December 14, 2012

Sponsored by the Benjamin and Anna E. Wiesman Family Endowment Fund AN AGENCY OF THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF OMAHA

All eyes on the Knesset

December 14, 2012 1 Tevet 5773 Vol. 93 | No. 13

This Week

New Year comes early to Star Deli Page 6

Hanukkah at Beth Israel Page 7

by BEN SALES TEL AVIV (JTA) – Two months ago, the strategy for victory was clear: To unseat Benjamin Netanyahu in elections on Jan. 22, Israel’s handful of center-left parties had to unite under one banner and choose a leader who could challenge the Israeli prime minister on issues of diplomacy and security.

Instead, the opposite has happened. Netanyahu’s opponents have become more fragmented, and the center-left has focused more on social issues than security.

The Knesset’s largest party, Kadima -- founded in 2005 by Ariel Sharon as a centrist breakaway from Likud, and later led by Tzipi Livni -- appears to be collapsing. Members have rejoined Likud, defected to Labor or are joining Livni’s new centrist party, called the Movement. Some polls are saying that Kadima may not even make it into the next Knesset.

Shelly Yachimovich, who heads Labor -- historically one of Israel’s two biggest parties but the fifth largest in the current Knesset -- has made socioeconomic issues her focus.

The emphasis on socioeconomic

Some key players in the Israeli elections coming up on Jan. 22: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Likud, left, Tzipi Livni of the new Movement party and Shelly Yachimovich of Labor.

Credit: Yossi Zamir/Miriam Alster/Flash90/JTA policy represents “a reshuffling of the system far from the dominance of security issues,” says Tamar

Forensic investigation in Medieval England A quarter of Israelis live in poverty Page 12

Inside Point of view Synagogues In memoriam

Next Week Senior Living See Front Page stories and more at: www.jewishomaha.org, click on Jewish Press

8 10 11

by MARK KIRCHHOFF The Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group will meet on Dec. 20, from 1–2 p.m. in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library with what promises to be an intriguing discussion of Mistress of the Art of Death

by Ariana Franklin. Set in medieval Cambridge, the book presents four children who have been murdered.

The Catholic townsfolk blame their Jewish neighbors. To save them from the rioting mob, the Cambridge Jews are placed under the protection of King Henry II. The King is no friend of the Jews, but he does want law and order. He also desperately needs the taxes he receives from Jewish merchants.

Hoping scientific investigation will catch the true killer, King Henry calls on his cousin, the King of Sicily, whose subjects include the best medical experts in Europe, and asks for the assistance of his finest “master of the art of death” – the earliest form of medical examiner.

The Italian doctor chosen for the task is a young prodigy from the University of Salerno, an expert in

Hermann, senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute.

But ceding the debate over securi-

ty policy to Netanyahu, who has more security experience than Continued on page 2

Friedel celebrates Hanukkah with a “Virtual” Party

the science of anatomy and the art of detection. But her name is Adelia.

The king has been sent a “mistress of the art of death” – unprecedented in a society of male domination.

Friedel students connect with students in other US cities and in Israel

The author of this historical novel, Ariana Franklin, was born in London just before World War II. She lived a privileged life, but when her mother got tired of the constant air raids during the War, they went to live with Ariana’s maternal grandparents in the seaside town of Torquay in Devonshire, leaving her father behind—permanently, as it turned out, as her parents divorced.

Ariana and her mother experienced life from the other end of the continuum. To earn money, Ariana left school at fifteen and looked for work in the field of journalism. By the age of seventeen she was back in Continued on page 2

by MARY SUE GROSSMAN Associate Executive Director, the Center for Jewish Life Through the magic of technology, the kindergarten and 1st grade students from Friedel Jewish Academy enjoyed an early Hanukkah celebration with students in Israel, Austin and Dallas during a “virtual” party on Dec. 12, utilizing the education center at the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home.

A brainstorm of Efrat Srebro, coordinator of the Partnership2 Gether Hava Nagila Gan program, 70 kindergarten students from the Yasmin and Parpar Nechmad schools in Israel plus classes in Omaha, Austin and Dallas participated. Each group shared a song or dance followed by a joint Hanukkiah lighting with everyone then singing a final song together.

Nearly 100 parents and grandparents in Israel also shared in the fun.

Friedel teachers Mor Sheinbein, Diana Zeman and Angie Gormley accompanied the students and technology support was provided

by Josh Gurock. Patty Nogg, cochairman for Omaha’s Partnership 2Gether committee, also attended and said “It was so great and such fun! Seeing the kids do this really made me smile.”

In addition to the students, 25 soldiers from Magav-IDF who are stationed in Akko joined in the event accompanied by the chief commander of Magav, who is responsible for the defense of the Israeli seashore. Also attending were staff from the Partnership2 Gether office Eran El-Bar, Eliad Eliyahu and Tali Tsbali along with Continued on page 2

2 | The Jewish Press | December 14, 2012

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All eyes on the Knesset Continued from page 1 Yachimovich, a former journalist, clearly gives the prime minister the upper hand.

Meanwhile, the right wing has consolidated, virtually assuring a third term for Netanyahu. Recent polls show the prime minister’s ruling Likud Party, which has merged lists with the nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party, winning 38 of the Knesset’s 120 seats. Labor, polling in second place, might not break 20.

Netanyahu’s poll numbers have fallen since the end of Operation Pillar of Defense in Gaza last month. Some analysts say right-wing Israelis are unhappy that the prime minister agreed to a cease-fire rather than pressing ahead with a ground operation. But with Netanyahu still controlling a daunting lead, center-left parties are scrambling to find a strategy that gives them a shot at winning the premiership.

Yachimovich’s focus on social issues, including calls for lower prices and more social welfare, represents an effort to harness the energy of the mass social protests Israel saw in the summer of 2011, when hundreds of thousands took to the streets to agitate for more help for the middle class. But Labor thus far has failed to reignite the spark that propelled the protests.

With the Israeli left in shambles -- less than 10 percent of Jewish Israelis identify with left-wing ideology, polls show - Labor has pivoted to the center, trying to rebrand itself from a left-wing party to a centrist one. “The Labor Party is located and has always been located in the center of the political map,� Yachimovich told Army Radio on Nov. 25. “Its strength is from its pragmatism, its Zionism, its very pragmatic struggle for peace and especially from Labor’s being a social democratic party.�

Yossi Klein Halevi, a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, said, “Labor finally figured out that the only way it has a chance for a comeback is if it distances itself from Oslo,� the 1993 Israeli-Palestinian peace accords. Labor under Yitzhak Rabin engineered that peace accord, which many Israelis now view as having failed. “We’re seeing a revision of the left,� Halevi told JTA. “The mainstream left is trying to return to the mainstream� of Israeli society.

But the center is already crowded with other Israeli political parties all competing for the same votes. Yesh Atid, a new party led by former journalist Yair Lapid, has generated excitement by calling for a lower cost of living and universal military service. Livni’s new party is stressing the impor-

tance of reaching an Israeli-Palestinian settlement that would result in partition and a Palestinian state -- not for the Palestinians’ benefit or out of some idealistic vision of coexistence, but as a pragmatic necessity to secure Israel’s democratic future.

Not everyone believes the fragmentation of the center is bad for the centrists’ cause. “What’s important is the size of the bloc, not the party,� says Hebrew University political science professor Gideon Rahat. “Every party will try to emphasize a different aspect of policy. It’ll be the same, as if they were united.�

In her speech announcing her return to politics, Livni said the Movement aims to take votes from Likud and “provide an answer for people who have no one to vote for.� (Livni had quit after losing an election in March for Kadima’s chairmanship to Shaul Mofaz.)

Livni’s decision is likely to deal the biggest blow to Kadima, once the flag-bearer of the political center in Israel and, from its founding in 2005 until 2009, the party of the prime minister -- first Sharon, then Ehud Olmert.

Last Thursday, former Labor leader Amir Peretz said he was joining Livni’s party. Peretz, who served as defense minister under Olmert, had been a subject of much derision for his disastrous performance during the 2006 war with Hezbollah, when at one point he was photographed observing the fighting through binoculars that had the lens cap on.

But Peretz’s reputation was revived in recent weeks as a result of the success of the Iron Dome missile defense system during the mini-war in Gaza; Peretz had been the main champion of Iron Dome and overcame military resistance to its development.

While Netanyahu watches the centrist infighting from a distance, his Likud has shifted further to the right. In last month’s party primaries, several hawkish settler advocates captured top spots, including Moshe Feiglin, leader of the Jewish Leadership faction of the party. Occupying spot No. 15 on the Likud list, Feiglin advocates for annexing the West Bank and wants to encourage Israeli Arabs to leave the Jewish state. Some moderate Netanyahu allies, by contrast, won’t get another term in the Knesset.

Hermann says it’s still too early to predict a winner based on how the polls fluctuate in Israel. “There are new issues at play, so three, four or five seats can change the picture,� she said. In polls, “a few Knesset seats are within the margin of error. You can’t build a theory on it.�

Friedel celebrates Hanukkah Continued from page 1 the head of the Akko Education Department, Orit Assayag.

When asked what they thought of the “party�, Ollie Lucoff responded it was “fun, fun, fun� and Jacob Gurock said “Tov Meod (very good).�

Sasha Denenberg did have a question about the across-theocean component, asking “but how did they get here so fast?� The only downside was the stateside students didn’t get to share the sufganiot being served in Israel.

In a message received after the event, Efrat shared the following thoughts. “To see you today was like a dream -you were great and you did something that no one has ever done before -- connecting early childhood Jewish children

from around the world! You planned a great performance, and we were happy to see you on the screen. It was a moment of good will and good people which gives the light of Hanukkah another meaning!�

Partnership2Gether is a program of the Center for Jewish Life promoting people-to-people relationships between Israel and communities throughout the world. Omaha is one of 12 cities in the U.S. partnering with the city of Akko and the Matte Asher region in northern Israel, sharing cultural, social, medical, educational and economic programs. For more information on Partnership, please call the Center for Jewish Life at 402.334.6445.

Forensic investigation Continued from page 1 London, working on a local paper. By age twenty she became the youngest reporter then in Fleet Street. She married a fellow journalist, but their separate careers didn’t mix.

She was coming as he was going. Ariana gave up her newspaper career and settled down in the country, giving birth to two daughters.

Ariana continued to write – magazine articles, biographies, ghost stories. Most of all she found a love for writing history, especially women’s history. She became a specialist on the early Middle Ages, its justice, its climate, dress, food, habits, and crime. Having become familiar with Ariana’s work, literary agent Helen Heller came into her life with an irresistible offer, “Why not write an historical thriller?� And the rest is history.

Out of her personal experiences, historical research, sense of intrigue, and creative imagination, Ariana developed the character of Adelia, the 12th century female pathologist and primary focus of Mistress of the Art of Death. As Adelia examines the victims and retraces their last steps, she must conceal her true identity to avoid accusations of witchcraft. Even as her investigations continue, the killer prepares to strike again.

The members of the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group will be doing their own investigative work as they glean themes from the book that are relevant in the 21st Century and share observations with one another. The discussion group was formed and met for the first time on Nov. 15, 1979. It is one of the most enduring groups of its kind. The goal of the group is to select books with Jewish content and/or

by Jewish authors which appeal to women and men of different ages and tastes. With the diversity of topics and literary forms - everything from poetry and mysteries to science fiction and biographies – the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group offers something for everyone. You are welcome to join. You pay for your own books, but there are no additional fees. There is always an insightful exchange of observations.

Plan on participating in the December meeting of the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group on Thursday, Dec. 20 at 1 p.m. in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library. The activities of the group are supported through the Center for Jewish Life, an Agency of the Jewish Federation of Omaha.

For more information regarding the group, contact Shirly Banner, 402.334.6462 or sbanner@jewishomaha.org.

December 14, 2012 | The Jewish Press | 3

It wouldn’t be Hanukkah without Latkes

by DAVID GOLBITZ wouldn’t be Hanukkah without latkes.

Temple Israel Staff Writer “Jewish food is like comfort food,” Mimi Temple Israel’s annual Hanukkah dinner Silverman said. “You look forward to it. It is one of the most attended events of the reminds you of your family, of your mom’s year, and this year, combined with the new recipes.”

First Friday meals, was expected to be even Temple Israel member Ellen Platt also volbigger.

With nearly 300 reservations, Temple Israel knew it was going to have a lot of mouths to feed, and Program Director Wendy Goldberg put out a call for volunteers to help prepare the latkes, applesauce and brownies for the expected crowd.

“It’s always fun to be in the Temple kitchen,” Jennifer Goodman, left, and Susan Rothholz both enjoy volunteering in Goldberg said. the Temple Israel kitchen.

“And having volunteers helped build excite- unteered her time to help prepare the applement for the holiday.” sauce for the Hanukkah dinner, which she Susan Rothholz, who calls herself a “pro- and her family also attended. fessional volunteer,” enjoys donating her “We enjoy the Hanukkah dinner with the time to Temple Israel events. larger group,” Platt said.

“It’s fun to volunteer with other people,” In addition to preparing for the First Rothholz said.

Friday Hanukkah dinner, Temple Israel Mimi Silverman, who also helped out in members were also busy making latkes for the kitchen, couldn’t agree more. the latke cook-off on Sunday, Dec. 9.

“I just love cooking, first off,” Silverman “It’s fun to try different recipes,” Religious said. “And I like being in the kitchen at School Principal Ariella Lowensohn said.

Temple. I’m very comfortable there. And no “We had an ‘original recipe’ latke as well as a matter who’s there, it’s fun.” few experimental ones. You never know For most people, Jewish holidays aren’t what might work as a latke.” complete without the requisite foods that The Rabinovitz household usually has a accompany each one. Purim wouldn’t be big Hanukkah celebration at home, but with Purim without Hamentaschen. Hanukkah Paul and Amy’s son Adam having his bar

mitzvah so close to Hanukkah on Dec. 14, they didn’t want to try juggling both, which is why Paul decided to enter the latke competition at Temple Israel.

“It wouldn’t be Hanukkah if I didn’t make latkes,” Rabinovitz said. “Hanukkah is latkes.

They are an integral component to the Hanukkah celebration. It wouldn’t be

Hanukkah if I didn’t make latkes.”

Rabinovitz felt very confident about his chances going into the latke cook-off. He puts his own spin on a public latke recipe that he’s been told is very good.

“I’m going to put my best foot forward,” he said.

Campaign welcomes a new donor

by BOB GOLDBERG in Omaha and the BBYO Director of Strategic Initiatives, region changed my life, and Jewish Federation of Omaha many of the friendships built during that time are still with As lay and professional me today. leaders in our community Also, I was able to visit Israel work towards achieving the the summer before my Senior 2013 Annual Campaign goal year as part of the 1996 Artza of 200 new gifts, we are trip. Without the financial happy to introduce new support of Federation, my donors to readers of the trip would have not been posJewish Press. It is our hope that their inspiration and sible. As an adult I see and Adam Kutler motivation to support the appreciate that Federation is Annual Campaign serves a similar pur- involved in helping people in need in our pose for others. community and around the world.

We want to hear from all our new What’s your hope for the Omaha Jewish donors. If you would like to be included in community moving forward? this Jewish Press series, please call me at I hope that more people now and for 402.334.6431. We want to welcome you generations to come choose to live and into the Federation family! Today, we hear raise their families here to ensure our comfrom new Ben Gurion Society division munity stays strong for years to come. The member, Adam Kutler.

Omaha Jewish community has always felt Why elect to become a member of the like one big family and I hope that will Ben Gurion Society now? continue in the future.

As I have gotten older I have started to What’s your takeaway? realize the important role the Federation All the great community leaders and has had throughout my life. For instance, I staff that oversee Federation departments became more active in BBYO towards the make donating easy because you know that middle of my time in High School. The your contribution is being utilized effiexperience and friends I made from BBYO ciently to do good for everyone.

Coming in January

The

Guide

Publishing Date | 01.04.13 Space Reservation | 12.24.12 Camera Ready Deadline | 12.26.12 Jessie Wees | 402.334.6559 | jwees@jewishomaha.org

4 | The Jewish Press | December 14, 2012

Beth El’s Rabbi Abraham takes adult students ‘Back 2 Basics’

by JILL BELMONT and whys of the High Holy Holy Days and Shabbat; upcomBeth El Publicity Coordinator ing sessions will examine topics such as keeping kosher, Answering his congregants’ call for a ‘Hebrew school Passover, laws of mourning and medical ethics.

It’s all about making connections, Rabbi Abraham said -refresher course,’ Beth El’s Rabbi Steven Abraham is taking adult students back to the basics of Judaism during ‘Back 2 strengthening personal connections with Judaism.

“Too often the reaBasics,’ his recentson people decide ly–established not to get involved monthly class, held in something new is at the synagogue. because of a lack of The class is geared to knowledge,” he said. a broad audience: those who would like “People are afraid of a refresher course what they don’t covering things they know. My hope is to learned in Hebrew tear down the barrischool, or those who ers to entry and are new to Judaism. allow more people to feel at home with The rabbi’s goal is our rituals and tradi“to look at the histotions.” ry of the topic The next class is through a variety of for rabbinic texts, look at Rabbi Steven Abraham leads a discussion about Shabbat during a recent Back scheduled how the holiday or 2 Basics class at Beth El; among his students are Allison Gordman, left, Jay Thursday, Jan. 10, from 7 p.m. to 8 practice has evolved Gordman and Sharon Houchin. and lastly, how can we bring these aspects of Judaism into p.m.; the topic will be “The Laws of Mourning.” Adults of all our own lives,” he said. “I’d like to be able to give a glimpse ages in the Jewish community are welcome, at no charge; into the world of these important Jewish topics in the hopes snacks and adult refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Rabbi Abraham at 402.492.8550, or at of being able to continue the discussion in other venues.”

The course’s first two sessions answered the hows, whats, rabbiabraham@bethel-omaha.org.

In the news The College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Nebraska at Omaha has announced the 2012 Excellence in Research Award will be presented to Dr. Roni ReiterPalmon, a professor of Industrial and Organizational psychology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. This award recognizes scholarly and research activity. The award reception is planned to take place in April during Honors Week.

Smith Gardner Slusky Law announces that U.S News Media Group and Best Lawyers have released the 2013 Best Law Firms rankings and Smith Gardner Slusky Law has once again been recognized for its expertise in real estate law. The mission of Best Law Firms is to help guide clients and lawyers when looking for advice in specialty areas of the law. In addition, Jerry Slusky has been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers In America 2013. Best Lawyers is based solely on an exhaustive, peer-review survey in which more than 36,000 leading attorneys cast almost 4.4 million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their

Escape the cold

Snowbirds

Please let the Jewish Press know in advance when you are leaving and when you are returning. Sometimes several papers are sent to your “old” address before we are notified by the Post Office. Every time they return a paper to us, you miss the Jewish Press and we are charged! Please call us at 402.334.6448 or email us at jpress@jewishomaha.org.

practice areas. Lawyers are not allowed to pay a fee to be listed in Best Lawyers, which has been published since 1983.

Inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered an exceptional honor. Slusky is one of only six Nebraskan real estate attorneys that have been inducted as Fellows into the American College of Real Estate Lawyers.

Council Bluffs Public Library is hosting an exhibit Food and Faith: Sixty Years of Iowa Jewish Cookbooks. The exhibit, based on the collection of Oliver and Karen Pollak, features about twenty cookbook and recipe collections from Council Bluffs, Des Moines, Iowa City, Davenport, Ames, and Marshalltown from 1950 to 2008. The books were produced by temple and synagogue sisterhoods and Hadassah chapters. The exhibit opened on the second floor on Dec. 3, and runs through Jan. 15, 2013, and will then travel to additional locations. For further information contact Oliver B. Pollak at obpomni@aol.com.

Engagement PUDNOS/LEMAISTRE Deanne and John LeMaistre of Round Rock, TX, announce the engagement of their son, Matthew LeMaistre to Ashley Pudnos, daughter of Adam and Cathy Pudnos of Austin, TX. The bride-to-be graduated with a B.S. in Psychology from Texas A&M University and graduated with honors with an M.P.H. in Social and Behavioral Health with an emphasis in Community Public Health Management from Texas A&M Health Science Center, School of Rural Public Health. She is a Program Coordinator with the City of Austin, Health Human Services Department working in chronic disease.

She is the granddaughter of Shirley and Stanley Pudnos of Scottsdale, AZ, and the late Jacqueline and James Earhart from Blue Lake, CA. Her fiancé attends Texas A&M University and is working towards his degree in Engineering Technology. He is currently a Sgt. and inactive reservist in the United States Marine Corp. He has served two tours of duty overseas (one in Iraq and one in Afghanistan). Currently he is active in the Texas A&M Hillel and went to Peru to help create a minyan so the Rabbi could perform 13 conversions and a wedding.

He is the grandson of the late Phyllis and David Hoffman, and the late Marion and John LeMaistre from Claymont, DE. A wedding is planned for April 28, 2013 in Austin, TX.

JNF to distribute Christmas trees

by JTA NEWS STAFF JERUSALEM (JTA) -- The Jewish National Fund will distribute free Christmas trees to local churches, monasteries, convents, embassies and foreign journalists. Private individuals can also buy trees for a token fee, the organization said this week. Distribution will occur in mid-December.

Some of the Arizona cypress trees are grown in a grove adjacent to the Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund offices in Givat Yishayahu in central Israel. They grow to a height of about 6 1/2 feet in three years, when they are cut for use as Christmas trees, according to JNF. In northern Israel, KKL-JNF foresters grow plots of Arizona cedar trees in several forests. As Christmas approaches, the foresters thin out the crowded woodlands and sell the trees to the public for a token sum. This also prevents illegal felling of the trees, according to the organization.

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December 14, 2012 | The Jewish Press | 5

Christianity as idol worship(?)

In memory of Ralph Del Colle

Journal entry from Israel TEDDY WEINBERGER Ask a modern Orthodox rabbi in America if Christianity is idol worship and the first thing you will hear in response is some hemming and hawing. Ask a national religious rabbi in Israel the same question and more likely than not you will be answered with a quick, simple “yes.”

The hesitancy of the American Orthodox rabbi is due to the fact that he must live among Christians and does not wish to appear insensitive. When the question has practical relevance (e.g., concerning the permissibility of visiting a church), the answer given will be similar to the Israeli’s: The normative position of Orthodox Judaism is that Christianity is not monotheistic but must be categorized as “idol worship.” For most Orthodox Jewish scholars a belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God means that Christians do not worship the one God but several-and therefore false-gods.

I learned to think of Christianity as monotheistic during my first year of teaching Judaism at Emory University. A few weeks into the course one of my students approached me after class. She asked me why I never spoke of “God” but only referred either to “the Jewish God” or to “the Christian God.” She said that if there is one God then there is one God, and that she as a believing Christian has faith in God and not in something called “the Christian God.” Given my own Orthodox upbringing, it took me a while to digest my student’s remarks, but I soon realized that what she had said was correct and even stunningly obvious: all the religions that worship the one God worship the same one God. But, my Orthodox friends will say, what about the Holy Trinity?

How can three be one? My answer: Let Christians tackle such mysteries as these and others (the word made flesh, the virgin birth, etc.) and show how they are not incompatible with a belief in the one God. We Jews have our own mishega’as to deal with. There’s angel worship, rebbe worship and devil worship in Judaism. We have our own internal explanations for how these all can co-exist with a belief in the one God, and guess what? Christians have their own internal explanations for their own mysteries.

In the name of my many wonderful religious Christian friends, I am hurt by the cavalier negative approach to Christianity by most Jewish Israelis (including the secular, though they have nationalistic rather than theological issues with Christianity.) Ralph Del Colle was one such friend.

Ralph died of liver cancer toward the end of July at the age of 57. We knew each other for over 20 years, and I miss him dearly. Ralph was a professor of Catholic theology at Marquette University. He knew more about Judaism than many Jews. Ralph was passionately interested and invested in the State of Israel. He was an extremely pious Catholic, attending daily mass and praying privately several times throughout each day. In my last extended e-mail correspondence with Ralph, held at the end of this past March, I bemoaned the fact that during the occasion of a huge outdoor mass in Silao, Mexico, the Pope had blessed a (famously massive) statue of Christ. I told Ralph: “when the Pope blesses a statue, that doesn’t make my job easy.” Ralph was not at all sympathetic to my plight. In a learned e-mailed response, Ralph said that it was important to distinguish between worship and veneration. He told me that in the year 787 the Seventh Ecumenical Council dealt decisively with this issue, ruling (in Ralph’s words) that “veneration may be extended to images of Christ, Mary and the saints (especially icons).” Because (in the Council’s words): “the honor accorded to the image passes over to its prototype, and whoever adores the image adores in it the reality of what is there represented.” Ralph reminded me that “many Protestants have also exercised the same critique against Catholic and Orthodox Christians.” Yes, Christians accused other Christians of idol worship.

My last substantive conversation with Ralph took place in the middle of July. His doctors had decided that his liver cancer could not be treated. Ralph told me that he was not afraid to die, although he felt that he had more to accomplish here in this life, and he was concerned about leaving his family. He told me that he believed in miracles and that I should continue to pray for him. For his part, he had written me earlier that day: “I continue to pray and commend myself to God.” Ralph went to his God a short while later.

His God. My God. God. Teddy Weinberger made aliyah in 1997 with his wife, former Omahan Sarah Ross, and their five children. Their oldest three, Nathan, Rebecca and Ruthie, are veterans of the Israel Defense Forces; Weinberger can be reached at weinross@net vision.net.il.

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The Roaring 20’s Matzah Ball

by BOB GOLDBERG Director of Strategic Initiatives, Jewish Federation of Omaha Circa 1925... Level with me... if you’re Jewish and in your 20s or 30s, the evening of Dec. 24 can be a bit bland once the Chinese food settles. But don’t worry... it will all be copasetic. Thanks to Young Jewish Omaha (YJO), Beth El, Beth Israel and Temple Israel, the 20s and 30s will be all dolled-up to celebrate Dec. 24 and it will be the cat’s meow.

It’s gonna be a swanky speakeasy party that won’t cost you a single clam to get in and the first drink is on YJO. Now, the joint ain’t ritzy, but it’s on the level and it’s the real McCoy. So, all you flappers get dolled up and you fellas do your best to

Births Melissa and David Estaver of Des Moines, IA, announce the Nov. 28 birth of their daughter, Emma Rivka.

Grandparents are Hanna and Larry DeBruin, and Sharon and Phil Estaver of Buffalo Grove, IL. Great-grandparents are Rose Mayer of Buffalo Grove, IL, and Belle and Gerald DeBruin of Buffalo, NY. Liat and Gary Shyken announce the Oct. 18 birth of their son, Yehuda Simcha. He is named for his great-uncle and his great-grandfather.

He has three sisters, Aviva Chana, seven, Batsheva Tova, six and Aliza Miriam, two, and two brothers, Shmuel Aaron, eight and Eliezer Binyamin, four.

Grandparents are Susie and Paul Shyken, and Debbie and Jeff Kalwerisky of Atlanta, GA. Great-grandparents are Ilene Pachman and Makie Waks of Tampa, FL.

look decent for your gals. That means dress appropriately for the occasion so we can make some good memories.

Bring your friends, as long as they’re on the up and up. You do not have to be on your best behavior but if any goofs or tough guys start trouble, you will be told to scram.

RSVP at the YJO Facebook event page (http://www.facebook.com/ YoungJewishOmaha) and let us know if you have any questions.

You can get me at bgoldberg@jew ishomaha.org or at 402.334.6431.

The place to be on Dec. 24 is the Phoenix Food and Spirits at 12015 Blondo Street starting at 8:30pm. Kosher stuff provided by Star Catering. I will abso-lute-ly see you there.

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Organizations B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS The always popular Professor Terry Clark, the director of Creighton University’s programs in International Relations, will discuss his area of specialty, Russia, and its movement from democracy to dictatorship (again!) on Wednesday, Dec. 19, noon, at the Blumkin Home. An optional buffet lunch costs $11; beverage service only is $3. For more information or to be placed on the email list call 402.334.6443 or bnaibrith@jewishomaha.org.

LOMIR REDN YIDDISH The Yiddish language is a wonderful source of rich expressions, especially terms of endearment (and of course, complaints and insults!).

Come join us for fun and laughter. We meet in the boardroom of the Blumkin Home, every Thursday from 1-3 p.m.

For information, please call Anne Skolkin at 402.343.1638.

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6 | The Jewish Press | December 14, 2012

The New Year comes early to Star Deli

H IR O WEST

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3655 N 129th St.

1308 Jackson St.

402.933.0091

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M-Th 11:30a-2p | 5p-10p F-Sa 11:30a-2p | 5p-12a Su 12p-9p

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S U S H I | J A PA N E S E | C H I N E S E

by OZZIE NOGG If chicken wings are one of your favorite things, you’ll want to belly up to the Star Deli on Friday, Dec. 21, and chow down on the scrumptious New Year Special Entree -- Spicy BBQ and Honey Mustard Wings. “These chicken wings are to crow about,” said Michael Schop, Assistant Administrator of the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home. The ever popular Star Deli sandwiches, soups, salads and sides will also be available, along with a special Times Square Cake Ball Dessert. “AKA Cake on a Stick,” explained Chef Mike Aparo, RBJH Director of Food Services.

Patrons of the Star Deli New Year Star Lunch will find themselves in a celebratory environment, with a video of Dick Clark playing in the

background and a countdown to midnight every fifteen minutes. “We’ll also pass out party hats and noisemakers,” Schop said. “The Deli will be closed on Friday, Dec. 28, so we’re ringing in the New Year early. Come join the gang for food and fun on Dec. 21.”

The Star Deli on Main Street is open for business every Friday. Beginning Jan. 1, 2013 the Deli will have new hours -- 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. instead of 1:30 p.m. The Deli is happy to host special occasions and will reserve private dining spaces in the RBJH for large groups. For more information on how Star Deli Catering can add spice to your meetings, parties and life cycle events, please contact Mike Aparo, 402.334.6522 or Regan Tinglehoff at 402.334.6523.

Temple Israel’s progress

by DAVID GOLBITZ Temple Israel Staff Writer As winter arrives, construction continues at 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive, the future home of Temple Israel. In only a few short months, the structure has gone from nothing more than an open-air steel frame to an almost-fully enclosed building with limestone walls and glass windows.

Construction remains on schedule to be completed in time for the High Holidays next year.

The limestone for the outer walls continues to be fabricated in Israel and is expected to be finished by the end of December, according to Rob Zimmerman of Project

Advocates. The stone will then travel to America via ship and arrive in Omaha via train.

Windows have been installed on the main level where the social hall will be, and the interior wall framing for the lower level is nearly complete, Zimmerman said.

The drywall will be installed early next year.

Concrete slabs are finished for the entire building except for the sanctuary, which will be completed in the coming months.

Also scheduled to be completed over the next few months are fireproofing and wall framing on the main level. Scaffolding for construction of the sanctuary ceiling will be erected soon, Zimmerman said.

Psychic medium Rebecca Rosen on It’s the Beat! we have made!” If you didn’t hear Marcia Kapustin, videographer who tours with Sir Paul McCartney and Elton John, or learn how Angela Lee invented the Sholdit, go to the It’s the Beat! website. Other people recently on the show are: Andee Hoig, -- publisher of Metro Magazine; Coleen Christian Burke, author of Christmas With the First Ladies; singers Becky Noble and Keith Allerton; Cara Riggs, South High principal and author of an inspiring new book Hope in the Urban Schools – Love Stories; actor Michael Beasley, recently in The Flight with Denzel Washington; and Amy Friedman, author of a new book Millard Times Remembered. Film Streams’ Ruth Sokolof Theater is the sponsor of It’s the Beat!

We are now scheduling interviews for 2013! Want to be a guest? Know someone locally or nationally in arts and entertainment you’d like to hear? Call Norma at 402.393.3893.

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by NORMA JOHNSON “I’ve always wanted to have Rebecca Rosen on our radio show,” Karen Sokolof Javitch, co-host of It’s the Beat! commented. “She is a very special human being with the unique gift of talking to those who have passed on.” Karen has had 3 personal readings with Rebecca in which she is sure that her late Mom, Ruth Sokolof, came through to speak with her. Karen and her co-host, Jody Vinci, speak with Rebecca this Saturday, Dec. 15 on 1290 KOIL radio at noon. If you missed the first half of their interview on Dec. 8, you can catch up by listening on their website at www.Itsthebeat.net.

“Every week is an adventure for us. We have a lot of fun and don’t know what to expect,” says Jody. “For instance, we never thought we’d be speaking with Charles Dickens’ great, great grandson! We’ve learned a lot and value the new relationships

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by BRAD A. WATKINS Director of Communications Fontenelle Forest is now taking reservations for Winter Day Camps.

Don’t let the cold weather keep your explorer inside over winter break. Fontenelle Forest will once again be offering Winter Day Camps over winter break on Jan. 2, 3 and 4. Camps will be held at Camp Brewster each day from 8:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Led by Fontenelle Forest’s trained camp staff, each day will

be a different adventure. Campers will hike, track animals, study snowflakes, create art, read stories, play games, and much more! Campers will be split up into groups based on current grade level.

The cost is $50 for Fontenelle Forest members and $60 for nonmembers per day. A snack is included. Campers must bring their own lunch. Registration is required and space is very limited.

For more information and to register, please visit fontenelleforest.org/wintercamps.

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December 14, 2012 | The Jewish Press | 7

Beth El congregants see red during ‘Huskers & Havdalah’

by JILL BELMONT Beth El Publicity Coordinator Beth El congregants who trekked to the synagogue on the evening of Dec. 1 were seeing red (and that was before the game) as they enjoyed a spirited ‘Huskers & Havdalah’ event, which celebrated both the end of

Hanukkah at Beth Israel

After the service, those in attendance headed to the social hall for a pre-game chili tailgate dinner, and then stayed to watch the Husker game.

The event was the result of a casual conversation and a ‘light bulb moment’ several days prior to the game, Hazzan Krausman

Above: Teddy Dunning and dad Eric created refrigerator magnets for the holiday.

Right: Emily Newman assisted Linda Rosenfeld at the children’s Hanukkah activity at Beth Israel - the activity was complete with dreidels, gelt, menorah making and a Muppet movie about Hanukkah on planet Matzah Ball.

F-16 engines appear stolen from IDF base Congregants surround service leader Hazzan Michael Krausman during Beth El’s recent Huskers & Havdalah event.

Shabbat and an indoor tailgate party before the Big 10 Championship football game.

The chapel was awash in red Huskers sweatshirts, kippahs and even a yellow Huskers corncob hat, as attendees gathered around Hazzan Michael Krausman to take part in the Havdalah service.

“Singing with over 60 people of all ages, encircling the Havdalah candle, and joining together in heartfelt prayer as we bade farewell to Shabbat was a truly moving experience,” said the hazzan.

said, noting that, “It was wonderful to work with a team of professionals and lay volunteers who selflessly helped to put together a fantastic event in a very limited amount of time.

“We had delicious food, lots of snacks and beverages and most importantly, a palpable feeling of friendship, camaraderie and community in the room,” he said, joking that, “Over 80 people showed up for the tailgate dinner; unfortunately, the Huskers’ defense did not show up for the game.”

The Issue Coming in January

Publishing Date | 01.25.13 Space Reservation | 01.14.13 Camera Ready Deadline | 01.16.13

Jessie Wees | 402.334.6559 | jwees@jewishomaha.org

by JTA NEWS STAFF (JTA) -- Several engines of F-16 fighter jets appear to have been stolen from an Israeli Air Force base, the Israel Defense Forces said.

The IDF spokesperson unit told Army Radio on Friday that the Military Police’s serious crimes unit launched an investigation into the possibility that the engines had been stolen.

The Hebrew-language news site Walla reported on Thursday that the engines -which weigh over 1.5 tons and are more than 15 feet long -- were stolen in recent days from an unspecified military base.

Arutz Sheva, a radio station, reported that “senior sources” in the Israel Air Force said

the theft appeared to be an inside job as the base’s perimeter fence had not been breeched.

This leads investigators to believe that the thieves went in and out through the gates using large vehicles. The parts were slated to be repaired.

Arutz Sheva reports that most likely the engines were stolen by metal thieves.

In July, Bedouin metal thieves infiltrated the IDF base at Tze’elim in the Negev and stole crates of ammunition, which the IDF said were empty. The Bedouins entered the base in SUVs. An army source called the incident “grave” and said it was the first of its kind, the Times of Israel reported.

8 | The Jewish Press | December 14, 2012

Point of view

American Jewish Press Association Award Winner

Nebraska Press National Newspaper Association Association Award winner 2008

Let’s settle this

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Editor of the Jewish Press Israel Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu’s announcement of the planned West Bank settlements came just one day after the United Nations gave Palestinians observer status.

Coming off the explosive situation in Gaza, Bibi’s timing was perhaps not the best. Of course, considering the response in other parts of the world, there really isn’t any timing that could be called good.

We can talk deep into the night about whether those settlements should be built, why it was announced now, and what the alternative would be. We can agree or disagree with the Israeli government, listen to what Israeli citizens are saying, make up our mind today and change it tomorrow. That these settlements are contested is not news; that many around the world are upset about it isn’t either. And upset they are: condemnation came swiftly and unequivocally from all sides.

“I was more saddened than angered when I learned that the North American Board of Trustees of the Union for Reform Judaism had condemned Israel’s plans for construction in Jerusalem and the E1 area,” Isi Leibler wrote in the Jerusalem Post, “because it highlights Israel’s failure to adequately explain our position even to American Jews. Were Jews at grassroots level better informed of the facts, no Jewish leadership group would have dared to adopt such an approach.”

Leibler continued: “The E1 area comprises 12 square kilometers and is adjacent to Ma’ale Adumim, a city inhabited by 40,000 Jewish residents located just four miles from Jerusalem. That this city will remain within the boundaries of Israel was reaffirmed by every political leader, including Yitzhak Rabin (who at the outset of the Oslo accords even provided the mayor of Ma’ale Adumim with annexation doc-

uments for E1), Shimon Peres, Ehud Barak, Yossi Beilin (the architect of the Oslo accords), Ehud Olmert and Tzipi Livni.

In the course of the Camp David Accords, president Clinton also endorsed the area as being within the future boundaries of Israel.”

It is true that Israel has a PR problem, but it goes much deeper than settlements or denial of rocket attacks. Let’s face it: even in 1948, with the smoke of Auschwitz still thick in the air, the world barely managed to vote yes to the establishment of the Jewish State. What makes us think that would change?

We have to pose the question: why are so many regimes (and their citizens) so eager to criticize Israel over this particular announcement? It positively borders on glee. There is a knee-jerkiness to it that I find somewhat irritating, because it stems from jumping to conclusions that are always foregone.

I’ve said it before: Israel is not perfect. No country is. At the same time I find myself wishing that Netanyahu had been more diplomatic. Just because you have the right to do something (and I do believe Israel has that right) doesn’t always mean it is a good idea.

Perception is everything.

What happens next depends on many different factors. Israel faces an election, and the short-term impact of the E1 announcement will certainly be felt. The tension between what Israelis want and what the rest of the world thinks, I am guessing, will be even more evident the morning after. At the end of the day, it is still lasting peace Israel needs, and that will come with concessions. Maybe those settle-

ments will be on the table, maybe they won’t. One thing is certain: until the world is willing to see the truth in the Middle Eastern conflict, things will not improve.

Concessions need to come from both sides.

I have a suggestion for all media who watch Israel from a safe distance: instead of falling all over ourselves because of E1, how about we shine a light on those relentless rockets that keep ending up in Hamas’ and others’ hands? How about we pay attention to the tunnels, and ask Egypt if it is really serious about halting the smuggling of weapons? What if we took a really close look at how Hamas treats its own people? How about, for once, we don’t operate from the assumption that Israel is always the bad guy? Now that would be newsworthy.

Building of Muslim-Jewish ties brings hope for Mideast

Focus on issues MARC SCHNEIER and SHAMSI ALI NEW YORK (JTA) -- The recent conflict in Gaza and Israel casts a vivid spotlight on the need to strengthen relations between Jews and Muslims in countries around the world. It is crucial if we are to avoid importing the violence that has rocked the Holy Land to our communities.

The good news is that there is significant building of grass roots Muslim-Jewish ties in North America, Europe and other regions -- an ongoing process that is yielding positive results.

In the United States, mainstream Jewish organizations spoke up against the demagogic whipping-up of anti-Muslim hysteria, like the cries in 2010 against the so-called Ground Zero mosque in New York City. American Jewish groups also spoke up against the passage this year by several state Legislatures of patently unconstitutional bills to “ban” Shariah law.

At the same time, prominent American Muslim leaders have spoken out publicly against Holocaust denial by representatives of Iran, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority. Before Gilad Shalit was released from captivity, American Muslim leaders also signed an open letter calling for his release.

Across the ocean, top European Muslim and Jewish leaders held a groundbreaking conference in Paris two months ago at which they vowed to work together to reduce conflicts between Jews and Muslims across the continent. They also pledged to join forces to oppose efforts in many countries to limit ritual practices that both faiths hold dear, such as circumcision and ritual slaughter.

Why has this blossoming of Muslim-Jewish relations in the Diaspora been taking place even as the IsraeliPalestinian peace process has reached its nadir?

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We believe the answer lies partly in the recent profusion of face-to-face Muslim-Jewish encounters. When Jews and Muslims meet flesh-and-blood members of the other community for the first time, it transforms the previous dynamic of fear and mistrust into something far more uplifting. A paradigm shift takes place during those encounters, turning the collective Other into a person with a name and values that upon closer examination turn out to be very similar to one’s own.

There is also a more concrete element in the equation.

Leaders of both communities in North America and Europe have come to appreciate that like it or not, they are fated to live side by side in large numbers. They have figured out that they must strengthen Jewish-Muslim ties on both the leadership and grass roots levels if they are to secure a decent future for both communities.

Moderate Muslim leaders in many countries understand that the Jewish community can be among their strongest allies in fighting against the spread of anti-Muslim sentiment.

For their part, Jewish leaders understand the urgent need to build solid working relations with moderate Muslim leaders, and to help those leaders credibly make the case to Muslim youth that they have a path to success if they study hard, play by the rules and reject the call of Islamist extremism.

For all these reasons, we are seeing more and more Muslims and Jews -- especially members of the younger generation who are connecting via social media when they are unable to meet face to face -- who simply refuse to accept the conventional wisdom that Jews and Muslims are doomed to line up on opposite sides of a cataclysmic, century-long “clash of civilizations.” Instead, they are choosing to connect with each other on a human level and hold joint events.

We saw that in the recent fifth annual Weekend of Twinning -- a global event facilitated every November by the

Foundation for Ethnic Understanding during which members of mosques, synagogues, and Muslim and Jewish organizations in cities around the world hold joint events dedicated to building ties between our two faith communities.

During the past several weeks, despite the drumbeat in the media about the exchange of missile fire in the Middle East, thousands of Muslims and Jews in more than 20 countries chose to go forward with more than 100 planned “twinning” events. They engaged in comparative Torah and Koran study, highlighting commonalities in the two faith traditions; visited soup kitchens together to feed the hungry and homeless; and held discussions on how to fight together against Islamophobia and anti-Semitism.

There is a growing global movement of Muslims and Jews committed to communication, reconciliation and cooperation. They have come out in force in recent days to say that as saddened as all of us were by the recent events in Israel and Gaza, we emphatically are unwilling to return meekly to our respective bunkers and abandon our efforts to build Muslim-Jewish ties.

We believe that in time our global efforts for MuslimJewish understanding and trust will also contribute to the realization of peace between Jews and Muslims in the Holy Land. Our efforts will show our brothers and sisters there that Jewish-Muslim amity is eminently realizable and that we are not fated to fight each other forever.

There is every reason for hope. All it takes is for Jews and Muslims anywhere and everywhere to step forward and extend a hand to each other across the barricades.

Rabbi Marc Schneier is president of The Foundation for Ethnic Understanding. Imam Shamsi Ali is spiritual leader of the Jamaica Muslim Center in New York. They are coauthoring Sons of Abraham, to be published by Beacon Press next fall.

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December 14, 2012 | The Jewish Press | 9

Adelson spent what?

by DANIEL TREIMAN The Huffington Post reports: “Casino magnate Sheldon Adelson vowed to spend as much as $100 million to defeat President Barack Obama and help the GOP take control of Congress. According to two GOP fundraisers with close ties to the Las Vegas billionaire, he made good on that promise -- and then some.

Adelson ultimately upped the ante, spending closer to a previously unreported $150 million, the fundraisers said.”

Here are the details: “The two GOP fundraisers, both with strong ties to Adelson, said that the casino mogul dished out close to $150 million, including between $30 million and $40 million to the Karl Rove-founded Crossroads GPS and at least $15 million to grassroots efforts with financial links to Charles and David Koch. Among other major beneficiaries of Adelson’s largess were the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which received almost $5 million from Adelson, and the Republican Jewish Coalition, which got the bulk of its $6.5 million budget from him, the fundraisers said.”

All of these are non-profit groups, which -- unlike the super PACs that raked in $54 million in funds from Adelson and his wife -- are not currently required to disclose their donors. Adelson’s public spending spree, larger than any other donor's in the last election, was made possible by two high court rulings in early 2010 that allowed corporations, unions and individuals to write unlimited checks to outside groups for political ads and other activities backing candidates.

Adelson’s spending may not have yielded many victories, but the casino tycoon still has the ears of Republicans.

Sources tell The Huffington Post that he’s heading to Washington, where he will have meetings on Capitol Hill, including with at least one House Republican leader. The Huffington Post reports that “he is expected to discuss key issues, including possible changes to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the anti-bribery law that undergirds one federal probe into his casino network, according to a Republican attorney with knowledge of his plans.”

Meanwhile, Politico reported that some big-name Republicans who are considered presidential possibilities recently met with Adelson. Govs. Bobby Jindal, John Kasich and Bob McDonnell each visited Adelson’s Las Vegas gambling palace, The Venetian.

Commentary’s Jonathan Tobin argues that while it’s good for candidates to have a deep-pocketed donor like Adelson in their corner, the 2012 election showed that that’s not all it takes to get elected president: “While all of the possible candidates on both sides of the aisle would do well to find themselves a friend like Adelson, one such person or even a few won’t elect a person who can’t attract the support of the voters. If you don’t believe me, just ask president-elect Gingrich or president-elect Santorum.”

Where have all the student activists gone?

Behind the headlines CHERYL HALPERN NEW YORK (JTA) -- Twenty-five years ago, I joined hundreds of thousands of my fellow Americans -- Jews and others -- on the National Mall to draw attention to the plight of Soviet Jews. We were united by a simple belief that the Soviet Union, by denying its Jewish citizens both the right to religious freedom and the right to move to Israel, in effect was imprisoning them. We called that day Freedom Sunday and “Let my people go!” was our rallying cry.

It was a memorable moment of unity in support of oppressed Jewry. And during the next few years, as the USSR broke apart, Jews did indeed get to leave. And so this year, as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of that rally in Washington, we have much to be proud of -- those who were there, those who provided support and those who were rewarded with freedom.

But this movement did not come to the U.S. Jewish community speedily. Approximately 20 years before Freedom Sunday, Jewish students began to raise questions about the plight of Soviet Jewry. They challenged the low priority given to the Soviet Jewry cause in the Jewish community and organizational discussions. They cajoled, they protested and they made themselves into a nuisance.

I should know because I was one of them. From when I was a high school student volunteering for my first political campaign, Joe Lieberman’s first run for state office, through my postgraduate student years, I was an active participant in Jewish political action, including the Soviet Jewry issue. I recall riding buses organized by the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry to attend protest rallies every time a senior Soviet official would visit New York City.

We would hold up our signs to be seen and call out our slogans to be heard, even if we were only a few dozen. We wanted the emissaries of the “Soviet Empire” to know we were aware of what they were doing to Jewish families behind the Iron Curtain.

We were not always effective, but we were committed. We built relationships with members of Congress and earned support in unusual places. A senator from Washington State, Henry “Scoop” Jackson, became a loyal friend to our cause. A Catholic congressman from Chicago, Henry Hyde, joined the effort as well. The coalition was broad and allAmerican.

We were from all religious denominations and doctrines.

There were no walls between us, regardless of our personal religious beliefs, practices or lack thereof. The cause drew us together and the cause was our focus.

We learned later about our full impact. In 1991, as the USSR began its dissolution, I flew, as a member of the Radio Liberty board, to Moscow and met with Elana Bonner, the widow of noted refusenik Andrei Sakharov and an outspo-

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ken human rights activist. She told me how important it was for her and others like her to know that Americans were marching for the dignity and freedom of the Russian dissidents. The news that she and others received on the short wave Radio Liberty broadcasts regarding the protest movement in America gave her and the other Russian activists the much-needed support to carry on.

American Jews can look back at these years with pride. It was a monumental political accomplishment. And it would not have happened without the Jewish students, including Dennis Prager and Glenn Richter, led by Jacob Birnbaum, the founder of SSSJ, who raised the issue.

Now American Jewry must rise to the occasion again. We who live in comfort, freedom and security are watching while other Jewish communities are facing rising antiSemitic and anti-Zionist threats. The threats today in many respects are more menacing than what was endured by the Jewish refuseniks.

Instead of the repression and subjugation imposed by the Communist regime of the USSR, Jews in Israel and throughout the world face the nuclear ambitions of Iran. A nuclear weapon would enable the Iranian leaders to realize their goal of wiping Israel off the world map.

Where are today’s Jewish students? Some are actively working to draw attention to the genocidal ambitions of Iran. However, multiple surveys of Jewish public opinion have shown that it is not the high school and college students who are initiators of action but rather the 50-andolder generation of Jews.

I wonder whether a SSSJ movement as existed in the 1960s and 1970s could be created today.

Would we see the students of today marching and protesting outside Russian embassies and consulates or across from the United Nations? Or would their choice of activity be limited to blogging and tweeting without a visible, united physical presence to be noted?

Today, Jewish leaders -- young and old -- have no end of potential causes: Not just Iran, but the willful destruction of the Oslo process by the United Nations, the unjust incarceration of Alan Gross in Cuba, the life imprisonment of Jonathan Pollard, Holocaust denial and violent antiSemitism, and so on. Perhaps today’s Jewish young adults will rise up as one and unify around any of these issues. I have reason to hope because I’ve seen it before.

Cheryl Halpern is a documentarian and a member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial and Museum Council.

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Synagogues B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE 618 Mynster Street | Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 | 402.322.4705 email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com For information on our historic synagogue – dates and times for Friday night services, please call 712.323.8885.

FRIDAY: Services, 7 p.m. followed by a potluck Hanukkah party with guest speaker, Phil Wolf on the Significance of Numbers and Understanding the World with a Jewish Perspective. Call Sandra at 712.323.8885 to let her know what you will bring. Bring a menorah and candles for the traditional candle lighting. The community is invited.

Cantor Beth Schlossberg will officiate at all of the Speaker Series Services.

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California | Omaha, NE 68154-1980 | 402.492.8550 www.bethel-omaha.org Services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman.

FRIDAY: Family Kabbalat Shabbat Service, Tot Shabbat and Hanukkah Dinner, 6 p.m. BESTT students will help lead this service, and Tot Shabbat, led by Patty Nogg, will be held at the same time. Dinner follows both services: $8 for adults ($15/non-members), $5 for children 7-12 ($8/non-members), and free for children six and younger. Maximum charge per Beth El family is $25. For more information contact the office, or www.programming@bethel-omaha.org.

SATURDAY: Morning Services, 9:30 a.m.; Kiddush given

by Beth El; Evening Services, 5:05 p.m.; Hanukkah Havdalah, 6:30 p.m. at the Blumkin Home; WEEKDAY SERVICES: Sundays, 9 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.; weekdays, 7 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.

Eight Days of Giving Back, to get involved with Beth El’s community service projects, visit the synagogue website, www.bethel-omaha.org.

SUNDAY: Torah Study Group, 10 a.m.; Hebrew Crash Course, 11 a.m. with Susi Frydman-Levin; Sorting/packing food at the Omaha Food Bank, 1–4 p.m.

MONDAY: Wrestling with Rabbis of the Talmud, 10 a.m. with Rabbi Abraham.

Dinner and Drash, Friday, Dec. 21, following Shabbat services, stay for dinner and a brief discussion about the week’s Torah portion, led by Rabbi Abraham. Cost: $12.50 per person. RSVP online at www.bethel-omaha.org, or by contacting the office.

Switch Day at the Blumkin Home, help out at the Home so employees can enjoy Christmas at home with their loved ones. To sign up, visit Beth El’s website; for more information, contact Larry Kronick at llk22@aol.com.

Men’s Club Chinese Buffett Dinner, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 6 p.m. (see full story on page 10.)

Serve Lunch at Nebraska Aids Project, Friday, Dec. 28, 11:30 a.m. Help with serving and clean-up. For details, visit Beth El’s website; for more information, contact Joan Marcus, hmarcom@juno.com.

Beth El Brings Shabbat to the Blumkin Home, Friday, Dec. 28, 2:30 p.m.

All classes and programs are open to everyone in the Jewish community.

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific Street | Omaha, NE. 68154 | 402.556.6288 www.BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org Office Hours: Mon.-Thurs., 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Fri., 8:30 a.m-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Jonathan Gross.

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 4:38 p.m.; Shabbat Dinner for

Bat Mitzvah Jane Glazer, daughter of Jennifer and John Glazer, will become a Bat Mitzvah on Saturday, Dec, 22, at Temple Israel.

Jane is a seventh-grade student at Westside Middle School.

Her interests include dancing for Nebraska Dance Company, a national and regional competitive dance team.

For her mitzvah project, Jane chose Camp Quality Heartland. She spent numerous hours dancing, making blankets and collecting supplies for this camp for kids with cancer.

She has two older brothers, Grant and Danny.

Grandparents are Don Heck and Jane Diesen, and Phyllis and Richard Glazer.

Teens, 6 p.m. Please contact the office for dinner location.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Free babysitting service begins at 9:30 a.m.; Children’s Classes begin with Torah Parade, 9:45 a.m.; Kiddush is sponsored by Sisterhood.

Hanukkah lunch, following morning services; The Laws of Shabbat, 2 p.m.; Advanced Parshah Study for Boys (ages 10 and up), 3 p.m.; Mincha, 4 p.m., followed by Seuda Shlishit sponsored by Peggy and Noah Gurock in honor of their grandchildren, Leah, Max, Jacob and Sophia; Havdalah, 5:43 p.m.; Sixth Annual Hanukkah Carnival, 6:30 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m. followed by breakfast; LEAP Limmud for Teens, 10 a.m.; PLearVie (Pizza. Learning & Movie) for sixth, seventh and eighth graders, 6 p.m.

WEEKDAYS: Shacharit, 7 a.m.

MONDAY: Daf Yomi: Week in Review, 7:45 a.m.; Monthly Women’s dessert and discussion, 7 p.m. Please contact the synagogue office for class location.

TUESDAY: The Ethics of our Fathers, 2 p.m. at Remington Heights.

WEDNESDAY: Lunch and Kosher food tour, 1:30 p.m. at Whole Foods; Rabbi Weiss’s Weekly Class, 7:30 p.m.

THURSDAY: Sacred Grounds, 9:30 a.m; Med Center Chabura, 1 p.m; Scholars Club for fourth-sixth graders, 3:30 p.m.

CHABAD CENTER An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 South 120 Street | Omaha, NE 68144-1646 | 402.330.1800 www.OChabad.com | email: chabad@aol.com Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

FRIDAY: Minyan and Meditation, 7 a.m.; Shabbat Hanukkah Dinner, 6 p.m.

SATURDAY: Minyan and Meditation, 9:30 a.m.; Kiddush luncheon follows the service. How is the message of Hanukkah relevant in my life today?

SUNDAY: Minyan, 8:30 a.m.; Breakfast Bonanza, 9:30 a.m.

WEEKDAYS: Minyan and Meditation, 7 a.m.

MONDAY: Volunteer appreciation luncheon, noon.

TUESDAY: Dynamic Discovery with Shani Katzman, 10:15 a.m. A class for women based on traditional texts with practical insights and application. Please reserve by calling 402.330.1800.

WEDNESDAY: Personal Parsha class, 10 a.m. with Rochi Katzman. Call 402.417.2752 to reserve.

All programs are open to the entire community.

CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN South Street Temple | Union for Reform Judaism 2061 South 20th Street | Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 | 402.435.8004 www.southstreettemple.org Services conducted by Rabbi Craig Lewis.

FRIDAY: Potluck Hanukkah Dinner, 6:30 p.m.; Hanukkah Service, 7:30 p.m., featuring the Star City Kochavim, with the lighting of the Hanukiah; Potluck Dessert Oneg, 8:15 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. on Parashat Miketz; Game Night/Potluck, 6 p.m.

SUNDAY: LJCS Grades 1-Hallah High, 9:30 a.m.-noon at South Street Temple for Hanukkah Wrap; Gan, 9:45 a.m.noon at Tifereth Israel; Parents of Grades 1-Hallah High may join us at 11:30 a.m. for games and doughnuts at South Street Temple; South Street Board of Trustees Meeting, 1 p.m.

TUESDAY: Ladies Lunch Group, noon at Olive Garden, 6100 “O” Street. Questions? Contact Stephanie Dohner.

WEDNESDAY: Hebrew classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at

Candlelighting Friday, December 14, 4:38 p.m.

Tifereth Israel.

ADULT EDUCATION THURSDAYS, Beginning Hebrew, 6 p.m.

Tot Shabbat and Wacky Mac Dinner with Ms. Jennifer, Friday, Dec. 21, 5:45 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE SAC Memorial Chapel 301 Lincoln Highway | Offutt AFB, NE 68113 | 402.294.6244 FRIDAY: Services, 7:30 p.m.

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME 323 South 132 Street | Omaha, NE 68154 FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to the Blumkin Home, 2:30 p.m.

Mainstreeters lighting the seventh Hanukkah candle and a concert with Anna and Lev. SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m. led by Marty Shukert; Beth El members with Rabbi Abraham will light the Eighth Hanukkah candle, and present a musical program with Havdalah.

Services will be held in the Chapel. Members of the community are invited to attend.

TEMPLE ISRAEL Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 7023 Cass Street | Omaha, NE 68132-2651 | 402.556.6536 www.templeisrael-ne.org FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to you at Remington Heights, 4 p.m. led by Rabbi Brown; OTYG Hanukkah Party, 5:15 p.m.; Help celebrate Hanukkah at Remington Heights, 5:30 p.m.; Shabbat Service, 6 p.m. led by Rabbi Azriel and Cantor Shermet.

SATURDAY: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m.; Shabbat Morning Service, 10:30 a.m. Adam Cooper-Kahn, son of Amy and Paul Rabinovitz, will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah; Help celebrate Hanukkah at Remington Heights, 5:30 p.m.

SUNDAY: Teachers Meeting, 9:30 a.m.; Grades K-6, 10 a.m.; Prayer Assembly, 10 a.m.; WRJ Meeting, 10:30 a.m.; What’s Up: Israeli Media with Gili Gutwirth and Rabbi Azriel, 10:30 a.m.; Grade Five Parent Meeting, 10:30 a.m.

WEDNESDAY: Grades 3-6, 4 p.m.; School Dinner, 6 p.m.; Family School, 6 p.m.; Grades 7-8, 6 p.m.; Transforming Moments in the Reform Movement, 6:30 p.m. with Rabbi Azriel.

THURSDAY: The History of Judaism in Greece, 10 a.m. with Cantor Shermet.

TIFERETH ISRAEL Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Boulevard | Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 | 402.423.8569 www.tiferethisraellincoln.org Services conducted by lay leader Nancy Coren. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

FRIDAY: Home Hanukkah Service and Potluck Dinner, 6 p.m. hosted at Eve and Mel Hoffman’s home.

SATURDAY: Morning service, 10 a.m. followed by Kiddush lunch.

SUNDAY: LJCS Grades 1-Hallah High, 9:30 a.m.-noon at South Street Temple for Hanukkah Wrap; Gan, 9:45 a.m.noon at Tifereth Israel; Parents of Grades 1-Hallah High may join us at 11:30 a.m. for games and doughnuts at South Street Temple.

TUESDAY: Ladies Lunch Group, noon at Olive Garden, 6100 “O” Street. Questions? Contact Stephanie Dohner.

WEDNESDAY: Hebrew classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

Tot Shabbat and Wacky Mac Dinner with Ms. Jennifer, Friday, Dec. 21, 5:45 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

Enjoy Chinese buffet dinner at Beth El on Dec. 25

by JILL BELMONT Beth El Publicity Coordinator Everything in town may be closed on Dec. 25, but Beth El will be open for business at 6 p.m., as the synagogue presents a delicious Chinese buffet, sponsored by Men’s Club. Everyone in the Jewish community is invited to gather together for a casual evening with great food and friends.

“Jackie Mason once said, ‘The Jewish culture has been around for 8,000 years, and the Chinese culture has been around for 6,000 years, so for 2,000 we went hungry,’” said Men’s Club President David Finkelstein. “On Dec. 25, Men’s Club will prevent that from happening this year by observing the time-honored Jewish tradition of serving a Chinese buffet on Christmas night, minus the moo shu pork, of course,” he joked.

“Established in 2011 by former president Michael Schop,

the BEMC holiday dinner is an opportunity to go somewhere when there is nowhere to go, and share good food prepared by the skilled hands of Ben Shapiro, Steven Levy, Ari Kohen, and the rest of the Men’s Club volunteers,” Finkelstein added. “The tasty treats will fill you up on a cold winter night, and the opportunity to spend some time with your Beth El family will warm your spirits.”

Following dinner, the members of Sisterhood will lead a variety of games and activities for the children of all ages.

Dinner cost for Beth El members is $4 per person, with a maximum charge of $16 per family; for non-members, $7 per person and a maximum of $28 per family. There is no charge for children ages six and younger. Reservations are needed by Dec. 18; RSVP and pay online at www.bethelomaha.org, or contact the synagogue office, 402.492.8550, or programming@bethel-omaha.org.

Pulverente MONUMENT CO.

December 14, 2012 | The Jewish Press | 11

Conscience, memory, and history

Sparks from the word RABBI MYER S. KRIPKE Parsha Mikeitz As our Sidrah comes to its close, Joseph’s goblet has been discovered in Benjamin’s sack of grain – where it was planted by Joseph’s retainers at his bidding.

The brothers are devastated. Judah, desperately stalling for time, and trying to collect his thoughts for the supreme effort he is about to make, exclaims: “What shall we say unto my lord? How shall we clear ourselves?”

The Midrash views the wretched Judah as being overcome by memories, memories of tragedies and misdeeds (of the brothers collectively) that have weighed heavily on his conscience for years. He remembers the misadventure with his daughter-in-law; he remembers that embarrassing incident when the eldest brother, Reuben, tried to assert his right to succession while Jacob yet lived, and Jacob’s indignant reaction; he remembers the shame that had come upon the family because of Dinah, their sister; and now he faces the crisis over Benjamin. The Midrash offers other lists, each tied to phrases in the text, phrases in Judah’s appeal to Joseph.

I think in this connection of a confessional prayer from the High Holy Day service: “What are we? What is our piety? What is our righteousness? What is our attainment, our power, our might? What can we say, Lord God?” When I say these words, there comes flooding back to my mind all the incidents of the past when I was not my best self. I suppose every one of us has memories of this kind, memories which adhere to our consciousness and which keep our conscience uneasy.

Prophetic theology looked at the calamities in the history of Israel and Judah as proper consequences of religious infidelity. And rabbinic Judaism followed along: “Because of our sins we were exiled from our land…” according to the text of the services for the Shalosh Regalim.

It is time that these points of view, both prophetic and rabbinic, be blunted and tempered. Does Jewish religious fidelity or infidelity cause the march of an empire? Surely historians understand it otherwise.

Obama family offers Hanukkah greetings

by JTA NEWS STAFF (JTA) -- President Obama and his family offered Hanukkah greetings to Jews around the world. Obama recalled the story of the Maccabees in his statement issued on Friday, Dec. 7.

He also addressed the deeper meaning of the holiday, saying, “Hanukkah is a time to celebrate the faith and customs of the Jewish people, but it is also an opportunity for people of all faiths to recognize the common aspirations we share.

This holiday season, let us give thanks for the blessings we enjoy and remain mindful of those who are suffering. And let us reaffirm our commitment to building a better, more complete world for all.”

“From our family to the Jewish Community around the world, Chag Sameach,” the message concluded.

The national menorah was lit on the Ellipse near the White House on Sunday evening. In addition, the White House hosted its annual Hanukkah party for Jewish community and political leaders.

In memoriam BEVERLY FRIEDEN Beverly Frieden passed away on Dec. 8 at age 93 of natural causes. Service were Dec. 11 at Beth El Cemetery, 84th and L Streets.

She preceded in death by husband, Gilbert Frieden.

She is survived by her two children, Joy Arnold and Jon Frieden, both of Florida; three grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

Memorials may be made to Jewish Family Service.

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NORMAN SELLZ Norman Sellz passed away on Nov. 12 at Tarzana Provident Medical Center after a sudden illness. He was 88 years old.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Emanuel Sellz and Fanny (Rosinsky) Sellz, and his twin brother, Edward Sellz.

He is survived by his companion of many years, Jeannie Kerner of Encino, CA; sons, Michael Sellz of Iowa City, and Barry Engel of Denver; sister, Shirley Sigman of Sherman Oaks, CA; brother, Howard Sellz of Woodland Hills, CA; and many relatives in Los Angeles and Omaha.

Norman grew up in Omaha. He was a World War II veteran with the Global 20th Air Force. On a combat mission flying from Saipan, his plane was shot down over Tokyo and he was the only survivor among 14 men. He was a prisoner of war and was awarded two Purple Hearts. He was a proud veteran.

Norman and the Sellz family relocated to Los Angeles after World War II and were well known in the auto business; first as the Sellz twins of Motor City on Crenshaw Blvd in the 1950s, and for the past 30 years at Big Valley Dodge in Van Nuys.

Memorials may be made to Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

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Israeli ‘spy vulture’ reportedly caught in Sudan

by JTA NEWS STAFF (JTA) -- Sudan officials said they captured a vulture that Israel fitted with spy equipment. According to the online edition of the Egyptian daily El Balad, the vulture was captured in the Darfur region, in Sudan’s west, prompting Sudanese authorities to announce that Israel was using vultures to spy on their country.

The equipment fitted on the vulture was solar powered and allows broadcasting the information gathered, including images, via satellite uplink, the paper said. It also had a GPS installed.

The report further states that the Sudanese security services were able to determine that the equipment found on the vulture came from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University and featured a university logo.

The Iranian television station Press TV quoted unspecified Sudanese media as reporting that the raptor had a leg band with labels that read, in Hebrew, “Israel Nature Service” as well as “Hebrew University, Jerusalem.”

An ecologist for Israel’s Nature and Parks Authority, Ohad Hazofe, told the Israeli news site Ynet that vultures are routinely tagged and fitted with a GPS chip for research purposes.

“This is a young vulture that was tagged, along with 100 others, in October. He has two wing bands and a Germanmade GPS chip,” Hatzofe said. The device, he added, had no photography capabilities.

“This is equipment that can give out distance and altitude readings only,” Hatzofe said. “That’s the only way we knew something had happened to the bird -- all of a sudden it stopped flying and started traveling on the ground.”

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Twenty six high school students spent the night in the Aquarium at the Henry Doorly Zoo at the Dec. 1 Omaha Jewish Connections (OJC) overnight. Rabbis Abraham, Brown and Gross led an evening program, and the teens were treated to a guided tour of the exhibit buildings -- Kingdoms of the Night, Gorilla Valley, the Cat Complex, and the Lied Jungle. The next OJC program is on Jan. 9, “Discover Yourself through Israel.” Watch for more information coming soon.

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One-quarter of Israelis -- and 37 percent of kids -- live in poverty

by BEN SALES viduals with expendable income of about $9,500 annually starting point, allowing people to network and in some cases TEL AVIV (JTA) -- The numbers tell a consistent story- after taxes, which is approximately 50 percent of the median gain specialized skill sets. line: Nearly one in four Israelis lives in poverty.

Israeli expendable income. Exactly 24.8 percent of Israelis, Ben-David says Israel’s problems aren’t limited to minoriA report last week by ties and that the state Israel’s National needs to invest in eduInsurance Institute cation and transportashowed that 1.8 million tion infrastructure. of Israel’s 8 million peoIn the summer of ple live below the 2011, hundreds of poverty line. thousands of Israelis In 2011, the year for took to the streets to which the report was protest the high cost of issued, more than 36 living and growing percent of Israeli chilwealth inequality in the dren were poor, an country, which were increase of one percentseen as hurting the age point from the premiddle class. Though vious year. Poverty the issue has received afflicts more than much attention in 400,000 Israeli families, Israel’s current election including nearly seven campaign, it does not percent of families with People waiting in line for food packages at a distribution center for A homeless man in Jerusalem taking cover in an entrance of a dominate headlines the the needy in Lod, near Tel Aviv, Sept. 2012. building to protect himself from a downpour, Nov. 2012. two working people. way it did during the Credit: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90/JTA Credit: Oren Nahshon/FLASH90/JTA 2011 protests.

Among developed countries, Israel had the second-highest poverty rate, or 19.9 percent of families, live in poverty.

Last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu behind only Mexico, according to statistics from the By comparison, the United States is fourth-highest on the announced a new commission of government ministers to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD list with a family poverty rate of about 17 percent, streamline socioeconomic reforms. He did not specify what or OECD. according to the OECD’s standard. Twenty-three percent of the reforms would be.

“There’s a very large segment of the Israeli population that U.S. children live in poverty.

Ben-David said Israel’s security needs often make it hard isn’t receiving tools they can use in the modern economy,” In Israel, poverty usually does not mean starvation. to find enough money to address the country’s other chalsaid Dan Ben-David, executive director of Israel’s Taub Unemployment in Israel is at six percent, and one of the lenges. Defense spending makes up about one-fifth of the Center, a think tank that released its “State of the Nation” country’s socialist legacies is a strong safety net for the poor, total budget, and social service spending adds up to about report last month analyzing Israeli socioeconomic policy. sick and elderly. Israeli economic policy has, however, two-fifths.

“It’s not only bad for them, it’s also become a huge problem turned more conservative in recent years.

“That we have such a high defense budget means we have for the country over time. They’re dragging down our proShlomo Yitzhaki, Israel’s government statistician, says the to be judicious with the rest,” he told JTA. ductivity and growth.” higher-than-average birthrate among haredi and Arab Nonprofit groups here have stepped in to alleviate poverIsrael’s poverty rate stems in large part from two sectors of Israelis is the principal reason for their high poverty rates. ty in Israel, including many managed by haredim. But the population that are especially poor: Israeli Arabs and “If you look at income by family size, as the families get Yoram Sagi Zaks, founder of the Movement for the War on haredi Orthodox Jews, who have poverty rates of 53 and 54 bigger, from five members and up, total family income gets Poverty in Israel, says the government still needs to take pripercent, respectively. Israeli Arabs constitute about a quarter lower,” he said. mary responsibility for helping the poor. of all Israelis, while approximately 10 percent of the country Arabs and haredim also are exempt from Israel’s compul“The nonprofits help people, but they need to supplement is haredi Orthodox. sory military service, which makes it harder for them to find the state, not replace the state,” Zaks said. “Poverty is not a The Israeli government defines the poverty line as indi- work in a culture where army service often serves as a career fate. This is not something we need to get used to.”

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