Reserved revelry of the times

January 7, 2009 - 7:28 AM by Harry · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Crime, General, History and Culture, Israeliness, Life, Travel, War, coexistence 

highway 443With a population of around 67,100 and proximity to both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Modiin is one of the larger suburbs of Israel. The city is located very close to the Green Line, though, making for some awkward situations for Israeli-Arab relations in the neighborhood – especially along the 443 highway, a major commuter thoroughfare. This isn’t a band of fringe settlers butting heads with nationalist Arab elements. Like the Kfar Saba-Qalqilya juxtaposition, it’s mainstream Israel in close quarters with villages.

Terror-resembling hate crimes have taken place in the area many times over the years (including these four incidents from 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003, during the Second Intifada). This past March, long before the wave of violence that kicked off last month, the high court defended arrangements which basically ban Palestinians from using the 443 in order to minimize its exposure to terror. And since the war in the south has escalated, there have been stoning incidents, Molotov cocktails and even a stabbing.

Anyone reading this blog knows that in times like these, life goes on. In general, incidents like the aforementioned don’t keep Israelis from going about their business, much like the way that regular shootings and muggings in American inner cities don’t keep Americans from going about theirs. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t take precautions. We do.

A friend of mine who lives close to me in Modiin attended a party last night in Jerusalem, and while he didn’t drink, so as to maximize safety on the journey home, his sister did. Quite inebriated, her head was spinning from the drive, which, as we all know, has the potential to cause vomiting. Cruising along the 443, my friend found himself in a bind. He did not want his car to get all vomited out, and he wanted to comply with his sister’s wishes for a break in the motion, but on the other hand, it was the middle of the night and he was within rock-throwing range of more than one Arab village.

So yes, in times like these, we keep working, living and even sometimes partying as if there were no conflict. But that doesn’t mean the conflict doesn’t color our judgment and impact our actions. And in case you were wondering, the way he tells it, my friend’s solution was to pull over for his sister to vomit out the car door for two minutes at a time, and only when she really really needed him to. She used a plastic bag the rest of the time.

Photo of the 443 highway courtesy Michaeli via Wiki Commons.

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Black cloud squeal hotline

October 15, 2008 - 3:42 PM by Harry · 1 Comment
Filed under: Environment, General, Life, Travel 

The Ayalon highway: emissions are abundantTel Aviv gridlock is a major problem. And while the bureaucrats duke it out over the best way to fix things, the smog continues to billow.

Our official emission standards are competitive with the world’s most strict governments, but when it comes to enforcement, well, the Police sometimes seem more interested in taking photos of people speeding.

Now the government is handing matters over to the community of drivers, according to a YNet report. Who better to rat out that truck with the rusted-out exhaust line, hopefully taking it off the road and adding years of lung life to everyone who would be in its wake, than the dude two lanes over in the Prius? According to the Environmental Protection ministry, the answer is a resounding “Nobody.”

The Environmental Protection and the Transport ministries have embarked on a joint initiative recently, forming the polluting vehicles hotline, meant to allow drivers to report any cars they think might be exceeding the legal vehicular emission limits.

According to the plan, introduced by Environment Minister Gideon Ezra, people who call the hotline would be able to do so anonymously, but they would have to give a complete description of the polluting car, such as make and model, color and license plate.

….MK Dov Khenin (Hadash), who heads the Knesset’s environmental lobby, welcomed the initiative, despite its innate difficulties: “We’re bound to see some false reports, but the overall effect of the system would be a positive one,” he said.

“The mere existence of such a hotline would prompt car owners to take better care of their vehicle, in order to avoid citations.”

So from now on, if you’re driving along the highway and you see a black cloud emanating from a fellow driver’s vehicle, you’ll only have yourself and the dude two lanes over in the Prius to blame.

Image courtesy EagleXDV from Flickr under a Creative Commons license.

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