Shas Chairman Yishai
Photo: Gil Yohanan
Fed up with Shas
Let’s hope that Shas, which only cares about itself, pays price in next elections
Anyone who cares about the good of the country should hope for one thing: That if we are indeed dragged to elections now, those who will form the next government will be parties that are not called Shas.
It is impossible that an enlightened country able to compete with the most developed nations in the world in any area finds itself every time depending on an 88-year-old rabbi, who according to witnesses tends to get overly emotional and is fed by information being whispered in his ear selectively by interested parties.
Because if there is a God, or at least some kind of poetic justice, this party – which always seems to be able to hold us in sensitive spots (and I’m not talking about Jerusalem) and wrap us around its greedy and shameless finger – needs to pay the price for once.
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Those who believe that what Shas cares about today are Israel’s poor children, please stand up. Those who believe that what separates Shas from the government are hundreds of millions of shekels needs to be punished. Because if Shas cared about hungry children, it would have grabbed Livni’s generous offer with both hands instead of gambling on elections whose outcome is unclear.
Had the Shas leadership cared about what’s good for the people of Israel, it would see what’s going on right under its nose and refrain from leading the country into a period of chaos, uncertainty, and reckless waste of money.
However, Shas, as Shas tends to do, only sees Shas. It has been in the government for so many years, its ministers hold the most important social affairs portfolios, yet it still has plenty of complaints. Shas is present in all decision-making junctions and is a partner to all fateful decisions, yet it still claims to be discriminated against. Every time it’s the same story: What will Shas do? What will Shas say? Will it join the government or not?
We’ve had enough. We’re fed up with you. We’re fed up with this ongoing delusion, with the manipulative negotiations, and with the self-righteous pretensions of having the good of all of Israel’s children in mind.
And it doesn’t matter if what bothers Eli Yishai is the fact that Tzipi Livni is a woman, or the fact that he fears Aryeh Deri’s revamped status, or whether he thinks that it will be easier for him with Benjamin Netanyahu. In any case, there is nothing pure about your motives; there is nothing moral or even right in your arguments.
Look around you. Look at what is going on in the world and go back to your rabbi. Ask him whether this is really what he wants: Creating uncertainty in an uncertain world and contributing instability in an unstable world. Ask him whether there is a truly good, justified, holy reason for shaking up the country for the next few months.
Livni declared Saturday that we are going to elections. Yet when it comes to Shas, everything is possible until the last moment. We should hope that ultimately common sense and the good of the country will win out. And if not, we should only hope for one thing: That the price of these needless elections will be paid by Shas.
