Letters to the Editor: Legalize drugs, California’s big chance, Prager, loyalty oaths

Legalize All Drugs

I recently discovered The Jewish Journal after relocating to Los Angeles from Maui. Fifteen years is a long time to be gone. I’ve been impressed with the excellent journalism. I must say though, Rabbi Feldman’s letter on Proposition 19 is outdated thinking at best (Letters, Nov. 12). I think all drugs should be legal. Only then will the drug cartels lose their absolute power over the governments of the world and the enslavement of people worldwide.

Maria Socorro
via e-mail

Wake Up — It’s the Economy

Should we really take Raphael J. Sonenshein seriously when he wants us to believe that California will be a “crucial counterweight” on health care and greenhouse gas emissions (“California’s Big Chance on the National Stage,” Nov. 12)? The majority of the country, as shown in polls, was more concerned with jobs and the economy. The problem really is, why would California be taken seriously by the rest of the country when the state has racked up nearly $70 billion in general obligation debt, and that doesn’t include $500 billion unfunded pension liability and a ballooning budget deficit of at least $80 billion over the next four years. These major budgetary problems will hardly make us “a big player” as Mr. Sonenshein would have us believe.

Janet Polak
Beverly Hills

Hello, good morning, Mr. Sonenshein. Wake up, it’s all a dream and it’s now time to smell the coffee.
We don’t want all those great programs that the Democratic party has dreamed up for us; we sent that message loud and clear this Nov. 2.
The fact that the state of California has not yet come to its senses like the rest of the nation is embarrassing, but the local government we have voted for ourselves will concoct an even more painful awakening soon enough. It is time that you and the rest of the liberal mainstream media realize that the agenda you fought for is not shared by the majority of the American people. You lost despite your almost total control of all media outlets, including this publication. This is especially true in the Latino media in California, where liberals have total dominance, and it is that segment of the population that took Boxer, Brown and the rest of the democrats over the top and will cause the bankruptcy of our great state.

Ethan Teitler
Sherman Oaks

Enough With the Responses, Already

I believe it is very unfair for The Jewish Journal to allow Dennis Prager to respond to letters from readers who are critical of his columns (“Human Nature, Judaism and Liberals: Response to My Critics,” Nov. 5). We are allowed to express our opinions. If you wish to sponsor a debate, hire a hall! A problem with conservatives is that they dismiss liberals as simply “wrong,” and you are allowing Prager to harass his critics with additional vapid close-minded verbiage.

Martin J. Weisman
Westlake Village

Help Stem the Tide of Israel Demonization

I was disappointed in the absence of a more basic response to the bombing attempt of Jewish institutions in Chicago (“Bomb Attempt Prompts Security Evaluation,” Nov. 5). The demonization of Israel lies at the heart of anti-Jewish terrorism — can there be a stronger example than the BBC’s infestation of public radio station KPCC late at night? What about rallying Jews — e.g., utilizing Jewish seniors, myself included, to provide a monitoring resource in the service of powerful studies aimed at discouraging the demonizers and their supporters?

Charles S. Berdiansky
Los Angeles

Proclaiming Loyalty

Rob Eshman, you oppose loyalty oaths, claiming that they “undermine democracy by marginalizing, or, in effect, outlawing dissent” (“Loyalty Oaths,” Oct. 29).

In reference to Israel’s recent loyalty oath act, you say critics claim that the law is designed “to root out Arab-Israeli members of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, who are among the state’s most vociferous critics.” In fact, some Arab MKs support Hamas and deny Israel’s legitimacy, and, yes, a loyalty oath would further expose these domestic enemies of Israel. In America, the president and other elected officials pledge allegiance to America, as do schoolchildren each morning. Do you criticize these pledges of allegiance as undermining democracy? Also, in 2009 you wrote that Palestinian president Abbas should make a speech to his fellow Palestinians saying: “Yes. We accept Israel as a Jewish, democratic state” as a way to increase Israeli confidence in Palestinians’ peaceful intentions. (“Three Speeches,” June 17). Given that, why are you so upset by the idea of Israeli Arabs and others being asked to say the same thing?

Bob Kirk
Los Angeles

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