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November 17, 2000/Heshvan 19, 5761, Vol. 53, No.8
Letters to the EditorNovember 17, 2000
Pro-Israel voice importantEditor:While as a community we may offer a diversity of opinion on issues, it is safe to say that an overwhelming number of us share a concern for Israel and her security at this critical juncture in time. Unfortunately, the fight for Israel's security is ongoing. It is being fought not only in the Middle East, but also in our nation's capitol and across our country. In the United States, instead of guns and soldiers, citizen lobbyists are waging the fight, and the battlefield is the halls of the Congress. One organization has been leading this battle for many years: AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. It was formed 46 years ago to lobby Congress on behalf of a stronger U.S.-Israel relationship. AIPAC is a non-partisan membership organization supported entirely by members; it receives no financial assistance from any country. It supports no party in either Israel or the United States but rather supports the policies of the democratically elected government of Israel. AIPAC is not a PAC and provides no financial assistance to candidates. AIPAC's strength is its grassroots membership. The greater the membership, the louder its voice and the stronger its message. Now is the time for all concerned to join. There is no down side. Eugene Schupak National Board of Directors American Israel Public Affairs Committee Scottsdale Setting the record straightEditor:We are concerned about the way in which events in the Middle East have been reported. Israel has made so many concessions that peace should have been at hand, yet the Arab response has been to instigate more violence. The visit of Ariel Sharon to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem was a fact-finding mission because the Arabs had begun excavating beneath the holy site, without regard to what Jewish artifacts they might be destroying. Prior to 1967, when the Arabs took control of Jerusalem, they destroyed synagogues and did not allow Jewish people access to their holy places. In contrast, since Israel recaptured Jerusalem in 1967, the rights of Moslems, Christians and Jews to access their holy sites have been safeguarded. The Arabs, by their actions, have made it clear that this is a religious war - that land and Palestinian statehood is not the issue. Their goal is the destruction of the state of Israel and of the Jewish people. Bunny and Sandor Shuch Phoenix |
