So obviously the answer is more protests in the street as that is the only thing the government listens to. Proud Israeli, but disgusted.

You have enough stupid brainwashed delusional Europeans like yourself. You have feckless leaders who are only concerned about their interests.The Euro is losing its worth.Your country is being overrun by Muslim and African immigrants. That's what multiculturalism has to offer you. It won't be long until you are a stranger in your homeland. You are indoctrinated to believe that its more important to sacrifice the identity of your country for ultra tolerance, diversity and sensitivity towards people of other ethnicity who view patriotism as being racism and xenophobia. Europe is not a place for Jews. She is still repeating her ugly history of vicious antisemitism.Its "intellectuals" like yourself is the reason why Europe is in the shape that its in. Try calling Tal a stupid brainwashed religious chick again when Mohamed becomes the most popular name in the UK.

As an olah, I can tell you from my own personal experiences living here. Yes, the system that the Israeli government is running on is outdated. Socialism is a failure when its implemented. I don't like the attitude of Israelis who feel they need to take advantage of others in order to advance.The cartels need to broken down and business competition should be encouraged.Its the monopolies that are crippling the Israeli market. Its hard to find a job without protexia. I should be hired based on what I know rather than who I know. As many flaws as this country has, I wholeheartedly believed that I made the right choice of leaving my comfortable life in the US to come here. Its worth the sacrifice. Liad won't have much of a chance of progressing in the US. The harsh truth is that Uncle Sam is broke.Obtaining US citizenship is a difficult and expensive process. The "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched" days are no longer. The US is in the state of destitute.Americans have always struggled to earn a living.If he decides to move there and send his kids to public school, there is a good chance that they will be lost to assimilation.If he decides to date and marry out of the faith then he would be discounting his Jewish heritage. Israel may have a lot of problems but running away is not the solution.

Dear Tal, i loved your letter of response - i myself made Aliyah last year from London, leaving a great job, massive income, and family to set up home here in Israel. To make a difference, to feel at home. Our friend who is moving to Canada for riches and a quiet life will eventually feel his life is shallow and worthlkess, and will come back to Israel, and hopefully bring his Canadian dollars to invest in the property market here. Which will turn out good for us in the end. The diaspora jews do have a role to fulfil and we should not judge them, as long as they continue to support Israel. With no Israel, they have no lives abroad. They sometimes fail to understand how much security Israel offers them as a jew abroad.

Tal, I am not religious. I am an atheist Zionist Jew. I love you and agree with you. KOL HAKAVOD

Willkommen zu Hause :)

the perfect response thank you

Tal, you're wrong about the hypothetical grandson. The overwhelming statistical odds in the Diaspora are that either (1) Liad wont get married, therefore no grandson (2) Liad will get married and divorced with no kids, (3) Liad will get married but not have kids (4) Liad will get married to a non-Jew and have non-Jewish kids. The option of getting married to a Jewish woman and raising Jewish kids is regrettably statistically only one of several alternatives today.

May I suggest that those who have any bitterness, disappointment, lack of success, or whatever, with their lieves here in Israel be careful of making generalisation? Also, Israels from America, Britain, etc. be careful when you exclude yourself from the word "Israeli." Don't confuse it with the word "sabra." I came here 25 years ago, am happy. The so-called Zionist propaganda is no such thing, but is a covenant with Ha-Shem. If you are an immigrant who does not believe in the covenant and in Ha-Shem, then I can see why you are not happy. Your portion of joy and contentment is here, but you you aren't looking for it in the right place. I live in a working class area of Haifa, and am not rich. Not even middle class most years. But I haven't had a single second of regret in coming home. Not clap-trap or propaganda. I am a Jew and an Israeli by birth, as are all Jews, born in the land or not. Where I live I see and hear all kinds of problems, yes, but most are not unique to Israel. What is unique is that most people I know here are happy, and love their country, and do not want to leave. So many of you talk as if only Israel has any social or economic problems. I feel the miracle of Israel every morning. I have lived elsewere, and I know that we are remarkably well-off here, and have many blessings to count. But mostly, I am thrilled to be in this Land every waking moment of my life. Be cynical and insulting--but it only weakens and cheapens your own life.

Mohamed is already the most popular name for boys in the UK - i kid you not

Marcus, if you look at it from History, Jews have the longest, and steadiest history in this part of the world. Even excluding the Torah (which Muslims and Christians do follow) History puts us here 1000s of years before Arabs/Muslims existed. So any arab claim to this land means the Arabs want to steal it from the original owners - Jews. But if you want to look at it recently, well at the end of the Turkish Empire there were Jews and Arabs here. But the Jews won a bit of the land, both at the United Nations level and in Battle . If you exclude history then possession is 9/10th of the law, and Jews are here. What is stolen land?

I could not have this better myself. Your writing shows your wisdom and beauty.

BEAUTIFULLY said...thank you!

STILL ISRAEL IS RUN BY IRGUN LEGACY

Tal is right, & it's all about the Ones: - One God, - One Book Given, - One Land Given, & - One People Chosen, To Receive It !!!!

I mean if you are openly gay and decide to live in the heart of all hassids what you expect, try living in places where the radicals dont live

6-7 years ago, Ariel Sharon was speaking at the UJC GA in Jerusalem. I was there. He bellowed - "we don't need your money, we need you to come make a difference in Israel." I thought, yes - now is the time. I'd been thinking about it for years. Fast forward to present day. Forced back to the USA because I couldn't find a career in Israel. I tried reinventing myself, spinning my CV - had organizations and individuals like NBN and one of the most prolific CFO's in the history of Israel trying to help me network. All to no avail. My first "job" was an unpaid "staj" - internship for 6 months at an Israeli I-bank. My bio was more accomplished than the MD's. They placed me with a start-up they funded in the Forex arena (let's just call it gambling and quit fooling ourselves). They paid me about 10% of what I earned in the USA AND my costs were nearly triple what I spent in the Midwest. Then I was hired by a global company to work in the USA for 1/2 of what they paid an American - while I brought in more revenue, because they knew they could get cheap labor in Israel. After 4 years of spending more than I ever earned (and I was quite frugal save for my new/way overpriced apartment), I received 2 bonafide offers back in the USA. Ariel Sharon was dead wrong, Israel doesn't want sophisticated, accomplished professionals. The want to keep recycling the old "zevel". I even had the pleasant experience of being turned down twice by a person fired by IBI for horrible results, only to be hired by UMTB - where she turned me down again. And her results, still horrible. The stories I could tell would fill a book - though I still am constantly posting pro-Israel articles and am vehement about defending her globally against haters and anti- semites. The real question is, who won in my situation? Me? Israel? Or neither one?

As long as I can remember, I have heard that Israel does not want Americans money- they want us, the Jews, to make Aliyah. Its a polite fiction- it just aint true. I have lived in Israel three times- as a child in Jerusalem, for a year on a Kibbutz, and a year and a half in Tel Aviv. The truth is, outside of pretty girls, Israelis have little use for American Jews. If pressed, I would guess that Israelis have more contempt for American Jews than affinity. I think that if an American truly wants to integrate, go to Israel young enough to do full military service. Otherwise, don't expect some type of super warm reception. Even then, many Israelis will think you are crazy. I was lucky in that I knew the score- I lived there without making Aliyah and taking a bunch of rights because I knew it would probably not be forever. American Jews and Israelis can have life long friendships (as I do), but we should stop kidding ourselves that there is a need or desire for American Jewry to pick up and move to Israel. Those days are at least 40 years in the past.

Yet somehow I just did...

Few days ago one of the commentators stated that Jews were in Palestine for 3500 years. If that is true then why you have Aliyah and why the immigrants are called Iraqi Jews, Yemeni Jews, Polish Jews, American Jews, Soviet Jews and so forth and so forth.

I can fully understand with so many here. My grand father was a member of the Lechi,Irgun and was a Journalist in France. He was friends with Jabotinsky and Begin was a frequent visitor in his apartment. He sacrified and so did my grand mother. I lived in Israel as a child, returned to her to do army service, met my husband there, married and lived there before returning to North America. My husband is a Sabra. For ten years we have been trying to return to Israel. My husband is one of five people in the wrold who specializes in infrastructure and pipe refurbishment. He is a researcher and engineer. He was screwed over by the Technion who snub him for work because they only hire from within[like inbreds]. Two of our sons are buried in Har HaMenuchot. Any one who thinks I am just procrastinating about returning is full of S$%#t! Israel does not want her citizens back, at least not if she has to pay them to buy food and support their children. My husband was offered 15,000 NIS a month before Mas! Try feeding a family on that[4 kids]. As far as the price of apartments...don't get me started. Now, my teenager does not want to return. Yes, there are bad people everywhere, yes people try to ride you and take full advantage everywhere. But why should I go into the ocean without at least a life jacket?

We moved here many years ago and in addition to Israeli friends we have lots of friends who also made aliyah from the States, just like us. All of us are happy here, even if we don't have as much money as we would have had if we had stayed in America. Many of our friends and relatives in the States have children who have intermarried. None of us here have that problem. Our grandchildren are all Jewish and we enjoyed attending Jewish weddings, Brisses, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs etc. We know that our children and grandchildren are the future of the Jewish People and this is what is most important for us. None of us regret that we moved here. Another thing: there were surveys done here recently that showed that something like 80% of Israelis are happy with their life.

Zionism should not be used as a sword to attack complaints about the bitter cost of living in Israel. To the contrary, those who believe in true Zionism should fight vigorously to make Israel a beacon for all Jews to have a place where they will be proud to settle.

Kol Hakavod!!

Do stop spewing crap. We are all Jews here in Israel.

Believe it or not, there are families in Israel who live on 15.000 sheqels & less per month. Have you ever thought of joinning your husband in the workforce to increase the above figure??

You said it - I couldn't have said it better. Amen!

If the only reasons to stay are that Israel has the best Falafel (true...), and that your grandkids might be called James (so what?!), then am I the only one that gets the feeling that you're scraping the barrel here?! Put up with corruption, taxes that go to religios bums, serve in the army until 45 to protect the settlers and fight useless wars so that there will never be peace, and on top of it all know that your grandkids (if they survide future wars) will be even worse off - all for the falafel and the "Israeli" names (Like Tom, Bar, Ben that are already common today)?! Lady - give your head a shake, open the windows and breath in some fresh air. Hopefully your brain will reboot...