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By J. Patrick Coolican (contact) 
Thursday, May 24, 2012 | 2 a.m.
J. Patrick Coolican
As Cantor Mariana Gindlin sang “Eili, Eili,” the packed ballroom at the UNLV student center hushed. Just moments before, they were boisterous and cheerful, singing “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.” Now, though, the solemnity of the Hebrew song and its searching plea to God hit the crowd fiercely, and I felt a bit of a chill.
After I got home, I learned that the lyrics to “Eili, Eili” were written by Hannah Senesh, a poet soldier who was executed by the Nazis after parachuting into Europe to try to save Hungarian Jews.
These people were gathered, more than 1,000 of them, for the first public meeting of Nevadans for the Common Good, an organization of religious groups, schools and nonprofits that have assembled to solve some of the Las Vegas Valley’s most pressing social problems. Although they have deep theological differences that go back thousands of years, they have come together.
“We are not alone. We walk side by side,” said Rabbi Malcolm Cohen of Temple Sinai.
You might say they are offering a collective cry of “Enough!” Enough of the suffering — the crime, the poverty, the ignorance — and of the indifference to suffering.
“It’s about time,” the Rev. Camille Pentsil of Zion United Methodist Church said to cheers.
It was an impressive dose of moral seriousness in a community awash in snake oil and its prodigious sales force.
In March 2008, Las Vegas had a particularly bad week that portended of what was to come, with news of a hepatitis C outbreak, the arraignment of a county official, a school shooting, a police shooting and a botched political convention. I wrote a story that tried to make sense of it all, and I remember trying to think of whom to call to get some deep insight into the careening path of our city.
Civic leaders, philanthropists, public intellectuals? Think about it for a second. Who are the real leaders of our community? Who would we turn to in times of crisis or moral confusion? Whom have we turned to in the past few years?
I wound up talking to the Rev. Kevin McAuliffe, who was then the vicar general of the Las Vegas Roman Catholic Diocese. You might recognize the name because he was recently sent to federal prison for stealing money from parishioners to feed his gambling addiction.
And so I welcome Nevadans for the Common Good, if only for injecting a sense of gravitas, steeped in ancient wisdom, into our public discourse. (A UNLV professor recently described our public discourse as “low information,” which was his polite way of saying “stupid.”)
This group, which has been working for three years to finally go public, isn’t satisfied, however, with esoteric moral treatises. It is committed to action in five areas: home foreclosures and neighborhood blight, human trafficking, public education, the problems of immigrants, and suffering of the vulnerable elderly.
I wish I could tell them that these intractable problems could be solved by profound sermons and sublime music, both of which were much on display Tuesday.
In fact, to help solve these problems, they must wrestle the beast in Carson City, taking on the powerful forces that protect the status quo. They will make enemies. Although their religion may implore them to love their enemies, we’ll need them to slay those enemies.
We would love to hear HOW they plan to take "...action in five areas: home foreclosures and neighborhood blight, human trafficking, public education, the problems of immigrants, and suffering of the vulnerable elderly."
Glad to know there are folks who not only understand the pain of these, but who are willing to tackle such monumental problems that plague our community.
Blessings and Peace,
Star
And if we all just believe hard enough Tinkerbell won't die.
But if you don't believe, then Tinkerbell will die. Communities evolve, some for the better, some for the worse, but I cannot think of a community that worsened due to involvement of stakeholders. Most communities cannot count on the public sector as the primary driver of progress or improvement although many in that sector would have you believe otherwise. Although only a five year resident of Las Vegas [and leaving to go back to washington soon] I noticed early on a dearth of community involvement...too many folks packed away behind the exclusionary walls of their gated communities. I wish these folks the very best, along with Tony Hseih [sp?] and the downtown revitalization folks and nameless others trying to develop community. It is a difficult task.
The five areas of commitments
1) home foreclosures and neighborhood blight:
Good luck with any real estate issue. If possible, community involvement in making Southern Nevada a more business friendly environment.
2) human trafficking: Is this really an issue for Vegas? Are they talking Asian prostitutes or Mexican drug mules?
3) public education: Narrow it down to just getting parents more involved in their children's education. Concentrate all efforts there for maximum effect.
4) the problems of immigrants: I would change it to getting ex-cons back into working for the good of society. Right now you can't get a job with a record.
5) and suffering of the vulnerable elderly: A more important goal would be safe neighborhoods, but good luck promoting that given the Trayvon Martin case.
Slaying is ancient thinking. They need to convince their enemies to turn their swords into plowshares.
ANY community involvement in the valley of "make a buck, get out my way, leave me alone, no, I won't help and what is in it for me" is very welcomed.
SEPARATING RELIGIOUS BELIEFS FROM COMMUNITY EFFORTS
Make no mistake about it, I am a Christian, and devoted to my religion. However, what makes me different from that of many Christians; I will draw the line on my religious beliefs.
An example is, most Christians carry a cross, and waves proudly, the "Stars and Stripes" flag of the United States of America. However, the fanatical and even many moderate Christians just cannot seem to get past the part of our Constitution that demands separation of church and state. The abortion, contraceptive, and gay marriage issues are a few subjects that are representative.
In my eyes, many religious values are essential to a civil society. However, when the line is crossed into rejecting those outside of our mainstream religious beliefs, is where serious conflict erupts. Then, the well- meaning qualities of Christianity and other religions go on a collision course with peoples Constitutional guarantees.
I too welcome the "Nevadans for the Common Good". Just remember, your purpose is to help our society, not preach to it.
Very good insights from this article. Nevadans For The Common Good has decided to take on hard issues. That means there will be opposition. Change will come hard. But this group's existence seemed impossible three years ago. The appearance of such a large diverse group united in Las Vegas is already a triumph of hope over despair. But as one comment already said, we need action, not just preaching. Time will tell if we have the backbone. I believe we do.
BChap hit the nail on the head. Any group that helps people is always welcome and accepted. But, and this is a very rigorous 'but', when that group goes beyond helping, and crosses the line into trying to force people into abiding by their moral rules, they are no longer what they propose themselves to be. They no longer are a source of community help, but a bastion of moral police trying to enforce their will on all. Let's hope that this cause, however noble in it's efforts, does not evolve into that. I wish them success and happiness in their endeavors, and welcome them with open arms. I sincerely hope however, that they do not cross that line.