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A cynical ethnic demon By Haaretz Editorial Tags: Shas, Tzipi Livni, Eli Yishai  If anyone had doubts that an election is approaching, Deputy Prime Minister Eli Yishai, the chairman of Shas, came along and fired the first shots. In a sophisticated bit of spin, he has accused associates of Kadima's head, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, of thwarting coalition negotiations between the two parties, claiming that they were "hypocritical, racist and arrogant," and that they had "released the ethnic demon from its bottle in an ugly way." Yishai knows what he is doing. During the course of the talks on the formation of a government, he conducted tough negotiations and was unwilling to compromise on either of two issues: the stipends for children and Jerusalem. He knew very well that Livni would not be able to concede on those two issues and that his insistence was liable to lead to the breakdown of the negotiations. The attack is part of a strategy that has been formulated by the heads of Shas over the past day, in their war on Kadima. The use of the racism charge in a time of elections is a tested means of igniting an old conflagration that has accompanied many election races and has inflicted damage on both Israeli politics and society. Yishai, who grew up in Shas as one of Aryeh Deri's close aides, learned from his teacher, and also from his spiritual leader, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, a thing or two about lighting dangerous fires of this sort. Advertisement Yishai is also an expert on racism. Shas arose as a protest movement against the crude discrimination experienced by many Orthodox and traditional Mizrahim - Jews with origins in the Muslim countries - in the Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox educational institutions. However, its success in establishing the Maayan religious educational network did not bring about the desired change, and the grave and insulting discrimination continues today with even greater force. The United Torah Judaism people do not even try to conceal their scorn for the Shas people. However, in contrast to what may go on in Ashkenazi educational institutions, the accusations of racism in politics are tiresomely threadbare. The political system in Israel has undergone a quiet and profound transformation, during the course of which people from the geographical and social periphery have taken up positions in the first rank of the decision-making system: Senior officers in the Israel Defense Forces have moved into local and central government, talented Knesset members have advanced into key positions and more. The bid for election to the position of prime minister by Labor MK Amir Peretz, a native of Morocco and a resident of Sderot, a man who grew up in the very same Labor Party that has with a certain amount of justice been accused of shunning Mizrahim, constituted a turning point. And when close associates of Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz tried, on the eve of the primary vote in Kadima, to revive the claim of ethnic discrimination, the failure of this experiment proved the extent to which the public is tired of the use of this weapon. Shas is not the only party that was accused of extortion. After all, Tzipi Livni rejected the demands of MKs Yaakov Litzman and Moshe Gafni and their colleagues from United Torah Judaism, and not one of them has complained of oppression and discrimination. Yishai is the only one with the chutzpah to try to gain points with the charge. "If someone who helps sick children is guilty of extortion, then I am guilty of extortion," he says, even though he knows full well that his sectoral demands are not necessarily helpful to children. Yishai's accusations are cynical and irresponsible. The person who took up the reins of an agitated and inciting party after Aryeh Deri's conviction, and who turned away the fanatical exhortations of former cabinet minister Shlomo Benizri, would do better to restore his standing as a balanced and responsible politician and not push his voters out of the consensus and society. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Damaging remarks Right-wing MK Lieberman says Egyptian president Mubarak can "go to hell." Joe on Israel Overnight media sensation says Obama presidency would spell "death of Israel."

Read & React Joe the Plumber: A vote for Obama is a vote for the death of Israel Responses: 415 L.A. Times defends decision not to release clip of Obama with Palestinian critic of Israel Responses: 124 Syria demands UN action against U.S. over raid Responses: 113 IDF soldiers protect Palestinian olive farmers from settlers Responses: 82 Aluf Benn: Americans must worry first about America, not Israel Responses: 56 Bradley Burston: Voting as a religious experience Responses: 8 More Headlines 00:45 Lieberman: Mubarak can 'go to hell'; Egypt responds: Lieberman is a racist 20:05 Biden, in Florida, stresses his, Obama's commitment to Israel 22:29 Iran's supreme leader: Hatred for U.S. runs deep 00:48 Netanyahu rebuffs Shas bid to control Education Ministry 00:52 U.S. may close Damascus embassy in wake of Syria strike 23:50 International summit on status of Israel-PA talks scheduled for next month 00:00 Wiesenthal Center gets green light to build museum on ancient Muslim cemetery 23:28 Kosher U.S. meatpacker fined $10m over labor law violations 17:18 Court approves right-wing march through the heart of one of Israel's largest Arab cities 20:26 Barak to officials: Take action against right-wing activists in West Bank 16:03 IDF troops kill Palestinian farmer, 68, near Jenin 10:51 Protest boat arrives in Gaza, despite Israel's vow to block it 14:22 Joe the Plumber: A vote for Obama is a vote for the death of Israel 10:52 4 Palestinians claim descent from Jews forced to convert Previous Editions Select Day 29 oct 28 oct 27 oct 26 oct 24 oct 23 oct 22 oct 21 oct 20 oct 19 oct 17 oct 16 oct

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