Jewish Post, Indianapolis, Marion County, 3 January 2003 — Page 6

NAT 2 January 1. 2003

Jewish Post & Opinion Editor’s Chaif

Gratitude and resolutions

The following is former Nezv York mayor Ed Koch's Bloomberg Radio commentary which was broadcast on December 7, 2002. We are now going through the most virulent antiSemitic period since Hitler and Stalin. Nearly 60 years after the end of World War II, almost every country on the European continent, including England, France, Germany, Holland, Belgium, and the Scandinavian countries, has seen major outbreaks of physical violence against their Jewish citizens and against Jewish institutions, including synagogues and cemeteries. At the same time, open hostility toward the State of Israel is at an all-time high. Only in the United States have we seen a full acceptance of Jews as citizens and the Jewish state treated as a friend and ally by an overwhelming number of fellow citizens. In the U.S., Jews have been permitted to rise and fall based on their individual talents, virtues, and faults. In one elite bastion after another, Jews have been selected to head institutions heretofore seen as beyond their reach. Today the presidents of Harvard and Yale Universities are Jews, as are recent former presidents of Columbia and Princeton. Having been elected three times as mayor of the City of New York, I have been the beneficiary of this country's generosity and freedom from bigotry, and I will be eternally grateful. Americans traditionally make New Year's resolutions. Before I list my own resolutions, I want to thank President George W. Bush and his advisers. Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell, and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice for their support of the State of Israel. They could easily have jettisoned Israel as a liability in their efforts to forge an international coalition against worldwide terrorism. I will be forever grateful to them, and I hope that many other supporters of the State of Israel will recognize and appreciate what they have done. Fortunately for Jews and the State of Israel, American support of the Jewish nation has been bipartisan. Particularly helpful has been the Democratic leadership in both houses, including Senator Tom Daschle, outgoing Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, as well as former President Bill Clinton, and Senator Hillary Clinton. There are many others on both sides of the political aisle who deserve similar praise. In the religious sector, I am grateful to the Reverends Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, both of whom have stood up time and again in support and defense of the Jewish nation. Regrettably, there have been many clergy who have unfairly attacked Israel for attempting to defend itself against near-daily terrorist acts against its citizens. We were made privy to the true thoughts of Rev. Billy Graham caught on tape telling President Nixon his real feelings about Jews and Israel. He has since apologized, but what is an apology without contrition and efforts to right the wrong done? Worthless. Now to my personal New Year's resolutions. I will avoid France as a place to vacation. France leads those countries in the Security Council who are the enemies

Post and Opinion readers may wonder why we feature reports of achievements of Jewish athletes. The major reason is that, just as accomplishments of Jews in politics and on faculties and in commerce and the rabbinate are featured, the same rule operates for Jewish athletes. But there is a personal angle also. We have had something of a minor career in athletics. Not football and not basketball at the University of North Carolina, but cross country and boxing. Boxing, at that time, was a major collegiate sport but was discontinued everywhere when a student boxer at a certain university was seriously injured. In our day, boxing at Chapel Hill drew larger crowds than basketball games. As for cross country running, at our age we still jog three to four miles twice a week at our Jewish Community Center gymnasium. And so we have a comment. So few Jews can be seen in the gymnasiums at our community centers - not only

members at our age, but in the 30 to 50 age bracket as well. So what? The what is that our community centers are not promoting their gymnasium facilities. They should be doing so not only to facilitate good health but also to promote the JCC itself. Our Jewish Community Centers have outstanding programs of many kinds (and could have more) but seem to fail to publicize them adequately. It could be that at the top in New York, the JCC national officials have too little comprehension of what takes place in Jewish Community Centers throughout the U.S. After reading this editorial, those in the JCC New York office should appoint a standing committee which could acquaint itself about what goes on in JCCs throughout the country and could then recommend ways in which our community centers could better promote themselves, building membership and participation.

of the State of Israel. So too is Mexico, joining as a consistent supporter of resolutions unfairly denouncing Israel at the U.N. Security Council. I will not support National Public Radio in any way. NPR's reporters and management delight in unfairly attacking Israel. I will no longer lend financial support to New York's Channel Thirteen public television station. That station recently showed a documentary that was blatantly biased against Israel and has refused to acknowledge the bias or to try to correct it. I will not watch ABC's World News Tonight, anchored by Peter Jennings. For many years, Jennings has specialized in vicious and unfair portrayals of Israel intended to injure the Jewish state and lionize Palestinians. BBC News is horrifically anti-Israel,

and I will shun it completely. Susan Sontag will occupy the Ninth Circle of Hell for her outrageous assaults on Israel. I will no longer read her works. Regrettably, there are many others whom I could include on this list, but I will leave that for another day. I must confess I got enormous pleasure from the defeat of Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and her father in the recent primary elections in Georgia. In my view, both are anti-Semitic and anti-Is-rael. No longer able to feed at the public trough, I doubt that either will make a comparable living in the private sector. I must close now to get ready for my Hanukkah and Christmas shopping. I enjoy celebrating those holidays with Jewish and Christian friends whose goodwill and affection I will always cherish.

How To Kill A Business In Ten Easy Steps

L Don’t advertise. Just pretend everybody knows what you have to offer. 2. Don’t advertise. Tell yourself you just don’t have the time to spend thinking about promoting your business. 3. Don’t advertise. Just assume everybody knows what you sell. 4. Don't advertise. Convince yourself that you've been in business so long customers will automatically come to you. 5. Don’t advertise. Forget that there are new potential customers who would do business with you if they were urged to do so.

6. Don’t advertise. Forget that you have competition trying to attract your customers away from you. 7. Don’t advertise. Tell yourself it costs too much to advertise and that you don’t get enough out of it. 8. Don’t advertise. Overtook the fact that advertising is an !nve~ inent in selling — not an expense. 9. Don’t advertise. Be sure not provide an adequate advertising budget for business. 10. Don’t advertise. Forget that you • have to keep reminding your established customers that you appreciate their business.

You decide... it's your business in good times or bad.