Get out your crystal ball

It's time to take the 5759 Jewish pundit quiz!

JONATHAN S. TOBIN
Connecticut Jewish Ledger

Was 5758 a bad year for the Jews? With ongoing terror in the Middle East and continued Jewish disunity, it certainly had its low points. But, remember, whether your name is Bill, Bibi or Boris, things can always get worse in the year ahead.

So before the Almighty writes down just how much worse (or perhaps better) it will be for all of us in the proverbial great book of judgment, we present (with once again, our apologies to The New York Times' William Safire), our third annual "Jewish Pundit Quiz."

So guess, or should I say prognosticate, along with me about some important events in the year 5759. A year from now, we'll see who had the clearest crystal ball. My answers are at the bottom of the column. Shanah Tovah!

1. By the end of 5759, Bill Clinton will:
	A. Be the second U.S. president to have resigned in disgrace.
	B. Have survived the first official "censure" of a president by Congress and be closing out his term as a very lame duck.
	C. Surprise Washington and Jerusalem with the announcement of his candidacy for the post of Prime Minister of the State of Israel in the 2000 election.
	D. Win the Nobel Peace Prize for helping to end the Mideast and Irish conflicts.

2. Currently, there are 24 Jews in the House of Representatives (the all-time high of 33 was in 1992); following the 1998 congressional elections, the number of Jews in Congress will:
	A. Be at an all-time high of 38, as Democrats defy the pollsters and regain the House.
	B. Stay the same at 24.
	C. Go down precipitately to 12, as Jewish Democrats are swept out in an anti-Clinton backlash.

3. The big Jewish winner of the 1998 elections will be:
	A. New York Democrat Charles Schumer, who does the impossible and upsets Republican Alphonse D'Amato in the New York Senate race.
	B. Giant-killer Charlotte Koskoff (D-Conn.), who will pull off the biggest upset of the year defeating longtime incumbent Republican Rep. Nancy Johnson on her third try.
	C. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), who will win re-election and then become lead Senate prosecutor in the Clinton impeachment trial.
	D. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will use an enlarged GOP majority in Congress to ward off pressure from a weakened Clinton administration.

4. The biggest Jewish loser of the 1998 elections will be:
	A. Democratic National Chairman Steve Grossman of Massachusetts, who will resign following the Monica-inspired Republican landslide.
	B. Conservative Republican consultant Arthur "Prince of Darkness" Finkelstein, who will see his reputation crash with Al D'Amato's upset defeat.
	C. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who will be trounced by Republican Matt Fong, as "Year of the Woman" alumni are hurt by their ties to Clinton.

5. By September 1999, the prospective candidate for president in the year 2000 with the most Jewish support will be:
	A. Joe Lieberman, who will decide that his pro-morality platform will play well enough in Peoria - and New Hampshire - to elect America's first Jewish president.
	B. Vice President Al Gore, who will cash in on his longtime support of Israel and Jewish issues.
	C. Texas Gov. George W. ("the shrub") Bush, who will earn Jewish plaudits with a surprising speech repudiating his father's anti-Israel tilt.
	D. Republican Malcolm "Steve" Forbes, whose "flat" tax will gain the backing of liberal Hollywood Jews who dump Clinton in favor of a better investment for their money.

6. In 5759 Russian Jewry will:
	A. Continue to prosper as Boris Yeltsin is somehow able to preserve economic reforms.
	B. Be lining up by the tens of thousands for exit visas to Israel and the United States, as the ruble and Russian democracy sink into oblivion.
	C. Become the new center of Hassidism as Chabad moves its headquarters from Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn to the Kremlin after a property fire sale by the Russian government.
	D. See a steady but not spectacular rate of emigration to Israel as Russia's economic crisis continues but avoids complete disaster.

7. In 5759, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will:
	A. Be odds-on favorite for re-election after giving up little in peace talks and free market reforms and more Russian aliyah results in Israel's economy booming.
	B. Testify as a character witness for President Clinton during House impeachment hearings.
	C. See his government fall after the right dumps him following his cave-in to American pressure for more concessions in final-status talks.
	D. Be challenged from both the left and right of his party as Yitzhak Mordechai and Ariel Sharon both stalk out of the cabinet.

8. By 5759, the Middle East peace process will:
	A. Have succeeded in achieving a lasting peace as final-status talks succeed.
	B. Still be on hold as both Netanyahu and Arafat continue to maneuver for American support without any further agreements being signed.
	C. Have broken down irrevocably after unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood triggers Israeli annexation of all areas in territories not already controlled by Arafat.
	D. Be forgotten as world-wide recession triggers more bloody conflicts in the former Soviet Union and the Third World.

9. The most significant event in Jewish history that will occur in 5759 will be:
	A. The establishment of a U.N.-recognized Palestinian Arab state in May 1999.
	B. The discovery of the long-lost Ark of the Covenant and the site of Mount Sinai by archaeologists, which inspires a world-wide return to Jewish observance.
	C. The outbreak of war in the Middle East as the death of King Hussein revives an East Front and Iraq, Iran, Syria, Jordan and the Palestinians unite to attack Israel.
	D. The further deterioration of Jewish unity due to pluralism disputes in Israel and the widening gap between assimilated and affiliated Jews in the U.S.

10. The most talked-about Jewish personality of 5759 will be:
	A. Steven Spielberg, who will win a best director Oscar for "Saving Private Ryan."
	B. Moralizing radio talker Dr. Laura, who will join with Hillary Clinton to host a hot new morning show opposite Regis and Kathie Lee.
	C. Zionist Organization of America president Morton Klein, who will kiss and make up with the Anti-Defamation League's Abe Foxman and convince a majority of American Jewry to take Palestinian violations of the peace accords seriously.
	D. Monica Lewinsky, whose Clinton impeachment hearing testimony before Congress will earn the highest ratings in television history.

Tobin's answers: 1. A; 2. B; 3. D; 4. C; 5. B; 6. D; 7. D; 8. B; 9. A; 10. D

Jonathan S. Tobin is executive editor of the Connecticut Jewish Ledger.

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