December 17: Out with Weinstein

Out with Weinstein

Sir, – With regard to “Despite resignation, Liberman to remain MK, head of party” (December 16), Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein has to have his reign ended. I don’t know what his past credentials or successes are, but for sheer arrogance he takes the cake.

Ehud Olmert, not my favorite politician, had to wait forever for the indictments and court cases.

Liberman also had to wait for ages. Now, on the eve of the elections, one investigation is dropped and he is told the authorities are proceeding with a second investigation.

Is this timing acceptable? After more than six years, the attorney-general could not have waited six more weeks so as not to turn the upcoming elections on their head? Weinstein seems to have his own political agenda and he does what he likes.

To go to sleep every night for six years and more, waiting for the axe to fall, is not fair. It is immoral. I would suggest that Jewish law does not support this kind of torture (and incompetence).

It’s time for Weinstein to be removed and replaced by someone who can bring back the true meaning of justice.

RUSSELL GADDIN
Modi’in

Sir, – I am a new immigrant, and every day I see a story saying that Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein approves of a certain government policy and disapproves of another government policy. He seems to have more power than the prime minister.

Is he elected? Can we vote him out? If he is not elected, who appoints him? Can we vote out the person who appoints him? It seems to be a very strange democracy when the most powerful person in government is not answerable to the people.

Hundreds of years ago in America, people revolted against the rule of King George III. Is there any way to get rid of the rule of Yehuda Weinstein? He may be a very nice person, but he should be accountable to the people.

DAVID WILLIG
Safed

Poor reaction

Sir, – Martin Sherman (“Ill-considered, inappropriate and inadequate,” Into the Fray, December 14) makes complete sense to me.

I have been struggling to understand why we behaved so reactively to the Palestinians, again bringing upon ourselves the world’s condemnation for something so minor. Since we cannot change the malevolent bias of most of the world, let it be for, to quote Sherman, “measures that have real and lasting – indeed permanent – strategic effects.”

I hope there are some in our government who agree.

CHARLOTTE SLOPAK GOLLER
Jerusalem

Bloc party

Sir, – As summarized by Barry Shaw (“Thoughts on a possible solution to the Israel-Palestinian problem – Part 2,” Original Thinking, December 14), Dr.

Mordechai Kedar’s possible solution concentrates on the Arab side, devolving the Arab community of Palestine into harmless, harmonious little emirates.

Imagine the benefit, once the military threat is gone, of repackaging Israel into perhaps a dozen homogeneous little mini-states. Various separate leaderships have already presented themselves, as they do every election season.

We could mark off a state for the haredim, a state for the Sephardim, a state for the secular socialists, and so on. Everyone could find a place somewhere, even Reform Jews and smokers.

If the UN were to accept all the Jewish emirates as members, we would have a bloc like everybody else.

MARK L. LEVINSON
Herzliya

No pejoratives

Sir, – I would like to point out to Ben Caspit (“Liberman and the next government,” Observations, December 14) that he should not refer to non-Jews as “goyim.” I resent and deplore hearing this expression used by some Jewish people.

I do not think that this man – I hesitate to refer to him as a gentleman – would like to be referred to as a “yid.”

R.G. GOODRICHE
Tel Aviv

Rules of engagement

Sir, – Despite the way world leaders and our own media demean the IDF, our young men and women are neither irresponsible nor trigger happy (“Military sources defend restrained conduct by soldiers in face of rock throwers,” December 12). They are imbued from youth with the ideal of the sacredness of all human life. At the same time they patrol terrorist- infested areas that often require split-second decisions to protect life and limb.

In this type of setting it is essential that our soldiers feel confident that their own safety is preeminent, that their instinctive decisions are supported by the military chain of command, that they need not fear legal action, and that the rules of engagement explicitly protect them over hostile mobs.

The safety of our young men and women must be the overriding consideration in these confrontations.

ROBERT DUBLIN
Jerusalem

Sir, – Three decades ago I was honored and privileged to serve in the IDF reserves for five years, from age 47 to 52. Now I am ashamed and embarrassed to read and see that our soldiers run away from Arabs throwing fist-sized rocks.

Those rocks are weapons. In any other country in the world the army would respond differently by putting down the rock throwers in an appropriate way.

I saved my uniform for these many years, but I will now dispose of it in shame. If today I were called to serve in the IDF, I would refuse for fear of my and my comrades’ lives because of the orders given to our soldiers to restrain from responding appropriately.

The rules of engagement of the Israeli army show us to be cowardly and afraid of our enemies.

This is not the Jewish army that I proudly served.

CHAIM GINSBERG
Ma’aleh Adumim

Introducing Shamir

Sir, – With regard to “Why I became a politician” (Comment & Features, December 11), I and others from “Anglos for Yisrael Beytenu” were privileged to introduce Yair Shamir to a gathering of members of the Anglo community of Ra’anana.

First, Shamir gave us some background information about his professional accomplishments, which are quite impressive.

He proved himself in many different areas – in the Israel Air Force, where he was a senior commander; as chairman of several teetering corporations that he succeeded in turning around; and on the boards of very distinguished institutions of higher learning.

Unlike most politicians in Israel, whose main agenda is personal and benefits only themselves, Shamir decided to enter politics in order to serve the Israeli public and pursue policies that will improve the country, not him personally.

He considers his work in aliya and absorption, especially for Western olim, one of his greatest contributions. This is an area that should be of interest to those of us who made aliya from the West, and the many more who are considering it. It is time we had somewhere to turn in order to bring about a positive and successful transition in Israeli society.

We wish Shamir the best of luck and as much success in his political career as he has had in his professional career. We, the citizens of Israel and the Jewish community overall are sure to benefit immensely from this success.

JONATHAN SURASKY
Ra’anana

The writer is chairperson of Anglos for Yisrael Beytenu Ra’anana

CORRECTION: The link to a film trailer on the planned documentary about former refusenik Sylva Zalmanson, which was provided in the December 12 Grapevine, was incorrect. It is http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/anatzk/next -year-in-jerusalem-documentaryfilm.