JEWISH WORLD

4 JEWISH WORLD • APRIL 12-18, 2024 115 Middle Neck Rd. Great Neck, NY 11021 516-818-1733 The award-winning independent Jewish newspaper of Long Island Publisher & editor-in-chief Jerome Wm. Lippman Assistant Editor Jeff Helmreich Features Editor Barbara Weinblatt Travel Editor Tania Grossinger Contributors Douglas M. Bloomfield, Shira Dicker, Lawrence J. Epstein, Marcelle Sussman Fischler, Ezra Goldstein,, Sandy Portnoy, Joseph R. Rackman, Erica Rauzin, Walter Ruby, Lawrence H. Schiffman, Barbara Schultz, Jacob Stein, Carol Steinberg, Harold S. Steinberg, Andrew Wohlberg, Nora Yood Karl Grossman Production Editor Laura Katz Staff Photographers David Karp, Sender Schwartz Traffic Manager Karen Chasin Director of Advertising Bernice Witten Account Executives Joyce Ehrlich, Enid Feldman, Dave Levin Lee Lichtman, Joyce Rudnick, Judy Schnelwar For Israel Advertising Information International Media Placement P.O.B. 7195, Jerusalem, Israel 91071 (02) 6252933 Fax (02) 6249240 Art Director Deborah Gruenberger Marketing Consultant Adam Simms Circulation Manager Patricia Locklin Counsel Steven D. Cohn All material in this paper has been copyrighted, is the exclusive property of this newspaper, and cannot be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. The views and opinions expressed by our columnists do not necessarily reflect the editor’s point of view. Composition responsibility: This newspaper will not be liable for errors appearing in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Advertiser assumes responsibility for errors in telephone orders. We are not responsible for the Kashruth of any product or establishment advertised in this newspaper. All advertisements designed and prepared by the Jewish World are the sole property of the newspaper and can not be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. Published weekly by the Empire Publishing corporation. Jerome Wm. Lippman, President. Long Island Jewish World (ISSN 0199-2899) is published weekly for $26 per year by Empire Publishing Corporation, 115 Middle Neck Road, Great Neck, N.Y. 11021. Periodicals postage paid at Great Neck, NY. POSTMASTER: Send form 3579 to L.I. Jewish World, P.O. Box #220297. Great Neck, NY 11022-0010. Includes the Long Island Jewish Press, founded 1942, serving Queens, Nassau and Suffolk. Local Offices: 1441 President Street Brooklyn, N.Y. 11213 311 W. 37th Street New York, N.Y. 10018 CANDLE LIGHTING Friday, April 12 Candles at 7:15pm Shabbat ends 8:16pm Friday, April 19 Candles at 7:21pm Shabbat ends 8:23pm By MOSHE HILL N assau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has been making national headlines lately. In 2024, being a Republican executive in a deep blue state like New York apparently garners a lot of attention. He drove Democrats crazy when he decided to protect women’s sports activities and by banning men from participating in them and using women’s lock- er rooms. Now he’s being called a Nazi because he wants to prepare for emergencies that may come up in the future. It all started when Blakeman put out a call for people who would be willing to be called in to help in an emergency. For example, if there is another Superstorm Sandy, he wants ty Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove). “I’ve had some people tell me it’s actually causing them a lot of anxiety,” she claimed. “It reminds them not only of the Wild West but of the Brownshirts… civilians who all of a sudden become part of law enforcement without the training.” First and foremost, comparing Blakeman’s plan to anything as- sociated with the Brownshirts is beyond over the top and actual- ly alarming. The Brownshirts, or Sturmabteilung (SA), were the paramilitary wing of the Nazi Par- ty, infamous for their brutal tactics, including against Jews, and the role they played in the suppression of political opposition before and during Hitler’s rise to power. Refer- encing a band of Nazi murderers in a community emergency response continued on page 20 ANALYSIS firearms. The latter sent Blakeman’s Democratic opponents into a tizzy, with some claiming that Blakeman was raising his own militia! The most absurd attack came from Nassau County Legislature Minori- the government to able to rely on trained responders instead of scram- bling for volunteers. “Trained” per- sonnel means men and women who, among other requirements, have pistol licenses and are trained to use Democrat Off The Rails Nassau legislator invokes Nazis in opposing Blakeman idea When Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman suggested an armed supplemental force for emergencies, a Democratic legislator raised the Nazi Brownshirts. Bruce Blakeman and local Jewish leaders at the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center in Glen Cove, where he demanded that Delia DeRiggi-Whitton resign. By GIL TROY S enator Joe Lieberman died at 82. Despite decades in poli- tics, he remained a man of honor – embodying integrity, pa- triotism, and courage. Today, Israel needs Likud elders emulating Lieb- erman willing to risk their govern- ment Volvos – which each can af- ford independently – to save Israel from Benjamin Netanyahu. In 1998, when Bill Clinton be- haved abominably, then polarized America denying Monica Lewin- sky’s truths, Joe Lieberman broke ranks. He challenged Clinton’s in- fidelity and dishonesty in a Senate speech. “It was a very hard thing for me to do,” Lieberman recalled, “be- cause I liked him.” But Lieberman understood that “if I didn’t say some- zealots. But Lieberman was ready to sacrifice his career – for the nation. He passed the mirror test. We all must wake up every morn- ing, look in the mirror, and like what we see. Few want to sell their souls to an evil cause, a misguided mission, or – Likudniks arise! – a thing, I’d be a hypocrite. I also felt that if somebody who was support- ive of him didn’t say something, it would not be good” – for America. This mild-mannered senator risked political suicide. Clinton and the Democrats crushed any doubt- ers, demonizing them as puritanical flailing, failing leader. Surprisingly, Clinton’s chief of staff Erskine Bowles told Lieber- man his speech “burst the boil,” Democrats started thinking subtly and patriotically, not monolithical- ly - as leaders, not partisan hacks. Eventually, Clinton called to say, Lieberman recalled, “that there’s nothing you said in that speech that I don’t agree with. And I want you to know that I’m working on it.” In 2000, the Democratic nomi- nee, Al Gore, selected Lieberman as his running mate, honoring Li- eberman’s bravery. When they lost following a controversial Supreme Court decision, both patriots accept- ed the result, for the nation’s sake. Lieberman was always that rar- ity, a mensch in politics. It reflect- ed his Judaism, Americanism, and liberalism. But being 56 when he Be Like Joe Lieberman Israel needs real leaders to save the country PERSPECTIVE continued on page 24 Lieberman (left) and Netanyahu. Israel must have politicians like the former to help oust the latter. Likud elders, including the prime minister, must be like Lieberman - willing to risk their positions and its perks by taking a moral, patriotic stand.