Letter: Better inspiration for Holocaust memorial note

Thursday, Feb. 24, 2005 | 9:28 a.m.

It was gratifying to learn that Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice recently visited Yad Vashem, the Israeli memorial to the incomprehensible numbers of Jewish people who were killed in the Holocaust of World War II.

Rice left an inscription stating that Yad Vashem is a place that causes all " ... to accept that it must never happen again that good men and women do not act."

In her message, Rice seems to suggest that men and women considered to be good have been and continue to be capable of selective displays of that goodness. She also seems to suggest, through the use of the word "accept," that good men and women may need to be persuaded to act in such manner.

It would seem reasonable to assume, however, that truly good men and women will always instinctively act in such manner without the need of persuasion. Therefore, while Rice undoubtedly had the best of intentions, her inscription was mistaken.

Rice should have written that Yad Vashem is a place that causes all "... to recognize and to attempt to satisfy the need for goodness without limitation and without discrimination."

JORDAN BODENSTEIN