The ‘Jmom’ Incidentally Iris
by Iris Ruth Pastor What Jewish mother worth her kosher pickle doesn’t like to meddle in their kids’ affairs? And as far as I’m concerned, the only differINT’L BRIEFS from page 9 “This award acknowledges the work which I have done which is beyond the call of duty and is not part of my job description,” Pulver said. Among the other Jews amid the 250-plus recipients this year was Perth-based Spanish dancer Deeana Blacher, the first castanets soloist to be invited by Zubin Mehta to perform with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra; Rabbi Philip Heilbrunn, a South Africaborn minister at St. Kilda Hebrew Congregation in Melbourne; and Professor Jeffrey Rosenfeld, the head of neurosurgery at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, which has a collaborative agreement with Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem. U.S. delegation visits jailed contractor Alan Gross (JTA) — A delegation of Americans visiting Cuba met with jailed American contractor Alan Gross. The group met for two hours with Gross, 62, who is serving a 15-year prison sentence for “crimes against the state” for distributing laptop computers and connecting Cuban Jews to the Internet, on June 10 in Havana. They delivered a letter to him from his Washington-area synagogue, according to Reuters. Gross was convicted and sentenced last month. Cuban authorities detained Gross in late 2009 on his way out of the country, saying he was a spy. He has appealed his conviction and prison sentence. The group came to Cuba under the auspices of the Washingtonbased Center for Democracy in the Americas, which advocates for better U.S.-Cuba relations. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter visited Gross in March. Gross is in ill health. His daughter has breast cancer and his mother was diagnosed with cancer as well. Cuba and the United States have not had diplomatic relations
ence between us moms is in the degree of meddling. I am the mother of five adult sons – two married and three sisngle. And with varying degrees of success, I keep track of their comings and goings. However, I must admit that I have an inkling that they have more control over the flow of information that ultimately reaches me than I realize. But I still cling to the hope that I have some maternal influence over their lives and habits. I am always looking for ways to promote their well being and, I sheepishly admit, to further my own agenda. I shamelessly declare that I am intent on increasing the number of grandchildren I already have before I lose the ability, desire
and cognitive skills to interact with them meaningfully. So here’s my latest ploy: The jmom website. The creation of this website gives credence to the intent of most Jewish mothers to help their kids find their beshert (soul mate). Hey, it’s a new paradigm. Few marry right out of college, so bars, friends and social events become the point of contact. And dating takes lots of time, money, effort and attention to detail. Plus, the biological clock is ticking away. It can be very stressful. As one young single woman related, “looking for a mate is like having another full time job.” And more and more adult Jews in the United States are single. One study sites 42 percent. Oy! It’s clear we
need to take matters into our own capable hands. The JMom website was launched in December 2010 by siblings, Brad and Danielle, and their good friend and programmer, Matt. As their site says, “A year earlier, Brad and Danielle’s mother, Barbara, had asked numerous times to look at Brad’s online dating profile and search the site to see if she could find the perfect girl for him. Brad finally gave in and let her go to town, searching the site as she pleased. Two hours later, Brad came back to check on his mom and found her still completely engaged with the computer, searching with a list of about 10 different girls for him to contact. She had
put more effort and time into the process than he could or ever would, and she enjoyed doing it. That was our first Ah-Ha moment.” The site is set up so that users write about their families, fill out profile information and contact mothers of other singles and suggest potential matches. It’s not the singles that are making the connections. It’s the moms! I’m trying it out. Whether I tell my kids about it before I begin — well, I’m still grappling with that issue. Hey, I can control the information flow too. Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.
since the 1960s. The U.S. has economic and financial sanctions in place against the island nation.
AFRICA from page 10
our luck is that we are doing well by doing good by giving answers to problems like hunger,” said Naty Barak, head of sustainable development at Netafim. In a Kenyan village called Kitui, Barak said that 200 poor, smallscale vegetable growers who adopted Netafim’s product saw a 140 percent increase of harvested yield and a 200 percent increase in income while saving about 60 percent of water resources. Previously, they had irrigated crops by hauling water from wells. The Israeli Foreign Ministry also is becoming involved, inviting African business delegations to Israel to learn more about its industries and twinning economic attaches at Israeli embassies in Africa with Israeli companies to help scope out opportunities. “We are sending the message that it is good to do business with Africa,” Rafael Harpaz, director of
the ministry’s economic department that deals with the Americas and Africa, told JTA. “There is potential to grow, and we are looking for new markets to trade with. If the Israeli economy is going to grow, it needs these new markets.” To that end, the Foreign Trade Administration, a department within the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, is seeking new policies that will help harness Israel’s competitive advantage in the developing world, including Africa. Jewish Heart for Africa said that bringing Israeli know-how to Africa is particularly attractive to its donor base of young American Jews. “Young donors like our projects,” said Sivan Borowich Ya'ari, the organization’s founder and president, “because we are not only helping Africa but helping Israel by helping the Israeli economy and Israel’s image.”
“Their lives are about to be forever changed,” she says, speaking at the bedside of an 11-year-old from Angola who is having blood drawn. Many of the volunteers at the hospital and the house are young Jews from abroad. Upstairs from the African patients, Palestinian patients are attending a weekly clinic. The long corridor is filled with mothers in floor-length black dresses and headscarves holding babies. Akiva Tamir, the pediatric cardiologist who oversees the clinic, says the Palestinian patients are fortunate because their proximity to Israel means they will be treated at a younger age, before damage from either congenital or acquired heart disease has time to intensify. Godwin Godfry, a 31-year-old general surgeon from Tanzania, is in the midst of a six-year stint training in Israel. When he finishes, Godfry will go back to the city of Mwanza on the shores of Lake Victoria in northern Tanzania. He will be one of the only pediatric cardiac surgeons in the country.
“In our hospital alone, we have a waiting list of 300 children to be treated for heart disease,” he says, but no doctor is available to treat them. The range of cardiac cases Godfry sees while helping treat children from the program makes his time in Israel that much more valuable, he says, because he can treat in a western setting patients with the illnesses usually found only in the developing world. “Here you learn how things should be done,” Godfry says. At Wolfson’s pediatric intensive care unit, most of the beds on a recent day are occupied by children recovering from surgery performed by Godfry’s mentor, Sasson. Smiling from a bed in the far corner is Zeresenay Gebru, 15, from Ethiopia. Earlier in the day, he had surgery to replace the battery in a pacemaker he received from Save a Child’s Heart when he was 6. “I would like to thank all the doctors and the volunteers,” the teenager says, adding that he wants to be a cardiologist. “They gave me my heart back.”
European Jewish Congress lobbies against unilateral Palestinian state (JTA) — The European Jewish Congress has contacted leaders on the continent in a bid to prevent recognition of a unilaterally declared Palestinian state in the United Nations. Dr. Moshe Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress, wrote a letter to all European heads of state, foreign affairs ministers and EU leaders explaining the problems with recognizing a Palestinian state when the issue comes before the United Nations in September. The unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state “will not bring a solution to the existing conflict or create peace in the Middle East,” Kantor wrote. “On the contrary, it will add new layers to the unresolved and complex legal and political issues. Without a negotiated solution, the chances of even greater violence in the region will be higher, especially at this time of flux for the Middle East.” Kantor also wrote that recognizing a Palestinian state outside of negotiations “stands in opposition to the principles of the Quartet” and “undermine existing bilateral agreements between the Israelis and the Palestinians.” The June 10 letter also pointed out that Hamas, which has reconciled with Fatah and is part of the Palestinian government, still calls for the destruction of the State of Israel and for the annihilation of Jews. Kantor and the European Jewish Congress leadership also are meeting with European leaders, members of the European Parliament and European decision-makers and opinion shapers. In addition, the group has called on European Jews to lobby their elected representatives against the Palestinians’ bid for recognition.
A recent report by McKinsey, the international consulting firm, suggested that the future survival of global companies will depend on their ability to focus on what they term “innovation to win in lowcost, high-growth countries” like those found in Africa. According to McKinsey, in the next decade such emerging-market economies, now on the sidelines, will become central global economic players. Signs of change are already here. There are many Israeli companies in Africa involved in building roads and hospitals and working in water management and medicine. The Israeli irrigation company Netafim introduced low-pressure, low-cost drip irrigation systems for subsistence farmers, providing them with enough water to raise crops year round. “We are a private company and HEARTS from page 10 children, who because of space and financial constraints travel without a parent. A child’s surgery and post-operative care typically costs $10,000, all of which is covered through donations to Save a Child’s Heart. “My baby needs surgery. She loses weight all the time. She needs to get better so she can play with the other children,” says Mati Ali, 27, who had never been on an airplane and knew practically nothing about Israel before a doctor referred her to the program. Fathma, her 3-year-old, is dressed in her best clothes -- a maroon dress sprinkled with pink flowers. Soon the children are bundled into taxis en route to Wolfson Medical Center, where they will meet up with fellow new arrivals from Angola. Sara Mucznik, 28, who immigrated to Israel from Portugal last year and now does marketing for Save a Child’s Heart, helps translate for the Angolans.
Keep coping, Iris Ruth Pastor
22 • OBITUARIES D EATH N OTICES GUP, Louis, age 84, died on June 13, 2011; 11 Sivan, 5771. WEINER from page 8 Weiner’s perennial prefixes — “Jewish congressman, from New York, staunch supporter of Israel” — clearly identified him in the public mind, said Susan Weidman Schneider, editor-in-chief of the feminist Jewish magazine Lilith. Just as Italian-Americans worry about blanket generalizations with “The Sopranos” or “The G-dfather,” Jews sigh reflexively when there is a Jew whose bad judgment and bad behavior are in the spotlight, Weidman Schneider said. BREITBART from page 8 Breitbart also orchestrated the release of additional revealing photos taken by Weiner of himself and made an appearance just before the congressman’s confessional news conference. Breitbart was a late addition to the RJC event’s lineup, which already included Reps. Ileana RosLehtinen (R-Fla.) and Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). Taking the stage at the end of the evening, Breitbart seemed at ease. “My first event was held here,” he told the audience. “Not in this esteemed room, but in the bar downstairs.” Since then, Breitbart said, he’s had the chance to speak to RJC gatherings numerous times, and he acknowledged that he has financial backers from the group's ranks. “What a lucrative alliance we’ve created,” he said. Prior to Breitbart's address, Gingrich in his keynote address had attempted to dismiss the reports that his run for president might be on the skids in the aftermath of the simultaneous resigna-
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“Only this isn’t fiction,” she said. “There’s a foolishness to Weiner’s attempted cover-up, no pun intended, that’s as embarrassing and cringe-inducing as the acts themselves.” “When the Son of Sam turns out to be David Berkowitz or the greatest Ponzi scheme ever is perpetrated by Bernie Madoff or a humiliated politician is named Eliot Spitzer or Anthony Weiner,” Democratic political consultant Steve Rabinowitz said, “you can almost hear it as a community: Why did he have to be our guy?” Weiner’s political identity has long been intertwined with his Jewishness. He has been celebrated by the pro-settlement Zionist Organization of America for his positions on the West Bank, and
Weiner routinely introduces a bill that would deny assistance to Saudi Arabia, even though that wealthy country does not receive U.S. assistance beyond a small program that trains Saudi army officers in democracy. ZOA President Morton Klein said the Weiner scandal represents a “terrible loss for the pro-Israel community.” “As long as Anthony Weiner remains in Congress, his position on Israel will be among the best,” Klein said. “The only issue now is whether his influence will have diminished and whether his credibility will have diminished.” Robert Wexler, a Democrat and former Jewish congressman from Florida, said regaining voters’ trust will have to be a top priority
for Weiner. “Up until last week, Anthony was an excellent congressman and a fine public servant,” said Wexler, who now runs the Washington-based S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace. “The bottom line is that he’s a good and decent person that made some grave errors.” With sincere and honest repentance and a reminder of the Jewish value of “seeing the other person in the image of G-d,” there’s a way for Weiner to put the scandal behind him, said Orthodox feminist activist Blu Greenberg. Judaism appreciates forgiveness, and Weiner has the chance to atone by making changes to his life and way of thinking, Greenberg told JTA. “He doesn’t necessarily have to
be a condemned man the rest of his life,” she said. “If others are big enough to forgive him, then his life isn’t over. “He’s not an ax-murderer. He’s a very foolish man in power lacking a sense of appreciation for what he had.” But whether Weiner can recover to the degree where the American Jewish community will proudly count him again among its ranks is a tougher question. “He provided a negative example for our children,” said Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judaism. “We appropriately feel outrage for that.”
tions of many core members of his campaign staff. “I knew full well the rigors of campaigning for public office. In fact, I’ve had some recent reminders,” Gingrich said. “I will endure the challenges.” Breitbart spoke glowingly of Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate. But in an interview with The Jewish Journal he dismissed Gingrich, saying he’d like to see the ex-House of Representatives speaker from Georgia become “the top adviser to the next president of the United States.” In marked contrast to Gingrich, who offered nine policy recommendations about the Middle East, Breitbart painted his support for Israel simply and with a broad brush. “I just don’t understand how an inherently decent and free people could be ‘the bad guy,’ ” Breitbart said of Israel. “I’m glad I’ve become a journalist because I want to fight on behalf of the Israeli people.” After telling the mostly Jewish audience that he was kicked out of Hebrew school as a child — “that’s
where the battle started with the liberal Jewish community” — and dismissing his undergraduate degree from Tulane University as training in “moral relativism,” Breitbart rejected the notion of journalistic objectivity in covering Israel. “You cannot be objective when it comes to right and wrong,” Breitbart said. “And Israel is in the right. So I’m a biased journalist, and I’m having a great time doing it.” His message was missed by most of the media members, who had exited after the address by Gingrich. Breitbart, who grew up in southern California and lives in suburban Los Angeles, has worked for the Web sites of both the conservative Matt Drudge and the progressive Arianna Huffington. At the RJC event he held forth on his preferred target — what he calls “the Democrat-Media-Complex” — and seemed as happy that the Weiner scandal was causing difficulty for the New York lawmaker as he was excited at his own ability to direct the narrative of the mainstream media.
“This is a citizen movement,” Breitbart said of those who contribute to his conservative Web sites, which are aimed at forcing the media to follow — or at least address — his attacks on the left. “If you’re not going to cover this truth, every second that you don’t cover this truth, you’re going to look more and more stupid, and you’re going to lose more subscribers.” Breitbart said he sees evidence of liberal biases everywhere — not least in Hollywood — and he is launching a new website to continuously report on it. He professes disappointment with Jewish liberals in Hollywood and the stories they choose to tell. “I wish [Steven] Spielberg, [David] Geffen and [Jeffrey] Katzenberg, as representatives of that realm, would invest more in creating content that reflects American values,” Breitbart said. “ ‘Munich’ was a paean to moral relativism,” he said, referring to Spielberg’s 2005 film about the Mossad’s hunt for the perpetrators of the attack on the Israeli Olympic athletes in 1972. Breitbart said he liked Quentin
Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds” better. That movie, Breitbart explained, also featured Jews hunting bad guys — but without the guilty conscience. Until this month, Breitbart was best known for his involvement with James O’Keefe’s controversial undercover videos of employees of ACORN, a nonprofit community-organizing group. He also helped circulate footage of a speech given by Department of Agriculture official Shirley Sherrod, which turned out to have been misleadingly edited to portray remarks she had made as racist. Breitbart described his ongoing plan to create a bigjerusalem.com Web site to tell Israel’s side of the story in a news landscape he sees as biased against the Jewish state. The online magazine Tablet has reported Breitbart saying that he has not yet found a donor to support the project. Breitbart would not reveal if biggovernment.com has any new scoops on Democratic elected officials in the offing. “If they’re not doing anything wrong," he said, "they’ve got nothing to worry about.”
NATIONAL BRIEFS from page 8
of the ups and downs of campaigning. His staffers reportedly were unhappy with his resistance to their advice and his refusal to dive into the day-to-day grind of campaigning. In his RJC speech, Gingrich said Israel was more vulnerable than ever in part because of the Western failure to confront terrorism — a failure he said has been exacerbated by Obama administration policies. “The president’s decision to adopt a policy of accommodation, using the political objectives and code words of those who wish to drive Israel into the sea, affirms the administration’s radicalism in its headlong flight from the legacy of U.S. presidents from Truman to Bush, and is leading Israel and the Western democracies toward ever increasing danger,” he said. “We first need to acknowledge
that 20 years of trying to negotiate peace with evil regimes and organizations dedicated to the destruction of Israel, and in many cases our own destruction, has been a failure, and the time has come to clearly and decisively take the offensive against them.”
spokesperson to declare the Italian energy company’s plans to officially cease doing business with Iran. The protests followed a news conference at which Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and other officials awarded Iran 180 Hero Awards to Iranian activists and dissidents. The honorees included Shabnam Assadollahi, a human rights activist who served 18 months as an Iranian political prisoner and today voices the opinions of Iranian dissidents on her radio show “Hamseda.” The protest and conference were held on the anniversary of Ahmadinejad’s election two years ago amid widespread allegations of voter fraud and rigging.
“Israel has every right as a sovereign, free nation to choose its own capital, and we should respect that choice,” Gingrich, the former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, said Sunday in an address to the Republican Jewish Coalition. “As president, on my first day in office, I would issue an executive order directing the U.S. embassy in Israel to be moved to Jerusalem as provided for in the legislation I introduced in 1995.” Gingrich’s speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition was his first since his top staff resigned en masse last week, throwing into doubt his viability as a candidate for the Republican 2012 presidential nomination. Gingrich made a joking aside to the resignations, saying he’s had “some reminders” in recent weeks
Protesters in N.Y. picket companies dealing with Iran NEW YORK (JTA) — Protesters demonstrated outside the New York headquarters of several companies accused of conducting business with Iran. Demonstrators from Iran 180 and United against Nuclear Iran, two groups promoting a democratic Iran, rallied June 10 in Midtown Manhattan, booing a large papier mache construction of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Eni Corp., one of the companies being picketed, sent down a
(JTA Washington Bureau Chief Ron Kampeas contributed to this report.)
2011 CALENDAR Special Issues & Sections J ANUARY
F EBRUARY
M ARCH
6
3
3
Wonderful Weddings
13
Health & Beauty
10
20
Tu-Be-Shevat
17
17
24
24
27 Mature Living/Senior Lifestyles
Kids/Summer Camps
10 Purim
31
A PRIL
M AY
J UNE
7
5
2
12
9
14
Passover
21 28
Real Estate / Home & Garden
19 19
Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planning Issue Lag B’Omer
26
Celebrations
The Car Issue
16 23
Best of Jewish Cincinnati
30
J ULY
AUGUST
S EPTEMBER
7
4
1 8
Dentistry Issue/Dental Directory
Back to School & Shopping Guide
14
11
21
18
28
Mature Living/Senior Lifestyles
Medical Issue
15 22
25
29
Rosh Hashanah Jewish Year in Review
O CTOBER
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6
3
1
Gift Guide
8
Gift Guide
13
10
Estate Planning / Financial Planning
17
20 27
Event Planning Guide
15
Travel Guide
24
Chanukah
22
Legal Directory
29
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