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Wednesday's letters: Wiesel's message endures

 
Published July 5, 2016

Help choose letter of the month

Letters to the editor offer a significant contribution to the discussion of public policy and life in Tampa Bay. To recognize some of that work by our most engaged readers, the Times will select a letter of the month and the writers will be recognized at the end of the year.

Help us choose from the nominations for letter of the month for June by visiting the website listed below by Friday. Read through the three letters and vote on the ballot at the bottom of the web page. We will choose the finalists each month based on relevance on topical issues, persuasiveness and writing style. The writer's opinion does not need to match the editorial board's opinion on the issue to be nominated. But clarity of thinking, brevity and a sense of humor certainly help.

To see the three June nominees and vote, go to www.tampabay.com/opinion.

Voice for the lost | July 3

Remember Wiesel's story

I cannot describe the sorrow I felt when I heard that Elie Wiesel had passed away. His book Night was the first that I, like most of my generation, had ever read about the Holocaust. I still remember the strained conversations in my high school classroom. How could this have happened? And why didn't anyone do anything to stop it?

Over 70 years after the liberation of Auschwitz, we are still pondering the same questions.

Wiesel was an extraordinary man who used his personal experiences of the Holocaust to work on behalf of all oppressed people, to defend human rights and encourage peace throughout the world.

His mantra was education, education, education. He felt that the more tomorrow's adults knew of the consequences of prejudice and hatred, the brighter humanity's future would be.

Wiesel had been involved with the Florida Holocaust Museum since its inception almost 25 years ago, serving as honorary chairman and adviser throughout its journey from a small room at the back of a Jewish community center to its current site in downtown St. Petersburg. He was on hand to cut the ribbon when the downtown museum opened to the public in 1998.

In 2012, the museum honored Wiesel with the Loebenberg Humanitarian Award during its annual To Life gala. Speaking to a packed audience that included community leaders as well as high school and college students, Wiesel cautioned them that silence is never the answer and "forgetfulness is close to a crime."

Wiesel was called a "messenger to mankind" by the Nobel Committee as they awarded him the Peace Prize in 1986, and "one of the most important spiritual leaders and guides in an age when violence, repression and racism continue to characterize the world." His death leaves a large vacuum at a time when his words and deeds are desperately needed. The most meaningful act each one of us can do to honor his memory is to be his legacy and his witness: to remember and pass down his story and the stories of all those who endured the incomprehensible anguish of the Holocaust and other genocides; to raise our voices whenever and wherever we see human beings enduring suffering and humiliation today.

And, most importantly, to not lose hope. In the words of Wiesel, "Hope is like peace. It is not a gift from God. It is a gift only we can give one another."

Elizabeth Gelman, executive director, Florida Holocaust Museum, St. Petersburg

Terrorism

Focus on the enemy

Like many Americans, I am struggling to understand why President Barack Obama, as our commander in chief, cannot label the enemy and openly declare war on them. Civilizations throughout history provide numerous examples of "bad actors" within a certain religion, ethnicity, race or political affiliation. Our great nation is not exempt. We've had our share of bloodshed as a result. I would like to think we've learned from our lessons and become a better nation in the process. We've passed laws to ensure that we as a nation don't discriminate or punish whole segments of our population simply because some "bad actors" committed heinous crimes. I believe this can also be the case when identifying "radical Islamists."

I am Hawaiian-born with Filipino ethnicity. So I know this sounds crazy, but let's say that the New People's Army, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, a designated foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, suddenly decided to conduct transnational terrorist operations in the United States in order to pressure U.S. policy toward the legitimate Filipino government. If that occurred, I for one would not be "ethnically offended" if the president called the organization "radical Filipinos" and brought to bear all available national resources to eradicate these terrorists. I don't want him to be politically correct. Rather, as our commander in chief, I expect him to protect our vital national security interests. And I believe that other fellow ethnic Filipinos (and all Americans) would feel the same.

Mr. President, call out and cut out the bad apples. You'll preserve the integrity of the remaining (and grateful) bushel.

D.J. Reyes, Tampa

How Pinellas commissioners cost taxpayers $16.5 million | July 1, editorial

Commission did right

I believe that the Pinellas County Commission acted sensibly and responsibly by rejecting a proposal to build a 246-unit luxury apartment complex in Safety Harbor.

Loss of natural habitat and scarcity of affordable housing are acute problems requiring careful consideration and management. Further, as a peninsula, Pinellas is acutely vulnerable to sea level rise. The last thing we need is high-density luxury residential development. This type of development results in heavier traffic, pollution — carbon, noise and light — changes the historic and cultural character of neighborhoods, and further reduces precious green space.

What is gained except short-term profit for the builder? The Times states that this proposal was indistinguishable from 17 previous ones that were approved. The problem may be in those approvals, not this rejection. The narrow legal interpretation of the judge and county attorney ignores the public's legitimate concerns. Thankfully, the commission did not.

Joe Weinzettle, St. Petersburg