Equality start by stopping incitement to violence not by including radicals to the government

These Arab parties are basically PLO political parties formed as a fifth column advocacy group. Protecting minorities does not involve bringing traitors into the government.

...by having individuals who fraternize with the enemy into the government. And do not forget, an arab in such a position will continue to call any islamic terrorist for his brother, brothers in tunis, libya, iran, pakistan. And islamic followers does not relate himself as an israeli or to any islamic country, no he would say," I am an arab", independently of which country he has his house. Through my way of life abroad, I have NEVER heard any arab in Egypt saying, "I am an egyptian"!! Unless he was a christian or had any other religion than islam.. Islamic followers just relate to islam and make decisitions based on islam...be aware...

Rarely have I seen this central political issue put so clearly and so eloquently. The inclusion of minority groups is fundamental for all civilised societies. The majority of countries which view themselves as culturally diverse have yet to fully solve the issue of inclusion but many are attempting to do so, if imperfectly. Mostly, the countries surrounding Israel do not make claims to be fully inclusive or democratic. Israel does make this claim and there is every reason for it to strive to live up to that claim while at the same time retaining a sense of its own history and an overall Jewish character. We rightly castigate other states for their antiquated theocratic and ethno-nationalistic political systems. In 2013, it is rather sad that many would want Israel to emulate such societies .

to welcome Arab party participation in government and even have an Arab minister, on condition that all Arab MP's declare and swear their allegiance to the state, stand and sing the anthem when required and send their sons to do military service.

it would look like they are cooperating with Israel

The vast majority of the Druze of Israel are loyal citizens.

The writer must be one of those liberals with rose colored glasses. How can you let your enemy into your cabinet? the Arabs today are much more nationalistic and anti-Israel than in the past and no one can be trusted. Istead, they should leave for a better country (Syria would be a good place) and then they will see what bad treatment is. They will run back to Israel and kiss the ground.

the Tower of London but we, here, in Israel, would dispute the idea that we should exchange our survivability in order to meet your definition of gentlemanly multiculturalism and democracy. You really need to contextualize your thinking so that your remarks will ring with actual authority instead of wishful thinking.

a Knesset membeer proposed changing Hatikvah to "something more Arab friendly."

Great idea idea! Better yet appoint an arab as Defense Minister. Change Hatikva to Allah Ahjbar. Where do all these Israeli geniuses come from.

How many Israeli Arab parties encourage service in the IDF? Or agree that Israel should be a Zionist State? All of those are welcome in the government.

the israeli soceity is. Arabs Mk cannot seat with racists like Bennett and others around the same table. This is not democracy.

the Arab parties don't want? It is important for them to stay out, so they can continue their agenda of incitement. If they are in, they will have a hard time calling Jews racist. They need to stay out, because it a waste of time for them till they become a majority and can get back to good-old Arab business of harassing Jews unabated.

The Palestinian leaders and their followers have been on the wrong path for too long. They have had faith only in violence. We should see that they recognize what sins they committed against the weak israel in the past. Individual Palestinians should be encouraged to end the violence. The future will be better without violence. I do not think that one of the Arab members of the Knesset understand their task.

in Israel have always been included in the government as part of their respective parties, and some Arabs have served as ministers in various Israeli governments. But, Arabs who have formed Apartheid-like parties in which Jews are not welcome, and those parties side with Israel's mortal enemies, must never be part of Israel's government.

Sure, include parties in Israel's governing coalition which are dedicated to Israel's destruction! Leftist lunacy has no limits.

But there's no reason to allow political parties in the coalition if they stand against everything that coalition represents and wants.

First, your allusion to the 'Tower of London' reflects your medieval mindset. Second, Second, 'survival' was the well-rehearsed argument of white supremacists in apartheid South Africa and still to be found in parts of the US. Third, you want Israel to 'survive' as .....what? A narrow, racist society? Surely not. Finally, Israel IS culturally diverse - even within the Jewish population. The question is: how should Israel treat its citizens? Nothing 'gentlemanly' about this. It is about real survival, because sooner or later political inequality has a habit of undermining political systems, as the events of the last forty years in Europe, both east and west, will testify.

Sir, you are very obviously, what one may describe in general terms, as a very decent person. I, like you, have similar feelings. There is a fundamental point which you and others are failing to take into account or perhaps do not even understand its importance in this issue.The point in question is the reason for the establishment of the State of Israel as accepted convention by the parties at the helm of power from 1917 all through the 20's and 30's, a national homeland for the Jewish people. Nothing is static, no man can put his foot in the river twice, it is not the same foot and it is not the same river the second time. As I write these words things are changing, every nanosecond brings a change. I understand this and I therefor accept that change is inevitable. The Israel of today is not the one of yesterday nor is it the one of tomorrow. Demographics will change everthing. What is at stake here is not the future of Israel, that is already on the cards, it is our ability or willingness to stave it off, it will take its natural course. Minorities are slowly becoming sections of society with political weight and clout, just as the ultra orthodox are gaining power by sheer numbers, so shall the Arab population. All this negates the justification for the founding of a "Jewish Homeland". The day will come when important ministerial positions will be occupied by Arabs and other so called "minorities", likewise important posts in the civil service. I do not condemn this, simply because I believe, as you do, that it is correct, but on the other hand I am aware that it will change things forever. As I said, Israel will no longer be the longed for "homeland" but just another country with a large Jewish population. Neither the indigenous Arabs nor the ultra orthodox can be described as representing the Jewish nation. These two groups will shape the future of the country called Israel. This is a fact which I now accept, sadly, but accept nevertheless.

you hail from. Your country, nation, is falling apart from within due to your pleasant and gentlemanly mindset with regards to the internal Islamic threat. Like most (faux) liberals, you seem to be unaware of this and furthermore, you wish for Israel to take this same path. You call it "democracy" but we, here, understand that were we to follow in the footsteps in the once great United Kingdom, we will be decimated. As Jews, we have learned, the hard way, all about survivability and we don't need some pantywaist from England to give us lessons and directives. In fact, I implore you, pay attention to the state of your own (now miserable) nation rather than hurling unnecessary and undermining directives at us.

Recently, we have all seen the sad news from Hungary where antisemitism is on the rise. People if the fascist Jobbik-party accuses Jews of being a fifth column inside the country, and want to shut out Jews from taking part in governing. How ironic and sad it is to see exactly the same rascist language, terms and thoughts in some of the comments here.

The idea of making it law that if the Jew is PM then there must be an arab VP or reverse thats just plain undemocratic. Everybody is entitled to vote but we don't give any group Jew of non jew alike the legal right to be PM or VP. Trying to compare Begin appointing an arab to the Supreme Court and the idea of an arab being guaranteed either the PM or VP. Judges are above politics and arabs should have just as much chance of becoming judges as anybody else but saying they should be guaranteed the right to be either PM or VP. As for the idea of bringing an arab party considering the largest party has just 4 seats when we are talking about numbers 4 out of 120 its not exactly so many that not allowing them an opportunity to the coalition is unjustified. The arab parties dmit that their platforms is to create a palestinian state with right of return and promote arab interests in Israel ( not national interest ), any PM who invited parties whose policy was to look after the interests of an enemy would be betraying the country. Why do academics always seem to come up with the wackiest ideas?

...define what it means to be a Jewish state. Language, calendar, symbols, special relationship with a diaspora and demographics all cement the "Jewishness" of Israel, just as many of the same factors define Sweden as Christian or India as Hindu. There is room for a more inclusive Israeli Identity alongside an evolving Jewish one. Just leave the Rabbis, Imams and priests out of the conversation. On this of course Ben Gurion and Jabotinsky agreed.

How good to have a real response (No. 23) to my post. I understand and appreciate what you are saying, even though I have some disagreements. My early formal Jewish education - in the UK - was in a Zionist-oriented community. Many decades ago I visited Israel and spent some weeks there as soon as I had the means to do so and have made numerous trips ever since. I may be more optimistic than you are about Israel's future as the Jewish homeland. I may be naive but I think that much of Israel's Arab population - in practice, rather than according to its rhetoric - already accept this. The same cannot be said for many Haredi who either want to see an Israel radically different from the place I first knew, or who want it destroyed altogether. Countries undergo continual demographic change but they do not have to deny their overall cultural history and overall character (the US is a case in point). By contrast, the post at 24 indulges in the usual sloganising about the Islamic threat and the decimation of the UK (ironically, the threat of decimation is more likely to occur if the Scots, an indigenous community, vote for independence!). Finally, I have to inform you that if I could really issue an 'undermining directive' at Israel I would be an extremely powerful individual. I am flattered.

Why? Because they are always anti-Israel. They are traitors in Israel.

directive against Israel..." re Bertram: You really need a basic course in reading comprehension, Bert. Seems that neither your early "Zionist" education nor your "higher" education nor, of course, your numerous visits to our country really did the trick. Go back and start over!