rather surprisingly, came out in supportrnof Section 28, as did the chief rabbi.rnEven more surprisingly, a millionairernScottish businessman has put up moneyrnand promised to hold “poll tax-style”rnstreet demonstrations. The first result ofrnthese efforts was seen on February 7,rnwhen a packed f^ouse of Lords, whichrnvoted on the legislation before the Commons,rnthrew the bill out by a substantialrnmajoritv’, 210 to 165. Even governmentrnvaporings about how Section 28 wouldrnbe replaced with sex education whichrnstressed the importance of marriage andrnfamih’ life did not convince manyrnIjabour peers.rnI’his result is, however, only a reprieve,rnas the government has promised thatrn”Sechon 28 will go,” and Labour’s enormousrnCommons majority will ensure itsrnpassage in the lower House whenever it isrnintroduced there. Like all good “liberals,”rnTom’ Blair will tr- again and againrnunhl lie gets the “right” result. But if thernpeers stand firm when the legislation isrnintroduced in the Lords next time, thenrnthe government may have to drop thernclause or risk losing a whole legislativernpackage. And then it may be too late torntry again before the next elechon.rnEen if Sechon 28 does get repealed.rnLabour should be wary of electoral repercussions,rnhiterviewed recently in thernSunday Telegraph, a t}’pical Labour voterrnin Sedgefield, Blair’s constituency, has finallyrnnoticed that “If you’re white, working-rnclass and heterosexual they don’t carernabout you.”rnDerek Turner is the editor of RightrnNOW!, pubhshed in London.rnLetter FromrnInner Israelrnby Jacob NeusnerrnRabbis, But No TorahrnWhen the religion of Judaism speaks inrnits contemporary modulations —whetherrnReform, Conservative, Reconstruchonist,rnor integrationist-Orthodoxy—wernshould hear many voices. But instead wernhear one: the voice of left-liberal polifics.rnWith the exception of self-segregated Orthodoxy,rnmost (though, happily, not all)rnrabbis preach a secular doctrine of leftwingrnorthodoxy. That is puzzling, becausernthe Torah — Scriptme (the “OldrnTestament”) and the Mishnah, Talmuds,rnand Midrash that record the oral revelationrnof Sinai — presents a remarkably conservafivernvision of the social order. “Judaism”rnfavors gay rights — except in thernTorah. “Judaism” favors “a woman’srnright to choose,” even at the very end ofrnterm — except in the law of the lorah,rnwhich deenrs the fetus to have a soul at arnspecific point in the pregnancy. “Judaism”rnopposes the death penalty—exceptrnin the Torah. Compose a list of liberalrnshibboleths, and I will cite, chapterrnand verse, rabbinical sermons and thernresoluhons of their associahons that identifyrnthem as “Judaism.” And that is not tornmenhon secular Jews and their organizations.rnWhat explains the gap between thernteachings of the Torah and the positionrnof its contemporary masters, the rabbinaternof today? ‘i’he failure of the rabbinicalrnschools to set forth a coherent intellectualrnstructure and system resting onrnTorah learning has produced a generationrnof rabbis with little or no Torah tornitoK; itisiiri ^riilsiJi^.; Sfesa^^MirnUH-i > ‘ S ^ z ® . * . j – ; – • i •rn^.t-^it^f’^mrnHELP THE ROCKFORD INSTITUTE . . . HURT THE IRSrnTliere is often a tax advantage in making a gift of appreciatedrnstoclcs or bonds to T h e Rockford Institute.rnWhen you do, there are two winners: you and ThernRockford Institute. The only loser is the wicked and greedyrntax collector.rnHere’s how it works:rnWhen you sell appreciated securities, you are taxed on therncapital gains. However, if you contribute appreciated stocksrnor bonds to The Rockford Institute, the gains are not taxable.rnIn fact, you will receive a charitable deduction for the full,rnfair-market value of the securities as cif t he date of the gift. Tornqualify, you only have to have held the stocks or bonds forrnmore than cine year. Your securities broker can even wire thernshares directly to T h e Rockford Institute’s investmentrnaccount.rnFor more information, please write or call:rnChristopher CheckrnExecutive Vice PresidentrnThe Rockford Institutern928 North Main StreetrnRockford, Illinois 61103rnTelephone (815) 964-5811rn’y%%rnM”‘^^rnMAY 2000/39rnrnrn