Your Letters

Joel Kotkin

Joel Kotkin is absolutely right that Jews must seek a new dynamic and relationship to our national politics in this war on terrorism (“A New Reality for Jews,” Oct. 12).

It is time to question and re-examine not only personal attitudes and political values, but also the near-reflexive allegiance that Jews show to the left and to the Democratic party.

The U.S. Arab community voted Republican in roughly the same proportion as Jews voted Democratic. This means that the Arab community, as part of the Republican party base, will have potentially more influence with the administration than will Jews. We are already seeing a change in the U.S. attitude toward Israel in order to placate the Arab and Muslim world. We need more Jewish Republicans and conservatives to pressure the administration from within its party base.

Carl Pearlston, Torrance

For The Kids

I love Abby Gilad’s Kids page. As an adult, I find it a cute way to remember the alphabet and other information.

Pattye Asarch, Mar Vista

Special Needs

In furtherance of the article regarding programs for children with disabilities (“Inclusion’s Importance,” Oct. 5), people in our community should know that there are programs for Jewish children with special needs.

Two wonderful programs that have been around for a long time are Tikvah at Camp Ramah and Shearim at Valley Beth Shalom.

Tikvah is a religious summer camp experience for specially challenged children. They share the summer with hundreds of other Jewish children (ages 9 to 16) in a thoroughly Jewish, nature-sensitive environment. The warmth, joy and growth (spiritual and physical) that these children bring back with them is wonderful.

Many years ago Rabbi Harold Schulweis encouraged Valley Beth Shalom to begin Shearim, under the direction of Neal Schnall, which encompasses different educational approaches, depending on the needs of the particular students.

Caring programs like these not only show families of children with special needs how sensitive the Jewish community can be, but they also help make all of us a little more compassionate and sensitive to the people around us.

Michael Waterman, Encino

Wiesenthal Project

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is currently working on a project examining the different forms of resistance during World War II and the Holocaust. To this end, we are attempting to locate people who either worked with or were saved by Dr. William Perl, a prominent figure in the resistance movement in Austria during the 1930s.

If you or somebody you know had contact with Perl duringthis period, please contact me at the Simon Wiesenthal center in one of thefollowing manners: phone (310) 772-2437; fax (310) 772-7652; e-mail prosenhaft@wiesenthal.net .

Phyllis Rosenhaft, Moriah Films