Public housing in the periphery, not Tel Aviv

The protesters camping out in the middle of Tel Aviv's historic Rothschild Boulevard for the past week-and-a-half, demanding a solution to Israel's skyrocketing housing costs, are good citizens. They pay taxes. They serve in the military or perform national service. Some even do volunteer work within their communities. Yet these same people despair of ever realizing their economic dreams.

Israel's tycoons take its citizens' money and have the gall not to return it in full. There is a cute financial term they use to describe their actions -- a "creditors' haircut" -- but regardless of the euphemism, it is a violation of the public's trust. Yet no one dares to put these fat cats in their place, even though we know they wouldn't hesitate to punish any tent protestor who failed to pay back all his bank loans.

There is a committee for investigating market monopolies -- what are they so scared of? Some citizens who testified before the committee were given the impression that its members don't believe politicians will ever correct the injustices of our economy. This is enough to infuriate anyone who can't afford a decent apartment.

The political system is also culpable. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has proposed reforms, which, while subject to disagreement, are a definite improvement over the current market distortions. But why haven't these reforms been implemented? Netanyahu has been in power for over two years and yet his reforms remain hypothetical.

And while there is no sense crying over spilled milk, the government still has a chance to do something. If our leaders truly wish to remedy the housing situation via legislation, they cannot fail to maintain a majority in the Finance Committee. They cannot have a Likud Economic Affairs Committee chairman who closes the door on corrective legislation, as if it's not a pressing issue.

One-third of Israeli society carries the burden of the whole, without compensation or recompense. Ultra-Orthodox and Arab citizens have first dibs on public housing while those who serve their country receive no reward. Despite new proposals made every day -- most recently by MK Moshe (Mutz) Matalon -- this doesn't change. The whole system is static, ossified, infuriating.

Socialism is not the answer: Its drawbacks are well-known. But neither is the world view of Ayn Rand, author of "The Fountainhead," who espouses cruel capitalism based on a "winner-take-all" philosophy. The Likud has forgotten that it was cast in the mold of Ze'ev Jabotinsky, who preached the state's responsibility to provide its residents with five fundamental rights. One of these rights is ma'on

-- housing.

This level of government involvement doesn't mean that citizens should nurse till they are full from the government's teat. Knesset members on vacation can certainly be summoned back to work to quickly legislate the release of public lands at a symbolic price. And the government can propose amendments to building and taxation laws already on the books. Still, there is a limit to what the public has a right to demand, and the government would do well to stand by those limits.

Amid all the political hubbub, there have been calls for Netanyahu to sack Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz. Not only would that be too easy, it would be a mistake. Steinitz ultimately fulfills the role of minister of the Privy Seal [a ministerial role in the British cabinet, created during the reign of Edward III, with no official duties other than rubber-stamping decrees from the king] -- a necessary role, though unpopular.

Should the government build affordable housing in Tel Aviv? Under no circumstances. Here's an idea: Stick a compass in the ground next to the tents on Rothschild Boulevard and draw a very long radius. This would mark the area where no apartments will be built with public funds. Now, lengthen the circle's radius and diameter: The further away from the center, the greater the subsidies residents should receive.

Don't like the idea? Well, there's nothing stopping you from simply looking after yourself, then. The nation has no responsibility to provide you with prime real estate in the location of your choice.

The real goal should be to build in the country's hinterlands and invest in public transportation. Perhaps Highway 6, our cross-Israel toll highway, could be made free of charge for several years. Young citizens should be encouraged to be self-reliant. Those who make demands on themselves rather than placing them upon others are to be praised.

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