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Temples Beth El, Israel Merge Preschools, Mull Rapprochement
BRETT M. RHYNE
Jewish Journal Staff

SWAMPSCOTT — In a growing spirit of cooperation, Conservative Temples Beth El and Israel agreed last month to combine their preschool operations. This move is the latest in a series of religious, educational and fundraising collaborations and buoys the hopes of some congregants who seek the temples’ unification.

No one foresees a merger in the next couple of years, but members of both synagogues report a growing spirit of cooperation.

“The preschool merger is a wonderful thing,” said Temple Israel Preschool Director Cheryl Schwartz. “It would be so good to keep all these kids together, it would be silly not to. We’ve already merged the Hebrew schools and the minyans. Hopefully, someday, we’ll merge the synagogues.”

“Our preschool is very solid, is growing, and has been here for over 20 years,” said Rabbi Edgar Weinsberg of Temple Beth El. “Temple Israel’s demographic made it practical to absorb their youth — to have all the preschoolers gathered here.”

According to Schwartz, children whose parents belong to either temple will continue to pay a slightly discounted tuition. The new preschool will be staffed by current Beth El workers, Schwartz said, adding, “I will be teaching over there anyway for one year at least with a small class.”

Rabbi Weinsberg noted the “administrative and fiscal advantages” to the merger, as well as greater opportunities for “increased socialization” for the children.

Merging their preschools is the latest in a series of cooperative efforts by the two temples. “We’re neighbors,” Beth El President Helaine R. Hazlett said. “It’s good to merge the workers, the volunteers, and to lighten the load.”

“In principle,” Rabbi Weinsberg said, “the two temples and the two rabbis have looked for as many areas of sharing resources as we can find while still retaining our individuality.”

Several years ago, Beth El joined the North Shore Hebrew School, a joint effort of Temple Israel, Marblehead’s Conservative Temple Sinai, Salem’s Conservative Temple Shalom and Lynn’s Orthodox Ahavat Shalom.

“At one time, our numbers of students were comparable — around 125 each,” Rabbi Weinsberg said. “But due to a demographic dip, our numbers declined to about 60 kids.”

This past winter, the two temples alternated holding combined minyans; they also celebrated weekday holidays, like the first and second nights of Passover, together.

“This is a tremendous step,” Beth El’s Hazlett said. “Spiritually, to have a full congregation always makes the service nicer. To have a minyan is what we strive for each day.”

At an April 29 meeting, the Temple Beth El Board of Directors authorized Ritual Committee Chair Harry Epstein to discuss holding joint Purim and Simchas Torah services with Temple Israel.

The two temples also cooperate on adult education. “We’ve been holding a joint spirituality text study group,” Rabbi Weinsberg said. “On alternate months, it’s held at Israel and Rabbi [Neal] Loevinger leads it, and it’s held here and I lead it.”

Next September 15, the two temples will jointly hold a fundraising golf tournament at Kernwood Country Club, according to Beth El member Bradley Sontz, who is organizing the event.

“My ulterior motive is to merge the two temples,” Sontz said. “The number of Jewish families in the area has diminished. Each temple, in its own way, is fighting for its survival. The best way to empower the community is to have one strong temple.”

Sontz said there are “without question” financial and other advantages to the merger: “We share the same fiscal crunching, the same beliefs, the same types of programs. Our rabbis work so well together. A merger would cut down on expenses for both congregations.”
“A merger has not been discussed,” said Temple Israel President Michael Rosenbaum, adding his organization has “not been formally contacted” by anyone at Temple Beth El about such a move. He said he does not expect a merger to occur “in the near future. In time, anything’s possible,” he said, “but I don’t foresee it in the next year or two.”

As for what a combined Temple Beth El-Israel might look like, Sontz said, “Each temple has its own characteristics. Temple Israel has a much greater ability to handle the increased capacity, but there’s little room for growth. Beth El has a higher real estate value, and an ocean view. Both temples have spent large amounts of money in renovations.”

Temple Israel Vice President Marla Gay was circumspect about a potential merger. “Our temples are working together in many areas. There is a sense of community and collaboration. It doesn’t signify a merger,” she said.

The two temples share a history. “I call Temple Israel ‘the mother temple,’” 48-year Beth El member Harold Hoch told The Journal from his home in Lake Worth, Fla. Hoch, 80, said Beth El was founded in Lynn in 1926-27, and that “some members who were disgruntled with the rabbi or the school broke off” to establish Temple Israel in Swampscott in 1946.

In 1969, Hoch’s first year as president, Beth El moved to its current Swampscott location on Atlantic Ave. opposite Temple Israel. Since then, the two temples have experienced periods of alienation and rapprochement.

“There was a lot of talk of Temple Israel and Temple Beth El merging in the mid-90s,” Hoch said. “We worked on it for almost two years. People involved with building the temples couldn’t agree on whose facility to use. We just couldn’t get it together.”

While both temples are currently seeking to fill cantor positions, Rabbi Weinsberg said, “There’s been no discussion of jointly hiring a cantor.” Sources from the temples said Beth El is now finalizing a contract with a cantorial applicant, while Israel’s search continues.
“I don’t see it for the time being, but one never knows,” Rabbi Weinsberg said. “Job sharing, with cantors and possibly even rabbis, is something that ought to be eventually considered.”

“Something really has to change, has to give,” Beth El’s Sontz said. “Collectively, we could be one of the strongest Conservative congregations in New England; separately, we’re struggling.”

The preschool merger “is a good thing for the community,” said Israel’s Schwartz. “I’m very pleased, very happy, and I hope they take it one step further.”

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BRETT M. RHYNE
Jewish Journal Staff

MARBLEHEAD — The regime of Saddam Hussein may be toppled, but for storyteller Judith Black, whose son is serving in the Marine Corps in Iraq, the tsuris continue.

Lance Corporal Solomon Black is a combat engineer with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, currently “repairing roads and building things in northwest Iraq,” as Judith says. “He also does ‘land mine education’: disassembling and assembling land mines.

“What could go wrong?” she asks facetiously.

Although Judith’s politics are leftist, she understands her son’s decision to join the Corps. “It is such a good personal choice for him,” she says. “He excels at leadership.”

Diagnosed with a learning disability, Attention Deficit Disorder, at age 12, Sol had to find other ways to excel at Marblehead High, where, as Judith notes, “most students are college bound.” Sol, the son of Judith and Michael Elkins, a therapist practicing in Salem and Newton, went out for football. He rose to become team captain.

“He wanted something he could be the best at,” Judith says.

Sol enlisted at 17, while still in high school. “I think he was tired of people asking him what he was going to do after graduation,” Judith says. “That was one of his reasons for joining.” He entered the Corps shortly after graduation, in August, 2001.

“After only three weeks, he became the squad leader. And this was the honor platoon,” Judith explains, with a hint of pride.

Not many Jews join the Marines. “When Sol was in basic training on Parris Island, he said there were maybe 12 Jews from all the different ranks,” she says. “He’s the only Jew in his squad.”

Judith tells two stories that highlight this. “During basic training, some of the other guys said to him, ‘Hey Black, where are your horns?’ He replied, ‘We Jews have them removed in a ceremony when we’re 13.’

“And when he was on board ship in the Gulf,” she continues, “he went to Passover services. There were two Jews there: the Jewish chaplain and him.

“But the Marines are great about respecting the differences among their soldiers,” she adds.

“I felt hideous when I first learned he was going to Iraq,” Judith says. “I cried all the time. You worry desperately, for two reasons. First, for his life. But also, you worry that he’s going to be called on to do something that’s amoral.

“Sol told me, ‘I’ll make you proud of me — I won’t do anything wrong,’” she says. Judith points out that Marines sometimes “do good things,” like supporting the democratically elected government of President Aristide in Haiti.

She also thinks Sol learned positive values in the Marine Corps, including “reliance, strength and community. These kids do so much growing up; they learn to take responsibility for themselves.

“I wish every kid could go through this training, without then going to Third World countries to kill people for oil profits,” she says.

“Here’s the creepiest thing,” Judith says, switching into storyteller mode. “When he first told me he was going to Iraq, I said, ‘Don’t kill anybody.’ He replied, ‘I won’t shoot any kids — unless they look at me funny.’” She pauses. “Then he said, ‘Just kidding.’ He knows how to push my buttons.”

Judith feels strongly about “the invasion” of Iraq. “I think it’s a shame our boys are risking their lives for an amoral cause,” she says.
“Sol has no idea what a moron George W. Bush is,” Judith notes. I can’t even really talk to him about it. He told me, ‘I want to join the Marines to protect the U.S. Constitution.’ Who am I to tell him to be cynical?”

Still, she struggles with balancing her politics with her feelings for her son. “When you raise a humanist, you think you have a dead man walking,” she explains. “You don’t want him to think too much — it’s a hostile environment.”

Sol’s unit did engage in “a few skirmishes with the Republican Guard,” Judith says, but the cessation of hostilities does not calm her fears. “The fighting’s not over,” she warns. “We’ve made a lot of enemies in the Middle East. I’m afraid Syria’s next.”

Judith relates the moral of this mother-and-son story somewhat wistfully: “You realize there’s no black-and-white in this world — only gray.”

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Teacher Promotes Schools' Religious Instruction

MARK ARNOLD
Jewish Journal Staff

PEABODY – Many public schools ignore the subject of religion to avoid giving offense. The alternative — and wiser course of action — is to teach kids about different religions, according to a veteran teacher from Newburyport.

Linda Aganski, a 30-year social studies teacher, described how her school sensitizes young people to differences in a community not noted for its diversity. She was one of the speakers at the annual Essex County Law & Educational Day breakfast, held at Peabody City Hall May 1.

Also speaking was Allan Ryan, a former director of special investigations for the U.S. Department of Justice. He prosecuted Nazi war criminals under the Reagan and Carter administrations.
Aganski, who teaches at the Rupert A. Nock Middle School in Newburyport, said she and other teachers of grades 5-8 participated in a professional development day last fall. It focused on teaching children that we live in a “world of differences.” School officials felt it was important to “minimize the intolerance and stereotyping that can develop in a community” without a diverse population, she said.

Aganski and social studies teacher Sally Leety form a teaching team; the two decided to apply world of differences concepts with their 7th and 8th grade students. They introduced the subject of the separation of church and state in grade 7 as part of a unit on the Constitution and other documents that form the foundation of the U.S. system of government.

In grade 8, they taught basic facts about the three main religions of the Middle East: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It may have helped that three Muslim students from Iran entered the schools a few years ago, not speaking English and with limited knowledge of American culture. That fact made many students aware of the need to understand the practices of people who are different than themselves, Aganski observed.

Teaching about religion is part of the recommended curriculum of the State of Massachusetts. But many teachers avoid the subject for fear of giving offense, Aganski told the 130 people gathered for the breakfast. Our students now know, she said, that “the things we hold in common — love of family, country, and devotion to religious belief — are far stronger than any of our differences.”

Newburyport is one of the 57 cities and towns in Massachusetts designated as No Place for Hate communities by the ADL. These communities have undertaken active programs to promote respect for individual and group differences while encouraging residents to speak out against hate and intolerance.

Other speakers at the event were Peabody Mayor Michael Bonfanti, Essex County District Attorney Jon Blodgett, and ADL Executive Director Robert Leikind. The event was co-chaired by Joy Goldstein and Robert Mazow, who each introduced one of the speakers. Other introductions were given by Debra Finkel, North Shore ADL Coordinator; Jim Rudolph, ADL Regional Board member; and Marc Tucker, of the Law & Educational Day Committee. Anne Selby is chair of the ADL North Shore Advisory Committee.

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CAMBRIDGE — A pair of Congressmen from opposite ends of the political spectrum made passionate arguments for continued American support for the State of Israel at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee-New England (AIPAC) annual leadership dinner on May 4.
Congressman Artur Davis (D-Ala. 7th) discussed the longstanding, mutually supportive relationship between the African-American and Jewish communities, while Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind. 2nd), an Evangelical Christian, stressed God’s commandment to protect the people of Israel.

“The common enemies of the African-American and Jewish communities have the same face,” Davis said. “Anti-Semitism and racism are brothers.

“The moral alliance our two communities forged in the 1960s still lives,” he continued. “It’s a very special relationship; no matter who assaults it, it must be preserved. The cause of progressive politics in this society requires it.”

“You may be wondering why an Evangelical, conservative, Christian Republican from a Midwestern state like Indiana is addressing you,” Pence said. “I firmly believe the Biblical commandment that God will bless those that bless Israel and curse those that curse Israel.”
“For me, Israel is like a dream,” Pence said. “To turn Israel from a dream to a hope to a reality requires strong backing from the United States.”

“I thought Artur [Davis] was very impassioned tonight,” said 18-month AIPAC member Danielle Remis of Peabody. “He made a very good case for Blacks and Jews to unite.”

“Congressman Davis was very eloquent and powerful,” agreed Jarrett Goetz of Boston, a one-year AIPAC member. “And while a lot of people questioned why Congressman Pence was here, I found him very convincing when he said his support of Israel is ‘the right thing to do.’”

“AIPAC likes to showcase its bipartisanship,” Deputy Director Jay Ruderman told The Journal. “That both Democrats and Republicans support the U.S.-Israel relationship.”

“We’re a bipartisan, single-issue lobby,” said Regional Director Eric Giesser. “We lobby for Israel.”

According to Ruderman, 25 North Shore residents attended the dinner. “Last year, 75 people attended an event at Phil Pastan’s house in Marblehead,” said Ruderman, who is originally from Lynnfield.

“AIPAC gives a unified voice to the support of Israel for the U.S. government,” said Debbie Friedlander of Swampscott, who attended with her husband, Louis Brown. “The Jewish community needs a big, financially abundant, unified voice.”

“The bottom line is that they advocate for Israel where it counts,” said Rabbi Yossi Lipsker of Chabad Lubavitch of Swampscott, who attended with his wife, Leah. “They navigate the corridors of power in the nation’s Capitol. The impact is enormous when congressmen and senators are familiar with issues surrounding Israel.”

The dinner, held at the Hyatt Regency in Cambridge, attracted 330 people. “It’s our biggest ever,” said Political Director Derrek Schulman. “We’re building on the momentum of our Washington policy conference, which drew 5,000 people.”

While the $100 per plate ticket did not cover the cost of the dinner, according to Schulman, “people will have the opportunity to contribute to the annual campaign.”

Schulman did not disclose how much money AIPAC raises annually to support its lobbying efforts in Washington.

Prior to the dinner, 100 AIPAC members attended a ‘VIP Reception,’ where large contributors mingled with Congressmen Davis and Pence; Congressmen John Olver (D-Mass. 1st) and Michael E. Capuano (D-Mass. 8th); Mass. state legislators Deborah Blumer (D-Framingham), Cynthia Creem (D-Newton), Barry Finegold (D-Andover) and Alice Wolf (D-Cambridge); and Providence, R.I. Mayor David N. Cicilline.

“This is a wonderful function,” said Arthur Epstein of Marblehead. “I’m glad to be among those who have contributed so much to the Jewish community to make sure Israel stays strong and has high visibility. AIPAC keeps us in the forefront with everybody.”

“I’m a long-time member,” said Howard Rich of Marblehead. In answer to a question, he said, “Everybody here is giving pretty decent money to AIPAC.”

“I’m in awe of people who make change through dialogue instead of violence,” noted his wife, Sharon Rich.

“What distinguishes AIPAC is that it continues to build new leaders for the future,” former Mass. gubernatorial candidate and former Democratic National Committee Chair Steve Grossman told The Journal. “AIPAC isn’t content to rest on its laurels. Forty new leaders came to this dinner alone. There’s a constant regeneration of new leadership, which brings a renewed vitality, energy and passion for the cause.”

David Perla, an 18-month AIPAC member, said, “It’s the single best value, in terms of contribution dollars providing access to the democratic process and to political leaders.”

Olver on Mideast Peace

“AIPAC has always been a leader in mobilizing Congressional support for Israel and in the quest for peace in the Middle East,” Congressman John Olver (D-Mass. 1st) told The Journal at the May 4 leadership dinner. “With the end of the ‘hot’ war in Iraq, this is a unique opportunity to make progress toward long-range peace.”

When asked if he thought President George W. Bush would force Israel to make significant concessions to the Palestinians on the ‘road map’ in order to placate Arab states, Olver said, “There’s not been much indication of that in his speeches. For the President, reelection is the most important thing in his lexicon. But it could be a concern.”

When asked if he thought Syria might be the next site of American military action, Olver said, “Secretary of State Colin Powell said in today’s paper Syria is making an effort. I don’t know who in the administration listens to Powell.
“I don’t want to start a war with Syria,” he added.

Keynote speaker Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind. 2nd) was more hawkish on Syria. “Maybe not in Damascus, but in Beirut,” he told The Journal. “Syria’s got to stop supporting terrorist activities in Lebanon.”

—Brett M. Rhyne

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'Journal' Wins Most Improved Award

JEWISH JOURNAL STAFF

The Jewish Journal has won three awards from the Association of Free Community Papers, including a first place award as the “Most Improved Publication” for newspapers with more than 25 per cent editorial content.

The Journal was one of 100 publications recognized by the AFCP, based in Idaho Springs, CO, at its annual conference in Las Vegas, NV, April 26. In addition to the “most improved” award, The Journal won first place for “Cover Design: Black Plus 1 Color” and second place for “Cover Design: Black and White.”

This is the second straight year that The Journal has been honored by the Association, which represents almost 3,000 “free-circulation community papers” reaching 40 million homes weekly. In 2002, the paper won a Community Service/Editorial award for a story by associate editor Gary Band, titled “Domestic Violence: A Community Issue.”

This year 150 awards were made in 36 categories, according to the association. They were chosen from among 2,757 entries. A spokesman for the AFCP said the group’s annual advertising, editorial and marketing contest recognizes “our industry’s best use of creative and technical skill.”

Mark Arnold, Journal editor and publisher, said he was “deeply gratified” that the paper was chosen for the three awards. “We have been seeking to improve the quality of everything we do here,” he said. “It’s nice to know our peers recognize our efforts.” “It could not have happened,“ he added, “without our very strong team and our team-oriented approach.”

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Bernstein Calls for Higher Standards in Journalism

AMY SESSLER POWELL
Special to The Journal

SWAMPSCOTT — Carl Bernstein called on his own profession to raise their standards and to provide more truth and context and less sensationalism.

Bernstein, who is best known for breaking the Watergate story with Bob Woodward at the Washington Post, spoke May 6 at Temple Israel as part of the Max and Betty Walker Distinguished Speaker Series. Woodward and Bernstein’s reporting ultimately led to the resignation of Richard Nixon and was immortalized in the book and movie, All the President’s Men. Bernstein also wrote, John Paul II and the History of Our Time, and is working on a biography of Hillary Rodham Clinton.

“What is real journalism? What is our job as reporters?” he asked. “To get the best obtainable version of the truth. In this day of modern journalism, there are more resources than ever before available to consumers of news from the Internet. A reader can craft his or her own newspaper by selecting a variety of local, national and international sources. At the same time, more news outlets are owned by global conglomerates that are more interested in the bottom line than the truth,” Bernstein said.

Paraphrasing his editor at the Washington Post during the Watergate coverage, Ben Bradlee, Bernstein said, “Journalism is the rough draft of history.”

In following a story, Bernstein said, “You never really know what the story is when you start and you can’t tell what its impact will be.”

In that context, Bernstein spoke about Israel and Iraq. “It will be years and years until we really understand the impact of the war in Iraq.... Is there a justification to invade another country and install our own government?”
Questions that will need close examination will be whether the basic justification for the war — the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq — was false and did the U.S. know that?

He also demanded more context in reporting on Israel. “Like it or not, Israel is intimately related to the cause of terrorism. Much of the world’s history hinges on Israel.... Fact and truth have gotten short shrift in the Middle East because there is so much history and background involved and T.V. does not give us that,” he said.

Much of the media today is “illusionary and delusionary,” Bernstein said. “It is a sinkhole of shallowness, ignorance and easy answers to tough questions.”

As an example, he referred to the day that Donald Trump decided to divorce his wife, Ivana, for Marla Maples. On that same day, there were two other huge stories: Nelson Mandela returning to Soweto and the reunification of East and West Germany.
“Diane Sawyer, who is capable of very good journalism, did not go to Johannesburg or the Brandenburg Gate, but to the apartment of Marla Maples,” said Bernstein.

In decisions such as this, the profession of journalism is not objective, but subjective, in deciding what news makes headlines. It is time for journalists to have more courage to report the truth and to open the profession to the same scrutiny that reporters demand of other professions. The journalistic process is quite basic, involving talking to lots of people in high level and low level positions, but most importantly, reporters must listen, Bernstein said.

In reflecting on the Watergate story, he said, “People were willing to tell us things because we listened and let them talk. We wanted to know their stories, their histories. Reporting is about common sense and humility and not treating people like enemies.”

Of course, the evening would not be complete, if someone did not ask, “Who was Deep Throat?” Bernstein laughed and said the smartest thing he and Woodward ever did was to keep the secret from their wives.

The questioner turned out to be Francie Barnard, the ex-wife of Bob Woodward, now living in Marblehead.

National News

Bush Administration Ponders Syria Options

MATTHEW E. BERGER

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Secretary of State Colin Powell may have heard what he wanted to on his recent visit to Syria, but few in Washington are putting much faith in Syrian President Bashar Assad’s words.

Powell returned from Damascus this week with assurances from Assad that he would stop hosting terrorist organizations and would try to constrain the activities of groups like Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
“The clear message to President Bashar Assad was that there is a new situation in the region with the end of” Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq “and with the commitment on the part of the United States and President Bush to go forward” with the “road map” toward Israeli-Palestinian peace, Powell said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”

Assad “can be a part of positive developments in the region if he chooses to do so,” he added.

But as he made the rounds of TV talk shows Sunday, Powell made it clear that he does not anticipate real changes in Syria’s behavior.
He repeatedly cited previous promises by Assad that had gone unfulfilled, such as agreeing to stop the flow of Iraqi oil through a Syrian pipeline in contravention of U.N. sanctions on Iraq.

Indeed, even as Powell spoke, leaders of the terrorist organizations with headquarters in Damascus denied that they had been ordered to close up shop.

By Powell’s own admission, his trip changed the rules of the game in how the United States deals with Syria. When Assad was appointed president three years ago on the death of his father, Hafez Assad, he was welcomed with enthusiasm, trips by U.S. lawmakers and an eagerness on the part of U.S. officials to explore how Syria could become an important American ally in the Middle East.

A British-trained ophthalmologist, Assad was expected to be a modernizing force in a country held back for decades by his father’s repressive, Socialist-oriented dictatorship.

But while Syria pledged its support for the United States in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks — Assad reportedly may have saved American lives by sharing intelligence information on Al-Qaida activities in Syria — U.S. officials have been frustrated by the direction of Syrian policy since then.

The tension reached its height during the recent war in Iraq, when Syria allowed military equipment and irregular fighters to stream into Iraq and may have offered shelter to top officials of Saddam’s regime.

In addition, some reports claimed that Saddam had moved biological and chemical arms to Syria before the war so they wouldn’t be detected by U.N. inspectors or seized by U.S. troops.

Astonished by Assad’s recent behavior at a time when other Arab states clearly realized who was calling the shots in the Middle East, some have speculated that Assad seeks to assume Saddam’s mantle as the self-proclaimed defender of Arab honor against Western, pro-Israel outsiders.

Many in Washington now believe that a policy of offering Assad inducements to change his behavior has not worked, and that it’s time to take a tougher approach.

Powell’s trip established strong requirements for Syrian performance. But Powell was vague on what would happen if Syria continued to flout the United States.

“We’re in a situation right now where we want to see proof,” one State Department official said. “If not, there are options available to us.”

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Features

JTA News Briefs

Israel Won’t Move Forward on ‘Road Map’

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel will not move forward on the “road map” for peace until Prime Minister Ariel Sharon points out his objections to it in an upcoming meeting with President Bush, an Israeli official said Tuesday. Israel has said Palestinians must give up the demand for a “right of return” for Palestinian refugees who fled their homes during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence. Palestinians say Israel is stalling on implementing the plan.

Sharon: Ready to Meet with Abbas

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Efforts are under way to coordinate a meeting with the new Palestinian Authority prime minister, Ariel Sharon said. In an interview with Israel Radio, the Israeli prime minister said Tuesday that negotiations with the Palestinians would focus on security issues, including an end to terrorist attacks, violence and incitement. Sharon also commented on recent reports of a Syrian peace initiative. Sharon confirmed that Syria had conveyed several messages some months ago via Israeli and Jordanian business figures. He said he and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom decided to give a month or so to examine the seriousness of the Syrian messages.

Army Chief: Worst of Intifada Over

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The worst of the Palestinian uprising is over, Israel’s army chief said. Speaking Tuesday on Israel Radio, Lt. Gen. Moshe Ya’alon said the new Palestinian leadership headed by Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas understands that terrorism does not pay.

Israel Honors Rescue Teams

JERUSALEM (JTA) — This year’s torch-lighting ceremony in Jerusalem kicking off Israeli Independence Day celebrations is honoring security forces, rescue personnel and volunteers. The lighters include a Magen David Adom volunteer, an Egged bus driver who pushed a suicide terrorist off his bus and the founder of an organization whose fervently Orthodox members scour disaster and terrorist attack scenes for human remains that should be properly buried. A total of 15 people will light the 12 torches, including a representative of security guard companies, who was added following an appeal from the Knesset speaker. Several security guards prevented attacks over the past years, while others were killed or wounded in the line of duty.

Mitzna Quits as Labor Party Chief

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Amram Mitzna quit as the chief of Israel’s Labor Party.
At a news conference Sunday where he announced his resignation, Mitzna blamed senior members of the party for his decision to resign.

Jerusalem Must Fund Gay Event

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The city of Jerusalem must help fund a Gay Pride event, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled. Judge Mishael Cheshin ruled Sunday that it is “inconceivable that the municipality would fund religious events but not pride events.” The parade is slated for June 13.

U.S. Spying on Settlements?

JERUSALEM (JTA) — U.S. satellites reportedly are checking whether Israel is freezing settlement activity, as called for under the “road map” peace plan. The daily Ma’ariv reported Tuesday that U.S. satellites photograph areas in the West Bank and Gaza Strip every few days to ascertain whether Israel is fulfilling the conditions of the road map, which call for a freeze in settlement activity. The paper said Defense Ministry officials had asked settler leaders in the West Bank to stop setting up new outposts without government approval in order to avoid American pressure.

Peres to Head Labor?

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Senior Labor Party officials have backed the appointment of Shimon Peres as interim party leader. The former chairman of the party, Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, said he supports the appointment of Peres, Labor’s senior statesman, as temporary chairman to replace Amram Mitzna, who announced his resignation Sunday night. Peres told Ben-Eliezer he would not run for the chairman’s position when elections for a permanent appointment are held, the daily Ha’aretz reported.

El Al Cancels Flights

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel’s airline is suspending flights to SARS-affected Beijing and Hong Kong. The suspension announced Tuesday will be in effect from May 10-June 6, Israel Radio reported. The airline cited low demand for flights to the two areas, which have a high incidence of cases of the deadly respiratory virus.

Israeli Population Growing

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel’s population grew by 2.2 percent during the past year. According to statistics released on the eve of Israel’s 55th Independence Day, the country’s population stands at 6.7 million people.
According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, the 5.4 million Jews in Israel constitute 81 percent of the population. Israeli Arabs number 1.4 million.

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Koret Fund Loans Help Israeli Businesses Start, Thrive

BRETT M. RHYNE
Jewish Journal Staff

BEERSHEVA, Israel — A dozen years ago, Vladimir Gelman made aliyah, coming to Israel from the disintegrating Soviet Union with next to nothing. Today, he owns and operates a profitable cleaning company that wins government contracts and provides jobs for over 200 other émigrés.

While Gelman’s success can be attributed to his initiative and hard work, he would not be in business if not for start-up and expansion loans guaranteed by Koret Israel Economic Development Funds.

“When I made aliyah in 1991,” Gelman noted through an interpreter, “I worked part-time for a cleaning contractor. I was eventually promoted to crew manager. In 1997, I formed my own company, Y.Y.A. Holdings and Services, Ltd., with the help of several loans from Koret.

Today, I provide cleaning services to all the educational facilities in Beersheva and Eilat. I have 220 employees, 90 percent part-time.

“I applied to Koret and I got credit,” he said.

Since its inception in 1994, Koret has provided 1,400 Israeli businesses with loans; working with Israeli banks, Koret has facilitated $53 million in financing for those enterprises. Koret-supported businesses currently employ 8,500 people.

“Koret was established to demonstrate that philanthropic funds could be used efficiently to stimulate economic development and employment opportunity in the private sector in Israel,” noted Carl Kaplan, Koret’s Tel Aviv-based managing director.

“Koret is a private, non-profit organization,” Kaplan explained. “We do not receive nor do we accept government funding. We do believe that less government, lower taxes and freer markets are the proven course for economic growth and employment creation.”

On an oddly rainy Tuesday this past November, Kaplan led several members of the Jewish Federation of the North Shore’s mission to Israel, including this reporter, on a tour of Koret-funded businesses around the desert city of Beersheva.

Besides Gelman, we also visited a radiologist that Koret enabled to buy an X-ray machine, a furniture maker and an interior designer, Eugene Gorlik.

“I made aliyah from the former Soviet Union in 1991,” Gorlik explained, with Kaplan interpreting. “I worked first as a salesman, and then as the Beersheva branch manager of a company importing kitchens from Italy.

“In 2002,” he continued, “I decided to open my own company — Style Kitchens — to market kitchens designed by me and produced per order in local production facilities. The company also markets bathroom cabinets and bedroom sets produced in Israel and imported from Eastern Europe.”

According to Kaplan, Gorlik received a loan from Koret to finance the production of initial display models and to rent a facility. Style Kitchens is located in one of the Beersheva light industrial zones and has three employees.

Koret receives most of its seed money from donations from the United States, coordinated by the San Francisco-based American Friends of Koret Israel Economic Development Funds and the Koret Foundation. The Jewish Federation of the North Shore is a major contributor to this effort.

“We’re fortunate to be able to partner with the Koret Foundation, so that we can continue to promote economic development and help encourage new entrepreneurship in Israel,” said Shari McGuirk, Federation campaign director.

“[Then — Federation Executive Director] Neil Cooper started this relationship with the Koret Foundation,” McGuirk said. “Partnering with Koret gave our community a chance to partner with Israel in a hands-on way. Neil was very innovative.”

The Koret Foundation also enables the Federation to run programs locally. “As part of this partnership with Koret, the Federation has been able to facilitate a full leadership development program, STAR,” McGuirk said.

As noted in The Jewish Journal of April 11, the Strategic Training, Action, Results program recently graduated its second class of young leaders. “They give us funds so that we can do that here,” McGuirk said.

Steven Cohen of Pride’s Crossing, Beverly, works locally to raise money for Koret efforts in Israel. “I first got involved by speaking with local leaders Neil Cooper and Howard Rich,” Cohen told The Journal. “I wanted to make a contribution to the Jewish people, and I wanted to help make loans to Israeli businesses affected by the Intifada.”

Cohen works with North Shore residents to raise money for Koret, but said, “I have no idea how much. Maybe a couple grand. I keep throwing money over there in one way or another.”

While Cooper has been to Israel many times and frequently visits Kaplan and Koret business owners, including while leading the November mission, Cohen has not. “It’s not my style to go over and see how my money has been useful,” he said.

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Ten-Day Tour of Israeli Military Set

MARK ARNOLD
Jewish Journal Staff

Want an inside look at Israel’s military?

That’s what is being offered by the Friends of Israel Defense Forces (IDF), June 14-23. Its 10-day tour of military installations is designed to provide a soldier’s eye view of military life. Participants will be issued uniforms, shoes, two sets of underwear and a towel, upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport.

Then they will set out on a guided tour that includes driving rocket launchers, firing weapons, sleeping in barracks, and meetings with ordinary soldiers, as well as top military and civilian officials, including Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz. The trip costs $2,000, plus $800 in airfare.

Friends of IDF has run two previous successful military tours, but this is the first time the group is specifically soliciting participants from Boston’s northern suburbs, according to Reuven Meier, New England director of Friends of IDF. IDF raises money to support Israeli troops, including social and educational leisure-time activities. Participants are expected to make a generous donation to IDF upon their return.
Participants will visit units of Israel’s Intelligence corps, anti-terrorism forces, paratroopers, an air force base, and examine the newest tank in the Israeli Army. They will relax on the final weekend at the Dan Hotel in Eilat before returning home.

Participants will receive a military “Certificate of Honor” documenting that they spent a week with combat soldiers in training, at military positions and “actively participating in soldiers’ training exercises.” For further information, contact Reuven Meier, Friends of IDF, at 781-784-6228 or reuvenmeier@attbi.com.

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People

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Grand Designs: Moshe Safdie Reinvents Salem's Peabody Essex Museum

MARK ARNOLD
Jewish Journal Staff

Moshe Safdie burst onto the public scene with his master plan for the 1967 World’s Fair in Toronto, featuring Habitat 67, a utopian village that became a new model for urban design. In the decades since, the Israeli-born architect has designed the new Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum, Rabin Memorial Center, and Ben Gurion Airport in Israel; the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles — and the new Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, which is scheduled to reopen to the public June 21.

With 14 major complexes under construction, Safdie has been commissioned for a new United States Institute of Peace, across the Mall from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington and the national Campus for the Archaeology of Israel in Jerusalem. The Journal asked Safdie about his dramatic design for the Salem museum’s $125 million transformation.

Jewish Journal: How did you come up with the design for the new Peabody Essex Museum?

Moshe Safdie: I read a lot about the early history of Salem — the Puritans, the early settlers, witches and all — and the fact that this is one of the places where Americans began life as a native people coming from European origins. I walked the city and was struck by the individualism of the houses that make up the city. They’re not all townhouses like the Back Bay, but individual houses, each with its own character. Also, this is a large museum program and I wanted to find a way to break it down into houselike elements, while making it clear this is a major institution. Thirdly, there’s something austere and puritanical about the myth of Salem. When you see the film, The Crucible, you see the minimalist, austere architecture of the settlers. Nothing ornate. I wanted to capture this feeling I call “Salem minimalism.”

JJ: So what was the solution?

MS: I wove the museum together with a glass roof. I didn’t want it to look like a mall roof or an office building roof, but something striking yet organic. Your eyes are drawn immediately upward when you enter the museum. Some people have likened the result to a ship’s hull or the skeleton of a whale.

JJ: What do you want people to feel as they visit the museum?

MS: Museums are for the appreciation of the collection. So we began with a public place, somewhat like a glazed common, and off it we have courtyards and streets leading to individual galleries, all integrated, accessible, and visible. Lots of museums build wings and you’re conscious of the differences between the old and the new sections. We want people to move from the new to the old seamlessly. In the public areas, we hope to have planned events: dinners, receptions, and parties, and also spontaneous, informal events: little talks, recitals, readings and the like.

JJ: Tell me about your background. You were born in Israel?

MS: I was born in Israel in 1937. My father emigrated from Syria the previous year, my mother from England; both were Sephardic. I was the eldest of three children. My father went into business, but his business began to suffer from a regime that was socialistic in nature. So in 1953, discouraged, he left for Canada. The family followed. That’s where I finished high school.

JJ: When and why did you decide to become an architect?

MS: That’s a very curious thing. In my last year of high school, in Montreal, I decided I wanted to be an architect. I had never known an architect, never been to an office of one, but it seemed like something I wanted to do and would be good at. I applied to universities and got into McGill to study architecture. I was 17 and I never looked back.

JJ: How does being Jewish influence your architecture? Your life?

MS: As a Jew, I’m very conscious of the obligation of tikkun olam, making the world a better place. Growing up in the first 400 days of the Israeli state, tikkun olam was the central theme of Zionism. It’s very much part of my belief system. My being an architect revolves around helping to make cities more humane and more livable. But in a formal sense, in terms of my visual vocabulary, being a Middle Easterner — coming from basically an Arab Muslim culture — is more significant an influence on my design than my Jewishness. You don’t see it in this building [Peabody Essex], but you will see Middle Eastern influences in the National Gallery of Canada.

JJ: How does religion influence your life?

MS: I don’t practice halachic Judaism. I aspire to be a spiritual person, an ethical and moral person. But my morality is not premised on observing within an Orthodox framework. I celebrate the holidays as part of the traditional ritual. I don’t keep kosher, for example.
JJ: On a different subject, how do you feel about Daniel Liebeskind’s design to replace the World Trade Center in New York City?

MS: I think the design for Ground Zero seems obsessed with the destruction that occurred. We need to be cautious so that while we remember the tragedy, we need to celebrate life as it continues in the city and in future generations.

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Arts & Entertainment

Marblehead Author Takes on Boston’s Irish Mob
AMY YELIN
Special to The Journal

MARBLEHEAD — Picture this: A reformed mob enforcer decides to attend shiva for the mother-in-law of a Jewish ‘friend.’ He plans on bringing his usual — an oversized display of flowers. Fortunately, the florist tells him, “You don’t bring flowers to Jews, you bring food.” Later, he shows up at the all-Kosher household with two chicken potpies.

It could be a scene straight out of The Sopranos. Instead, it’s the bizarre, real world of Phyllis Karas, a cardiologist’s wife and mother of two grown sons, who spent the last three years rubbing elbows with former mob enforcer Edward Mackenzie, Jr. while helping him write his violent and gritty new memoir, Street Soldier: My Life as an Enforcer for Whitey Bulger and the Boston Irish Mob.

The book, which was released on May 1 to positive reviews, follows MacKenzie’s life from abandoned and abused child, to career kick boxer, to enforcer for Bulger’s South Boston mob.

“My goal,” explains Karas, “was to show that there was a human being in there, in Eddie, so readers can understand why he turned out the way he did. Here was a foster child who had a horrendous upbringing, and his story is an example of what can happen when you throw a child away.”

Karas’ agent, Helen Rees, first introduced the unlikely duo in 1999. According to Karas, it was not love at first sight. “In the beginning, Eddie and I were wary of each other. After seeing his nine-page, double-sided criminal record, I thought to myself, ‘this probably isn’t for me.’ I certainly had my hesitations.”

Ironically, Karas’ previous memoir with Kiki Feroudi Moutsatsos — Aristotle Onassis’ private secretary — provided the inspiration necessary to propel her forward with MacKenzie’s project.

“After dealing with some of the people in The Onassis Women, and witnessing Kiki’s enormous strength, I decided I could probably handle the Irish mob,” explains Karas.

Still, the process of writing Street Soldier would not be easy. As Karas immersed herself into her subject, she made some disturbing discoveries.

“First, I found myself swearing more,” says Karas, laughing. “And I learned some new phrases to add to my vocabulary, such as ‘dirt nap,’ which is what you take when they ‘off’ you.”

On a serious note, Karas said she was most disturbed by what she learned about Whitey Bulger.
“I always believed the Robin Hood myth about Whitey… that he took from the rich to give to the poor. But Whitey had no redeemable qualities. He was a hideous man who is wanted for 19 murders — some with ice picks. He’s second on the FBI’s most wanted list, right behind bin Laden.”

Karas admits that trying to capture the voice of a male, Irish mobster was one of her biggest challenges.
“It was tough writing in Eddie’s voice,” she says. “Unlike in The Onassis Women, where I could relate to many of the characters, this was a whole different universe. So I would write a chapter and run it by Eddie to find out if it seemed authentic.”

Despite their obvious differences — which Karas is the first to point out in comments like, “I was living a cozy life in Marblehead while Eddie was growing up a street kid in Southie” — their relationship gradually grew.

“The more I got to work with Eddie, the more human he seemed,” says Karas. “He was always very respectful of my family.” Besides paying his respects after the death of Karas’ mother-in-law, MacKenzie was a guest at the wedding of one of Karas’ sons, and attended Karas’ journalism class at Boston University on several occasions to share his story with students.

At the same time, Karas is not blind to MacKenzie’s darker side. “Like Tony Soprano, he is a man of contradictions,” she says. “On any given day, you can witness his charm and compassion, followed by a comment that’s as cold as ice. It’s part of his dual personality.”
She also acknowledges that not everyone will be pleased with her human portrayal of the former leg-breaker. “A lot of people hate him. There are people who might read this book and find it disgusting,” she says.

Karas remains loyal to and hopeful for him. “He has primary custody of two young daughters. He has a chance now. For their sake, and his, I hope he stays out of trouble.”

In addition to Street Soldier and The Onassis Women, Karas has also published four young adult novels and is a contributing writer for People magazine.

Phyllis Karas and Edward Mackenzie, Jr. will be appearing at the Lyceum in Salem on May 13 at 8 p.m., and at the Jabberwocky Bookshop in Newburyport on May 16 at 7 p.m.

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"Jews Don't____"

GARY GULMAN
Special to The Jewish Journal

“Ma, can we go camping?”

“Jews don’t camp.”

“Why is my peanut-butter and jelly on pumpernickel?”

“Jews don’t eat white bread.”

“Why aren’t my socks white?”

“Jews don’t use bleach.”

My mother had many “Jews don’t ______’s” and I believed all of them. In fact, I was truly astonished to find out that The Commandments did not include: “Thou shalt not eat Wonder Bread.” It wasn’t until I was eight that The Ten Commandments — the film — shook mom’s philosophy to its core.

During that movie, I learned that the Hebrews wandered the desert for 40 years. Forty years! Could Moses and his constituents have spent over 14,000 nights shuffling between Ramada Inns? It’s doubtful, even with a group rate and AAA discount; it seems their previous employer, Pharaoh, was rather thrifty with salaries.

(By the way, I loved The Ten Commandments. Probably because prior to seeing it, I knew only two other television Jews, Mike Wallace and Rhoda.)

So Jews camped! Over the years, I’ve found most of the “Jews don’t _____’s” to be myths, generalizations, and sometimes merely ploys to keep the carpets clean. We don’t fingerpaint? Nice try, Ma.

It has allowed me to avoid karaoke.

Gary Gulman is a comedian/writer, originally from Peabody, now living in Los Angeles. Contact him at www.garygulman.com.

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Shir Hadash (New Songs)
MATTHEW S. ROBINSON
Aline Shader — Songs by Aline Shader with the Songs Together Children’s Chorus

With the help of nearly 30 talented and vocally mature young singers and some of the area’s most talented and popular performers, songwriter Aline Shader presents a sample of the compositions she has created over her 30-year career. A “Parents’ Choice”-recommended album, this collection features energetic songs such as Gotta Get Up and Dance and the jazzy swing of Grandpa’s Song and gentler numbers like Lullaby to the Trees and the repetitive and somewhat depressing Rain Song. Vance Gilbert’s turn as Aesop on Fable makes for an interesting and friendly turn on the age-old Tortoise and Hare story. Though A Nice Little Piggy may be a bit treyf, but Happy Birthday World is a fitting song for Rosh Hashanah. Though some of the vocabulary and musical structures may be a bit too melodically complicated for younger listeners, this album is challenging enough to take new music fans from The Alphabet Song to theatrical musicals.

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Singles

Manners Maven: Lost on a Deserted Aisle?

JODI RR.SMITH
Special to the Jewish Journal

Dear Maven,
My temple is having a fashion war. There are some parents who feel that just having their child come to temple is enough and will let their child wear anything, from winkled jeans to athletic uniforms. Other parents feel that the children should dress up to come to temple. What are your thoughts? Should there be shul fashion police?

—Anxious Mom

Dear Anxious Mom,
You ask an interesting and timely question. Let me put it to you another way. Would any parent allow their daughter to arrive at her baseball game in a dress, stockings and Mary Janes? Would a coach allow her to play when not in uniform? Would any parent allow their son on the rink in a pair of sneakers instead of his skates? Would a teacher allow a child in sleepy-footsie pajamas to stay in class? One of the important life lessons that we as parents must impart upon our children is that different activities require different attire.

Yes, half of success in life may be showing up. But the other half is all about respect. We show respect through a combination of attitude and attire. Without the proper attitude and attire for the situation, you are setting your child up for failure. We show that we have confidence in ourselves and that we have respect for others through what we do and what we wear.

Please understand, I do not believe boys need 10 suits or girls need a closet full of dresses. Any child under the age of 10 can have one outfit per season that is their “temple clothes” to be worn on Saturday to services.

While I do not believe the fashion police have any place in a |temple, I do believe that the religious committee should establish guidelines for what is appropriate. Temples require men to wear kippot without having to say the kippah needs to be blue, or suede, or knit. Along the same line, temples can provide guidelines as to what is appropriate to wear. If your temple does not already have a religious committee, speak to your rabbi about forming one. If your temple does already have a committee, you should approach the chair about having this issue added to the agenda.

Jodi R.R. Smith, based in Marblehead, Mass., is president and owner of Mannersmith (www.Mannersmith.com)

For answers to your etiquette emergencies, email the Manners Maven at editor@jewishjournal.org.
© 2003 Mannersmith Etiquette Consulting. All rights reserved.

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Editorial

Roadmap Depends on Trust, Palestinian Security Control

One would have to be a perennial optimist to believe that the new U.S.-directed road map for peace in the Middle East will achieve that elusive objective. The Madrid Conference, Oslo Accord, Camp David Agreement, Mitchell Plan, the Tenet Work Plan and other failed attempts all testify to the difficulty of achieving what the U.S. and its allies in this instance — the United Nations, European Union, and Russia — all seek in their “Performance-Based Roadmap to a Permanent Two-State Solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.”

Phase One of the three-phased plan, which carries the ludicrously ambitious due date of June 2003, could easily be the show stopper. It calls on the new Palestinian leadership to declare an end to violence and terrorism (easy) and take visible action to stop attacks on Israelis (more difficult). It also seeks to bring all security forces under the control of a new centralized Palestinian command (see below). Arab states must end their financial support of Palestinian violence, and Israel must end its violence, refrain from actions that undermine Palestinian trust, and dismantle settlements built in the past two years.

If we ever get to Phase Two (June-December) — a new Palestinian constitution, free elections, and the establishment of a provisional state — we might then get to Phase Three (2004-2005), a permanent status agreement that ends the “occupation that began in 1967,” including a negotiated settlement on remaining issues. These issues include the status of Jerusalem and the “right of return” of Arab refugees, plus acceptance of full normal relations with Israel by Arab states of the region.

Those who believe the process can work — and there aren’t many optimists — argue that three things are different now. First, Washington, its hand strengthened by the military victory in Iraq, will be taken much more seriously by the Arab states than ever before. Second, the plan carries the imprimatur of three other influential parties, not just the United States. And third, we have a new Palestinian government, headed by a Prime Minister who is NOT Yassir Arafat: Mahmoud Abbas.

In addition, the White House thinks Syria — the region’s chief mischief maker now that Saddam Hussein is gone — may cool it for fear of incurring Washington’s new-found wrath.

One contrary sign that has escaped public notice is what’s happening to the Palestinian security forces. The plan calls for unifying seven separate Palestinian security forces under Abbas’ new security chief Muhammad Dahlan — a man whose appointment Arafat vociferously opposed. According to a report in Israel’s respected newspaper Ha’aretz, however, Dahlan will command only two of the seven Palestinian security forces. The others remain controlled by the supposedly sidelined Arafat — in violation of Phase One of the roadmap.

No agreement will work in the Middle East without mutual trust between Arabs and Israelis. Trust was destroyed when the sponsors of Oslo were so concerned with making it work that they ignored its violations. Let’s hope the sponsors of the new roadmap do not repeat the same fatal error.

MARK ARNOLD
Jewish Journal Editor/Publisher

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Local Columnists

The Great American Auto Charity Scam

DOV BURT LEVY
Jewish Journal North of Boston

Dov Burt Levy is a Salem, MA based columnist. He can be reached at dblevy@columnist. com..

Lots of people take a tax donation for giving their old clunker of a car to some worthy cause. Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley thinks a lot of those donations aren’t legitimate
.
“We need to make sure Uncle Sam isn’t being taken for a ride,” he says.

Grassley is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. Some 733,000 people deducted vehicle donations on their Year 2000 Federal tax returns, totaling $2.5 billion. Those deductions lowered their income tax by $654 million.

I did my own investigation, going to the sources: I talked to a car itself.

Levy: Mr. Mustang Ford, You are the first car in America to charge your owner and the government with auto abuse and tax scamming. Why?

Mustang Ford: Automobiles are tired of being mistreated, and now, in my case, used as tax deductions, a moneymaker for a few and a money-loser for everybody else. By the way, Mr. Levy, call me Muss, I am, in auto age, just as old as you are.

Levy: OK, Muss. Please tell me more.

Muss: Do you know what happens in our old age, after years without regular oil changes, washing and the rest? Our systems begin to fail. When I was six years old, Harry, my owner told his wife: “Why don’t we give the old junk box to charity, Mary? We get a big tax deduction without spending money to fix up the car, or advertise, or worry that some unhappy buyer is going to come back and shoot us.”

Levy: What happened then?

Muss: Harry phoned the Christian-Jewish-Ethnic-Veterans-Against all Diseases Association and a tow truck hauled me away. AutoSmile, the company that arranged this for the charity, sold me to a used-car dealer for $1,800, a price so low that I was embarrassed. Sometimes they auction us, but the price is about the same. AutoSmile took a fee for its services, subtracted other expenses like towing, and then paid one-third of the balance or in my case, a paltry $262.50 to the charity.

Levy: A pretty low amount for the charity!

Muss: Low, low. Are you stupid, Levy? The federal government gave Harry a gross charitable deduction of $7,000, which is a cold hard cash tax saving of $2,100. And that’s not the end of the screwing either.
Levy: You mean there’s more?

Muss: The car dealer gave me a $500 cosmetic overhaul. It was worse than Michael Jackson’s, if you can believe it. The ravages of dirty oil, no anti-freeze, over-used transmission fluid were hidden by my new shine. I was put out on the lot with all the Washington Birthday sale banners. The signs were timely, at least, because up to now Washington actually got the biggest screwing.

Levy: What do you mean “up to now?”

Muss: Well, I was bought by two nice young people, recently married immigrants, both working minimum wage jobs. The salesman showed them the book value of $7,000, charged them $6,000. If you can do the math, Levy, that’s a $3,700 profit for the dealer.

Levy: Why that’s outrageous.

Muss: And that’s not all. The dealer paid his salesman $1,000. The finance company gave a couple of hundred bucks back to the dealer. If you add it up, I made money for many people, but the government and the buyers lost big time. I ride my best for this young couple. But like you, Levy — who, at your age, must spend lots of time with doctors, dentists, and hospitals —I am being repaired too often. Do you think the government will end this scam?

Levy: Well, I wouldn’t bet my well-maintained Toyota Corolla on it...

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Wanted: Something Better Than ‘Woman of Valor’

ELLEN GOLUB
Jewish Journal North of Boston

Ellen Golub teaches journalism at Salem State College. She may be reached at elkele@attbi.com

I was the first to buy disposable clothes when they made their debut in the 1970s; but I became alarmed when I read the package disclaimer: “Caution: Friction may cause this garment to ignite.” Surely, I fumed to anyone who would listen, modernity can deliver more freedom from drudgery than the twin porcelain gluttons that drench and dry my laundry.

“Be glad you have a washing machine,” my Auntie Lottie reminded me. She always grounds me in reality. “In my day, we washed everything on a scrub board. Everything! And there were no disposable diapers then.”

“How primitive is that!” I argued with no one in particular. Inspired by feminism in those precious days of youth and freedom, I was at war with women’s subjugation to domestic tasks. I would never submit, never consign my life to idle servitude. In my heart, I knew I was cut out for something higher than laundry.

“What do we need a dryer for?” my young husband once argued with me. “My mother hung everything out to dry on a clothesline” Looks can’t kill; I’ve already tried.

Fast forward to the 21st century. Virginia Wolf would approve that I have my own study, the “room of one’s own” that marks one’s intellectual territory. But life is crueler than fiction. I spend my days cleaning dishes and pots. Though the walls of my study are lined with books, many of which I read before giving birth to my well scrubbed children, I have little time to read them. I spend my time on the other side of the wall moving between the twin pillars of my world, Yachin and Boaz, my washer and dryer.

To architects and builders, I pose a question: Why is my living room so much larger than my laundry room? I spend so much time washing, drying, and folding — and there is so much laundry and so little living — wouldn’t it be better if the larger room with the furniture and the stereo were my place of work and the cramped little laundry room was expanded according to its function?

Friday night, at our shabbes table, my husband will sing “Eyshes Chayil,” the 31st psalm, which praises the woman of valor. This is the model of virtue I have become. Far beyond pearls is my value. I rise while it is still nighttime. I give food to my household. I extend my palms to the poor, my hands to the destitute. I never eat the food of idleness. Strength and splendor are my clothing. I open my mouth with wisdom, as the psalmist writes. False is grace. Vain is beauty.

And then Sunday is Mother’s Day, the Hallmark invention to honor laundresses everywhere. Steve and the kids ask me what I want.

A book?

“I wouldn’t have the time to read it.”

Some clothes?

“Not unless they’re disposable.”

A household appliance?

“More tools of my trade?” I ask cannily.

What then?

I would like that the next time I go to a synagogue or a funeral and the rabbi says something virtuous about women that it not be a line from “The Woman of Valor.” Can’t anyone think of any other goals for a Jewish woman than as a supporting character? Am I consigned to live by the praise of my husband and the celebration of my children? OK — I anticipate the needs of my household and keep myself from the bread of idleness — but can’t anyone think of a more independent role for the Jewish woman?

Grace is false — maybe. Beauty is vain — ssure. But a Jewish woman

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Slice of Life

Being a Grandmother Beats Being a Mother

PHYLLIS DINERMAN Jewish Journal North of Boston @Phyllis Dinerman 2003. Phyllis Dinerman is a resident of Marblehead and Boynton Beach, FL. She may be reached at phyllis@dinerman.com

Being a mother is no easy task.

Being a grandmother is a piece of cake.

Being a mother requires driving skills to chauffeur the urchins to public school, Hebrew school, and after-school activities.

Being a grandmother allows you to take the children to the movies, dinner, and/or shopping… and back to their own home at the end of a day.

Being a mother gives you gray hair.

Being a grandmother allows you to touch-up the gray hair you earned being a mother.

Being a mother requires you to say “no” to ice cream and candy.

Being a grandmother allows you to take the kids out for ice cream.

Being a mother requires you to drive the children to their first day at camp and smile all the way home.

Being a grandmother allows you to send “care packages” to the children and to their friends at camp.

Being a mother requires you to drive the “gifted ones” to art classes and piano lessons.

Being a grandmother allows you to hang their masterpieces on your refrigerator and to cheer wildly at their dancing and piano recitals.

Being a mother requires your cooking three meals a day for the children, cleaning their rooms, and putting away their toys.

Being a grandmother allows you to buy the toys for the mothers to put away at the end of a day.

Being a mother requires you to wash four loads of clothes a day and towels by the dozens.

Being a grandmother allows you to buy the clothes that the mothers have to wash.

Being a mother requires you to limit their allowance so that they learn the values of a dollar.

Being a grandmother allows you to supplement their allowance with as much gelt as you want to give them.

Being a mother enables you to kiss the children when no one is looking for fear of embarrassing them.

Being a grandmother allows you to hug and kiss them whenever and wherever.

Being a mother forces you to be a disciplinarian and to set the rules and regulations.

Being a grandmother allows you to “bend” the rules and regulations.

Being a mother makes you a worrier.

Being a grandmother, you never stop worrying.

Being a mother allows you to comfort and advise, but you don’t know if the kids are listening.

Being a grandmother allows you to comfort and advise, and you hope they’re listening to you and their parents.

Being a mother means you must make difficult decisions in life that will affect your children.

Being a grandmother means you must support your children when they make their decisions concerning your grandchildren.

I am a mother, and now I am a grandmother. I am reaping all the benefits that come with being a grandparent. I actually managed to get through motherhood fairly unscarred.

So remember, mothers:

Being a mother is the first step to being a grandmother. And, it’s worth all the aggravation getting to this stage. It’s a beautiful place to be.

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Op-Ed

Needed: An Iraqi Strongman to Lead the Way to Democracy

DANIEL PIPES

Daniel Pipes (www.DanielPipes.org) is director of the Middle East Forum and author of Militant Islam Reaches America (W.W. Norton).

Thousands of Iraqi Shi’ites chanted “No to America, No to Saddam, Yes to Islam” a few days ago, during pilgrimage rites at the holy city of Karbala. Increasing numbers of Iraqis appear to agree with these sentiments. These are ominous implications for the coalition forces.

• Gratitude for liberation usually has a short shelf life, and Iraq will be no exception. As a middle-aged factory manager put it, “Thank you, Americans. But now we don’t need anybody to stay here anymore.”

• However delighted they are to be rid of the Saddamite nightmare, Iraqis mentally live in a world of conspiracy theories, causing many to harbor deep suspicions of coalition intentions.

• “Yes to Islam” in effect means “Yes to Iranian-style militant Islam.” The introduction of that failed system would be a disaster for Iraq and would revive the Khomeini message, which by now has lost nearly all appeal in Iran.
This state of affairs leaves coalition forces in a bind: As vanquisher of the Saddam Hussein regime, they aim to rehabilitate the country, which means sticking around. As liberator of the country, they must respond to Iraqi wishes, which means getting out fast.

What to do? If coalition forces leave Iraq precipitously, anarchy and extremism will result. Stay too long, they will face an anti-imperialist backlash of sabotage and terrorism. Hold elections too fast, the Khomeini-like mullahs will probably win. Keep the country under an occupation force, and an intifada will rear up.

The U.S. and U.K. governments need to square the circle — put the country to right while getting out of the way, and bring about democracy without letting the Iranians take over. I offer two pieces of advice:
• Plan for the long haul. Building a full democracy (meaning, regularly voting the head of government out of office) takes time. From the Magna Carta in 1215 to the Reform Act of 1832, England needed six centuries. The United States needed over a century. Things have sped up, but it still takes 20 or more years to reach full democracy. That was the timetable in countries as varied as South Korea, Chile, Poland, and Turkey.

• Plan for a gradual transition. A population emerging from 30 years in the dungeon cannot cope with all the choices of full democracy, but must get there in steps. Democratically minded autocrats can guide the country to full democracy better than snap elections can.

Therefore: Iraq needs — and I write these words with some trepidation — a democratically-minded Iraqi strongman. This may sound like a contradiction but it has happened elsewhere, for example by Atatürk in Turkey and Chiang Kai-Shek in Taiwan.

Democracy is a learned habit, not instinct. The infrastructure of a civil society — such as freedom of speech, freedom of movement, freedom of assembly, the rule of law, minority rights, and an independent judiciary — needs to be established before holding elections. Deep attitudinal changes must take place as well: a culture of restraint, a commonality of values, a respect for differences of view, and a sense of civic responsibility.

Such institutions and views will need years to grow in Iraq. In the meantime, elections should begin on the local level. The press should inch toward full freedom, political parties should grow organically, parliament should gain in authority. The Shi’ites can develop democratic ideas, uninfluenced by Khomeinism.

Who should fill the all-important role of strongman? The ideal candidate would be politically moderate, but operationally tough; someone with an ambition to steer Iraq toward democracy and good neighborly relations.
As for the coalition forces, after installing a strongman they should phase out their visible role and pull back to a few military bases away from population centers. From these, they can quietly serve as the military partner of the new government, guaranteeing its ultimate security and serving as a constructive influence for the entire region.

The approach outlined here undercuts the rage of anti-imperialism, finesses the almost certain violence against coalition troops, and prevents the Iranians from colonizing Iraq. But the window of opportunity is closing rapidly; unless the coalition appoints a strongman very soon, it will not achieve its ambitious goals.
Daniel Pipes (www.DanielPipes.org) is director of the Middle East Forum and author of Militant Islam Reaches America (W.W. Norton).

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The Times’ Tom Friedman Gets it Right

JONATHAN S. TOBIN

Jonathan S.Tobin is executive director of the Jewish Exponent in Philadelphia. He can be reached via e-mail at jtobin@jewishexponent.com

Few writers in this country are more widely read than The New York Times’ ubiquitous, globe-trotting Op-Ed columnist Thomas L. Friedman. Burdened with an oversized ego that sometimes leads him to egregious misjudgments, Friedman’s work has often been more of a hindrance to serious thought about the Middle East than anything else.

This was amply illustrated last year when the columnist’s pretensions were brutally exposed by Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, who led the Timesman to promote a so-called Saudi “peace plan.” The media world was so impressed with Friedman’s access and ability to promote himself that few noticed that this plan was little more than a well-timed hoax aimed at putting pressure on Israel.

The buzz from this so-called scoop did nothing to advance peace, but it did help lift Friedman to an unprecedented third Pulitzer Prize. In Friedman’s case, being a best-selling author, television talking head and the leading pundit on the world’s most influential paper means never having to say you’re sorry.

His relentless criticisms of Israel are sometimes matched by honesty about the failings of the Arab world, but the latter often have more to do with his pique at the Arabs’ refusal to take his advice. He is usually unable to complete a column on the subject without launching into a bitter attack on Israel for failing to make concessions to appease the same Arab tyrants whom he despises