March 10: Drive deprived

Many years of driving experience should negate an oleh's need to go through the horrific Israeli driving test experience.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
letters good 88 (photo credit: Courtesy)
letters good 88
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Drive deprived Sir, - I made aliya in August '07. I had been driving previously in New York City for 45 years with an excellent record. It took me 10 months, four driving tests and about NIS 3,000 to finally get my Israeli license. I was devastated by the whole ordeal since none of the test failures was justified - and am thrilled to see that this issue is being brought to the public's attention. Many years of driving experience should negate an oleh's need to go through this horrific experience ("Driving us mad," Eric Scheier, March 9). MICHAEL GOLDBERG Beit Shemesh Sir, - I'm sure everyone agrees that the wheels of our bureaucracy could stand some additional greasing. Eric Scheier's essay left me wondering what it's like for, say, an Israeli to try and obtain a New Jersey driver's license. But is Dr. Scheier really upset that a medical problem invites a delay in the licensing procedure? I hope his foray into creative writing proved therapeutic. On a practical level, getting involved in politics and effecting actual change might be a better plan. STUART PILICHOWSKI Mevaseret Zion Pro-Israel in Malmö Sir, - Re "Sweden's anti-Israel apartheid policy is about more than sport" (Abraham Cooper and Harold Brackman, March 9): I want you to know that the tennis protesters were a minority in Malmö. There is also strong Israeli support in the city. There were some pro-Israel posters around in Malmö, saying Släpp biljetterna nu - "Put the tickets on sale." But it's the loud and aggressive Left that gets the media attention. ANDERS SVENSSON Malmö, Sweden Intelligent, admirable Sir, - Herb Keinon's extremely intelligent "The significance of going to Damascus" (March 5) represents the intelligent viewpoint on what the Obama administration is doing. It was a fresh change of pace from the neo-con garbage on the talkbacks. Nearly all the readers seem to view all Obama's foreign policy moves as weakness and surrender. They are still living in the age of WWII, where America ruled all. No longer are the battles fought in that manner: a dozen or so men were able to change the lives of every American in 9/11, and no military could've stopped it. It's time to reenter the globalized world and start reopening lines of communication. What the Obama administration did on the Durban conference was phenomenal. "Let's hear what they have to say" instead of the closed-minded Bush years, "and if it doesn't sound right, we leave, but at least we are seen as willing to hear their side." When the US truly shows it is ready to be a world power again, it will regain support from other powerful nations. Unfortunately, though, we are constantly looked at as stupid aggressors. It's time for the US to show it's back, regain international support, and drop the hammer when necessary (like Iran). Liberal foreign policy is not weak, it's smart. It's about using diplomacy when you can, but not being afraid to use force. Thank you for instilling some logic into the readership. MICHAEL LEVINE Ft. Lauderdale, Florida How fair and how balanced are you? Sir, - It is quite true that Israel is often singled out and hyper-criticized in Britain's newspapers, and the examples given in David Horovitz's "Bats, balls, bullets and guns" (March 6) are good cases in point. But I'm afraid the interpretation itself is skewed. For while terror is cruel wherever it is, it is not identical, as this column would have us believe. Pakistan is not occupying and colonializing any nation at the moment, like Israel, and hasn't been doing so for the past four decades. So while Hamas is an extremist, Islamist, murderous group, it cannot be compared to the nihilistic brutality of the terrorists in Pakistan, who haven't even got the pretext of killing in the name of "a battle for national liberation." And besides, is this call for balance not a bit rich coming from The Jerusalem Post, which virtually never utters a word of criticism against Israel's policy in the territories, whose line is so patently one-sided (as evinced by its editorials), and whose closest attempt in this column to acknowledging our wrongdoing is calling it "Israel's choices and challenges as regards territorial compromise?" I will continue reading this newspaper as my longtime breakfast treat, but I do say - please remember your own duty to remain fair and balanced before pouncing on the The Independent and the Guardian and their like! AHARON LEVY Tel Aviv Sir, - I read The Jerusalem Post on-line daily to keep informed about what is happening in the Middle East. The Post always tells it like it is. It is more reliable than any US news outlet. I see Israel more and more standing alone in the world. And now you are about to see even the US begin to start turning away from you, even though thousands of Americans still believe in Israel. Remember, though, that it is better to have God on your side than 1,000 countries. PAUL W. BUCHANAN Harrisburg, North Carolina Speaking up's the thing Sir, - Our organization, Promoting Responsibility in Middle East Reporting, urges all supporters of Israel and the Jewish people to adopt the mantra "Silence is NOT Golden." We must respond vigorously to all biased, one-dimensional, inaccurate and incomplete media coverage regarding Israel and the Jewish people. NORMAN N. GROSS President, PRIMER Palm Harbor, Florida He ain't the tarnisher Sir, - May I point out to Tova Landau ("The tarnish spreads," Letters, March 8) that the stain on the offices of the president and prime minister was caused by former president Moshe Katsav and soon-to-be-former prime minister Ehud Olmert, and not by Attorney-General Menachem Mazuz. True, Mazuz can be admonished for procrastination, but the blame for these figures' despicable behavior can hardly be laid on him. Let's hope both these cases, finally, come up quickly for trial so that if guilt is determined, justice will be done and seen to be done. TRUDY GEFEN Kiryat Ono Forgettable show Sir, - I am indebted to Nadia Beidas for "Unlock the subconscious" (Billboard, March 6-12) explaining Philippe Genty's Boliloc. Had I read it before I saw the show, I and my friends might not have walked out halfway through. Surely we cannot be the only people who didn't comprehend the reasoning behind the "acts" and found the content childish and boring? No, two other women walked out with us, muttering. Perhaps those who stayed in their seats did so in the hope that things would improve. The Herzliya Performing Arts auditorium was filled to capacity with people who had paid an extortionate price for an evening of "magic, surprise, illusion and unforgettably enchanting scenes set to wonderful music." Granted, the illusions were clever - but if this is French humor, it's not for me. But then, I'm British! LINDA SILVERSTONE Herzliya Pituah