June 22, 2010

Mothers, Daughters and Talk of Clothes

Leave a Comment / Entertainment, Theater / Naomi Pfefferman

Rhea Perlman rented an antique gown from a movie costume house for her wedding to Danny DeVito in 1982. She’s Jewish, he’s Italian Catholic, but neither a rabbi nor a priest officiated. “Danny found this French-horn player in the Los Angeles Philharmonic who also happened to do weddings,” Perlman remembered with a laugh. She donned her dress as DeVito rushed home during his lunch break from “Taxi” so they could march down the aisle to “Our Gang’s” Alfalfa crooning “I’m in the Mood for Love.”

As Perlman told the story, her daughter, Lucy DeVito, 26, laughed; she and Perlman are the first mother-daughter pair to star in “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” currently at the Geffen Playhouse. The play stitches together vignettes of how clothing unlocks women’s memories — some of them poignant, some hilarious and others embarrassing. Written by sisters Nora and Delia Ephron — based on Ilene Beckerman’s best-seller — the Ephrons have described the play as kind of like “The Vagina Monologues” minus the vaginas, with actresses in a rotating cast reading from scripts.

The show has proven so successful that it has been running in New York for eight months and has been extended through at least August 1 at the Geffen. (Perlman and DeVito are cast through July 3.)

Stories of first bras and childhood secrets interweave with memories of prom dresses and shoe lust. A breast cancer patient clings to thoughts of the sexy lingerie she’ll wear after her reconstruction surgery; a bathrobe painfully reminds a daughter of her late mother; and the narrator, Gingy (Perlman), buys a marked-down pink satin princess-style dress to wed a much-older Catholic man. “Here are the words my grandmother uttered on this occasion,” Gingy recalls: “You’re killing me.”

Perlman, who has played her share of acidic mothers — as the prickly barmaid Carla on “Cheers” and now on HBO’s “Hung” — was far more benevolent when Lucy, at 12, eschewed The Gap for vintage clothing shops. “I was so conscious of what my mother had said sometimes, that I would bite my tongue,” Perlman said. “I’d come down in some outfit and it would be, ‘Didn’t you get dressed for this?’ ”

Lucy — who at 4 feet 11 is even more petite than her mother — recalled how an elderly relative responded when her off-the-shoulder blouse revealed a bra strap: “Whatta you mean, it’s supposed ta show?”

Issues of clothing, Delia Ephron points out, often delve into mother-daughter territory. “It’s one of the first ways you define yourself — one of the first things your mom lets you do is pick your clothes,” Ephron said in an e-mail. “And when you’re a teenager, clothing plays a huge part in rebelling from your mom. Also, we all have shopping experiences with our mothers, usually huge bonding experiences, and all of us remember all the things our mothers said about clothes and dressing.”

Lucy’s bra strap story is recounted with affection: The Perlman-DeVitos are reputed to be one of the most devoted clans in Hollywood. Perlman was smitten by her future husband when she saw him play a demented stable boy off-Broadway in “The Shrinking Bride.” “He just had a very big energy that I found extremely attractive — even though he was playing a moron,” she said, as Lucy
rolled her eyes. “Two weeks later, we moved in together.”

Lucy, the first of three children, was born in 1983 and grew up as her mother earned four Emmy Awards and her father became an A-list director and producer of such films as the Oscar-winning “Erin Brockovich.” Lucy caught the acting bug at the private Oakwood School in North Hollywood, and, after graduating from Brown University, earned titular roles in Damien Atkins’ “Lucy” at Manhattan’s Ensemble Studio Theatre and “The Diary of Anne Frank” at the Intiman in Seattle.

As Lucy prepared to play the Holocaust heroine, she was able to draw on a trip she had made with her entire family to the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam; later, the DeVitos visited Auschwitz.

“The reality of what happened hit so much more when we were actually in that place,” she said. “I grew up celebrating all the Jewish holidays because my mother is Jewish, but this brought me even closer to those roots.”

Having famous parents, Lucy said, has been “both a blessing and a curse. “I’m pretty aware when I walk into a room that people might have an opinion about me already.”

“There’s always that thing of, ‘How did you get the part,’ ” Perlman added, “and ‘Are you really that good?’ I really respect Lucy because she has been so conscious of trying to do things on her own.”

A “Love, Loss” director was so impressed by Lucy’s turn as an autistic teen in an off-Broadway production that she cast her in the Ephrons’ play; Lucy’s consent was sought before Perlman was invited to co-star.

“[Lucy’s] comedy has such an emotional depth,” Delia Ephron said. “And Rhea — oh my gosh, I’ve been obsessed with her since ‘Taxi.’ … She’s an original, and so is her daughter. Rhea has a phenomenal rapport with the audience. Both Rhea and Lucy do, and since ‘Love, Loss’ is a bit of a girlfriend fest, it’s great.”

Both mother and daughter identify with the play’s themes about women and body image. “I definitely relate to the line, ‘I had to choose — heels or think,’ ” said Lucy, who is wearing sensible sneakers for an upcoming rehearsal. “They’re so painful, but they make you look good.”

“One of the reasons I didn’t feel good in a dress I wore last weekend is because I wore it with flats — and that takes a whole lot from a dress,” Perlman agreed.

“But I’ve got bunions and [sore] knees, and I can’t wear heels any longer, I’m sad to say.”

“Love, Loss and What I Wore,” at the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater at the Geffen Playhouse, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Westwood. Through Aug. 1 (Perlman and DeVito through July 3). For show times and tickets, call (310) 208-5454 or visit geffenplayhouse.com.

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Will ‘Green Hornet’ trailer create a buzz?

Leave a Comment / Uncategorized / Adam Wills

The “Green Hornet” trailer is up today and, despite my initial reservations with Seth Rogan in the title role, the film looks fun—but more along Judd Apatow lines. Michel Gondry will have to work hard to differentiate “Green Hornet” from “Batman”—having pulled out the old Millionaire-playboy-turned-crimefighter saw (with a dead parent to boot)—or the humor-laced “Iron Man,” but as long as the film can deliver on both action and comedy, it’ll give fanboys something to watch between “Tron Legacy” and “Thor”/“Green Lantern.”

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Rubashkin: L.A. Rally Protests 27-Year Sentence

Leave a Comment / Community / Ryan Torok

The announcement this week that Sholom Rubashkin had been sentenced to 27 years in prison for fraud prompted the Los Angeles Orthodox community to rally together Monday evening in support of Rubashkin, his family and the expected legal appeal of what many feel is a disproportionate punishment for a white-collar crime.

Rubashkin, the former CEO of Agriprocessors kosher meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa, was convicted late last year on 86 counts of financial fraud. In addition to the prison sentence, the judge, Linda Reade, who sits on the federal bench in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, ruled Rubashkin must pay nearly $27 million in restitution to several banks.

Meir Simcha Rubashkin, 23, the fourth of the convicted man’s 10 children, arrived in Los Angeles on Monday to speak at the rally, which was attended by approximately 800 men and women from various local Orthodox congregations.

Held at the Moshe Ganz Hall on La Brea Avenue, the evening consisted of lengthy — and at times somber — speeches both objecting to the prison sentence and emphasizing the need for the Jewish community to band together. The speeches were preceded and followed by prayers for Sholom Rubashkin’s wellbeing.

A large banner, which read “Justice for Sholom Mordechai,” hung above Meir Rubashkin’s head as he spoke, and he stood out amid a lineup of speakers who all were much older men. White shirt collar unbuttoned and wearing a traditional black hat and black coat, Meir Rubashkin traced the emotional toll of his father’s experience since his arrest last year — from watching his father being handcuffed and taken away “like a common criminal,” to sitting in the courtroom while the judge announced the guilty verdict and while his father passed notes to his family saying, “Just tell everybody that I am unshaken in my faith … I accept what comes,” to being angered by the judge’s decision to not allow Rubashkin to go home with his family between the verdict and sentencing, instead keeping him behind prison bars.

Meir Rubashkin also expressed gratitude for the outpouring of support for his father. “One of the things that gives him strength is to know that he has the backing of the Jewish world,” he said.

Certainly support was in abundance among the speakers at the rally, which included Rabbi Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz, Rabbi Yaakov Krause of Toras Emes Academy and Rabbi Ezra Schochet.

They continually referred to Rubashkin as “our brother.”

Rubashkin, Rechnitz said, “is blatantly being treated unfairly,” and added that the judge’s decision to condemn the 51-year-old Rubashkin to what essentially amounts to a life sentence is an “unfathomable verdict.”

Krause, who told the crowd he has known Rubashkin and his family for 40 years, agreed with Rechnitz, calling the verdict “outrageous,” a sign of “clear prejudice” and “certainly anti-Semitism. No one condones criminal activity,” Krause continued, “but the scapegoating [and] the viciousness is enough to send shivers down the spine.”

Following the rally, Meir Rubashkin said he would see his father on June 22 in Cedar Rapids, where the judge was to officially announce the sentence.

Rubashkin, speaking in a separate interview, also echoed the rhetoric of a memo on the Web site justiceforsholom.org, which cites “the enormous disparity between the treatment of Mr. Rubashkin and others who committed similar [white-collar] offenses” but received lesser sentences.

“That’s racism at its best…or at its worst,” Meir Rubashkin said. He also spoke during the rally of what he saw as hateful sentiments in Iowa against Orthodox Jews.

Rabbi Sholom Weil of Los Angeles, standing next to Meir Rubashkin, agreed that Rubashkin’s sentence makes a statement about negative attitudes toward Jews. “It’s not about Sholom Rubashkin. It’s an attack on Jewish identity, Jewish ideals,” Weil said.

Rubashkin’s brother-in-law, David Goldman, stood in the audience, where there were not enough chairs to accommodate all those who had shown up. Goldman described the significance of such rallies. “It’s a matter of helping Sholom and the family emotionally and monetarily,” Goldman said.

Outside the rally, volunteers collected donations to support Rubashkin’s legal council for the expected appeal.

For more information on how to express concern regarding the handling of Rubashkin’s case, check jewishjournal.com articles.

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Turkey’s Consul General Speaks of Its Friend Israel

Leave a Comment / United States, Worldwide / Jewish Journal

Last week, while New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman was in Istanbul talking to businessmen, journalists and academics about the “fight for Turkey’s soul,” R. Hakan Tekin, Turkey’s chief representative in Los Angeles, offered up a local version of his country’s official perspective.

“We have a saying in Turkish: ‘Friends speak the bitter truth,’ ” the consul general said over an afternoon cup of Turkish coffee in his office on Wilshire Boulevard. “Turkey is a friend of Israel and is speaking the bitter truth — that their policies and practices in the region are not helping them.”

With Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan calling last month’s flotilla incident an example of “state terrorism” and the nation’s ministry of foreign affairs saying that “Israel has once again clearly demonstrated that it does not value human lives,” it might be hard to remember that the two countries had, until recently, long been steadfast allies. Tekin, who has headed the Los Angeles consulate since April 2007, experienced the closeness of Turkish-Israeli relations firsthand.

RELATED:
Wiesenthal Center Advises Against Travel to Turkey

“When I first started here, my first contacts were with the Jewish community,” Tekin said. He connected with leaders of the Anti-Defamation League, the Simon Wiesenthal Center and The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, to name a few. Last November, he sat on a panel at Pepperdine University titled “Finding Common Ground: Reconciliation Among the Children of Abraham” with his Israeli counterpart in Los Angeles, Jacob Dayan. “Jacob is a very good friend of mine,” Tekin said. “We have a very close relationship. Of course, we are not agreeing on everything, especially these days.”

But even back in “the good old days,” when Tekin spoke to audiences at the American Jewish Committee or at Hillcrest Country Club, the Q-and-A sessions weren’t easy. Asked to recall some of the more challenging questions he was asked, Tekin didn’t hesitate: “ ‘Why is Turkey so against Israel?’ Or, ‘Why didn’t we criticize Hamas as much when they were shooting rockets at Israel?’ ”

But though Tekin used to field questions about anti-Semitism in Turkey or questions about Iran, he is sure about one thing: “If I had an event with a Jewish group these days, the only issue would be the flotilla incident.”

And from Tekin’s point of view — which is to say, Turkey’s — the ramifications of the flotilla incident on the Turkish-Israeli relationship could not be more severe: “Israel is on the verge of losing Turkey’s friendship,” the veteran diplomat said.

“The flotilla incident was a historic event for us,” Tekin said. “Never before had any group of Turkish civilians been attacked by a foreign military. So this is something serious. And this is not a government issue. The overwhelming majority of the public is furious about this.”

Political observers — including Friedman — have pointed out that Erdogan has used the flotilla incident to build political support in the lead-up to next year’s election.

“Like every politician,” Tekin responded. He pointed to Rep. Adam Schiff and the 43 other members of California’s congressional delegation who co-sponsored a bill that would affirm that the Ottoman Empire committed genocide against the Armenian people between 1915 and 1923. “Why are they so enthusiastic about the Armenian issue? And why are none of the congressmen from Montana co-sponsoring? Because this is politics. It’s a game of votes. There’s a big Armenian community here, and they [California’s representatives] want to cater to that constituency.”

Tekin was also well aware that some Jews in Israel and in the United States had also begun taking a renewed interest in “the Armenian issue,” particularly as the relationship between Israel and Turkey became more strained.

“There’s no connection between these two things, the controversy over the events of 1915, the Armenian issue — a historical issue — and Turkish-Israeli relations,” Tekin said. “And if now we see some members of Congress or some Jewish organizations saying, ‘It’s payback time: Now we should punish Turkey by recognizing the Armenian Genocide,’ and moving toward passing a resolution in Congress, I think it would be really shortsighted, counterproductive and a very opportunistic approach. It would seriously further damage the Turkish-Israeli relationship. It could cause long-term damages.”

Tekin continued: “If you look at a historical issue, you have to evaluate it within its context, within its parameters. If you are adopting a position on a certain historical controversy, you have to set your position according to what you think is right and not according to some irrelevant issue.”

In the past three weeks, Tekin has seen the pro-Israel group StandWithUs protesting outside his building and was visited by members of LA Jews for Peace, who came to his office to offer their condolences. But without a more official apology from Israel, and without a “transparent and international” investigation of what happened aboard the Mavi Marmara, “we cannot take any steps,” Tekin said. “If a confidence-building measure should be taken to improve Turkish-Israeli relations, that measure should be taken at this point by Israel.”

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JStreet Expands to SoCal

Leave a Comment / Community / Danielle Berrin

JStreet, the liberal lobby and peace advocacy group that aims to influence U.S. policy toward Israel, is rapidly expanding its national operation, adding two L.A.-based staff members to launch the group’s Southern California/Southwest regional branch.

Serena Zeise will be the Southern California/Southwest regional director, charged to organize support at the community level and coordinate volunteers. Amos Buhai will be political director, working closely with local members of Congress and overseeing fundraising efforts.

Zeise worked for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on and off since 2005, serving as a campaign fundraiser and later as a policy analyst. Buhai is a fifth-generation Angeleno with campaign experience on the local, state and federal levels, and also served as a consultant for the New York-based organization Personal Democracy Forum, which investigates how technology is changing politics.

JStreet’s expansion into Los Angeles is a sign of the growing political significance of the L.A. Jewish community on the national stage, and also an indication of a broadening divide between traditional modes of pro-Israel advocacy, notably through AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), and a host of emerging alternatives.

JStreet consists of a lobby, a political action committee and a nonprofit grass-roots arm, which launched nationally in April 2008. The group currently has regional leadership in several major locations across the country, including New York, Boston, Chicago and Washington, D.C., and, according to a JStreet official in D.C., has an active grass-roots network of 150,000 supporters throughout the country. JStreet’s two-fold mission supports the creation of a two-state solution in Israel and an end to settlement building and the Gaza blockade and, secondly, aims to create a space for public discourse on Israel that is loving, but critical, and seeks to engage the broader American Jewish population on the many complex issues Israel faces.

JStreet Expands to SoCal Read More »

Rabbis, Other Faith Leaders and Non-clergy ‘Fast for Gaza’

Leave a Comment / Community / Ryan Torok

One day each month, members of Ta’anit Tzedek — Jewish Fast for Gaza — a self-described “ad-hoc” initiative of over 100 rabbis and other faith leaders from all over the United States, refrain from eating or drinking anything except water. They hope to raise awareness of Israel’s blockade of Gaza, which they consider unsustainable, especially in light of the recent flotilla crisis.

Rabbi Steven Jacobs, rabbi emeritus of Temple Kol Tikvah in the San Fernando Valley, was one of the original “minyan” — 10 rabbis — to show support for the group. Jacobs has fasted almost every month since the group started in July 2009, despite receiving some criticism from Jews who think Israel shouldn’t be criticized.

“The fast in our tradition has a long, long history both in the community and privately for attuning yourself to be more sensitive to yourself and issues,” he said.

Members fast on the third Thursday of each month. About 1,200 non-clergy members have signed on to show support on fastforgaza.net, the group’s official Web site. The group also includes Rabbi Leonard Beerman of Leo Baeck Temple in Los Angeles.

The next fast date will be July 15.

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Serious About Happiness

Leave a Comment / David Suissa, Opinion / David Suissa

It’s not every day that Orthodox Jews gather in a synagogue to learn about happiness. But on a recent Sunday morning at Young Israel of Century City, a standing-room-only crowd came for precisely that. The event was the seventh annual Ariel Avrech Memorial Lecture, and the speaker was author, radio host and happiness guru Dennis Prager.

The very idea of a serious lecture on happiness felt weird, and Prager sensed it. After all, synagogue sermons usually deal with sober topics like ethics, compassion, truth and justice. Personal happiness? That feels more like a selfish fetish of the secular world. The Torah world is supposed to operate on a more noble and altruistic plane.

Well, that is the misconception Prager came to correct.

Prager’s thesis — which he expounds on in a book (“Happiness Is a Serious Problem”) and a weekly “Happiness Hour” on his radio show — is that happiness isn’t a selfish act at all, but might be, in fact, the ultimate mitzvah.

To dramatize his point, Prager used the religious language of altruism. If the Torah commands us to look beyond ourselves and consider the welfare of others, what better way than to act happy around others and elevate their own happiness? It’s a worthy sacrifice, Prager explained, not to allow one’s negative feelings to bring others down.

His subject touched a sensitive nerve. He was talking to Jews who pride themselves on following all of God’s mitzvot, and yet, acting happy to make others happy hardly seemed like an obvious mitzvah; certainly not as natural or obvious as lighting the Shabbat candles or donating to charity.

Prager’s thesis came to life when he talked about his “war on the moody” — people who put their feelings first, even at the expense of bringing others down. Judaism isn’t about putting feelings first, he said. It’s about actions, and actions that bring happiness to the world are supremely moral.

Prager explained how he stumbled onto his happiness philosophy. Many years ago, Rabbi Shlomo Schwartz invited him to speak to students at UCLA and suggested “something light, like happiness.” When Prager responded that “happiness is a serious problem,” Schwartz said he loved that title, and Prager crafted a talk that became one of his most popular.

He’s been on a happiness mission ever since.

His mission isn’t to promote the suppression of negative feelings — that’s not realistic — but to make people aware of the power of a happy disposition to change the world around us and make it a better place.

His lecture hit home with me, since one of my pet peeves is moody or disengaged people who think they’re being “authentic” when they inflict their moody vibes on those around them, especially in a festive setting. Of course, at the other extreme, I also don’t enjoy people who try too hard to act happy. Faux happiness makes me feel guilty that they’re faking it on my behalf. Maybe, then, Prager’s lecture should come with this caveat: If you have to act happy when you’re not feeling it, make sure only the happiness shows, not the acting.

Eventually, Prager says, the more you act happy, the less you’ll have to fake it.

This whole notion of happiness was on my mind last week when I went to an event at the Backdoor Art Gallery, a little space located off an alleyway behind Robertson Boulevard in Beverly Hills.

The gallery is run by my friend Bob Oré, a French-Moroccan Jew who is one of the premier producers of French cultural events in town. Last year, when he brought the popular comedian Gad Elmaleh to Los Angeles, several hundred French-speaking Jews packed a local theater. Oré is the kind of guy who can get a bunch of fashionable people to show up at a party on an afternoon’s notice.

At his event last week, you felt you were in a little nightclub in St. Germain, with a French poet singing love songs to a summer night crowd seeking a little moonlight bliss.

The singer was Pol-Serge Kakon, a painter and troubadour in his late 50s with long silver hair and a thin mustache who looked like he could have been married to Edith Piaf. I couldn’t believe I was in Los Angeles.

As Kakon was singing to his adoring crowd, I thought about Prager’s lecture on happiness. For all I knew, Pol-Serge could have had a real crummy day or been consumed by the sadness of a failed romance. But if that was the case, we saw none of it. All we saw was a singer exhaling happiness onto the people around him. It wasn’t a showy kind of happiness, but an intimate sort that comes from being lost in the pleasure of the moment.

Kakon had the power to make us happy, and he used it.

Maybe Prager wants us to be a little like that French troubadour — to elevate those around us by simply exhaling happiness.

To Prager, this simple act is so important that he calls it a moral obligation. If that’s still not enough to motivate you, well, just remember that happy people get invited to the best parties.

David Suissa is publisher and editor-in-chief of Jewish Journal and takes his laughter very seriously.

Serious About Happiness Read More »

Letters to the Editor: “I love your paper,” Israel’s PR, Rally, and Dennis Prager

Leave a Comment / Letters to the Editor / Jewish Journal

Words of Love

Hey, you guys. I love your paper. Our best to you all. Come on, pass the sweet words around. As we all know, the world doesn’t get enough of them.
P.S.: I especially enjoy and appreciate the articles of Rob Eshman, David Suissa, Jonathan Kirsch, Gina Nahai — and hello, Dennis. Keep ’em coming, people.

Minnie Chortkoff
via e-mail

Israel’s PR Problem

Rob Eshman tells us “that an enormous amount of goodwill exists toward a moderate Israel,” especially among people who view America and the world like The New York Times’ Tom Friedman. (“Six Steps to Better Israel PR,” June 18). Unfortunately, that moderate Israel is hard to find, as Tom Friedman knows, but Rob Eshman refuses to see. As Friedman wrote in his March 13 op-ed column, Israel is “driving drunk”; it has “lost total contact with reality”; its policy of “continuing to build settlements in the West Bank, and even housing in disputed East Jerusalem, is sheer madness.” Friedman understands what Eshman won’t admit: Leaders who are driving drunk need friends who will tell them to sober up, not give them another drink, as is the preference of the American Jewish establishment. Otherwise, what remains of the once-moderate Israel will soon disappear — and with it the support that the American public has long provided the Jewish state.

Roger Waldinger
via e-mail

Israel’s PR Problem

Allow me to suggest one more item to add on your “Six Steps to Better Israel PR,” (June 18) to promote critical thinking. I find that when people formulate an opinion based on evidence and sound reasoning, they are taken more seriously in their community than when one formulates an opinion based solely on ideology. Instead of worrying about “pro-Israel” vs. “anti-Israel,” we should be focusing on “educated” vs. “uneducated” people in Middle East politics. Educated people will arrive at a variety of conclusions, but the resulting dialogue will have a positive effect on Israel and on the United States. Support for Israel ought to be more enlightened and nuanced than the support we Angelenos show for the Lakers. Furthermore, I expect that most people who are aware of the history of the region will tend to be at least sympathetic to Israel, even if they don’t agree with all of Israel’s specific policies.

Guy Handelman
North Hollywood

Israel’s PR Problems

Before enacting any of Rob Eshman’s prescriptions to improve Israel’s PR, the first priority should be to make it clear that Israel is demonized, i.e. the victim of obscenely disproportionate and out-of-context criticism, and that such “criticism” is not criticism but hate. (“Six Steps to Better Israel PR June 18) The flip side of this is that to lavish absurdly disproportionate “compassion” on a people who are determined to annihilate another people (especially when such “compassion” is never shown toward far more victimized people who do not threaten other groups with equivalent destruction is not justice but injustice. Our enemies in the world should be on the defensive, and to do this we must first make it clear just how morally perverted most “criticism” of Israel is.

Ronnie Lampert
via e-mail

Great, Rob, keep on talking sense in this community. Why is it that even after serving as an officer in the Israeli army, as well as being a liberal Zionist all my life, but being someone who sees Israel’s blockade of Gaza as unwise and misguided, so many “armchair generals” are willing to shove me into the “beyond the Pale” camp along with the delegitimizers of Israel?

We do need to engage in the messy process of communal deliberation that it takes to bring out more than one in 600 Jews here in L.A. to support Israel. I don’t want to cringe from the ferocity of my co-religionists just because I don’t toe a certain line in the shifting sands of Mideast politics. I have to feel comfortable enough that the people I’m standing shoulder to shoulder with in support of Israel will have the civility to agree to disagree with me and are willing to accept an unconditional support of Israel’s existence but a conditional support of its policies and actions.

Pini Herman
via e-mail

Polish-Jewish Relations

I read the article “A Hope-filled Look at Poland’s Jewish Renaissance” (June 11) with great interest. The article describes, with a lot of honesty and understanding, the complexity of Polish-Jewish relations, using the recent event at Valley Beth Shalom as an example of the dialogue. I genuinely appreciate the interest of The Jewish Journal in Polish-Jewish relations and the overall balance and positive message of the article.

Having said that, I must correct a perception that might be created by the manner in which I was quoted. The abbreviated quote that appeared in your paper — “ ‘You have anti-Semites in Poland,’ Folwarczny echoed from the pulpit. ‘You have people who do not get it. You have people who do not care.’ ” — taken out of context, seems to suggest that I was claiming that everyone in Poland was an anti-Semite, or at least that there is a pervasive problem of anti-Semitism.

Such a statement would be far from the truth and was not the message I sought to impart. While I noted that, indeed, there are anti-Semites in Poland and anti-Semitism is still a problem, it is just one side of the story.

In my presentation at the synagogue, I described the work being done by both Jewish and non-Jewish Poles to build a more open and tolerant nation for our shared future. I explained that you can meet various people who are working hard to preserve the memory of Jews in Poland, organize Jewish culture festivals, educational activities etc. It is a complex and varied issue that simply cannot be reduced to a single sentence or quote.

The great success of the Forum for Dialogue Among Nations in building bridges between Poles and Jews is a reflection of the open and tolerant community that we address.

Andrzej Folwarczny
president and founder
Forum for Dialogue Among Nations

Correction
The article “Milken Students Embrace Israel Semester” (June 18) erroneously reported that The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles subsidizes the Tiferet program, which brings Milken Community High School tenth graders to Israel for a semester. In fact, The Jewish Federation provides no funding for this trip. The program is supported by Milken parents, private donations and Stephen S. Wise Temple.

Correction

Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion regrets the error in last’s week advertisement announcing their student and alumni degree recipients. Dr. George M. Goodwin was listed incorrectly. HUC-JIR apologizes to Dr. Goodwin and his family and wishes him hearty congratulations on his honorary degree.

Holier Than Thou?

I have loosely followed the writings and philosophy of Dennis Prager for a number of years and cannot help but find myself continually astounded by his arrogance, lack of humility and holier-than-thou attitude (“An Open Letter to Israel’s Jews,” June 18). The mere fact that his column is penned by “Dennis” (and not “Dennis Prager”) implies that Dennis believes he is as much an icon as Bibi, Cher, Sting or Bono, who need no last name for identification.

The June 18 issue of The Journal contains myriad points of view regarding the support of Israel and the Monday-morning quarterbacking of the June 6 pro-Israel rally (which I and my friends proudly attended as American Jews to show our support for the Jewish homeland). Much to his credit, Dennis says that he won’t tell Israel how to run its day-to day affairs as he doesn’t live there, but rather 10,000 miles away. However, while I am impressed that Dennis has been to Israel 15 times, I am astounded that he feels the need to advise Israelis on their religiosity.

I doubt that Dennis has accomplished in his life as an individual what Israel has accomplished as a nation—even though Israel is three months older. If we take Dennis’ thoughts to the extreme, Israel would be populated solely by ultra-Orthodox Jews—leaving the army to be composed of mercenaries. G-d or no G-d, the 60-year-old religious beliefs (or lack thereof) of the defenders of the Holy Land have forged an incredibly accomplished and technically advanced nation.

If you want to make a difference, Dennis, I suggest you go and live there and carry your banner. If not, support Eretz Yisroel and remember: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Ralph Krongold
Kagel Canyon

The Cost of Liberal Judaism

Is the American Jewish community losing its leaders?

After reading two opinions by two rabbis in the Jewish Journal this week (“In Praise of Disunity,” June 18), I thought we might be; after reading Rob Eshman’s editorial, I was pretty much convinced; the Peter Beinart essay nailed it.

Not that we don’t have learned rabbis and well-educated and thoughtful leaders, but it seems that the younger generation, such as Rabbi Grater and Rabbi Brous, are lacking in what I would characterize as wisdom.

Leaders we certainly need, leaders who can see the writing on the wall and abandon their perception of what should be for what really is. Leaders who can look back at history and see the similarities, not the ones that will nod and say: No, this can’t happen here, or now. People who will be willing to put their ideals of a perfect world and the place of Judaism in it on hold at a time when Jews as a nation are facing a threat not less horrific than we faced in World War II.

Actually, we are facing two major threats, the existential one coming from the neighbors of Israel in the Middle East and their newfound allies, the ideological left in Europe and America. The second threat are the Jews that refuse to confront the first threat and choose to abandon Israel and their brothers and stay loyal to the ideals of the left.

As spiritual leaders they have a responsibility to the Jewish nation that should trump personal ideology, especially in a time of crises. But they choose to disregard the fact that our existence is in mortal danger and conduct their life and lead their congregations in the quest for the perfect Israel that they would like to support.

People, rabbis, there are some 6 million Jews in Israel fighting for their lives on a daily basis. If they lose the battle, there will be no place to build a new Yad Vashem or museum of tolerance, because there would be no more tolerance. You who doubt the dangers, where will you go then when the next Helen Thomas will encourage you to go back home?

Seventy years ago a great rabbi in this nation of ours convinced Roosevelt not to allow European Jews looking for a safe haven from the Nazis to come to the United States. Your actions and leadership is not different than S.S. Weiss’ fight to keep his brothers off the shores of our country.

You would rather work with moderate Muslim groups that, like Helen Thomas, have shown their true face in a time of peril and are willing to accept their excuses. You prefer to accept their lies and unsubstantiated anti-Israeli sentiment rather than stand together with your own people so you might feel good for trying to appease the other side.

If you are our leaders, we have no choice but to abandon you. You and your followers will be left behind in the desert for another 40 years while we will march this one without you.

And it is not only our young religious leaders, it is also our editors that cannot refrain from piling their contempt on the small radicalized margins like the one sign he spotted in the rally equating Erdogan to Nazism. Was this the most important aspect of the rally that should have been exposed? Rob Eshman also wrote about other aspects of the rally and the issues it was trying to
address, but like many others in the new emerging Jewish leadership, he came to the rally wearing not his Zionist cloak but his Liberal one. He came more to criticize and find fault than to support.
This is the way his paper portrays Judaism today, first and foremost liberal Judaism, Judaism as it merges with the Liberal ideals as they are perceived.

And then there is Peter Beinart. Peter has not failed, as Davis Suissa tried to point out. He, like many others, has decided to disregard what is staring us in the face—the truth— and work with the part of the equation where their Liberal inner soul can survive comfortably. Instead of internalizing the fact that his people are threatened again with final termination, Peter Beinart and David Myers, who supported his view on the pages of the Jewish Journal, would prefer Jews argue how better to treat those who are attacking them as they lie on the ground in a puddle of blood than fight back.

Peter, is it better to be eternally right and dead or human and alive? Our heritage is split on this question. On the one hand, we are to be a Light Unto the Nations; on the other hand, our lives are sacred and should be protected and saved even at the expense of desecrating the Shabbat.

Liberalism has chosen the former, even at the expense of fellow Jewish lives. Israel, who has wanted to be as any other nations, not a beacon, has chosen life.

Liberal Jews have had a long 200 years of experience adapting and being the flag bearers of Liberalism. _They where the leaders of every socialist, reformist movement in the world since the mid-19th century. _They led the Germans to democracy and were hated and murdered by their fellow Germans for their efforts, even before Hitler. Jews led the same effort in France and were hated no less.

Jews led the Marxist revolution and were summarily executed and murdered by those who followed them. _Even here in America, Jews are in the forefront of the fight for Liberalism, socialism and they are hated by their left-wing partners more then ever.

I can’t forget how proud I was as a child to hear and see the united support Jewish leaders and communities showed for the civil rights movement, some giving up their life for this noble cause, just to wake up a few years later to find that the black community is mostly anti Jewish and prefers, rather, to support the same people that for generations, and even today, have enslaved them and massacred them (Muslim countries).

I was no less proud of the leadership roles Jews had in the fight for gay rights, only to find out that those same gay organizations have chosen to support the same people that in the past and present put gays to death in the most horrific fashion and are not shy to brag about it, not to mention their promise to continue this practice in the future.
I can’t but admire the efforts the Jewish community as a whole brought to the fight for women’s rights, and wake up to find out that all those women’s organizations and faculties for women’s studies are demonizing Israel and supporting societies where women have no rights at all.

I once believed a Utopian world was possible if we all willed it. But not all of humanity has arrived at the 21st century.

As Jews we need to understand that we cannot be the scapegoat of the world as we try to lead it to that goal. _I, for one, prefer to stay alive and fight for the right to live, not be sacrificed on the tabernacle of Liberalism.

In Search of a Peaceful Solution

The article by David Pine of Americans for Peace Now fails to explain the real reason why he was heckled and booed at the recent pro-Israel rally outside the Israeli Consulate. (“Seeking a Bridge to a Peaceful Two-State Solution,” June 18) It should be clear to Mr. Pine by now that if one is not prepared to endure a certain amount of dissent and abuse one ought to get out of the business of Jewish advocacy.

The pro-Israel supporters understood all too well what Mr. Pine had to say and it did not resonate with them. Many of them believe that Americans for Peace Now are prepared to sell our sacred Jewish birthright to genocidal enemies whose undiminished goal is the complete destruction of the Jewish state. Their one despairing wish is for peace but not peace at any price.

They have read the reports from Palestinian Media Watch and the Investigative Project on Terrorism and have come to the sinking realization that there is a vast difference between what the Palestinian Authority (the PLO masquerading as a government, in case nobody has noticed), Fatah, Hamas, Hezbollah, and Messrs. Abbas and Fayed say to the United States and the West and what they say to each other and broadcast on television all over the Middle East. For example, the Hamas Charter is one of the most unambiguous documents of hatred it is possible to find. Article 7 employs a quotation from Mohammed where he explicitly encourages the urgent need for fighting and killing Jews. The Charter goes on to say that Hamas’ destruction of Israel will be their contribution to the eventual establishment of a global caliphate. It’s all there in black and white. Read it.

Furthermore, Abbas and Fayed confidently assure Palestinians that one day both Tel Aviv and Haifa will be “Palestinian” cities. How exactly will these so-called “moderates” accomplish this without murdering millions of Jews? Every week Al Jazeera broadcasts a modern-day soap opera about the Blood Libel. It’s a smash hit. Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” and “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion” have never been so popular as they now are in the Middle East. High on the curriculum of Arab schools and madrassas is the teaching of Jew hatred and hatred of the West. None of this seems to animate Mr. Pine yet he is worried about “… a serious lack of civility within our community…”

An enormous confidence trick has been played on many governments, NGOs and the mass media by that huge clanking contraption of distortion, the Palestinian Myth Machine. It cloaks leaders like Mr. Abbas as “moderates” and genuine partners with whom it is possible to make peace. Nothing could be further from the truth. The “moderate” Abbas wrote his doctoral thesis on Holocaust denial and currently names streets and public squares after murdering terrorists, extolling them as martyrs. To suggest that there are “moderates” anywhere to be found in the Palestinian leadership is to suggest that we possess the kind of imbecile credulity that would make an African witch doctor positively green with envy. Every one of the main Arab/Muslim actors in the region are simply different branches of the same corrupt, rotten tree. They all share the identical Al Qaeda ideology and wish to enforce Taliban-style rule under the odious apparatus of Sharia Law.

Many people and organizations in which so much trust and faith has been reposed just do not understand the real nature of the enemy or the threat we all face. Regardless of declarations to the contrary this battle is not about land or land for peace. Gaza proves that land for peace does not work. No Mohammed-, Allah-fearing Muslim can possibly make peace with the Jews and remain a devout Muslim. It is doctrinally impossible. Grasp that and you have grasped the very heart of the matter. This makes Abbas and his comrades-in-terror a group of the most lethal imposters, whom we trust at our mortal peril.

What Mr. Pine and Americans for Peace Now should be demanding is an abrupt end to the religious and political rhetoric of hatred and incitement to violence that is practiced, preached and broadcast to their hapless people by these Islamic supremacists on a daily basis. The constant defamation of Jews as war criminals and of Israel as a genocidal state must stop. The entirely ludicrous but loathsome canard that there is a Jewish conspiracy to control American foreign policy and rule the world must cease. Without a complete change in Islamic supremacist ideology, no peace can be established, let alone endure.

One of the reasons why Mr. Pine was so loudly booed, I suspect, is the growing perception that he represents an organization that, however unwittingly, is actually playing right into the hands of Israel’s enemies by accepting their narrative, thereby legitimizing their demands and advancing their goals. To assent to such obvious lies is to cooperate with evil and in a very real way to become evil oneself.

Throughout his speech at the rally, Consul General Dayan urged the international community to “wake up”. Doubtless this call applied to Americans for Peace Now as much as it did to the world at large.

Paul Schnee
executive director, Western Region,
Zionist Organization of America

StandWithUs Comments on UCI

StandWithUs welcomes UC Irvine’s effort to restore free speech and civility on campus by disciplining the Muslim Student Union (MSU) (“UC Irvine Suspends Muslim Group,” June 18). We have worked with UCI’s administration and pro-Israel students and faculty, and observed the MSU since 2001 when it organized its initial annual anti-Israel event. We sought to empower students to respond. But each year, the MSU crossed more red lines with its anti-Israel extremism and efforts to squelch debate and even deny pro-Israel voices the right to be heard. We videoed the disruption of Ambassador Oren’s speech, which revealed it had been preplanned. We immediately posted the video on YouTube to bring it to public attention and got 700,000 viewers in just days. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7w96UR79TBw). We videoed Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs, questioning frequent MSU speaker Abdel Malik Ali in May when he said that he supported Hezbollah, Hamas and jihad on campus. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLvfX_SGcAA); Chancellor Drake issued a statement condemning the remarks. StandWithUs and other organizations have called on the UCI administration to take firm steps to stop this extremism. Our universities must set standards for discussing even the most difficult issues responsibly. Unfortunately, UCI has a reputation as the most anti-Israel American campus, so we are pleased that it has taken this step to strengthen free speech and to restore standards, responsible debate, and civility.

Roz Rothstein, international director,
StandWithUs

Support From Christian Neighbors

Your coverage of the June 6 rally at the Israeli Consulate (“Thousands Rally for Israel at Consulate, June 11) made much ado about the crowd’s negative reaction to the Americans for Peace Now representative, yet not one mention was made of the loud and positive reaction to the Christian pastors who came from great distances and made great efforts to reschedule on their day of worship to stand with Israel. Some of the greatest applause was for Christian speakers such as Pastor Jim Tolle, senior pastor, the Church on the Way; Pastor Robert Sterns, president of Eagle’s Wings Ministry, who traveled from New York to attend; Pastor Ricardo Escobedo, Centro Palabra De Fe; Pastor Carlos Diaz, Tabernaculo Bíblico Bautista Amigos De Israel Los Ángeles; Lead Pastor Touré Roberts, One Church International Ministries; the Rev. Jaren Lapasaran, president, Filippino American Assemblies of God and Los Angeles chairman of the National Day of Prayer; who brought those 24 white doves that were released. Among other pastors present were Pastor Kevin Dieckilman, director, Alliance4Jerusalem and Senior Pastor of Simi Hills Christian Church; and Pastors Roger and Andrew Cochran of Long Beach Calvary Chapel.

They deserve not only our community’s recognition and appreciation. They should have been at least mentioned by The Journal, if nothing else, as a matter of record, but all the more so as their ministries represent over 60 million Americans who cherish a Jewish Israel and who may one day soon replace the evaporating liberal Jewish community as the primary American supporters of Israel.

Gary Dalin
executive director, Israel Christian Nexus / Alliance4Jerusalem

Letters to the Editor: “I love your paper,” Israel’s PR, Rally, and Dennis Prager Read More »

Calendar Picks and Clicks for June 24–July 2, 2010

Leave a Comment / Community, Picks and Clicks, What's Happening / Ryan Torok

THU | JUNE 24

(LECTURE)
“Power, Perception and Prejudice: A Conversation With Jane Elliot” features a lecture by the teacher, activist and creator of the “blue eyes-brown eyes” training exercise, which promoted ideals of tolerance and social equality during the civil rights era. A Q-and-A with Elliot follows. Thu. 7:30 p.m. $20. Museum of Tolerance, 9786 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 772-2505. museumoftolerance.com.

FRI | JUNE 25

(LECTURE)
Comedian, actress and author Sarah Silverman (“The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption and Pee”) joins writer and KPCC personality Sandra Tsing Loh for a Writers Bloc discussion. Fri. 7:30 p.m. $20. Writers Guild Theatre, 135 S. Doheny Drive, Beverly Hills. writersblocpresents.com.

(FILM)
British Iranian comic Omid Djalili (“Sex and the City 2”) plays a Muslim who suffers an identify crisis after discovering his birth mother was Jewish in “The Infidel,” which screens for the Tribeca Film Festival’s inaugural showcase in Los Angeles. Fri. Through July 1. 7:30 p.m. $11. Laemmle Sunset 5, 8000 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. (310) 478-3836. laemmle.com

SAT | JUNE 26

(MUSIC)
Guitarist Dave Navarro (Jane’s Addiction, Camp Freddy) headlines Bet Tzedek’s 14th annual Justice Ball with DJ Skribble, who gained notoriety as the in-house spinner for MTV, and special guest DJ Alex Merrell. But wait, there’s more. The evening also features “Guitar Hero” and “DJ Hero” battles, JDate speed-dating sessions, a temporary-tattoo parlor, go-go dancers and a full bar. Sat. 9 p.m. $75 (general), $150 (VIP). Hollywood Palladium, 6215 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles. thejusticeball.org.

(FILM)
Aaron, a butcher in Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox community, tries to deny his same-sex attraction to a young yeshiva student in director Haim Tabakman’s “Eyes Wide Open.” Once he surrenders, the father of four is torn between his religious responsibilities and his desires. Laemmle’s Sunset 5, 8000 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. (310) 478-3836. laemmle.com.

(THEATER)
Henry Jaglom’s “Just 45 Minutes From Broadway” follows Betsy Isaac, a practical woman who, despite her Yiddish theater lineage, hates show business. When Betsy brings her business-minded fiancé home to meet the folks, she finds her future husband drawn into the histrionics of her dramatic clan. Sat. Through Sept. 19. 8 p.m. (Fri. and Sat.), 5 p.m. (Sun.). $25. Edgemar Center for the Arts, 2437 Main St., Santa Monica. (310) 392-7327. edgemarcenter.org.

SUN | JUNE 27

(FILM)

Director Joel Schumacher appears in person to introduce a 25th anniversary screening of “St. Elmo’s Fire,” his 1985 Brat Pack coming-of-age drama about seven friends struggling with the responsibilities of life after college. The event is part of American Cinematheque’s tribute to Schumacher. Sun. 7:30 p.m. $11. Aero Theatre, 1328 Montana Ave., Santa Monica. (323) 634-4878. americancinematheque.com.

MON | JUNE 28

(THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED)

Christopher Hitchens, a polarizing writer who turns subjects like the Clintons, Mother Teresa and God into targets, gets an introduction tonight from someone who’s no stranger to controversy: actor-director Sean Penn. In conversation with Steve Wasserman, former editor of the Los Angeles Times Book Review, Hitchens, who recently released his memoir, “Hitch-22,” tackles himself and shares his life story during ALOUD’s “An Evening With Christopher Hitchens.” Mon. 8 p.m. $17.50-$25. Aratani/Japan America Theatre, 244 S. San Pedro St., downtown. (213) 680-3700. jaccc.org.

THU | JULY 1

(ART)
A new exhibition of oil paintings by Sephardic Jewish artist Renee Amitai relates the spiritual journey of a life spent in France, Israel and the United States. Thu. Through Aug. 8. Noon-5 p.m. (Wed.-Sun.). Free. LA Artcore Gallery at the Union Center for the Arts, 120 Judge John Aiso St., downtown. (213) 617-3274. laartcore.org.

(MUSIC)
London-based singer-songwriter and alt-comedian Earl Okin, a veteran solo act with a cult fan base, brings his one-man music-comedy shtick to Los Angeles. Thu. 7:30 p.m. $25. Fields Pianos Recital Hall, 12121 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 476-6735.

FRI | JULY 2

(SINGLES)
Mix and mingle during a potluck Shabbat dinner (vegetarian/dairy) organized by Peter Small, a board member at Temple Isaiah in Newport Beach. Attendees enjoy a post-dinner Shabbat service as well as a special program in honor of Independence Day featuring live impersonations of American historical figures. Fri. 6 p.m. Free. Temple Isaiah of Newport Beach, 2401 Irvine Ave., Newport Beach. (949) 583-1905.

Calendar Picks and Clicks for June 24–July 2, 2010 Read More »