The Art of Israeli Apathy
Israelis’ indifference to outside judgment is not arrogance. It is something much more interesting.
Please consider supporting our mission to help everyone better understand and become smarter about the Jewish world. A gift of any amount helps keep our platform free of advertising and accessible to all.
You can also listen to the podcast version of this essay on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, YouTube, and Spotify.
The most opinionated person in Israel is the average Israeli — armed with a lifetime of stories, an unwavering sense of national identity, and views on just about everything.
Of course, most of you know the joke: Two Jews, three opinions. Sometimes even four.
Israelis will argue and scream at each other for minutes on end. They also value questioning as a form of respect and a way to show engagement. In a country with so many opinions per capita, even the most intense conversations usually end with a hug, a laugh, and even invitations to an upcoming Shabbat dinner.
On buses and in other public venues, strangers are not only welcome to eavesdrop on hot-topic conversations; they are encouraged to participate in the dialogue. These debates may be fiery, but they also cultivate a national character of open communication, genuine camaraderie, and intellectual curiosity.
And Israeli voter turnout is exceptionally high; in November 2022 (the last national election), 70.6 percent of eligible voters cast their votes. Comparatively, In their country’s last national elections, 62.8 percent of eligible voters went to the polls in the United States, 60 percent in the United Kingdom, 58.3 percent in Italy, 55.8 percent in Japan, 55.4 percent in Canada, and 47.3 percent in South Africa.
And Israelis do not just vote for a handful of political parties; currently, 13 parties are represented in the Knesset (the Israeli legislature) and more than 40 others exist. In the country’s 76-year history, more than 100 parties have been represented in the Knesset.
I noticed something interesting in Israeli society when the Israel-Hamas war broke out on October 7th: Virtually every Israeli thinks they know better than our country’s prime minister and the IDF chief of staff.
When you get into a taxi in Israel, the driver will give you a breakdown of precisely how he would pursue the operations in Gaza and southern Lebanon. At Shabbat lunches, Israelis ferociously debate what they would do differently if they were in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s seat.
Conversely, growing up in the United States, I do not remember adults sitting around the table and debating how the U.S. should respond to 9/11 or dissecting America’s war strategies in Iraq and Afghanistan, for example.
Part of what drives the Israeli voice is the country’s unique place in the world. Israelis are acutely aware of their surroundings, both geographically and geopolitically. Living in a tiny nation that has experienced its oversized share of challenges, many Israelis feel compelled to be informed, to take a stance, and to keep a watchful eye on unfolding events.
The frequent debates and disagreements are integral to Israeli society and ultimately serve as a crucible for shaping ideas, policies, and social norms. It is an environment where people are both respected and expected to hold our ground, a national marker that is as much a part of Israeli identity as IDF service, backgammon, and beach paddle ball (matkot in Hebrew).
At a glance, the average Israeli’s opinionated nature might seem confrontational. But peel back a few layers and you will find a depth and thoughtfulness underlying that outward intensity. The fiery exchange of ideas is more than an exchange of words; it is a collective forging of identity and direction.
This collective awareness fuels a thirst for knowledge and drives people to seek out and absorb perspectives that help them understand the intricacies of a region in flux. The result is a society where most everyone, from taxi drivers to tech entrepreneurs, engages in the issues shaping their world.
What’s more, the average Israeli does not just engage with their family, friends, and neighbors; they engage with the world. After completing compulsory army service, many Israelis do an international trip spanning three to 12 months in places like South America, India, and Southeast Asia.
For such a small country, Israel has a disproportionate presence in areas like technology, culture, and science, and the average citizen often feels compelled to speak up about it. Israelis have a way of calling out double standards and shining a light on inconsistencies, even if doing so ruffles a few feathers.
And while the popular image may be of a confrontational and opinionated Israeli, there is also a sense of pragmatism and open-mindedness. Many Israelis are well-traveled, exposed to global ideas, and often open to listening and learning from others. It is this combination of fiery spirit and an openness to new ideas that gives the average Israeli their distinct character.
As the world experiences tumultuous shifts in balance — evident in major power competition, after-effects of the pandemic, climate crises, inflation, global terror, and sociopolitical polarization — Israel regularly contributes in unique and outsized ways to addressing these challenges.
Through social exchanges, both heated and casual, Israelis also engage in the kind of dynamic democracy that reflects their values and aspirations. If democracy is, as Winston Churchill once put it, “the worst form of government except for all the others,” Israel is a prime example of why.
Addressing a joint session of U.S. Congress in July 2023, Israeli President Isaac Herzog put it this way:
“When the State of Israel was established in 1948, the land which the Almighty promised to Abraham, to which Moses lead the Israelites, the land of the Bible, of milk and honey, evolved into an exquisite land of democracy.”
“Against all odds, the Jewish people returned home and built a national home, which became a beautiful Israeli democracy, a mosaic of Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze and Circassians, secular, traditional and orthodox, of all denominations, and all possible views and lifestyles.”
“A land which welcomed the ingathering of exiles from one hundred different countries. A land which became the Startup Nation — a bustling hub of innovation and creativity, social action and intellectual discovery, spiritual awakening and business ventures, scientific ingenuity and lifesaving medical breakthroughs.”
However, there is a second side to this coin: the Israeli concept of being a freier (Hebrew for “sucker” or “loser”).
Like I was taught almost immediately after I moved to Israel in 2013, the worst thing in Israel is to be a freier. Israelis are not afraid of or put off by criticisms, including some expressed by people in countries known to be Israel’s greatest allies.
But criticisms of Israel and Israelis must not cross the line into negation of the State of Israel’s right to exist. Questioning the Jewish People’s right to self-determination and micromanaging how it should defend itself is not legitimate diplomacy; it is antisemitism (i.e. a double standard). Vilifying and attacking Jews, whether in Israel or anywhere across the world, is not free speech; it is antisemitism. And Israelis have zero appetite for antisemitism.
Since the Hamas-led massacres and kidnappings on October 7th, Israel has faced an avalanche of mostly unfounded and overly exaggerated criticisms from the so-called “international community.” Baseless claims of genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes, and more utter nonsense.
How do wildly opinionated Israelis view these allegations?
To understand what Israelis think about international approval of the current war, the Institute for Liberty and Responsibility at Reichman University in Israel conducted a poll which showed that Israelis seem wholly or partly dismissive of international opinions. This is because — and I say this in the most respectful tone — Israelis do not really care what the world thinks.
Don’t get me wrong; Israelis are willing to listen and contemplate rational commentary. But more often than not, people do not offer Israel rational commentary. They spew double standards, heavily biased viewpoints, misinformed pretenses, and blood libels.
While other nations might fret over international reputations and delicate diplomacy, Israelis have grown used to living in the proverbial hot seat. The result? A brand of confidence that borders on legendary indifference to the world’s approval.
It is not that Israelis deliberately try to offend; it is simply that honesty takes precedence over politeness. A lot of people interpret this as aggressive or arrogant, but — for Israelis — it is a matter of life and death. If Israelis accommodated these double standards, heavily biased viewpoints, misinformed pretenses, and blood libels, they would be ceding ground to forces actively seeking to eliminate them.
Israelis understand that politeness, when it obscures security, can be perilous. When critics accuse Israel of offenses that are overdramatized or outright fabricated, they undermine Israel’s ability to protect itself. For Israel, honesty and resolve are essential defenses, not only against external foes but also against the constant barrage of misinformation and bias that threaten to erode its sovereign standing.
In this sense, Israel’s approach is not about offending others but about survival and dignity. The stakes are too high for ambiguity or soft words that might appease but ultimately compromise security. Hence why Israelis often adopt a stance that may seem uncompromising or even harsh to the outside world.
Israel’s indifference to public opinion could also be described as a kind of national resilience. After all, this is a country that has faced existential threats, hostile neighbors, and endless scrutiny from the international community going on eight decades. The Israeli public is constantly reminded that our mere existence is controversial to some. Over time, this has created a “tough skin” culture where external judgments do not penetrate that deeply.
This pragmatism extends to Israel’s self-image on the world stage. Israelis might be the subjects of countless discussions, but we are far more interested in protecting ourselves than in how we are perceived.
Why? Because Israelis know that only we have to live mere kilometers from jihadist terrorism hotbeds in Gaza, the West Bank, and southern Lebanon; only we have to raise our children under the constant threat of jihadist terrorism; and only we are disparaged for “living on stolen land” by people literally living on stolen land.
In the end, Israelis’ apathy to outside judgment is not arrogance — it is something much more interesting. It is a sense of self that comes from the complex interplay of history, survival, and cultural resilience. It is the freedom to be who we are without waiting for approval or applause. In a world obsessed with validation, Israelis are content to move to our own beat regardless of what anyone else thinks.
We're not all Jew haters 👋
(from a gentile)
I love this article. Thank you so much for articulating this 😎