The article is stupid. Real phones are part of life, especially if you are answering e-mails all day because you are middle class.

Did he heard about cartis ashray? I guess not. The very same smartphone doesn't take 3kilo shekels from your account every month. Every kid knows that. But yeah, author will try to get some attention the same old way every left winger does - "oppose the majority in a room and you will look smart no matter what nonsense you speak." Works always.

While I totally support the demonstration, I agree with you about spending. Achieving results will involve personal sacrifice, and change of habits. And it isn't easy. I miss my cottage cheese, and white cheese, whose price has not come down at all - 6.99 in my neck of the swamp.

Stupid article, and the author might be ignorant and uneducated (which I doubt). However, he does have a point

i couldn't believe your idiotic response to this right-on article. it only shows how correct the Daum is...smart phones are a part of life because you answer emails all day???? hopefully your TB was a joke... Taxes and prices are too high in this country and wages too low.. This has NOTHING to do with social justice for god's sake. It's an ECONOMIC issue. But because both talk backers appear to live in a bubble protected from real life why should i expect u to understand anything. SOMETIMES YOUR BRAINS SHOULD HAVE THE SMARTS NOT JUST YOUR PHONE.

Sir, I grew up in the United States of the 60s amongst immigrants from a variety of lands. It always would amuse my immigrant father to see the newest shiniest cars in the poorest of the immigrant neighborhoods. He'd say..."they can't afford a house so they are going for the economic comfort provided by a new car. Good for them, if they can make the payments on the car, they will learn to make the payments on a house! Little by little they will get there!" Well Mr. Daum that new car of the old days has been replaced by the smartphone. In other words if they can afford to pay for the smartphone, even if it is on credit, they are learning something about economy. In your place I would be far less critical and far more understanding. You might learn something and your compassion wouldn't suffer either!

You don't know nothing if you think that cutting expenses will give anything (as author). I will explain it to you in simple matters: If majority buys less - we have recession. Recession - people loosing jobs, can't pay their bills, loosing houses, apartments, real estate market goes wild, prices going up and down (depending on hundreds of issues). It goes exponentially down. It's bad, very bad. Check Greece, partly US 3 years ago and so on. So tell us please, how it is helping, when you are cutting your expenses in masses? Stop exaggerate, get real, and manage your own expenses. But please don't tell others what to do.

marianne, seems some middle class folks suffer a lot, but on a high level

So, the real problem is that Israelis are spending 225NIS/month on smart phones instead of 150 NIS/month on regular phones? This is just some stupidity the right win has got attached to because they don't like the protests. The problem is not a lack of living with our means, it's that our means are so meager because we keep funding the same lazy people who do nothing but steal from the government.

it seems you did't even understand the article..or for that matter my comment.. Seems like your smartphone cant' read. Pity.

...that there is a legitimate concern about too high taxes and prices and too low wages. The poor suffer and the middle class struggles to maintain their style of life. but don't suffer. Unfortunately the people who are protesting are neither. and it WAS a media led protest. The majority of people in this country do NOT SUPPORT WHAT HAPPENED. even though we are equally concerned about the cost of living. i am one of the poor ones..but you don't find me whining. A legit complaint is legit. Govt. overthrow, French guillotines, red flags...no way sweetheart..this was an entirely different agenda.

A person who doesn't even have the courage to post their name: The idea is NOT simply to buy less, but to buy wisely and prioritize. Put necessities before luxuries. Decide what real necessities are. Buy less on credit, more with cash. I don't have an iPhone, a plasma TV or a brand-new car--not because I can't afford them, but because I decided I don't need them. It's all a question of priorities. When I buy a pair or New Balance or Saucony trainers because no others fit my wide foot without causing other health issues, I understand that I have to defer or cancel some other purchase I might want. If all of us made these decisions and learned to live within our means, it would make all the difference in the world. Many of those in the protest tents on Rothchilds Boulevard have their lunches in fashionable sushi restaurants, text and talk on their cellphones incessantly and demand that homes in Kikar HaMedina should be the same price as in Or Akiva. Where's the logic in that?

Cartis ashray is still MONEY! It's not magic.

and to those who say otherwise, you are the problem of your own "economic" troubles.

nva, I get it, everyone gets it. Some of the protesters are impostors. Great idea to write about some of them. Gives a real "good picture" about protest. But honestly, who cares about those slackers? Author obviously "does". But doesn't care about real people problems. That's why I mocked him. Do I really need to state the obvious? Michael, I'll leave you and author to your "knighthood". But before you'll go for your crusade against something no one cares about: 1. If asceticism is good for you, than G-d bless. I don't have smartphone, communicator or plasma either but I don't brag about it - it's my own business. If I don't need it I won't buy it, but please stop "setting example" and be that moralist guy, you have no right to tell anyone what to do. 2. Concentrate on real issues. Real people, who have real problems with renting apartment: students, soldiers, young families so on. Those "golden kids" who spends they money in hundreds on useless taxi rides and sushi restaurants are out of my concern.

I'll speak the language you understand. "No, you are the real dafuch!" Read between the lines.

1. Also the rich with iphones might have an interest in social justice! In fact, these High Tech people who spend most of their life working extremely hard, flying frequently abroad for WORK!!! saw how Israel is not treating its citizens right, and started protesting on behalf of the ones who didn't know. I think this is great. 2. Economy is a matter of education. You will agree with me that Israel still has a lot to do better, for example amiliorate the status of teachers (social justice!) 3. Even people who spend their money (whether they actually have it or not) on silly things deserve social justice.

I agree with all that is written in above article. Last year we bought expensive apartment in center of Jerusalem, but I'm sure those fancy-looking protesters would call us "trash" or something because we dress poorly & can't afford to travel abroad this year. We don't even have a car so we use public transport. So it is all matter of priorities, nothing else. Our neighbors - also young couple with a kid which bought the flat in same "fancy" Jerusalem neighborhood - well - they're pretty poorly dressed, too, and they also don't own a car but borrow it from parents when needed. (Of course, taxi for Tel Aviv is out of the question).

Eight years ago, when Vicky Knafo was demonstrating in her Jerusalem tent, everything was set up and paid by the left - wing group SHATIL. She even got a cellphone and the taxis to the local TV stations were also paid. I assume that its the same with the heads of the Rothschild demonstration. SHATIL pays. Even a Monit Special !

The gov't spends too much not the people. The people just want the comforts of the western world. Too much goes to the territories and bad infrastructure projects, Religous people ( not all) do not contribute to the economy they are just leaches and in the mean time the average person has to pay higher prices for everything and pay crazy taxes. The gov't needs to to spend less and earn more so everyone can have more in their pockets.

if you don't have the facts, please do try to refrain from making up stories!

This "protest" is BS. The Tel Aviv tent crowd comes from the richest, most spoiled, Hanan Zoabi-supporting, draft-dodging, Bibi-hating slice of the population. Other people who may be less leftist are out in the streets shouting slogans that contribute absolutely nothing to the national discourse on economics, and generally have no idea what they're talking about. Israel has some economic problems and it also has GREAT STRENGTHS like low unemployment, low inflation, high growth, and stability. Now, thanks to the spoiled-brattism of the protests, no one mentions the strengths, the good things, which we should be thankful for. Only 10,000 came to tonight's demo in Beersheva (they wanted 40,000). This stupid thing is fizzling out already. Good riddance.

Smart phones are the bourgeois tycoons, us ordinary people should not aspire to owning such wasteful luxuries. We do not go out to work solely to pay the rent earn and high indirect taxes ( 16% VAT ) which happens to be lower than any country in Europe except for Cyprus & Switzerland. Yes people should live within their means, if more people lived within their means then we wouldn't have this global recession but living within our means doesn't mean we are not allowed luxuries like smart phones. Ok I am off to get myself a tent and make myself a banner demanding the government give us all smart phones free of charge or ban them outright so people who live within their means are not tempted to go out and buy one.

The disparity between the rich and the poor ib Israel has been independently validated by sources external to Israel. in addition to our own Central Bureau of Statistics. This gap poses an existential threat to the fabric of Israeli society no less dangerous than the Iranian threat. It is more visible in an urban setting rather than in a kibbutz in Emek Yizrael or in Shiloh. Making believe that it doesn't exist is foolish and dangerous.

It is scary.

The only tent I ever had was for camping trips, because it was a cheaper way to go on vacation than staying in a hotel.

i know these protestors are not serouse they are to twist the sight to nothing but stay wherever you stand it is the dangerouse thing not to move it is in policy more than in economy it is -stagnated policy and not serouse economy and funny sociaty .the future is not funny it is step forvords economy will not changed only in a little gap as it is not serouse if it is not healthy it is only a simple cold