The latest peace effort involves establishing a third Palestinian state between Israel and Jordan.
By JERUSALEM POST READERSletters(photo credit: JP)A third Palestinian stateSir, – Every once in a while, someone comes along who cuts through the nonsense by telling the simple truth about something.Such a one is David Haivri (“Correcting the mistakes of the past,” October 22), with his assessment of Gaza being a Palestinian state with a democratically elected government.One may also add that actually there are now two Palestinian states, the second one being Jordan, which comprises 78 percent of the original League of Nations mandate meant for the Jewish homeland and which has a population which is 89% Palestinian, although Jordan is ruled by a Hashemite minority. All Jewish inhabitants were expelled from Jordan after 1948.The latest peace effort involves establishing a third Palestinian state between Israel and Jordan.The central priority of this effort seems to be the clearing out of as many Jewish settlers as possible in order to make this Palestine be as big and Jew-free as possible.Despite the formal acceptance in principle of this proposed third state by Israel, there has been absolutely no acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state by the Palestinians.That’s because the Palestinians want a state on what is now Israel.DAVID KATCOFFJericho, VermontThe state, not the ideologySir, – Larry Derfner (“Forcing Arabs to be Zionists,” Rattling the cage, October 21) claims that Zionism is a political ideology, and that a democratic state cannot demand loyalty to a political ideology.Israel cannot and should not demand loyalty to Zionism – from Arabs or from anyone else. But it can and should demand an expression of loyalty to the state, which was founded as Zionist but which allows non- or anti-Zionists to vote and sit in the Knesset.JACOB CHINITZJerusalemNot all shrinks are the sameSir, – With regard to “Bill to allow psychotherapy by non-clinical psychologists moves” (October 19), as a clinical psychologist in practice for over 30 years and having sat on the Board of Examiners in Psychology in Canada, I believe that there are three points that need to be addressed.First, not all clinical psychologists are psychoanalytic in their orientation. Many of us are not.As such we use cognitive behavior therapy and other short-term, solution-focused, evidence-based treatments to address issues such as anxiety and depression.Second, there are psychologists other than those trained as “clinical psychologists” who are very well qualified to treat specific problems. In addition to training clinical psychology students, in the past I have supervised those, for example, with developmental and neuropsychological backgrounds in a hospital setting.Those with the proper training can make excellent therapists.Finally, and most important, the title “psychologist” refers to a licensed professional. In order to call yourself a clinical psychologist you must have completed very stringent criteria, including but not limited to thousands of hours of inpatient and outpatient assessment and therapy, an internship, qualifying exams and, depending on the degree, a rigorous doctoral dissertation.Many members of the the lay community do not know the difference between a psychologist, a psychiatrist (who has a medical degree and who can prescribe but may or may not do psychotherapy) and someone calling themselves a psychotherapist.Many, many people who call themselves a psychotherapist lack any formal training. Anyone can call themselves a psychotherapist, including your neighborhood bartender or hairdresser.Psychotherapy is not a regulated title at all.While all three (psychologist, psychiatrist, psychotherapist) may “practice psychotherapy,” their training is very different.As such, it is extremely important that, in this day and age, those going for counseling ask their “therapist” what their training is: What degree do they have? What experience do they have in treating your specific problem? Are they licensed by their professional licensing board? Having a professional degree is one important criterion; but having recognized training, for example, in working with children, providing bereavement counseling or doing sex therapy is equally as important, as sadly, not all “therapists” have formal training in the area in which they practice.You should have a comfortable working relationship with the professional you see and should always feel free to ask questions about their training and experience, as you are an important partner in your own mental health care.DR. BATYA L. LUDMAN, Psy.D.FT Licensed Clinical Psychologist Ra’ananaOh so oversimplifiedSir, – The opinions of moderate Ray Hanania expressed in “Lonely, oh so (increasingly) lonely” (Yalla peace, October 19) oversimplify reality and exaggerate the significance of the building of Jewish housing to that of a deal-breaker.True peace between Jewish Israel and a future Palestinian state depends upon the desire of Palestinians for real peace, and not for simply a means to acquire land without a lasting commitment to cease all aggressive and terrorist actions.The lack of recognition by the Charter of the PA for a Jewish state to exist is, for example, a greater deterrent to a future peace, and should be viewed as such by all who would bring peace to the area.MICHAEL WASSERMANChicagoPrivilege abusedSir, – Regarding “Israel marks national awareness day for handicapped parking” (Online Edition, October 17): The scene is the Jerusalem Mall. A late-model SUV zips into a handicapped parking spot. The young driver hops out of the vehicle and bounds toward the mall.Full of righteous indignation, I am convinced he is yet another hoon flipping at the law against illegally occupying a spot reserved for the handicapped. Lo and behold, the vehicle sports a large parking permit sign on its windscreen.How can the authorities guard against this misuse of a permit that should be used exclusively for the handicapped who are actually driving or being driven? SHIRLEY ZAUERJerusalemBrilliant castingSir, – What brilliant casting! To have Jewish Miss Daisy played by the PLO pinup girl Vanessa Redgrave is a stroke of genius (“What drives Alfred Uhry?,” October 24). Can we expect a film bio of Ben-Gurion in which Ahmadinejad gets to play the hero? Or a Menachem Begin bio starring Osama bin Laden? SAMANTHA BERKOWITZJerusalemGimme some pageantrySir, – It is generally recognized that the Guards at Buckingham Palace in London, on duty to guard the Queen, are a superbly trained decoration. Few people realize, however, that they are at the same time among the best soldiers in the country, in the same way as the Royal Horse Guards are the top-grade tank crews.Being an Israeli as well as being British, I naturally wish for nothing but the best for Israel, and hence my disappointment when I see the “guards” at Beit Hanassi.I do not for one moment doubt that they are first class at their job, but not only are they not in smart uniforms but they are not in a uniform at all, neither military nor police. They are dressed so very casually that at first sight, until one gets used to them, they could well be mistaken for potential gangsters equipped with submachine guns.I do not suggest that they wear red jackets and bearskins, but I can see no reason why they should not not wear the uniform of the army or police.They would do their job just as well, but they would look so much more appropriate as the President’s Guards.NEVILLE C. GOLDREIN, C.B.E.Jerusalem
if(catID != 151){
var cont = `Take Israel home with the new Jerusalem Post Store
