Oct 15, 2013
Bet Shemesh election post: how Aryeh Deri encouraged my support for Eli Cohen
This morning I heard Aryeh Deri on the radio talking about elections, and 2 things he said interested me... Deri was talking about what is going on regarding the elections in Jerusalem and in Elad, all the wheeling and dealing, why his candidate is better, why they are doing this or that, etc. Not a word about Bet Shemesh, which are the electiosn that some say are the most watched elections in the world - they look at Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Bet Shemesh, they look at Bet Shemesh elections as the focus of the cultural war and these elections will decide who wins that war, yet in the interview Bet Shemesh was not even discussed (except at the end, for just a moment, as an aside, as you will see below).
My thoughts:
1. Perhaps Bet Shemesh isn't really the heart of the cultural war that some are making it out to be. Maybe it is really just about local issues.
2. MK Aryeh Deri, when talking about Elad, used the phrase "Elad Chozeret LaToshavim" (under the leadership of Deri's candidate) - i.e. Elad is going back to the residents.
Aryeh Deri used the exact slogan in Elad that Eli Cohen is using in Bet Shemesh.
I will be honest, I never really understood or liked the Bet Shemesh Chozeret name or slogan. Going back to what? Even after it was explained to me that it means going back to the residents rather than in the hands and control of disconnected politicians and "askanim" (from all sectors), I still never fell in line with it.
When Aryeh Deri said it this morning, about Elad, I think I finally got it. Elad is a disaster, everyone knows it, and it is because of the askanim and the way the city has been run. The local interests and needs were never the priority, rather the advancement, whether locally or nationally, of the askanim and politicians. Elad Chozeret LaToshavim means that the days of self-interested askanim running City Hall are over and we will bring Elad back to the residents, to deal with the issues the residents are concerned about, to provide the services the residents need.
Bet Shemesh Chozeret is the same. Bet Shemesh Chozeret LaToshavim means the days of self-interested politicians and askanim are over. The city will be more concerned now with providing proper services to the residents, rather than advancing the interests of askanim.
3. At the end of the interview Mordechai Lavi (the talk show host on Kol BeRama) chuckled and pointed out that with all this election talk Bet Shemesh hasn't even come up and has not been mentioned. Deri responded and said that he has no need to be concerned with Bet Shemesh because Bet Shemesh is purely a haredi issue and the haredim are all united. Rav Moshe Abutbol, he said, is supported by all the haredim, with no exception, even despite the ashkenazi haredi parties being split for whatever reasons, they are all united behind Moshe Abutbol. Deri said, they are doing the work just fine to keep Bet Shemesh haredi and there is no need for his involvement. Rav Moshe Abutbol is not the representative of Shas, but of all the haredim.
Deri said that Abutbol is there to advance the haredi concerns, and they are all united behind him. My thoughts from what he said: Abutbol isn't there to advance Bet Shemesh, to make it better for everyone. Any issue he advances is either for the haredim or to throw the others a bone so they don't complain too much.
That is not what I expect from a mayor. I expect the mayor to be concerned for everyone in the city, to provide the necessary services to everyone in the city because that is what the city needs. Bet Shemesh Chozeret LaToshavim rather than the interests of just one sector of the city. The needs of the haredim are important, as are the needs of the other half of the city as well.
In my opinion, we do not need a mayor who is only really concerned with half the city. We need a mayor that is concerned with the entire city - the haredi half and the non-haredi half. That is why I think Eli Cohen is the right man for the job.
MK Aryeh Deri just solidified it for me even more. And Bet Shemesh was only an afterthought.
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My thoughts:
1. Perhaps Bet Shemesh isn't really the heart of the cultural war that some are making it out to be. Maybe it is really just about local issues.
2. MK Aryeh Deri, when talking about Elad, used the phrase "Elad Chozeret LaToshavim" (under the leadership of Deri's candidate) - i.e. Elad is going back to the residents.
Aryeh Deri used the exact slogan in Elad that Eli Cohen is using in Bet Shemesh.
I will be honest, I never really understood or liked the Bet Shemesh Chozeret name or slogan. Going back to what? Even after it was explained to me that it means going back to the residents rather than in the hands and control of disconnected politicians and "askanim" (from all sectors), I still never fell in line with it.
When Aryeh Deri said it this morning, about Elad, I think I finally got it. Elad is a disaster, everyone knows it, and it is because of the askanim and the way the city has been run. The local interests and needs were never the priority, rather the advancement, whether locally or nationally, of the askanim and politicians. Elad Chozeret LaToshavim means that the days of self-interested askanim running City Hall are over and we will bring Elad back to the residents, to deal with the issues the residents are concerned about, to provide the services the residents need.
Bet Shemesh Chozeret is the same. Bet Shemesh Chozeret LaToshavim means the days of self-interested politicians and askanim are over. The city will be more concerned now with providing proper services to the residents, rather than advancing the interests of askanim.
3. At the end of the interview Mordechai Lavi (the talk show host on Kol BeRama) chuckled and pointed out that with all this election talk Bet Shemesh hasn't even come up and has not been mentioned. Deri responded and said that he has no need to be concerned with Bet Shemesh because Bet Shemesh is purely a haredi issue and the haredim are all united. Rav Moshe Abutbol, he said, is supported by all the haredim, with no exception, even despite the ashkenazi haredi parties being split for whatever reasons, they are all united behind Moshe Abutbol. Deri said, they are doing the work just fine to keep Bet Shemesh haredi and there is no need for his involvement. Rav Moshe Abutbol is not the representative of Shas, but of all the haredim.
Deri said that Abutbol is there to advance the haredi concerns, and they are all united behind him. My thoughts from what he said: Abutbol isn't there to advance Bet Shemesh, to make it better for everyone. Any issue he advances is either for the haredim or to throw the others a bone so they don't complain too much.
That is not what I expect from a mayor. I expect the mayor to be concerned for everyone in the city, to provide the necessary services to everyone in the city because that is what the city needs. Bet Shemesh Chozeret LaToshavim rather than the interests of just one sector of the city. The needs of the haredim are important, as are the needs of the other half of the city as well.
In my opinion, we do not need a mayor who is only really concerned with half the city. We need a mayor that is concerned with the entire city - the haredi half and the non-haredi half. That is why I think Eli Cohen is the right man for the job.
MK Aryeh Deri just solidified it for me even more. And Bet Shemesh was only an afterthought.
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Good to see you were finally able to make a decision about who to vote for. I know you've been on the fence for a long time. :-)
ReplyDeleteyou never know - last night I went to an "emergency" rally for Degel and Moshe Abutbol to hear what they had to say. I have an open mind (sometimes people say too open, so open my brains have fallen out) and can be convinced otherwise.. :-)
ReplyDeleteYou wrote about Abuotbul :
ReplyDelete"Abutbol isn't there to advance Bet Shemesh, to make it better for everyone. Any issue he advances is either for the haredim or to throw the others a bone so they don't complain too much."
QUESTION -- can you name ONE haredi politican who does NOT fit this model ??? Please provide names in any location in Israel.
You'd be surprised to heard about how much work the Haredi MoKs are doing in the Knesset and not just for Haredim. Dr MIchael ben Ari is always talking about how much appreciation he has for them.
DeleteI admit that I am not convinced that is at the city level, but then again, I do not live in these areas, just listen to the Haredi stations and hear the boasting to convince me that only independent parties like Tov and the Elad women's party will be able to make changes.
what was the main message you got from the rally last night?
ReplyDeleteit wasnt all that exciting. mostly encouraging the people to volunteer time and go door to door, call, talk to people, etc. There was also the standard fare - they are evil,, looking to chase us out, we are proud to be voting because of the rabboim, kavod shamayim, etc. yadda yadda yadda.
DeleteYou have to check what their definition of "all the residents," התובים means to them.
ReplyDeleteהתושבים
ReplyDeleteNotice he doesn't even count any opposition to Abutbul. He says Bet Shemesh is purely a haredi issue and the haredim are all united. Rav Moshe Abutbol, he said, is supported by all the haredim. I love the way the hareidi politicians define Beit Shemesh as a hareidi city, and then they complain about an Eli Cohen poster, which had the words " not chareidi" blotted out. So is it not OK for anyone to want Beit Shemesh to be not haredi (mistakednly interpreted as being a city without hareidim), when the harediim proclaim Beit Shemesh to be a hareidi city (that is there are no non- haredim, well in fact there are, but they don't exist as far as the haredim are concerned).
ReplyDeleteIsn't the current BS election primarily about "lock in" regarding the future character of the city? At least that's what it seems from my vantage point ...
ReplyDeleteIf candidate A wins, large tracts of land will be set aside for [mostly] charedi housing, and that housing will be approved relatively smoothly. Charedi growth in BS will accelerate, and that means that by next election, and all elections thereafter, BS will be ruled by charedim.
If candidate B wins, there is a slight chance (very slight chance, because even current building plans have much more charedi housing than other types of housing) that charedi growth in BS will be slowed and the city will remain more balanced.
If I am misunderstanding the primary issue in this election, then what is the primary issue?
that is a major issue. Eli COhen wants to work to attract a diverse population to move to Bet Shemesh. Not to stop haredim from moving here, but also to attract others. I dont know if that is the primary issue, but it is one of the important ones.
Delete