Projection

On Wednesday we drove into Tel Aviv for a meeting, and as we entered Tel Aviv from the north I was struck by the fact that there were five new high rise buildings that I had not seen before. Concrete evidence of development and progress. Some of the new buildings looked very modern and architecturally interesting.
On the way back we decided to stop in Herzliya for a meal. We walked down a main street in Herzliya Pituach, the part of the town that is nearer the sea and that is the Israeli equivalent of "silicon valley," often called "silican wadi," although of course much smaller than the original. People were leaving work and the streets were filled with new model cars, and there was a wide choice of restaurants, including a kosher grill where we ate. It was very nice and reminded me of California, apart from the Americans who were eating there.
In our building in Netanya they are doing "shipputzim" or renovations remaking the whole entrance, with marble-style tiles and everything replaced (of course its costing us a fortune). Somehow the combination of these experiences made me feel good about our country, we can see progress and improvements in people's lives.
No doubt there are many negative things about Israel too. In one of the most weird cases, Dudu Topaz is on trial. Dudu is one of the top entertainers in Israel, a famous singer and personality, who has been implicated in a plot to attack some of his former associates. Three TV producers or executives were beaten up at different times, and the police tracked down the culprits that led them to a man who worked for Dudu, who confessed that he had organized the attacks on his orders. It was Dudu's way of getting back at people who he considered his enemies for not having continued to support him or who rejected his proposals.
Meanwhile we have the whole "sordid" situation of the US pressuring Israel to freeze all building in the so-called settlements that is making many people depressed, as well as the situation regarding Iran in which VP Biden and Pres. Obama are contradicting each other over Israel's possible attack against Iran's nuclear facilities. Also, one day Pres. Mubarak of Egypt says Cpl Schalit is alive and well and the next day Hamas deny that he knows anything about the situation of Schalit. Some things are best left unconsidered. I prefer at this moment to go back to the theme I started with, the feeling of a modern, thriving Israel projecting into the future.