Letters to the Editor: Stronger words

Why should a monster like Barghouti be allowed to spread his poison during his incarceration?

By LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters (photo credit: REUTERS)
Letters
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Stronger words
The front-page article “Report: Gov’t fails on Holocaust survivors’ rights” (April 20) had me looking for a stronger word than “disgraceful.”
All of the following apply: scandalous, shameful, disgusting and, I add, unbelievable.
HERTZEL KATZ
Herzliya
Defining ‘victory’
With regard to “High Court approves bylaw for Shabbat opening of grocery stores in Tel Aviv” (April 20), it seems as if the reporter has decided what is in the best interests of local residents.
The opening of stores on Shabbat is not necessarily a “victory for Tel Aviv residents.”
Many would consider it quite a loss for the residents, as well as for the religious nature of the city.
DAVID FINE
Modi’in
The writer is a rabbi.
It’s not ignorance
Douglas Bloomfield (“Democracy dies in darkness,” Washington Watch, April 20) does your readers a disservice by parroting The Washington Post to accuse US President Donald Trump, ostensibly operating in secrecy and duplicity, of being “more danger to our democracy than any foreign enemy.”
Whether Trump is any more secretive or duplicitous than most of his predecessors is debatable, if not laughable. If anything, we’ve been treated to more than we’d comfortably like to know about what the man actually thinks. But the fact is, democracy does not die in darkness, as the Post’s other vacuous bromide suggests. To the contrary, it typically dies in the full light of day, with the active, fully-knowing participation of its subjects, as the most recent events in Turkey, preceded by the West Bank, Gaza, Iran, various African, Asian and South American countries, and even Nazi Germany amply demonstrate.
There is certainly much to discuss about the motivations for populations from time immemorial to willingly cede their rights and civil liberties to tyrants, but ignorance is simply not one of them.
IRVING WIESEN
Jerusalem
Slanting the news
Good journalism does not editorialize what should be straight news.
Regarding the headline “IDF court sentences PA officer to just six years for killing Livnat’s nephew” (April 19), the fourletter word “just” is inappropriate. Also uncalled for is “a mere six years” in the first paragraph.
In addition, one can wonder if the late Ben Yoseph Livnat had parents or if he was only a former cabinet minister’s nephew.
DIANA SCHIOWITZ
Jerusalem
Be rid of him
Your April 19 editorial “No Barghouti option” was to the point.
Although I consider myself liberal in relation to human rights, I believe that the only way to prevent problems such as those created by jailed terrorists like Barghouti is to institute the death penalty for crimes such as his. Other democracies impose the ultimate punishment for much lesser transgressions.
Why should a monster like Barghouti be allowed to spread his poison during his incarceration? And why should the Israeli taxpayer foot the bill for feeding and sheltering such a monster? The world would be much better off rid of him and others of his ilk!
ANNICE GRINBERG
Rehovot
With regard to “Jailed Palestinians begin Barghouti-led hunger strike” (April 18), our government must change its policy to one of not negotiating with terrorists.
It must take a letter from history and do what the late prime minister of England, Margret Thatcher, did when faced with the same dilemma posed by the IRA: She let them have their wish – a hunger strike till they either gave up or died. A few did die, but the strike ended.
The terrorists in our jails have the same choice: Stop or get their 72 virgins, with no concessions by our government.
Maybe we should do like the Americans, who put their most dangerous prisoners into supermax prisons. This might seem harsh, but if not implemented, these protests will continue and who knows where they will end.
MURRAY JOSEPH
Kiryat Motzkin
God help us
With regard to “Bayit Yehudi candidate calls for censored Koran” (April 14), exactly what planet does Rabbi Yitzhak Zagha live on? Does he really believe that by censoring the Muslims’ most holy book he can achieve peace? His plan, including a ridiculous citizenship test of loyalty, should be called “Israel Descends to New Lows” instead of “Israel Ascends to New Heights.”
How nice that Rabbi Zagha wears all those hats in addition to a kippa. What good will they do him when people realize just how insane, how demeaning his plan is? How would he react if the shoe were on the other foot? What about censoring all other holy books, just to be fair? “We must eliminate incitement and reinvest in education” is a worthy quote, but it needs to apply to everyone, Bayit Yehudi included. Its current leader, Naftali Bennett, is bad enough. We don’t need another person with more extreme views in our government.
Peace will not finally come to this country if Rabbi Zagha’s plan is adopted. A howling inferno of hatred is more likely. His goals are laughable and completely devoid of relevance and respect.
If this man is elected head of his party, God help us.
ELAINE GOLDSTEIN
Tzipori
Playing detective
For years, I’ve been a passionate reader of mystery stories.
The first thing one looks for in mysteries is clues as to how the story will turn out.
Recently, there was a peculiar piece in The Jerusalem Post headlined “On Passover, think about liberating the State of Israel” (Comment & Features, April 14). It was written by Daniel J. Arbess. Relatively old stuff, but it still annoys me.
The piece is so annoying because the author just gives in to conjecture and wishful thinking without once looking at any relevant clues. He uses terms like “might,” “maybe” and “would be” more than 10 times.
But the clues all point in the other direction. The Arabs show absolutely no interest in making peace with us. They spent the past year killing us with knives, running us over and generally causing mayhem. And their big hero is Marwan Barghouti, a convicted killer – who is intent on getting a “get out of jail free” card. Now there’s a clue for anyone who is looking.
Mr. Arbess then goes totally off the rails by hitting us with the “handwringing” going on “within the global Jewish community” – as though there would somehow be peace if only we were to give away our birthright to the Land of Israel, ignoring all of the above. Are we to endanger our children and grandchildren so that the global Jewish community can stop wringing its hands? My favorite sentence in the piece, about a “demilitarized” Palestinian entity, is “This international status would be similar to that of demilitarized Japan and Germany after the Second World War.” How ignorant. Or maybe he forgot. The Second World War ended with the unconditional surrender of those countries.
Does Mr. Arbess see the Arabs surrendering any time soon? Let’s just remind him that the State of Israel was formed in 1948. Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria were liberated in 1967 in a war we did not ask for. But we are not ashamed or embarrassed about having won it. We owe apologies to no one. We can all imagine what would have been the fate of all the Jews in Israel if we had lost.
THELMA JACOBSON
Petah Tikva