‘Heartfelt’ San Quentin seders
Last week’s story “Praying Behind Bars” reminds me of my time in law school at Hastings College in the late 1970s. Every year a small group of us would go to San Quentin to celebrate the Passover seder with the prison congregation. The “congregation” would expand mightily for Passover as roast chicken and matzah ball soup were a whole lot better than the routine bologna sandwiches or meatloaf. Never, before or after, have I heard the closing words of the seder shouted with such heartfelt gusto as at the conclusion of those sedarim: “Next Year in Jerusalem!”
Brett A. Borah | Saratoga
Spend time with prisoners
Thank you for your article about Congregation Beth Shalom, and my work with the prisoners of San Quentin. I encourage your readers to do as you stated in your editorial, “engage in this important work.” Get in touch with the Jewish chaplains who work at the jails or prisons near you, and offer to spend time with their congregations. You will be surprised, and you will grow — as I have done.
Carole Hyman | Jewish chaplain, San Quentin State Prison
Administration not anti-Israel
There have been a number of letters recently either accusing or implying that the current administration is anti-Israel. Obviously, the correspondents attach more importance to a bad remark by some lowly official than to the facts that this is the administration that provided Israel with the funding for the Iron Dome as well as continually reauthorizing $3 billion in military aid, also continually vetoing anti-Israel actions in the United Nations. Their views are analogous to the accusations that Israel did not do enough to minimize civilian casualties in the recent Gaza War.
Jon Levinson | San Carlos
Power abuse is routine
Recent lawsuits concerning the Koret Foundation bring to mind underlying dynamics that have long permeated the organized Jewish community here. These dynamics are abuse of power by professionals and lay leaders, obfuscation of who is making the decisions, lack of transparency and true accountability and abdication of responsibility by rubber-stamping boards. Such behavior has been in existence for decades in major organizations representing philanthropy, social services, education and journalism. There is an illusion of a “community,” whereas underneath are independence, self-aggrandizement and meanness. It is business as usual.
Robert Rosiner | San Francisco
‘Vulgar description’ shameful
It’s ironic that two White House officials would anonymously call Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “chickenshit.” Their vulgar description of Israel’s democratically elected leader is shameful. Moreover, the leak that “it’s too late” for Israel’s military to stop Iran’s nuclear program, undercutting America’s leverage as negotiations with Iran approach their deadline, is tantamount to treason.
Netanyahu, incidentally, was wounded in 1972 while rescuing passengers aboard a terrorist-hijacked plane. As prime minister, he defied his base by signing an interim deal with Yasser Arafat in 1998 and freezing settlement construction from 2009-2010. During secret talks in 2012, Netanyahu reportedly offered Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas a peace deal similar to his dovish predecessor’s 2008 proposal.
By contrast, Abbas opposed or rejected Israeli peace proposals in 2000, 2001, 2008 and 2012 without offering a counterproposal. In 2010, Abbas’ government named a public square in honor of a terrorist who murdered 13 Israeli children, and Abbas told an Arab League summit: “If you [Arab states] want war, and if all of you will fight Israel, we are in favor.” Last year, he praised Nazi collaborator Haj Amin al-Husseini and two Hamas co-founders as “martyrs and heroes.” Some profile in courage!
Stephen A. Silver | San Francisco
‘Chicken—’ comment comes as no surprise
In response to your Oct. 31 editorial, “Another hit on U.S.-Israel relations,” some Jews are pretending to be surprised at Obama’s hostility toward Israel, as manifested in the false and crude comments made by multiple senior White House aides about Bibi. Ha!
First, this was no unplanned eruption of emotion. Jeffrey Goldberg and Uncle Tom Friedman have been their “go-to Jews” — anonymously — for demonizing Bibi since 2009. They wanted everybody to know just how much Obama detests Bibi. That is why the White House’s reaction to “Chickens– Gate” was so apathetic, their disavowal of the comments barely halfhearted.
Second, Obama has been anti-Israel from the start of his presidency: ordering our reinstatement in the United Nations Human Rights Council (its Jew hatred was too much for George W. Bush), the land-for-nothing plan (replace IDF with international troops and cede the West Bank to the terrorists), the unsuccessful attempt to pressure Israel into accepting the Hamas-Turkey-Qatar cease-fire plan during the last Gaza war, resistance to Iran sanctions (until Congress clearly had the votes to override his veto), eagerness to end the sanctions, etc.
To Jews who feign “disappointment,” forget it: You knew! In fact, you knew when you discovered — in 2008 — Obama’s close relationship with Rev. Jeremiah Wright and his BDS church.
Tod Zuckerman | Daly City
Football for kids
I can’t help responding to Jonathan Harris’ advice to “Worried in Orinda” (Oct. 17). As a high school football referee, I’m often asked if I would let my son play tackle football. My response is always “yes, but,” with the caveat that it’s “one and done,” meaning one concussion and he’s done. And that means one concussion in his life, not in a season.
But more to the point, in Harris’ advice, I saw no mention of what the kid wanted. Every day, I see kids out on the field who are only there because their parents push them out there to fulfill their own misplaced and displaced desires. The result is the current deplorable state of youth sports in this country. If “Worried’s” son wants to play, let him. But if not, don’t let his father force him into it.
Eric Weisberg | Seattle