A few days ago, I was writing about anarchy in Israel. I though we were making headways. I had no idea how close we were. In answer to my own question from last week: “Anarchy, Are We There Yet?”, I will have to categorically answer, yes we are.
Sometimes, a single event indicates a change of direction, for better or for worse. Last Friday, something so significant, so terrible, happened in Tel Aviv, that I can only conclude that yes, anarchy is here. A middle aged person, accompanies by his wife and daughter, went for a walk along the beach next to a quiet and affluent Tel Aviv neighborhood called Tel Baruch. After walking for a while, the small family sat down on a park bench to rest. A gang of eight young guys and a couple of girls started to tease the couple’s daughter. The father asked for them to stop. They killed him. They beat the crap out of him, and then dumped his lifeless body in the Mediterranean Sea. His wife was injured, but both wife and daughter made it. The gang was drinking beforehand, and when the arrest took place, they still were.
I must make a disclaimer here. I don’t know what went down at 12:00 midnight near the sleepy neighborhood of Tel Baruch. The police is investigating, the victims know what they went through, and the youngsters with the alcohol vapored brains may have some recollection of it. But as one of the police officers stated, the police had received an F in the outcome test. In the same sentence, that officer also stated that “the police can’t be everywhere all the time”. And I wanted to comment on this statement.
But first, let me offer my sincere condolences to the family of the deceased. In a way, many of us Israelis, were there on the boardwalk that night. We were all walking down the path with our own families, and we were all attacked viciously. In a way, many of us died last Friday. Why? Because it could happen to each and every one of us. And if nothing changes and quickly, it will.
Second, let me voice my disgust, shock, and yes, fear. I am going through the realization that we live in a country with law and order, with no respect, with not a lot of hope. If a person can meet his death trying to protect his family in the most fundamental way, then we live in the jungle. And in the jungle, a different set of rules apply. In the jungle, in order to survive, you need to have sharper and longer teeth, larger claws, and you should be able to run. Run like hell.
Back to the police.
The police in Israel knows one song. It sings the song all the time, without deviation. Lyrics and tune are identical every year. The lead singer changes, but the song remains the same. Budget. The police’s song is about budget. “If”, they sing, “we had more budget, we could put more cops on the streets”. “If we had more budget, we could buy more police cruisers, protect more battered wives, lower the rates of car crashes. Budget is always missing, and when something really bad happens, the budget is always there to point to. And I say bull.
Lets take traffic police for example, or the armed forces of the Ministry of Finance. Their job, as opposed to what most people think, is not to make sure that drivers comply with traffic laws. Their job is to collect easy money for the police. The traffic police set radars along the expressways, where traffic conditions are near perfect, where the speed limit is artificial at best, and this is where they get you. However, if they had two unmarked police cars driving back and forth on the expressways, citing offenders on the spot, it could create awareness. Drivers may get the impression that someone is watching and paying attention. Overhead cameras on major highways are another (cheaper) way to do the exact same. And please don’t irritate the hell out of me with privacy bullshit. Nobody’s privacy is more important than road safety. In other words, try to explain to a widow, that her husband died in a car crash because we were concerned about privacy.
Lets take alcohol as another example. People who drink are much more likely to be engaged in criminal activity . We must choose. Fun over car crashes and dead people all around? Freedom of drinking over the right to live? People who want to drink themselves to oblivion, should do so in the privacy of their home or in a club. Following the alcohol binge, they should be hauled home at their own expense (but certainly not at their own hands). The streets should be alcohol free. Think about it: we fought for smoke free environment – so we can breathe freely. We should fight for alcohol free environment – so we can live to see tomorrow.
And empower parents too. Parents and teachers are already stripped of all instruments to educate and discipline. That must change and very quickly. A parent MUST have the instruments for preventing their children from associating with bad company, for engaging in criminal activity. Educators must be able to have some disciplinary instruments. Otherwise, the next thing we know will be chaos. We’re almost there.
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