The mission\’s organizer, Rabbi Mark Diamond, executive director of the Board of Rabbis of Southern California, called the journey a \”rabbinic version of the March of Living.\”
I learned of the Jewish slant on conservation on my first flight to Israel in my late teens.
Here we were, 18-year-old kids who barely knew anything about life, and being entrusted with weapons that had the potential to save lives or to take lives.
Avner Sharoni, owner of Tempo restaurant in Encino, died April 13 at the age of 49.
In 1977, Sharoni, then a 24-year-old Israeli, moved to Los Angeles after he served in the Israel Defense Force. He bought Art\’s International Sidewalk Cafe and within a few weeks, had added hummus and pita to the menu and changed the name to Tempo, after the popular Israeli soda.
All of us have heard, or experienced a variation of the following story, told of a father and his daughter. She, a busy professional; he, a retired widower. In one of their virtually nonexistent exchanges, he asks: \”With your booked schedule, will you be able to attend my funeral?\” Her response: \”Of course, how could you say such a thing?\” His retort: \”I need you in my life now, before I die.\”
Only 26 percent of Americans believe the Saudi peace initiative is sincere, according to a new poll of more than 1,000 Americans. Thirty-one percent believe the Saudis launched the initiative to improve their image in the United States. Sixty-two percent of respondents believe the Saudis are not ready to accept Israel\’s right to exist.
The plan calls for the Arab world to make peace with Israel in return for a withdrawal from all lands Israel captured in the 1967 Six-Day War. The survey, commissioned by the Institute for Jewish & Community Research, has a margin of error of 3 percent.
\”A Cry for Peace,\” by Debora Gillman, a Park Labrea resident artist, is being featured on Tower 49 at Park Labrea. It is a colorful 16-by-25 foot banner in the Sixth Annual \”L.A.\’s Tallest Art Exhibition\” and serves to promote \”Art in The Park 2002,\” a citywide, all-day art event that will take place on Sunday, May 5.
Opponents of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) East-West Transit Corridor, which was approved by the MTA in February, filed a lawsuit April 2 challenging the MTA\’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR), alleging that the report \”understated the serious effects of the busway on Valley residents and ignored alternative transit projects that could have avoided these effects.\”
The controversial busway is slated to run along a 14-mile route through neighborhoods from Warner Center in Woodland Hills to the Metro Red Line subway station in North Hollywood. Supporters say it is a necessary and welcome means of improving mass transit. Opponents contend that the estimated $330 million project is too dangerous and expensive and that expanding the MTA\’s popular Metro Rapid Bus service would provide almost as many buses at 10 percent of the cost and with far fewer safety concerns.
Albert Spiegel, former president of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, died at the age of 86.
Spiegel\’s commitment and dedication to our community was surpassed only by the passion and zeal he displayed as he worked tirelessly to fulfill the Jewish tradition of tikkun olam — making our world a better place.
