Hours to Go Before We Vote...

In just thirty-six 36 hours citizens of the State of Israel will go to the polling stations to vote for a new Knesset and Gd willing a viable new coalition government. 

We vote for the pieces... meaning we choose a political party, and depending on what percentage of the total votes it gets*, those on its list will become MKs Knesset Members. It can be as little as zero or as many as a few dozen. 

Then, after we vote and the votes are counted, the wheeling and dealing start in earnest. Usually the political party that ends up with the most votes MKs can manage to craft a coalition, but there have been exceptions. 

One of the big difficulties is that not all political parties even have a chance of being part of a coalition. The Arab parties have almost no chance of being included. The main reason is that it goes against their basic party platform. And the second is that some political parties won't sit in a coalition with an Arab party, since they promote the destruction of the State of Israel. Arab MKs can be in the coalition as members of regular Israeli political parties.

Another political party which has a small chance of being included is Avigdor Yvette Lieberman's party Yisrael Beiteinu. He has a hard core of voters who give him, according to the latest polls, seven seats. He's more a spoiler than a kingmaker. His leaving the coalition a couple of years ago was the cause of the spate of recent elections. I don't trust Lieberman. He's neither right nor left, just an anarchist.

Even though there are four people running for the position of Prime Minister, in actuality we  can't vote for any of them. We vote for a party list and hope and pray that our choice party will be part of the ruling coalition.

Who's going to win? That's a good question. So far, ever since Yvette Lieberman broke up the last "normal" government, the citizens of the State of Israel have lost every election. 

I don't take polls seriously, since they're just polls. But if you want to see what the polls are showing then check out Jeremy's blog.

My educated guess and gut feeling are that the actual count won't be completed until next week. There will be many more "double envelope votes" than usual. All of those soldier, hospital, jail, special COVID corona and quarantine polling stations will allow people to vote with a double envelop. Each outer envelope will have the person's ID number which has to be checked against the master list of those who voted in their official location. This is a very time-consuming process. If the ID number doesn't show up, then the ballot envelope is collected to be counted. And then all kosher votes are added and calculated, and then we'll know who the next one hundred and twenty 120 Knesset Members will be.

I don't think that the party leaders will have much of a Passover Vacation. But since all I can do is vote once and then pray... I'll enjoy the holiday.

PS In case you're wondering, I'm voting Yamina ב that's Naftali Bennett's party. Here's the reason why.

*Actually the calculation is a bit more complicated, since not all parties get enough votes to have representation. 

Elections Again? This isn't Some Sort of Joke; Is It?

I don't know why it has taken me so long to blog about the upcoming elections here in Israel. Usually I'm right on the ball, blogging about the politics even before the decision has been made. This time, eh...

Are we all burnt out between elections and COVID corona?

The twenty first century isn't all it was cracked up to be. It's becoming more of a dystopian horror movie, and we're in it whether we like it or not.

The score card is now under "construction" or something like that. MKs and wannabes are scurrying around trying to find the best chance to "live their dream" or extend their minute of fame.

There will be a deadline in another month or so, and by then deals will be made and dozens more polls will be publicized. Political parties may come and go, disappearing without even experiencing a single election on its own, sort of like a miscarriage. 

Veteran parties will join other historic relics in the political cemetery of has-beens. And Binyamin Bibi Netanyahu will attempt to keep on lengthening his record-breaking reign as Israel's longest standing/sitting/ruling Prime Minister.

While most Israelis are trying to stay alive and healthy and financially solvent, it seems that elections are the last thing we need again. But unfortunately, we haven't had a "proper" government for years, ever since Yvette (Avigdor) Lieberman broke up the coalition, if I remember correctly. 

Please BLAME IT ON YVETTE, NOT BIBI. Look, I don't vote Likud, but this whole mess is the fault of Yvette (Avigdor) Lieberman. And the main reason no party leader can put together a viable coalition is that Lieberman's Bayit Yehudi party doesn't join anyone. He's proving himself to be an anarchist, not a believer/follower in the democratic legal system of government.

Gd willing these elections will result in a better mix/choice of MKs who want the best for the State of Israel and not just an ego trip. A coalition must work together for the good of the country, Knesset Members not just the ministers.

Elections on Monday- Who's Bringing The Häagen-Dazs?

Too many Israelis are sick and tired of voting. I wonder how low voter turnout will be on Monday. This is our third round of elections in just under a year.

Considering the popular "line"

פעם שלישית גלידהPa'am shlishit glidaThird time ice cream

I am craving Häagen-Dazs.

And politically speaking, I'm disappointed that Gantz was smart enough to refuse Bibi's offer for a debate, sans notes, computer, earphones etc. Do you now why?

Even more than I hope that the parties on the Left get fewer votes, I really pray that Lieberman loses completely. He's the cause of this mess, because he backtracked on joining a coalition with Likud. 

Is Insane Israeli Political Situation Due to Foreign Interference?

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will be continuing another few months as "interim," AKA "lame duck" Prime Minister. We're going to have a third round of Knesset elections in less than a year, and unless something very dramatic happens, the situation -stalemate- will continue ad nauseum. I suggest reading Arlene Kushner's article about it.

IMHO there are two guilty parties in this unprecedented situation, Avigdor Yvette Lieberman and the backers/instigators of Benny Gantz's Blue and White political party.

Lieberman has repeatedly destabilized Israeli Governments, and my guess is that there's foreign money behind Gantz and cronies. I'm not sure what's behind Lieberman. Could he have been planted here decades ago from the USSR? Or is he just "having fun" playing politics.

About Blue and White, don't forget that during Obama's US Presidency, there was blatant American interference in Israeli politics to unseat Likud's Bibi Netanyahu, V15. They haven't given up, and now they're targeting both Bibi and Donald Trump. I don't have the capabilities to prove it, but I have no doubt.

Coalition Politics: How To Banish Avigdor Lieberman to The Sidelines

There are many dimensions to the political situation present in Israel right now. On one hand I agree with the various opinions of Arlene Kushner, Caroline Glick and Ruthie Blum.

But last night as I was falling asleep, I suddenly had the solution to the Avigdor Lieberman problem. He has evolved or devolved from a strong Right wing Likud activist politician to a dangerous political anarchist, who gets his kicks from breaking up government coalitions and driving most everyone crazy. Inexplicably he has enough followers to keep him in the Knesset with sufficient MKs to stymie every possible coalition. Avigdor Lieberman wants to be the kingmaker and Prime Minister. I've come up with a way to lock Lieberman out of the government.

It's pretty obvious, once you think about it. Of course it's based on a shaky double "if."

If both Gantz and Bibi really want to avoid another useless round of Knesset Elections...

If both Gantz and Bibi really are sick of Avigdor Lieberman's dangerous political games...

Likud's Binyamin Netanyahu and Blue & White's Benny Gantz do no need Avigdor Lieberman to form a broad coalition together. Both parties got over thirty 30 seats in the last elections. Together that's the majority needed to form a government. Both of them can say that:

"For the good of the State of Israel, we must have a strong government, a broad-based government of Right, Left, religious and secular. We welcome all parties, all MKs who want to work together for the betterment and security of the State of Israel into our coalition."

That's it. That's what most Israeli citizens really want.

Can someone please send them the message ASAP...

"Gevalt" For Sure- Lieberman Holds Israel by The Neck

Recent history here in Israel is showing Avigdor Yvette Lieberman to be a dangerous anarchist. His political machinations has brought down the government, and since then no working coalition has been formed.

For some inexplicable reason, many Israelis vote for him which has been perpetuating the political chaos. The results of yesterday's elections aren't any better than that of the previous ones. It's very dangerous for the large Arab party to be in the coalition, and Gantz's Blue and White have painted themselves in a corner by refusing to work with Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu.

All those who voted ל for Lieberman are as guilty or even more so for strengthening and legitimizing him. Lieberman has a chokehold on Israeli democracy, on every citizen, Jew or Arab, Torah observant or totally secular. I have an easier time accepting people's vote for Leftist parties than for those who voted Lieberman.

We are in the midst of the Jewish Month of Ellul, the time for more intense Teshuva, Repentance. I pray that those who have been elected to serve us, citizens of the State of Israel, in the Knesset will find it in themselves to work together, reject hatred and dangerous vows. May they form a strong coalition for the betterment, security and sovereignty of the State of Israel.

Lieberman versus Likud in a Nutshell

I listened very carefully to Avigdor Lieberman's press conference. As much as don't like the man, either he's a totally amazing actor, or he revealed his real dilemma, if you listen carefully.

Bibi learned how to stress his love of the Bible
and keep a kippah handy.

There is something very basic that holds Leberman back from fully assimilating into the world of Israeli Right wing politics. Unlike your typical Likudnik, Avigdor Lieberman is an avowed securlarist. He comes to his Rightist policies devoid of religion, spirituality and sentiment.

Lieberman is the product of Soviet Society and values. His discomfort and can we call it hatred of the chareidim is most like the Labor Zionists of old, the ones who assigned young religious new immigrants to secular boarding schools and proudly served ham on Yom Kippur.

voting for new 2019
Knesset Elections

voting for new 2019
Knesset Elections

The biggest difference between Lieberman and the early Leftist Zionists is that they, on the most part, came from a traditional Jewish world, and Lieberman didn't.

There are many ways of "dividing" Jewish Israeli society. For Lieberman, religion is a big factor. He is very blunt about not wanting the State of Israel to be ruled in any way by Halacha, Jewish Law. Lieberman's definition of Right doesn't seem to be based on anything, unlike dati leumi, religious nationalist, or your typical Likudnik who treasures the Bible and Jewish Tradition.

Lieberman's supporters are mostly Russian speakers, while the mainstay of Likud voters are Sefardim, descended from Jews who made aliyah from Arab and North African countries. The Likud also has support from those who follow Jabotinsky, aren't Histadrut socialists and those who consider the Etzel and Lechi the heroes of the struggle against the British Mandate.

I'm sure that Lieberman's supporters absolutely loved his press conference, and I'm just as sure that others are even less enthused, even where they may agree with some specific points.

Also many Israelis want a government that will unite us, not divide us. Avigdor Lieberman is a divisive politician, not a national leader. He is too Right wing for the secular Left and too secular for the Right. Although Lieberman has been in Israel for decades, he just doesn't understand Israelis.

Will Bibi Pull The Rabbit Out of The Hat?

Tonight Prime Minister Binyamin Bibi Netanyahu made a short speech, and he didn't stay for questions. He didn't even turn his head in the direction of those shouting questions. He said there is still time to prevent new elections if Avigdor Lieberman would be willing to join the coalition.

Lieberman seems to want some of the Blue & White votes, so he's going rabidly against Netanyahu. Leberman is betting that he'll do better in new elections.

If we really are going to suffer through another round of elections, no doubt they'll be even nastier more childish than the previous ones. There was one basic issue in those, pro-Bibi or anti-Bibi. The antis, especially the Gantz-Lapid-Bogie-Ashkenazi Blue & White insisted that they could do a better job at running the country, because... they're not Bibi. They never really got down to basics on how they'd make the State of Israel better, safer etc. They did not appear competent. They didn't have very detailed or well thought out policies or plans. They just didn't want Bibi. And the parties to the Left of them, like Labor, wanted their votes, so they campaigned that Blue & White was Right. Likud campaigned that Blue & White was Left. While Blue & White just kept hammering it in that they're not Bibi.

I shudder to think of what the next election campaign will sound like.

I have a rather revolutionary idea. The top four of each party elected to Knesset must resign, leave politics and let the lower numbers get in and take over. Maybe they can form a good working coalition for the good of the country, instead of just increasing hatred.

Where's The Idealism in Israeli MKs?

Maybe I'm just too much a product of the idealist 1960s America. You can bookend my formative years with the most iconic line of John F Kennedy's Inaugural Address and the 1967 Six Days War.

“Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.”

I somehow tweaked Kennedy's idealist and patriotic challenge and transferred my loyalty to the Jewish People, Jewish Religion and Jewish Land. Here I am a just over half a century later, not only living a Zionist version of Kennedy's ideal, but naively and idealistically expect to see that idealism in those elected to Israel's Knesset, the politicians.

Just weeks after the recent Knesset Elections, our experienced and wily Prime Minister Binyamin Bibi Netanyahu is ready to throw down the towel and give up trying to find enough MKs and political parties willing to work together, compromise and form a viable government coalition for the good of the State of Israel.

Bibi is my age and spent a lot of his youth in the United States. No doubt he is extremely familiar with Kennedy's cry to galvanize idealism for the good of the country. Unfortunately the attitude of most of the Israeli party leaders who should be negotiating with Netanyahu is horrendous. They each announce to the press that the will not compromise their cabinet demands, and they expect Bibi to give in. This is awful and bodes badly for Israeli society and the State of Israel.

We may need to go through elections yet again, Gd forbid.

There was a time when MKs were willing to cross lines and form National Unity Governments, but since Gantz, Lapid, Bogie and Ashkenazi made their entire campaign the demonization of Binyamin Bibi Netanyahu and insisted that they wouldn't work with him...  A National Unity Government isn't on the menu. The "Blue and White" wannabes didn't campaign that they'd put their egos aside and do what's best for the country.

So unless a miracle happens, we're going to be suffering through another few months of election litter.

May Gd help us.

More on Bennett-Shaked, Israel Not Governed by Laws of Nature and Math

It's less than twenty-four 24 hours since  Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked shook things up by announcing that they're breaking from the NRP-Jewish Home Party and establishing the New Right. No surprise that many people claim that they are making a mistake.

The popular  reason that most everyone is giving is one of Mathematics. By breaking away and forming a new party, they are diluting the chances of the so-called Right wing Likud to continue in power. Of course, according to logic, the Laws of Nature and Numbers they seem correct. But as I titled this post:

Israel Not Governed by Laws of Nature and Math

If the State of Israel, the Jewish People and the Land of Israel were like any other in the world:

1. We certainly would be been defeated/destroyed in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, 
2. if we hadn't been invaded and destroyed in the 1967 Six Days War.
3. Most probably, there never would have been a State of Israel, since on paper we had so little going for us when we declared Independence on May, 14, 1948.
4. A "normal" people would have been so beaten, both physically in terms of numbers and emotionally, that any remaining Jews would have taken the express train to complete and utter assimilation after the Holocaust. 
5. Or most probably, like our ancient contemporaries/enemies, we'd be no more than a footnote in history. 

Israeli politics is more than plain numbers. There must be balance in the ideological spectrum, and our political spectrum has been over-heavy on the Left for a long time. There are quite a number of Far Left parties, both Arab and Jewish, but there hasn't been a strong unabashed Right Pro-Jewish Rights in the Land of Israel for much too long. That's why political positions that had once been only heard from the Far Left are now heard in the Center and what I'll call the "Lite Right."

Although the media loves to call Likud an ideologically Right party, the truth is that it's Center-Right. As is the NRP establishment which  controls certain aspects of the Jewish Home Party. It kept reigning in Bennett and Shaked to the Center, which is what the NRP is all about. For the NRP, it has always been a claim to fame that they could mould themselves to suit any coalition, Right, Left or Center.

Think of the ideological aspect of the political scene here as a Tug of War. The Far Left has been tugging and there is no equivalent balance/weight from the Right. Some of you may be saying:

"What about Avigdor Lieberman?"

To be perfectly honest, he has his own unique views, which change periodically according to what he thinks will give him more electoral support. Or to follow my "Tug of War" analogy, his rope isn't attached to the one everyone else is tugging. He's just faking it.

I don't pretend to be a fortune teller, and I don't have any recent direct contact with Naftali Bennett or Ayelet Shaked. So, I certainly can't guarantee that the New Right will be what they are saying it will be. One thing I do know is that Prime Minister Netanyahu firmly believes that to be Prime Minister, he must keep to what he considers the political center. I heard him say so in person. Gd willing, Bennett and Shaked don't hold that opinion.

Naftali Bennett visiting us when he was head of YESHA Council

Pre-Election Political Shenanigans

I was going to call this "Pre-Election Political Maneuverings," but that would put everything on a higher level.

Along with a large percentage of Israelis, I'm disgusted by our Prime Minister's fake "war" to stop the terror from Gaza which had burnt up a large portion of southern Israel and made life total Hell for Israeli citizens living there.

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

• Instead of really fighting the terrorists to destroy them, Netanyahu went back to the farcical warnings to empty buildings technique. Nobody was fooled, not the terrorists and not any Israelis. What did we accomplish by bombing a few empty buildings? To be honest, absolutely nothing.
• Since we're months, barely a year, before scheduled elections, and elections could be called at any time,  Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman surprised nobody by resigning. That's so he can campaign from the Right of Bibi's Likud. 
• That left Bibi with the narrowest of coalitions, so of course Bennett and Kahlon are now competing for the Defense Ministry and threatening to topple the government.
• Deja vu, elections will no doubt be soon. 

Let's see who's really the best chess player.

Bibi, We Israelis are Totally Disgusted With Your Policies, Voices From The People

Even on the French English language tv news, best of the pathetic choice of news channels we have on our television, has been broadcasting how disgusted the Israeli public is with the farcical and dangerous so-called "ceasefire."

I don't think too many people believe anything that Avigdor Lieberman says or does. We've been watching him long enough to know that he's less reliable and more volatile than Prime Minister Bibi Binyamin Netanyahu. Most of us haven't a clue as to which party to vote for. In Israel one votes for political parties, which have lists competing for Knesset seats. The largest party gets a chance to form a coalition, with its leader, number 1, as Prime Minister. If they don't succeed, then the next largest party, or the party which the most others tell the president can form a coalition gets a chance. It's obvious that Lieberman has chosen this time, maximum a year before elections, to start maneuvering himself to the "Right" of Bibi to attract voters. Deja vu, he has done this sort of thing before.

Following are quotations from friends and various blog links about our feelings:

Praying for Relief

We are very VERY upset over this ceasefire which is not solving the problems we've been suffering for months: The incendiary balloons; the shelling of the Eshkol area and Sederot whenever the mood strikes Hamas, and not ending the violent weekly demonstrations that have led to incursions over our border. We've come out pf this like a dog with its tail between its legs. I personally am LIVID because I have NO DOUBT that if such things occurred in Tel Aviv, the govt would have acted much differently AGES ago. We have large swathes of land burnt to a crisp. Can you believe Batya that on one of the yishuvim on the border crops could not be planted because their yearly allotment of water had been used up by putting out fires???? WE ARE FED UP! It's not enough that we had a HORRIFIC 24 hours with well over 400 rockets; they now send the rockets at a much swifter pace than before one right after another, boom, boom, boom. I salute those manning the iron dome that they were able to keep up with the pace that Hamas set. We are tax paying citizens and our young people do NOT deserve to grow up in the shadow of such terror.

Ceasefire call was shameful! These kids are suffering.

They would NEVER EVER do this to kids in Tel Aviv. I'm so sick of this elitist government. All they care about is getting votes.

"About shooting at empty buildings: Buildings don't set up or send bombs, rockets, or bullets. Kill terrorists instead of letting them strike from another location."

"All of this could have been prevented if the prime minister would support a war to end all future attempts at war. Gaza should become a lifeless crater." Or use my quote that "We surrendered Gush Katif for peace? I want that land back!!!!!!!!!!"

The govt better get off it's behind (I'd use a different word but I'm polite) and DO something. Enough putting off the inevitable! The present situation (of incendiary balloons here in Netivot and all over the south; the huge swathes of land burnt to a crisp; the ongoing violent demonstrations almost daily) cannot go on! WE HAVE HAD IT! ENOUGH! You can quote me, Batya!

If You Condemned Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting But Not Rockets At Israel, You Are a Hypocrite

Another Round from Gaza

Just waiting

What is wrong here?
After 470 rockets and a ceasefire was called so that Egypt and UN can work out a permanent agreement.
Now Celebrations break out on the streets of Gaza after Hamas declares victory.
And once again the resident of the south have been abandoned by our government.
Residents of the south furious, are holding a demonstration at Tzomet Sderot.
Time for elections...

Trauma and Terror: The View from the South

War Against Arab Gaza Terror, Finally, Gd Willing Destroy Them

As far as most Israelis and fair-minded people all over the world are concerned, the military action, which we'll call a "war," on Arab Gaza Terror should have had begun about a half a year ago. The State of Israel has taken much too long to react strongly to the ongoing terror against our country and civilians.

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

photo credit: חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom

The Arab Gazan terrorists, supported by all sorts of NGOs and even foreign countries began their latest war against us as a clever little "photo-op" "demonstrations" of innocent-looking kites and balloons that carried dangerous incendiary devices over the border to set fires all over southern Israel to destroy and kill our Land, agriculture and people. They quickly morphed into raging, violent mobs of anti-Israel terrorists attacking the border and invading Israel.

Gd protected our people, and thank the Good Lord that we build with bricks, rather than wood and other flammable materials, or there would have been more deaths and destruction.

I guess Bibi is really readying for elections, because he has finally decided to do something to protect us. Of course the only way to truly protect us is to unabashedly destroy the terrorists. By being gentle with the terrorists to please the EU, media etc, Prime Minister Netanyahu is only encouraging the antisemites and anti-Israelis, who are many. And, of course, all that does is strengthen terrorism and endanger us.

In all honesty, I'm disgusted with the basic defense policy of Netanyahu and his cringing Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. Lieberman acts and talks like a toughy, but his policies have been weak and dangerous for Israel's security.

I pray for a miracle. Gd willing make our Israeli Government strong and confident, willing to totally destroy our enemies, all of our enemies!

All photos are from חמ'ל הדרום Chamal Darom.

Antisemitism, Not Ignorance, Fuels the World's Policies

Sorry, but I'm rather pessimistic about educating "the world" about Jewish History, rights and connections to the Land of Israel. I think it's antisemitism that is behind most policy, not ignorance.

Most people all over aren't interested in the truth. They just don't want Jews around. That's how Hitler had such an easy job in discriminating against and later murdering Jews. Not only did the ordinary citizens of the various countries invaded by Nazi Germany cooperate with Hitler's plan, but the USA, which found itself being forced to try to "rescue" Great Britain and other countries, didn't have stopping the anti-Jewish Holocaust in its battle plans.

Here we are almost a hundred years later, yes, I'm rounding off the 80+ to a century, and our Jewish and Israeli leaders still expect justice and truth.

DEFENSE MINISTER: EUROPEANS PUTTING HEADS IN THE SAND

“The Europeans continue to put their heads in the sand, exactly like they did before World War II,” Liberman told Channel 2. “The leaders of Europe prefer to run away from reality.”

I'm a pragmatist, which makes me a pessimist.

Unfortunately, we're the ones who are putting our heads in the sand by not recognizing the antisemitism so prevalent in the world, including the international bodies which claim to support justice and human rights.

I'm glad that our Prime Minister Netanyahu has followed US President Trump in announcing that we're leaving UNESCO, but I'm embarrassed that Bibi didn't take the initiative first. The problems with UNESCO aren't new. And I wonder how long it will take for both countries to rejoin...

You know what they say about paranoids having enemies...

What Faux Peace Game is Lieberman Playing?

This was first posted on Israel Blogger

DEFENSE MINISTER: CLOSER THAN 'EVER BEFORE' TO AGREEMENT WITH PALESTINIANS

Nothing causes the terror rate to rise more than talk of "peace" and Ramadan. Now, we can't control the every twelve month Ramadan, but we can desist from claiming that there will soon be a "peace agreement" with the Arabs who have unabashedly sworn to destroy us.

All this "peace talk" makes us look weak, wimpy, desperate and vulnerable. That's bad, because it encourages our enemies to attack and our so-called friends to pressure us to make "compromises" and more gestures to encourage the Arabs to make a deal.

How many times do wwe have to do this until people realise that it's a dangerous game?

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman has come out with so many contradictory statements over the decades he has been on the political scene that the best guess is that he has no real ideology, just raw ambition.

So, the chances are that he senses some weakness in Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's present standing, and he's just jockeying for position, hoping to pounce.  We've seen this before, and It probably won't be the last time.

Do you have a better guess?

Lieberman: Right, Left, Center or Consistently Inconsistent?

It's pretty hard to pin a political ideology on Israel's Defense Minister, Avigdor Lieberman.

Avigdor Liberman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party leading a news conference at the Knesset, May 18, 2016.
(Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Over his decades in politics here in Israel he has come out with a very wide range of policy statements which jump well across the political spectrum. Besides "consistent inconsistency," they are great headline grabbers.

Often he surprises with something out of Left field, like his offer of land exchange with the Arabs. He offered some of pre-1967 Israel for some of the Land we liberated in 1967. This shocked people, since he, himself, lives in Gush Etzion, placing his address and expected ideology to the Right.  And those on Israel's Right, and even Center, don't offer Arabs land that are part of sovereign Israel since the 1949 ceasefire agreement.

Lieberman's recent statement about only building in the main "settlement blocs" is not only a Left/Center stand, but it's common in Gush Etzion, which considers itself "consensus." I've written before how dangerous it is for all that they refuse to realize that the Left and most foreigners consider their homes no more acceptable than mine in Shiloh. They are in Lala Land, because the United States State Department and the United Nations consider all of the land we liberated in 1967, including Ramat Eshkol, Efrat, Elkana etc to be the same Arab status as Shiloh, Itamar and Hebron.

Basically, even more than Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Lieberman sounds more Right out of power than in power. Since the Israeli voting public leans to the Right, when campaigning, Lieberman talks the talk, but now in power, he won't walk the walk.

Fire Back! Show Strength!

An explosion and smoke are seen after Israeli strikes in Gaza City. (photo credit:REUTERS)
Jerusalem Post

Most everyone here in Israel, and in many parts of the world, are happy that for once the State of Israel has shown some strength in its response to Arab Gazan terror attacks on the south of the country.

Gaza militant rocket hits Israel, Israel responds with air strikes, shells

Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip launched a rocket that landed in the Israeli border town of Sderot on Sunday and Israeli aircraft and tanks responded by shelling the Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, the army and police said... An Israeli shell during an initial retaliation damaged a Beit Hanoun water tower and there were no casualties, local residents said.
Multiple air strikes later in the evening hit at least 30 different sites in the Gaza Strip belonging to Hamas, the smaller Islamic Jihad and other militant groups and two people were lightly hurt, Gaza health officials said.
A music festival in Sderot attended by hundreds of Israelis was temporarily disrupted as people sought shelter, television footage showed.

Have you noticed that even Reuters has properly sequenced its headline? Could this be a sign the Moshiach (Messiah) is getting closer?

Is our new Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman really changing the rather useless gentle fly swatting responses to the dangerous missile attacks by Gazan Arab terrorists to proper and suitable bombing? Or is this a one time event? Only time will tell. Most Israelis have gotten fed up with the namby-pamby Israeli responses and the very Leftist utterings of the previous Defense Minister Moshe "Bogie" Ya'alon. The big problem with Lieberman is that he is so totally inconsistent, but he does have the knack to say what the public wants to hear.

I wouldn't venture a guess as to how long this new policy will last, but in the meantime, I support it!

Israel Post-Coalition Crisis: Back to Usual #$!#! Idiocy

Frequently I wonder if part of the process to become an MK (member of Israel's parliament aka Knesset) is to deposit a portion of one's brains/intelligence, and then to be a cabinet minister, one must donate/pay even more...

Bayit Yehudi's (Jewish Home) leader Naftali Bennett's support for a bill to limit a Prime Minister to two terms is a good example of that. It may sound wonderful in theory and works in the United States, but makes much less sense in Israel where there is a big difference between the theoretical "full term" and the actual "terms" most PMs serve.

In actuality, according to the Israeli political system, Prime Ministers aren't actually elected. They are party heads who manage to form coalitions with other Israeli political party leaders after Knesset elections. In Israel we vote for political parties, and each political party runs its list of candidates to be Members of Knesset. There's a minimum percentage a party must get for its list to get into Knesset. And there's a complicated system by percentage which calculates how many MKs of the 120 a party gets. The President, who is voted in by the MKs, asks one of the larger party heads to attempt to make a ruling coalition. Sometimes the appointed party head fails and a different party is given the chance.

And even when a coalition is in power, sworn in etc. there is absolutely no guarantee that the government will serve a full term. Honestly, I don't remember when there was a government that served an entire term to the end. Sometimes the MKs vote them out resulting in the need for elections, and sometimes the Prime Minister decides to call for new elections.

I would have thought that Bennett would have caught the impossibility of the bill.

The opposition bill was authored by MK Merav Michaeli (Zionist Union), who on Monday asked Bennett whether he would support the move during a discussion in the Knesset. Bennett replied by saying that the bill is “a welcome step”, as he put it. (Arutz 7)

It does not suit the Israeli political system at all.

And for those who feared Avigdor Lieberman as too far Right to be Defense Minister, the chances are he'll be far to the Left.

Analysis: A dovish Liberman sings sweetly of two-states

There's one thing about Lieberman, he's totally inconsistent in ideology, but always after the headline.

So, what can I say other than it's business as usual in the Israeli Knesset and Cabinet, lots of  #$!#! Idiocy.

Was Bibi Conned by Lieberman? Has The Coalition Crumbled?

Just a day ago, it seemed like Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu had pulled another of his brilliant chess political moves, enlarging the schisms in Labor aka Zionist Movement, getting the problematic Bogie Ya'alon to resign and shoring up his barebones coalition with the addition of Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel's Our Home.)

And then came today, and when I got home and turned on the news, it didn't look all that rosy for Bibi.

Honeymoon over before it begins as Israeli coalition talks hit impasse
Likud says that it will not reopen coalition negotiations with any party as Bennett, Liberman and Kahlon demands complicate entry of Yisrael Beytenu into coalition.

There's some serious rivalry between the two "home" parties. Naftali Bennett's Bayit Yehudi (Jewish Home) wants some improvements before letting in Lieberman's israel Beiteinu (Israel's Our Home.)

Bennett demands Netanyahu fix Security Cabinet flaws
Jewish Home chairman and Minister of Education Naftali Bennett has demanded Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu fix security cabinet deficiencies as a coalition condition, ahead of Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman’s appointment as Defense Minister.

And to top it all off, the media gave lots of coverage to  Herzog's angry speech. Though Herzog's Zionist Movement has almost as many new cracks as Bibi's coalition.

But don't count on this being a knockout against Netanyahu or even a TKO. He's the wiliest Israeli politician around, and he wants to leave office with honor. The chances are that he'll manage to cement the cracks and even expand his coalition. Politics is never dull.

Avigdor Lieberman's "Last Hurrah"

A couple of elections ago, here in Israel, Avigdor Lieberman was given an irresistible offer by Binyamin Netanyahu to combine their parties for a joint run for Knesset seats, forming "Likud Beitenu."

On 25 October 2012, several days after the decision to dissolve the18th Knesset and after the decision was made to hold general elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Foreign Affairs Avigdor Lieberman convened a joint press conference in which they announced for the first time that their respective parties have established an electoral alliance in preparations for the 19th Knesset elections to be held in January 2013. Four days later the Likud's Central Committee approved the decision. (Wikipedia)

It guaranteed a set proportion of seats for Lieberman and top pickings in the cabinet. The actuality was even better than expected for him, since persistent legal battles immediately after, reduced his popularity and actually dragged down that joint party. The result was that Lieberman got more seats than he would have gotten on his own, and Netanyahu's Likud got less than he could have.

The political marriage broke up, and this time, they ran as separate parties. Lieberman's shrank considerably, and the Likud received enough MKs to form yet another government. All the pundits and the Likud took for granted that Lieberman would rejoin the cabinet. He was even offered the prestigious Foreign Ministry yet again, even though his party is one of the smallest in the Knesset.

But instead of joining Netanyahu's newest government coalition, in Lieberman's Last Hurrah he suddenly surprised everyone and rejected Bibi's offer. Since then Lieberman has been trying to show himself as a powerful leadership contender by marketing himself to the Right of Netanyahu.

There's an irony, or better termed as hypocrisy, in Lieberman's claim that he's to the Right, because at other times he has promoted "peace" sic plans far to the Left. Actually, if you check out the history of Avigdor Lieberman's statements and policies you'll find him all over the ideological map.

I don't trust him.

I also don't support any party that goes for narrow ethnic or religious appeal, whether it's the Sephardic Shas or the older version of the Jewish Home-NRP. Now that Naftali Bennett has opened the newly minted NRP as Jewish Home for all Israelis I find it more attractive. And it's now an alternative for the Right voter who didn't want a religious party and had previously voted Yisrael Beitenu.

Does this herald the end of Lieberman's Yisrael Beitenu, Israel is Our Home? Maybe not immediately, but very soon.