Despite the fateful period we are now experiencing, the Knesset still looks like a kindergarten. The Likud is torn between the fanatics who hijacked the party, the party members who want political appointments and the people who suddenly remembered their traditional alliance with the ultra orthodox. No love for Labor there, unless they come with the ultra orthodox instead of Shinui.

Shinui and the United Torah Judaism also played games last month. At first, Shinui didn’t want the UTJ in the coalition. Then Shinui reconciled, but then the UTJ suddenly didn’t want to sit with Shinui. However, the UTJ aren’t needed anyway if the Labor and Likud get their dissidents under control. Since the Likud, the Labor and Shinui have over 75 MKs together, I expect them to put up a government without Yaakov Litzman as a minister or the chairman of the finance committee. I would also expect Meretz-Yahad to adopt a more practical and moderate view and join in too, but that is not really necessary and probably not going to happen anyway.

After the Likud convention decided to forbid negotiation with the Labor, the chances for that unity government that is so needed and is the wish of the majority of the population are very slim. The Labor bureau also had no premise for negotiations. Although they didn’t dismantle the negotiations unit, they ended the negotiations themselves.

And so the little politicians continue their games and jiggles, while Israel keeps drowning in Gaza and the socio-economical situation gets worse and worse. It looks like Sharon and Peres, the veteran politicians, are the only ones who finally made the change from politicians to statesmen. However, doing so, they unfortunately given up several things, politicians’ stuff, that are a must for statesmen as well.