Unfortunately, the column featuring Mr. Simonoff (Pg. 3, Jan. 11 Voice) served as a platform for the philosophy of “JStreet.” Therefore, I feel compelled to respond.

“JStreet” and others on the left believe that if only Israel would be nice…end restrictions on Gaza and remove the separation barrier and stop building apartments in Jerusalem and…the Palestinians would have no alternative but to recognize Israel’s right to exist and live in peace.

This approach did not work when Israel unilaterally gave up Gaza and there is no reason to believe it would work today. The fact is that, unfortunately, in the real world, there are bad people who want to do bad things.

The core issue is the Palestinian denial of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish State. Until this fact is addressed, there will never be a constructive dialog.

Israel’s legitimacy is under attack every day in the media, at universities, at the UN, and elsewhere. For those interested in Israel’s survival, I suggest joining two critical organizations: AIPAC, which works to insure congress is well informed about the Middle East, and CAMERA (Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America), which works to correct bias and inaccuracies in the media.

Marv Schlanger
Cherry Hill