I see both sides of the immigration debate that is raging once again. One side says that those illegal immigrants who broke the law to get here should be sent home. Our country has always welcomed immigrants, but they are the ones who come here legally, work hard and strive for a better future.

But others believe that most illegal immigrants are here to work, and work they do – particularly in jobs that the rest of us won’t take. So they should be given amnesty and given a path towards citizenship. Besides, their kids are already in our schools and they are using our medical care. 

So, I’m torn. And all along the lawmakers in D.C. are wrangling back and forth, making a mess of any possible legislation.

Yes, I understand the part about breaking the law. But what if the law is wrong? It’s happened before and we Jews know it. Was it right when FDR sent back the St. Louis in 1939 – six months after Kristallnacht—and condemned 937 Jewish men, women and children to certain death? At that moment, how could we forget the beautiful words of Emma Lazarus, herself a Jew, engraved on the Statue of Liberty, the ones that speak of taking in the tired, the poor and the huddled masses?

We closed our doors to helpless Jewish refugees during their ultimate time of need. Obviously our laws were wrong then. Do they need to change now to meet new situations? Is there a compromise we can reach now? Then again, why should we reform our laws now? If you were a legal immigrant, how would you feel about that? So yes, I’m torn. Tell me what you think the Jewish response should be.

Hurray! Kind of, sort of.

The Senate just passed an energy bill significantly increasing automakers’ required fuel efficiency…in 15 years!

Please. While I’m glad that our country is moving towards an energy policy that will abate global warming, we don’t have 15 years to lower our use of terrorist oil. Iran will have a nuclear bomb with in three years. Hezbollah is rearming thanks to Iranian support. More radical Islamic schools are being built in Afghanistan which teach hate towards Jews, Americans and anything that smacks of individual freedom. So in 15 years another generation will be brainwashed about the “evil Zionists,” “capitalist Americans” and “infidels of democracy,” making it impossible to make Israel, the United States or the whole planet any safer.

Where are our leaders? Where are the visionaries we need to make America and its most important ally in the Middle East safer from Islamic terrorists?

I was hoping for more legislation that would help all the smart venture capitals who are falling all over themselves to back any green initiative. The problem is terrorist oil is so cheap; these alternatives can’t compete.

Senate Republicans squashed debate on ending the federal handouts to oil companies. That money could have been used to find other sources of energy – solar, wind, geothermal, bio-diesel and more—that will help make Israel and the rest of us safer, and all of us more eco-friendly .

So thanks to the Senate, we’ll suffer for another generation and then be shocked when Iran not only has nuclear weapons, but begins serious international blackmail because of their capabilities. Then, when it’s too late, the Bushies will want to drop bombs on Iran to stop their program. We’ve seen how capable they’ve been at waging war. Heck they can’t even get drinkable water to New Orleans during a domestic crisis.

When all you have is a hammer in your tool kit, everything looks like a nail. Israel’s been waging war against Arabs for 60 years and there are still terrorists trying to kill Israelis. We need more tools. One of them is our wallets. When will American legislators learn that?

Not long ago, I lauded Sen. Carl Levin in this blog for his ascension to power. He’s been a great friend to the Jewish people and Israel.

While I’m sure that his Jewish upbringing and values instilled his strong ties to Israel, the millions of dollars he’s received from pro-Israel lobbies helped cement it. 

Since 1989, the two biggest contributors to his campaigns by industry have been 1) lawyers/law firms with $1.29 million, and 2) pro-Israel organizations with $1.28 million.

But if you look at the top contributing companies/organizations to the Levin campaign, they are auto manufacturers. In fact, General Motors ($84,000) and DamlierChrysler ($79,000) are numbers one and two. Guardsmark ($79,000), a security firm, and Ford ($61,000) are three and four.

Of course, that’s what one would expect when Levin, a Democrat, represents Michigan – to bring home the bacon for his constituents, much like Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) has done for the Hopkins Hubble Space Telescope program.

My problem is that Levin’s efforts to protect jobs at the auto companies interfere with his historic allegiance to Israel. As the Big Three fight against any push for better mileage standards, the more money flows into the coffers of Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria.

The new Democratic leadership is crafting comprehensive energy legislation – the first in a long time. Levin, one of their own, is against the section requiring automakers to create better mileage for their fleets

Getting the opposing industries aligned will be virtually impossible, as will getting Levin to turn his back on the Big Three. But it’s imperative that we overcome our addiction to terrorist oil. After all, the biggest beneficiaries won’t be Americans or the environment, but Levin’s friends in Israel.

Here we are, 40 years removed from Israel’s greatest military victory, the Six Day War. And little Israel defeating the much larger Arab armies is one of the biggest triumphs in world history.

No one doubts that this was a great accomplishment for the Jewish people—showing that Jews won’t lay down for slaughter like some thought during the Holocaust; Jerusalem was reunited, giving Jews access to their holiest sites; and the capture of important strategic land which would help Israel in subsequent military conflicts.

Yet, many now question the true cost of the battle. Jews, victims for 2,000 years, are now called “occupiers.” Military victory after military victory hasn’t prevented terror from Islamic fundamentalists.

With 40 years of history, no expert has a solution to the issues vexing the heart of the Middle East. The hawkish strategy of striking back harder clearly hasn’t prevented terror. Nor has the dovish concept of trading land for peace. The recent third approach of unilateral withdrawal hasn’t provided much relief.

The Clinton and recent Bush administrations couldn’t be any more different in their approaches. Still, the results are the same: conflict in the Middle East.
What scares me is that there is no end in sight. When Palestinian TV features Disney characters teaching their children about the evil Zionist nation, we’ll have plenty of problems for generations to come.

I fully understand the many dangers facing our world: a nuclear Iran, Hamas threatening innocent Israelis, and the realization of a no-win situation in Iraq which will embolden al-Qaida. Right here in our local Jewish community, of late we’ve written about teen parties involving drinking and drugs. We’ve also chronicled significant sexual abuses by local leaders.
Andrew Buerger

It’s important that everyone, including me, get away from it all to decompress.

I was doing just that the other day when I donned my baseball hat and sunglasses. I plugged my ears with my iPod and went for a run. I turned up my music and tuned out the world.

As I cruised through Gilman School, I made my usual glance over at the football field to recall my exploits from the early 1980s. Just then I ran past Frank Goldman, who was a year behind me at Gilman. Frank was there to coach his twelve-year-old son, Nick, in the Roland Park Little League. That didn’t make sense to me. He shattered my inner peace.

Frank can’t be the coach of a 12-year-old Little Leaguer. It was just yesterday that he and I were locked on opposite sides of one of the fiercest games every played in Wellwood Little League. For the next few miles I tried to do the math about how many years ago it could have been. I realized “The Game” was 30 years ago. It would have been less stressful to contemplate Israel’s future when Iran gets the bomb. Man, Frank is now 41.

So I phoned Frank to see if he remembered the famous World Series. Not only did he vividly recall the match, but he also reminded me that it wasn’t the 30th anniversary of “The Game.” That was last year. In fact, it’s been 31 years, and he told me my former teammate Richard Pachino was trying to get a reunion. Frank even forwarded me a PDF from the Baltimore Jewish Times article from 1976.

Re-reading the piece jarred my memory of the spectacular event. The World Series game between the Twins, managed by Frank’s father Howard, battled our Reds, skippered by Michael Yerman, to a tie after 6 innings, the length of a full game. After two extra innings, the score remained locked at 2-2, and the game was called for darkness. They decided to let us battle it out two nights later for the official Wellwood Minor League World Series.

The two teams of 10- and 11-year-old boys were living their dreams of a big time world series. We were able to play a multi-game series filled with drama and tension.

The second game was equally close. In the bottom of the sixth and last inning, Danny Feiken ripped one of my pitches into the outfield scoring Mark Leuterman from second base, finally sending our Reds down to defeat 6-5. My teammates Richard Pachino, Jimmy Yerman, and I still haven’t gotten over the heart breaking loss.

Jewish Times writer Tom Gorman noted, “The unfortunate thing about the game, played before a large crowd, was that there had to be a loser. For 14 innings both teams did exceptional jobs with pressure all the way. For either team it would have been a tough loss. On the other hand, it was a great victory. That’s baseball.”

Michael Yerman has gone on to teach me a lot about business and life. But his comforting words helped shape my psyche at a very fragile time, and I’ll never forget that. I was mad that I let up the winning run and thought I should have let Richard Pachino pitch last. Michael Yerman reminded me that one inning didn’t define our season. We had all hustled and given our all during the entire spring. Since then, I’ve tried to put all losses into perspective.

There were bigger and more important things in 1976 as well: threats of a Russian nuclear attack; Israel being overrun by Arabs; and drug issues at Pikesville High School. Yet, this childhood game of baseball was more important for two dozen kids and their parents.

As I ran past Frank and Nick Goldman, I saw their bond over the childhood game. That’s baseball. Let’s not forget that.

To view the original story, click here: http://www.jewishtimes.com/ccount/rp_news_article.pdf

To get in touch with Richard Pachino, he can be emailed at: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

My husband & I have eaten at the Sunday brunch a few times with my husband’s large family. We were treated well, the food was good & plentyful. We are very satisfied with this restaurant.