January 17, 2003/Shevat 14 5763, Vol. 55, No. 21
Letters to the EditorJanuary 17, 2003
Shinui Party provides welcome optionEditor:As a Shinui activist, I was delighted to read the article on our party. ("Shinui Party is dark horse in elections," Jewish News, Jan. 3) In the 1990s, I was a student at San Jose State University in California, and a reporter in Georgia and California. As such, I was exposed to other Jewish options - not just Orthodox or secular - for the first time. Indeed, Shinui is a wonderful option not only for secular Jews, but also for Reform and Conservative Jews who find it difficult, to say the least, to practice their beliefs in the Jewish State. A strong Shinui would allow for stronger ties between the Jews of both countries. Amos Fabian Tel Aviv, Israel Crazy not to visit IsraelEditor:If I told you I was a 12-year-old girl that just came back from Israel, would you believe me? Well, you better believe it. I just came back from Israel a few days ago on a United Jewish Communities family mission. I had a blast and I made many new friends. I had the time of my life and felt safe the whole time I was with the mission. I saw the "real" Israel, not the CNN Israel. I wish more of you would go to Israel. If you think I am crazy for going, well then call me crazy, but I had an awesome time no matter what anyone says. Lyndsi Sherman Scottsdale Premature hopes for change in Knesset?Editor:I was encouraged by the report by Leslie Susser about the emergence of the Shinui Party in Israel as a centrist force and hope fervently for its success as a secular balance between the two major parties. ("Shinui Party is dark horse in elections," Jewish News, Jan. 3) However, I was perturbed by one word. The writer states, "ending perceived Orthodox privilege and religious coercion." Why this perfunctory modifier "perceived"? The Shas Party has defined its attitudes clearly for years by its voting record in the Knesset. This word looks to me like an obligatory genuflection and weakens the report. Are my hopes for a secular balance in the Knesset premature? Martin I. Selling Phoenix
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