US / Israel Relationship

Is Important To Both Countries

To the Editor:

The letter by Dom Nocturne in The Bee on February 25, 2011 [“Time To End Aid To Israel,” Letter Hive] was not only biased, it was also a misrepresentation of the importance of US financial aid to its allies. Mr Nocturne erroneously singled out Israel as the only country which the US should stop aiding financially. He neglected to mention Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other unstable, so-called allies, whose support of the US is, at best, minimal and frail. Israel was, is, and will remain forever the strongest ally of the USA in the Middle East and the relationship between these two nations is equally important for both.

Mr Nocturne’s claim that stopping aid to Israel will stop the “fuel over the Middle East fire” is another unfortunate statement — it is as if Israel’s military strength is the cause for the Middle East’s problems. The truth is that it is Israel’s mere existence and attempt to be a beacon of justice and civility in that region that is the cause for the ongoing attempts by Muslim regimes to destroy it.

Mr Nocturne is wrong again in failing to mention that most of the foreign aid is spent in the US for the purchase of heavy machinery, industrial equipment, airplanes (and yes, arms), thus helping to stimulate the US economy.

If Mr Nocturne is genuinely interested in a meaningful discussion regarding US foreign aid, he will have to use more than mere criticism of the aid to Israel.

Laurie Kilchevsky

President

Jewish Federation of

Greater Danbury and Putnam County

9 Equestrian Ridge, Newtown                               February 27, 2011