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Yediot Aharonot, marking the 17th anniversary of the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, contends that "When we discuss the assassination we no longer focus on the incitement which proceeded it, and no longer about Rabin the person, the soldier, the leader – but rather, paradoxically, about the results and the consequences that we are still personally experiencing daily."
The author believes that "We imagined a secular Israel, enlightened and achieving, modern and united, which constantly provides its citizens with reasons to be proud, and lives in peace with itself and with its neighbors. All of this was taken away from you by Yigal Amir."
Ma\’ariv says that "The bottom fifth [of Israel\’s economy stratum], comprised for the most part by Arabs and the ultra-Orthodox, avoids reporting income and works in the \’black\’ market. Thus Israel is portrayed as a state of inequalities, but the reality is different." The author opines that "In order to learn the real situation of Israel\’s society one must focus on a survey of expenses that measures the real expenditures composed of food and housing which the citizens enjoy, and not fictitious incomes. Who knows, perhaps we will discover that we are not all that bad."
Yisrael Hayom discusses Aryeh Deri\’s apparent return to active politics and remarks that "Yesterday something happened in Israel: For the first time since the foundation of the state, a former minister and a criminal, who was convicted of receiving bribes dozens of times, who sat for more than two years in jail and until today has yet to express any remorse, will return to the Knesset, and perhaps, heaven forbid, to the Government."
Haaretz feels that the State Prosecutor\’s decision to appeal the acquittal of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in the Talansky affair is “appropriate,” and states that “In a case like Olmert\’s, the prosecution not only has the right to appeal, but also the duty, so the appeal is a welcome development.”
The Jerusalem Post discusses the decline in proficiency of elementary school children as measured in a recent national test, and points out that “Israel’s capacity to compete in a global economy that is driven increasingly by specialized knowledge and analytic skills depends on our school system’s ability to produce highly educated men and women.” The editor believes that action must be taken to drastically improve the education system, and states that “with election season upon us, voters should take advantage of the opportunity to demand of politicians clear programs for action aimed at improving our education system.” The editor adds: “The future of the Jewish state depends on producing the next generation of men and women capable of competing in a global economy that has become increasingly more demanding."
[Yonatan Yavin, Rotem Sela and Mordechai Gila wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Ma\’ariv and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]