Editorial (October 9, 2009)
Clamping down on boozing
IT’S Simchat Torah and time for communal rejoicing, but as in all other years, the shadow of binge drinking clouds the simcha. In recent years, this joyous holiday honouring the Torah has been marred by widespread incidents of binge drinking, much of it by young people, many of them below the legal drinking age.
Tradition commands people to be happy on this holiday, but unfortunately that has increasingly been interpreted as an excuse to get drunk.
The sight of young people immobilised by alcohol, endangering their health and exposing themselves to all kinds of calamities, is about as far as you can stray from the spirituality of the Torah.
Perhaps Samuel Gurewicz, principal of Beth Rivkah Ladies College in Melbourne, said it best this week: “Simchat Torah means you are happy about the Torah, not the vodka.”
It would seem needless to say, but the role of parents, educators and rabbis is critical in sending the right message.
Available alcohol must be carefully monitored and offered under strict supervision only. Apart from a supervised l’chaim for those over the age of 18, it should play no role in rejoicing with the Torah.
Under-aged members of the community should not have access to alcoholic drinks, and all other drinking should be done in moderation.
Parents should talk to their children and explain the ground rules and why they are in place, while educators need to establish long-term education programs, not just for Simchat Torah and for Purim, but for year-round behaviour at occasions where alcohol can become a threat.
The Progressive movement has taken a positive step in this regard, banning any youth access to alcohol in its Simchat Torah activities.
Synagogue boards of management should be mindful of their legal liabilities and the fact that it is against the law to provide liquor to people below the legal age.
For young people, the message is simple. It’s never cool to be drunk, and Simchat Torah is no exception.
Signs of life
ISRAELI soldier Gilad Shalit, held by Hamas captors in Gaza for well over three years, is alive. We know this thanks to a short video recording that was obtained by the Israeli government last Friday in a trade for 20 Palestinian prisoners.
It was a painful video to watch, but also a relief of sorts for those of us who have held him in our thoughts and prayers throughout his ordeal. He appeared reasonably healthy, sound and alive. And with those short, simple signs of life, there is a newfound hope that somehow, Shalit’s tragic story may have a happy ending.
It is a sad reflection on Jewish history that our religion has plenty to say about the mitzvah of pidyon shevuim — the redemption of Jewish captives. It is a subject that has even been raised in the Talmud. While redeeming captives is an important mitzvah, it is essential to remember the talmudic advisement “not [to] redeem captives for more than their value”.
The meaning of that curious entry is complex, but on one level, it foretells the wisdom — as true in ancient times as it is today — that to pay an intolerably costly ransom would encourage more kidnappings.
Similarly, in Shalit’s case — putting the moral question of freeing murderers aside — the delicate balance that Israeli negotiators seek is to ensure¬† the minimum required to secure the captive’s release, without venturing into dangerous overcompensation that could precipitate another round of hostage-taking.
In the past, Israel has endured anguish to avoid this kind of devil’s bargain. Notably, in October 1994, when the Oslo Accords were in their infancy and the Palestinians lacked truly autonomous areas in which to harbour a captive, Israeli soldier Nachshon Wachsman was kidnapped.
The kidnappers sought a quick prisoner-release deal and instead of bargaining, then prime minister Yitzhak Rabin launched a rescue team. Although the mission failed to secure Wachsman’s safe return, the terrorists were killed, and the message Rabin delivered to Palestinian terrorists was successful: kidnapping does not pay. It was a lesson that endured until June 25, 2006, when Shalit was taken.
That Israel has now traded prisoners for a video of Shalit is a sure sign the Israeli government plans to move forward with a massive prisoner swap for Shalit in the not-so-distant future. In its wake, Israel will be faced with the Herculean challenge of restoring its deterrence to avoid future kidnappings.
But after looking Shalit in the eye, surely the die has been cast for Israel and the Jewish people: bring him home.
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