Sunday, February 12, 2012

Photo by: JP Editor's Notes: Fighting for Zionism



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Photo by: JP
Editor's Notes: Fighting for Zionism
By STEVE LINDE10/02/2012
What The Jerusalem Post Annual Conference is all about
 
As we stride into 2012, there are far more questions than answers on the news that this year might yield.

Will the international community stop Iran’s nuclear program? Last year’s Arab Spring may have unleashed a new democratic spirit in the Middle East, but how will we deal with the primary beneficiaries – Islamist parties? How should the Jewish state respond to the threats posed on its northern and southern fronts by Hezbollah and Hamas? Can it make peace with the Palestinians in the wake of the rapprochement between Fatah and Hamas? 

How will the US elections affect Israel? Are we headed for another recession, or is our economy resilient enough to bounce back? Why is anti- Semitism again rearing its ugly head across the globe, and how should the Israeli government, Diaspora Jews and our many friends everywhere respond to our enemies’ attempts to delegitimize and demonize Israel? 

We believe it’s time to fight back – with the powerful weapon of words – and explain to the world why Zionism is still a just cause, that our democratic state is the antithesis of apartheid, and how our stellar “Start-Up Nation” should be shining brightly as “a light unto the nations.”

These are just some of the hot topics to be addressed at The Jerusalem Post’s first annual conference in New York on April 29.

We have assembled a line-up of prominent personalities and politicians from Israel and the US, as well as top Jerusalem Post journalists to discuss the enormous challenges facing Israel and the Jewish people.

The day-long event will provide our readers in the New York area with a unique opportunity to hear directly from our most erudite news-makers and shakers, writers and commentators.

Among the most eloquent advocates for Israel scheduled to speak are former prime minister Ehud Olmert, American Jewish leaders Malcolm Hoenlein and Abraham Foxman, Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, Ambassadors Michael Oren and Ron Prosor, MK Danny Danon, former Mossad director Meir Dagan and former IDF chief Gabi Ashkenazi.

As The Jerusalem Post – the Jewish world’s flagship newspaper – marks its 80th birthday, the conference will also serve as a forum to meet some of our own shining lights: senior editors and reporters David Brinn, Herb Keinon, Yaakov Katz and Gil Hoffman, and columnists Caroline B. Glick, Isi Leibler and Naomi Ragen.

Danny Ayalon has already given us a tantalizing taste of what he plans to talk about at the conference.

“Our enemies have failed to defeat us on the conventional battlefield, through economic boycotts and the scourge of terrorism,” he told the Post. “The assault on Israel’s legitimacy is a concern because for the first time the Jewish Diaspora is on the front lines in a battle against those who attack Israel incessantly, mercilessly and unfairly.

“The Jewish people, wherever they may live, have an equal share in Israel and its future. While those of us living in Israel have a responsibility to build the land and defend it physically, our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora have a responsibility to help us attain our achievements and assist Israel’s defense on the battleground of ideas.”

Malcolm Hoenlein, the executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, in a meeting with editors in our Jerusalem office this week, called for “a global front” against a nuclear Iran.

“The ultimate threat has to be a credible one for this to work. I think the United States and Israel do want to work together on this,” he said. “We have different interests sometimes. Even the closest of allies can have different interests, but we can’t let that be displayed publicly, and I think that what we have to do is to show a global united front.... Most of the Arab countries today fear Iran more than anything.”

Hoenlein said the Jerusalem Post Conference is being held at “an opportune time, given the political climate in America, and the many issues that we as a community are addressing, both in the United States and Israel.”

He welcomed the quality of those “on the front line of these issues who have been invited to explore them and prepare for the challenges ahead.”

“I think The Jerusalem Post is to be congratulated on this initiative, and I hope people will take advantage of this unique opportunity,” Hoenlein said.

We urge our readers to purchase tickets for this very special event as soon as possible on our website (www.jpost.com) or by phone.

In the US, you can call 1- 888-576-7881 toll free, while in Israel, call *2423. We look forward to seeing you there!

http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-EdContributors/Article.aspx?id=257238

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