The Plesner Committee has been disbanded, and people are upset from all different directions. In Kadima there is now a faction of rebels threatening Shaul Mofaz that if he doesn't quit the coalition they will abandon him.
So, Kadima was on the verge of collapse, when for some unknown reason the prime minister brought them into the coalition, essentially throwing them a lifeline. After being propped up for just a short time, Kadima is now doing everything in it's power to insist on imploding once again.
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I agree with the Tal law with 2 additions:
ReplyDelete1) Yeshiva students who defer the draft should not be able to vote all the time they have the deferment.
2)Students who defer past the time of "draft: should not be able to hold a seat in the Knesset.
I never understood how people like Litzman and Gafni who were able to avoid service because "Toraso Umenaso" should not be able to be in Knesset.
How is being an MK Toraso Umenaso?
Maybe they switched careers, and they were too old at that point to be inducted into the army.
Delete(BTW, I can't really tell if what I wrote is meant to be sarcastic.)
Being an MK is not Toraso Um'naso. I can relate what happened in my case: I made aliyah and took a deferment while in Kollel for many years, and then one day out of the blue the Army sent me a Patur, an exemption, not a deferment, while I was still in Kollel. Apparently when you reached a certain threshold of age and number of children, they sent you a Patur. With a Patur, you can legally work or go to college (not with a deferment). This was in the days before there was any law governing the exemptions, just some kind of "arrangement".
DeleteSo I would guess that the same thing happened with Gafne and Litzman.
Inquiring Minds,
ReplyDeletenot voting does not deter anyone. Rising Haredi demographics are not reflected in Haredi Knesset seats which have not increased at all over the last decade.
Netanyahu's Kadima move is now evidently more awesome that it appears. If we remember only a month ago, the entire country was whipped into artificial election frenzy by the tabloid media and Netanyahu shut everyone up with the Kadima move. Now Kadima is cracking even worse. No elections for Mofaz and made to look like a weak spine by swearing not to join the government and then pathetically backtracking.
If Kadima is imploding, its because they made the mistake of trusting Bibi. I think the Plessner committee did an excellent, professional job, and its a disgrace that Bibi is trying to trash it because its conclusions are unacceptable to the haredim. Maybe I'm the only one that feels this way, but I would vote for Kadima if the elections were held today, simply on the basis that they handled this issue seriously, while everyone else, particularly Lieberman and Natenyahu, are playing political games.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the whole thing stinks to high heavens and what Bibi has done sure looks bad. But let's not give Kadima too much credit. They entered the coalition because they would've evaporated in the elections. Charedi military service was just their excuse and justification. Mofaz may be a decent guy but he will do or say anything to stay in the Knesset a little longer.
ReplyDeleteThat said, it's true that the whole point of Kadima joining the government was to reduce the sway of the Charedim and to effect change. Apparently, that's not what Bibi wants to do.
All true. They're all out for their own interests. But at least the guys from Kadima sat down, deliberated, took testimony from all sides, and came up with a plan that makes concessions to the haredi lifestyle and the importance of Torah study, while providing enforcement that should ensure that this is not just another dodge like the Tal law turned out to be. They deserve some credit for this. As for Bibi, he is showing his worst qualities - a very high level of dishonesty, and an inability to take a position and stick to it in the face of determined opposition. If he can't stand up to Eli Yishai, how is he going to stand up to Obama, or Iran, or anybody else, if and when a moment of truth arrives?
DeleteUnfortunately, I agree 100% about Bibi. This is where Sharon would've been effective.
Delete