ZEV CHAMUDOTPetah TikvaBravo Uruguay Sir, – It was with great pleasure and pride that I read “Feisty Uruguay wins respect from neighbors, investors” (Business & Finance, August 28).During a recent trip, we learned of the special ties between Uruguay and Israel.Among South American countries, Uruguay has the largest percentage of Jews, per capita, who have come on aliya. It was the fourth country to officially recognize Israel and the first to receive an Israeli ambassador, Yitzhak Navon.It is the only country in South America that has an official national memorial to victims of the Holocaust in its capital city.On driving through Montevideo, we passed Golda Meir Square, a monument to Albert Einstein and the Israeli Embassy with its flag flying.In many ways, this tiny country of 3.3 million people mirrors Israel. It left us with warm and deep feelings.
DEBORAH LIEBERMAN HerzliyaAppalling concessionsSir, – As a third-generation Jewish American I am appalled at the concessions to the Red Cross by Magen David Adom (“An SOS for MDA,” Editorial, August 26).I have never supported the Red Cross because it is a corrupt, political and anti-Semitic organization.However I have, as circumstances permitted, donated to MDA.I am proud to see the Star of David when it’s displayed at disaster scenes all over the World.Without that symbol I would be reluctant to spend my money on an organization without a backbone.EDWARD TRIEFLERTamarac, FloridaSir, – The following is part of an e-mail sent to me by my father, who grew up in New York in the 1920s and served in the US Army in World War II.“Since World War 2, I have not donated one nickel to the Red Cross. When I was in school we had to bring a nickel to donate to the Red Cross every semester.Your name was put on a board so that kids who didn’t have the money would be aware. It wasn’t fair, but that was then.“When I was in the Army the Red Cross never gave us something for free. We always had to pay for doughnuts, coffee, treats. Strange as it may seem, the Salvation Army was there giving us stuff wherever we went. I have never forgotten that, and every Xmas I donate to the SA.“So join the few of us who know the whole story of the Red Cross. Israel doesn’t need them.”Let’s stop being afraid and show some courage. Put the Star of David back on those ambulances and be proud of it!LAURIE ROSENBERGHerzliyaMediate the waySir, – Ten years ago, a doctors’ strike was settled with an agreement that there would be no strikes in the following decade.No sooner had this interval elapsed, a more prolonged strike commenced. Now, the settlement includes an agreement not to strike for the next eight years (“Long doctors’ dispute ends with nine-year accord,” August 26).One does not need to be a prophet to predict that immediately after this interval, a further strike will start.The successful ending of the present strike was due to the excellent mediation by an expert. This shows that an alternative to strikes would be arbitration, where the decision of the arbitrators would be binding on both parties.MONTY M. ZIONTel MondThe writer is a retired physician Sir, – Kudos to The Jerusalem Post for having published the recent opinion piece by Maurice Ostroff (“The doctors’ strike: There is a better way,” Comment & Features, August 8) urging the sides to settle the strike by arbitration. Evidently, the sensible suggestion was accepted and within a short time the 158-day strike was settled to the satisfaction of both the Treasury and the doctors.Can we hope that this is a forerunner of better conflict resolution in the future? PHILLIP OSBORNERamat GanThe good and badSir, – I was amazed to read “Happy birthday, Mr. Peres!” (Savir’s Corner, August 26).Topping a long list of exaggerations is Uri Savir’s statement that “in 1985 [Peres] brought inflation down from 1,000% to 0,” which is not true – the job was done by Yitzhak Moda’i.Worst of all was Peres’s backing of the Oslo Accords. Oslo, as history proves, was a curse, not a blessing. It was engineered without the knowledge of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who exploded, accusing Peres of stabbing him in the back. We are paying the price today.Peres has quite a few achievements to his credit. However, as Savir writes, “After our victories at war, Peres began to view the Arabs as potential good neighbors.”Despite everything, he still does, advocating concession after concession to appease them.Israel wishes Shimon Peres a happy birthday. But let us acknowledge his failures as well as his achievements.ELIEZER WHARTMANJerusalemGeography lessonSir, – Please allow me to correct a statement you made concerning St. Andrews University (“Scottish university student convicted for desecrating Israeli flag,” August 26).You said it is in Edinburgh. It is not. St. Andrews is roughly 50 miles north of Edinburgh and separated from it by a wide and sometimes stormy estuary. It is Scotland’s oldest university and is shortly to celebrate its foundation 600 years ago.ALBERT JACOBBeersheba
The writer, like his father and two uncles, is a graduate of St. Andrews University.