By LETTERS TO THE EDITORLetters(photo credit: PIXABAY)Terrorism is terrorismIn “Jewish minors suspected in the murder of Palestinian mother (January 7), we read that the mother of one of the boys arrested for throwing rocks at passing cars, where a woman was killed, bemoans the treatment of her son at the hands of the Shabak.Where were you when these adolescents were spouting their anti-Arab statements? Where were you when they incited others to join them? Where were you when they were planning this dastardly deed? Why didn’t you say anything to him and his friends?Or do you agree with their sentiments? Do you agree that it’s okay to throw stones at drivers and their passengers who don’t believe the same things you do?One of my friends from my moshav is a nurse. One Erev Yom Kippur, she was driving to her shift in the hospital when “holier than thou” religious boys threw stones at her car. One broke the windshield. Two years ago, on Erev Yom Kippur, I came out of the hospital where my husband had been taken earlier that day. I was stopped by police who told me not to go into town because I would be stoned.What kind of culture encourages teenagers to engage in this kind of violence? What kind of people think that because they wear the accoutrements of holiness, they have the right to kill, maim and destroy anyone who doesn’t follow in their footsteps?I am sorry for those boys who no doubt have been traumatized by their experience. I am not sorry for their parents. I accuse you of perpetuating this hatred and encouraging this behavior. My heart goes out to the family of Aysha Rabi. What did she do to deserve to die?To the parents of those boys: Remember, “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” You sowed this hatred and you reaped the “rewards.”ELAINE GOLDSTEINTziporiIt’s only at the end of the article that we learn of the activities of those supporting the minors being investigated for the murder of Aysha Rabi.Some of these actors call for the release of the minors; others demonstrate outside the prime minister’s home. What are they hoping for? That Netanyahu will single handedly arrange for their release? Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan speaks about the violation of the [investigated] children’s rights. But what about the rights of the murdered mother’s right to life, not to mention the rights of her children?Rabbi Haim Druckman, described as a leading national rabbinical figure, came up with amazing statement that the teens “are not terrorists.” As a former long-time MK, he should know better – that these random attacks were intended to kill, maim and/or terrorize innocent Arabs driving the highways. If these are not terrorists, as suspected, then who is? The rabbi is seemingly still involved in the education of Jewish children and in Israel’s controversial conversion process, and as such he may inculcating Jewish youth to hate and kill, as is happening with Palestinian youth.It is hard to see how this fits into the rule of law, a key component of the democratic state of Israel and into the Jewish concept of justice. It seems to me that somehow these “leaders” have lost the script.DAVID SMITHRa’ananaIn the editorial “Terrorism is terrorism” (January 8) the writer is hanging his hat on the wrong peg. Everyone agrees that terrorism is to be denounced by all, but that is not what the current clash of social forces is about.A stone was allegedly thrown at a car (I use the word “allegedly” advisedly). A woman was injured allegedly by that stone. A Palestinian man alleges that the stone was thrown by a Jewish settler. Why? “Because there is a yeshiva near the road crossing where this happened.” Did he see the perpetrator? No.Do you expect him to say that an Arab threw it? Wake up!We all remember the little boy “supposedly” killed by Israeli army crossfire who turned up alive and well some weeks later. We have all seen clips of the “miraculous resurrection” of Arab rioters “killed” by the Israeli army and being carried away by the mob.The statistics are clear: 99.9% of all rock throwing on open roads is carried out by Arabs. Why assume that this was one of the 0.1%? Have you ever looked into the front windshield of an approaching car trying to see who is in the car? Usually you cannot see because of the reflection. How did the perpetrators of this alleged crime see that the car contained Arabs and not Jews? After all, as the Arab husband stated, this is an area where there are “settlers.” Logically, it is not unlikely that an Arab threw the stone.Think again, Shabak, and stop trying to avenge the debacle you created in your investigation of the Duma incident by taking it out on children and psychologically damaging them for life.LAURENCE BECKERJerusalemRoger Waters sinksKudos to David Brinn for the excellent UK Pink Floyd Experience concert review (“Israel, Roger Waters battle to draw in Tel Aviv,” January 7).Kudos also to the British band that withstood vicious attacks from Waters, which included encouraging mass harassment of the group’s members by publishing their private phone numbers for use by anti-Israel activists. Waters publicly embarrassed himself by grossly misrepresenting the group’s position, claiming that they support BDS and condemn the “intolerable” situation in Israel, which they quickly identified as a fabrication.Waters’s baseless claim that the group would be performing his “songs in front of segregated audiences” was easily disproved by the fact that ticket sales were completely open to people of all races, colors and creeds.Lastly, kudos to the audience of Israelis – Jews and Arabs – who were able to separate Waters’s art from his hatred and bigotry and came to enjoy the excellent performances of the UK and Israeli groups.DAN LEVIRamat GanUS expatriates aren’t expatriatesI would like to add one more word to the comments regarding “US expatriates aren’t stupid” (Letters, January 7). The term “expatriate” is defined by Webster’s as “a person who lives in a foreign country.” The word came to be associated with the disturbed life led by dislocated young Americans in the 1920s in Paris, as described by Hemingway in his classic novel, The Sun Also Rises.It is therefore totally inappropriate to describe the Anglo families, who are full citizens of Israel with all the responsibilities and rights thereof, as expats. Since Israel has been a land of immigrants since 1948, one would have to call a goodly proportion of its citizens as “expats.”As your readers point out, it is laughable to accuse Anglos of coming to Israel for better jobs, since the opposite is usually the case, with families leaving secure homes and jobs, often for much less lucrative employment as olim.Calling them “expats” is a disparagement of both their idealism in returning to the land of Israel and their status as full-fledged Israelis.MARION REISSBeit ShemeshNot so pro-IsraelRegarding “Five Jewish facts to know about Elizabeth Warren” (January 4), I am shocked that you call JStreet “pro-Israel!” This adds legitimacy to their false claim! If you look up JStreet on the Web, you will see numerous articles on its anti-Israel stances! The ZOA wrote an extensive report on this organization exposing their anti-Israel bias.One quote in the ZOA report is from Prof. Alan Dershowitz: “J Street has been the most damaging organization in American history against Israel… [it] has done more to turn young people against Israel than any other organization… It will go down in history as one of the most virulent, anti-Israel organizations in the history of Zionism and Judaism. It has given cover to anti-Israel attitudes on campus and particularly its approach to Israel’s self-defense.”JStreet can call itself “pro-Israel,” but that doesn’t mean it’s true. Why do so many anti-Israel groups and people give money to JStreet? Many readers are not well educated on this issue; when they see JStreet described as pro-Israel in The Jerusalem Post, they believe it.MARILYN BROWNSan FranciscoTest of intentionsDaniel Goldman’s article on army service for haredim (“Torah study as national service – a proposal for a new track” Jan 2) was terrific. It opens up a way to solve a problem that has plagued the nation for decades.The state should pass a law that all yeshiva students who want deferment must meet two criteria:1) Coming to the study hall on time2) Must pass a written test of their Torah studies.Those who pass will be exempt those, who fail will be inducted immediately. Religious political parties and yeshiva heads should support this, since it will induce their students to study better.Those parties who oppose the law will be shown to be hypocritical, not really interested in Torah study, just in avoiding army service.AVIGDOR BONCHEKJerusalemI don’t see what the track proposed by Goldman will do to ensure equal sharing of the burden of defense.I am sure he does not accept, any more than I do, the fake news propounded by some haredi MKs that Torah study is more effective in defending the country than serving in the IDF. In ancient times, when faced with enemies, the leaders of Israel did not tell potential soldiers “Go and study Torah, and the enemy will go away.” And they did not have to face, as we do today, Hamas and Hezbollah rockets, attack tunnels, roadside explosives, suicide vests, blazing balloons and the rest.The problem preventing a solution is the incitement against army service by the haredi leaders, by which they keep the haredim subservient to their power. Youths who do not register to get the exemption they have been offered should not be arrested; it is the rabbis and leaders who tell them to break the law who should be behind bars. Perhaps the incoming government can find a solution commensurate with the needs of the country and those of the haredim, who should be able to earn a decent living for their families.JEREMY TOPAZRehovotUNESCO hostilityRegarding “Goodbye UNESCO” (January 3), the decision by Israel to leave this biased organization should be praised. We should not allow ourselves to be treated as a third-world country (actually, third-world countries are treated much better there).To paraphrase Groucho Marx “We don’t want to belong to any club that would accept us as one of its members – and then treat us with such disdain.”I don’t believe UNESCO was ever listening, as their silence on our concerns is deafening.STEPHEN VISHNICKTel AvivGoing up?Regarding “Build a museum of aliyah” (January 8), Michael Freund’s idea of an aliyah museum is good, but not new. There already exists an interesting, newly renovated First Aliyah Museum in Zichron Yaakov, complete with videos, photographs, statistics, etc.Is Freund aware of this? Perhaps expanding the existing museum and giving it more publicity would be worthwhile. It also would encourage tourists to go beyond Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.JANICE WEINREBRa’anana
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