Good News, Israel

Compliments of Anglo Raannana Real Estate

Quote for the Week

“We’re on a clear path to becoming one of the most competitive and advanced economies in the world.”

(Prime Minister Mr Binyamin Netanyahu on Israel’s being accepted to membership of the OECD and who can argue with him or for that matter, who would want to [see the first item below])

* The biggest single item of GN this week is the announcement that Israel has now officially [and that is the operative word] become a member of one of the world’s more exclusive clubs. The Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD) accepted Israel into its ranks, unanimously, on Monday. What does it all mean? We’ll let the Minister of Finance explain and we quote: “The significance of this is huge. It is the most respectable international club a small state like Israel can be accepted into. From what we know about other states, in the years following induction there is a rise of billions of dollars in foreign investments in the state.” And if that weren’t enough our PM, who is no slouch when it comes to economics, had this to say, quote:”We’re on a clear path to becoming one of the most competitive and advanced economies in the world.” Unquote. [See Quote for the Week above] We can’t wish for more than that.

* But we would like to share the following with you; Israel came through the recent economic rough patch [well we’d have to be honest here and say that it was more like a Tsunami] looking a lot healthier than most of the thirty one members of the OECD and that’s not all, we actually are healthier than most of them; we live longer than the OECD average, our population is younger, we have a lower infant mortality rate than such leading states as Canada, the US and the UK, we have more physicians than they do and we stand a better chance of surviving a heart attack than most and we certainly lead the field in the number of dentists practicing here.

* While running a forty kilometer marathon may not be everybody’s idea of keeping healthy, or good fun for that matter, there are thousands of Israelis who have joined the world-wide throng of long distance runners, lonely or not, and the Tel Aviv marathon that began as we write [Friday morning] gives the professionals and hordes of amateurs a chance to hone their pavement pounding skills. So what if half the main roads in the city have been blocked off, it’s all in a good, cause.

* Elbit Systems’ and we all know who they are, orders backlog rose to $5.25 billion at the end of March and three quarters of those orders are for export. Cash flow from operations rose to $64 million in the first quarter from $5.4 million in the corresponding quarter ‘09. That sort of orders backlog, not to mention the dramatic improvement in cash flow, is enough to put a smile on the face of any shareholder.

* Israel’s lead in high-tech has been around for a long time, we were pioneers in innovative techniques to generate alternative energy sources, we are right up front in water technology and we take pride of place with the best of them in developing ways of stemming the desertification tide. And just this week Israel dedicated centers at Bar Ilan and Ben Gurion Universities for the study and development of nanotechnology, the technology of the future. There will be 340 researchers, technicians, and graduate and doctoral students taking part in 38 multidisciplinary working groups at the Bar Ilan center, the bigger of the two which will incorporate teams of scientists from various fields including physics, chemistry and the life sciences. With this sort of head-start can leadership in the area be far behind?

* Shahar Pe’er, our young tennis star is showing no signs of slowing down. Advancing on Tuesday to the third round of the Madrid Masters. she beat world No. 7 Svetlana Kuznetsova on the way up registering her fifth win of the year over a top-10 player. She is showing all the signs of becoming a member of the top ten herself.

* And staying with sport and tennis, Israel’s wheelchair team won a silver medal last week at the world championships in Turkey, falling to the U.S. 2- 0 in the final. Israel’s finish puts it in the top group for the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. Remarkable people.

* President Peres held a Gala get-together at his official residence for representatives of Russian Jews who immigrated here from the Soviet Union and the FSU within the past few decades. There is no doubt that these immigrants changed Israel’s capabilities, and gave Israel a new edge that compensated for our lack of territory. They greatly enhanced Israel’s scientific and technological know-how, “turning tiny Israel into a great state.” Instead of being repressed and they certainly were, they became the proponents and advocates of freedom in their home countries. But what did these immigrants do for Israel? The answer is to be found in every corner of the Land. They strengthened Israel’s national security, demonstrating tremendous courage on the battlefield and there were those who, sadly, made the supreme sacrifice. They have shone in the classroom and upgraded the standards of education. Towns on the periphery began to flourish after their arrival because they contributed so much to theater, art, music, journalism and there is not a field of human endeavor where they are not numbered among the best. Their contribution to the State is immeasurable and they are richly deserving of the praise lavished upon them by our First Citizen.