Selective empathy
I read Mr. Hauer’s letter (“Stop house demolitions” letters, March 22) with dismay. His attempt to connect the unfortunate death of Ms. Corrie with the demolition of structures built without proper permits is dubious at best.
First, Ms. Corrie did not protect a “home,” but an empty structure that was used as a cover for smuggling tunnels on the Egyptian-Gaza border. This structure was clearly marked by the military. Ms. Corrie’s confrontation and subsequent death by a military bulldozer was her own doing, and an Israeli court affirmed it.
Second, most of the structures and houses removed within Israel were built without permit by residents (Arabs and Jews) who flaunted the law and usually built on public land; their removal was after due process by the enforcement agencies, similar to removal of illegal structures in the USA.
Recent demolitions in the West Bank were carried out by military authorities, typically after a review by the military administration, yet most leftist NGOs in Israel neglect to mention that.
Last, March 11 was the two-year yahrzeit for the massacred Fogel family of five, including their 3-month-old baby. It seems that Mr. Hauer’s empathy is very selective.
Sam Liron | Foster City
It’s hard to be happy
I found Emma Silvers’ article on the secrets of happiness a breath of fresh air (“Put on a contented face?” March 1). Her story made several interesting points on ways to maintain happiness, such as “stop constantly trying to be happy.”
I know what it’s like to struggle to maintain a good level of happiness; it’s hard to be happy sometimes when you feel like everything is crashing down on you. Silvers’ article made me think about what things really affect our lives and the joy we try so hard to achieve.
My favorite part was about how money affects happiness. “Happiness is mostly dependent on our state of mind, not on our status or the state of our bank account.”
Alina Belousova | San Francisco
Traditional vs. newfangled
As a friend of letter writers Bob White and Len Yaffe and a former congregation president, I will now submit a thoroughly Jewish response to their debate: Both are right. There is a place for traditional synagogues and new-sounding ideas.
In my youth, the “new” was the House of Love and Prayer. My wife and I believed the traditional synagogues where we were raised were uncool and doomed. Alas, the House of Love and Prayer disappeared. For such institutions to survive, they eventually take on the trappings of traditional synagogues. The main supporters grow tired of doing everything; some form of institution develops. Or the whole thing ceases to exist.
Maybe, as Bob says, it’s time for the traditional synagogue to adapt again. The best sermon I heard was the late Rabbi Alan Lew’s John Coltrane sermon. Coltrane was a jazz musician who adopted a new style of music but kept his jazz roots. Rabbi Lew said that the synagogue should follow this example.
I hope that the minyans and synagogues will work together and blend. However, as a now old man, I hope we old-timers will not be forgotten or ignored by the new youths.
Burton Meyer | San Francisco