editorials
Solving the infrastructure puzzle
W e all understand the need
to invest in maintaining and
upgrading our nation’s infrastructure.

That includes work on such fundamentals
like roads, bridges, transportation, water
and energy distribution and the upgrade
of communication networks, including
the internet.

So when the Senate passed a
$1 trillion infrastructure bill with
bipartisan support that addressed
many of those issues, most of us
nodded in agreement. We did so
even though we knew that there
were some who sought a broader
definition of infrastructure, and a
much bigger plan — just as there
were others who opposed the plan
and were concerned about funding
and deficit implications. The next
day, however, Democratic senators
(with no Republican support) passed
another “infrastructure” bill for $3.5
trillion, in order to address a wide
range of social needs. It could take
months for Congress to work through
ACCORDING TO THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET
OFFICE, THE $1 TRILLION INFRASTRUCTURE
PACKAGE WILL ADD $256 BILLION TO THE
FEDERAL DEFICIT OVER THE NEXT DECADE.

the two bills, with no assurance at
this time that sufficient votes exist to
pass a blended measure.

The Biden administration and the
Democratic Party are seeking to
exploit a thin Democratic majority in
the House and the vice president’s
swing vote in a divided Senate to
address pressing societal needs.

Thus, the $3.5 trillion spending plan
includes $726 billion to expand
education opportunities, $198 billion
toward clean energy, $20.5 billion in
investments in Native communities,
$18 billion to upgrade VA facilities,
$332 billion toward housing
affordability and so on. While each
of these items is worthy, we worry
that the all-inclusive approach seeks
to do too much at once and fails to
give sufficient consideration to the
financial implications of the overall
undertaking. That doesn’t mean that all of the
programs should be abandoned.

But it does suggest that a more
comprehensive analysis of the
financial ramifications of the expanded
programming should be performed
— including an honest assessment
of governmental revenue sources
to pay for them. According to the
Congressional Budget Office, the $1
trillion infrastructure package will add
$256 billion to the federal deficit over
the next decade. We cannot afford
multiples of that number for a $3.5
trillion plan.

Fingerhut’s four asks
W hen it comes to issues of
communal safety
and institutional security, congressional
testimony by representatives of our
community have historically focused
on Jewish-centric concerns, like the rise
of antisemitism and encouragement
for government to do more to protect
against it. There is nothing wrong with
that; the government’s responsibility
to protect its citizenry applies to the
Jewish community, just like every other.

But last week, in testimony before
the Senate Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs,
Eric Fingerhut, president and CEO
of The Jewish Federations of North
America, took the opportunity to
go beyond parochial needs, as he
urged lawmakers to make broader
improvements in the security for all
faith-based and nonprofit communities
against the threats of domestic
terrorism and violent extremism.

14 While highlighting the distressing
rise in violent antisemitic incidents,
Fingerhut also spoke about ongoing
threats to minorities of color and
non-Christian worshipers as he
built his case. He reported that the
nonprofit community has been part
of an “increasingly sophisticated
and collaborative public/private
partnership” to address security
concerns, but lamented that “the
growth in need for security assistance
has drastically outpaced available
resources.” Thus, he argued, “only
about 45% of the nearly 3,400 eligible
applicants who applied [for security
assistance] in fiscal year 2021 were
approved and only 45% of the $400
million in total security investments
requested were funded.”
Fingerhut, the former CEO of
Hillel International, who was once a
Democratic congressman from Ohio,
had concrete suggestions: First,
AUGUST 26, 2021 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
he called for the designation of the
charitable sector as a critical part of the
nation’s infrastructure. Currently, there
are 16 designated sectors considered
so vital to the United States that their
incapacitation or destruction would
have a debilitating effect on the
country. “The charitable sector has not
yet received such a designation, and
we urge you to give it one,” he said.

Second, he called for a substantial
increase in the funding to the Nonprofit
Security Grant Program — which at
present meets the needs of less than half
of the applicants for security funding.

Third, he asked for increased access to
the Department of Homeland Security’s
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
Security Agency’s Protective Security
Advisors (PSAs) and Cybersecurity
Advisors (CSAs), in order to help make
the grant-making process smoother
and more widespread, “especially
for the benefit of newly eligible
We are concerned that a one-party
rush to the finish line could result
in waste, mistakes and unintended
consequences. Yet we recognize the
limited window of opportunity and
fraught internal challenge faced by
the Democratic Party. That’s where
the party’s standard bearer, President
Joe Biden, can lead. As noted by
Russell Berman in The Atlantic, “For
Biden the good news is that he is
a president particularly well suited
to landing on the sweet spot for his
party. If he had a singular talent over
the course of nearly half a century in
elected office, it was in finding the
political center — not necessarily of
the country as a whole, but of the
Democratic Party.”
If Biden wants to get his mega-plan
through, Biden will have to guide
Congress through a comprehensive
analysis and presentation that
minimizes waste, provides targeted
solutions and makes clear how those
ambitious initiatives will be funded. l
suburban and rural communities.”
Finally, he encouraged the enactment
of the Pray Safe Act to establish a
federal clearinghouse through which
faith-based organizations, houses
of worship and other nonprofits can
access centralized information on
best practices for safety and security,
available federal-grant programs and
training opportunities.

Fingerhut’s broad appeal resonated.

He gave the Senate committee four
targeted “asks” that would benefit
the entire nonprofit sector and
provide a nation-wide yardstick by
which congressional action can be
measured. As Congress refines the
meaning of critical infrastructure
to be much more than simply roads
and bridges, we encourage them to
include the enhanced protection of
minority communities and nonprofits
from extremists and terrorists within
our national infrastructure. l



opinions\ letters
My Orthodox Life:
A Response to
‘My Unorthodox Life’
T BY RABBI JOEL E. HOFFMAN regime entails studying
Tanach (Hebrew Bible), which
he reality series “My is full of moral and ethical
Unorthodox Life” is teachings, analyzing fine
the talk of the Jewish points of Jewish law and
world since its airing on Netflix engaging in deep-thinking on
on July 14. The show’s star concepts in Jewish philosophy.

Julia Haart, who left her Ultra- When I pray I speak to God,
Orthodox community in 2013 but when I study God “speaks”
at age 42, quickly advanced to me — which means I obtain
in the fashion industry and answers to ultimate questions,
is CEO of the modeling and every day I encounter a
agency Elite World Group. In teaching that is apropos for
the show, Haart constantly something current in my life.

(3) By eating only kosher
bashes Orthodox Judaism
with misrepresentations while food I concretize the value
trying to showcase that living of all life. This is because the
kosher slaughtering process is
a secular life is way better.

I am not writing to cast the most ethical way to end
judgment on Haart for her an animal’s life since it assures
life choices. Judaism forbids the quickest death with the
me from judging anyone but least amount of pain. Keeping
myself. Rather, what follows kosher is Judaism’s compromise
is a counter perspective to with vegetarianism.

(4) Throughout my day I try
Haart’s propaganda against
Judaism in general, and to live according to the Jewish
Orthodox Judaism in particular. maxim: “Think Good and It’ll Be
My Orthodox Life consists Good,” as well as the teachings:
See the good in every person;
of ...

(1) Immediately upon see the positive in every
waking up in the morning my situation; and view every
first words are “Modeh Ani challenge as an opportunity.

the hardest
Lifanecha ...” which thank God Perhaps
for giving me another day. Also, commandment to observe is
three times per day I engage in not speaking “Lashon Hara” —
formal prayer, and throughout which is not to say something
the day I say a blessing before about a person that I would not
and after eating or drinking. say if that person was present.

The first series of prayers Trying to live by these ideals
in the morning reminds me is the ultimate in personal
of dozens of gifts from God development.

(5) No essay about Judaism
such as a properly working
digestive system, eye sight, would be complete without
clothes and freedom. Praying discussing Shabbat. Every
and saying blessings helps me Friday night I enjoy akin to a
foster a sense of appreciation, Thanksgiving dinner with my
which is a key component for family, and for 25 hours I am
free from all appointments and
living a happy/joyous life.

(2) A staple of everyday refrain from using technology
Jewish life includes studying — so no using a cellphone,
Jewish texts. My daily study computer or car. Plus, all
the food I intend to eat on
Saturday is cooked before
Shabbat. Shabbat aligns a
person to spend one day per
week focusing on only the
important things in life: family,
camaraderie with other Jews,
praying and learning, while
getting mental and physical
rest. A Shabbat afternoon nap
is amazing! (Why did afternoon
naps stop after kindergarten?!)
If God ever said we no
longer had to keep Shabbat,
probably 99.99% of Jews who
traditionally keep Shabbat
would continue to do so.

Haart has rejected all the
above and says she gets
meaning from being “free,”
which for her manifests
in wearing sexy outfits and
eating oysters; and she also
purposely uses the biased
word “Fundamentalism” to
badger Orthodox Judaism.

Interestingly, Haart’s show
co-stars her three adult
children, of which two have
remained Orthodox and they
concurrently demonstrate
that one can be an observant
Jew even while working in
the fashion industry. (Haart
also has a teenage son who is
Orthodox, lives with his dad
and appears on the show.)
There are aspects of the
show which I like and I intend
to watch future seasons,
but my focus here is on My
Orthodox Life. As one can
hopefully see from this essay,
the more Jewish practices
in which a Jew engages, the
more meaning he or she will
add to their life. l
Joel E. Hoffman is ordained as a
rabbi but works as a math and
special education teacher.

Book Review Perpetuates Left-Wing Smears
Both the novel and its reviewer (“Bibi Netanyahu as Fiction,”
June 17) perpetuate the leftist smears that former Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is two-faced when addressing
domestic/foreign audiences, that he is Manichean and that he
disdains the galut.

It was former Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman
Yasser Arafat whose modus operandi was to lie in English as he
fomented an intifada in Arabic; it was Netanyahu who forged
a productive relationship with Putin despite his alignment with
the Ayatollah, and it was Netanyahu who burnished ties with
American Jewry despite persistent sabotage from groups such
as the ADL.

As a fellow graduate of Cheltenham High School, I find it
reprehensible that omitted from both the book of fiction and
its fictionalized review, was any citation of how his political/
moral character was impacted both by his father’s scholarship
at Dropsie College and his brother’s death at Entebbe.

ROBERT B. SKLAROFF | RYDAL
Criticism of Israeli Government Not Anti-Israel
Greater Philadelphia ZOA Executive Director Steve Feldman’s
op-ed (“Don’t Wait for War to Defend Israel,” June 17) asking us
to defend Israel is a perfect example of what Jews and Israel
do not need. It is full of innuendo, accusations, generalizations
and false statements, while at the same time professing to tell
the “abundantly clear” truth and decrying the spread of much
disinformation. So, let us not spread more disinformation.

We certainly need to be vigilant and active. Balanced
education initiatives concerning Middle East history are needed
across the country. This is a long-term process. But, know this:
The folks I know can find Israel on the map and fully support
its right to exit in peace. Yet they disapprove of what the Israeli
and U.S. governments have been doing. Being critical of the
actions of your own or other governments does not a priori
make one anti-anything other than these governments.

As we have learned in the U.S., people are easily driven
to hate, mistrust and a belief in falsehoods, to say nothing
of violence and brazen damage of person and property. To
advocate for Jews to “press” leaders at all government levels for
resolutions that blindly support Israel without acknowledging
both sides of the historical equation does everyone a disservice.

We do not need more of this rhetoric.

But, we do need to acknowledge the need for peace in the
Middle East, and the role of Middle East leaders on both sides
in making the peace possible. For many decades, now, neither
side has been helpful in this mission. l
FRANK L. FRIEDMAN | PHIL ADELPHIA
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