Israel general discussion

[Boobs]

So, uh, is this, like, actually happening? Is Bibi finally leaving the premiership once and for all? This is surreal.

It will be a while still but legally I can’t see him escaping indictment now let alone actual jail time. I would caution that he’s going to burn every bridge and create every constitutional crisis he can along the way. Likud voters don’t care much for this anyway so they’ll support him even if he’s charged with murder. they are really the lowest form of citizens, I have more fruitful discussions with JH voters

But wouldn't he become toxic to Likud's chances in the next election? I say this because here we had, and still have, a similar situation involving the former PS PM José Sócrates. At the beginning almost everybody in the PS, except Costa, supported him and tried to defend him but as time passed, and the proofs became more and more irrefutable, the support some PS members were giving him was, in part, damaging the PS in the polls, leading to their defeat in the 2015 elections.

My point is that Bibi could become a liability to the party, but how powerfull is the Likud "establishment" in order to force him out in a way to save their chances in the next elections?

Unfourtunately, Israel isn't Portugal. It appears like you have an electorate with some morals that cares about corruption and wants its leaders to be... well, not criminals who act like mob leaders. In Israel, sadly, the electorate has been incited to see evil leftists everywhere- the media, the judiciary branch, and now even the police. For them, it's all the evil leftist elite trying to hunt their King. This is ironic, considering that of all people, Jews should know to recognize scapegoating and hatemongering. Hopefully I'm wrong, but this is my feeling about our political system right now, and why I find American politics more interesting. There's no hope in the end of the tunnel, not at the moment.

And considering that the strongest opposition is the incredibly spineless Lapid, I have no doubt that even in the snap election, Likud will be the largest party and probably will form a government.

[Boobs]

The theocracy is inevitable as the Haredi are the only ones actually having kids

It's too bad that the secular right would rather be in bed with the ultraorthodox wing for their own goals rather than work with the centre/centre-left in order to maintain secularism.

[Boobs]

The theocracy is inevitable as the Haredi are the only ones actually having kids

It's too bad that the secular right would rather be in bed with the ultraorthodox wing for their own goals rather than work with the centre/centre-left in order to maintain secularism.

Nah. There are a number of trends which I believe will counter that- Haredi youths are secularizing and leaving their sect in record numbers with the help of the information revolution, and the deaths of major Haredi leaders, which will lead to more and more fracturing and less and less authority for their heirs, will significantly weaken that community. In the end, the bubble will burst. There's a reason their leaders are panicking about Iphones and calling for them to be destroyed- they're shaking in fear that their zombies will start learning about the world and realize how outdated their sect is.

Well, that's hopeful. I might actually move back to Israel if that's the case.

It's kinda sad, though, to see the death of the left wing in Israel. Maybe after Likud's troubles with Netayahu and the possible Lapid ministry (which will undoubtedly be a failure seeing as he has no spine or ideology), maybe the Left can roar back to life. 

[Boobs]

Netanyahu and Likud getting a boost from Trump's Iran Deal decision. Bleh. I was hoping I'd get to see a left-wing government this decade, I guess not.

At least one good thing, though; if Levy-Abekasis and her party continue to rise, Liberman and his goons may fall below the threshold. Hopefully she refuses to work with Netayahu.

[Boobs]

Does anyone know why Israel's birthrate is the highest (and still rising) in the developed world? 

There are relatively higher birth rates among Israeli Arabs and very high birth rates among Haredim.

[Boobs]

Statistics about birth rates in Israel are always iffy because they are so politically charged, but I found this article to be quite informative. It's definitely not just Arabs and Haredim (whose birthrate has actually declined over the previous decades, rapidly in the first case).

Thanks for this – it's a great article.

[Boobs]

It is remarkable how quickly and readily those who claim to be defending liberal democracy and Israeli values abandon those very same principles.