There is an editorial piece in the Jpost today written by someone who is now moving back to the US, after giving up on living in Israel. I feel badly that his absorption didn’t go well, and that he feels the need to leave Israel, but I question the newsworthiness of this op-ed. After all, almost 20,000 new immigrants from North America have settled in Israel since he came, and the overwhelming majority of them are doing fine. Why not print an editorial about that?

His article is full of excuses. ” We’re lucky if there’s even one other English speaker in ulpan, making it hard to study and practice.” He wasn’t provided the tools to learn Hebrew, get a job…etc. no question that we live in an society that demands instant gratification, but give me a break. I never took classes to learn Hebrew. You learn a foreign language by immersing yourself in it. Not by some government sponsored course.  I cleaned toilets in order to make enough money to pay the rent, and sometimes I took a job outside my realm of expertise in order to survive. I think that my story is very common for people who have come to live in Israel.

At the end of his article, he takes a pot-shot at Nefesh B’Nefesh, the organization that has revolutionized the entire Aliyah( immigration) process. If NBN is guilty of anything it’s that they have made it so easy to move to Israel, that many olim no longer get the full ‘Israeli’ experience. this is hardly a problem. To say that because of NBN less secular Jews will move to Israel, is not factually based. If secular Jews make up 40-50% of all new western immigrants, and immigration from North America is at record levels, than that means thousands and thousands of secular Jews are moving to Israel, out of choice, and also choosing to stay.

To the author, my deepest regrets that your absorption didn’t go the way you wished. To the Jpost, how about sticking to articles that have a bit more relevance to the general population. To potential western Olim, Israel is a great place to live!

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We all have seen the headlines: “The easy way to make millions”, or “the quick way to instant wealth”, we are constantly being bombarded with advertisements promising us the world without having to do any work.

Instant Gratification

In today’s western society we are constantly having the notion of instant gratification being reinforced. If it’s our increasing dependence on fast food, to the notion of getting rich quick, we have lost the virtue of patience. Last week I met with someone, who wanted to open an account, and he said that he wanted to only invest, if I could “guarantee” that he will double his money in 3 years. I told him that no responsible professional advisor would ever make such a guarantee, and he laughed and said that he has already spoken to three other advisors, and they said, “ no problem. We can double your money in three years.”

Buyer Beware

The local media is filled with advertisements pitching various real estate opportunities both in Israel and abroad. They often make very seductive claims, of minimal investment and returns over 200% for 3 years, or a “guarantee” of such and such a return. How does one know if this is legitimate or not. Rule number one: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Rule number two: read the fine print. Often times the small print on the bottom of the advertisement, makes it very clear that the “Guarantee” comes with many strings attached, and in fact there is a reasonable chance that you can indeed lose money. Rule number three; Ask detailed questions. Don’t let the salesman off the hook. Ask pointed and specific questions to get a better understanding of the investment. Ask about the risks. If the answer is,” there are no risks,” or lip service is paid to explaining the risks, there is a good chance that you are not getting the full information about the investment, and you should think twice about investing.

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