Problems but no solutions

Op-ed: Every week another issue makes headlines here, but nothing is ever resolved

Reuters | Published: 10.30.10, 12:56

Two weeks ago, it appeared as though the country was on the verge of collapse because of the loyalty oath issue. Everyone dealt with it, and for a moment I feared that we were headed to a civil war because of the new legislation.

A month ago, it was the Shalit family’s protest march. For an entire week, it appeared that the Gilad Shalit issue reached boiling point.

This week it was the idiotic and needless legislation initiated by Knesset Member Gafni that had everyone preoccupied with it: The students initiated protests, the haredim screamed that they would quit the government, and the main headlines were bigger than ever.

A quick glance at this random list raises an odd conclusion: Israel shifts from one issue to another without any issue actually being resolved.

Every week or every two weeks we see some kind of great tsunami, an immense conflict that needs to be resolved. Everyone argues about it, quarrels with, and issues threats – yet suddenly, it just evaporates.

Did Gilad Shalit return already? Was the issue of the foreign workers’ children resolved? And what about the Citizenship Act? Or the settlement freeze?

Each and every one of these issues was at the top of the agenda; we were told that we reached a junction where something needs to happen, and that a great disaster would ensue should the issue not be resolved at once.

However, each and every one of these issues clung to our public perception for two to 10 days, and then evaporated, without seeing any change taking place in relation to it.

I think that this is precisely what poet David Avidan referred to when he wrote: Everything takes time, and time takes away everything.