Hamas War

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Who's Really Behind the Cost/Housing/Whatever Protests in Israel?

I was pretty suspicious when I noticed how new and pretty everything looked at the "protest camps" in Jerusalem.  I got very suspicious of their "poverty" when, unlike during previous "camping protests," the public toilets nearby looked so clean and didn't have any signs of laundry.

Jerusalem Post columnist Sara Honig reveals that many of the protesters are not the ones suffering poverty.  That is apparently why they have the time to protest.  The young people aren't busy working to cover their expenses.  And they're not the type to rinse their dirty laundry in the WC sinks.

To me it all looks like anarchy. 

And we should all remember what happens to governments/countries/systems that give citizens basic services for under cost. All the cottage cheese protest has done has lowered the price at the expense of the dairies that now claim it doesn't pay to produce it.  Israel is a capitalist country.  Socialism/communism can't work and hasn't.

The USSR provided heat and opera to keep the citizens happy.  Now the country doesn't exist.  It's known as the FSU, Former Soviet Union.
Bring your gripe and blame the government.


The TV news shows people jumping up and down, like they're on drugs.  The Israeli media is trying to make this into some sort of people's revolution.  It's a sham!  They just want to destablize the government and get the Likud out of office. 

That's not democracy.

21 comments:

Hadassa said...

Shalom!
The protesters aren't interested in solutions. And as Sara Honig pointed out, they're not interested in getting the illegal immigrants out of Tel Aviv so that legal citizen can rent inexpensive apartments.

Anonymous said...

Here's something else:

Leftist Admits: A Secular Israel Is Hidden Objective of Protests

MAOZ said...

They also are apparently not interested in Yahadut. Here in Yerushalayim they had a live-music (including instruments) performance going on ON SHABBAT (not to mention being during the 3 Weeks).

Anonymous said...

The protesters are looking uglier by the minute.

Hadassa said...

Shalom!
And have you all seen this?:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146232#.TjWyJSydnKw
The protesters are kvetching that if they move to Lod they will have to buy cars so that they can get to the Tel Aviv night life on Shabbat, because the buses don't run.

Batya said...

Shy, Maoz, Hadassa, you're all correct. This "people's" protest is a scam. It's a secular Left media event.

Anonymous said...

So, just to be clear: Because the protesters are on the left, the issues raised are not legitimate. And, because they had live instruments on Shabbat, we should obviously oppose anything they say. That's clear logic on your part.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous, try reading thoroughly before commenting with baseless assumptions.

Batya said...

It's a Korach type of revolt.

Anonymous said...

Korach-type is a good description but you gotta admit the Knesset is asking for it.

Batya said...

No doubt that the MK's aren't spending their clothing allowance in stores like Yafiz. How many are going to chu"l during the pagr"a?

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry that the protesters are not all frum, Torah fearing Jews. I'm sorry that some of the protesters are political agitators and opportunists, but as Sarah Nadav notes in the Jerusalem Post, the issues are very real. Those of you who refuse to see the very real problems we have in this country, and opt instead to stay with the status quo, well, unless you are millionaires then you are in fact "friars." You are taking money out of your pockets and giving it to wasteful bureaucracies, corrupt politicians and the vested interests that enable this almost kleptocratic system of governance. Good for you for turning a vital issue abouit the continued vitality and viability of our country into a cheap partisan affair.

Batya said...

a-who hides behind a mask, you've reversed it. The Lefties are taking important issues and using them against the govt rather than finding realistic, workable solutions.

Anonymous said...

If you don't like anonymous comments then turn that feature off. In any case, nothing I said is beyond the pale or unworthy of discussion. Read Sarah Nadav's post - as you can see not all the protesters are leftist wastrels hell bent on anarchy. Some are good people, family folks, even frum people who pay their taxes, serve in miluim, fear Hashem and simply can't make ends meet while the powers that be cavort in fancy NYC restos with their yored kids over a plate of shrimp. Yup. These are members of the right. You sure you want to make this a partisan issue? Because that cuts both ways. Also keep in mind that this is coming from a person who loves Israel, lives here, and defends her against all who wish her and her citizens harm.

beakerkin said...

Batya

In the States it takes two minutes to deduce that Marxists are at it again. Ask people in the USA if housing prices fall when the economy is tanking. I was predicting this bubble six years ago and people though I was nuts.

When well paid civil servants can't afford housing a crash will follow.

Hadassa said...

Shalom!
a - take a good look at who initiated the protests, Daphne Leef, an employee of the NIF, Stav Shafir, an employee of Yediot Acharonot, and others: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146376#.TjqN1iydnKw
Take a look at the articles Shy Guy and I already linked on this blog.
Also read the comments on Sarah Nadav's blog. She has a few faults in her writing. The people with legitimate concerns are not the ones making the loudest demands.
Did you read Sarah Honig's article in the Jerusalem Post, or just Sarah Nadav's? Here's a link:
http://www.jpost.com/Magazine/Opinion/Article.aspx?id=231456

Anonymous said...

Batya: Of course I read Honig's article and Indor's - and even Indor admits that whatever some of the protest leaders' real motivations are, there are still very real underlying problems. I mean go ahead and paint this as a right wing/left wing partisan issue. Paint it as a movement of people opposed to Torah values. But keep in mind that in doing so you completely ignore the very real hardships faced by ordinary people who just want to live decent lives. By ignoring these issues, all you are doing is providing fuel for agitators who would take advantage of legitimate economic grievances in order to advance their own partisan agendas.

Do you really think things are actually swell in Israel? Do you really think that Israeli families freaked out by 50% price increases in basic foodstuffs that this is about having a cool apartment in Tel Aviv so that you don't have to take a bus in order to hang out at your favorite bar while sipping 35 shekel draft beers? What I'd like to see from the right is a little more compassion and a little less self-righteousness. Especially during these 9 days and on the eve of Tisha B'av, I'd like to see a little more ahavat chinam. Is that too much to ask for? Shabbat shalom Batya.

Anonymous said...

-- Do you really think things are actually swell in Israel?

Who knows? But I do know that the restaurants are packed, the bars are packed, and every plane in and out of the country is packed. And mostly with young people.

Anonymous said...

Oh so because you don't see the poverty then it doesn't exist? I know plenty of people who literally have never set foot in Ben Gurion. Who have never spent a single night in a hotel in Eilat. Who have never sipped on a Mojito in Tel Aviv. Talk about a bubble, yikes!

Hadassa said...

Shalom!
Anonymous, do you really think that the people organizing these protests have any ideas that will help the average Israeli citizen who is struggling to make ends meet? Our quarrel is with the people organizing the protests, not with the people truly hit hard by rises in food prices, who are NOT represented by the "leaders" making the demands.
To everyone posting as "Anonymous", especially since there seem to be a few of you, please pick a non-revealing nickname. It's very hard to respond to several people with the same name, but conflicting ideas.

Batya said...

aaaaaaaaaaaaa?
OK, first give yourselves names.
Of course there's poverty here, but a larger percentage of Israelis own homes/apts than in the states. I don't see "50% price increases in basic foodstuffs." I see people buying more junk, prepared foods etc in discount supermarkets.

Yes, there's poverty, but the poor aren't the ones protesting. It's the middleclass plus making demands. It's the Leftist secular self-appointed elite.