Current Political Observations and Thoughts

It is election season in Israel

The politicians and pundits are of course  in a very aroused  state.

I find it less productive to examine the myriad of   politicians’ and talking heads  verbiage. I prefer  a zoom out on the over all  situation, background and trends, to the daily  firestorm and thunder  of words and the accusing fingers vying for our attention.

 The Israeli political system is a unitary  proportional representation system, which means that if a list can garner a minimum number of votes from through out the country  they will win at least four seats in the Knesset. Less than that , the votes are not counted.

After the election the one  party  with the  most committed  support of other parties, is asked to form a ruling coalition  government.

Israelis do not have the considerable power that American voters do over  their regional  representatives in Congress. Israeli  politicians are chosen by a party mechanism or boss and thus the MK is  dependent upon  the support of his party boss far more than he is the citizens to whom he directs his election rhetoric.

Promises made are “not always kept”. Often times major promised  policy about faces are made (Yamit, Oslo, Gush Katif…) with little concern for voter disappointment. If the party boss is satisfied with “his”MK, his “seat”  is insured.

In Israel there are a large number of parties spanning the political/religious/ethnic spectrum.

This allows a wide range of representation and input into the political process.

Today, the third largest party is the “combined (Arab) list”.It is the clearest representation of Arab sentiment in Israel today.

What exactly are these sentiments?

With out going into historic and recent details of words and actions, suffice it to say that their positions are far closer to the aspirations and actions  of Israel’s enemies than to Israel itself.

Official Israel ( proudly) claims that  this is the “price of democracy”.

They have always quietly  believed that while granting the Arabs the theoretical right to influence the politics of Israel, they will never have the parliamentary strength to do so and will always  remain on the margins of decision making if at all.

 Traditionally, it has been the  position  of the political class, including the Left, that indeed it would be a great danger to the Jewish state if the Arabs ever  did posses that power and it  was  embarrassing when secretly  caught making  political deals with  Arab Mks.

That seems like a  a long time ago. What was once considered not patriotic is deemed by many today as  “progressive” ; including  partnering with anti Israel Arabs in the Knesset and beyond.

Today, many Left  Israelis long for a country “of all its citizens” – a  vastly superior and moral situation  to  just a plain out moded  “Jewish” state.

The vast majority of Jews in Israel are not yet that “progressive” and vote for Right wing parties.

With out the support of the Arabs in the Knesset, the Left can no longer hope to form a government.

The  Arabs are openly courted by the Left today which leverages their power many times.

Can this alliance actually result in a government;one in which the anti Israel Arabs call the shots either from within or by  simply  supporting a minority government from with out?

With out the Arab votes added to the Left, there could not have been an Oslo or Gush Katif crime. Their power has been tried and has already  succeeded in determining the fate of the Land of Israel and of countless Jews.

Lieberman (a Russian immigrant) of “Israel Beytenu” leads  a party of mostly Russian immigrants who are Right politically.  In the last two elections, he has decided to wield those votes(eight seats) to stop the formation of a Right government because of personal animosity to Netanyahu and a desire to play the role of king maker between the  Left/Arabs and the Right/religious.

Having observed the above the following should be considered:

1- A congressional type of election of representatives ensuring responsibility to the voter and not to party bosses.

2 – It is clearly  counter initiative  and indeed suicidal  to allow the future of the Jewish state to be decided by Arabs.

3- Educating Israeli Jewish children about why being Jewish and   living in a Jewish state is a great privilege and  well  worth preserving.