Although the Israel Air Force has not yet received the advanced F-35 stealth combat aircraft from the U.S. yet, it seems that the prime minister and opposition leader have already taken it for a test flight. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz succeeded in flying under all possible radars, carrying out a brilliant political trick, which will undoubtedly be taught in political science schools. Just when we were sure we had seen everything in Israeli politics, at 1:30 a.m. a 50-ton bomb was dropped on us. Once upon a time, we went to sleep with Peres and woke up with Netanyahu. This time, we went to sleep with Netanyahu and woke up with Netanyahu and Mofaz. If, as they say, the whole world is a stage, we can say that the entire country became an active participant in a play that involved a society thinking it was heading towards elections, and MKs who stayed up all night in the Knesset plenum to vote on the issue of the resignation of the government. Politically speaking, this was nothing less than a perfect move. But what this says about the public virtues of our leaders and the trust they arouse in us is a different story. The public will be the judge at the elections in late 2013. Netanyahu is the big winner. He purchased a party at the bargain price of only one penny, and Mofaz was saved from a painful and humiliating political defeat. Even Defense Minister Ehud Barak, the ever-loyal partner, came out of this on top. His tiny party is represented by four ministers in the government, while Kadima, the largest party in the Knesset with 28 mandates, only received one ministerial position that of a minister without portfolio. Speaking about winners, Labor party Chairwoman Shelly Yachimovich also gained from this political ploy. Her voice will be heard everywhere now just as Netanyahu's voice was heard when he served as opposition leader, and she may even surprise us in the 19th Knesset. Returning to aircraft now, Yair Lapid, head of the new Yesh Atid ("There is a Future") party, has just taken off and has already been forced to make an emergency landing. It is very fortunate for us that at any given moment, Israel faces a large list of challenges in all spheres. Those very challenges, at any given moment, justify everything, including toppling the government, expanding the government, elections, peace treaties, cancellation of peace treaties, and who knows what else. As it is said: "This is not the time to focus on one thing, but ..." What began just two days ago as the finale of a movie, turned out to be preparation for the sequel. Whoever fell asleep in the theater before the credits appeared on the screen missed the surprise and didn't understand the ending. Was it a good ending? Only time will tell.
