By Steve K. Walz
Unemployment levels might be at their lowest levels in years within Israel but would you believe that as the number of unemployed citizens decreases the number of society needing “food packages” and other forms of assistance from private charitable organizations is actually
INCREASING? Welcome to the wonders of the Israeli economy.
According to one of the country’s largest outreach organizations nearly 30% of the population is asking for help with the weekly grocery list, as more and more families amongst the MIDDLE CLASS are gainfully employed but cannot properly feed themselves.
Last week, the government released its monthly economic statistical report. Though the price of gasoline and foodstuffs continues to rise, the average Israeli income fell by nearly 2.5% to 7,800 shekels or about $2000 a month ($500 a week). Restaurant workers, farmers, teachers and construction workers made substantially less! Is it any wonder why high school teachers went out on strike for nearly a month a half?
So let’s say the husband was a schoolteacher earning 6,100 shekels a month, while his wife worked at a restaurant as a cook or waitress, which added 3,100 shekels to the monthly budget.
Between paying the mortgage, utility bills, insurance, gasoline/insurance for the car, monthly food bills and paying basic bills for two school children (public school, not private), there would be virtually no financial reserves for clothing or many other things that we take for granted like movies, vacations etc.
City, state, water and social defense taxes amount eat away amoung 40-45% of earned income. And Israeli citizens are considered to be amongst the highest

taxpayers in the Western world!
It’s poor sufficient that the government refuses to supply “human” assistance to many indigent Holocaust survivors and new immigrants from poor countries who are living in utter misery. But now the working “middle class” has to quietly ask charitable organizations for “food stuffs” considering the government refuses to force the business community to act equitably towards fellow Jews? Should a 25 year employee at one of Israel’s largest conglomerates be forced to cry in front of a TV journalist, as he reveals that his employers who rake in huge profits have folded to give him a raise after 25 years of dutiful service?
The Land of Milk & Honey is being milked by those who refuse to share the honey with their employees. Nu, is it any wonder why nearly 500,000 expatriate Israelis lived legally and illegally across North America?

Original post by Steve Walz

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