August 15: Shock treatment

The authorities appear to be doing very little to prepare for the water shortfall and possible advent of rationing.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
letters 88 (photo credit: Courtesy)
letters 88
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Shock treatment Sir, - Kol hakovod to Tamar Kagan for her letter "Taps off, briefly" (August 10). The authorities appear to be doing very little to prepare for the water shortfall and possible advent of rationing. Neither the municipal authorities nor the public appear to be taking much notice of the advertisements warning of the shortage, and carry on blithely watering gardens and generally wasting water. Nothing would be as effective as a daily one- or two-hour total cutoff. Not only would it start saving water, it would wake up all concerned and bring the forthcoming crisis to everyone's attention. Shock treatment is urgently required. MIKE AYL Ashkelon Is there a doctor in the house? Sir, - So suddenly there is a manpower crisis in the hospitals, a trend which has been well-known for many years ("Surgeons warn severe crisis in manpower will endanger lives," August 11). Our doctors and interns work so many hours as to be deprived not only of sleep but also of family life. All this for a pitiful salary, which ultimately means a pitiful pension and no perks. It is no wonder many seek their fortunes abroad, to the detriment of our own healthcare system. Do our prime minister and his associates in the Knesset - who enjoy salaries, perks and pensions several times in excess of those earned by our doctors and surgeons - have to study for seven years, plus an additional five to six years of specialization, to run the country? I wonder how the health care system would operate if it was based on patronage. Of course, many doctors do supplement their incomes with private surgeries and consultations, but this takes their efforts away from the hospitals where they should be spending their time, reducing the waiting period for elective surgery. STUART & HASJA PALMER Haifa No-go area Sir, - Legend has it that when the Germans invaded Denmark, the king wore the yellow star in solidarity with his Jewish countrymen. At this time, it would be a great shame for any self-respecting Jew to visit Jordan - whether he dons tefillin or not ("Jordan bars entry to Israelis with religious objects for their 'safety,'" (August 14). FRED GOTTLIEB Jerusalem Safed blues Sir, - While Eli Minoff has the right to complain about his city, Safed, being "dysfunctional," he really missed the point of Melinda Ribner's "Ode to Safed" (August 7). His disparaging remarks about Chabadniks and Breslovers show a rather low tolerance of spiritually, which he claims can be found easily outside Israel. Yet one does not have to be religious to appreciate the uniqueness of Safed, considered one of the four holy cities of Israel. And yes, when I visit Safed, I, like, Col. Sir Charles Wilson in 1880, see garbage strewn on the ground. But, more, my eyes behold the beauty of the place. If Mr. Minoff is still unhappy in Safed after living there for 47 years, why doesn't he move out? ("Astronaut heaven," August 12) C. HEUMAN Ginot Shomron