May 11: Envoy to the world

Envoy to the world

Sir, – I had the privilege of working alongside Dudu Fisher during the Jewish holidays for over 30 years at Kutsher’s Country Club in New York State’s Catskill Mountains. As I read of the new twist in his career (“Dudu Fisher brings ‘Jerusalem’ to the Bible Belt,” Arts & Entertainment, May 8), it struck me that he should be named Israel’s Ambassador to the World for Hasbara (public diplomacy).

Does anyone else project such a positive image of what it means to be an Israeli and live in this magnificent country of ours? Kol hakavod, Dudu!

MICHAEL D. HIRSCH
Kochav Yair

Who chooses?

Sir, – You quote MK Danny Danon on the issue of outposts as having said “it is the elected officials, the Likud-led government, which should determine these issues and not the Supreme Court justices, which represent their own individual opinions and not the will of the people” (“Right-wing MKs call on Netanyahu to support legislation on outposts,” May 8).

US President Barack Obama said the same thing, almost word for word. Except that Obama was wrong and Danon was right.

In the US, Supreme Court justices must pass interrogation and approval by Congress. Thus, by extension they are selected by the people.

In Israel, justices are selected by a closed “Cosa Nostra” consisting for the most part of the president of the Supreme Court, some fellow judges, a representative of the Bar Association and the minister of justice, who more often than not is also a lawyer.

Thus, our justices are in no way representative of, or related to, the “will of the people.”

It’s time the Knesset reclaimed its rights in the selection of Supreme Court justices, and the court itself ceased being a glorified appellate court.

RICHARD JACOBS
Haifa

No phantom

Sir, – We agree with the writer of “Phantom fear” (Letters, May 6) that Canada is a great place to live. However, we cannot afford simply to ignore anti-Semitism in its different permutations.

The writer’s “outrage” would be better directed at the perpetrators of such acts than at the organization that assists those who experience anti-Semitism first-hand.

Statistics Canada and police reports consistently find that when religion is the motivating factor in hate crimes, Jews are disproportionally targeted, which echoes our findings. Clearly, not everyone shares the writer’s opinion that anti- Semitism these days is merely a “phantom fear.”

RUTH KLEIN
Toronto
The writer is national director of B’nai Brith Canada’s League for Human Rights

Highway of hell

Sir, – I was once head of Chicago’s Jewish Defense League. We shed our blood on Chicago’s streets fighting the Nazis and the Klan.

I am still that same militant.

However, I am sickened by the release of Hagai Amir (“Yigal Amir’s brother and co-conspirator Hagai Amir to be released today,” May 4).

I did not agree with Yitzhak Rabin politically, but he gave of himself to build the Jewish homeland.

The single lesson that Hagai and Yigal Amir should have learned is that Jews cannot prosper to their fullest in countries without laws. If the laws are universal and fair, we are protected. Where there is inordinate criminal disobedience, Jews become scapegoats.

To shoot a decent man who cannot defend himself is the act of a coward.

Rabin was not Eichmann or Hitler, but a Jewish patriot, even if one disagreed with him.

The Amirs live under that terrible rule that it’s either their way or the highway. They desecrated Jewish history. May their “highway” be a lifetime of hell.

Would they have done it if Rabin had a gun and knew they were coming? I doubt it.

BUZZ ALPERT
Chicago