(Israel Government Press Office)
Three papers discuss the controversy over the work of the Perry committee, which is formulating the Government-sponsored legislation on greater equality in sharing the burden, including national or military service for the ultra-orthodox:
Ma'ariv says that the way in which disagreements over the legislation between Yesh Atid and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon were resolved proves that, "As prime minister, Netanyahu is captive to Finance Minister [and Yesh Atid leader Yair] Lapid," and adds that "Perhaps Netanyahu wholeheartedly supports the law on equality in sharing the burden; perhaps he has found the opportunity to do what previous coalitions did not allow him to do; perhaps he really thinks that the time has come to integrate hundreds of thousands of ultra-orthodox in the productive economic life of the country. The reasons do not matter. Netanyahu has no choice. Today, he cannot break up the government, bring in the ultra-orthodox and drop the idea of equality in sharing the burden." The author notes the current silence of the ultra-orthodox communities and suggests that this is merely "the silence before the storm."
Yediot Aharonot reassures its readers: "The Government will not fall. Not now, not over this. The last thing Netanyahu needs is for yet another coalition to fall over the law in equalizing the burden. Excuse me. That is almost the last thing. The last thing that Netanyahu wants is for Lapid to build off of this crisis," given the hit the latter has taken in recent weeks over his proposed budget and concomitant economic decrees." The author avers that the "mini-crisis," was a welcome diversion for the Finance Minister, one which allowed him "to return to an anti-ultra-orthodox issue that is dear to his voters' hearts," and concludes that while the Defense Minister "was busy building his relations with the ultra-orthodox," the Prime Minister understood that "If the law on equality in sharing the burden explodes, it will be over the Government's dead body."
Haaretz notes that “Even before its meetings ended, the Ministerial Committee on Sharing the Burden, also known as the Perry Committee, gave a kashrut certificate to the partial draft evasion of hesder yeshiva students,” and asserts: “The nonreligious have no lobby, and they will continue to carry the full burden of the regular military draft, without discounts and shortcuts - but with the kashrut certificate of the Perry Committee.”
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Yisrael Hayom refers to the recent knife attacks – one fatal – of soldiers in London and Paris, as well as the riots in Stockholm, and says that "Europe has not rediscovered the Islamists in its midst." The author recalls the London suicide attacks in July 2005 and last year's terrorist attacks in France in which an Islamic terrorist murdered three French soldiers and four Jews in Toulouse. The paper says the foregoing incidents are forcing Europeans to reconsider their policies regarding migrants and – citing the riots in Stockholm – dismisses the argument that depressed economic conditions caused the incidents. The author concludes: "Europe has a problem. If it talks about the problem of radical Islam it will cause unrest and fear among its citizens and strengthen the extreme right, but if it continues to hide its head in the sand it will risk further beheadings of soldiers at home. How has Europe reached such a situation? This is what happens when humanitarianism becomes an own goal."
The Jerusalem Post comments on the demise of electric-car pioneer Better Place, and states: “Perhaps the biggest lesson to be learned from Better Place’s demise is the supreme difficulty of revamping old industries and transforming deeply ingrained consumer behavior.” The editor asserts: “The concept that electric cars will one day replace conventional cars is far from delusional or fleeting,” and concludes: “We only hope that Better Place’s unfortunate failure does not create a psychological barrier among investors and businessmen that discourages them from carrying on the company’s important work.”
[Shalom Yerushalmi, Sima Kadmon and Boaz Bismout wrote today’s articles in Ma'ariv, Yediot Aharonot and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]