As I am sure all of you are already aware, the Democratic Presidential Candidate, Vice President Al Gore has selected Senator Joseph Lieberman as HIS Vice Presidential running mate in this current election campaign. What makes this REALLY big news is of course the fact that Senator Lieberman is Jewish. This is the very first time a Jewish person has been on the ticket in a presidential race. Should Mr. Gore win this election, Vice President Lieberman (doesn’t that look great in print? J) will be at the proverbial “heartbeat away from the presidency!” AND, should President Gore enjoy a successful eight year run, it is more than conceivable that Vice President Lieberman would run in the next election and quite possibly become…dare I say it?…..President Lieberman!!!!! Just typing those words brought a chill running down my spine. Let me type it again….. President Lieberman! Ahhhhhh. What a mecheieh (extraordinary pleasure) to think of the possibility of at long last having a Jew sworn in as President of the United States of America!

Now, before I get totally carried away, let me get back to reality. The conventions have come to a close and any moment now the BIG campaign will really get started. Between now and 7 November, we will be bombarded with television, radio and newspaper ads prompting us to vote for a specific candidate. At the beginning, these ads will be civil and try to deal with actual issues at hand. BUT, we all know that within a short time these advertisements will become increasingly personal and negative, if not downright nasty and despicable. One of the questions though that has come to the surface for the first time is whether or not Senator Lieberman’s religion will play a part in this tactic.

It is my personal opinion that NO ONE would dare even hint at a disparaging remark aimed at the fact that Senator Lieberman is a Jew. That would be almost certain political suicide (and it wouldn’t look nice either). However, that will not necessarily stop other, less mainstream venues from not so subtly attacking the religious aspect of this race. For the most part, the comments concerning Senator Lieberman’s religious beliefs have been positive or non-committal. But the Internet has been rife with hate filled commentary already and there have also been some far less than flattering pieces written by some racist political writers. All in all, for a contest that promised from the start to be particularly dull, it is beginning to appear as if this could wind up being one of the most interesting campaigns in a very long time.

Please select what best reflects your feelings about having a Jewish person on the ticket.

It's about time!!! - I'm kvelling!!! - Uh Oh! They'll blame us yet! - But is he competent? - I don't care about politics!

I hope you are all enjoying these last weeks of the summer season. Here in Montreal we have been experiencing unusually cool temperatures all summer long. Many of us are wondering if this is any indication of what the temps this winter will be like. Normal is quite cold enough thank you. Below normal? No thank you!!

Next weekend (25-27 August) is the Catskill Mountains Reunion Convention I mentioned recently. I will report the details in the next issue of the Megillah.

‘til we meet again, be well and enjoy this issue of The Gantseh Megillah!
My love to all of you,
Michael
Editor