Public is Invited to Hear Leading Terrorism Expert

On Thursday April 24, at 7:30 p.m., Livingston’s Temple B’nai Abraham (TBA) is hosting a Varied Voices event featuring guest speaker, Mitchell B. Reiss, a leading terrorism expert, who is also a Bush White House Foreign Policy Advisor. His topic will be Terrorism Tomorrow: Who, What, Where and Why? Reiss became the 27th president of Washington College, Chestertown, Maryland, on July 1, 2010, and was inaugurated on October 2, 2010. The former Special Envoy to the Northern Ireland Peace Process, and a key official addressing the North Korean nuclear crisis, had been most recently Diplomat-in-Residence at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. From 2003-2005 Reiss served as Director of the Office of Policy Planning at the U.S. State Department, where he provided Secretary Colin L. Powell with independent strategic advice and policy recommendations. In December 2003, he was asked to serve concurrently as the President’s Special Envoy for the Northern Ireland Peace Process, with the rank of Ambassador; and in January 2005, Secretary Condoleezza Rice asked Reiss to continue in this position, which he did until February 2007. During this period, Northern Ireland registered historic progress toward ending “the Troubles” and realizing the full promise of the Good Friday Agreement. For his efforts, Reiss received the State Department’s Foreign Affairs Award for Public Service Varied Voices was started in honor of the late Rabbi Barry Friedman, z”l, the synagogue’s spiritual leader from 1968-1999, who throughout his decades at TBA, was a strong supporter of Israel, an outspoken advocate for civil rights and a champion of the victims of all kinds of oppression. Rabbi Friedman also believed deeply in the synagogue pulpit as the ultimate open microphone, from which absolute freedom of speech should be practiced, with all points of view welcome. This year, TBA has presented Varied Voices with speakers offering diverse opinions on a variety of important topics, each seeking, in her or his own voice, to offer a path toward the betterment of the Jewish world and the world at large. All Varied Voices programs are free and open to the community, and are held at Temple B’nai Abraham, which is located at 300 E. Northfield Road. Register online or contact call 973-994-2290. For upcoming Varied Voices lectures please go to www.tbanj.org.