May 10: Oooh, those threats!

If threats of a tough response proved to be effective military weapons, the IDF would be the most invincible army in the Middle East.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
letters good 88 (photo credit: Courtesy)
letters good 88
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Oooh, those threats! Sir, - If threats of a tough response proved to be effective military weapons, the IDF would be the most invincible army in the Middle East, perhaps the entire world. When speaking of brilliant military strategists the names of Ehud Olmert and Amir Peretz would deserve to be linked with that of Alexander the Great. However, one is compelled to question the necessity of these latest vows of a tough response to the rockets from Gaza when our enemies should still be quaking in their boots from the long list of similar potent threats made in the past. The government's success is reminiscent of the most successful robbery in the history of the state of Texas, in which the thief broke into a Jewish temple and managed to get away with $200 in cash, in addition to $3 million in pledges made to the building fund ("Waiting for disaster," Editorial, May 9). ZEV CHAMUDOT Petah Tikva Tox on the box Sir, - Daoud Kuttab is an expert at diverting the truth of the lack of decent television for Arab children. First he blames the "occupation" instead of the use of monies to buy arms to kill Israelis and each other. Then he ignores the use by Hamas of a Mickey Mouse lookalike to teach hate. Many of us have seen the copies of the TV shows based on Sesame Street that preach martyrdom to two-year-olds ("Fine-tuning Arab television," May 9). SONIA GOLDSMITH Netanya Muslims are moral Sir - As evidence of her view that all Muslims are evil, Caroline B. Glick brought up several examples of attempts by Muslim extremists to attack schools ("Hirsi Ali's challenge to humanity," May 8). However, since the victims were also Muslim, her implication that such behavior is shared by all Muslims, or even the norm, is clearly false. The vast majority of Muslims are perfectly moral human beings, and just because the extremists are more likely to make headlines does not mean that there are more of them. ISAAC BROOKS Haifa Caroline Glick responds: I pointed out a number of instances where, in the name of Islam, Muslims behave with human depravity against others. My column in no way impugned Muslims as Muslims. Rather, in outlining the life and work of Ayaan Hirsi Ali, I pointed out that in brutalizing Muslim women, Muslim religious leaders and religious adherents justify their evil deeds by quoting verses from the Koran which sanction their violent and brutal behavior. Their heroes are... Sir, - Michael Freund's "Evil and the passage of time" (May 9) and his outrage that the crusader Godfrey of Bouillon, who massacred Jews across Europe, has a statue in his honor in Brussels reminded me of the first Sunday afternoon our family spent in Toronto when we arrived there as emissaries more than 20 years ago. Eager to sample the city's diverse events we drove to a local Ukrainian folk festival. Among the colorful outfits and lively music we found a large tent that hosted portraits of Ukrainian heroes. Among them was none other than one of the cruelest men in Jewish history - Bogdan Chmielnitzki. TOBY KLEIN GREENWALD Efrat Sir, - I have heard people say, "If there is a God that loves us, why is there so much evil in the world?" I would say that life is a test, to see which way our hearts would take us when trouble comes. As for God being a loving God, I would say that if he were not, none of us would exist in the first place. I would also like to give this advice, that following other men is dangerous. Will they be there, when you stand before God? DAVID DOTHAGER Mulberry Grove, Illinois ...our nightmares Sir, - "Israel on verge of moral collapse" says Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch (May 7). "We are in the midst of cultural and political turmoil… [yet] perhaps we can say it isn't too late." As a country, we are not united - not in the Knesset, the army, the schools or in social behavior. An undercurrent of intolerance and a lack of respect seem to infect so many sectors of our society. Maybe I am old-fashioned, but to me, the practice of referring to teachers by their first names is the first stage in our youth's education in lack of respect. Parents desperate to find alternatives to the deplorable education system are focusing on the private education sector, with all its additional financial burdens. Others want a democratic system where children decide. When will we learn that children yearn for direction in life? We all need to know what discipline is, otherwise nobody will know the difference between right and wrong. That leads to school and street violence, road deaths and now even knife attacks on the road. HASJA PALMER Haifa David's sins Sir, - Re Shmuley Boteach's "Hate the sinner, too" (May 4), one might consider Jehovah's love for King David, both an adulterer and a murderer. The difference is this: Sin was not the pattern of David's life, and when told, "You are the man!" he truly repented. Jehovah was not pleased with what David had done, but He forgave him and loved him as "a man after God's Own heart." Did that make Jehovah "morally calloused or ethically blind"? I think not. SALLY NEUGENT Oklahoma City Someone say scandal? Sir - Tucked away in Isi Liebler's op-ed is "However, it is clear that the bulk of the contributions were provided to the March of the Living by the Claims Conference and ICHEIC, the Holocaust-related insurance commission." Why on earth is ICHEIC giving money to the March of the Living? ICHEIC's mission is to get Holocaust insurance money out of the hands of the companies and into the hands of the legitimate beneficiaries and heirs. It has famously underachieved in that undertaking, but it certainly has no business making the March of the Living (and who knows what else) into beneficiaries ("Now, the 'March of the Living' scandal," May 9). ISRAEL PICKHOLTZ Elazar Minister of Torpor Sir, - Further to "Road to where?" (Letters, May 7): What a wonderful sinecure is the post of transport minister in our government. How reminiscent of the dormouse in the other Mad Hatter's tea party. Once appointed, the minister displays somnolence, occasionally seeming to wake up, make a few meaningless statements, and then resume his normal torpor. OSCAR DAVIES Jerusalem Praise for the 'Post' Sir, - Your May 9 headline "6 Muslims charged with plotting to attack NJ base" demonstrated why readers of The Jerusalem Post are among the best-informed in the world. MSN first had "Men from former Yugoslavia allegedly plotted to attack Fort Dix Army base," which was later changed to "6 held on terror conspiracy charges in N.J." The BBC: "Arrests over US army base 'plot.'" The New York Times: "6 Men Arrested in a Terror Plot Against Fort Dix." The Post gives the information which is most relevant. MLADEN ANDRIJASEVIC Beersheba