The Israel Test. George Gilder

       Foreword

      The State of Israel finds itself today in a situation that may best be described by paraphrasing Charles Dickens: It is the best of times and the worst of times.

      On the one hand, Israel’s economy is flourishing. As George Gilder writes in the pages of this valuable book, Israel represents one of the most extraordinary transformation stories in the history of economics. Just over sixty years old, with a population slightly over seven million, and located in a hostile region, Israel is home to more high-tech start-ups per capita than any other nation on earth and has surpassed the combined venture capital investment of France and Germany. In a decade, Israel went from being a nondescript industrial economy to one of the world’s leaders in research and technological creativity on a per capita basis. Several of Israel’s most prominent entrepreneurs responsible for this extraordinary success are profiled in these pages. Indeed, one cannot visit Israel without being struck by the economic, religious, and cultural vitality of its society.

      Israel’s internal security has never been better. Just a few years ago, Israelis were living in daily dread of suicide bombings and rocket attacks – part of a sustained terrorist campaign that was intended to break the country’s will. But Israel’s will did not break. Israelis not only weathered the terrorist storm but, with strength, determination, and resourcefulness, turned back their enemies’ murderous tide.

      On the other hand, Israel’s future is not secure. The shadow of a nuclear-armed Iran is creeping across the Middle East, while Teheran’s fanatical Islamist proxies, Hamas and Hezbollah, plot Israel’s destruction.

      Israel also faces a global chorus of condemnation that challenges both its right to defend itself against its enemies, and, by extension, the very legitimacy of its existence. Unfortunately, it is not necessary to go to Teheran to encounter these arguments. They can be heard in Europe and other parts of the so-called “civilized world,” including from detractors right here in the United States Too often, these views go unchallenged when they are expressed.

      In The Israel Test, George Gilder fights back, refuting the hateful lies and slanders that are all too frequently hurled at Israel. Gilder argues convincingly that Israel’s future is ultimately inseparable from the future of freedom and democracy everywhere. Israel embodies the ideals and principles that define the United States and our closest allies worldwide: the values of personal liberty and economic freedom, human rights and women’s rights, tolerance and pluralism.

      The Israel Test also rightly recognizes the special interest that the United States has in the survival and success of Israel. As Gilder reminds us, Israel’s future depends upon U.S. support and strength. We should stand with Israel, he argues, because it is both morally right and strategically smart. Israel is on the frontline of freedom against Islamist terrorism and the threat of rogue states with weapons of mass destruction. It is a beachhead of liberty in a region still sadly dominated by dictatorship. In this regard, “the Israel test” is also “the America test.”

      The case Gilder makes for Israel is not based on political, religious, or ethnic affiliation; it transcends partisan politics and personal identity. It recognizes that Israel’s enemies demonstrate their own weakness by holding a narrow and begrudging “zero-sum” view of the world where the creation of wealth always means something has been taken away from someone else. Gilder shows how, to the contrary, Israel’s growing prosperity will benefit the entire region in which it is located.

      It is in the very best American tradition to recognize that creativity enriches not only the creator, but his neighbors as well. Americans have long welcomed and encouraged the advancement of other people as an opportunity for our greater self-advancement. This is a generous, positive, affirmative worldview that is not only deeply American, and Israeli too, but a crucial ingredient in any culture that aspires to be free and prosperous.

      As Gilder understands, what is at stake when we speak of Israel’s future is more than just the survival of a small nation-state on the edge of the eastern Mediterranean. The threat against Israel is ultimately a threat against civilization itself.

      The Israel Test, therefore, represents more than just a defense of Israel. It is a defense of the ideas, interests and values that define who we are, and express everything we hope to be.

      SENATOR JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN