Where Do We Go From Here?

Although I have been quiet, I have a lot to say about the situation here in the Holy Land. It is very painful to write about and even more painful to think about. I will not fill you in on the details, which I will assume you know, but instead I will share my thoughts on what is most likely a defining moment for the State of Israel. What happens going forward will either be a revitalization of the Zionist dream or the end of it.

I know this sounds like hyperbole, and I wish it was. I am not sure what the plan was from the outset. Did the Likud really think they were going to gut the judiciary without pushback? Was it all a negotiating tactic? Did Bibi make promises to keep his coalition partners in line and subsequently lose control? I am not sure. My sense is it is all of those.

What I am sure of is that one of the greatest Israeli leaders stood by for months as Israeli society unraveled and did nothing, and the only plausible explanation for this is that he does not want to go to jail. What started as a civil protest against a weakening of democracy ended in a near full rebellion by those who are keeping this country alive.

Here’s a statistic: 40% of Israelis pay 90% of the taxes (this is actually a better split than the USA). Also, those 40% don’t vote for Likud, Haredi parties, and right-wing fanatics. They are the Israelis who created Start-up Nation and the 4th most powerful army in the world. They are the ones who thought that the far right and the religious extremists had nothing to do with them. They were the ones who felt, "you don’t bother me, and I won’t bother you." They were in denial and sat by for years as the people who are living off the backs of everyone else sat by and waited. They waited for an opportunity to change the nature of the country, and the 40% finally woke up.

They woke up when the proposal to make more beaches sex-segregated was put forward. They woke up when the proposal to change the law of return was put forward. They woke up when the proposal to pay yeshiva students as those who put their lives on the line defending the country was put forward. But what really woke them up was the proposal to neuter the supreme court so they can pass laws enshrining their right to be freeloaders forever.

That might be the harshest thing I have written in a long time, but do not think that this is about anything else. So what was accomplished? A complete tearing in two of Israeli society.

I had not driven to Tel Aviv recently as the protests were causing more daily disruptions. When I finally did go, I noticed that people were no longer being civil on the road. Being civil on the road is not something Israelis are known for, but it was much worse. I literally almost got pushed off the road twice on one trip in. Of course, it takes three to tango, and it is not only the Haredim at fault. You have the far-right who want the right to burn churches, destroy cars, burn villages (if not wiping them out), and building settlements on land that was deemed illegal (by the supreme court) to build on.

On the Likud side, most of this is about Bibi and his legal troubles, but of course, that is not all of it. It is an attempt by one party to usurp almost unlimited power and remove checks and balances, and of all the things going on, that last point bothers me the least. I will explain soon.