Those sittting in the Knesset do not have a constituency in the population that they represent. They are beholding only to the party's central committee which ranked them sufficiently high in the pecking order to get a seat if the party garnered enough votes. Under these circumstances, it is little wonder that the citizens feel alienated from the parliament members, as the elected officials are not representing anything else except their own will to survive and keep the party central committee happy. Any wonder that I guffaw at the idea of Israel being called a democracy? It's a democracy in the Soviet sense. Like the democratic republic of North Korea. Get with the program and go for political reform before the present leadership destroys the country's future. Olmert and his gang of incompetents: OUT!!!!!

Figures and percentages are the best friend of the politician.The political elchon are there only for themselves.So what if the cowardly corrupt olmert gets 21%.Nobody can do anything either because they are not interested or are to dumn to bother.These statistics are produced to attempt to prove to the politicians that the survey workers are earning thier salary.Nobody cares in the results.Get olmert and co.out and in new elections the nation can perhaps rectify the sick system of putting the corrupt politician in the glued seats.

What is being done to rebuild the trust between Israeli-Arabs and Israeli-Jews, after all we are destined to live together in this special country called Israel and rebuilding the trust will only make Israel stronger

FYI you are the most racist and violent pple that earth would ever dare to bear on its surface

What do you intend to do to repair the links you broke?

in this article ,the lack of faith in the goverment in the idf in the others // yes it is the promenent ..then about the selfe is the illusion .becouse the goverment and the idf and the arab israili is the people also which you can have the statistics from them .and i think it will not be different than the result in this article so the illusion will be from less faith // but i think the most important of the people in evry place is lack of the faith in god

If you don't count suicide bombers, political assassinations, armed militias & gangs, honour killings, female circumcisions, killing apostates & heretics, jihad against non-believers, oppressing minorities, torture, beheadings, car bombs, sectarian conflict, clan feuds, flying planes into tall buildings, blowing up trains, attacking Hindou temples, killing Bhudhists, genocide in Darfur, bombing internet cafes, various riots, wife-beating, and promoting anti-semitism all over the world, I can't imagine why anyone would think that Arabs are prone to violence. Must be racism.

Caveat emptor. The Israel Democracy Institute is not the most trusted source of information. They have a clear agenda and polls like this one cited are part of their propaganda. Given questions phrased correctly you can get any set of conclusions desired.

It's the despair, you see? The hopelessness. If it were not for Israel, everything would be nice and peaceful. If anyone is still in doubt, go to The Religion of Peace website.

The Holy Struggle to 'Liberate' Jerusalem, mentioned in the Koran, how many times is it? Oh yeah; 0!

They have suicide bomber's summer camp for minors for crying out aloud!. That's a good start in explaining the cultural level and differences between us and them. They cultivate their children from a very young age. If they started to teach their children differently, then maybe they would have a chance of closing that gap.

...those really interested in Israel's situation,should buy a month or two ticket bus , and ride and walk around in various cities, observing by themselves the reality of Israel. I am sure it will be more effective ,real,true and helpful.

I would have thought at lelast 90% of Israelis would be confident enough in their own intelligence to say that arabs will never reach the same cultural level as Israelis

What a racist disgusting comment! You don't know anything about Arabs! No wonder there isn't peace when this hypocrisy racism is rampant in Israel. These poll makers should be beaten. Maybe that would smack some sense to them.

This whole idea of surveys in this country is stupid anyway, as they always ask the wrong questions to begin with. There is nothing wrong with democracy in this country,the problem is the corruption that perminates this government as well as the entire kinesset. If we get rid of the corruption,get fresh blood into the government and be sure to make it a government of the people,by the people and for the people then we would have a much better way of life here! If we would have a constitution and a bill of rights then we would havea government that is responsible to the people instead of what we have now, which is a government responsible to special interest groups, and lining their own pockets as well as their close friends!!

Need anybody say more? Unless, of course, you were just baiting with cynical 'humour' . . . .

If France’s democracy remains unchanged for another 20 years then France will become an Islamic country governed by Sharia. Same goes for Holland and Belgium and maybe Spain and almost certainly Norway and Switzerland. The world has changed and democracies must metamorphose. We now have Islam doing its utmost to take over the free world. It is using every country's democracy to overthrow the host country. Look at democracy in Israel. The State of Israel is still being undermined by Arab M.K.s openly traveling to foreign countries during times of war, returning and not being arrested - Wasel Taha and Jamal Zahalka. We have organizations like Machsom Watch an B'Tselem openly working against the IDF etc etc We have foreigners arriving at check points wearing IDF uniforms and nothing is done in the name of some dead sacred cow called democracy. Get real! Countries must start to do whatever is necessary to protect themselves from the enemy both within and without - Islam! Mike

It's an Arab with a sense of humour. That's a first!

Israel needs a new politcal system based on loyalty to constituencies not the party and the coalition system needs to be abloshed. The coalition system means that a party can campaign on one thing once they get ellected they need to drop some of these promises that got them ellected so they can put together a coalition because the other parties refuse to join if these politices are put into practice and it creates unstable government because if coalition partners pull out and a new coalition cant be put together with other parties then the government falls. There are to many small single issue parties which take get votes which could go to larger parties with an all roiund mandate not a single issue. There is a need for more than 2 parties like the US have but less than the number currently in Israel. Also currently the people have no say in who will represent them the one who is highest on the party list gets the job . There is no insentive to take an interest in what the local people want your part of the party machine if the party gets ellected no matter what the people think of you its not up to them. There is nobody for people to complain to if they have a problem in a constituancy you can write to your local MK who represents you tell them your complaints and they know that if they just ignore the wishes of the local people then they will get voted out next time round. Olmert would have to take more notcie of what the people are saying if he had a constituancy because if he ignored the will of the people not only could he loose his job as PM but he could loose his seat at the next ellection under this system Olmert might eventualy loose the top job but next ellection he can still come back as an MK possibly even a minister and theoreticly even the PM .. after Lebanon nobody ever thought Sharon would make a politcal comeback especialy not PM. There should also be a limit on the number of times that somebody can be allowed to serve as PM. The idea that the same man can keep coming back ellection after ellection even if they are in their 80s like Peres ( the deputy PM ) is rediculous it doesnt encourage new thinking all it does is have the same man returning with the same basic policy time after time. Israels politcal system in its current form is not real democracy the people dont allways get the policies they vote for due to coalitions and the loyalty of the politician is to the party not the people who are responsible for ellecting them. Israel is nearly 60 its time it got a more mature politcal system the current system is a joke and an insult to the idea of democracy.