I heard on the successful podcast of Prof. Russ Roberts, now president of the Shalem Center in Jerusalem, about the vampire paradox.
When we talk about making an economic decision, we see the decision before and after it differently. In popular fantasy literature, when a mortal encounters a vampire, he is frightened. Humans try to kill the vampires, and do everything in their power to escape them or kill them. But when humans get bitten and become vampires themselves, they see life differently, because being a vampire means being rich, possessing supernatural powers and immortality.
In the coming weeks, the Light Rail's Red Line is expected to start operating, and although it is only 24 km, it will serve about 70 million trips a year, a number similar to the annual number of trips of all lines on Israel Railways combined. This is GameRanger transportation in Israel.
And yet, when it comes to the light rail, we are deep in the vampire paradox – like fantasy books, the discourse is led by a combination of ridicule and fear. The mockery of the light rail stems from fear of difference, but it is also the result of political and economic interests.
Before the Red Line excavation work began in 2015, news broadcasts, newspapers and websites told us that the excavations would cause hundreds of millions of rats to rise above the surface and move into people's homes along the route. For several months, from interviews with rat experts to panicked Tel Avivians, there was only one thing talked about: rats. Of course, the rats didn't come, but the detractors and spreaders of lies cut their coupon.
Since then, hundreds of articles have been written and hundreds of items have been photographed about the light rail in Tel Aviv, almost all of them with a mocking tone.
It's not that there wasn't room for criticism of the many delays in the project or the budget overruns, but it is important to separate the legitimate criticism from the poisonous atmosphere that prevailed around this project. The delays in recent months, for example, have been discussed in the public discourse in a particularly toxic manner, even though they stemmed from essential safety work and approvals from the world's leading engineering companies. Some hinted that Transportation Minister Miri Regev was delaying the train specifically so that Huldai would not be able to cut a coupon before the municipal elections.
This poisonous atmosphere comes at a heavy price. When the train is operational, and after the childhood illnesses are over, Tel Aviv residents will live in a new city, with a slightly faster and more reliable public transportation, and with a higher quality of life. No one will remember the ridicule and poison, just as vampires don't remember ever being frightened humans themselves.
But if we do not remember the poison - why is it important? It is important because it distorts our future judgment. Toxic ridicule causes us to make the wrong decisions, or to reject decisions that are right.
How much have they ridiculed over the past decade for the construction of the new ports? Or the train line to Jerusalem? How many mocked Route 6 or Terminal 3 at Ben Gurion Airport two decades ago? Today these are infrastructures that we cannot do without. After hundreds of billions of shekels in profit for the Israeli economy, does anyone today even dream of turning back the clock on gas?
Where are the people who jumped on bulldozers on Route 6, or the anti-gas protesters, or the opponents of electrification on the train? They continue to mock the next infrastructure project and rake in political capital at the ballot box or on television. At this time, the Israeli public continues to suffer billions in damages in the form of delays in infrastructure projects and decision-making.
Much of Israel's infrastructure deficit is the fault of irresponsible journalists and politicians trying to rake in political capital. They create a toxic atmosphere around the infrastructure discussions. It is our duty to shift the infrastructural discourse back to substantive levels. We will all benefit from this. Pleasant ride.
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