Thursday, Jonuory 8, 1953
JEWrSH WESTERN BULLETIN
Can Be Dangerous
By Ali G£EMON
BEFORE supporters of the Red Cross, the Community Chest and other ^^elfare- institutions become / Incensed at the provoking- thougi^t conveyed byjthe title, let ttie point but iiiat I do not speak of those organizations that are basdcally phflanthropic in structure.
I do speak, however, of the apparent iin-creasing~ nimiber of individuals whose thoughts of: Iscael are, more and more, becoming associated with a country whose only effect in the diaspora is one of acting as a sink-hole for Jewish ^unds. Their attitude towards 'the Zionist Organization i& fast beco^ming one which regards it as merely another philanthropic institution.. When^ this attitude arises within the' organization ^itself, t^e' danger becomeis even more apparent and the need for education and understanding .becomes even ■ more acute.
Tlie lack of a proper {Understanding of contemporary ideals can lead only to a superficial appreciation of the new £tate. What is worse, it submerges into oblivion what I consider an integral part of Judaism. By nature, individuals will not seek enlightenment of* their own. ac-? cord. It is of the greatest im-, portance that this education be provided on a palatable and interesting level. Those who feel that Zionism is, or should be, merely another philan-.throjpic organization are; doing themselves, Israel and tlie movement ^a, gross injustice and indeterminable harm. Let me quote just one instance to indicate how the possession of a few shallow facts minus the >understanding 'that should ac-.company them can serve to disillusion and dis- ^ hearten the staunchest *Zionist.
For some time now, I have beeii encountering remarks whispered ^ surreptitiously from ear to ear in the same tone as one would herald the birth of an illegitimate child to'the daughter of a prominent member of the coinmunity; These disparaging criticisms are taking their toll amongst those who do not and probably want not to underr stand why certain situations exist in Israel. So once and for all,^ let us i^einovethe cloak from ^ a few distastelulrfaeis-and-be%lunt about--it^ ^'^
Yes, there is graft in ^Israel. Y^, there is a.
black market in Israel. Yes^ there is discrimination' amongst the Jews lining there. Yes, we have thieves, racketeers,: capitalists, communists, socr ialists and fascists! For all I know we may even have free love>-Unfortunate? Yes. Degrading? Yes. Reprehensible? Perhaps. But understandable?
^ Most emphatically. Yes!
' Certainly for every one of these drawbacks we have a dozen attributes which obscure these blotches. But for the moment and for the sake of this discussion they are of secondary .importance. What should be our vital concern is why these things do exist. Such an imderstanding would help to overcome the uncertainty and damage caused by those who, intentionally or otherwisfe, point disparaging fingers at IsraeL We must be able to understand that only ordinary people are living there-^not a nation of biblically
^ • rigjl^tepus and holy meni We must understand the circumstances. \inderwWchIsraelv^^^^^^.^^ born—
, amidst war, siifferings and the ingathering of ^e^ iles, who by the very nature of their experience will be prone to the easy rather than the righteous
^ way of life. And,, we must further perceive that Israel is suffering those same birth pangs which other nations have and are stiU enduring even after hundreds of years of existence. Let us not attempt to set standaids for Israel which we, in generations, have not succeeded in living up to.
It is hard to be a Jew. But for those living in Israel it is^ all thel^harden .Their prime source of strength is the torch of idealism which they carry in their hearts, and even this can be all
' too easil^r.extinguished by the perspiration drop-, ping from their glistening brows. But they imder-'
'stand, as we should, what purpose their idealism serves- and _why we must take the good with the bad while striving constantly to improve our lot.
V Let those who point the finger of disparager ment not delude themselve^ nor anyone else for' that matter. If the understanding of which I speak were reached, that finger would be withdrawn^, washed and extended along with the whole hand offering its help. But, should these, people •stiU cry, ^'IwiU not work nor contribute-because . . . "then we will understand something else; that these exhortations come by way of i^^ alizatioh and little,,more, and we would know
"^that they would hot give under any circumstances." ' -
Jews In Small Towns Like it
WASHINGTON, B.C____Two-thirds of the Jewish adults living: in the small communities of the United States and Canada prefer their present home towns to moving to a big .city, according to a report released by Leon J. Obermayerj Philadelphia, national chairman of. the B*nai
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The report discloses the results of the first national survey. of the economic and social position of Jews in small .towns^^Directed 'by Robert Shosteck, director of research of the B'hai B?rith Vocational Service Bureau, the survey consisted of questionnaire responses by 2,500 male Jewish adults in 221 communities in the United States and Canada with Jewish populations under 1,000. It was supplemented by a smaller sample of personal interviews.
The survey, which .was primarily an effort to get at the feelings and attitudes of small-town Jews, revealed a surprisingly good ad-^ justment to small-town life on the part of Jews. Almost two*^ thirds of thoise responding reported that the chances of feeling comfortable as a Jew in their towtts werer "good,'* while another third reported these chances as "fair*' and only a very small proportion thought they "were "poor." Half the respondents thought that a Jew had a "good" chance of obtaining a position of prestige in the comtounity, almost a third responded **fafe" to tl^is question, and only 11 per cent said "poor." About the same pattern of responses was obtained in regard-tothtt chances of a young Jev/ish petson to achieve his economic aspirations in these small towns and the chances of having a satisfactory social life in such places.
SmaU-to wn Jews, however, were less enthusiastic about the opportunities - of satisfying their intellectual and artistic interests
Only 29 per cent checked "good" in answer to this question, while 36 per cent checked "fair^'' and 34 per cent marked "poor." Those participating in the survey thought even less of the opportunities of marrying within the faith in small communities; with only 25 per. cent reporting "good," 26 per cent, "fair," and 40 per; cent "poor" (9 per cent didn't know). The lowest rating was given to the quality of Jewish education, with only 15 per cent defsignating it as Vgood," 34 per ■ cent as "fair," and 41 pw ceht^ as "poor" (10 per cent didn't know).
The report shows that sftiaU town jews are largely self-employed, 66 per cent being busi-^ ness owners'and managers and 20 per cent professional men« mostly in independent practices. Another 8 per cent, who are salesmen and buyers, ai'e mostly yojing men ih family businesses. Only 6 per cent* are in clerical jobs, skilled trades, or in agriculture. Among those in business and industry^ 3 out of 10 were engaged in apparel lines and 1 out ci 10 in food or beverage businCw^.
Ijt is clear from this .study that econoinic opportunities are the principal factor that have drawn Jews to small towns. In 1950, they earned a median of $6,690, which means that half earned above and half earned below this figure.
Report DepDitofioii
LONDON—(JTA)—The wholesale deportation of : Jews from Szeged, second largest city in Hungary, was reported here last week by the London Daily Telegraph in a dispatch from Yugoslavia. Szeged is located just across the border from Yugoslavia.
CON€RATULATidNS TO BEN ZVI FROM SAM BRONFMAN
MONTOEAL Isa^o Ben Zvi will grace the honor of the Presidency of the State of Israel and will add io the glory of the position, Sam uel Bronfman* national president of the Canadian Jewish Congress, said in a letter of" congratulations on behalf ^"each and every Jewish citizen of Canada.
"Our community has •qbserved over the decades the sterling service you have rendered in the uplJuilding of the: land of Israel. We are a§ proud of the high moral; standards you have followed and have helped to impress upon the Jewish community of Israel, Mr. Bronfman wrote. "We recall with pleasure and with pride your visits to Canada in the interests of the Jewish people. We are proud and grater fui that Canadian Jewry arid the entire citizenry of Canada Ijave been able to make a liseful contribution to the development and strengthening of Israel* and we pray that the relations between our Jewish communities. and between the Canadian and Israeli governments will continue as fruitful and close as in the past. You may be assured of our continued and cpnstant interest and good will."
HONK KONG JEWS MOVE TO ISRAEL
JERUSALEM—(JTA) — The immigration to Israel of the 600 to 700 Jews from all psarts of the world who are now in Hong Kong will begin in a month, a Jewish Agency spokesman told newsmen lastv:rtreek; Preparations are already under way to move them from Hong Kong in groups
of 50 each month.
The spokesman reported that immigration continues from. Bulgaria, via Italy, and tiiat an average of 70 Bulgarian Jews^ arrive in Israel each month. Air transportation for immigrants from Persia will be inaugurated for the winter to replace overland travel which cannot be resumed via Turkey imtil next
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