what a public servant is supposed to do and what defines a modern democracy.

You can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear... Start the programme in schools as well, the Israeli children have the manners of farm animals!

Fortunately our MK are outright pigs. Is tzvika trot unhappy with the truth. Is his thoughts how to teach a MK to lie and falseify the Information as most politicians in the world.(american and british)lead the pack.Does he think when Avigdor Liberman is to blunt????We need the truth and not the etiquette.

So you talkbackers would prefer superficial politness as in some western parliaments, with graft, corruption, gross isuse of public money, back-room deals, personal immorality, nepotism all nicely hidden by the polite demenor of well spoken hypocrites and cynical users? Shear stupidity to worry about one cultural version of manners being imposed on another culture on a planet that is falling apart and devoid of morality or leadership. I get tired of Israels from the Uk or Canada or the US assumming that the superficial gentile forms of social manners are actually representative of moral superiority. Nought to do but hanging around English-language talkbacks and taking any jab you can at your fellow Israels not from a former British colonial enterprise, or Britain itself. Silliness incarnated.

When you're done there please come to my office and work on my secretary and others... you would think you were in a room with chipmunks to hear them eat. Oh, and then the cellphone things... OMG!

Utensils and accessories.

They have napkins? my husband licks his fingers!!!!

Also the fingers of his right hand ?

nonsense are themselves nonsense. Comments that Israelis cannot/will not learn some basic norms of civil behavior are distressing. The fact is without basic courtesy, patience, consideration, politeness-- and I am not talking about grand gestures and fakery-- a society is coarse, gross and ugly and eventually falls apart. So this effort to teach MKs some basics IS important. and should not be mocked.

Its not the ministers who should learn, good manners and eating etiquette, its the kids and parents alike- well I'm glad that at last this very important subject has now come to the Governents attntion. I only hope they take it seriously.

True, the Knesset members are in desperate need of this training -- but at least they can be trained (we hope). Check out the British parliament sometime, and see how they treat their prime minister and each other in dialogue.

rather, it's a matter of simply doing. And this goes for everyone. Common sense dictates that one should eat with his mouth closed, after all.

Its possibly the result of everybody serving in the army where manners are the last things on anybodies mind. They pick up this easy going attitude when they are young and because everybody has the same upbringing nobody puts it right. Many MKS have also come straight out of the army so they haven't even had a chance to develop better habits before entering politics. I think that given Israeli culture whilst you can give the MKS lessons en etiquette you can't enforce it and the system is never going to change.

and learn ENGLISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dalia Itzik and Limor Livnat are the GREAT examples.

it is not we who have an Armed Forces in which protektzia can get you into an elite unit. No one is talking about moral superiority. We are talking about the ability to influence the feelings and impressions of third parties. By the way, can you show us any EVIDENCE that it was non-Israeli citizens who initiated the seminar?

...well, if it works it will be. I agree though, all children, regardless of where they grow up, should learn appropriate etiquette for their society so that it comes naturally to them in later life. (The subject of the article is so funny I've no choice but to post a link on Twitter).