January 8: Assault vs. protection?

January 8 Assault vs. p

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Assault vs. protection? Sir, - The headline of the article "Woman sprays tear gas at Orthodox man in bus segregation fracas" (January 7) should have been "Woman arrested for protecting herself on segregated bus." How can it be that a 60-year-old woman was not able to sit down in peace on a bus in Jerusalem without being harassed by an 18-year-old man? The disgraceful situation of bus segregation in our country cannot be allowed to continue. DIANA BARSHAW Haifa Unfortunate phrases Sir, - The Jerusalem Post's interview with Hans Corell, former undersecretary for legal affairs to the UN, contained some unfortunate phrases about anti-Semitism in the context of Ambassador Corell's personal attitudes ("A post-nationalist European internationalist," January 7). Corell came to Jerusalem to participate in a special colloquium of international judges and Israeli jurists, at a time when there seems to be a growing division between international law and Israel. As commented by several of the participants, frank and divergent views were exchanged, but this only forced those present to sharpen their minds and consider what others had to say on these complex issues. To insinuate that Ambassador Corell might be perceived an anti-Semite is an erroneous reflection of his personality and professional record. Certainly Israel can and should accept criticism of its policies without using the anti-Semitism card as a response. URI DROMI Director-general, Mishkenot Sha'ananim The editor writes: If certain phrases of the article were open to misinterpretation, we apologize. The writer intended no such insinuation. Larry doesn't speak for us Sir, - It is Larry Derfner's choice to take Route 1 to Jerusalem and sit in bumper-to-bumper traffic, further inconveniencing the many thousands who must travel this road ("Sorry, I don't want to be a settler," January 7). He certainly does not speak on behalf of thousands of Modi'in residents, many of whom work in Jerusalem and drive on road 443 daily. Aren't we lucky he thinks "shooting at motorists is wrong." We fully support Modi'in Mayor Haim Bibas in fighting the High Court ruling to make sure this convenient arterial freeway to Jerusalem remains a terrorist-free zone and Modi'in remains the "City of the Future." DAVID WALLES Modi'in Airport madness Sir, - As a frequent airline traveler between the United States and Israel, I am a firsthand observer of the security differences between US airports and those in Tel Aviv. Thus, I have been enjoying the articles in the Post poking fun at the archaic techniques employed by the US. Chiefly, Daniel Pipes ("Security theater, now playing at your airport," January 6), Shmuley Boteach ("The American air farce," January 5), and David Lapin ("Congratulations, Osama," January 4), among others, have written amusing gems. But it was best summarized by the clever cartoon on January 5, depicting air travelers in 2000, 2001, 2006 and 2010 - the last of whom was totally naked. THELMA BLUMBERG Kiryat Arba Sir, - Five years ago, I volunteered for a trial body scan at Heathrow Airport in London. I was horrified - to see the roll of fat around my middle! Thankfully one's face is not shown on the scan, so this ensures privacy, but body scans are very time-consuming. HELEN ANISFELD Jerusalem CORRECTION: The Hebrew ulpan for medical professionals mentioned in the Letters column of January 7 is offered through the Immigrant Absorption Ministry, not the Education Ministry.