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The Canadian Jewish News, Thursday, June 16, 1988-Page 11
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Let's all go next time
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J. B. SALSBERG
My dearly beloved readers. I'm delighted to resume our weekly rendezvous in this privileged corner, after a lapse of weeks during which I, in company with 25 exceptional people, visited Israel.
HoM you managed to survive that painful separation I shall never know. As for me, the isolation was positively indescribable. The next time I go to Israel, all of you must join me to make that the biggest group tour to Israel! J.B.Salsberg
I intend to share with you the nature and purpose of my tightly scheduled 2-week group tour to Israel. (I always share everything with you. don't I?) But, before 1 begin to do that, 1 wish to chastise those who spread alarmist information about the safety of visiting Israel at this time and thus cause a serious decline of tourism to Israel, at a time when both Israel and world Jewry need to
-demonstrate the oneness of our peoplehood more visibly than ever before. >
I and my 25-strong group of Torontonians who criss-crossed the Jewish state daily (except Shabbes) in our own bus herewith declare that we encountered neither stones nor bullets, nor hostilities of any kind during our entire tour!
On the basis of our experience I feel fully justified in urging all Canadian Jews to visit Israel now, when Israel's social, economic and political needs for increased tourism are self-evident.
Before leaving we had read of some 60.000 cancellations of tourist bookings. That dpesn'i, of eour.se. mean that Jews from around the world stopped coming. But, it was felt during our travel.s that we met more non-Jewish tourist groups (largely of Ghi-jstian denominational sectors) from Gemiany, Switzerland, the Scandinavian countries, etc., than we met Jewish tourist-groups fronv Europe and, most particularly, from the United States.
During the latter portion of our tour we did notice an increase in Jewish visiting groups and it was my belief that the increase was due to the determined effort of the Jewish leaderships in the U.S.A.. Canada and Europe to reverse the process;
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But, by and large, there had beer, a disturbing decline in Jewish tourism to Israel of late, and it was attributed to the grossly exaggerat-. ed fear of the "stone-throwing" publicity in the world press. Israelis were, quite understandably, pained by this phenomenon.
As for Canada, we were praised as being above the average (though hardly exemplary) in the maintenance of tourism. It was, for instance, a thrilling experience when we, the New Fraternal Jewish Association touring group, came face-to-face with the much larger (70) Community Mission of Toronto Jewish Congress - United Jewish Appeal delegation, led by Steve Ain, its executive director, and Herb Rosenfcld, its president, on the spacious-grounds of the Hebrew University (or was it the Hadassah Hospital?) in Jerusalem.
It was a joyous and unex;pected linking of kindred tribes or of members of an enlarged family, or the discovery of landslcit.
Readers of this paper will be happy to know that it was Gloria Clamen, of The CJN staff, one of the Toronto Jewish Congress mission group, who recognized my smaller group as it was wending its way to the hilltop..' .When she did so, she cried "J.B.!" more loudly than had ever been heard on that ancient plateau, of those ancient hills,'of that antient land. Glory be, Gloria, you were terrific!
Again about the matter of safety. Florida is a notorious badland but it doesn't stop Jews from going there in droves. Is New York safe? Is Detroit safe? Are certain areas of Toronto and Montreal safe? Is the present world safe? Everything being equal. Israel is at least as safe a country to visit as any other country in the world.
On my first visit to the ancient homeland (then called Palestine) in Dec. '47 and Jan: '48 a bomb exploded, during my first night there, at the corner of Mendele and Yarkon Sts. acro,ss the Katy Dan hotel (actually no more than a guest house); where the Dan Hotel now stands.
Shprintzak. the then head of Hisladrut, ve-toed-my request to travel to Jerusalem. "The road is unsafe, only those who must reach Jerusalem go. but you don't have to risk your life for a brief visit." he said. He finally agreed to a brief visit to Haifa, and it was done in an armorpd bus guarded by Hagannah rifiemen.
Now, 40 years later, I and my colleagues and friends covered Israel, with the exception of Eilat, stayed for a few days in Haifa, Tiberias, Jerusalem, and Tel Aviv, and also engaged in a very pleasant performance in Kiryat Yam, safely and soundly.
Treat yourself; visit Israel!
(About Kiryat Yam, etc. next week.)
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters are welcome if they are in Eni^lish or French, no more than 200 words, typewritten with lines double spaced, and of interest to our reading public. Readers are cautitoneci not. to make sweeping, claims against persons or institutions which they cannot verify', as libel laws are very stringent: We reserve the right to edit letters, which must bear the sender's address,, phone number and handwritten signature.
THANKS, ZUNDEL, FOR REMINDER
Thank you. Ernst Zundei, for awakening some of us from complacency and forgetfulness. .
You bring more people to Yad Vashem than I could ever hope to bring.
To refute your accusation, these pec»ple come to see some of the 50 million pieces of evidence and documents pertaining to a disgraceful inhumanity.
They observe.the "Valley of Destroyed Villages'" monument to.5.CKX) ravished Jewish villages; they witness the unfolding, of a new Holocaust Encyclopedia ericompas.sing ■ 24 volumes. ' ;
They experience an'emotionally stirring visit to the "Cave of Mirrors" tribute to a million and a half children who never had the opportunity to .make this a better world. Was.there an Einstein, Freud. Salk:or Irving Berlin among them?
Yad Viisheni has vowed that "from generation unto generation/.. we shall remember."
Thank you. Mr. Zundei, for reminding so^ many people what they shouldn't forget. Dr. Joel Dimitry National Chairman Canadian Friends for Yad Vashem Toronto
PHILOSOPHIC ON SCANDAL
■ Re your recent front-page article, headed. "Scandal hits German Jews'';:
It reported that the scandal surrounding the late president of the West German Jewish community, WernerNachriiann, grew in complexity arnid implications that he "may have enjoyed protection in high government circles while he was embezzling reparations funds intended for Jewish victims of Nazism." ' /; .
Kari EmilFranzo.S; a German-jev^ish writer at the turn of diis'century, wrote in one of his books: "Every country has the Jews it deserves." Dr. Julius Pfeiffer ■ Montreal "v
"VANDALS DESERVE TO BE SHOT "
I should like to congratiilate Elaine Kahn on ,her ability to write in a sane and lively fashioh about members of her husband's congregation who, in yuppie-style heavy humor, trashed her house which they were supposed.to,have been guarding. .
Among other atrocities, your columnist disr covered that the vandals during her absence had filled thie beds with balloons and marbles; put a whoopie cushion on her desk chair; rearr
ranged the 1,500 books in the downstairs library; and had posted a ransom note beside fresh bite marks on her'desk reading:
"Write this up in your column or you'll never see your Folk Fiddling From Sweden LP again."
If my husband's congregation had done something like that, I should be reaching for the nearest shotgun. 1 don't know how to use a gun. but I could learn.
Personally. I have an extra-efficient house-sitter, because I learned many years ago that con-^ gregants aren't always to be trusted. Miriam Pavey Kitchener, Ont.
DRUG PEDDLERS ARE MURDEKERS
The siblings of the hippie nower-children commune-dwellers' generation of the 1960s have inhefited.an evil legacy that is personified in the death of 14-year-old Beriji Hay ward. They are out of control, because society in general has long since abdicated the will to implement the long overdue; legislation that, wOuld make the selling of illegaf drugs to bur children an act of pre-; meditated murder.
The problem really grew out of the innocence of the 1950s that spawned the experiment phase of the perrnissive society that was the 1960s.
Continued on by the easy availability that presented itself in the 1970s, we havenow reached the acceptance .stage we now see in the demoralizing 1980s.
These are the rea.sonsvvhy the billion-dollar-. a-year industry.of death nourishes today. While crime is rampant, retribution is plainly absent. Walter A. Blunt Toronto
HASN'T OUTLIVED COPYRIGHTS
I am writing in reference to your recent article entitled "CBC Radio will feature life, music of Irving.Berlin." .,: \ .;
: In this article, a reference was made that Irving Berlin has outlived the copyright of many of his over 1,000 .songs.
1 would refer yoii to the Copyright Act, R.S.. C.55. Berlin's songs would fall into the category of"musical works." Section 5 of the act specifically provides that the term for which copyright shall subsist shall be the life of the author and a peri(xl of 50 years after his death.
Since Mr. Berlin has just celebrated his 100th . birthday, it is unlikely that he has outlived any of the copyrights of his musical works. Jerry Herszkopf •■ Toronto
PAY TWINS HARMED BY NAZIS?
In your issue of May 26, a letter appeared written by Ruth Marmorstein of Coral Gables, Fla., with regard to special indemnification being offered by the West German government to twins who were subjected to so-called medical experiments in Auschwitz.
I do not know whether persons who receive a monthly pension for damage to health are entitled to this special grant and have asked the director of the central office for information. As .soon as this will be received, we shall inform the Jewish public.
The telephone numbers for interested parties ■are: ■ " . ' ■■,
Montreal: .(514) 844-2821, or
Toronto: (416) 630-2920. Dr. J. Stahr Director
URO for Canada
279 Sherbrooke St. W., Suite 409
Montreal
Reader says Sylvester Stallone as Ram bo II deserves "condemnation and outrage" rather than a review describing his fdm mayhem as "entertaining."
KNOCKS KIRSHNER'S RAMBO REVIEW
1 would like to register my disappointment with Sheldon Kirshner's June 2 review of Rambo III.
Though he mentions the simplicity and superficiality of the movie. Kirshner leaves the reader with the message that, these flaws .aside, the movie is exciting and wholly entertaining.
Now, 1 generally find Kirshner's reporting to be informative and intelligent, but 1 notice that as a film reviewer, he has a tendency to go out of his way to find something positive or appealing about a film. —-
It is common knowledge that a critic who issues only praise (eveCpraise in lesser or greater degrees) is not performing the valuable service that a critic should be performing.
It is the duty of a critic to congratulate where congratulations aremerited, but also to condemn where condemnation is justified and necessary.
Surely, Rambo III, the third of a group of movies which oversimplify the world situation,
which promote hatred, and which encourage huge numbers of people, including many young people, to participate vicariously and look favorably upon the violent resolution of conflicts, is a movie that deserves condemnation and outrage. ' "Entertaining" is not the way to describe inr suiting, idiotic drivel such as Rambo III: it is Mr. Kirshner's duty as a critic not to suffer fools like Sylvester Stallone gladly.
Paul Ro.se
Toronto
Sheldon Kirshner replies: 'Humk you for yoiir thoughtful letter. I can't disagree that Rambo 111 i.s es.seiuially trash. However, 1 wouldhave'b^^ ' less than honest had I .said I didn't enjoy it. If you: redd my review carefidly, you would have noted .such phrases as:.' 'liberties which . . . are dbsolutely outrageoits, " "a ridiculous comic book.figure, "and "for all its obvious faults. " . fast but not least, I wrote: ' 7 was repelled by its preachy, simpli.stic political outlook. . ■;. ."
Let me add that I do try to find positive things in a.film, but that 1 criticize when the occasion ". calls for it. ' " : • .
ISRAEL NEEDS US
Why do most Jews continue to spend their travelling'time and dollars in places other than their homeland? It is even more disturbing to read ^ that.we are now cancelling travel because of the .situation there.
. Having just returned from the Holy Land I am once again astounded by .what the country has to offer. It is a country overflowing with the wonders of nature and steeped in thousands of years of culture and history.
We are truly blessed with the State of Lsrael. She needs our .support now more than ever and we must be counted on to give it — for who else will? So let's go now and spend our hard earned dollars where they deserve to be spent. Joe Halpert , Toronto
MANY NATIONALITIES
David Birkan's statement that mostly Jews and Soviet prisoners of war were murdered in Buchenwald (Diary of a People. April 7) might lead your readers to the errnoneous conclusion that Jews or Russians constituted the majority of that camp's inmates.
According to reliable estimates (because Jews were regi.stered under the nationality of their country of citizenship), of the 133,^000 inmates of the main camp, Jews — who were undoubtedly the largest and most persecuted group — accounted for 49,000.
Next came Christian Poles, niimbering around 23.000.
Soviet citizens (of diverse nationalities) accounted for 22,000, and Frenchmen for 19,000. Mark Paul •;.' Toronto