This is one of the most moral dilemmas that have surrounded quite a few citizens since the founding of the state, and precisely in Israel the 2022 version has become essential and one that occupies quite a few families who can make the move: should they stay or try to upgrade their lives in another country?
The late Yitzhak Rabin already called them "falls of nemush", the rest of the critics are sure that this is a non-Zionist act and a homeland they don't leave - no matter how expensive you are in the supermarket, but the economic reality, especially in the last year, and the cost of living that threatens to break more records, are leading more and more and more families for inevitable insight.
"We love the country very much, let no one have a doubt, but in three months we are moving to Los Angeles," declare the Hasson couple from Rishon Lezion with some hesitation.
The two parents, in their early 40s, and their three young children succumbed to the economic Sisyphean in the Holy Land and prefer the version of the Land of Unlimited Possibilities.
"It's true that we tried to get a foothold in the country," explains L., the father of the family, "but the cost of living here does not allow us to lead the life I want for myself and my children. Living here is impossible - from shopping, through the classes to the bills, it's simply impossible to survive We gave up on the apartment dream a long time ago, but the rental prices are also out of all proportion."
And why are you convinced that in the United States the story is different?
"Completely different. I have a brother who has lived there for 20 years, and I know through him how much simpler everything is and how much life is different there as long as you of course work hard and manage to generate a decent salary. In Israel money has no value, you start every month with a minus of thousands of shekels. In order to try to create a decent quality of life here, both spouses need to earn together at least NIS 30,000 a month."
Too expensive for us
Another family that decided in the last year to pack up their bags and adapt to a European flavor instead of the Middle Eastern accumulation situation is the Carney Marg family, who will move to Berlin immediately after the holidays - a one-way ticket, for those who were wondering.
Airplane (illustration), photo: GettyImages
"We decided to use my husband's European passport and try a new life in another country," explains Shani, the mother of the family.
"We have two small children, and I don't think it's possible to give them the best possible future here. I know what they say and all the criticism about Berlin and Germany, and it's not something we didn't think about, but we're in different times and I'm sure we can give ourselves a better life there.
return? Forget about it
"We have to put the cards on the table - the cost of living and what happened here in the last year just broke us. I'm not even talking about the complex security reality here. Every day something else gets more expensive, apartment prices are already a joke mixed with sadness. It's not destiny to live here." .
The cost of living and the uncertain future cause - not to say dictate - quite a few families to try to immigrate to another country.
But there are also families who have lived for many years abroad who fantasized about returning to their homeland and decided to shelve the dream due to the rampant prices here.
"We have been planning our return to Israel for several years, but we decided in the end to stay in Miami," says the Burns couple, who have been living in the United States for 15 years.
"The children are a little older and we wanted them to grow up in Israel, but when we see how complicated the situation is financially and how difficult it is to exist in Israel, we decided that it is not such a good idea. Here in the United States you can lead a lifestyle that in Israel is called a lifestyle of only the rich. We really don't feel like going back That's why they prefer to stay."
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