Jewish Herald-Voice (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 100, No. 22, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 4, 2008 Page: 11 of 20
twenty pages : ill.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
In Other Words
Page 11
Jewish Herald-Voice
September 4, 2008
Olmert seeks peace agreement
before stepping down
Letters to the Editor
What’s in a name?
In touch from Jerusalem
FELICE and MICHAEL
FRIEDSON
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert is looking forward to a major
diplomatic achievement before he
leaves office. That means between
now and the Kadima party primary,
currently slated for Sept. 17, although
there is some talk of delaying it. If
the putative successor elected at that
time is unable to form a government,
Olmert would remain in office as
a caretaker for a considerable time
longer - until the entire nation votes.
But regardless of the actual date, the
soon-to-be-former-prime-minister has
found little support for his recent
peace efforts.
First came his proposal that
included an on-again-off-again offer
to the Palestinians to allow 20,000
Palestinian refugees to return to
Israel under a category of “family
reunion.” Then, Olmert asked
Palestinian Authority Chairman
Abbas to accept a “quickie agreement”
that set forth the principles upon
which a later agreement would be
framed, and a five-year schedule for
dealing with the status of Jerusalem.
That, too, never gained traction,
the Palestinians being adamant in
declaring that either there will be
a comprehensive agreement, “or no
agreement at all.”
MeanwTiile, Foreign Minister
Tzipi Livni is trying to appear
prepared and capable of ascending
to the top spot while continuing
in her role as chief negotiator with
the Palestinians, opposite Ahmad
Qurei. The Media Line obtained a
comprehensive look at what is on the
table in those Livni-Qurei meetings
and has received confirmation from
Israeli sources that it is an accurate
rendering. The talks featured the
addition of an American specialist
brought in by U.S. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice to offer “solution
models” for the deal-breaker issues.
One such model was presented to
Livni regarding the Palestinian
right-of-return. She reportedly
dismissed out-of-hand terms that
recognized the Palestinians’ “right”
and Israel’s acknowledgement of its
responsibility “both politically and
morally” for the refugees’ suffering.
But Livni apparently left the door
open to discussing the idea of
compensation to Arab families that
lost their homes when the Jewish
state came into existence. For a
look at the negotiations underway,
visit “Featured Stories” at www.
themedialine.org; see: Israelis, Pales-
tinians Attack Core Issues with
American Help.
The Media Line’s camera crew in
the Gaza Strip recorded a group of
young Palestinians who spend their
evenings in Internet cafes making
phone calls to random numbers in
the U.S., asking those who answer to
vote for Barack Obama, Democratic
candidate for U.S. president. It’s not
a piece for conspiracy theorists or for
those looking for political “gotchas,”
but rather an interesting look at
how people who are not eligible to
vote in the American election are
nevertheless able to utilize the latest
technology to become players in the
process nevertheless. The Obama
campaign had no knowledge of the
effort and did not support it in any
way. The report has generated a
great deal of interest, and has been
reprinted (viewed, in the case of the
video report) by news organizations
throughout the Middle East.
Reportage is also found on the site
under “Featured Stories” and “Video”
respectively.
When word came down last week
that an Israeli man was kidnapped at
gunpoint in Port Harcourt, Nigeria,
the common fear was that Hezbollah
had made good on its threat to
snatch Israelis from anywhere in the
world. Intelligence warnings had told
Israelis to be on guard and take extra
precautions, particularly in Third
World nations, where the terrorists
would be able to move about more
freely. So, it was with particular
relief that Israelis greeted the release
of 60-year old Ehud Avni, and learned
that the kidnapping was a criminal
act apparently carried out in order
to secure a ransom. Avni, a project
manager for the Israeli company
Gilmor Engineering, was taken
captive after leaving a reception
at the governor’s home. The Israeli
newspaper Haaretz reported that a
$12 million ransom was demanded,
but when it was all over, the Israeli
ambassador said he thought no
money changed hands. Avni’s release
was credited to pressure from
Nigerian authorities and fear by the
kidnappers that the crime could
spiral out of control if the victim
suffered ill effects from his diabetes.
A record number of travelers
passed through Israel’s Ben-Gurion
International Airport during July
(1.19 million) and August (1.34
million). The airport’s one-day
record was set on Aug. 21 with 60,000
passengers on 345 airplanes entering
or leaving. But while tourism is up,
a large percentage of those tracked
in and out of Ben-Gurion were not
visitors in the sense of “tourism.”
Hoteliers have told The Media Line
that while the summer was good,
hotels were not as solidly booked
as tourism officials indicate. Part
of the problem is that traditional
tourism has never returned after
being modified from a 13-night
“standard tour” to much shorter
“missions” following the violent
period (“Intifada”) that erupted in
September 2000 and continued for
several years. “Mission” participants
now typically spend less time in the
country and less time on their own
than did pre-intifada tourists.
The Media Line’s web address:
www.themedialine.org. □
I am deeply concerned by the
article titled, “Barack Obama through
Muslim eyes” (JH-V, Aug. 28, 2008) by
Daniel Pipes, primarily because of
the lack of substantive evidence used
to advance the author’s argument.
Although the thesis presented
by the author is “How do Muslims
see Barack Hussein Obama?” there
are no research findings or study
data presented that address the issue
other than anecdotal conversations
with a Beirut grocer, a reference to
an Egyptian newspaper quotation
and representatives of the Hudson
Institute and the Brookings Institute.
I would hope that, when discussing
the opinions of an entire faith
tradition, such as Islam, we would
be more rigorous in examining the
evidence used to corroborate the
finding that, “Should Obama become
president, differences in Muslim
and American views of religious
affiliation will create problems.”
I wonder if Sen. Obama had been
born to a Jewish mother and chosen
to, as an adult, become baptized in
Response to letter on
gun-safety column
First of all, I respectfully support
the rights of everyone to his/her
beliefs and the ability to express
them. This is one of the reasons that
I am proud to be an American.
My article, “Is there a gun
in the house?” was not based on
misconception. It was research
based, using statistics from valid
organizations such as the American
Academy of Pediatrics. They have
been longtime advocates for children
on many issues, and I use them
frequently as a source of information
for my column.
I am well aware that many people
own guns, especially in Texas, and
practice gun safety. This doesn’t
convince me that it is in the best
interests of children for guns to be
in the house. As for the statement
that asking parents is viewed as
an invasion of privacy, I strongly
disagree. When my children were
young, my husband and I asked if
there would be adult supervision at
parties, and whether liquor would be
served. Today, I would not hesitate to
ask about guns as well.
The most powerful argument
against having guns in the house is
one that I wrote about in my column.
If you talk to the parents of a child
who was killed or seriously injured
from a gun accident in a home where,
supposedly, children couldn’t access
the guns, and had been trained in gun
safety, it is difficult, at best, to think
that asking questions is unnecessary.
Parents have to be advocates for
their children, and in today’s world,
that is imperative. As a mother and
a grandmother, I would rather be
accused of being politically incorrect
than not having asked questions that
could affect the safety of my child or
grandchild.
Diane Manning
VaYAYaYAWcJ] DnWo)[]Tl □ 0 ITDC^C^CoXrLfD
the Christian faith, affiliate with a
Christian church, marry a Christian
woman and raise his children as
Christian, whether there would
be any question within the Jewish
community about his “religious
affiliation”? Given that this is the
same situation except that Sen.
Obama’s father was a Muslim, what
evidence is there to lead to the
conclusion that American-Muslims
would question Sen. Obama’s
religious affiliation?
As a woman, born to devout
Catholic parents and whose middle
name is “Mary” (after the “Virgin”
Mary) and who also converted to
Judaism six years ago, I wonder
whether Mr. Pipes would question
my own religious affiliation, because
it seems as though so much can be
deduced from a name.
Olga “Mary” Lara
Crferald-Voice
_www) hvonlinc.com_
ISSN 0021-6488 USPS 0275-360
A JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE
INTERESTS OF SOUTHWEST JEWRY
VICKI SAMUELS - President
JOSEPH W. SAMUELS - CEO
FOUNDING PUBLISHERS
Edgar Goldberg 1908-1937
David H. White and Ida S. White 1938-1973
JOSEPH W. SAMUELS - Publisher
JEANNE F. SAMUELS - Editor
MICHAEL C. DUKE - Associate Editor
ARNOLD ROSENZWEIG - Editorial Research
AARON HOWARD - Staff Writer
THEODORE POWERS - Food Editor
RENEE SUCHOWIECKY - Party Pages Editor
MATT SAMUELS - Sports Writer
HANNAH LAPIN -Teen Editor
COLUMNISTS:
WENDY CLARKE-LEVY,
EELICE AND MICHAEL FRIEDSON,
ELLIOT GERSHENSON, PAM GEYER,
ED REITMAN, Ph.D.,
TEDDY WEINBERGER
PROOFREADERS:
ANN NUNES
DORI A. WIND
LAWRENCE S LEVY - Subscriptions, Distribution
AARON D. POSCOVSKY - Graphics Director
BARBARA E. HANOVICH - Asst. Prod. Mgr.
ART DEPARTMENT:
HOWARD COSTNER
MARY JANE JOHNSTON
STEVE PARDUE-
Web Technician/Creative Director
VICKI SAMUELS - Advertising Manager
JOSEPH MACIAS - Administrative Assistant
JEANNE BIJOU - Classifieds and Singles Ads
ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES:
ARYEH BLUM
CHUCK GREEN
TERE PERRY
LEW SAMPSON
MELANIE SHERMAN
STEVE SHERMAN
MAURENE BENGAL - Payroll Section
SHARON STOPER-LIVITZ - Receptionist, Arts
HUONG TONNU - Accounts Receivable
MYRNA ABER - Controller
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 153,
Houston, Texas 77001-0153
Telephone (713) 630-0391
FAX (713) 630-0404
Located at 3403 Audley,
Houston, Texas 77098-1923
news@jhvonline.com
THE PRESS CLUB OF
HOUSTON
AWARD WINNER
2000,2001,2003
2004,2006,2007,2008
/*/j\
•aj/a-
v/
so<Av
AMERICAN
JEWISH PRESS
ASSOCIATION
AWARD WINNER
1995, 1996, 1997,
2001,2002,
2003, 2004,2005,
2007
TEXAS GULF COAST
PRESS ASSOCIATION
AWARD WINNER
1995, 1996, 1999,
2000, 2001, 2002,
2003, 2004, 2005
2006, 2007
GALLERIA
CHAMBER
OF COMMERCE
MEMBER
MEMBER
SMALL
BUSINESS
association!
MEMBER
NATIONAL
PRESS
ASSOCIATION
AWARD
WINNER
1998
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
AWARD WINNER
1994, 1995, 1996,
1999,2000,2001,
2003,2004,2006,
2007, 2008
Greater
Southwest
Houston
Chamber of
Commerce
MEMBER
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Samuels, Jeanne F. Jewish Herald-Voice (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 100, No. 22, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 4, 2008, newspaper, September 4, 2008; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth544212/m1/11/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .