Real Life in Tel Aviv Blog

Start-Up Nation: Book on Israel's Entrepreneurship

2009-11-07T10:06:00.001+02:00

In-depth story on Israel's "miracle secret": starting new companies with innovative ideas

How does Israel innovate? How does Israel produce more start-ups that make it to the NASDAQ than whole of Europe? How does Israel use the technology (i.e. electronics) start-up model in agriculture, bio-tech and now clean-tech? These are questions people have been asking for as long as there has been Israel. Israelis first built guns, cannons and avionics when no one would sell them arms to defend themselves (in the 1940s.) Than came a period of building the state itself and Israel built housing, factories, roads and public buildings (in the 1950s and 60s.) If you look carefully from the air you see the famous green line, an outline of the state in green where Israelis planted trees and literally changed the landscape (and the environment - that took more than 50 years.) Now Israelis build and design Integrated Circuits for Intel and cell phones for Motorola. But more than that, Israelis build companies. Not just products and inventions. Organizations to create and compete in the world technology, bio-medical and other fields. This phenomenon is discussed in Start-Up Nation. From an Israeli perspective it seems like an old story, start-ups go back 30 plus years. Here we have lived the gradual change and every week see a new product or announcement or a company acquisition. But in reality it is a big deal. Building a company is hard enough, building a whole economy and culture to drive company building is phenomenal.

There have been lots of articles about Israel's entrepreneurial spirit. There are also lots of reasons how each company or inventor got his start. But as a whole, this is the first in-depth treatment of Israel as a country of company creation. Clearly the way things work in Israel is different than in other countries. What is clear from the book is the way the authors focused on a few "reasons" or "obvious differences" which outsiders first see in Israel. The military gets a chapter and mentioned in a few other places. Israel's military plays a big role in developing group working ethics. Israel's isolation from Arab neighboring states also plays a big part, we have to do it on our own, so we try and eventually get it done. Diversity and continuous immigration plays a big part as well. A million Russian Jews came in the 1990s and in the late 1990's and early 2000s Ethiopian Jews came and settled. In Israel cultural background, skin color and language differences are not a barrier for collaboration in work and at home. Israel also exports much of it's products. This has been the case even before the state was founded even when economic difficulties hit hard. There are plenty of good observations in Start-Up Nation. Some interesting enough even for Israelis. So get the book, use the knowledge and get your own start-up going (or just join one.) One reviewer goes as far as advising start-up CEOs to use the book as a manual for success. In my opinion, this is more of a "how Israel did it" ~ as they say in car commercials: "your millage may vary".

Links :

Video interview from CNBC:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1311023934&play=1

Book's official site:
http://www.startupnationbook.com/

Amazon.COM page:
http://www.amazon.com/Start-up-Nation-Israels-Economic-Miracle/dp/044654146X

Barns & Noble page:
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Start-up-Nation/Dan-Senor/e/9780446541466/

Border's page:
http://www.borders.com/online/store/TitleDetail?sku=044654146X

Israel's Hebrew Legacy: English a Barrier ?

2009-11-03T12:20:00.015+02:00

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda revived the Hebrew language from an ancient religious state to a modern and vibrant language in daily use in Israel

Israeli schools are great at teaching English to an acceptable business level. But only a few Israelis end up with world class English writing and editing skills. Hebrew, a language that was resurrected in Israel in the 1880's by Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and others is thriving. Being the main language in Israel for three generations, its been the mission of Israelis to be a language of everything. But this phenomenal success comes at a cost. Israel's economy and business simply needs more English writers, speakers and editors (for that matter many other languages.) The problem seem most acute in the technology and tourism sectors. English is not just a bridging language between Israeli technologists and the world, it is used extensively to document and plan. Essentially working in English is helpful in preparing a company to market internationally. Writing in English all along the product development and marketing process enable Israeli technologists get to international market quicker.

A bit of history of the modern Hebrew language. Hebrew is essentially a modern language with ancient roots. As a language of religious study, it has been used by Jews for two thousand years. But religious study did not mean daily use. Therefore Hebrew was neglected for over 1,000 maybe even 2,000 years (that debate is related to the use of Hebrew in pre-inquisition Spain where Judaism had a golden age from 711 to 1492 CE.) When the Zionists first arrived in Israel (then Palestine ruled by the Ottoman Empire) the use of Hebrew in daily life took on a renewed interest. Clearly there was a need for the language although at times Yiddish was assumed to be the best alternative. Eliezer Ben-Yehuda was not the only European Jew who had in mind reviving the language. But he is remembered today as the one to invent new words and clearly passionate enough to make Hebrew a modern usable language. Literature and poetry in Hebrew started coming from Europe at about the same time. But these were based on the knowledge of religious Hebrew used in Torah and Mishna studies in the Yeshivas.

Zoom forward 120 years to today's Hebrew. It is certainly based on biblical roots and definitely modernized by daily use and theoretical work. Hebrew was revitalized with methods making it easy to learn. It is also regularly extended and in daily use takes on many foreign words. Hebrew's ancient roots come from Aramaic and middle-eastern languages with very little relationship to Latin or Anglo-Saxon languages. Hebrew today is closer to Arabic than any other language. English is so different than Hebrew that it takes a great deal of effort to use both in daily life. This is the challenge Israelis face. Back to the English barrier in the title. Hebrew's success in Israel does come at the expense of English use. This is especially noticeable in writing and editing. A great deal of meaning is lost in translation and sometimes even the main idea in a message comes out wrong. What is written is not at all what is meant. Sometimes translated text from Hebrew to English gives a bad impression. Israeli's bad English make them seem unintelligent or even undeveloped or unsophisticated. Some brush this off as a simple difference in culture or lack of understanding of a language barrier. People with experience in countries with different language and culture know how language mistakes translate to mistakes in impression. This is exactly the problem, not enough people understand this phenomena. Working in a foreign language is hard and filled with unknowns. When writing in a foreign language to foreign audience it takes effort and experience to get the message right. With easier and better communication the Internet brings us, language differences are even more prominent. Lots of people write and publish on the Internet, but the meaning is sometimes lost in translation. This is an old problem, simply today you see it right on the computer screen in Internet speed. Hopefully when you read an English document written by a Hebrew speaker this story will come to mind. If not, at least you learned about modern Hebrew and it's success in Israel. THANK YOU for reading.

Happy Tel Aviv: Rain, a Packed Bus and Coffee with Internet

2009-11-02T15:34:00.006+02:00

Rain comes to Tel Aviv in spurts. Central to northern Israel covered with clouds. Rain stops the regular routine in Tel Aviv and gives us something different to talk about.

Winter is really here with four days of rain. Sometimes it comes down hard and Tel Avivians hide in cafes and offices. At night streets are deserted, left for the teenagers and "acharei tzava" (twenty something after their military duty.) Tel Aviv does not take well to the rain, the sewers were not made for this much water, streets flood and puddles stay for hours. Sometimes we forget how 100 years ago central Israel from Tel Aviv south to Rehovot, east to Kfar Saba and north to Natanya was one dusty sand patch. In the deserts and semi-desert climates rain does not seep into the ground. It seals the sand with top layer of wet sand then flows to make small floods down hills into low points. In south Tel Aviv, where sewers are old and narrow streets fill with water covering car tires and sidewalks. So Tel Avivians, take out their boots. Women who wear open shoes all year around get these few days to make a change. To some it's an opportunity to make a fashion statement. Boots that were made to European snow pop out everywhere. What an amazing transformation in an instant.

Last Thursday the 55 bus from Tel Ha'shomer skipped twice. It usually runs every 20 minutes in the evenings. It did not come from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM. Riders all along the route gave up and took taxis or waited when there was no alternative or did not want to spend the extra money. Once on the bus a minor demonstration started. First people scream at the driver. So he tells them that it's not his fault, actually they should be nice to him. It's the previous two drivers that should be taking the heat. That does not help, it makes things worst. Than a few start talking loud and threaten to "write a petition and have everyone sign it". To me they all seem to be the Russians, they are used to bureaucracy and official government departments which debate people's opinions in local government meetings. A debate started on which government department the petition should be sent and what to say to get them to do something. The department of transportation was the most agreed upon candidate while the bus company seem to be losing out. To Tel Avivians the bus company is just a winner of a government bid to move people economically. But most riders were just glad to get going to where they needed to be. On Thursday evenings, the end of the working week, soldiers from the base in Tel Ha'shomer, one of the bigger recruitment base, go home for the weekend. These are the army's bureaucrats, they will be receiving the complaint petitions from bus riders in ten year when they work for a government department. They are tired and don't care about a bus route missing two appointed rounds, they just want to get home.

Cloud RADAR image of Israel, the north and central regions are getting light rain. For edge of the desert dwellers a few millimeters of rain an hour is a cause to change the daily routine

I wrote a few stories about coffee in Tel Aviv. On days when it's raining and the streets are empty cafes are packed. A hot cup of coffee and a dry seat for ten minutes is worth the 12 shekels. If you meet someone the coffee turns to a date or a business meeting. Rain quiets the city and the people. There is no fear of floods like the monsoons of India. We know that in a day or two it's back to the sunny weather we have 300+ days a year. So watching from a cafe window is a nice change. Finally the streets and sidewalks are really clean. Without the rain everything would stay dusty forever. If you are a digital worker with a laptop or a net-book, cafes are even better on rainy days. There are more people to watch and more conversations to start. It feels better to work in a dry warm place when it's cold and wet outside. It seems like every cafe should be welcoming to laptop digirati and have free internet and an open plug for power. But on days like today it seems more appropriate not to ask for all these amenities and go back to the days where cafes were just a place to meet someone, read the paper or just take a break from a busy day. It's nice to see the livable aspects of Tel Aviv on rainy days, it's something we forget when the routine is the same day after day. With all the talk of global warming and rising sea levels it seems like rain is more meaningful, I don't know about you but in Tel Aviv rain is a nice thing to have.

Tel Aviv at Night (Pictures) (part 3)

2009-10-29T15:06:00.007+02:00

Azrieli group, builders of the Azrieli center in Tel Aviv (three buildings on the left) recently bought the Givatayim Mall (long building in the center) from the Africa-Israel group which has been selling off properties to repay bank notes / © 2009

A newly renovated building on Ha'yarkon street in Tel Aviv and another Bauhaus building going renovation. Ha'yarkon street right on the sea was neglected for decades. With new investments in rental properties Tel Aviv is getting a much needed face lift / © 2009

Real Estate in Israel: A New Era of Growth, Investment in Rental Properties

2009-10-29T09:07:00.003+02:00

Beautiful 1920's to 1940's Bauhause buildings renovation along Ha'yarkon street. This sea front section of Tel Aviv was left neglected for decades. Now during the Real Estate investment growth, the section is getting much needed facelift.

Tel Aviv apartments are being bought by Israelis for investment. They are rented at higher prices than in the past. There is also a rise in apartment renovation both by investors and by owners. This trend reflects a shift of money from investment in financial instruments which started two years. Mutual and hedge funds are shrinking while investment Real Estate is growing. I believe this is an opposite trend than the American and European economies, where Real Estate was booming for many years until the bubble burst. Usually a long trend in investment is a good sign for the future strength in the economy. The new investors in apartments are also raising rental prices. While rental price rise in Tel Aviv is mostly seen as a negative economic trend, there is not much said about the huge amount invested by individuals. Israelis have been pushed to own their own apartments ever since the state was founded in 1948. This desire to own your own apartment came at a cost of a rental apartment market specially in Tel Aviv. But like cities all over the world, there is a need for good rental apartments. Since the rental market was not a strong investment destination for Israelis, rental apartments are usually in bad shape and are owned by out of towners.

A bit of history on rentals and ownership in Israel (with emphasis on Tel Aviv.) Real Estate in Israel does not get lots of media attention. The only real business section on Real Estate is in the Globes an evening business paper [English section]. This is in contrast with the Real Estate / Sub-Prime bubble in the US which still gets lots of media attention. Besides media attention, Real Estate is a strong and crucial sector in the Israeli economy. It has evolved from a purely governmental business in the early 1900's to a business only for large commercial investors in the 1950's. Israel's economic growth also stimulated a home grown building industry. Israel's builders and architect-engineers are considered some of the best in the region. Israeli companies have been building in Africa, Europe and Asia for decades. Today it is estimated that 50% of all design and construction management projects are outside of Israel. Home ownership is high and considered a basic economic right for all Israelis. Today building all over the country is driven by demand for cheaper and bigger apartments as well as the government's desire to settle people outside the Tel Aviv central area. There is also a trend to build higher and denser. Standard buildings in the central area were 12 to 15 stories in the 1990's. Today buildings above 20 stories are seen in Tel Aviv and in central towns. Demand to live in the middle of town or as close as affordable is still strong. According to the Globes article the average investor is around 50, invests about US$ 150,000 which is about 4 year's worth of income. From January to July 2009 31% of the apartments sold in Israel were investment property. An interesting trend is investment in cities outside the center: Haifa (2,273), Beer Sheva (1,947) and Rehovot (1,930) (Jan-Jul 2009 apartment bought for investment.)

Real Estate investment tends are slow in the Israeli market. But slow trends are not necessarily bad. Other sectors can be a model to predict what will happen with rental property investments. From other investment trends, once Israelis start they create a new business segment and we end up with a new industry. The financial investment industry is new in Israel going back about 20 years (mutual funds, hedge funds, insurance and other investment services.) Since the 1980's, the Israeli financial management sector has become a world class player with money from around the world under management. The building and engineering sector has also become a world class services segment when the domestic Real Estate market suffered ups and downs from the 1980's to the early 2000's. When the domestic economic changes cause unreliable building flow, firms simply needed to smooth out their work. Again, Israeli firms looked for customers outside the country. While Real Estate management is harder to export, we may be in for a surprise. With technology, cultural diversity and money to invest, Israelis may be looking for investment property and providing services in this old, some say stagnant sector.

Israel's Business Moral Weakness: Are We Learning ?

2009-10-27T18:29:00.011+02:00

Fron Ha'aretz front page: "A French court sentenced Israeli-Russian businessman Arcadi Gaidamak to six years in jail and 5 million-euro fine yesterday for his role selling arms illegally to the Angolan government in the 1990's..."

Reading the business papers the last few months in Israel and there are disproportionate number of articles reporting immoral executive behavior. I am worried about two moral issues: greed and fraud. Greed is a new accusation in Israeli business circles. Until this generation the country's businesses had a small fraction of the money we see today. Greed without the ability to "get the money" simply does not work. Fraud is also related to the amount of money involved but goes even deeper into the psyche and moral history of Israel. Let's look at greed in this article and cover fraud later.

Israel's incredible economic growth has brought a whole new class of problems. The first noticeable trend is a concentration of the money in a small group of people. Like the proverbial south America banana republic, Israel is made up of a few individuals and families who own a majority stake in companies and Real Estate. This is the first nouveau riche group in our long history as people. This new group now wants to live like the rich in the US and Europe. With life of luxury comes desire for more. As few succeed, many want to follow them. A race for more and to beat the "guy next door" results. Greed is the driving emotion to other forms of financial corruption.

On the positive side Israel is a small country and most business operations tend to be out in the open. Business newspapers and media are constantly looking for deals and reporting on changes in ownership of anything of value. Changes in management is also reported, there is always a story behind a change. Israelis also have the moral element not found in other countries. Here people really believe in the idea of working within the law and within certain moral guidelines. Unlike other places (the proverbial south America banana republic) there is no culture of corruption. What Israel does need is more business standards and legal structure. When Israel was established as a state and as the economy grew, the legal structure of financial control did not keep up. This is one place where association with the US and Europe is helpful. Financial and legal standards from developed countries is being adopted. Obviously Israel does not have the resources or the people to adopt everything, but the ones we need are beginning to make their way into the business world. Also, association with American and European financial markets is very helpful. An Israeli company with a NASDAQ registration needs to follow American financial reporting practices. Kobi Alexander of Comverse who tried to back date stock options and is seen strictly as a US legal issue here in Israel. While the company is certainly considered an Israeli success.

Greed is not going away in Israel or in other places around the world. It is being reported in the media, and is seen as a consequence of economic success here in Israel. Luckily we have strong press to keep a watchful eye. We also have a long history of moral standards to not ignore fraudulent behavior. Internationally Israel was the moral standard for a long time, now we need to prove our moral standards once again. Maybe Israel will be the example to other countries on how to handle greed. If we can't be an example, at least we can see it in all it's glory on the front page of Haaretz.

Ajami (Movie) Dark Life in Jaffa

2009-10-27T11:03:00.006+02:00

Ajami the movie, young people's struggle in Jaffa, Tel Aviv's other life just minutes away ~ but a life apart.

Ajami the movie is playing in Israeli theaters. [imdb] [film.com] [FaceBook page] It is a collection of stories from the Ajami neighborhood in Jaffa. Jaffa being part of Tel Aviv officially (managed by the city) is an Arab city with a life all it's own just minutes away from central Tel Aviv. The stories depict a few young men and how their lives intertwines with each other and the outside world. The characters sneak into Israel from the Palestinian territories, get involved in drugs, find disapproval of parents in a Muslim and Christian love affair and overall struggle for a better life. While the plot was dark, and the acting iffy, the look into a life of Arab Israeli life was fascinating.

The movie is getting mixed reviews in Israel. The topic and presentation of an Arab language movie in the mainstream Israeli society is as oddity by itself. Arab and Jewish life, even here in Tel Aviv is separate in most respects. The interaction of the young heroes is just with Israeli police and a mention of a worker from the Palestinian territories losing a job with no place to stay at night (he worked for an Israeli boss.) For most Israelis the topic is hard to digest. We seem to be tired of stories about how difficult life is for Muslims in Israel. Ajami focused just on the dark side of life, which may have been intentional. Nobodies can deny the difficulty in a life we rarely see, while fictional, it probably does represent the life for some young Arabs in Jaffa. The scenes of an unofficial Arab court and the conversations among the young men looking for help from the big family head, Italian mafia style and even the get together of friends criticizing one for leaving Jaffa to live with a Jewish girlfriend, are a peek at a life seldom seen. There is pride mixed with the fear. There is love and passion hidden from family and the public. There is friendship and acceptance of life, yet fighting for respect and the right to stand up for justice.

I have one bit of opinion about the movie itself and it's showing in Israel. If anyone had any doubt about freedom of speech to Arabs (Muslims or Christians) in Israel this movie's screening should dispel any criticism. I would even go as far as challenge other countries in giving their minorities such access to movie production and movie screens. I do not like the subject matter and I think that by focusing on one dark subject an opportunity to develop character and plot was missed. But as with any creative work, this should be left to the creators. I am proud of the ability of Israeli society in giving freedom of expression to the Arab minority. I am even more proud of people's access to this kind of movie in their local movie theaters.

Israeli Tech On Hold: VCS, Exits & Eggs

2009-10-25T21:54:00.000+02:00

Tel Aviv stock exchange dipped 50% during 2008-2009 (1,200 to 600 to 1,000.) Start-up activity still down and slower to recover

It is not a secret that the Israeli technology sector is taking a nap. A big component of Israel's success in the technology sector was start-ups. Israel's entrepreneurs and engineers got into the business of starting up companies and selling them to American companies. This business has been going for over 10 years until about 2005. American venture funds bring investment capital from Wall Street and American retirement funds. Israelis start companies and usually sell them to American companies. The return in this sector is usually higher than the stock market. Everyone is happy. Until something changed!

In 2006, 2007 and 2008 there have been very few "exits". 2009 is not much better. These are sales of companies or initial public offerings in the stock market. Exit(s) is a buzz word in the Israeli start-up sector. It is what Israeli entrepreneurs seek more than anything else: cash for a 5 to 10 year hard work. Selling a company brings good returns to the investors and does not involve the process of taking a company public. But the shift in technology from software and networking to Internet and software services has slowed down the investment-development-exit train. Established venture capital funds were dealt a blow, many small ones are completely gone. Entrepreneurs in many tech sub-sectors needed to reformulate their ideas and start working on new prototypes. What Israel can teach the world is how quickly change happens. In US and other large markets change does not have to happen as quickly. The market's momentum can hold up companies and financial pipelines. But then they eventually crash. In Israel small scale reveals quickly what changed and where the new developments are going.

Economies or parts of them going dormant are everywhere now. It's a global epidemic. Starting out with the US Real Estate, financial, automotive and now other sectors. Then like a virus the slowdown hit European automotive and financial sectors. In the mean time, smaller countries like Mexico and Iceland have been devastated financially. Israel is also going through Real Estate and technology down cycle. The state tried to help by funding early technology start ups, but they were not as effective as the private venture capital industry. Then came a few individuals, called "angel investors". To date there are very few start-ups who could gain enough momentum to get to the venture funds. The angel investors hoped to get a working prototype and excite venture funds to continue with a company. The problem is simply the scale of investment. The system created a 3 to 10 million dollar model. Start-ups are used to raising money and hiring 20 people for 2 to 3 years to get the first version of a product going. They don't know how to do it with half or fifth the money in a third of the time. Everyone has to figure out how to do things quickly and more efficiently. It is possible to start a product quickly and even attract users. The Internet has changed the rules in many ways. For example, a project like FaceBook got going and got noticed and used without a big investment. The same happened with Skype which was a small project among many to use the Internet for free phone calls. In Israel there are dozens of projects trying to emulate FaceBook and Skype. We don't have a success story yet. Let's hope we all figure out what is needed to live without the venture capital start-up model. Stay tuned, programmers are coding in PHP and MySQL in converted (closed) porches everywhere*.

* porches in Israel are equivalent to basements in the US, more on Israeli culture here... come back for more
** The Eggs in the title is for putting all your eggs in one basket. Israeli engineers, investors, entrepreneurs... you name it, have done that for the last 15 ~ 20 years.

Breslev Spirituality: Young Jewish Orthodox in Tel Aiv

2009-10-16T13:36:00.011+02:00

Once in a while, in the evenings mostly, on a busy street in Tel Aviv you will suddenly see a white van with speakers on top. When the van is moving they play a peculiar hip-hop music with a Klezmer flavor (old eastern European Jewish style music.) When traffic lights turn red or when there is a convenient place to stop two young men dressed in loose white pants and shirt hop out and dance on the street. The scene is a bit like what the hippies looked like in the 60's in Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco without the flowers and the Indian patterns. This is one form of communication from the breslev community in Tel Aviv (see also Breslev.) The Breslev community, followers of the Rabbi Nachman of Brezlov, have organized into loose groups and attract mostly young men from non-religious background. Their message is based on the writing of Rabbi Nachman from Breslev who preached lightness and happiness in being Jewish (late 1700's to early 1800's). At the time Jews in eastern Europe aspired to become great Torah masters. Rabbi Nachman believed in living Jewish life with a purpose based on spirituality not ability as a proficient Torah student or in practicing Judaism. This message appeals to many young Jews who do not have the background or knowledge to join traditional Jewish communities.

Because Judaism is a religion with centuries of accumulated knowledge sometimes the spiritual element is shoved aside. Rabbi Nachman represented a minority in traditional Jewish history. This minority in an effort of popularizing Jewish life used spiritual practice and belief instead of study. The idea of belief and spirituality above knowledge is similar to Christian, Muslim and eastern religions. Jews have pride in this difference, men needed to learn and practice daily routines to be true Jews. Going back to biblical times, religious leaders realized the need to have highly trained religious priests as one gour and followers who believe in the religion but do not practice as another group. The orthodox Jews do not see themselves as the knowledgeable practicing group. They see themselves as the only real Jews who simply continue in the tradition of their ancestors in eastern Europe going back 400 years. This idea is what Rabbi Nachman from Breslov tried to change, or actually develop in parallel with the traditional form of Jewish practice. But the belief in spiritual over practical has always stayed a very small minority, hidden from most people.

Watching the young Brezlev dancers makes some Tel Avivians feel strange. How can young Jews redefine or actually change the way we practice religion? Or maybe even the way we believe, spirituality has not been a part of our religion. Are these people adopting practices from Hindu or even Christian religion? Or are they just "lazy Jews" who do not want to spend time studying in a Yeshiva? Or who think that following Kosher laws and praying three times a day is not for them? I am sure that many actually welcome this change in how young Jews express their beliefs. Secular Jews specially in Tel Aviv have felt excluded from traditional Judaism. Maybe by adopting spirituality and belief we can practice without feeling outsiders in our own Jewish state. Brezlev followers are resurrecting two century old idea that may make sense to most Tel Avivians. We do have a tiny drop of spiritualism in this ocean of knowledge and practice. And this spiritualism comes with music and dancing and happiness. Maybe these few young dancers on the streets of Tel Aviv can change a little bit how we non-orthodox believe and practice as Jews. If you have stories of different type of religious practices in Judaism leave a comment.

Shift Your Image of Tel Aviv (Part 3): Technology Business, Seminars

2009-10-16T08:31:00.007+02:00

Invitation to the IT-SMF yearly meeting. About 300 IT service professionals meeting and learning new ideas in ITIL and other IT service and quality techniques.

Israel has a great technology reputation. Intel Israel and the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) give us a reputation of solid and innovative technologists. There are about 20 internationally known Israeli companies, some connected with bigger American companies. Less known is the rest of the Israeli technology world from top ranked education in the Technion to government driven start-up funds. Meetings among Israeli technologists is an interesting local phenomena. Most people who come from other countries wonder how we can have productive meetings that satisfy everyone. In 2008 the hi-tech sector in Israel went through a very low period, many meetings were canceled or required an entrance fee. As the market recovers, there is somewhat of a recovery and the meetings are back "on". Meetings and conferences are usually free to attendees, they are paid for by exhibitors (suppliers to the specific field.) I went to the IT-SMF yearly show where this year they awarded a prize to the company most successful in implementing ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) - a set of procedures and practices to improve IT quality. This is the first time the group honored a company with a prize. There were three contenders: Pelphone, the city of Petach Tikva and the international support group at Comverse. Pelephone won the award this year with the other two getting second place (I guess they scored close.)

This meeting-conference was typical of tens of meetings every month all over Israel. Most of the meetings tend to be in the Tel Aviv area. They attract anywhere from 100 to 1,000 attendees. The meetings are either sponsored by an organization or a company. There are a few interesting attributes that make Israeli technical meetings unique and useful for sponsors and the community:

Geographic proximity: Israel is small and it is easy to get to a central location. At most the commute is 3 hours by car.
Diverse specialties: there are more than 50 specialty fields with a few hundred professionals in each field. This makes the meetings focused enough to be interesting and not too big
Constant innovation: even in the most obscure fields there is a drive to innovate constantly. Quality in the IT field, even in groups like small cities, is indicative of the Israeli spirit to innovate and improve.
Open communication: Israelis love to talk and listen, learn and teach, compare, size-up... all the elements which make conferences successful. Only in security (i.e. military technology) meetings did I see people avoiding conversation or being secretive.

The conference I attended is a good example of why Israeli technologists and the local sector can benefit from conferences. The IT-SMF conference is a good example to illustrate other technical specialties. The technology sector changes quickly and in significant ways. Both in technical advances and in business use. It is also composed of many sub-specialties with different concerns related to different issues. In the IT world there is a strong pressure to increase quality and improve services. Outsiders may not appreciate this world. Business and non-technical people ask: "If google can organize so much information and deliver it anywhere in the world, why can't I find information inside my company?" or "If Amazon.Com can sell you so many things why can't I have an inventory of my warehouse updated daily?". Simple questions? Not so simple answers for IT managers and workers. There is also a push to enable business managers to determine what IT services are needed. IT managers are no longer the deciding factors in what services are deployed. While companies like HP and IBM (sponsors of this meeting) offer tools, each IT department has to implement the tools according to their own needs. These issues are completely different from the cell phone industry or the semiconductor sector. If a meeting was held to inform all these sub-specialties, it would have to be general without much depth. Thankfully we have enough people interested in many topics and desire to meet, talk, listen and learn.

Technology meetings and conferences are held in hotel and convention centers. The IT-SMF yearly meeting is sponsored and also paid for the the IT-SMF Israel chapter. There is an International group which sets policy and organizes standards and certifications. Sponsorship from some suppliers like this show is usually needed to pay for the event. There are a few technology conference organizations like People and Computers, and Electronica which organize bigger shows and are active in helping companies organize private shows. Many international technology companies hold yearly meetings for customers and decision makers in government, the military and business. The Microsoft meeting (in Eilat,) the Oracle meeting and the IBM meetings are well organized and attract many who are not just technologists from government to business. The unique qualities of the Israeli technology sector is great for face-to-face meetings and conferences, so come and talk, listen and learn.

Shift Your Image of Tel Aviv (Part 2): Virtual Peace, Like London or Paris or Rio

2009-10-13T10:11:00.009+02:00

Tel Aviv's duck balloon could have been a rally call to change it's image... or is it back to classic architecture? or beaches like Rio?

The words peace and Tel Aviv do not fit in the same sentence too well. You will not find them in the daily BBC report on Israel. Israeli political corruption has taken the place of negotiation with Arabs, so politicians do not speak of peace much. Hate speech from Nasralla or Ahmadinejad will certainly not have Tel Aviv and peach in the same sentence. But if you think a little more creatively than a global news media, London, Madrid, New York and Paris have experienced more violent events the last five years than Tel Aviv. From a personal perspective, Tel Aviv is safer than many western cities. There is more security here than just about anywhere (OK Baghdad excluded.) Private security guards are everywhere. You can not enter a mall, bank, train station or school without opening your bag or purse and passing a metal detector. Palestinians or for that matter any Arab looking male under the age of 50 no longer work or shop anywhere in central Israel. Cars with Palestinian license plates are as rare as a Ferrari anywhere in Israel. I call it virtual peace. This is like virtual security in war torn countries where sections of cities are walled off and private security forces protect anyone that values his life. If you look at Tel Aviv and all of central Israel, essentially we have the same situation. Just that our "wall" is a fence around the country. Here we are safe, we don't worry and we play and enjoy life.

UNESCO designated large parts of central Tel Aviv as world heritage site. Today building owners need to keep with the classic style when renovating Bauhaus buildings, in one of the most densely clustered modern movement construction in the worl

If its a case of personal security instead of real peace how do we change people's perception? From a personal viewpoint what is virtual peace? Is it a safe place to live? and visit? Is it defined by a government policy list? [US State Department Travel Warning] Is it a feeling you formulate from personal knowledge or experience? (a real visit) Does it come from friend's recommendation? Probably all of these are elements which make up your perception of a good place to go. So why do you perceive Tel Aviv different than Mexico City or Rio de Janeiro? (where sections of town are affluent and safe and others are dangerous) It still comes down to image. Which can be largely influenced by mainstream media for most people. After all, where do people get their information? If you don't know what Tel Aviv looks like, CNN is the next best thing. Even if it not exactly a balanced representation of real life. Rio is known for it's beaches and carnival. Mexico city for it's Mayan calendar and roving mariachi bands. Tel Aviv should be known for it's stylish dress and calm Mediterranean lifestyle. For now, it seems like Tel Aviv does not have an image at all. There was a large duck balloon on top of city hall for a while. There is the "white city" designation from UNESCO as a world heritage site, put that against dancing all night next to a bikini clad troupe in Rio. But maybe the Bauhaus architecture and the beaches along small restaurants and the quiet cafes along tree lined boulevards are a start. Now we need the PR and the advertising all around the world and the "re-branding" experts from Madison Avenue. Instead, how about a few blog articles and some flexible and imaginative readers spreading the word. I wish, but this blog writer has not bought the whole blog revolution to that extent. Tel Aviv will need the bikinis or the Eiffel tower or even the changing of the guard and a big collection of diamonds or the city itself like New York. Hey here is an idea, New York is the big apple, Tel Aviv could be the big melon, or the ripe tomato, or the crunchy cucumber. If you get a better idea for a character or a tag line for Tel Aviv, let me know. In the mean time, I got to catch the next BBC report on Gaza, that's what we have here, sad kids in rubble because a small band of terrorists are holding a skinny lonely Israeli soldier for four years in some hole under ground. But than again, there is a good game at the bar down the street and a few friendly faces at Hillel cafe at Ibn Gvirol and Arlozorov. If this makes sense to you, leave a comment or just send the link to a friend, T H A N K S !

Retirement In Tel Aviv (Part 2): Keeping Fit at 70 (or 37)

2009-10-11T18:06:00.002+02:00

Nice places and serious faces, morning walk in the park. It's easy to make friends in the park. Groups gather on weekend mornings before the temperature climbs. Keeping fit in Tel Aviv is part of everyday outdoor living / © 2009

You see people of all ages in Tel Aviv. In contrast to retirement communities in many places, people stay in the city and actually some people come to retire here. On the streets, in restaurants, in symphony halls, there are young and old. Unlike many cold climate cities, Tel Aviv is a great place to grow old and keep fit. To some keeping fit is a walk by the sea or a swim in the morning surf. To some it is getting out into a bustling city and seeing people going about their daily activity. Older people are not just kept in special homes or in a certain part of town, they are part of everything here. This is a second in a series of articles about retiring in Tel Aviv (see first article.)

One retired American with family in a Florida retirement community says that he would be dead by now if not for Tel Aviv. On visits to the US he sees friends and family sitting around pools half the day. They need help getting into town just to shop or see a doctor. Most can not drive and are too far away from anything, without convenient public transportation they are essentially prisoners in a very nice building complex. In contrast at 72 he is getting round on foot and with public transportation. He goes to Jerusalem by bus or train, about an hour ride. Living in north Tel Aviv he has access to anything he can imagine. Even heading to Ikea to shop for furniture a van service called sherut (service) gets him within 10 minute walk in Natanya. His suspicion of "being dead by now" when looking at Florida retirees is a bit of exaggeration, but it does reveal an important factor in the quality of life. For the average retiree the quality of life in Tel Aviv is better specially when it come to health. Another American couple spends the summers in Tel Aviv and winters in Arizona. Tel Aviv summers are actually cooler than Arizona. They loves getting around by car and seeing the country. Most days they just walks around Tel Aviv and enjoy the variety of activities the city has to offer. From movies to museums, if you have time during the day, attendance is light and range of activities is endless. This couple clearly sees health as a combination of physical and mental activity. Israel's culture and lifestyle is an eye opening experience to many, this can help keep you fit mentally and spiritually.

Keeping fit at 70 is not just physical. To some cultural events and everyday activities are just as important. Tel Aviv is an international city with world class culture, services, medical care and sports. To you it may mean music or history or literature. The wide selection also give you options to take up a new hobby or try a new sport. For example, an English speaking investment community that meets in Tel Aviv university on Friday mornings. Volunteer speakers update individual investors on economic and financial news. Or a group of Anglos in Ra'anana (30 minutes east by car or bus) for social gatherings of all kind, from pick nicks in the park to coffee groups. In Jerusalem there are small groups of retirees organized on their own, seems like parents of younger families who immigrated here in recent years. In contrast to Tel Aviv, Jerusalem benefits as Israel's capital. Here are more public events and places to go during the day (museums, lectures, tours, concerts.) Most retirees in other places have to settle on one or two areas of interest when picking a retirement location, here you have more choices.

Back to "keeping fit at 70". One benefit of uprooting yourself and coming to a new land is acquiring new habits. Granted it is hard to take up biking or head to the health club four times a week at 65. Tel Aviv makes it easier, the weather allows you year around outdoor living. The variety give you the ability to try more things even new ones. If you spent 40 years behind a desk it is hard to take up a sport overnight. If you played sports in college 35 years ago, you still need energy and motivation to go back (or take up a new sport.) Take a look at Ha'yarkon park (bike path map), here you can kayak or canoe on a small stream. Not much of a river by north American standards, yet enough to enjoy a brisk workout. The water is as smooth as you can imagine, it reminds me of seeing all the college teams practicing on the Charles river from Newton to Boston on weekend mornings. Beaches stretch all along the western edge of the city. Mornings you can find bathers, joggers and even a Tai Chi group. Saturday mornings below Ben Guirion boulevard there is a folk dancing group, it has been there for decades. A yoga studio at the port offers classes during the day. In Ha'yarkon park there are basketball and soccer games as well as roller-bladers and bikers. Through the city there are bicyclists (see blog article here) and joggers along the long boulevards like Ben Gurion, Yermiyahu and Rothschild. There are also biking groups and tours leaving Tel Aviv every Friday and Saturday. They cover the whole country and will give any level of physical ability a great ride. Add to this dozens of groups from birding to hiking and four wheeling to camping heading out to the Israeli wilderness on most weekends (don't expect African level safaris here, but from the desert to hilly terrain there good parks here.) Just ask at a bike or outdoor store or check the newspapers for contact numbers.

If you need a class or a private trainer, there are plenty here. City wide there are health clubs with classes and instructors. Clubs emulate an American model of yearly subscription. They are smaller than American and still well equipped for most people. Prices run from US$ 50 to US$ 200 depending on location and size. If you are looking for an exclusive club or one focused on personal care, take a look at the article in Ha'aretz. Personal trainers are readily available in Tel Aviv and the surrounding cities. Thanks to the military and a strong entrepreneurship spirit there are quite a few well trained coaches, physical trainers and motivational individuals. A few clubs have pools, this will add to the monthly fees. The Gordon pool [HE] at the end of Ben Gurion boulevard was renovated last year (2008,) entrance fee is 60 NIS for adult, 50 for children. Bicycle rental is between NIS 10 to 30 an hour. O-Fun [HE] is on 197 Ben Yehuda and rents bikes for 25 per hour and 60 per day (tel: 03-544-2292.) Ask locals and bloggers if you need more detailed information on getting fit in Tel Aviv. If you have specific interests please put them at the comment section and I will research it here in Tel Aviv.

Tel Aviv Wants To Be Amsterdam: In Bicycling

2009-10-10T11:06:00.000+02:00

Bicycle magazin'e web site. Bicycling as a hobby is a big in Israel, riding in Tel Aviv is another story

Tel Aviv is a great place to bicycle. It is flat, the weather is great most of the year and most roads are bicycle friendly. But people here do not get around by bicycle. They prefer cars, mopeds, taxis or buses, anything motorized. There is even a trend for electric scooters as a commuter vehicle. City hall decided to promote bicycling. There are good reasons for people to get around by bicycles, after all in Amsterdam and Beijing you see more bicycles than taxis. A recent article in the Globes, a business paper, reported of city government push for more bicycle commuting. As you can imagine, what government decides is not exactly what people will do. So is turning Tel Aviv into Amsterdam in bicycle transportation just a matter of some PR? What makes the Chinese and Dutch take to the road by bike while Israelis take taxis or buses?

While Tel Aviv is a great place to bicycle, Tel Avivian's love their cars and mopeds (called Tus-Tus.) Cars are somewhat of a new phenomena for most people in Israel. Until the 1990's car prices were too high for most Israelis due to 100% import duty. When taxes were reduced to 50% and then 30%, cars became affordable. Tus-tusim (plural for mopeds) are a perfect vehicle for city commuting and are preferred to bicycles, it's a bike except there is that engine. Moped riders ride just like bicyclists, pass between cars in intersections and ride and park on side walks. So what makes these Dutch and Chinese pedal instead of moped? It's hard to say. Tel Avivians are probably just as practical as Chinese. Tel Aviv is just as flat as Amsterdam and probably has as much free parking. For the most part biking on the streets is safe. When streets are too crowded there are sidewalks, which most walkers do not mind sharing with bikes. The only real problem with bicycles in Tel Aviv is theft. Which leads one to believe that someone out there wants the bikes. Which means that they should want to bicycle around town. Actually, the theft seem to come from the teenage market (and teenagers themselves.) Teenagers seem to want expensive bikes and do not mind a slightly used one, so they buy or steal them. Police does not seem care and bicycle registration programs are not promoted enough or encouraged. A good lock and some common sense where to lock your bike is usually enough to prevent theft.

Motivating Tel Avivians' to bicycle more is a great idea. Bicycling behavior in Tel Aviv is a little more complicated than just convenience, safety and security. As a leisure activity Israelis actually love to bike. Bikes are available from the basic Chinese made $200 variety to $5000 and up carbon fiber sport models. Most American and European high end manufactures have a store here or sell through agents. The Cheshmonaiim street and a part of Menachen Begin boulevard are the bicycle retail center of Tel Aviv. Here are a dozen big shops and a few smaller ones offering new and used bikes. High end stores usually carry one or two brand name models. Shops without a big brand name carry the lesser known names. Shops also carry a wide variety of accessories: helmets, pumps, cloths, car racks, breaks and safety accessories (pads, etc.) Big signs with brand names on Ha'chesmonaiim street: Specialized, Raleigh USA, Diamondback, Look, Ritchey, Trek, Cannondale, GT, Mongoose, Schwinn, Scott, Giant, The North Face and a few exotic Italian types.

Bike riders complain of the few paths designated for bikes. Most of the paths are simply painted lanes in the middle of wide boulevards. These are usually taken from pedestrian paths. The complaint, like most city riders around the globe, is that most bicycle paths are taken from walk ways rather than roads. Riders assert the need for more paths to enable safe riding across the whole city. Once routes are available it will make more sense to commute without the fear of accidents and the slowdowns. Transportation and city officials claim the need to give automobiles as much road as they can until bicyclists really need more room to ride. Who is right? Ask a Dutchman or a Chinese, they will side with the bikers every time.

Hotel Location in Tel Aviv: What to Do and Where to Do It

2009-10-08T11:06:00.001+02:00

Google search for "hotels tel aviv", 3,580,000 results and no Judo class in sight! Is this all you really need to plan a trip?

Looking for a hotel in Tel Aviv is easy, a google search of "hotels tel aviv" yields 3,580,000 results and 11 advertisements. All this action is driven by Google's search and advertising system. People search for hotels and therefore bloggers and web site developers write about hotels. In comparison "restaurants tel aviv" gives only 1,880,000 results and 3 advertisers, "rock climbing tel aviv" gives 18,200 results and "judo tel aviv" give 55,900 results. But google and most of the hotel sites usually don't tell you much about where you are and where to find that fun and interesting "stuff". To the hard core bikers and surfers, specific sites in your niche sport can be a better place to get information on hotels and other crucial information such as experience with a rental business or where to find a diving partner. I spoke with a SCUBA instructor and he explained how the one rental shop on the water may not be the best choice for experienced divers. Although most divers come to Israel and dive in Eilat on the Red Sea, there is still good diving around Tel Aviv but you have to travel a bit. There are also groups that will give you information and even let you tag along when they dive together. There are also other places to dive just north and south of the city, in 45 minutes you can be in Cesarea and dive among Roman columns from a 2000 year old pier.

If you are looking for a hotel in Tel Aviv, you may want to find other things first. On a business trip and want to Kayak? Make sure you can get to the Tel Aviv marina just off Gordon street. You can also ask someone in a nearby hotel for a boat reservation. If you stay far away from the beach it may take more time and trouble than it's worth. The same goes with Judo and rock climbing. There is a rock climbing wall in the Ha'yarkon park, if you are staying in the very north section of the beach area it's a walk away. Do your bike or run in the park first thing in the morning? Ha'yarkon park runs along the whole city from the Mediterranean eastward through Ramat Gan and Bnei Brak. It has long paths, is well maintained and even serious runners on most mornings would appreciate the scenery.

If you are looking for cultural events, music, theater, museums and galleries the center of town is a better choice. Within walking distance from Dizengoff circle are theaters, museums and live music bars. This can be handy on most evenings where parking for any event is practically impossible. The few small hotels in this area have a range of prices and service levels. In the center of town you are also closer to shops and restaurants. If you need to entertain someone there are plenty of choices here. The central part of Tel Aviv is older and more densely built. Here are also small boutiques and streets lined with interesting architecture. This is the old Tel Aviv that has taken the name "The White City." Mostly built hurriedly in the 1920's to the 1940's it boasts a beautiful world class collection of Bauhaus buildings.

If you are in Tel Aviv and need to travel out of the city, consider hotels closer to Ayalon Highway and Route 4. The north railway station (Sovidor Merkaz) and Ramat Gan diamond district (The Bursa for locals) has a few good hotels (Sheraton is a high rise building just across the bridge from Tel Aviv.) The Bursa area is also an international business center and recently the home for high tech companies. Ramat Gan has become the most densely populated Internet gambling software center in Israel (some say the world.) Another technology business area is the Atidim district in the north east of Tel Aviv. This area has not developed hotels for tourists but does offer many restaurants and bars. Here you can still go out at night but most people would suggest that you stay in Ramat Gan or even in north Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv University (this is a private institution unlike the Hebrew University in Jerusalem or Ben Gurion University in Beer Sheva) is in the north of Tel Aviv. It is located in the Ramat Aviv section which is residential. You may want to stay in the north part of the beach near the old Tel Aviv port if you are going to Tel Aviv University.

This is an introduction to how to pick a Tel Aviv hotel based on leisure and business preferences. Each section of Tel Aviv I mentioned will get more details in upcoming articles. Tel Aviv is a small city and you can get around by public transportation, but if you are coming for a few days, your stay will be more pleasant by planning a little and having fun things next door.

Gilad Shalit's Plea for Freedom: Nervous, Quiet, Worried in Tel Aviv

2009-10-05T11:38:00.005+02:00

Unless you have been living under a rock in Tel Aviv you definitely hear, see and FEEL the quiet nervous tension herev. This quiet two minutes and forty second plea for freedom was streamed on TV and computer screens like a thunder bolt in mid-summer. The first few seconds after he finished was the most silent Tel Aviv has been in a long time. Than came the whispers and interpretations. What can you say to a prisoner held for four years? What can you tell the family? What should the government do? Tzipi Livni more than two years ago blurted out in anger something like "we are not going to bow down to the Palestinians on the count of one..." Immediately Olmert, Ashkenazi, Barak and everyone you can think of wanted to hit Livni on the head with a baseball bat (OK we don't have baseball here, we can find a bat somewhere.) But there was something to that blurb that is finally sinking in for Israelis and Palestinians: nobody wants to back down and look like a loser. The Israelis are not willing to let murderers out just to be treated like heroes in Gaza. The Palestinians are not willing to settle for not getting everyone out of prison, specially their big heroes. Shalit sits in a hole just beyond our reach. To most at first impression he "looked good". But the way he looked did not calm the nervousness. Just seeing this face reading quietly a simple speech [video/transcript] made everyone's hair stand in the back of his neck.

I think you know things are bad when nobody talks about it. The old white elephant in the middle of the room, the king walking naked in the middle of the street, Shalit still "there" four years later. The situation indicates two big shifts in attitude in Tel Aviv:

1) Israelis are no longer willing to trade Palestinians at any price. If we "JUST" get Shalit without a complete stop to terrorism "they" are not going to get the "bad ones".

2) Israelis can be silent and tolerant for a long long time. We can take stress, we can take Iranian presidents on TV, we can take Nasrala and Haniya on TV.

I am not sure if this indicates strength or weakness of character. It does indicate that the situation with the Palestinians is acceptable, we can live with it, let them have what they bargained for and see what happens... This goes for the Palestinians, the politicians, the generals and their soldiers, the Americans the Arab countries buzzing with all kind of publicity stunts from Saudi Arabian sheiks to Iranian heads of state. Tel Aviv can live with the stress and the media attacks. Israelis are also willing to live with Gaza as an isolated island of poverty, crime and hatred. We can somehow deal with the attacks and with the insane ethics. We can also deal with a prisoner four years in a hole in the middle of that crazy place called Gaza. The sad part is how the Palestinians also learned to live with the situation. Their leaders are clearly convinced of their position. They are morally right and take a look at all the reports coming from the UN and every other organization out there. As if the people writing the reports in New York or Paris living better than more Israelis can change the daily life of Palestinians. Eventually, the Palestinian leaders tell their people: they will be free, strong and most of all ethically right. In the mean time, Gaza will be what it is. It seems like someone has mistaken freedom and morality with reality. Or maybe they have not...

I don't write about politics and security topics. Not because I don't have an opinion, it is just covered, ground to a fine dust, reconstituted and once again ground so much, that people sometime forget the real people living in Tel Aviv. Real people that for the most part do not care much what politicians and government bureaucrats say and do. But do care about their life and how they are perceived. They care about their children going to war. They care about how they are perceived in a horrible light just to make headlines for CNN and BBC. Israelis know how to worry, they have done it for more than a century, they also know morality probably better than most UN investigators and legal analyzers. The also know something else - when people shoot, bomb, lie, curse and for the most part want you dead, you better raise a gun and start shooting. This was true to Israelis long before the Palestinian organized their terrorist organizations. Nasrala and Haniya may forget the Israeli history, but there are plenty here who have been on the land for three, four and five generations. If pushed, Israelis will continue to worry, get gray hairs, and ignore the big white elephant in the middle of the room. Finally, I do not think that Shalit looked good. His teeth did not look good, most prisoners in Arab countries going back to Syria and Egypt have lost their teeth. He did not looked well fed. He certainly did not sound good. That shy little smile when he said "I am being treated excellent" gave it all away. If you are an American and you have lived long enough you may remember the Vietnam prisoner of war tapes, take a look again if you are young or don't remember.

Linked-In and Facebook in Israel: A Buzzing Business Network

2009-10-04T21:51:00.006+02:00

FaceBook is one of the more popular social networking destination for Israelis

Social networks are buzzing in Israel. Linked-In and FaceBook are two of the most popular destinations for Israelis. Linked-In is a strong entrepreneur and recruiting site with groups focused on technology in Israel. FaceBook is a used more for social causes and leisure activities (parties, social causes, group announcements.) The other sites gaining popularity is Meetup, a service to announce and reserve places in local events. Israeli techies are not new to digital social communication. Up to this wave of WEB20 services blogs and chat boards were the main form of group communication. Blogli.CO.IL is a free blogging service in Hebrew similar to Blogger.COM and WordPress.COM. Message boards like Ynet communities, The Marker Cafe (business and work related), Walla.CO.IL, tapuz.CO.IL (opinions and personal blogging) were the hot destination until today. Google also added a complete Hebrew support to Blogger.COM but that did not seem to attract participation from the other services or create a new set of followers. At this point in time most blogging services are similar enough and to move from one to another does not happen en mass. Israelis are great in following new trends and trying new products. But they are also finicky and tend to latch onto things in a completely unpredictable nature. Remember that these are trends, some come and stay, some go down in flames (quickly.)

If you have an Internet service, a new product or even an idea, think about testing it in Israel. Most Internet users read and write in English well enough to understand new ideas. There is a big Russian and smaller Arab speaking population. They tend to follow the mainstream Israeli (i.e. Hebrew) trends. Other European languages are also spoken here but not in as large number as the other mentioned (Spanish and German are probably the next languages in popularity here.) For the most part the Israeli digital market covers a great deal of professions and interest. Israelis have a good standard of living so many products like electronic gadgets, software and media (movies, music) are consumed in good amount. Finally, Israel has a large population of digital professionals, from designers, to software developers, business entrepreneurs to marketers, writers and editors. This makes the market which is small and manageable a good place to start and deploy ideas quickly.

Night Time Pictures of Tel Aviv: Azrieli Area

2009-10-04T19:57:00.006+02:00

Polished Slick Political Speech in Tel Aviv

2009-10-02T11:06:00.002+02:00

Bibi Netanyahu's election poster: he promised lots of great things, and like many politicians after elections has a hard time delivering. Tel Avivians are critical but really do not lose sleep over politics

Tel Avivians recently upgraded their image of slick politically correct speakers. Not by international standards, but certainly by Israeli standards. Israelis for a long time had an image of rough and undiplomatic. Today in fact, Tel Aviv behaves much more like a modern European city than an Israeli Kibbutz from the 1950's. The change from brash, brutally honest, "I don't care what you think of me" to civility is something foreigners notice right away. Specially visitors who have not been here in a decade or two and remember the days when Israelis were on top of the world. In general, Israelis are not particularly interested in politics. In everyday life, you do not hear much political talk, there are just too many other issues to worry about. If you are interested in politics try a few people and see who bites. Tel Avivians are not worried about what they say, so they will tell you what they think. If you need to decode what they say here are a few things I heard recently. Here is a short decode table:

I do not understand politics: I am tired of the empty promises before elections and the excuses after.
Politics is in my blood: My great uncle was a low level beurocrat in the histadrut (national labor union, at one time representing most workers in Israel.)
I follow politics religiously: 1) I watch the news every evening. 2) I hear all kind of things but believe very little until I see real action.
Politics is my religion: I vote in most elections and I do not practice any religion regularly.
I don't want to hear about politics: 1) I really don't care what politicians say and do. 2) Bring it on, I love talking (arguing) politics.
I am not that interested in politics: Politics are a waste of time but if you got an opinion I am sure we can argue about something.

I like to speak with bus riders and fast food clientele on the latest political developments. With the Obama administration taking the helm in Washington Isarelis were not too happy about Obama's renewed positive attitude towards the Arabs and Palestinians. Let's be honest, George W. Bush was a good friend of Israel and pretty much backed our government no matter what was asked. But on the other side is Obama shift of focus from Israel and the middle-east to other areas (health care now, economics and finance before.) This shift is taking the spotlight away from the Arabs and Palestinians for the first time in decades. Overall Israel is not getting as much attention but the negative press is also less detrimental to Israel's global image. On the streets of Tel Aviv the reaction to these changes runs all the way from "I don't really care, what's the big deal" to "this is what it should be, it's about time" to "as long as the politicians are not moving forward the Palestinians are going to stay enemies, we need to be realistic not day dreamers". I also hear a few "it's about time Israeli leaders started to think for themselves without big brother America calling all the shots." But mostly it's small comments about the stream of news reporting that we are used to here.

What makes political talks useful is as a universal introduction and good ice breaker to get a sense of the people in a foreign city. Usually if the political talk does not take off you can talk about other things. If you find someone to talk politics it will give you a better sense of what people think here. In most cases people's opinion is not what you hear about in the mass media. It is also interesting to hear how people think. For the most part you get a good read on what makes Tel Aviv good or bad, fun or frustrating, profitable or expensive, social or isolating... which is what makes most visitors and new residents excited in the first few months. So read up on your politics before you come to visit. Don't expect every Tel Avivian to be a political experts, but an opinion you will hear one way or another.

Shift Your Image of Tel Aviv: Buzzing & Financial ?

2009-09-30T09:24:00.013+02:00

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange increase from 2003 to 2008 while GDP is in a steady increase and tourism is down in a recovery (yearly scale match data)

The last few posts' feedback bring up again the gap between image and reality of Tel Aviv. The main reason I write about this has nothing to do with "righting the wrong" in our world. There is no reason to prove CNN or NBC wrong about their reporting emphasis on the Israeli-Palestinian fighting. Mainstream media highlight of military skirmishes, storm casualties and political meetings among world leaders is their version of the news. Blogging specifically and the Internet in general has validated a whole different view of the news. One that is much more relevant to most people most of the time. There are so many other important issues to deal with on a daily basis. To most people the traditional news content has almost become irrelevant. I say almost because the older population and the consumers of TV news are not going to replace their cable TV with a laptop connected to the Internet. Commuters on the way to work are not going to turn off the radio and listen to podcasts on their iPods (MP3 players.) As radio survived all these years in the shadow of TV, so will TV continue in the shadow of the blogging, Internet sites, podcasts, video clips on YouTube, networking with FaceBook, Twitter and Linked-In... add your own favorite Internet format here.

Tel Aviv and Israel in general has never been treated fairly in the mainstream press. That is the average Israeli's opinion at least. In my opinion this issue has more to do with the openness of Israel to foreign media plus the ongoing skirmishes between Palestinians and Israelis. The Palestinians are simply stuck in limbo and have had bad luck with their leadership. It does not seem like this will change. The Israelis are simply strong militarily and have absolutely no place to go. So CNN TV reporters and London Times photographers are having a field day here. Israelis only see this part of the equation and are as mad as hell. OK, enough with the bad news... here comes the good news. (PLEASE do not write comments on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, there are plenty of other blogs to do that.)

In my last article about the Lonely Planet guide to Israel and the Palestinian Territories the image of Tel Aviv as a den of laziness and coffee sipping loiterers came up. This simply reflects a tourists view. I wonder why the Lonely Planet Tour Guide does not describe the screeching hordes of mopeds taking off from intersections on Kaplan Street at Azrieli. Or the night time skaters daring life and limb on Thursday nights along Ibn Gvirol boulevard. I also wonder if tourists in Tel Aviv wonder who and what is going on in the high rise glass and aluminum buildings all over the city. Unlike the New York Stock Exchange, the Tel Aviv's tiny relative does not offer tours to anyone (some people come to New York just to tour the stock exchange.) Actually, most Tel Avivians do not know and never see this institution which brings in billions in foreign currency (its on Echad Ha'am street in a nondescript office building actually distinguished by the bar-restaurant at the entrance.) There is plenty of buzz in Tel Aviv, it is just inside businesses and malls mostly not something tourists are interested when on vacation. Most tourists also do not see the hundred of foreign companies with operations in Israel. They certainly do not see the business services (lawyers, accountants, marketers) which serve many of the most recognized global companies from Intel and Nike to Coca Cola and Toshiba. So let's get to these.

Tel Aviv's role in the Israeli economy has a financial element. The ATSE (Tel Aviv Stock Exchange) and most of the large banks and investment companies are based in Tel Aviv. The image above is of the turnover in trades of the TASE from 1992 to 2008 (center line.) As you can see, the TASE turnover (amount of trades in US$) was flat from 1992 to 2003 at around US$ 100 million. Then it started to grow to US$ 550 million by 2008. The Israel GDP (Gross Domestic Product) from 1995 to 2008 has increased linearly with 2001 to 2003 being flat (bottom line.) Israel's GDP for the period of the TASE rise was 800 billion NIS (200 billion US$) to 1 trillion NIS (250 billion US$.) The component of TASE turnover is a small fraction of the total Israel GDP (0.2%.) This gives the TASE market no significant influence over the Israeli economy in real terms. This may explain why the global financial crisis in 2008 did not influence the Israeli economy as in other countries. The TASE was sold off and dropped by 50% by the beginning of 2009, but the Israeli GDP kept on going up. The TASE has a role as a place Israeli entrepreneurs and investors raise capital especially in the high technology sector. The TASE is also a contributor to investment in large Israeli companies. As a small market, US and European mutual funds find the TASE a less volatile market than bigger countries' exchanges. The TASE 25 index includes banks, communication, Real Estate and technology companies. With the current financial market conditions globally there is not much interest in the TASE from the US and Europe. Therefore Israel has been turning to other countries and developing financial and business relationships in south America, eastern Europe and Asia. Keep your eyes on this change in business attitude in Israel. More information on the TASE in English on their web site here. If you are interested in the Israeli financial markets please leave a comment and I will write about these topics. Of interest around the world is the Israeli technology field. Many international companies and investors have made this sector one of the most visible small country sector.

Jerusalem Mamila Street Statues - Part 2

2009-09-29T23:05:00.004+02:00

This is the second installment of the Mamila Street statue exhibit (see the first part here.) Also notice of great deal of compression and loss in contrast in the editing process. If you would like to have the original JPG image with more detail for your site, please contact me directly. When posting on the blog in low resolution (a few hundred K size JPG) the color and texture are reduced. Especially the marble looses texture in low resolution. But than again there is no substitute to seeing it live in person! E N J O Y

Lonely Planet's Israel Guide Book (an Palestinian Authority)

2009-09-29T19:54:00.004+02:00

Lonely planet Israel guide book photo gallery is definitely a tourists' highlights of Israel. Overall good treatment of Israel and the Palestinian territories

Today's Ha'aretz English edition (29-Sept-09) has an article titled: "Why Israelis shouldn't read travel guides to their country" By Yotam Feldman, Haaretz Correspondent [link]. The article cautions against Israelis reading the lonely planet travel guide on Israel. Although it does not condemn outright the writing. The quote about Tel Aviv is a hint of Feldman's overall view of the Lonely Planet's style:

The Lonely Planet guide depicts residents of Tel Aviv as idle and relaxed: "After a few days in Tel Aviv (or TA as it's affectionately known by expats) you may start to wonder if there is such a thing as a weekend. The city seems to be on permanent holiday, and at any time of day or night you can saunter down a main street and find crowded cafes, joggers, beach bums and dog walkers."

If you are a regular reader of this blog I hope this is not the impression you got. But truthfully, this article does remind me of the continuous impression of Tel Aviv tourist and expats pushed on me. It does seem that people come here to relax and forget that Tel Aviv is also a center of a vibrant country. I have a few stories that would make the point, they will be left for a bar or a drink on the beach (any takers?) From an outsider's view this impression of Tel Aviv as a laid-back coffee sipping and idle / lazy den is certainly understood. I mentioned the cafes and bars in Tel Aviv on more than one occasion.

Lonely Planet's web site, to some the authority on travel on a budget for independent individuals (no tour groups and air-conditioned buses here) says this about Israel introduction of Israel and the Palestinian Territories latest edition:

Like the patchwork of new arrivals at Ben-Gurion airport, Israel is an amalgamation of peoples who arrived over centuries of time, each one staking their claim to the land. Territorial disputes led to violence, which in turn made for some epic accounts in the Bible – not terribly dissimilar to what is playing out on nightly newscasts where you are today. But contrary to popular belief, Israel is not a war zone to be avoided, and it has such rigid security that travel is surprisingly safe.
Somewhere along the line, politics and the bitter facts of life in this uncertain land will nudge their way into your trip. And while Israelis and Palestinians love nothing more than to argue, muse and prognosticate over the latest political currents, it’s best to leave your own opinions at the door. Enter the Holy Land on a clean slate and you’ll never watch the nightly news the same way again.

This description I agree with. It seems like tour guides need to give some semblance of reality. After all, eventually a purchaser of the book will end up in Israel and Lonely Planet will be judged by it's accuracy. In that respect, travel books are a better guide to places than the popular media and fictional Hollywood depictions. But I do not agree with Yotam Feldman's warning to Israelis. As he portrayed to the book store seller to be buying the guide for a "tourist friend", we all have to eventually explain Israel to "tourist friends". And Tel Avivians are not soft and sensitive to the point of being humiliated by "The Lonely Planet" organization. Actually, one way of judging their publications describing other locations is by reading our book. This is the only place we know well which we can use as a benchmark. Every travel writer has his own view on the place he writes about. Americans see Israel in a mix of optimism and frustration which reflects their experience as American citizens in their country and their media's portrayal of Israel. In some respect, specially in the US, it is very difficult for individuals to separate the media's image from what they believe to be the truth. Specially in the US, where a smaller percentage of the population travels to Israel than European counterparts. Americans simply can not understand or explain the reality in Israel without using the information from CNN, ABC, NBC and the New York Times as a basis. This is something that Israelis do not understand. They ask over and over: why do you believe the TV news as if it was the Torah brought down from the mountain by Moses? Don't you understand the bias, the imbalance, the errors and omissions of reporters? Well, even if they understood, what can they use as a true description or a counterpoint to the TV news? Aha, tour guides from the Lonely Planet? Not likely unless they plan a trip to Israel.

I use the US as a basis because I know Americans better than Europeans. Inevitably I am surprised by European tourist opinions of Israel when they differ dramatically from Americans. Not that Europeans have a more balanced and accurate view of Israel, sometimes they do and sometimes they are just different. The Lonely Planet tour guides definitely have a certain approach, but this is what gives them their style and trust among certain traveler groups. Other tour guides like Fromer's and Michelin have different style, but style should not deter us from reading and commenting on travel guide's opinion and descriptions.

The photo gallery on the Lonely Planet Israel book page focuses on tourist resorts. A friend poking fun at them calls it the "Israeli stone collection" referring to the many pictures of stone buildings and landscapes of gray Jerusalem stone. Hey, what can we do, we live in a country full of stones, we build stone buildings, make fun of our stones if you like. In general, I give the lonely planet good marks in overall honesty and description of life in Israel. So if you like their style and approach, buy the book before coming to Tel Aviv and don't worry if one or two places are not describes 100% as you see them on your trip. I can't really comment on the Palestinian Territories descriptions that will have to wait until we are all in more friendly terms.

Retirement in Tel Aviv: Better Than Florida or Ibiza? Judge for Yourself...

2009-09-27T21:48:00.009+02:00

I do not mean to undermine Florida's and Arizona's retirement residents. Or ask English and Germans pensioners to give up Spanish and French beaches. Now that the baby boomers in western countries are in their retirement age, options where to live are everywhere. When it is harder to move from rust belts to sunny resorts all over the world, you don't need a Tel Avivian bashing at you. BUT Tel Aviv IS better for some (and for good reasons.) Thanks to its geographic location Tel Aviv offers great weather year around. If there is a complaint about the weather it comes in the hot summer days of August, when the temperature touches 100°F (47+°C) and the humidity is at 90%. If you can't take the heat, hop to Switzerland or Scotland for a month. Geography has another pleasant surprise: location. At first impression you may not think of location as a crucial factor in a retirement decision, think again. From Tel Aviv you are only a short flight away from Europe, Africa and even India and central Asia. Here you are much closer to China or Japan than San Francisco or even Stockholm. If you like exotic locations in Asia, Tel Aviv is served by over 50 Asian airlines (125 international airlines in total.) If you like adventurous locations a visit to Africa can be a bus ride to Egypt or a short flight to eastern and central Africa.

If city life is your cup of tea, you do not need to travel. Tel Aviv offers more than most medium US and European cities. All night restaurants and bars, world class shopping and entertainment. More museums and concerts in Tel Aviv and the surrounding cities than many regions in the US. Why is Tel Aviv such a cultured metropolis? Because of the people and the mission set upon European Jews 150 years ago. Israel's population came from all over the world. With large percentage from Europe and the middle east (Muslim countries.) The mission of the people is even more intriguing, Theodore Herzl said: "If you will it, it is no dream." Actually translated literally from the Hebrew "If you desire it, it is not a fairy tale". Herzl meant that a NEW JEWISH STATE can be vibrant, proud, strong and a wonderful place to live. Not because it was hard in Europe, because if you want to build a great place, you work hard and aim high... it will happen. So people came to Tel Aviv starting in the 1880's and set out to build a dynamic and vibrant new city. Literally a place that a children's fairy tale would pale in comparison. That was the aim of building Tel Aviv, from it's official declaration in 1909 up to today. How did it turn out? Well, not exactly a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale but pretty amazing by most accounts.

Back to the retirement story... Tel Aviv is not the cheapest place in the world to live in, but it is certainly competitive with US and European cities. You can rent a nice apartment in the north of the city or blocks from the beach for about US$1,000 a month. If you go out about 25 miles the price drops by half. You can have a great meal for two in a nice restaurant for about $50 to $80. If you are a good cook there is fresh produce to rival most agricultural regions and imported goods from most places in the world. A trip to the market will cost anywhere from 200 to 500 shekel's for a week's supply for two ($50 to $125.) You can shop at fashionable boutiques or bargain basements as if you were in Milan or Moscow. Prices and selections vary. A woman's shirt at Zara goes from 200 to 300 shekels ($50 to $75) the same shirt is half at a non-brand name shop. Health care is on leading edge level, both in availability and standards. Tel Aviv now attracts cosmetic surgery tourists all the way to complex heart surgery patients from less developed countries. One clinic offers a tour of Israel and cosmetic surgery all in one week. You can subscribe to a private or national medical plan and get coverage at a basic or comprehensive levels. On both the lower to the highest economic scales your lifestyle in Tel Aviv is still a bargain.

The people and cultures in Tel Aviv are accommodating beyond your expectations. Tel Aviv is truly a melting pot. In the 1990's a million Russians came to Israel, there were predictions of economic collapse, families raising children in tent cities, hunger to rival a drought in Africa. As the Russians started to arrive people took in boarders, it was cozy but soon enough apartments were built and a small economic boom was created. Fears of doom and gloom did not materialize. The exact opposite happened, Russian engineers and scientists strengthen the Israeli economy. No engineer in Israel would even think of what the technology sector would have been with 1/2 or 1/3 of the engineers if the Russians didn't come. Russian musicians, dancers and actors flooded Israeli orchestras, ballet companies and theaters. Today there is more music, art and culture thanks to the Russians than in many European and American cities. When the Ethiopian Jews were brought from a culture reminiscent of 16th century Europe. There was talk of no resistance to "modern diseases", fear of complete demise of this old, fragile tribal community. Today you will be hard pressed to find a lively Israeli wedding without a troupe of "drumming Africans" getting everyone dancing. The tribal life is gone and the transition to modern life started for Ethiopians. Second generation Ethiopians are contributing to Israeli society. You can see them in military uniform, running businesses and in governmental positions everywhere. There is still some prejudice, but we can certainly hold our head up in comparison to many places around the globe.

Israel has a modern feel, yet it respects tradition and culture. The world here is not perfect, but we certainly aim to be a shiny example to others. Add to the infusion of Jews from around the globe cultural diversity of business travelers from Africa, Asia and Europe. Foreign workers from caretakers to the old from the Philippines to accountants and diamond sorters from India. In Tel Aviv and Jerusalem you see Christian and Muslim pilgrims from all over the world, not just on holidays and religious occasions. And finally, the "stuff of culture everywhere". Tel Aviv has fashion, flavors, aromas, house goods, sounds and movements from near and far. In Dizengoff center you can find a Moroccan household goods store next to a custom T-Shirt stand with Disney characters. April perfume store with aromas from Paris' most exclusive names next to a music store blaring hip-hop. On the streets of Jaffa every Friday you can find antiques from renaissance Europe next to old Russian World War II medals. On Dizengoff street, where wedding dresses sell for € 10,000 you can still enjoy humus lunch for 22 shekels (€ 4.5) There is variety for sure, but also consistency. Neighborhoods in Tel Aviv and the surrounding cities are small islands of cultural uniformity. The Iraqi Jews are found in Ramat Gan. In Ra'anana you will find the Anglos. Bnei Brak is religious. Tel Aviv center is business and commerce. Givatay'im and Holon are bedroom communities. While some communities are 2 or 3 generations removed from their origins, you can choose from a wide range of lifestyles and values not seen in most retirement communities.

So is Tel Aviv better than Miami or Sedona for retirement? Can we give Ibiza or Sri Lanka a run for the money? If you have a spirit, want a great place to be and to enjoy life, give us a try. For most of the people who came, long ago or just last year, there is no going back ~ this place is just too good to give up for a condo in Boca Raton. After a burger at "the magic burger" you can still enjoy a French desert in as close as you can imagine Parisian bistro, just up Ibn Gvirol street*.

AmiV@TLV

* stay tuned to more on the street Tel Aviv stories for retirees.

Tel Aviv Cafes Fed Up With Bloggers

2009-09-24T11:06:00.006+03:00

Coffee Bean on Ibn Gvirol (at Gan Ha'yir) was overrun by digital loiterers, now less welcoming to laptop customers.

OK not JUST Bloggers. Basically anyone with a laptop buying a cup of coffee and sitting for two hours and just taking space (electricity and internet bandwidth too.) Some cafes are definitely shooing away customers loitering with laptops. Now that the economy has turned down and every table and seat is a potential cash cow. First cafes shut down the power outlets. Without power, laptops last at the most two hours but in reality from 30 minutes to an hour. This supposedly would limit the digital loiterers to laptop battery life. This did not bother enough digital loiterers, at least not in the popular spots like the Coffee Bean & Tea on Ibn Gvirol, a long time watering hole for the digital set. Then some cafes allowed laptop seating in less comfortable areas. Again in the Coffee Bean the high tables with a tiny space were designated "laptop tables" instead of the comfortable leather seats by the windows. In another cafe not far from Dizengoff center the couches and coffee tables set up like a living room only short time newspaper reading customers were "allowed" to sit there.

The "problem" with the loitering bloggers is an interesting phenomena. Just as the Israeli economy was recovering in 2007-2008, wireless networks were spreading in restaurants, cafes and hotels here in Tel Aviv. While the economy was strong, digital cafe creatures* were spending money and bringing life to the cafes. As soon as the economy slowed down so did the cafe spending. After all if you can go to the same cafe and spend 13 shekels (US$3) on a Cappuccino instead of the 50 to 100 shekels for breakfast... why not take advantage of the situation? The shift from spenders to loiterers - contributors to parasites is obvious in hindsight. But sometimes when such shifts in the economy and people's behavior are taking place, it's hard to pinpoint who is right and who's toes are being stepped on.

There is an important lesson to learn here. How do we handle fast shifts in the economy and in people's behavior? When Henry Miller was writing in Paris cafes nobody was too worried about seats being taken by artists, writers and "wan'-na-be" loiterers. Why? Because nobody took them seriously and in reality cafes did not lose anything. Tel Aviv cafe seats are not that valuable today either. There are plenty of empty cafes and some are very nice in good locations (with beach views or in good residential and commercial locations.) We also learned that technology does not always compensate for basic economic conditions. When a writer or SEO specialist does not have cash to buy breakfast he will go with a cup of coffee and a croissant. Finally, there are people who see trends and some that don't. Laptop computers are becoming smaller with a new name 'Net-Books'. The Internet is becoming more useful and eventually will become a source of income to more people. Businesses will adapt to people's desire to sit for a few hours in a nice cafe - somewhere. If it is not in the Coffee Bean it will be at Hillel's, or Cafeneto, or Arcafe or Greg's or a no-name cafe. The name does not matter, how you are being treated matters. If the cafe needs a few shekels to compensate for the bit of electricity and wireless networking, put out a cup or sell an hour's worth of service for a shekel (US 25 cents.) Maybe cafes will take on a style ~ the digital ones and the analog ones (or is it dead tree reader ones?) There is room for more than one type of cafe in Tel Aviv. I am sure that is true for London, Paris and even San Francisco. Thanks for reading ~~ AmiV@TLV

* I do not know what to call these wondering digital workers. Every city has them, they come in many level of sophistication: sandal wearing designers to suite and tie salesmen. The reality is simple, people need their laptop while on the move, sitting on a park bench or a car is not a place to do work in today's digital world.

Jerusalem Mamila Street Statues

2009-09-22T09:19:00.007+03:00

MAMILA STREET in Jerusalem is a new outdoor boutique mall. Mamila street is short passage with a nice collection of upscale boutiques and stores (from Gap to original jewelry). The biblical architectural design is a nice change from glass and steel malls copied like mushrooms all over Israel. Two Saturday's ago (September 11, 2009) I took a few pictures of the statue display. Israeli sculptures are a mixture of modern and traditional style. The exhibit is outside which limits the sculptures to stone and metal. Mamila street is also small, so the statues are small (20cm to 2meters). But these two limitations did not limit the artists imagination and skill. I will post more pictures in later posts as they are processed. Enjoy...

George Gilder on Israel and World Economy

2009-09-13T10:14:00.005+03:00

I usually write and photograph what I see and hear personally. It seems useful for readers to read and see from first hand accounts. This article and book came from a friend in Sunnyvale CA (DG). DG follows the technology investment world and has been involved in investing for over 20 years. He is also deeply aware of the image Israel has in the media and I suppose wonders who is behind the hard to explain gap between Israeli contribution to the technology business world and the negative portrayal of Israel in the media. This is an excerpt from an interview with George Gilder about his recent book and conference "The Israel Test". [Amazon].

George Gilder, a technology writer, advocates Israel's crucial position in the world of free enterprise and capitalism.

This is an excerpt from the Gilder interview on the FrontPageMagazine.com site/blog [original here].

Frontpage Interview’s guest today is George Gilder, an active venture capitalist, [Gilder/Forbes Telecosm Conference host], co-founder of the Discovery Institute in Seattle, and the author of 15 books. His new book is The Israel Test.

FP: George Gilder, welcome to Frontpage Interview.

Tell us what the Israel Test is.

Gilder: The world faces it. It tests one’s response to excellence and achievement. Do you envy and resent people who excel you? Or do you admire and emulate them?

In the 20th Century, this test chiefly applied to Jews around the world. But today Israel epitomizes the excellence and accomplishment of Jewish culture. It is hated by anti-Semites not because of any moral flaws or legal infractions but because of its manifest virtues which show up and shame the forces of mediocrity everywhere.

FP: Illuminate for us the successes of Israel.

Gilder: Of all the nations in the world, Israel ranks first in per capita achievement and excellence. By any per capita measure it is preeminent, whether in technological innovation and invention, venture capital investment and creativity, share of GDP produced by technology companies, or number and quality of scientific papers. But even more impressive, Israel ranks second only to the U.S. in companies on the NASDAQ stock exchange and in achievements in such fields as telecom, microchips, software, biotech, medical instruments, and clean-tech. Israel today
represents and symbolizes capitalist excellence and freedom.

FP: Israel has a powerful and progressive government. Why does the left hate Israel so much?

Gilder: The left loved Israel as long as it was socialist and utopian, pacifist and beleaguered. The left loved the Kibbutzim with their fatuous and always unfulfilled dreams of transcending family and property. The left loves Jews as victims. When Israel emerged as a leading capitalist state, capable of defending itself from deadly enemies, and pragmatic in its policies, the Left turned against it.

But whether in Russia, Hungary, Germany, or Israel itself, socialism has always brought catastrophe for Jews. Socialism focuses on gaps between groups rather than on achievements of superior individuals. Socialism concentrates on equalizing excellence rather than promoting it. Historically, equalizing excellence has always meant suppression of Jews. This rule applies everywhere, whether by quotas as in the United States, or by pogroms in Stalin’s nationalities policy designed to equalize ethnic groups in the USSR.

FP: But isn’t hatred of Israel chiefly an effect of anti-Semitism?

Gilder: Anti-Semitism is chiefly a virulent form of anti-capitalism. In my book I closely scrutinize Hitler’s Mein Kampf . His fundamental objection to Jews is their superiority to Aryans as capitalists, as financiers, as entrepreneurs, as “middlemen.” Thomas Sowell has shown in several books that during bad times such hostility to “middleman minorities” flares up wherever an identifiable ethnic group outperforms the rest of the population in the economy. In Asia the overseas Chinese have so dominated Moslem economies and incurred such brutal massacres that they are called “the Jews of Asia.” But the overseas Chinese are so numerous that Jews might well be termed the “overseas Chinese” of Europe.

FP: Is Israel a battlefield? What is the battle over?

Gilder: It is over the survival of democratic capitalism and freedom. The Israelis just face the battle more directly and undeniably. But ultimately the battle is over the survival of the United States as a free nation and global influence.

The golden rule of capitalism is that the good fortune of others is also one’s own. Wealth does not cause poverty or environmental degradation or ethnic oppression. It opens horizons of opportunity for all. Without recognition of this rule capitalism cannot prosper, whether in Europe, Israel or the United States.

FP: The left claims that this is like saying that the United States produced a golden age for the native American Indians or even that bringing slaves to the U.S created a golden age for African blacks in America. They even offer an analogy between the American Revolution and the Palestinian Intifadas? How do you answer these arguments?

Gilder: Unlike the African blacks, the two million Arab Palestinians settled freely and prosperously on the West Bank and in Gaza, attracted by the economic opportunities created by the Israeli settlers before Bill Clinton and the UN surrendered the hapless Palestinians to the control of Yasir Arafat by making the PLO the world’s leading foreign aid recipient. Unlike the Indian tribes on the American continent who for awhile underwent violent displacement and deadly diseases, the Palestinian Arabs drastically improved their health and wealth under Israeli administration. Unlike the U.S. colonies, moreover, if the Arab Palestinians had desired a state, they could have created one peacefully at any time. From 1948 to
1967, the territories were under the control of Jordan and Egypt, without any gesture toward statehood.

If the Arabs wish to live in peace with Israel, they can work out any number of different forms of constitution and self rule. The eventual solution should include some kind of federation of the Arab Palestinians with Jordan, which was formed essentially as a state for the Palestinians. It is only Arab hatred toward the Israeli state that makes an Arab Palestinian state currently impossible and undesirable.

FP: We see, on many fronts, the West crumbling in the face of the Islamic jihad. Could the rescuer be Israel? If so, then, in the long run, the U.S. might need Israel just as much as Israel needs the U.S., no?

Gilder: In World War II, just a comparatively few Jewish scientists saved the West by leading and executing the Manhattan project that created the atomic bomb. Jewish scientists also played a key role in the prosperity of the United States which has been heavily fueled by the rise of the computer industry. All computers are based on the essential architecture invented by John von Neumann and most microchips use the field effect transistor invented by Julius Edgar Lilienfeld in the 1920s. Over the last several decades, U.S. technological leadership has been heavily dependent on Jewish inventions and Israeli designs. Intel has so benefited from its Israeli talent that its chips could be labeled “Israel Inside.”

Today, while the U.S. suffers from economic and financial turbulence and recession, Israel is developing into what is perhaps the world’s most creative and promising economy. Benjamin Netanyahu is the world’s most knowledgeable and experienced warrior against terrorism and most learned economic leader from his early days at the Boston Consulting Group. Israel is vital both to the future of American capitalism and to its defense.

FP: What are your thoughts on Obama’s treatment of Israel?

Gilder: Obama is becoming nearly irrelevant to Israel. He knows little or nothing true about Israel or its history and he is incredibly naïve about Israel’s enemies. As long as he does not deprive Israel of indispensable military support, he probably will not do irreparable harm. At present, I think he is furtively ducking his Israel test and trying to farm it out to Rahm Emmanuel.

At some point, Obama is going to have to recognize that an Iran that is willing to bomb Israel can also destroy American cities. There is no chance for peace unless the U.S. moves massively and conspicuously toward war with Iran or the Israelis succeed in destroying or frustrating Iran’s nuclear goals.

As I explain in my book, pacifists in power nearly always blunder into war.