(Government Press Office)
Yediot Aharonot comments on the complimentary economic data published yesterday. "In the second quarter of this year, economic activity grew by about 5%, twice what the analysts and economists predicted. The economic expansion was balanced, led by growth in exports and investments, and not by budgetary flows. The author adds that "We must hope that the adjustments to the Central Bureau of Statistics' first assessments . . . will not spoil the party and reveal that the celebration was premature or exaggerated."
Ma'ariv argues that "Committees of inquiry chaired by judges know how to find guilty parties, but not how to improve performance." The author suggests that "There is another way: Without journalists; without photographers; only experts. Preferably people that know something about improving performance. No judges and no prosecutors."
Yisrael Hayom notes that "The claim being voiced recently that if we do not fulfill the compensation demands for natural gas according to the wishes of the tycoons, we will be forcing ourselves into dependency on Arab gas – borders on the ridiculous."
The Jerusalem Post calls to apply common sense at Ground Zero, and notes that "Cogent arguments for and against [building the mosque] can be made that balance the right to religious expression with the need to respect the memories of the victims of 9/11, and the feelings of their families and their loved ones." The editor feels that "There are signs that common sense will win out in the end," and adds: "As Obama correctly noted, Muslims have the right to build an Islamic center near Ground Zero. That does not necessarily mean it is the right thing to do."
Haaretz is concerned that "A new McCarthyism may be menacing Israel's academia," as demonstrated by an Institute for Zionist Strategies report entitled 'Post-Zionism and Academia,' which was distributed to university heads and senior lecturers. The editor notes that the report claims that there is a prestigious, influential academic elite that advocates radical leftist positions and has the goal of further delegitimizing Israeli intellectuals and undermining the freedom of expression, research and thought, and calls on Israeli academia to reject it out of hand.
[Sever Plocker, Ben-Dror Yemini and Hezi Sternlicht wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Ma'ariv and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]