The Movement for Reform Judaism

Sever Plotzker is one of the most significant journalists writing in Israel's mass circulation daily Yediot Achronot. Though I normally don't report what I read in the papers - for that's available to all, even in English - I'm making an exception for one of the pieces Plotzker wrote in yesterday's Independence Day edition. I looked for it on the English Y-Net, which brings much of Yediot Achronot material, but I couldn't find it there, which further encouraged me to write this.

Plotzker invites his readers to think back to Yom Ha'atsmaut ten years ago, when Israel was 49 years old. He asks rhetorically if they could imagine what has happened in the country, and to it, in the last decade. Here are his points:

            *In the last decade Israel has experienced a repetition of two of its previous wars: the second intifada and the second Lebanon war. Both have been bad for Israel. Yet, during the last ten years the country's population has grown from 5.5 million to 7.2 million. 70% of those who live here say they're satisfied.

            *In the last decade Israel has had five governments, six Prime Ministers and seven Ministers of Finance. Yet, in the same period some 50 billion dollars have been invested here by foreigners.

            *There 45% more cars now on the roads than there were a decade ago, but 25% less traffic accidents. And 30 million Israelis travel by train each year within the country.

            *Oil has gone up from $10 a barrel to over $60. Yet, the national debt ten years ago was seventeen billion dollars. Now Israel has a surplus of some 37 billion dollars.

            *Israeli high-tech companies earn annually some 150 billion dollars worldwide.

            *Two seasoned generals who became Prime Ministers did the unexpected, perhaps the unimaginable: Ehud Barak took Israel out of Lebanon and Arik Sharon took Israel out of Gaza. Yet, peace is more elusive than ever.

            *The country has now half-a-million more poor citizens than it had a decade ago. Yet, right-wing parties (ostensibly favoring the rich) have never been more popular than now, whereas left-wing parties (the champions of the poor) have never been so much down-in-the-dumps as now.

            *The average per capita income is $22,000 and inflation down to zero. Shekel interest rates are higher than dollar rates. Output is about 70 billion dollars a year. Yet, the morale in the country is low.

            *The mood of the people here vacillates between depression and craziness.

            On a few occasions I've spoken to groups, not all of them friendly, visiting the country. It has rarely been a wholesome experience, neither for them nor for me. A member of a group I addressed yesterday wanted to know what I think about the prospect of Israel disappearing within a relatively short time. This is a fear that even some Israelis occasionally express. However, because I view the establishment of Israel as the greatest event in Jewish history since biblical times, I find the question impossible and offensive.  In view of the kind of survey reported above, which bodes well for Israel's future, all I can do is to describe Israel in vacillating confusion, yet with much hope for the next 60 (ok, 59) years and beyond.

Jerusalem 24.4.07 (Independence Day)                                             

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed