Last week’s Ledger included statements on Gaza from our state’s two Senators. They were very different. While both expressed complete agreement with Israel’s right to defend herself, Senator Christopher Dodd diluted that right with the cliche that there is “no military solution to the conflict.”

After seven years of rockets and bombs which all but paralyzed Israel’s southern population centers, Israel was left with only one choice and that is the one she is pursuing now. It is a military option that she executes with great care and much regret. It is important to understand how necessary this action is because Israel is also faced with another threat that either the West or she must face: a nuclear Iran. ‘America’s diplomatic might’ has not solved this problem either and the time is fast approaching when the potential becomes real and Israel will have to act to protect her very being. Military force can’t be ruled out as a possibility in Gaza now or in Iran in the future, and facile statements by a Senator regarding ‘no military solutions’ emasculates any diplomatic engagements before they even start.

Senator Joseph Lieberman, on the other hand, understands. Israel’s objective is to end the military actions against her civilian population centers particularly in the face of the growing lethality and range of Hamas’ weaponry. As Senator Lieberman says, “The sooner that Hamas abandons its unilateral campaign of terror against Israel, the sooner peace can be restored.”
Hamas didn’t stop bombing Israel of its own will and Israelis have been left with no other recourse but to stop the attacks themselves.

The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, CAMERA, keeps a keen watch over the big media outlets that blanket our world and holds them to account for their bias, hyperbole and untruths. CAMERA has, over the years, been able to speak to media outlets like The New York Times, Washington Post, the major networks like ABC, CBS, NBC as well as BBC, Reuters, NPR and many others, making them accountable for what they say and do. More often than not they secure corrections for some of the more blatant transgressions, but most importantly they provide a discerning presence that speaks to the need for precision, fairness and accuracy in the journalistic process.

Here in Connecticut we are blessed with a local version of CAMERA. PRIMER works hard every day to make sure that The Hartford Courant, The Connecticut Post, The New London Day and other news outlets around the state keep bias out of their news articles and columns. At times like these PRIMER is at its busiest. Under the superb leadership of Alan Stein, Mark Fishman, Mark Trencher, Alan Pilver and founder Sid Laibson, Primer has done its job well, enlisting an energetic and diligent group of diligent readers and letter-writers who make sure that the media in Connecticut acts responsibly.

Both great organizations understand and fully endorse the role of free speech in our society, but also recognize the need for responsible media behavior and promote the concepts of fairness, accuracy and truth. In these difficult times, Primer and CAMERA deserve our continued admiration and support.

The Ledger was gratified to see that Solidarity Shabbat around Connecticut was an idea that in one form or another was adopted by various congregations around the state. Actually, it is normal behavior for Jews to congregate within their communities when Israel is in trouble. A Solidarity Shabbat only gives voice to what is normal behavior during these turbulent times. Going to your local congregation, whether you are a member or not, this coming weekend or even the one after, is a most important way to show your solidarity with the Jewish people in Israel and around the world. Every weekend then, is a Solidarity Shabbat.
nrg

Published: Thursday, January 15, 2009 3:36 PM EST

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