Beginnings
Suddenly, it's June. The problem, of course, is that I write words like that when in fact, tediously, it's still May. And just now, the word of Congressional approval (more properly, the failure of...
...On the plane package proposal, we could have done exactly that...
...We are not so strong that we can afford to squander our resources in hopeless fights—the more so when there is no need to, when by acknowledging the impossibility of the perfect victory we increase the prospect of a limited victory...
...Of course we did, but the Israelis were themselves undecided regarding their second choice...
...And we need to, besides...
...Have a good summer...
...We can win only when we can put together a coalition of people who, for their own reasons as well as ours, agree with us...
...In one of last month's articles, a heavy-handed editor took a most uncalled-for swipe at Arik Sharon...
...Approval of the proposal is unfortunate on two counts...
...Like it or not, that was a given...
...Since we propose to prfesent these subscriptions as a gift from the American Jewish community, we'd like to involve as many people as possible...
...Yet that was, in the early weeks of the battle, what we chose to insist upon...
...The author of the article was not responsible, and the editor begs forgiveness, and Sharon, however much we disagree with him politically, deserves better...
...In this issue, you will find an important article on intermarriage (important because it questions the conventional gloomy wisdom), as well as both a memoir and a short story that probe aspects of marriage, inter and other...
...If—and I stress the conditional—if that was what the Israelis were thinking, the one benefit of the debacle is that they will know better next time...
...It is doubly risky when there is confusion as to the desired outcome, as there most surely was in this instance...
...Speaking of mistakes, we committed a rather major one last month, and it is with genuine embarrassment and regret that I herewith apologize for it...
...So, moment is contrite...
...One day Dayan said one thing, the next day another...
...The second, which may be more immediately significant, is the political danger to which our loss of this fight with the Administration exposes us...
...General Brown really was wrong...
...moment's readers have been responding nicely, and, thus far, we have raised close to $30,000...
...When a President mobilizes all his resources, and loses, you haven't exactly won a friend...
...The shame is that it was a needless waste of our resources...
...Enjoy, be careful in the sun, remember that our next issue is the combined July-August issue and will be out around the beginning of August...
...Some of you may know alumni of particular universities who might be prepared to stand for sufficient subscriptions to serve their own alma mater's freshman population...
...But that is not nearly enough, and we are still looking for individuals, foundations and institutions that will help to subsidize the program...
...The consequence is that our mythical power has been shown to be limited...
...Last week, we sent a letter to every synagogue in America, encouraging brotherhoods, sisterhoods, and other synagogue bodies to subsidize their own young people who are off to college...
...Did we not know better...
...So, in the meantime, we flailed about in a futile effort to do the impossible...
...And the lingering question is whether the Israeli confusion derived, in any measure, from the Israeli assumption that we would be able to deliver the most desired outcome, a "no" to the Saudis...
...No one was certain, and the uncertainty remained until the very last week of the process, by which time it had become too late to forge the necessary coalition to defeat all three proposals—the position to which the Israelis finally came...
...I promised in this space last month an update on our college program, the exciting project whereby we hope to be able to provide every incoming Jewish college freshman in the United States with a free subscription to moment, beginning in the fall of '78...
...Weizman said one thing, Dayan another...
...And just now, the word of Congressional approval (more properly, the failure of the Senate to disapprove) the Administration proposals for the sale of warplanes to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Israel has been announced...
...If you haven't yet made your tax deductible gift to this program, there's a handy blank on page 7...
...Such a direct test of strength is always a very risky business, since even a victory can easily backfire...
...Back to June, the month for marriage...
...Given only two alternatives—planes for everyone or planes for no one—which did the Israelis prefer...
...For on this one, the Jewish community, spearheaded by AIP AC (the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee) decided to go to the mat with the President...
...The first, and more obvious, is the military danger which arming the Saudis with the F-15 poses to Israel—Saudi assurances regarding the use of the plane notwithstanding...
...On the plane package proposal, it was clear from the start that neither the President nor the Congress was prepared to say "yes" to Egypt and Israel and "no" to the Saudis...
...The goal for the project is ambitious: estimating that we will have the names of 40,000 freshmen, we need $360,000 (charging half our usual price) to pull it off...
Vol. 3 • June 1978 • No. 7
