I make more money than you do, and I do not waste my money on things like that... and all I have to feed and house, and take care of is a cat while you have 4 kids, a spouse and a new and inflated mortgage for a house I told you was overpriced. And you can't "finish the month"... another upside down coffee? only 20 NIS.

I rather suspect that it is the writer of the article.

Years ago I stopped watching the news and reading the Friday papers for this very reason. The picture painted no way reflects the reality I see around me and I have near zero trust that the media is giving us the real story.

To be not enough we also have to look

As a part time resident I was in Israel while all the 'protests" went on. It was incredulous. While there ARE poor and there are homeless the tone and statements of the protesters was, as stated a never never fantasyland. The huge numbers at Sat. night rallies were really huge numbers at free concerts by some of Israel's top entertainers. I wonder how many would have really been there had it been only speeches about the alleged cause. "We want Israel to be a welfare state" --how embarrassing. Fix your priorities people, give up the 1-2 year overseas tour after army ( that money COULD be used for a down payment) Welcome to the real world and the world of adulthood!

Bad news does. Plus, NGOs get Arab & European money with an antisemitic agenda: The dismantling of the Jewish state - and many of these NGO are led and manned by self hating Jews. Why don't you in Israel do what we have in the US: NGOs must declare where their money comes from. Not the best solution but better than nothing.

All this is true and there is much to take pride in and be grateful for but there is also another side. The growing income gap is one element of this. Another element in this is a major problem in Israeli life in our public behavior. Perhaps it is better than it used to be. But consideration of the other, Derech Eretz is still considerably lacking in public spaces. The quality of life not only an economic quantity it also determined in other more subtle ways. Greater civility and greater attention to others would improve the quality of life greatly.

Almost like Mao's hasbara red book. Forgot to add one detail, that if it wasn't for US financial and political support you wouldn't last a month on you own ,...

I am overwhelmed by what a romantic place it is . Last time I stayed at a hotel on the Beach in North Tel Aviv. Very nice people in the Hotel that stuffed me with so much food in the morning that it was difficult to walk all day. When I got to the Western Wall I noticed a group of soldiers helping another soldier who was on crutches. They showed so much loving care towards this guy that I thought - People are so nice here it even extends into the military . People are so happy in Israel..Israelis saw I was tired and weary and they always said - Be happy , relax - You are is Israel now. I never saw such a wonderful place . .

The Battle for the heart and soul of the 21st century, is upon us.  Will humanity continue to move forward with all its fits and starts toward a future of democracy and technological achievement. Or, will it be dragged back to a time of Medieval suffering and oppression. The stakes are high and there is no middle road. Should modernity fail to answer the challenge, the dark ages will once again envelope humanity.

Some young people who have not yet produced anything more than verbal pollution want to have an equal share of the fruits of hard working people's efforts.

Yes a lot of things written about Israel is distorting but there were rightful criticism of the country, although the blame should be placed on previous governments rather then the current one, for instance the inflation rate in Israel is ridiculously high, but the rate was really high before Bibi, and the housing market has always been over priced for as long as I can remember, let's be honest in those points the rallies cause were legitimate, to demand action from the government was the right move, but nobody should misinterpret that as blaming the current government for the problem

Just look around at the economic data from the rest of the Western World's so-called economic leaders. Unemployment is at 9% in the US with a negative future outlook. If you look at the EU, it is in the double digits. Compare that to Israel's statistical full employment level of 5%. Look at the massive deficits surrounding those economies too. We are blessed in Israel to have such a healthy economy during a time of global recession.

But prefere to stay in Palm Beach ;) ,.

Ellen, you are wrong. A typicalapartment costs400,000$. You need a 40 percent down payment for mortgage, that is nearly 170,000$ down payment. A typical two year tour in India or Thailand is 10,000$ at the most.Young Israelis have given up their dream to buy a house and leave that dr

Aid amounts to less than 1% of our GNP and until 1974 the US aid was exactly zero. We can do better without the aid than with it. And yes we can survive.

Holiday aliyah is such a wonderful thing. I bet Avi is an armchair general too.

As a part time resident you also probably pay less than part time taxes (or none at all) and are probably less than part time involved in Israeli society. Ellen, you're a part time expert too. Your silly comments show that you've never served in the army, never bought a home here, nor have any idea about how many people travel and for how long (1-2 years? just how many of the protesters did that?!?). Ellen...you're welcome to your armchair and your comments, but at least think about it and do some research before you click SEND. You probably didn't go to any of the protest rallies, nor did you spend any time lobbying political leaders or parties for any type of the social changes that are indeed needed here. Oy vay...

Third Battalion 8 th Marines Fallujah I love peace myself . Thank you. God Bless Israel.

Oh, how perfect is Israel. How its Leftist critics are merely whiners, who finally are being told to shut up by its self-satisfied majority. Thank you, Mar Rosenfeld, for setting me straight. The truth is that Israel is a wonderful place, which is also deeply flawed. The Left and Diaspora Jewry are a helpful corrective to some of its excesses. We can learn from one another, IMHO, but the tenor of this and so many recent pieces from the Israeli press reflect a nasty public mood which has grown weary of hearing constructive criticism. How very sad, indeed.

thank you for exposing the lies by the Left. I would have also added that his government also: 1) created the 1st national plan for the railroad 2) ended the inneficient, corrupt Olmert plan for a subway system in tel aviv and replaced it with a more trustworthy amalgam of companies 3) Allocated money to solve the student housing crisis 4) steered Israel through the worst global economic crisis in decades 5) increased the hard currency reserve 6) Allocated more money into the education system and lengthened the school day 7) Restored our deterrent in the region and prestige vis-a-vis both our enemies and frenemies! the list goes on and on- I know who I am voting for again- Bibi!

The recent "demonstrations" should in no way be mixed with the truth to dilute it or to strengthen the perception. The truth however still remains that Israelis are oppressed, and I for one was a victim of that oppression and witness to it for many years. Like Mexico city, you have to travel outside the "vacationer" label to get the scoop. The great development of technology is for big companies that will take that technology and pocket the profits. Most of the successful high tech developments are quickly sold to abroad companies. Few maintain the companies in Israel as native. We could also say the malls are full in china and Dubai to. Go to a shuk to see real Israel scrapping together agarots. As far as those bars and cafes how many are wired more than an FBI sting with dozens of cameras and microphones trained on customers. But the people of Israel are slaves if you ask me and I wasn't just a visitor. Why are the monoplies so powerful and the outsider companies quickly out of business? Women are losing places in public by the day and radicals are imposing the latest religious dogma. Shunning is going on and races are kept out of shcools. This article is blind to the truth. Delusion is a weird thing. Oppression has been to long on our people. Israelis need to be set free to a free market and the shadow ruling needs to end.

Who is it exactly, you have intended your post to, Josh...or whatever your name is... Whatever your complaints against israel are, last time checked, Israel is still the only Democracy in the ME..And by far, the best destination for a life of achievement of prosperity, success and modern life styles in the world.. You are lying about the markets (shuks), you are mumbeling about "china"?(hah?) People are slaves? Seems as if you haven't been there since the Roman Empire...Monopolies ? How is it different, then any other democracy in the world ? Back it up, genious...FYI, Israel is equal to worlds most advanced democracies by the equality, women enjoy in every way and any aspiration, inlcuding public work...Religious dogma? Explain yourself...Because as a citizen of Israel for 40years, I know first hand, that a democracy like Israel, where the muslim population enjoys far more freedom, then in any of their native arab countries, can't and doesn't "shun" anyone to worship as they wish, neither in schools, nore churches or mosques... Your lies about Israel's "opression" remain being lies, that need no proof, because the overwhelming factual truth is evident and easily accessible. All you have proved here is your hate and your preconceived notions...How pathetic...

and the average Israeli is suffering in that place. I have seem them in the suppe kitchens in Jerusalem. The high tech is in the hands of a few people, not the many. On the Gini index, where you can see the distribution of wealth per family, Israel is the second worst in the Western World. That clearly illustrates that wealthy Jews do not share the wealth with their people. So, not only do you not make enough money on a job to live in Israel, the taxes are outrageous! And the political system is a nightmare! There is no way you can get the corrupt politicians out of the government, because the vast majority are appointed by their parties, not elected by the people. We need a political system that makes politicians more accountable to Israelis for their actions. We need a system where every MP has to run for election to represent a certain district. We need some changes in Israel, otherwise, it's not worth living there. I once lived in Israel, so I know what's going on. And if you are from the US, you are lying when you say that Israel is a democracy. If we pretend that everything is alright, we will never make improvements.

Shaul Rosenfeld accuses those who find fault with Israeli prices, policies, and social divisions of taking part in what he says "is mostly a calculated, orchestrated deception effort by certain political, ideological and media parties who feel that blatant lies are also proper persuasion means." He does not of course identify these "parties" because he can't, and particulars tend to disturb the smooth working of paranoid fantasies such as Rosenfeld's. If Rosenfeld is unaware of the difficulties of the average Israeli, he is not reading the newspapers he writes for. If he is and denies the difficulties, he is a cruel and uncaring man, and probably a terrible father and husband. The inequalities in Israel cry out for policies to reverse them. The towers of Tel Aviv are a reproach to the entire struggling middle class. But it is good that the towers are downtown, where we can see and despise them, rather than hidden in places such as Savyon and Kfar Shmaryahu where a less blatantly exhibitionistic wealthy class used to hide. The problem with Rosenfeld's piece is not so much the grossly tendentious use of statistics as it is the terribly inhuman refusal to acknowledge people's hurt and need. The article is not only wrong, it is shameful. Ed Codish Pardessiya

You are not to judge on the subject of democracy in Israel ! Interesting how you singling out Israel and not a word about the state of democracy in the "ocean" of the arab countries, surrounding Israel...Are those democracies ? Do they treat their people, especially women in a democratic way ? Where do get the "nerve" and where do you come from now to jump in when it comes to attack Israel ? Just because a self hating lefits idiot, like Shaul Rosenfeld, who has no idea what he is talking about, wrote this article ? It only proves, that Israel is a perfect democracy, allowing any self hating citizen to write whatever he wants, unfortunately...And bigots from all over the world are immediately crawling out from every rock to add their few "cents"...

I was in Israel and I felt more safe there than in the USA, at the hotels armed security, before going into mall armed security checking things but ina smart way not an invasive american way, food was great and we ate in the hotels, local places in telaviv, ashdod, heifa, netanya, nice hotels are pricey thats the only complaint I can come up with and when we investigated getting a home there to buy or rent the prices almost gave me a heart attack but thats because we asked about living in tel aviv, other areas are more affordable. Some people always will hate whatever they have now, in school they hated the current teacher they had, the year later they said the teacher of last year was good the new one is not, its a mental issue, Israel is a great place if it wasnt people wouldnt hate it so much, the better israel does the more people hate it, the story of the jews being slaved in egypt starts off with that they saw the jews growing stronger and better and they started being jealous and wondered how can we enslave them.

Arab countries. Israel is part of the West, and in that comparison, Israel does not look good. The wages are lower, and the cost of living is higher than in Germany. The children of the NAZIS got a better deal than the children of the Holocaust. Unless the elite start sharing more of the wealth, you can bet that more Jews will be leaving the country.

Why shouldn't i compare Israel with Arab countries? Didn't you claim, that Israel is not a democracy ? The way your logic works is beyond comprehention...Who are you to play an expert on Israeli society, or any other in the world for that matter... How do you know, that the Israeli elite are not sharing their wealth ? And if Jews are leaving Israel, it is their democratic right.. Are you concerned, that more Jews may be moving to Canada?