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Two New Nobel Prize
Laureates Are Jewish
—
Jewish Debates
by DAVID SCHWARTZ
NEW YORK (JTA) _ Two
leading scholars, Dr. Milton
Friedman of Chicago and Dr.
Baruch S. Blumberg of
Philadelphia, both Jewish,
were announced Oct. 14 in
Stockholm as 1976 Nobel
Prize winners. A third winner
was Dr. D. Carleton Ga-
jdusek.
Friedman, 64, an
internationally-famous eco
nomist who teaches at the
University of Chicago, was
awarded the Nobel Prize for
economics. The Royal
Academy of Sciences of
Sweden cited this
achievements in the fields of
consumption analysis,
monetary history and for
demonstrating the complexi
ty of stabilization policies.
Described as the foremost
conservative economist in the
U. S., he was an economic ad
visor to Richard Nixon in the
1968 Presidential campaign.
Friedman, whose parents
had emigrated from Austria-
Hungary, was honored
recently by the educators’
division of the Jewish United
Fund of Chicago for outstan
ding service in the teaching of
economics and was the guest
speaker at two annual
meetings of the financial and
investment division of the
JUF.
Blumberg, 51, a member of
the staff of the Institute of
Cancer Research in
Philadelphia, and Gajdusek,
53, who is associated with the
Laboratory of Central Ner
vous Systems Studies at the
National Institute of Health
in Bethesda, Md., received the
Nobel Prize for Medicine and
Physiology.
Blumberg is also a
professor of medicine and
human genetics at the
University of Pennsylvania
and professor of
anthropology at Temple
University.
The Karolinska Institute
said Blumberg had dis
covered a way of indicating
the presence of hepatitis "B”
virus in blood. His discovery
means the carriers of this in
fection can now be identified
and has made it possible to
produce a solution of blood
antibody and vaccine which
protects against this disease.
Gajdusek studies a unique
form of brain disease which
occurs without fever or in
flammatory reaction in the
brain. The Karolinska
Institute said both scientists’
work was of practical impor
tance and demonstrated that
infectious agents may remain
in an active form without any
obvious presence of disease.
Each prize is worth $140,000.
deleft
Mr. and Mrs. Bruce A. Brown
will be arriving in Atlanta in
early November for a six weeks’
visit with family and friends and
for the wedding of Mrs. Brown’s
brother, Edward Goldberg to
Susan Jacobson. Mrs. Brown is
the former Marcia Goldberg,
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Elliott
Goldberg of Atlanta. The
Browns have been living in
Guadalajara, Mexico, since May,
where Mr. Brown is the
American Vice Consul. They will
return there in December.
Some have been comparing
the Ford-Carter debates to the
Lincoln-Douglas debates of more
than a century ago. There was
no television then but the
Lincoln-Douglas debates made
Lincoln a national figure and
paved the way for his Presiden
cy.
The Lincoln debate was more
interesting. It was the regular
type of debate. The candidates
could say what they wanted —
go at each other like combatants
in the sports ring. The Ford-
Carter debates were like quiz
- shows. No one told any stories.
There were no memorable
sentences; mostly statistics,
which can be manipulated to
suit one’s self. One good story
tells more than a book of
statistics.
Abraham Jonas, a Jewish
friend of Lincoln, presided at
one of the Lincoln-Douglas
debates. Both Abrahams had
come up to Illinois from Ken
tucky.
Lincoln was a man of many
debates. When he ran for
Congress he debated with his op
ponent, a preacher, Cartwright,
who tried to make political
capital out of Lincoln’s supposed
non-orthodoxy in religion.
Cartwright went on to tell about
heaven and hell and then turned
to Lincoln and asked him:
“Where are you going, Mr. Lin
coln?"
“I am going to Congress,”
replied Lincoln.
Prof. Schechter of the Jewish
Theological Seminary saw many
similarities between Hillel and
Lincoln. Hillel was a wood
chopper. Lincoln, a rail splitter.
Hillel partook in many
debates. Shammai held that all
eight candles should be lit on the
first Hanuka night and
diminished by one each
succeeding night. The idea was
to be conveyed that the Jew
should look to the past as the
most important and glorious
period. Hillel held to the con
trary. On the first night one can
dle — on the last night, all eight
should blaze. The future, the
latest, was the most important.
Hillel’s idea prevailed in this
instance as in most. However,
Shammai was not the harsh
man he is often pictured. He was
the author of the dictum against
showing any person a mean look.
“Receive every man with a
favorable countenance,” he said.
Hillel was the man who gave
the impatient heathen the
famous one leg definition of
Judaism. The heathen was not of
the studious type and he asked
Hillel if he could give him a
definition of Judaism while he
stood on one leg. “Sure,” said
Hillel. “Don’t do to others what
you don’t want them to do to
you. That's it,” said Hillel. The
heathen, no doubt, was sur
prised. He could have stood on
his leg much longer than that.
Jews appear, however, not to
have been satisfied with one leg
definitions. After all, what fun
would there be if everything was
so simple. To be sure, there are
prevailing principles, but every
sentence, every word, of the
Torah has been analyzed. Raahi
says this. The Ram bam says
something else. This, of course,
is natural. Let several people see
the same thing and each will
have a different account.
Everything is both simple and
complex. There are always some
differences and that means
debate.
Abraham argued with God
about the destruction of Sodom.
The Midrash tells us there was
debate in Heaven itself about
the creation of man. It was
argued that man would bring
evil and injustice, but the Lord
was moved by the plea of mercy.
Even the letters of the
alphabet, according to the
MidraBh, participated in the
debate about the creation. Like
candidates for the presidency,
each pleaded its own election
and God finally chose the letter
Beth because, the Midrash says,
the word bracha, meaning bless
ing, begins with that letter. So
the first word of the Torah,
Bereshith, telling of the crea
tion, begins with that letter.
The rabbis frequently debated
with the Lord. The noted
scholar, Martin Buber, thought
this dialogue, I and Thou is im
plicit in all the Hasidic tales.
“Come, let us reason
together,” said the Lord.
When people reason together
there is peace. Debates may not
settle matters but they open the
mind. And perhaps best of all —t
the heart. Es iz gut as man redt
sich a us die harts, they say in
Yiddish.
I like the story about the argu
ment on evolution between the
rabbi of Minsk and his son.
“Well,” said the rabbi finally,
"You believe we are descended
from monkeys. Well maybe you
are, but I am not.”
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