Eye on People
1,000 Israelis volunteered to help the Israeli army (Tsahal or I.D.F.). It is a new emergency situation in Israel, a country under terrorist siege. 5 Israelis were murdered just between Sept. 6 - Sept. 10, 2001. Among these volunteers Levy Goldberg, a veteran paratrooper only 77 years old today. The army first trained these volunteers.
Righteous Victims - A History of the Zionist/Arab Conflict 1881-2002 (Vintage Books, New York 2001) is a new book by Israel's most famous post-Zionist writer, Benny Morris. They say that he is a moderate post-Zionist but he, like all of them, argues that Israel was born 'in sin.' Of course, the New York Times loves this book. There is only one question: How can we predict the end of this long conflict? Morris concluded: "So far the Zionists have been the winners in this conflict. Each victory can be explained in the light of specific concrete factors, but, viewed as a whole, the success of the Zionist enterprise has been nothing short of miraculous. For how else can one describe the taking root, in a desolate land, in the face of imperial ill will and native hostility, of a small, ill-equipped community of tens of thousands of transplanted Russian Jews; how else describe the growth of that community, albeit under the protective umbrella of British bayonets, in defiance of increasing Arab opposition and violence? How else describe the victory of the minuscule community against the surrounding sea of Arabs and Arab states in 1948; the establishment of a solid, viable state; its successive military victories; and the gradual Arab acquiescence in its existence, as embodied in the peace accords with Egypt, the PLO, and Jordan?
The following books were written by Morris whose research probably was exploited by the PLO to develop their campaign to de-legitimize the existence of Israel: The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem, 1947-1949; 1948 and After; Israel and the Palestinians. Of course, Morris, an Israeli who teaches in the university of Ben-Gurion, only wants to expose the truth. Morris is a great historian. The book received many positive critics: "A masterly account: detailed but always readable, authoritative but strenuously objective ... If you want to understand the Arab-Israeli conflict, rather than sound off about it, the book is essential." - Contemporary Review.
Morris believes that the roots of this conflict (Zionist-Arab rather than Israeli-Arab or Jewish-Arab) are to be found in 1881 when the first modern aliyah took place (1881-1903) but he can not predict the future, especially in our times when the Arabs are obsessed with the dream to dismantle the Zionist entity believing that time is one their side. Morris and his post-Zionist writers are dreaming about peace but the PLO and the Arab countries dream about a new Palestine. The U.N.'s World Conference in Durban demonstrated the existence of this dream.
New from Rowman and Littlefield publishing group: Jews in American Politics, edited by L. Sandy Maisel and Ira Forman with the introduction by Senator Joseph I. Lieberman. Part I: A compilation of essays on Jews in politics since 1776; Part II: Compromises the biographical profiles of Jews who were or are prominent in American politics. Senator Charles E. Schumer points out: "This book is a first of its kind - an all-in-one encyclopedia that both chronicles the Jewish political experience from Oscar Straus to Joe Lieberman and critically analyzes what it all means. Well-written, insightful and full of useful information, Jews in American Politics is a must-read for the scholar, the student and the average citizen alike."
Senator Joseph Lieberman wrote in the Introduction: "The experience I had during the 2000 presidential campaign has only deepened my feelings about public service. It reinforced my basic faith in the goodness and tolerance of the American people, my belief that there is an important role for idealism in public life, and my conviction that each individual can make a contribution to a better society. It has also convinced me as never before that American Jews have an important and special role to play in the civic life of this great country... That is the spirit I hope readers - particularly young readers - will draw from this important book."
Hebrew Union College, located on 1 West 4th Street in downtown Manhattan, also joins the Holocaust Industry Club: From Sept. 13 to Jan. 4, 2002 featuring The Kindertransport Journey: Memory Into History: A documentary exhibition tracing the rescue of 10,000 children from Nazi-occupied Europe. Robert Sugar designed, wrote and produced this exhibition. Most of these children were Jews. Most of their parents left behind were murdered by the Nazis. The 'Museum' of the Hebrew Union College also organized a special symposium about the life of second generation Holocaust survivors. Indeed the Holocaust Industry replaced Israel or Israeli culture in America. As if one can bring back the six million Jews among them, my relatives as well. For more information call (212) 824-2209.
In 1959, Norbert Lebert (1929-1993) interviewed many sons and daughters of the Nazi leaders (Hess, Borman, Hans, Frank and others). Stephen Lebert did a follow up. The outcome, My Father's Keeper - Children of Nazi Leaders - An Intimate History of Damage and Denial (Little Brown and Company, NY 2001). The book helps us to understand the mind of these murderers and criminals. But as Elie Wiesel remarked: "The children of the murderers are not murderers."
Hillary B. Rosen, president of Recording Industry Association of America, Amy Dean (Labor activist), Laura Kaufman (Jewish feminist), Nancy Jude Grant, Miriam Weintraub (media), Dr. Susan Bressler (ophthalmology), Susan Sygall (advocate for the disabled), Elizabeth Shammash (singer), Michael Rovner (Israeli artist), and Yael Sternhell (Israeli media), were selected by the magazine (president Barbara A. Rabkin and editor Susan Tomchin) 'Jewish Women Magazine' as the 'Ten Women to Watch' in our time.
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