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Jewish Journal

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July 28, 2005

To Simcha, With Love

Leave a Comment / Up Front /

The very word Siberia evokes a cold, distant place — it’s so, well, Soviet. But Siberia just got a little warmer and a little more Jewish because of San Fernando Valley resident Elaine Berke, who arranged for the b’nai mitzvah of 61 Siberian Jews ranging in age from 12 to 26.

The longtime community volunteer first traveled to Siberia in September 2004 as part of a charitable effort. There she met some of the 70,000 Siberian Jews and discovered that, despite Russia’s Jewish renaissance, many had not yet had a bar or bat mitzvah.

Berke resolved to arrange ceremonies for some Hillel students in Khabarovsk. Word got out, and people from Birobidjan and Vladivostok wanted in, too. Eventually, Berke raised $31,500 in Los Angeles for the July 2 event.

“I am certain that every Jewish child all over the entire world is entitled to a Jewish education, bar or bat mitzvah, and Jewish wedding,” said the grandmother of two.

Berke worked in conjunction with the local Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) office in Krasnoyarsk and other Jewish organizations in Siberia. Two fifth-year rabbinical students, David Kosak and Bradley Greenstein, presided at the synagogue in Khabarovsk, which had been donated to the local Chabad congregation by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Chabad couldn’t provide the service because it “insists on a certain lineage,” said Berke, meaning that participants would have to verify a Jewish mother or have had converted according to Chabad’s Orthodox requirements.

“We don’t ask who is from an intermarriage,” Berke said. “If children come forward and say, ‘We are Jewish,’ God bless them. A lot of these families are descendants of people who were in the gulags, and the Holocaust.”

Preparation began in November 2004. Vladimir Khazanov, a local Jewish educator, drew up a course for those taking part, which he sent by e-mail to Jewish community centers in the three cities.

“We don’t ask who is from an intermarriage,” Berke said. “A lot of these families are descendants of people who were in the Gulags, and the Holocaust.”

Then on Friday night, services started with the students singing a niggun (Jewish melody). The b’nai mitzvah itself took place on Shabbat. The students, called up in groups of nine, recited the blessing over the Torah in Hebrew, using a Russian transliteration. As a gift, the JDC presented the boys with a talit and a chumash; the girls received a challah cover and a chumash.

“I found the Russians to be far more serious than American students of the same age,” said Kosak, who’s enrolled in the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the University of Judaism. “They were much hungrier to learn about their tradition.”

“The most moving thing was how David Kosak and I could show them how Judaism was alive and could relate to their lives,” said Greenstein. “It was very moving to see them excited to be Jewish.”

Since her return, Berke has received letters and e-mails from participants describing how the event changed their lives. She plans to continue raising money, hoping to bring the bar mitzvah project to other cities in the Russian Far East.

“My family was originally from Russia,” Berke said. “It is only a quirk of history that they are there and I am here. Why are they less entitled to a Jewish education than my family was?”

“They deserve this,” she added, “they really deserve this.”

To Simcha, With Love Read More »

Obituaries

Leave a Comment / Obituaries /

Bertha Anapol died June 27 at 92. She is survived by her brother, Angelo; and sisters, Mae Mayer and Ruby Brest. Groman

ARLENE BELL died June 29 at 79. She is survived by her son, Robert; brother, Norman Cohen; three granchildren; and sister, Joanne Goodman. Hillside

STEVEN ARNOLD BELL died June 28 at 66. He is survived by his wife, Bernice; son, David; daughter, Elizabeth; brother, Alan; and sister-in-law, Sally. Hillside

JEROME BERGER died July 2 at 84. He is survived by his wife, Polly; son, Howard (Fran) and Barry (Taffy); daughters, Marsha (Ira) Mintz and Joyce (Gary) Goldstein; seven grandchildren; and great-grandchild, Ryan. Hillside

David Harold Berman died June 30 at 75. He is survived by his brothers, Robert and Charles; and sister, Thelma Turner. Groman

Lillian Shirley Breakman died June 26 at 84. She is survived by her husband, Sydney; sons, Allen, Ronald and Dan; three grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. Groman

Oscar Usher Burlin died June 27 at 83. He is survived by his son, Charles; six grandchildren; brother, Ben Burlin; sister, Millie; and friend, Harriette Ellis. Groman

Sheila Beth Chalmers died June 30 at 50. She is survived by her husband, William; son, Colin; daughter, Anna; father, Dr. S.K. Wolfson; and brother, Neal Wolfson. Malinow and Silverman

Bonnie Cohen died July 2 at 57. She is survived by her son, Alexander. Malinow and Silverman

NINA DAVIS died June 29 at 74. She is survived by her daughter, Cathy Sabog; son, Rick; and granddaughters, Dana and Michelle. Hillside

Jean Effros died July 1 at 84. She is survived by her daughter, Carole Grey; and two grandchildren. Groman

Leo Elmon Eisenkop died June 13 at 80. He is survived by his wife, Winifred; and son, Dr. Scott (Teresa Claus). Groman

Hal Elliott died June 30 at 81. He is survived by his wife, Dianne; sons, Lewis, Keith (Tessa), Douglas (Maria) and Jay (Shirley); stepdaughter, Marni (Claus) Cell; five grandchildren; great-grandchild, Anya; and brother, Robert (Sandy). Mount Sinai

Mollie Estrin died June 28 at 90. She is survived by her husband, Samuel; son, Martin; daughter, Lenore; and brother, Aron (Helene) Fellenbaum. Mount Sinai

Nathan David Fellman died June 26 at 95. He is survived by his wife, Beatrice; sons, Daniel and Steven; daughter, Mona Neter; eight grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren; and brother, Barney. Groman

Mildred Finkel died June 28 at 97. She is survived by her daughter, Jane Grant; granddaughters, Wendi (Charles Duncan) Bien and Debra (Ken) Saunders; three great-grandchildren; and sister, Rose Shure. Mount Sinai

IRMA WINGER FREED died June 29 at 86. She is survied by her sons, Mark (Valorie Bader), and Jack (Jill); granddaughter, Emily; and brother, Robert (Ruth) Winger. Hillside

Albert Friedman died July 2 at 84. He is survived by his wife, Adelaide; son, Alan; daughter, Michelle; and brother, Jerome. Groman

IRVING GLASBAND died June 29 at 87. He is survived by his wife, Virginia; son, Richard (Jennifer); daughters, Cheryl and Jill; three grandchildren; brother, Joseph; one nephew; and two nieces. Hillside

Naum Matusovich Grinshpun died June 28 at 90. He is survived by his wife, Dobrusha Kosmandel; daughters, Rita (William) Yason and Anna (Leonid) Khazanov; three grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; brother Moshe. Malinow and Silverman

Nanavan Kananian died June 16 at 97. She is survived by her son, Parviz Tofer. Chevra Kadisha

Rachel Kapuano died June 30 at 87. She is survived by her daughter, Mathilde (Keith) Abrahams. Malinow and Silverman

Marion Krich died June 27 at 80. She is survived by daughters, Marna White and Marsha Polston; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Groman

Raphael Kulerman died July 1 at 90. He is survived by his wife, Bea Wachs; daughter, Nancy (Tom) Hodes; two grandchildren; sister, Pauline Singer; brother, Daniel (Harriet). Malinow and Silverman

Florence Leiken died June 28 at 96. She is survived by her daughter, Debra Zelazny; two grandchildren; and two great- grandchildren. Groman

ABBY LEON died June 29 at 84. She is survived by her daughter, Jacqueline; brother, Jack; and sister, Celia Noah. Hillside

MIRIAM GRAYCE LEVITON-RUE died June 30 at 73. She is survived by her cousin, Bernard Rue. Hillside

Alex Marish died July 1 at 58. He is survived by his wife, Hadassa; sons, Elad and Ophir; and nephew, Oren. Chevra Kadisha

FLORA MENDELSOHN died June 7 at 92. She is survived by her son, Saul; daughters, Honre Ginger Freed, Janey Crowley, Surette Kessler and Candy; 11 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and sisters, Mildred McLeod. Groman

ALICE MINTZ died June 25 at 92. She is survived by her sons, Alan (Gail) and Steven; daughter, Marcie Blanchard; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Hillside

Ann Moster died June 29 at 84. She is survived by her husband, Jerry; daughters, Barbara Kogen and Debbie (Evan) Moster-Stein; and three grandchildren. Mount Sinai

Nazar Najibi died June 30 at 86. She is survived by her son, Saeed. Chevra Kadisha

Shokat Nejatbina died June 25 at age 100. She is survived by her son, Taher; and grandchild, Jalal. Chevra Kadisha

Mark Nieman died June 27 at 73. He is survived by his wife, Lillian; sons, Maurice and David (Orly); daughter, Lydia (David) Dadon; and 10 grandchildren. Mount Sinai

Saltanat Rosa Omrani died June 27 at 48. She is survived by her husband, Biyan Mostadim; and brother, Shayan. Chevra Kadisha

Mildred Perlmutter died June 27 at 77. She is survived by her sister, Belle Laurence. Groman

Norman Zachary Prescott died July 2 at 78. He is survived by his wife, Elaine; sons, Michael and Jeffrey; brother, Henry Pransky; and three grandchildren. Groman

Yacov Pustylnik died June 30 at 72. He is survived by his wife, Polina; daughters, Larisa (Cary) Gruer and Alexandra (Michael) Sverdlov; five grandchildren; and sisters, Lilia (Arnold) Reytman and Nina (Tony) Skopinsky. Mount Sinai

Morris Rubin died June 29 at 89. He is survived by his daughters, Ina Perlman and Theresa Rubin-Ortiz; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Groman

LILLIAN SCHAFFER died June 25 at 87. She is survived by her son, Howard Tamaroff; daughter, Rita Marshall Goodman; and grandsons, Craig and Damon Marshall. Hillside

Natalie Scherer died July 2 at 85. She is survived by her daughter, Candy (Rich) Solomon; sons, Ronald (Roz) and Barry (Myn); three grandchildren; and sister, Pearl Podrove. Malinow and Silverman

Louis David Segel died July 1 at 84. He is survived by his wife, Rita. Groman

Annette Silverman died June 29 at 81. She is survived by her husband, Robert; daughters, Vivian Charlop, Marjorie (Kevin) Christy and Pamela; and one grandchild. Malinow and Silverman

Joe Skolnick died June 27 at 90. He is survived by his nephew, Stanley Goldhaber; greatniece, Janice (Douglas Jung) Goldhaber; and many other relatives. Mount Sinai

Marilynn Slutske died June 28 at 57. She is survived by her husband, Barton; daughter, Jamie Andrews; son, Jeffrey (Arlene); grandchildren, Brandon Andrews and Madison; mother, Sarah Busch; father-in-law, Edward; brothers-in-law, Mickey (Joyce) Stone and Joel (Adrienne); and sister-in-law, Carol Feeder. Mount Sinai

Gloria Smolinsky died June 26 at 82. She is survived by her husband, Herbert; daughter, Barbara (Joel) Goodman; two grandchildren; and sister, Shirley Rothstein. Malinow and Silverman

THEODORE STEIMAN died June 29 at 85. He is survived by his children, Diane Dombroski and Sandy (Patty); and grandchild, Chloe. Hillside

Milton Templer died July 21 at 85. He is survived by his daughter, Beverly (Jerry) Nemetz; sons, Alan (Lea), Chuck (Karen) and Ron (Stacey); seven grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Mount Sinai

Dale Yehuda Travish died June 15 at 76. He is survived by his wife, Cornelia; and son, Gil. Chevra Kadisha

Emma Tubert died June 28 at 81. She is survived by her daughters, Patricia Tubert Stewart and Anan Maman; three grandchildren; and sister, Sophia Pariewski. Groman

Rudy Wolf died June 25 at 96. He is survived by his son, Tom (Cheryl); daughter, Kate (Paul) Page; and grandchildren, Jonah and Raphael. Mount Sinai

LAURA YOUNG died July 1 at 100. She is survived by her sons, Dr. Charles and Peter; and three grandchildren. Hillside

Charles Zimmelman died June 28 at 83. He is survived by his wife, Joan; son, Steve (Carol); daughter, Teri (John) Jewell; and three grandchildren. Mount Sinai

Obituaries are printed free of charge. Please e-mail information, in accordance with the above format to obits@jewishjournal.com

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Letters

Leave a Comment / Letters to the Editor /

Young Philanthropists

I read with interest Daniel Akst’s excellent article on youth philanthropy in your July 22 issue, titled, “Getting Kids Into Charity Pays Off Big.” The Jewish Journal provides a tremendous service to the community through its informative coverage of this important topic.

In Akst’s article, he recommends that families who want to teach philanthropic values to the next generation should create either a family foundation or donor advised fund. Both of these are available through the Jewish Community Foundation and, in fact, comprise a significant portion of our overall portfolio: Local philanthropists have created more than 600 such funds, with assets totaling more than $300 million.

Many donors have established donor-advised funds for their children and grandchildren as an effective method of teaching them philanthropy. They use these funds to provide grants to many causes in the Jewish community and the community at large. And by establishing a fund here, the donor becomes a partner (vs. a client) in a much broader philanthropic mission with us, because a small portion of each fund automatically contributes to our annual grants program that seeds new projects and initiatives throughout Los Angeles.

The Jewish Community Foundation is deeply rooted in our local community, and has more than 50 years of experience working with Los Angeles donors and nonprofits.

Our mission, unlike that of Fidelity or Citigroup, is focused on building charitable assets to strengthen our local community, today and for generations to come. With a breadth of resources to assist donors in identifying their philanthropic interests, we can provide practical support and consultation to donors who want to involve their children.

For more information, I invite your readers to contact us at (323) 761-8700 or www.jewishfoundationla.org.

Marvin I. Schotland
President and CEO
Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles

Bird and Bees

Our child has attended Alonim for three years and was a participant in the sex and Jewish ethics program covered in The Jewish Journal (“Beyond the Birds and the Bees,” July 15). As parents, my wife and I also participated.

I would have to say that the afternoon was pleasant but was totally devoid of Jewish ethics. Our facilitator basically gave us “Sex Ed. for Parents of Teenagers,” which could be given at almost any public or nonreligious private school.

In the process, she claimed that 10 percent of the U.S. population is homosexual, a statistic which even most homosexual advocacy groups no longer posit, and then defended the statistic when I challenged her on it.

My daughter remembers enjoying some sessions and falling asleep at others, but doesn’t remember any specifics.

I would still like to know what Camp Alonim thinks Jewish ethics says about teenage sex, especially if they are going to export this program to other camps.

Name withheld by request
Sylmar

AMIT Program

Thanks to Larry Derfner for (“Hope for At-Risk Youth at Yemin Orde,” June 3) and Karen Koosterman for (“‘Mothers’ Offer SOS for Abused Children,” June 24). It is important to know that needy children are being cared for in this way. A hearty yasher koach to Yemin Orde Wingate Youth Village and to SOS children’s villages, so similar to the many AMIT schools and youth villages.

AMIT is an 80-year-old organization whose members support and maintain the education and care of more than 15,500 children in more than 60 schools, youth villages and surrogate family residences throughout Israel. It was AMIT that first established surrogate family residences where up to 12 children are cared for by a married couple in a loving family unit.

Abused, neglected, disturbed and abandoned children do indeed need good homes and schools, and that is the purpose and history of AMIT. The youth village in Kfar Batya is internationally known.

Visitors to AMIT schools and homes are always welcome, and arrangements can be made either in Israel or the U.S.A.

Belle Sokoloff
Los Angeles

Words

Regarding “‘Yeah, But:’ 2 Words Lead to a Dark Side” by Hesham A. Hassaballa, (July 22), it would be wonderful if all Muslims believed — and practiced — as he does, that Islam is indeed “a religion of peace” — at least as we understand what is the meaning of “peace.”

Unfortunately, too many Muslims take the Koran literally when it says: “As for the unbelievers [non-Muslims] … grievous punishment awaits them” (2:1); “Slay them wherever you find them. Drive them out of the places from which they drove you” (2:190); “Take neither the Jews nor the Christians as your friends” (5:51).

Need I continue?

Is there a solution to this dilemma? Yes, but I don’t think we are pursuing it at this time. We are merely treating the symptoms.

George Epstein
Los Angeles

Palestinian Aid

Your news brief (July 15) titled “G-8 Pledges $3 billion in Assistance for Palestinians” misstated the amount. The correct figure, as set forth in the official G-8 statement on July 8 is $9 billion — $3 billion per year for three years.

In addition, on July 6, President Bush released his report under the Middle East Peace Commitments Act of 2002, which requires reports on PLO and Palestinian Authority compliance with specified commitments, including their “[r]enunciation of the use of terrorism and all other acts of violence” and their assurance that violations would be prevented and violators disciplined.

Since the president found the Palestinians had not kept their commitments, he was required under the act to impose one of four sanctions, ranging from prohibiting U.S. assistance to the West Bank or Gaza to downgrading the status of the PLO or P.A. office. He chose the mildest sanction — downgrading the PLO office — and then waived it on grounds the waiver was “in the national security interest of the United States.”

Thus the Palestinians, formally in breach of their commitments to fight terrorism, nevertheless escaped American sanctions and got a $9 billion pledge from the G-8 — on the day before and the day after the London terrorist bombings.

Rick Richman
Jewish Current Issues

 

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KIDS PAGE

Leave a Comment / Kids & Teens /

Schmooze About Tammuz

We have now entered the period Jews call “The Three Weeks.” These are the weeks between two fast days: one is the 17th of Tammuz (the day the walls of Jerusalem were breached) and the other is Tisha B’av, the ninth of Av, the day the Romans destroyed our Temple.

Traditional Jews observe a period of mourning during this time. They don’t listen to live music or hold joyous celebrations, like weddings. During the nine days before Tisha B’Av, they don’t cut their hair or eat meat.

When in Rome…

1) If Romans didn’t like their children:

a. They locked them in their rooms.

b. They sold them as slaves.

c. They took away their games.

2) For toothpaste, Romans used:

a. Ground-up bones.

b. Soap.

c. Powdered mice brains.

Roman Arithmetic

Try some math using the following Roman numbers:

I = 1

V = 5

X = 10

L = 50

C = 100

D = 500

M = 1000

1) What would 2005 be in Roman numerals? Can you write the year you were born in Roman numerals?

2) Solve this equation:

LXXXVIII + XII = ???

The Name Game

Roman children played many of the same games you play. Fill in the correct letters to complete the names of the games:

1) __ __ __ __ A __ __ __ __ __ K

2) __ A __

3) H O __ __ __ O __ __ __

4) L __ __ P __ __ O __

5) __ A __ L

KIDS PAGE Read More »

The Circuit

Leave a Comment / Circuit, Entertainment /

‘Ruffing’ It

Poochies in Guccis? It was all about what the well-dressed doggy will wear as the Animal Alliance, in cooperation with Animal Fair Media, held its sixth annual Paws for Style at Loew’s Beverly Hills Hotel. Only one catfight erupted behind the scenes in what was otherwise a “purrfectly” pleasing event. Humans nibbled on hors d’ouvres and desserts and pooches dined out of silver dishes.

Celebs were in attendance to support their favorite animals, including Hugh Hefner, who has long been the leading advocate for bunnies.

Paula Abdul led her trio of dogs across the runway sporting Jackrocketwear as the more social of the canine contingency showed off their Playboy doggy duds.

Jeanne Buss and her dog, Princess, paraded the latest in Laker wear and courtside couture. Also featured were designers Diane Von Furstenberg, Donald Pliner, Nicole Miller, Theory among others.

Although the evening was a fun romp, the Animal Alliance takes their job of caring for and rescuing animals very seriously and does great work.

To learn more about the fashions or the funding for Animal Alliance, call (310) 859-7626.

Good for Gady

Dr. Gady Levy was selected as one of only three Americans among an elite field of 37 young, Jewish professionals around the world for a prestigious Nahum Goldmann Fellowship.

The fellowship is a summer institute aimed at nurturing a new generation of Jewish communal leadership. The program provides an intensive experience of Jewish learning, living and leadership for Jews under the age of 40 who demonstrate the potential to make a change in their communities. The conference will take place in Sweden from Aug. 22 to Sept. 1.

Levy has led the department of continuing education at the University of Judaism for five years serving as vice president.

For more information about the University of Judaism or the department of continuing education, visit www.uj.edu or call (310) 476-9777.

Health and Wellness

Rabbi Elliot Dorff, rector and distinguished professor of philosophy at the University of Judaism, was appointed by the California Department of Health Services (DHS) to convene a Human Stem Cell Research Advisory Committee. This committee has been charged with developing minimum standards for institutional review boards to use in reviewing and approving human embryonic stem cell research projects. The committee will begin meeting in August.

In spring 1993, Dorff served on the Ethics Committee of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s Health Care Task Force. In March 1997 and May 1999, he testified on the subjects of human cloning and stem cell research before the President’s National Bioethics Advisory Commission. From 2000 to 2002 he served on the National Human Resources Protections Advisory Commission, charged with reviewing and revising the federal guidelines for protecting human subjects in research projects. He is currently working on a project on Judaism and genetics for the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and he is a member of that organization’s Dialogue on Science Ethics, and Religion Advisory Committee.

Dorff teaches a course on Jewish law at UCLA School of Law as a visiting professor and was awarded the Journal of Law and Religion’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He is vice chair of the Conservative Movement’s Committee on Jewish Law and Standards.

A Sweet Time

Smiles were abundant last week as Vista Del Mar sponsored a screening of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” at the Goldwyn Theatre in Beverly Hills. More than 900 adults and kids downed chocolate and sweets and with endorphins flowing, ate up every moment of the new Johnny Depp flick and raised $122,000 for Vista Del Mar.

Proceeds from the event will help support Vista Del Mar’s residential treatment facility, private adoption agency, foster-care program, nonpublic school and its four affiliated divisions: Family Service of Santa Monica; Home-SAFE; Julia Ann Singer Center; and Reiss-Davis Child Study Center.

Each year, Vista’s programs and services provide a safe haven for more than 5,000 children from throughout the Los Angeles area whose lives have been interrupted by abuse, neglect or abandonment.

Hero in the Sky

A celebration of life event was held recently to honor the late Robert Maguire Jr. Maguire Jr. was the chief pilot of the covert mission “Operation Magic Carpet,” which saved 40,000-50,000 Yemenite Jews from persecution and danger after World War II by secretly flying them to Israel over hostile territories. Maguire’s father, Robert Francis Sr., was a judge at the Nuremberg war crimes trials.

Wishes Come True

As part of Disneyland’s 50th anniversary weekend celebration July 15-17, the Disney Cruise Line made a wish come true and kept the Disney Magic cruise ship at the Port of San Pedro one additional night as it hosted “An Evening of Magic” to benefit the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Visiting a Disney theme park is the No. 1 request the 25-year-old organization, which fulfills the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses, receives.

The July 16 event kicked off with a sunset ceremony, where outgoing Disney CEO Michael Eisner presented a $1.04 million check to Make-A-Wish Foundation of America President and CEO David Williams.

“As the foundation’s largest sponsor, Disney is proud to [play a role] in this extraordinary organization,” Eisner said. “Disneyland knows a thing or two about granting wishes.”

Then Disney CEO-elect Bob Iger surprised Williams when Minnie Mouse came to the stage with a surprise second check-for another $1 million.

“A wish is very simple idea,” Williams said. “The impact it has on a child and the family is absolutely profound.”

“At the end of the day, it is all about the kids,” Jeff Germain, chairman of the board of Make-a-Wish, who has been with the organization for four years, told The Journal. “It’s not just what’s in the eyes of the children; it is in the eyes of their families — the look in their eyes and the impact it has on them is immeasurable. It helps them get healthier.”

“I Wish to Have A Dance Party” came alive in Rockin’ Bar D where pictures of “fulfilled wishes” flashed on the screen and the Radio Disney street team kept the preteens busy prior to the arrival of “That’s So Raven” star Raven Simone, who has helped grant more than 30 wishes. When the actress-singer arrived, she had a friend with her — 12-year-old Ashley Gullap, whose wish was to meet Raven and attend a red carpet with her. Ashley and Raven took the stage, meeting fans and signing autographs.

After teaching the crowd how to dance the “Cotton Eye Joe” during the dance party, 14-year-old Travis Flores, whose wish was to be an author, autographed his book, “The Spider Who Never Gave Up,” in the Oceaneer Club.

The evening ended on a truly magical note under the stars at the Goofy Pool stage when “American Idol”‘s Kimberly Locke and Peabo Bryson sang “Wishes” off the compilation CD of the same name ($5 of every CD sale goes to Make-a-Wish). After which, the two sang “A Whole New World” and were joined on stage by an assortment of Disney characters who hugged each Make-a-Wish child.

At the end of the night, the only wish that hadn’t come true was the one everyone had of being able to stay on the ship just a bit longer.

For more information on Make-a-Wish, visit www.wish.org. — Shoshana Lewin, Contributing Writer

Net Gains

Hustle over to the UCLA Tennis Center to catch rising Jewish stars at the Mercedes-Benz Cup. This year’s line-up features top world players-with more than the usual amount of Jewish stars among them. Paul Goldstein, 29, a wildcard entry from San Francisco, has battled his way into another round, aiming to beat his career high ranking of 69. Israeli Amir Hadad will also fight for advancement into the quarters, while Playa del Rey wunderkind Zack Fleishman, a promising up-and-comer, will also compete. Rounding out the field are top Israeli doubles team of Yoni Erlich and Andy Ram. Last year the team made it all the way to the finals, and wowed spectators with their intensity and perseverance. This year, who knows, they could go all the way.

For tickets and information, www.mercedes-benzcup.com.

 

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Analysis – Sharon’s Worries Over Pullout Mount

Leave a Comment / Worldwide /

With the planned Israeli withdrawal from Gaza less than three weeks away, right-wing leaders say they haven’t yet given up hope of preventing it.

According to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), about 2,000 right-wingers have managed to pass through the army cordon around Gaza, and are planning to join up with radical settlers there to resist the evacuation by force.

But that’s not Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s only worry. Palestinians continue to launch terrorist attacks in and around Gaza, and they will almost certainly try to step up their activities during the evacuation.

Sharon promises firm action on both fronts. More than 60,000 soldiers and police have been assigned to respond to recalcitrant settlers or rogue Palestinian terror attacks. Should the Palestinians attack, Sharon has warned that Israel will employ harsher retaliatory measures than in the past. Some pundits speculate that this could even mean shelling civilian areas in retaliation for Palestinian attacks on Israeli population centers.

As difficult as carrying out the withdrawal may prove to be, an even larger question looms: What happens after Sharon pulls out of Gaza and the northern West Bank? He will be under enormous pressure from the United States, the international community and the Palestinians to make further withdrawals from the West Bank — and under equally strong pressure from the Israeli right wing and his own Likud Party to stay put.

And there’s another taxing issue that is critical for Israel’s future: How will religious Zionists at the forefront of the settler movement redefine their relationship to the secular state they have been defying so bitterly for so long on the withdrawal issue?

The settler leaders say that they’re planning more large-scale anti-withdrawal protests in advance of the pullout, which is scheduled to begin Aug. 15. They say they were heartened by the huge turnout for last week’s demonstration at Kfar Maimon, a national religious movement community about eight miles east of the Gaza Strip.

The demonstration took place at Kfar Maimon only because police and army units prevented the protesters from marching to the Gaza Strip. This exercise of control by the Israeli security forces and the fact that there was no serious violence in the two-day standoff between the security forces and the demonstrators led several pundits to conclude that the withdrawal will go through more peacefully than expected.

Still, some pundits fear that the 2,000 right-wingers who have slipped into Gaza could turn the withdrawal into a violent showdown.

In an editorial, the Ha’aretz newspaper urged the government to act now to head off the potential threat: The Gaza settlements, the paper wrote, “must be combed to locate the infiltrators, and they should be arrested and tried.” Otherwise, Ha’aretz argued, the government would be projecting weakness and inviting more infiltration.

On the Palestinian side, the Palestinian Authority has promised to deploy 5,000 policemen as a shield against rogue terrorists. The P.A. also has reached an agreement with Hamas not to launch attacks on the withdrawing Israelis.

But terror organizations like Islamic Jihad and some groups associated with the Palestinians’ ruling Fatah movement aren’t part of the cease-fire deal. Both groups claimed responsibility for Saturday night’s shooting of an Israeli couple near the Gush Katif junction in the Gaza Strip.

In the past few days, Sharon repeatedly has said that Israel will not tolerate terrorist attacks during the planned pullout. At a top-level security meeting Sunday, Sharon warned that if the Palestinians fail to restrain rogue terrorists, Israel will feel free to retaliate with a ferocity not seen in the four-year-long intifada.

IDF generals acknowledge that this could entail a sweeping land operation through Gaza, as well as a more telling use of air power and artillery. During the evacuation, the IDF says it expects that 70 percent of Gaza’s 8,000 settlers will leave voluntarily. That means the generals estimate that about 2,500 settlers will dig in, joined by at least 2,000 infiltrators from the outside.

Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said he expects the entire operation, which will start in northern Gaza and sweep south, to last two to four weeks.

Ironically, the smoother the pullout goes, the higher the stakes for Israel. Sharon has been saying that once the army pulls back to the new lines, he does not intend to go any further.

But the United States and other key players in the international community see a successful Gaza pullout as a prelude to further Israeli concessions in the West Bank that kick-start a new peace dynamic with the Palestinians.

As for the Palestinians, they are expected to launch a new intifada if, after the Gaza pullout, the process bogs down — or, as many observers warn, even if it doesn’t.

Leslie Susser is the diplomatic correspondent for the Jerusalem Report

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For Goldberg, ‘Dogs’ Is Nothing Personal

Leave a Comment / Books, Entertainment, Family, Film, Personals, Singles /

Veteran writer-director Gary David Goldberg props his feet on a coffee table in a luxurious suite at the Regent Beverly Wilshire, punctuating his Brooklynese with staccato belly laughs. On this sunny Saturday in Beverly Hills, he’s speaking about his new film, “Must Love Dogs,” about a 37-year-old divorcee (Diane Lane) prodded into Internet dating by her loving yet intrusive family.

But the conversation inevitably veers back to 1950s Bensonhurst, a.k.a. “Paradise,” the nurturing blue-collar Jewish area where Goldberg grew up with Orthodox grandparents and well-meaning, if nosy, neighbors. He immortalized the ‘hood in “Brooklyn Bridge,” one of the most critically acclaimed TV series of the 1990s.

Now he muses with relish about how residents there would have responded to his romantic comedy about personal ads and 40ish divorces.

“Actually, there was no one 37 and single in Bensonhurst, because you stayed together, unhappily, for the children,” he says. “Except my cousin, Pearl, who was spoken of in hushed tones and ultimately moved to California.

“Matchmaking was a lot of fixing up; the whole neighborhood was like JDate but without a computer, with aunts and uncles and telephones,” he adds. “And God-forbid a woman of a certain age should be single. People would start talking, ‘What’s the matter with so-and-so?'”

The 61-year-old Goldberg (“Family Ties,” “Spin City”) admits to being a “smug married person” who condescended on the personals when he picked up Claire Cook’s novel, “Must Love Dogs,” in a bookstore around 2003. At the time, he had let his agent go and considered himself retired, eschewing his Brentwood home to live in his Revolutionary War-era farmhouse in Vermont.

“I didn’t own a computer, so I didn’t realize ‘Must Love Dogs’ was a dating tagline,” he recalls of the novel. “I thought it was about people who love dogs, and I love dogs.”

So he bought the book and was surprised canines played only minor roles. Yet he laughed out loud at the Irish American protagonists who, like his relatives, engaged in “a lot of meddling, a lot of talking about people as if they’re not actually there, but with overwhelming love.

“I thought the project would give me something to do besides walking the dogs,” he says.

Because the long-married Goldberg was clueless about single life, he consulted relationship experts such as Susan Page to research his film.

“I learned that if you’re 25 and single you’re simply single. If you’re 35, you’re single with an explanation,” he says.

“And there are no longer groups of elders supervising the dating process,” he adds, referencing Brooklyn. “It seems that dating, like the airlines, has been deregulated, with similar results.”

It’s surprising that Goldberg has tackled the unfamiliar world of Internet dating, since he’s known for mining his own past to create hit TV shows and movies. His definitive 1980s sitcom, “Family Ties,” pitted an archconservative son (Michael J. Fox) against liberal ex-hippie parents, like Goldberg and his wife, Diana. His 1989 film, “Dad,” drew on the year he fought to keep his father alive through a labyrinth of doctors.

“Brooklyn Bridge,” of course, revolved around his wonder years in a two-story house shared by his immigrant grandparents and nuclear family.

“Downstairs it was Poland, and upstairs, it was America,” he says of the living arrangements.

The cocky Goldberg worshiped sports, but was bar mitzvahed Orthodox to respect his relatives.

Dating non-Jews was forbidden, but he broke that taboo (and many others) upon going off to Brandeis University on a sports scholarship. After he was expelled for ditching classes, he hooked up with Irish Catholic Diana around 1970 and they set off on a world tour with backpacks and a Labrador named Ubu. Two years later, they conceived their first child in Israel, but ran out of money and had to beg the airfare home.

Goldberg’s family promptly embraced non-Jewish Diana “because by that point, they were relived I didn’t turn up with a black man,” he says.

It wasn’t until Goldberg was 30 that he chanced to take a scriptwriting class, which prompted him to buy his first TV set, used, from a motel for $25. He proved a quick study.

“He was one of the few in television who could always be counted on to deliver comedy that was smart and funny,” said Howard Rosenberg, former TV critic of the Los Angeles Times. Goldberg’s UBU Productions turned out sitcoms that reflected the zeitgeist as well as his real life.

Perhaps “Dogs” lured him out of retirement, in part, for the chance to tackle explore material that was not autobiographical. The filmmaker does not believe he could find romance after marriage: “When my grandfather died, my grandmother never looked at another man, and I am like my grandmother,” he says.

So if Goldberg should ever find himself single, what would his Internet dating profile read?

“It would be, ‘Lonely old man seeks to stay lonely and old,” he says.

The film opens today in Los Angeles.

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Nation & World Briefs

Leave a Comment / Worldwide /

London, Tel Aviv Bombing Link

One of the terrorists in the July 7 London transit-system bombings reportedly knew one of the bombers in a 2003 Tel Aviv terrorist attack. Mohammed Siddique Khan knew Omar Sharif, one of the two British terrorists to attack Mike’s Place, a Tel Aviv restaurant, in April 2003, Britain’s Independent newspaper reported. Khan, 30, one of the four suicide bombers whose attacks on London’s transport system killed more than 50 people and injured more than 700, was friendly with Sharif.

In February 2003, Khan visited Israel for one day, leading to speculation that he may have been on a reconnaissance mission for the Mike’s Place attack. Sharif’s accomplice, Asif Hanif, blew himself up, killing three people; Sharif failed to detonate his explosive belt in the attack. He escaped only to be found dead in the sea some days later.

Sharon’s Son Indicted

The son of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was indicted on charges of illegally financing his father’s Likud Party primary campaign. Attorney General Menachem Mazuz filed charges against Omri Sharon on Tuesday, prompting the Likud lawmaker to forfeit his parliamentary immunity.

According to media reports, Mazuz and Omri Sharon had discussed a possible plea bargain, but the negotiations collapsed when the latter demanded that he serve no jail time.

Mazuz cleared the prime minister and two senior advisers in connection with the case in February. Omri Sharon, who also is charged with fraud, breach of trust and perjury, could be sentenced up to seven years in prison, but media reports said any prison time would be much less, probably months.

Pentagon Sells to Israel

The Pentagon plans to sell Israel’s air force up to $600 million of equipment and maintenance. The contract would cover service for Israel’s F-15 and F-16A/B fighter jets for 10 years, the Pentagon said last Friday.

“This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the U.S. by helping to improve the security of a friendly country that has been, and continues to be, an important force for economic progress in the Middle East,” the Pentagon said in a notice to Congress.

Congress has 30 days to block the sale, but is unlikely to do so.

Ambassador to Israel Named

The White House named Richard Jones as U.S. ambassador to Israel. Jones, a former ambassador to Kuwait and Lebanon, was named to the post Monday. He most recently served as a senior adviser and policy coordinator on Iraq at the State Department. Jones replaces Daniel Kurtzer, who has served in the post for four years.

Group Calls for Niger Aid

The American Jewish Congress-Council for World Jewry called on the international community to urgently address the prospect of mass starvation in Niger. Monday’s call comes after the inaugural meeting last week of the group’s Consultative Committee on Africa-Jewish Relations at the United Nations. In a statement, the AJCongress-Council for World Jewry noted 2.5 million people, including 800,000 children are in dire need of emergency food aid.

Chabad Founder’s Son Converted Out?

Recently discovered documents in Belarus appear to confirm rumors that the son of Chabad’s founder converted to Catholicism. According to a recent Ha’aretz report, Hebrew University Professor Shaul Stempfer discovered documents in the national historical archives in Minsk that chronicle the conversion of Moshe Zalmanovitch, the youngest son of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, about 180 years ago. The files, which once belonged to the Catholic Church, contain a letter written by Moshe in 1820 in which he professes his Roman Catholic faith. According to the documents, Moshe was mentally unstable, and after a stint as adviser to the czar, ended his life in a mental hospital in St. Petersburg. Chabad historian Yosef Kaminetzky responded to the Ha’aretz story by saying the Minsk documents are forgeries, and Catholic authorities in Minsk tried to convert Zalmanovitch against his will.

Israelis Triumph at Maccabiah

Israeli athletes won the largest number of medals at the 17th Maccabiah Games. Athletes representing the Jewish state won 381 medals, including 146 golds, in the open competition at the games, which ended July 21. The U.S. team finished second with 156 medals. Russia finished third with 48 medals, and Canada fourth with 28.

Briefs courtesy of Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

 

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Roberts Draws Little Jewish Opposition

Leave a Comment / Politics, Power, United States, Worldwide /

So far, the nomination of Judge John Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court has ruffled few feathers in the American Jewish community.

Many Jewish organization leaders were poised to fiercely oppose a conservative nominee — and to earmark resources to influence senators who must confirm him — but many have decided to wait until after Roberts’ confirmation hearings before determining whether to officially endorse or oppose him.

That’s despite the fact that delaying any initiative to oppose Roberts likely would lessen its impact, compared to a push before the hearings, which are scheduled for later this summer.

Groups that have a high standard for speaking out against a nominee say that, barring unforeseen circumstances, they won’t advocate against Roberts.

Most Jewish groups have taken a step back since Roberts was nominated July 19, acknowledging that his views on issues — to the extent that they’re known — are within what the groups consider acceptable bounds for a Supreme Court justice. At the same time, they say that not enough is known about Roberts’ legal ideology to judge him before the confirmation hearings.

Many suggest that President Bush’s selection of Roberts may have been designed to avoid an immediate fight — and that Bush’s choice may even have been influenced by the fact that Jewish groups and other liberal advocates were ready to oppose an archconservative.

“He picked someone we’re going to have to take a close look at the record on,” said Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Washington, D.C.-based Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism. “It wasn’t someone who is so well known or controversial beforehand that folks would have lined up against him in advance.”

Roberts served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit for just two years. He also has a body of work from his four years as deputy solicitor general under the first President Bush, but it’s unclear how much can be made of his writings in that post, because he was advocating for a client — the federal government — and not expressing his personal views.

One organization already has announced its opposition to him: The National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) says Roberts has worked to erode fundamental rights, including abortion rights. They cite a brief he authored in the Solicitor General’s Office, advocating the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case that legalized abortion. The NCJW also opposed Roberts when he was named to the appellate court in 2003.

While Roberts is more conservative than most of the Jewish community on issues such as abortion and church-state separation, he is well-respected as a legal mind. In addition, his personal views on the controversial issues of the day are less clear than those of past nominees, such as Robert Bork, who was nominated to the Supreme Court in 1987.

Bork, whose nomination was rejected by a Democrat-controlled Senate, raised the ire of many Jews. Analysts say it’s unlikely Roberts’ confirmation will be as contentious.

Before the nomination was announced, Jewish organizations and other groups were bringing pressure on the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the American Jewish Committee (AJC), two groups that largely avoid nomination battles, to weigh in. That pressure has eased in the past week. Both the ADL and the AJC said it would take extreme circumstances for them to weigh in on Roberts.

Meanwhile, Republican Jews have been working to sell the nominee. The White House has been reaching out to Jewish leaders to gauge concerns, and, thus far, hasn’t heard serious qualms or hints of fierce resistance, sources said.

The White House also expressed hopes that Orthodox organizations might come to Roberts’ defense if his devout Catholicism becomes an issue. An opinion piece in Monday’s Los Angeles Times by a law professor at George Washington University suggested that Roberts would be torn between constitutional law and Catholic dogma on questions such as abortion or the death penalty.

Nathan Diament, director of the Orthodox Union’s Institute for Public Affairs, said his group would work to ensure that there’s no religious litmus test for judges.

“If senators are suggesting they are going to inquire whether John Roberts is fit for office on the basis of his devout Catholicism, then we are going to say loudly and clearly: ‘That’s offensive and unconstitutional,'” Diament said.

The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) also circulated an e-mail highlighting Roberts’ comments during his 2003 confirmation hearings, in which he called the Supreme Court’s position on Roe v. Wade “binding precedent.”

“He was very clear that he was not necessarily representing his own views; he was representing the views of his client,” said Matthew Brooks, the RJC’s executive director.

The RJC’s e-mail seems to challenge what many of Roberts’ advocates have been saying about his abortion rights views, especially to the White House’s conservative base. While conservatives claim that Roberts opposes abortion, the RJC’s message to the Jewish community is aimed at mollifying pro-choice Jews, including Republicans.

Brooks said he would not rule out an advertising campaign in support of Roberts.

 

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Pollard Appeal Fails; Few Options Left

Leave a Comment / Israel, Politics, Power, United States, Worldwide /

There appear to be few legal options left for Jonathan Pollard, after a U.S. federal appeals court last Friday rejected the former U.S. Navy intelligence analyst’s claim that he had inadequate counsel when he was sentenced to life in prison in 1987 for spying for Israel.

The court denied his request to downgrade his life sentence. At the same time, the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied Pollard’s attorneys access to classified information they say would help in their attempt to win presidential clemency for their client.

The rulings, which affirm decisions by a U.S. District Court in 2003, leave Pollard with little recourse but the Supreme Court to change his fate. Pollard’s attorney, Eliot Lauer, said that another option was to ask the entire appellate court to hear the case.

“We are very disappointed with the Appeals Court decision,” Lauer said. “We hope that in time, and we are confident that in time, the American judicial system will give Jonathan Pollard his rightful day in court.”

The appeals hearing was the latest in the battle to free Pollard, who was given a life sentence after pleading guilty to spying for Israel as part of a plea bargain that the U.S. government did not respect.

Pollard’s attorneys and members of the American Jewish community lobbied hard for clemency during the Clinton administration, as well as previous administrations. Israel, which granted Pollard citizenship in 1995, has also raised the issue with successive American administrations.

They argued that Pollard’s life sentence is unjust, because he had pleaded guilty and because it is harsher than the penalties given to convicted spies who had worked for countries antagonistic to the United States.

The court said Pollard’s claim of inadequate counsel was untimely, because he knew the circumstances of his claim before he filed it in 2000. Motions can be filed up to a year after sentencing or when new facts are discovered.

“Pollard knew the facts; what he now claims not to have known is the legal significance of these facts,” Judge David Sentelle wrote for the court, which was unanimous on the issue.

Pollard’s attorney, Jacques Semmelman, said in oral arguments that a conflict of interest between Richard Hibey, Pollard’s original attorney, and Hamilton Fox III, who filed a motion in 1990 seeking a withdrawal of Pollard’s guilty plea, prevented Fox from claiming ineffective counsel.

“The conflict of interest is that Mr. Fox could not bring himself to say anything negative about Mr. Hibey,” Semmelman said under repeated questioning by Sentelle.

The new attorneys claim that Hibey was ineffective, because he did not appeal after Pollard received a life sentence, even though his client had pleaded guilty and had cooperated with the U.S. government.

Pollard’s attorneys also want to see 40 pages of a declaration written in 1987 by then-Secretary of State Casper Weinberger, which outlines his assessment of Pollard’s damage to U.S. interests. That declaration is believed to be key to Pollard’s long sentence, but the court ruled that federal courts lack jurisdiction to review claims for access to documents for clemency purposes.

“The Constitution entrusts clemency decisions to the president’s sole discretion,” wrote Sentelle, joined by Judge Karen Lecraft Henderson.

Judge Judith Rogers dissented, dismissing the jurisdictional question, but saying that Pollard’s lawyers did not have a “need to know,” which is required to access the information. A presidential grant of clemency is a government function, she said, while assisting Pollard’s petition is a private act.

“Simply asserting that one’s assistance is needed does not make it so, especially since executive clemency is a matter of grace,” she wrote, adding that the president would have to seek the assistance of Pollard’s attorney to meet the “need-to-know” standard.

It’s unclear when and if Pollard’s attorneys will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The court could hear either or both of the two issues or choose not to review the case, essentially affirming last Friday’s decision.

Pollard, who is being held at Butner Prison in North Carolina, is eligible for parole, but his attorneys said he has not sought a parole hearing, because it would be hard to argue for parole without the classified information.

 

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