Buerger Bites

Boys’ Latin Saga

We obviously touched a nerve in the Boys’ Latin School community, judging from many comments posted on our website. (http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/news/jt/local_news/painful_episode/)
Once so many missives are launched to and fro, it’s hard to ascertain the reality of the situation.

I think I can provide some insight based on my experience.

I attended Gilman School which the JEWISH TIMES had written stories about in the 1980s concerning anti-Semitism with the predominately Blue Blood institution. Personally, in my seven years as a student there, I never once experience anti-Semitism, nor did my friends. But, I knew it existed. Even though it never affected me, it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. It did.

Reddy Finney, one the finest men you’d ever meet would have no part of it. One time an incident occurred, which I had not been aware of, and Mr. Finney shut down the school for a day and conducted sensitively training – decades before it existed. The whole school learned about the dangers of hate from various experts. It showed that while typical all-boy school activity involving kids would occur, racist and anti-Semitic behavior would not be tolerated at Gilman. And we learned why it shouldn’t.

There were some blacks kids at Gilman who exhibited bad behavior and started fights (and some white kids, too). Still, we knew that it would be absolutely unacceptable to tag the boy with the “N” word.

Now, we have two Jewish boys from the same family who were singled out with undeniable anti-Semitic incidents. The word “kike” was used. A noose was produced. Inappropriate names were uttered. We’ve been told about another case as well, but the parents don’t want to come forward on the record.

Everyone seems to want to blame the victims. (I’m used to people blaming the media, so I won’t go there.) Based on what people are writing in the comments, the younger boy may have had some behavioral issues at the school. The older boy, everyone seems to agree, is a gem. Yet he was called a kike and Jew boy.

Even if Aaron misbehaved, you don’t treat a boy – a fellow student—like that.

Israel at 60

Tonight at sundown marks the start of Israel’s 60th birthday.

Last week, the JEWISH TIMES Jewish cover story celebrated the relatively young Jewish state with 60 great things about Israel.

The 100,000 Jewish Baltimoreans – and anyone reading this around the world – can each add one thing they love about Israel. It may be its natural beauty or how it is the birth place of the world’s three great religions. It could be the Zionist spirit or the wonder of what the Jewish people have done in what was once an arid, desolate dessert.

Each time I go to Israel or learn about it, I find another thing to love. 

Unfortunately, I found another by accident.

One of my loved ones was just diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS).  It’s a horrible disease with no treatment or cure. Thankfully, there is a drug that helps prevent the disease from progressing and becoming terribly debilitating. The daily injection is called Copaxone.  It’s the only non-interferon for MS. That means it’s much more easily tolerated by a larger population.

Yes, you guessed it. It was discovered by Prof. Sela, Prof. Arnon and Dr. Teitelbaum at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. The drug is marketed internationally by Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals, which trades on the U.S. stock exchange. This medicine, which is produced in a country of six million people, helps many millions all over the world lead better lives.

It’s wonderful knowing that my loved one is receiving treatment; it’s inspiring to know that it’s happening because of the world’s only Jewish state. Today, we should all celebrate that the hard work, investment in education and the emphasis on science in Israel that is helping do a little tikkun olam. There’s so much written out of context about how oppressive Israel is. In reality, it gives the world so much more than it takes. 

I think that’s just one of many things that makes Israel great. 

Tax Breaks A Bunch Of Gas

People rag on Sen. Barack Obama, asking, “What has he done?” My question isn’t what has he done, but, “what will he do.”

If the election campaign is any example, I like his thinking. He says what’s on his mind and mostly avoids pandering, or I should say, less so than the other politicians.

Take, for example, the most recent notion of some to help the American consumer. Both Sens. John McCain and Hillary Clinton are not backing off their stupid idea of providing a “gas tax holiday” this summer. They want to suspend the 18.4 cent federal gas tax to help working Americans. Obama is opposed.

Obama says it like it is: The relief is only $28 per driver!

Now the conversation is working its way into our state. Some elected officials want to also suspend the 23 cent state tax on gasoline. According to the Baltimore Examiner, “State Sen. Andy Harris called for a special session to pass such a measure, but said Gov. Martin O’Malley and other state leaders did not advance the proposal.”

Harris went on to say, “There’s very few things we can do at the state level to help, and this is one of them. The state leaders don’t like tax cuts and they don’t like this one, but the people are clamoring for [lawmakers] to do something about gas prices.’”

Of course Harris is running for Congress and he’s out to show how conservative he can be. He wants to be Mr. Anti-Tax, putting a whopping $35 into your pocket.

More important to me is that we’re once again sending the wrong signals to our citizens. We’re saying, “When gas prices go too high, we’ll help you.” What we should be saying is, “Gas prices are high, they’re going higher. So get used to it, and if you don’t want to pay them, drive a more fuel efficient car, carpool, bike, or take the Light Rail.”

People will be mad; it’s anti-American to call for conservation. But you don’t have to wear a flag pin on your lapel to be patriotic. You have to want to drastically drop the demand for Middle East oil from whose profits in turn fund the killing of Americans in Iraq and innocent Israelis thanks to some Arab countries funding Hamas and Hezbollah.

If we really want to help working class Americans and hard working Marylanders, let’s eliminate the state sales tax on things like energy efficient light bulbs and phosphorus-free dish detergent. That will help Marylanders and help our Bay at the same time.

Federally, we can lower the payroll tax on lower income Americans. Let’s be smart with our tax holidays. We don’t want to encourage more use of oil that supports terror. Gas prices are finally getting high enough where it’s affecting people buying habits.

On this Yom Hazikaron/Israel Memorial Day, let’s remember the Israelis who died at the hands of terrorists and pledge to say no to politicians who won’t do anything to stop it from continuing.