(CNN) — Israel, by necessity, has developed one of the most able security and intelligence apparatus in the world. There has been no necessity to develop a world-class political apparatus, however, and it shows.
In a single week, the Israeli army’s chief of staff, the former head of internal security and the former head of external security have all publicly questioned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judgment on Iran. While the current army chief spoke narrowly about the Iranian government, the former security officials directed their fire at Israeli politicians. On Friday, the former internal security chief told an Israeli audience, “I don’t believe in a leadership that makes decisions based on messianic feelings” — and he was speaking not of Iran, but of Israel.
Last week was Israel’s independence day, traditionally an occasion of pride and celebration. Instead, Israelis are in a deep funk.
At its founding in 1948, Israel seemed an improbable state. An ingathering of Jews from Eastern Europe, the Arab world and beyond had no real economy, no common language and no common idea of what it was to be an Israeli. Tensions between religious Jews and secular Jews, European Jews and Oriental Jews, and Jews and Arabs simmered for decades. They made accommodations in the name of survival, but few conceded the fight for control of the state.
To hear many Israelis tell it now, their nation has become an impossible state. Politics are more contentious than ever. The Israeli welfare state is in full view, as the religious, the poor and the religious poor make increasing demands on the state. Prices are skyrocketing, and the public feels squeezed. A diminishing number of Israelis serve in the army, which once prided itself on universal conscription.
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article is completely off base imo. throughout my 21 days there last summer, I got nothing but the opposite feel from Israelis and visitors alike
I’m sure you did. But keep in mind Chivo that between then and now, Egypt got knocked out, and Syria is going full retard.
Throw in the attacks the crazies are doing on the gas pipelines and accompanying price ramps, and I’m not surprised that Israel is feeling the sting a little.
The general consensus when I was there regarding the ‘arab spring’ was “well nothing we can do about it”
Also, the gas pipeline attacks are nothing new at all. Couple this with the massive natural gas finds offshore Israel and the break with Egypt will be beneficial economically (though maybe won’t be good for the peace policy with Egypt).
This article seems like it could be written in 1970. Ya the problems haven’t really changed since then but then again most people in Israel probably wouldn’t consider them needing changed.
I feel the same way. The problems were there when I visited, but I’d hardly call it a state of upheaval
unless anyone speaks any of the mena languages all their life as an american knows exactly what to expect from that region……….THE SAME SHIT AS THE LAST 1000 YEARS. left to their own devices,lets just say there is an old saying by the armenians,”they eat at each others flesh”. they will continue to eat at each others flesh long after you are dead.
The article is complete nonsense. As a rule of thumb, never believe anything CNN says about Israel. CNN has an agenda wrt Israel and they are promoting that agenda. CNN’s political posturing which is disguised as faux “journalism” is so mind-numblingly simplistic it hurts to read.
As to the former head of shabak and former head of mossad – The key word is FORMER. Both are doing what they are doing for the same reasons. To launch their own political career(s), and/or to shift the balance of support toward other parties (bibi is making early elections, so the election is coming up soon – perfect time for panderers and frauds to mount a propaganda assault on the public and get them to vote differently).
It would not surprise me if these retired far-leftists are simply “on the stump” for kadima/labor. Ultimately, all the parties behave the same anyway, it’s just a fight over who gets to do it. They have the same policies. That’s a big reason Livni took an early retirement. Her “opposition” rhetoric consisted of bashing religious Jews – she couldn’t find any substantial disagreement with anything Bibi has done. Her own party threw her out wanting something more radical. Likud is wildly popular right now, and that uproots the entire article. Not that likud is any different than the rest of them, but that’s who people will be voting for in droves.
btw, sickening comments on that article – par for the course with CNN. Also gives some clarity on their intentions with a puff piece like that, IMO.
There was a large Jewish population in Palestine before 1948. The Brits tried to repulse Jews moving to Israel after WW2. They sent them to Cyprus and had refugee camps there.