xt73xs5jdp5f https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt73xs5jdp5f/data/mets.xml Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass Kentucky Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass 2011-09 Newspaper of the Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass, previously named the Central Kentucky Jewish Association and Central Kentucky Jewish Federation. Published ten times annually. The Federation seeks to bring Jewish community members together through holiday parties, lectures, Yiddish courses, meals, and other celebrations of Jewish heritage and culture. They also host fundraisers and provide financial assistance for Jews in need, both locally and around the world. This collection is part of the Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass records, 2016ms010. newsletters 2016ms010 English Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass Inc. Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass records Jews -- Kentucky -- Lexington Jews -- History Shalom, September 2011 text image Shalom, September 2011 2011 2011-09 2025 true xt73xs5jdp5f section xt73xs5jdp5f W

September 20}?
38 new friends

Rachel Heller, Seth Westermmz and Dani Heller connected in Ierusalem when their

Birthright trips overlapped,

5 U12)” Heller

‘ W,~a.¢-aizg.;xcw ,

Israel used to be a place I learned
about in Sunday school, a place I heard
about on the news, and a place that

I always felt a connection to; yet it
always seemed so far away. It wasn’t
until this summer when I went on a
Taglit~Birthright Israel trip that I real-
ized and began to understand what
that connection was and how special a
place Israel really is. I had never been
put into a situation like it before and I
had no idea what to expect. There were
40 different people coming from 40
different places. My sister Rachel and I
went on the trip together, not knowing
anyone else, and we came home with
38 new friends from all over America.
We got to see a lot of the country and
learn about its history, all while mak-
ing friendships that will last a lifetime.

Less em into outer weaken
seldiers joined us and took part in all
of our activities; this was my favorite
aspect of the trip. Before going on the
trip when I heard that we’d be accom-
panied by Israeli soldiers, I assumed
they would be with us for our protec-
tion. Little did I know they would be
our peers and eventually our friends,
and they were just as excited to be on a
Birthright trip as we were. They were
our ages and a year or so into serv-
ing in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
Each day we were together they taught
us and we taught them. One of the Is-
raeli guys named Sagi, who just made
lieutenant in his department of the
IDF, told me that even though he had
hiked Masada and gone to Yad Vashem
many times before in his life, it was so
much more meaningful to experience

see New Friends, page 10

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TIJW

OF THE BLUEGRASS

ELUUTiSH‘Ri 577‘! f7 2

Gifts to the IFS campaign bring
joy to the community

In this issue of Shalom, you will

see photos and stories about Camp
Shalom and about the Israeli Scouts
who visited this summer. Both of
these programs are possible because
of the generosity of our donors. Many
people believe that the costs of Camp
Shalom and Camp Gesher are covered
by camp tuition. This is far from the
truth. In addition to providing schol-
arships (campershipsl for a number of
our tamiluw, the «ampaign subsidizes
camp's operating costs including we

Us sup-

plies, etc. Because our numbers were
lower this year, the subsidy was even
greater. As a result, we were able to
hire a wonderful staff and the ratio of
camper per counselor is quite a bit bet-
ter than most other camps.

Camp Shalom and the entire Jewish
community beneﬁted from the visit of
the Tzofim, the Israeli Scouts. Ten Is-
raeli teenagers and their leaders visited
us for two days, entertaining at a con-
cert at Temple Adath Israel and spend-
ing time with our campers the next
day. They taught Israeli songs, dances
and games and gave the campers and
staff a wonderful taste of Israeli life.

I heir visit was an absolute delight and
like Camp Shalom, was subsidized by
ducampaign. Thank you to all who
made these re ams possible. Thank
youalso'“ ' , Whohoused
and fed the scouts and even did their
laundry! Thank you Gayle and Pete
Bourne, Jane and Bill Grise, Mimi and
Micah Kaufman, Lisa and Jonathan
Satin, Elissa and Alan Weinstein and
all their children. ‘3

What a wonderful twe weeks -
Camp Memories 2311

By Kathy Feinberg

Camp Shalom and Camp Gesher 2011
has closed for this summer but what
special memories we all take away
from it. Our campers had a wonderful
time and inspired our staff every day.
It was a joy and privilege to hear all of
the happy voices and see such enthusi-
astic participation in camp activities by
our campers. Our two weeks of camp
went by all too quickly.

This summer camp was held for the
ﬁrst time at Camp Shawano that is
owned by the Girl Scout Wilderness

Road Council. Camp Shawano is a
beautiful 147 acre camp site located in
Jessamine County and features a large
lodge, nature center, playing fields, a
challenging rock wall, nature trails,
and several other cabins for camper
use. Our staff and campers easily
settled into our new camp site and
made excellent use of all the camp site
had to offer.

The first week of camp we held a
”Purim in July” carnival and campers
came in costume, played games and
presented Purim skits. Each morning

see Camp Memories, page 30

--,---_ .. -«yu. .

IN THIS ISSUE

Talia Smolkin Appointed as Director of Jewish Family Services .............................. 3

Editorial 3

PIESident'S Message 3 . - - a allation of Officers
PJ Library News 4 SAH Opening Meeting w th Inst

JFS: At Your Service 4

Letters to the Editor 5

Hadassah honors Gail Cohen 6 Sunday, SE93??? 18' 201 1
Endow Kentucky 7

Summer in Israel, the Israeli Way 8

Tower of Babel? 9

Recovery and Deﬁcit Reduction 9 Couve” $2500

Jewish Federations applaud new Congressional bill ............................................... 1 1 Menu is salmon
therinka Documentary — Part 3 12 Vegetarian Option available
Adelsons announce $5 million challenge gift to Taglit-Birthright Israel ............ 14 Associates and Guests Welcome
Book Review 19

Israel 21 c: The ’elegant wines’ of Flam 20

Samson: The First Terrorist 22 with YOUr menu selection
Help Stop Human Trafﬁcking 22

Ask A Rabbi 24

B'tayavon 25 ($3

Mah-Jongg tournament 25 . .

TAI on Rye to open for this year on September 25 25 Pres'dem‘ Jone Chop“
The Lexington Havurah 26

1232?: iéztsécggfgue i; Secretary: Linda Dechtenberg
The Lexington Chapter of Hadassah 29 Treasurer: “we ”00*
Arotmd the Community 31

You are invited to

aa‘Egemhgtow‘E/mptwo‘tw

featuring a special presentation by
Susan WiIkof, National Board Member

Malone's Banquet Room above Sal‘s
3347 Tates Creek Road. Lexington, KY

Respond by September I2 to Gayle Boume

312—0359 or Iexhadassah©yahoo.com

Vice President, Programming: Melanie Shapiro
Vice President, Membership: Odette Kaplan
Vice President, Education: Evalyn Block

Shahmo

Published ten times per year by the
Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass, Inc.
1050 Chinoe Rd., Suite 302, Lexington, KY 40502
Phone (859) 268-0672 - Fax (859) 268-0775
email: shalom@jewishlexington.org

SEPTEMBER 201 1, VOLUME XVIII, ISSUE 7
Robert Grossman, President
Judy Wortman, Executive Director
Tamara Ohayon, Communications Director
Talia Smolkin, JFS Director

SHALOM EDITORIAL BOARD
David A. Wortman, Editor-in-Chief
Hanna Smith
Jane Chaput
Gary Yarus
Marcia Blacker

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Leonid Dayen, Kathy Feinberg, Dani Heller, Tamara Ohayon, Jeremy Popkin,
Ned Rosenbaum, Hanna Smith, Bonnie Sobel

LOCAL DISTRIBUTION SERVICES
Lowell and Betty Nigoff

Production Services by Georgetown News-Graphic

The editorial staff has the right to edit all articles submitted for publication in Shalom.
Articles should not exceed 500 words.The appearance of any advertising in this pub-

lication does not represent either a kashruth or any other endorsement on the part of
the Federation or any other agency or organizations.

Opinions expressed in Shalom are not necessarily those of the Shalom editorial staff or
the JFB or its constituent organizations.

Shalom is partially supported by the advertisements appearing in the paper.

Copyright © 201 1, Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass. All rights reserved. For reprint
permission contact David Wortman, Editor-in-Chi
ton.org

2 | September 2011 Shalom

ef, Shalom, at shalom@jewishlexing-

Join us for a gathering of the

EQUINE DIVISION

of the Jewish Federation of the
Bluegrass on‘Mond‘ayr" 4“?
October 10, 2011 at 5:00 pm. at
Rick Trontz’s Hopewell Farm with
guests Barry Irwin and Senator , myﬁﬂﬂﬂ .
Kathy Stein. ‘ ’ '

. , , 73,,
1039 sash-sh! neg;
Lexington. KY‘awstos'

: ~wmmaJtu Hausa»! $
' 4 v Fawn“: '
Contact Judy Wortman for more ,
information or to RSVP at
jfb@jewishlexington.org

It you .m‘ not rm'owmt) ,varsh Wm‘kly email and would like to, please
send you: name and vmml address to lvxmlmintantrumshlexingtonprq

OF YRS 31016633“?

n“ 'l‘lu‘JtMislI I'I'dvr‘ution

Federation President Federation Board
Robert Grossman Jane Chaput Jennifer Miller
Diana Clewett Marilyn Moosnick
Executive Committee Susan Cobin Kathye Schattner
Gary Yarus, Vice President Gail Cohen Kae Schennberg
Hanna Smith, Secretary Mike Grossman Marty Solomon
Bill Lucas, Treasurer Larry Kant Elissa Weinstein
Evalyn Block, MembenAt-Large Minna Katz—Brown David Wekstein
Linda Rawin, Member-At—Large Amy Faust Mayer

Shalom Deadline

Deadline for articles for the October Shalom is Septemberjttlm.’ as;
y _ Email articies to shalomajewishiexiggtonarg ,.,_j »

l...—

\_._._

O‘mmn

Cia]
the
frat
lose

Ana“

Talia Smolkin Appointed as
Director of Jewish Family Services

The Board of the Jewish Federation

of the Bluegrass announces the ap-
pointment of Talia Smolkin as Director
of JFS. She will also coordinate our
informal Jewish education programs.
Talia joined the staff in late August
after completing her Masters in Social
Work degree (MSW) from the Wurz-
weiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva
University.

Talia came to Lexington from Los
Angeles a bit more than two years

ago with her husband, Rabbi Moshe
Smolkin. After growing up in Jewish
camps and day schools, she attended
the University of California Santa Cruz
(UCSC) where she received her BA

in Psychology. After graduation she
worked in development for Santa Cruz
Hillel and subsequently at the Jewish
Federation of Greater Los Angeles.

At the Federation, Talia had several
different responsibilities including
coordinating a literacy program and
coordinating an educational partner-
ship between schools in Los Angeles
and Tel Aviv.

While in graduate school at the Wurz-
weiler School of Social Work, Talia
completed two years of internship.
Her first year assignment was at JFS
where she worked very closely with
Paula Clancy who was the previous di-
rector. This past year, she interned for
Hospice of the Bluegrass, where she
worked with individuals and families
in end-of—life care.

Talia has said she is grateful to serve
this warm and unique Jewish com-
munity through her work at the Jewish
Federation of the Bluegrass. Q

Editorial

Many people make resolutions for

a new year. Around January lst we
pledge to lose weight, to read more
books, to spend more time with familv.

. to ., smoknn t5. ngssqﬂyi by};g

put off-until the’follozwing year.

On Rosh Hashanah, we make a dif-
ferent kind of resolution. We make
teshuvah —- a promise to return to the
”path of righteousness.” The Ten Days
of Repentance culminate with the Yom
Kippur confessional, during which we
ask for forgiveness and pledge to do
better in the coming year.

.What does doing better mean? It
means being fair in Our treatment of

others, whether neighbors, co-workers,
friends or strangers. It means engaging
in honest dialogue Without vitriol and
without name-calling. It means not
invoking God’s name in unrighteous
or purely political ways. It means all of
these things and more.

Unfortunately, it is just as easy to put
these resolutions aside as it is the more
mundane ones of January lst. Espe-
cially with the political campaigns on
the ascendancy, we often fall into the
trap of negative, vitriolic rhetoric and
lose sight of the real issues of debate.
We sanction (name-calling, accusations

of treason, ridicule, half-truths, mis-
information and downright lies. We
do this by not holding our candidates,
Republican or Democrat, to the high

stand Sister. ‘ . w . .19., s 91;;-
sﬁv‘és (iii the Iiifgtll'i-loglf 153514” *' ’

Yes, they are not Jewish, by and large.
Yet, the principles of fairness, respect
and dignity are universal in concept,
if not in practice. Yes, I know that
compared to the Hamilton — Jefferson
rhetoric of the 18th century or the
anti-Lincoln campaign of 1860, today’s
politics seem like child’s play. So what?
Do slightly varying degrees of vicious-
ness abrogate our responsibility to
insist on clean campaigns?

Polls show that people respond to
negative campaigns. Otherwise politi-
cians would not do it. I propose a

new resolution for the year 5772. Let
us resolve to send the message to our
candidates, irrespective of party afﬁli-
ation, that we will no longer accept the
status quo. We expect them to disagree
without being disagreeable.

This will bring us closer to the ideals
we espouse on Rosh Hashanah and
Yom Kippur. My the new year bring
health, happiness and sweetness to
each of you. Shanah Tovah.

President’s Message

Bob Grossman, JFB President

As we
approach

the High
Holidays,

we think
about both
the year past
and the year to come. This past year
has brought many challenges for our
Federation. We have had to reduce the
size of our office staff, and our talented
JFS director, Paula Clancy, retired to
pursue other interests. We had hoped
that the site that we rented for Camp
Shalom in 2010, the Woodmen of the
World, would be Camp Shalom’s home
for many more years, but we were
notified in January that it was closing.
Finally, our Jewish community is not
immune from the economic challenges
that our larger state and national com-
munities face, and this unfortunate
reality is reﬂected in our fund-raising
campaign.

Still, life marches on, and we deal with
the challenges that we face. Although
we were sad to see Paula leave, we
are very pleased to welcome our new
Jewish Family Services director, Talia
Smolkin, to p . . this month.JFS
is 01%? o oﬁr Federation’s most im-‘
portant functions, and we are sure
that Talia will meet the high standard
set by Paula. If you are facing any
kind of problem and you feel that you
need some help, advice, or even just a
sympathetic ear, please don’t hesitate
to call her.

Camps Shalom and Gesher have found
a new home at Camp Shawano, a Girl
Scouts of the USA property off Tates
Creek Road. By all accounts, the prop-
erty is well suited to our purposes,
and we hope to stay there for many
years to come. Camp attendance was
down significantly this year to about
43 campers per session, although we
hear that the same was true for many
other camps. Several factors may
have affected attendance this year:
the schools’ summer vacation was
shortened by all the winter weather
make-up days, and the economy is
continuing to strain families’ wallets.
Nevertheless, under the able leader-
ship of Camp Committee chair Elissa
Weinstein and Camp Director Kathy
Feinberg, our campers once again had
a fun, Yiddishkeit-filled experience.
The Israeli Scouts (Tzofim) Friend-

ship Caravan visited camp to sing and
dance with our campers, giving them a
direct connection to the state of Israel.

Our fund-raising campaign appears
to have finally hit the bottom of the
trough (pooh, pooh, pooh*) and is just
starting to climb out of it. Thanks very
much to those of you who attended
this summer’s thank-you dinner for
Steve and Susan Caller or who spon-
sored messages in their tribute book.
Not only did our own community
members contribute generously, but
we also received a number of one-time
gifts from out-of—town friends of the
Callers, for which we are very grateful.
Another bright spot in our campaign
is that we have had a large number
of pledges from first-time donors this
year. If you are one of these donors,
we hope that you will see the .value
that your gift provides to this commu-
nity, and we hope that you will in-
crease your support of our Federation
in the future, as your ﬁnances permit.
Tamara Ohayon, our marketing direc—
tor, is planning to introduce some ini—
tiatives this year we hope will attract

. a wider range of donors, especially

younger ones. As you consider what
you can afford, togive, pleuemmenr
her that in tough economic times, our
community needs our Federation more
than ever.

Our Federation continues its support
of the Ben Yakir music therapy and
horse riding therapy programs in Isra-
el, which work with at—risk boys whose
public schools have not succeeded at
helping them. We have also contribut-
ed to a new initiative, the Israel Action
Network, which seeks to counter the
disinformation about Israel and the
unethical boycott of Israeli academic
institutions that is being promoted in
some arenas. (Nothing puts the lie to
the claim that Israel is an apartheid
state more than a peaceful 250,000-per-
son protest about high housing prices.)
Still, as a small Federation, we cannot
make much of a dent on these issues,
and most of our attention continues to
be focused right here in Lexington.

I wish you and your loved ones a very
happy and healthy New Year.

*The sound of me spitting over my left
shoulder.

September2011 Shalom | 3

. 1
avi.‘

.. »-;'

a...“ -\

. ....._ ,-.

P] Library News

eligible children estimated to be in the
area. At this point, 61 have enrolled.
To be eligible, the children need to
have at least one Jewish parent. While

The national PJ Library program was
inaugurated here in central Kentucky
this past April. As was discussed in
previous articles in Shalom, PJ Library

offers free high-quality Jewish books we are well on our way to reaching

and music the target,
each 5 we aren’t
month to _ there yet.
families g he, ‘ 2 5:3 ’ Those
raising '3' children
Jewish ‘ ' and their
children JEWISH BEDTIME STORIES {5 SONGS FOR FAMILIES parents
ages six who have

received the books thus far are thrilled
with these gifts. If you have children
or local grandchildren, nieces, neph-

months through eight years. The pro—
gram, which is a creation of the Harold
Grinspoon Foundation, is funded
through a partnership of the founda- ews or friends not yet registered,
tion, local donors and the Jewish Fed- please call the Jewish Federation office
eration. Simone Salomon chairs our P] at 268-0672 or send an email to pjli-
Library program. brary@jewishlexington.org. Be on the
lookout for special programs for P]
Library kids and their families coming

this fall.

Our target number of children par-
ticipating in the first year is 80. This
number represents half the number of

The Community Relations Committee would like your
input on a project we are considering: bi—monthly
conversations on topics of interest to the Jewish
community. These could take the form of either
discussions or talks.

Please let us know any topics that you would ﬁnd of
interest and speakers whom you would enjoy hearing.
Thank you! Please email Larry Kant at dblk2@qx.net.

JFS: At Your Service

By Talia Smolkin, MSW
Jewish Family Services

Two years ago, I had the opportunity
to be part of the Jewish Federation of
the Bluegrass (JFB) team and work
closely with Paula Clancy, our pre-
vious Jewish Family Services (JFS)
Director. During that time, it became
evident that this community has tre-
mendous strength, and JFS has proven
to be a great resource for this commu—
nity to utilize. I am fortunate to now
be returning to JFB as JFS Director as
well as Coordinator of Informal Jewish
Education.

JFS strives to serve the individual and
communal needs of this Lexington
Jewish community. Individuals and
families are welcome to call JFS for a
variety of needs. JFS can work with
clients of any age to problem—solve and
identify helpful resources. Thanks to
the donations of this wonderful com-
munity, services are free.

JFS is also the sponsoring program of
our Leisure Club, a group of seniors
who come together to socialize, learn
together, and celebrate holidays. This
is an active and participatory group.
New members and ideas for programs
are always welcome.

JFS is just as much about the commu-
nity as a whole as it is about individu-
als. Through Family Life Education,
lectures, discussions and workshops
serve to educate and promote com-
munal problem-solving about issues

we often face
as individu-
als, Jews,
parents,
children, and

Lexingto-
nians. Here
we come together to learn and connect
with each other.

Serving Jewish families is not complete
without creating opportunities for in-
formal Jewish education. JFS processes
applications for need-based scholar-
ships for Jewish camps (camperships)
and merit-based scholarships for Israel
programs. An anonymous committee
reviews these confidential applications
and decides how to best distribute
these funds, in order to support Jewish
experiences that are deeply meaningful
for our Jewish children and teens.

The Jewish community in Lexington
possesses great strength. We care for

I” m m. 'ﬂdml‘ w! §qbi ‘5' let.
The services of JFS help to demon—sf???" 2
this strength and caring. lt lS anhonor ’7‘ " T ""ka

to work with this community, staff,
lay leaders, and clients. It is an honor
to be, as this column is called, at your
service.

To contact Talia Smolkin, JFS Director, for
information, referrals or other needs, e-
mail ]fs@jewishlexington.org or call (859)
269-8244. s

First and third Sundays of the month

Yiddish Drop—in! 10:00 am. at the Jewish
t Federation office. An hour of Yiddish with

Refoyl Finkl (Rafi Finkel). Beginners
welcome, fluent speakers welcome, and
those who remember "a per verter fun der heym” also
l welcome. We'll adjust What we do to the levels of those
E who come. N o long-term commitment necessary. No

charge. Worth every cent, at least!

monthly for social events.

at tamara@iewishlexington.org,

a gathering of local Jewish adults, ages 21 to
“40ish” (about 45), who get together at least

Join our mailing list. Contact Tamara Ollayon

(859) 268'0672, or find us on Faoeboolcl

UPCOMING EVENTS

Sunday, September 25

lclilce

Sunday, October 16
Keenelamﬁl

Sunday. November 20
Mox/le Might

4 | September 2011 Shalom

her.
raE’ "‘ }

HUI

lOI‘
lur

('2‘- ,

These letters express the opinions of thelauthors and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the JFB or of the Shalom.

Our Loss
By Bonnie Sobel

A small diamond was set in a simple
setting and was on the ﬁnger of the
daughter of one of our dearest friends.
Laura knew that the ring was meant
to be worn, but she was almost afraid
to wear it because the diamond, while
breathtakingly beautiful, was also ir-
replaceable. This diamond was one of
three that came to America in the heel
of the shoe of a Holocaust survivor.
Actually, there had originally been
four diamonds. Her father-in law, a
dentist who implanted the near perfect
diamonds in his shoe, used one to buy
his freedom from a former patient and
guard at the concentration camp. He
was able to give the other diamonds to
his sons and daughter.

This story came to my mind when I
heard that twenty-two of our Navy
SEALS had just lost their lives when
their helicopter was shot down over
Afghanistan. My husband, Pete, used
to tell me stories about the amazing
Navy SEALS that were his shipmates
during the Vietnam War. These men
were hysically and mentally our best

wwg'mfl (in? .ﬁﬁmanﬁbfavestlhéy

could be counted on to be the ﬁrst ones
on the beaches and they ”paved the
way” for the rest of our troops to land
safely.

Like the diamond in Laura’s ring, each
one of the SEALS represents the ﬁnest
example of what American bravery

is all about. Each is an irreplaceable
treasure.

One thing about the Navy SEALS and
especially SEAL Team 6 is that they

ausually don’t like being in the head-

lines. They are the unsung heroes who
quietly get the job done and don’t

Letters to the Editor

require public accolades. But today, as
we are so saturated with information
about the lives of drug infested enter-
tainers and disgusting murderers, it is
my hope that the military will share
with us more details about the lives

of these special heroes. I hope we will
be able to make their names revered
household words. Isn’t it time we
once again start celebrating the lives
of outstanding people who contribute
toward making America the exception-
al country that it is? And aren’t these
men the perfect place to start?

2011 Hanukkah Stamp

By Ronald Scheiman

The Quest for Annual Hanukkah
Stamps

hanukkah@att.net

VWV‘u '\.’\.’VW\J'V'\J"\J‘J}

The 2011Ha— SJ ,, .

nukkah stamp i
will be issued 5 g
on October 14, f
5
<

2011. It should g
be available at

all post ofﬁces on, and after, October
17th. Since this Hanukkah stamp will
be a ”FOREVER” one. If you buy them
at'44c’ and the postal rate goes up they
can still be used without any addition-
al postage necessary.

If your post ofﬁce does not have the
Hanukkah stamp available after Octo-
ber 17th and throughout the holiday
season please let me know immedi-
ately. Email me the town and Zip code
at hanukkah@att.net.

Also, if your post ofﬁce puts up a
holiday display that does not include
Hanukkah decorations, please let me
know. Hanukkah decorations are al-
lowed and should be included. If your
postmaster does not believe it, tell him
to look it up in the Post Ofﬁce opera-
tions Manual sections 124.55,e and

JVm/\/‘\J\!\/V\/\/VJ\J\;'\. "c!

The Israeli-Palestinian conﬂict
and misinformation (slightly
revised 8/12/2011)

By Marty Solomon

As soon as President Obama’s last
word was uttered in his May 19 speech
on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,
reports of what he said began spewing
out. Robert Satoff of the Washington
Institute writes that the President,
”unveiled a new---and controversial-
--set of principles guiding U.S. ef-

forts to promote Israeli-Palestinian
peace.” Michele Bachmann said on
TV, President Obama demands that,
”Israel must give up its defensible
borders." Mona Charen wrote that
President Obama demands, “Negotia-
tions. . .begin with the assumption that
Israel will relinquish all of the disputed
territories acquired in a defensive war
44 years ago." Chris Wallace of Fox
News claimed that Obama has un-
veiled a new, dangerous plan for Israel.
None of these reports are accurate, but
many people who did not actually hear
the speech were upset with President
Obama based upon being misled. The
fact is that there was nothing new or
corrupvaaial in the President’s speech.
When President Obama said that the
Palestinians and Israelis should negoti-
ate on borders, ”based on the 1967
lines with mutually agreed swaps,” all
he said was please sit down and come
up with whatever borders are agree-
able. Since the borders must be mutu-
ally agreed upon, the "1967" part of
the sentence was irrelevant. Neverthe-
less, the 1967 borders have been central
to the discussions ever since the Six-
Day War. In the summer of 2000, Israel
offered the Palestinians the creation of
an independent Palestinian state with
Israel’s withdrawal from 100% of Gaza,
approximately 95 percent of the West
Bank and Israeli annexation of the

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remaining 5 percent of the West Bank,
in exchange for an equivalent amount
of territory in pre-1967 Israel. That is,
Israel virtually agreed to return to the
1967 borders. And in 2008, outgoing
Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Olmert,
said, ”ahnost all" of the territory seized
during the Six-Day War in 1967 will
have to be given back in return for
peace with the Palestinians.” Now,
even Benjamin Netanyahu is saying
that negotiations must begin with the
1967 borders.

Unfortunately, the misinformation may
be fueling a new wave of anti-Semi-
tism by encouraging enemies of Israel.
Some anti-Zionists will take comfort in
saying that Israel is unwilling to give
back the land it occupied that never be.
longed to them and that even President
Obama wants that done.

Whatever the case, the clock is licking
and time is seemingly not on Israel’s
side. Without peace, the Arab Spring
may not be good news. In addition,
Palestinians will likely receive a posi-
tive vote of statehood from the United
Nations. Additionally, Israel’s ability
tosurvivehasbeenbased uponits

, military superiority. But that cannOt

last forever. Over time, Israel's ene-
mies will gain military parity. Mthout
a separate Palestinian Staten-which
requires jettisoning major portions of
the West Bank—«Jews will become the
minority and therefore, the country
will no longer be a Jewish nation. But
with a separate Palestinian state, Israel
can remain both Jewish and demo.
cratic and Palestinians can return to a
homeland of their own. Meir Dagan,
the former chief of Israel's Mossad spy
agency recently complained that Israel
has failed to put forward a peace initia-
tive with the Palestinians, that it had
foolishly ignored the Saudi peace ini-

see Letters, page 14

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September 2011 Shalom | 5

DearFriends, .. . . .:. .

This September, the United Nations General Assembly may hold a
vote on whether or not to endorse a unilaterally declared Palestinian
state and it is important that we be prepared to oppose this initiative.
While we believe that that the ultimate goal of the peace process, as
underscored by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in his recent address
to the US Congress, is “two states for two peoples: a Palestinian state
alongside the Jewish state.” Only through bilateral negotiations between
the parties to the conﬂict can a true peace with secure and recognized
borders be achieved. In an effort to raise our collective voice against
a unilaterally declared Palestinian state, the Jewish Federation of the
Bluegrass has co-sponsored an online petition with the Israel Action
Network to reject UDI and promote bilateral negotiations.

We invite you to do the following:

1. Click https://jcrcny.wufoo.com/forms/petition-against-a—unilater—
ally-declared-palestine/ to sign the petition.

2. Circulate the petition to your social and organizational networks
via E-mail, Facebook, and Twitter. When posting to Twitter,
please use the hash tag #Sign4Peace.

Should you have any questions, please contact Judy Wortman.
Thank you for partnering with us in this important effort.

Sincerely,
Robert Grossman Judy B. Wortman
President Executive Director

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6 I Septemberzon Shalom‘

Gail Cohen one of 3 honored

Proma speech read by Ellen Hershkin,
National Secretary, Hadassah
National Board Meeting

July 12, 2011

We often talk about Family — our per-
sonal and our extended ones, includ-
ing our Hadassah family.

When we look at a fa