Correspondents' Correspondence

...Could they visit Israel...

...Correspondents' Correspondence BRIEF TAKEOUTS OF MORE THAN PERSONAL INTEREST FROM LETTERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS RECEIVED BY THE EDITORS Soviet Bondage, 5730 Moscow—Both here and in Leningrad, the most common reply of the Jews one meets to questions about then: interest in Israel is, "Take me there" Although few Westerners are likely to have been deceived by the spate of recent "spontaneous" statements denouncing the Jerusalem government issued over the signatures of prominent Russian Jews, many might nevertheless be surprised at the depth of emotion greeting any information concerning Israel from a foreigner Once it is established that the visitor is Jewish, reticence turns to hospitality, should he also happen to be from New York, hospitality becomes delight In fact, the Russian Jews I met were no less curious about the American Jewish community—where almost all seem to have relatives—than about Israel, in part because they are subjects of a great deal of hostile propaganda Several men asked if it was true that, as they had been told, relations between Russian and Yemeni Jews in Israel had deteriorated into violent confrontations Others asked whether Jews and Negroes in New York actually fought gun battles Some questions reflected existing restrictions Could American Jews leave the country at will...

...Did their passports bear the identification, "Jew...

...The synagogue remains the primary meeting place Even there, only when standing alone alongside a visitor, or m small groups, will people speak freely Once outside, those who were most friendly moments before become uneasy in conversation, and positively alarmed when they see a camera The authorities keep the synagogues under close surveillance, of course At the Friday night service I attended, the group welcoming visitors at the pulpit included one sullen, unfriendly fellow who differed markedly in age and appearance from the rest of the congregation Men who in more private surroundings proved to be quite sociable said not a word in his presence While matzoh, the traditional unleavened bread, is not so scarce this Passover as in past years, prayer books still seem difficult to come by, those of the rabbi and other religious officials here are m tatters But more significant for the future of Russian Judaism and more worrisome to the men and women with whom one speaks, is the government's prohibition against Jewish religious education The average age of the people I met in and around the synagogue was not far from 60, and no one pretended that the younger generation was well schooled in or faithful to Jewish laws and customs Yet whatever the Soviets' "success" m repressing the growth of the community's future leaders, they have failed utterly in their attempts to convince Russian Jews that Israel is an aggressive, imperialist nation or that their brothers in America do not live comfortably To see the faces of person after person as they are told, "He is an American Jew, and he has been to Israel," is to know the claims of the Soviet government for the mockery they truly are—Elliott Abrams Thai Security Bangkok—Knowledgeable Americans here note that while everyone's attention is turned toward Laos and Cambodia, Thailand's security situation is quietly deteriorating The gist of several recent press briefings is that government forces have virtually conceded the rugged mountainous country up north to rebel hill-tribes-men (mostly Meos) who are led, and increasingly equipped, by cadres returning to their people from China and/or North Vietnam Government forces surround the mountains and occupy the lowlands, hoping in this way to keep the insurgency isolated They have been largely successful so far, but recent events—primarily a wave of terrorism on an important east-west highway—do not bode well The rebel front is advancing Especially disturbing has been the prevalence of Chinese AK-47 rifles in guerrilla attacks The US is countering Two weeks ago a shipment of more than 20,000 M-16s was presented to Thai forces In terms of the whole of Thailand, the situation is serious but not drastic—at least not tor the time being While future developments in Laos and Cambodia could change things tor the worse, nobody is making any solid predictions Interestingly, Air Marshal Dawee Chullasapya, the Thai chief of staff, remarked recently that a U S presence here would be a major deterrent to Communist military action spilling over either the Laotian or Cambodian borders Although he was speaking in Manila at a seato conference his remarks were widely reported in the Bangkok press Were Dawee's observations a hint that the Thais are having some second thoughts about imminent U S troop withdrawals' Dawee sidestepped a direct answering yes, as tar as he is concerned It is still not clear whether his opinions reflect the general sentiment among Bangkok's leadership About 6.000 ot the 50,000 American military personnel in Thailand (mostly airmen) are due to leave here by the end of July-Arnold Abrams Learning by Doing New York City-Last year, the city public school system reported 2,487 pregnancies among girls in the seventh to 12th grades, double the 1961 figure If this number should double in each of the next 10 years there will be 2 5 million pregnant girls attending New York elementary and secondary schools by the time Pope Paul is 82 This is a far cry indeed from the good old golden rule days When boys in my generation were in the eighth grade we were still snickering over girlie magazines or-then feeling exceptionally virile-keeping into the girls' locker room, hoping to catch a glimpse of bare ulna Some of us, of course, had actually kissed a girl, a chosen few had even gotten as far as something called "second base " Groping our way through the misty scatological jungle we would drop words like "legina," "vulcan, "genitives," and cubic hairs" into whispered conversations, where they were greeted with appreciative smirks Although we considered ourselves worldly-wise in the extreme our parents were, it anything, concerned because we hadn't shown enough interest in the opposite sex We used to wear buttons at school-you know...

...I realize that Harding is a forward-looking school and, you understand, I'm all for it, hell, I'm as liberal as the next guy For instance I think this natural childbirth seminar for fourth-graders is terrific But I wonder a little-just raising the question, you understand-about the wisdom of having the babies delivered during science classes "That program is still in the experimental stage, of course So far, however everything has proceeded most comfortably and uneventfully The children, I might add, seem to prefer it to the current Bntannica film series, 'Death-friend or Foe'' " Many parents, though, believe that sex education is immoral and un-American, they are understandably reluctant to have their children exposed to such filthy lies and propaganda at school when their rightful place is in the home Still, the New York City Health Department continues to press ahead, spreading in its Emergency Procedures Relating to Pregnant Teen-agers Attending School little gems of natal wisdom to keep the gym teacher on his toes ("Pregnancy is a normal condition, and tor most of the girls attending school it will proceed comfortably and uneventfully Let baby slide into your arms every caution should be taken to prevent dropping the baby ") The Health Department is well aware that the five-page booklet, while comprehensive, may leave a few questions unanswered Well informed sources report that a series of one-page mimeographed supplements will soon be mailed to all city teachers Reportedly, these will include "Birth Control in the Young Republic," "Tasteful Wedding Services for the Classroom," and "How to Perform a Caesarean During Recess" ("A Caesarean is a perfectly normal operation-hundreds are performed successfully every day-and should proceed uneventfully for student and teacher alike ") A little learning, Department officials hope, may go a long way ?Robert Sandoz...

...Mantle buttons, Wagner buttons Batman buttons Big-guy stuff Today it a kid wears one it is more likely to read, "It's a Boy'" And when he mentions second base, he's talking about the Mets He has three major goals in life getting rid of those unsightly blemishes, wnting a book report on A Boy's Life of Daniel Boone, and building a nest egg for his son's college education Who knows-maybe your 13-year-old lad is placing those classifieds in the East Village Other "Peach-fuzzed well-hung expertise in all cultures studied through seventh grade " This is a boy who can't get into a movie rated R or X-too racy for him, might give him ideas The question now being asked by a growing number ot parents is, "What's my child doing lying around the house when he could be out watching an X-rated movie9 Whatever it is he's doing, it's having an effect on ever-sensitive parent-teacher relations and so, ladies and gentlemen, that is a brief summary of our maternity program here at Harding Elementary Any questions or comments' Yes Sir...