So, retired UNC professor Leuchtenburg chooses to attack the messenger (CHN, Sept. 23, bit.ly/UuVfsI) that for years has been practicing Pulitzer Prize-level journalism by exposing corruption in North Carolina governance. Will elitists of this ilk never learn?

Bruce C. Ladd Jr.

Chapel Hill

Israel singled out

I watched the Chapel Hill Town council meeting with great interest as Mark Davidson and others discussed town policy. They discussed the bus ads sponsored by the Church of Reconciliation that ask for an end to military aid to Israel.

I was taken by his statements suggesting that ending aid to Israel would free up funds for Americans in need. This wouldn’t be nearly as offensive to me if the church proposed to reduce aid to all countries who receive help from America – in order to take care of our own problems. Instead, the church has singled out military aid to Israel as the focus of its attention. I have come to find out this church is associated with “U.S, Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation.” Israelis are not occupiers of Israel. Israelis are reclaiming their homeland.

Israel’s very existence is threatened every single day. Hamas and Hezbollah regularly attack Israeli homes and communities. There is no nation on earth that would tolerate the suicide bombers and rockets that are a part of everyday lives. How could the church, of all places, be so insensitive to one side?

The Jews in Israel are eager to negotiate; Just, SECURE borders to separate the two states. The Palestinians refuse to acknowledge the state of Israel. The neighboring Muslim states have yet to acknowledge the state of Israel. I am appalled that the church of all places does not present both sides of the story. The public buses are not the venue for political discourse. Anti-Israeli propaganda or any political propaganda does not belong on a public bus.

What’s next in free speech on the bus, Ku Klux Klan slogans?

Rebecca Yomtov Hauser

Carrboro

Mrs. Hauser adds that she is a holocaust survivor and that her Jewish community in Greece, Ioannina, was destroyed during the Holocaust. Most of the few survivors from her community found refuge in the United States and Israel.

False witness

My basic feeling about Mr. Ken Weiss’ letter to the editor (CHN, Sept. 23, bit.ly/Sei3LI ) is not to dignify it with a response. But, sadly, there is again the need to correct misinformation.

That someone could construe my public remarks at the Town Council meeting on Sept. 12 as an “anti-Israel diatribe” astonishes me. The letter bears false witness and wounds the church I serve.

At any rate, the readers of the Chapel Hill News deserve to read the full text of my statement and form their own opinion.

Find it online: churchrec.org....click on “bus ad” in the navigation bar and open the link to the Town Council meeting.

The Rev. J. Mark Davidson

Church of Reconciliation

Ads enlighten

I'm writing this in response to a letter by Ken Weiss (CHN, Sept. 23, bit.ly/Sei3LI)

Since our major media is deficient in reporting the humanitarian plight of the Palestinian people, signs on buses are necessary to encourage enlightenment and discussion of that subject.

Israel's occupation of Palestine and crimes committed against the innocent constitute genocidal conduct which is anathema to international law and has been condemned by the U.N. and many other respected organizations – yet our U.S. government has promised Israel 30 BILLION dollars military aid from 2009 to 2018. That's $3 billion a year and over $8 million a day!

When military aid is used to purchase weapons that are used against civilians this violates U.S. law and we need to convince our U.S. government to stop aid to any government that has been condemned for its human and civil rights violations!

So Mr. Weiss, if a “political” problem of a government become human rights and civil rights problems the “political” problem then leaves the “political” realm and becomes a humanitarian issue. We then need every avenue, including ads on buses, to promote discussion to educate and activate people to contact their elected officials in the U.S. Congress demanding them to take proper action. I believe this is what a civilized society would do.

Bette Smith

Chapel Hill

Tiger thanks

Roses to all the supporters of CHHS’s First Annual Tiger CHill Carnival (including a very generous anonymous donor)!!

The Tiger CHill carnival at Chapel Hill High School was a wonderful event; one that I truly enjoyed co-chairing. I worked with an amazingly talented group of students, school staff and parent volunteers to create a fabulous first-time event for the entire community. Additionally, we received lots of support and many generous donations from local businesses. Everyone’s hard work allowed Chapel Hill High’s clubs, teams, arts programs and PTSA to earn much needed money for their activities.

I was enormously proud of all that our committee accomplished. And I loved seeing all the smiling faces of kids of all ages enjoying the games, food and entertainment that Saturday. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

But to my great astonishment, I received an envelope that confirmed that we really do live, work and go to school in an awesome community! Just a few days after the carnival, I found taped to my garage door a note containing a very generous donation to CHHS. This random act of kindness from an anonymous CHHS Alum and parent, was the icing on the cake of what was an already fantastic event.

The donor expressed “As Alumni of CHHS we were impressed by such an undertaking and want to donate to our school.” Also at the end of the note they said “Thank you and to the new administration for doing a fine job and kicking the school year off with such a bang!”

I can’t thank this person enough for their kind words and generous donation! We really appreciate it so much.

Thank you to everyone who made Tiger CHill possible! We are part of a great school and a terrific community!

Sondra Komada

Tiger CHill co-chair

CHHS PTSA vice president