On the surface, the Israeli marketplace of ideas crosses a very deep divide that splits us into two camps—"democrats" and "Jews." In practice, only a tiny fringe element objects to the state defining itself as "Jewish" and seeks "a state of all its citizens." Similarly, only a small, marginal group opposes a democratic state and favors an alternative vision, like…

The 2008 Annual assessment — the fifth annual assessment — follows in the footsteps of its predecessors. Its overview of the preceding year in terms of geo-political, economic, social, and political developments internationally and in the Diaspora and in Israel is well done and insightful. Not surprisingly, it addresses the growth of Iranian leverage in the Middle East, the divisions…

The ongoing financial crisis, however, has confronted us with a very different reality: the people most engaged in calculation – whom we entrusted with the responsibility of managing every aspect of our lives, from retirement to natural disasters – acted systematically and persistently in a dangerous manner that eventually led to the collective suicide of some of the most established…

The initiative is in fact valid, in principle, from a capitalist point of view. One doesn't necessarily have to have socialist tendencies—although there is nothing wrong with those who do—in order to support salary caps for executives, only rational and realistic ones.According to Israeli corporate law, directorates and shareholders are responsible for overseeing executives and setting salary levels. But in…

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The 2007 Annual Assessment

The question before us here is to what extent we have a responsibility, as a Jewish democratic nation, to pursue tikkun olam on a countrywide scale. In recent months, Israel has been faced with an opportunity to prove itself truly committed to this ideal. Waves of Sudanese refugees have been arriving weekly at the Israeli border. They hope to find…

This paper deals with enhancing the standing of Jerusalem as the civilizational capital of the Jewish people and as a cultural and spiritual center of humanity as a whole, while respecting and preserving its importance in Christianity and Islam. It has been prepared by the Jewish People Policy Planning Institute at the joint initiative of the Mayor of Jerusalem and…

The 2006 Annual Assessment is designed to outline and evaluate the state and dynamics of the world Jewry from multiple perspectives and to assess anticipated changes in the future. Its objective is to prepare a comprehensive and multi-dimensional annual overview that is revised to reflect trends and changes in the situation and dynamics affecting the Jewish people. This comprehensive qualitative…