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Wildfire is a wide-ranging, inter-disciplinary study of the "other side" of Israeli public life. Because the governmental service systems work poorly, and political protest has proved to be largely ineffective, the Israeli public has begun to take matters into their own hands, in effect creating numerous "alternative" service systems in almost all spheres of life.
Lehman-Wilzig describes this phenomenon and analyzes the impact of the most important alternative systems: illegal settlement activity, a huge underground economy, pirate cable TV stations, "gray" education, Black medicine, anti-religious as well as anti-secular activity, and a growing demand for electoral reform and constitutionalization of the Israeli polity.
"This book is extremely provocative, very clearly written, and well-structured. I found it interesting and, in places, fascinating. The topic is extremely important for the macro-understanding of the Israeli society, especially within the context of changes occurring since 1967." — Ilan Peleg, Lafayette College
"I like the fact that the author addresses 'real' problems in society, issues of the media, education, labor, and electoral reform for example. I believe that this book manifests a thorough understanding of some of the very subtle characteristics of the Israeli social/economic/political systems, and shows a clear insight into the nature of the fundamental problems in Israeli society, how the problems developed, and where the solutions to those problems may lie.The author's style of writing is clear and scholarly, yet it is also quite captivating." — Gregory Mahler, University of Mississippi
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part I: Background
1. The Spark: Zionism, Socialism, and Governmental Paternalism
2. Rotting Timbers: The Decay of the Establishment
3. Brushfires: Early Grassroots Awakenings
Part II: Issues
4. National Security: Settling Scores
5. Economy: Blue and Black
6. Communications: The Mess Media Revolt
7. Health: A Hemorrhaging System
8. Education: School Is Out
9. Religion and State: Holy Wars
10. Constitution-Making: Founding Sons
Part III: Conclusions
11. Potential Grassroots Fires
12. Conflagration? Fireproofing the System
13. Loyalty, Voice, and Vex It: A Theory of Alter-Politics
14. Between Past and-Future: Israel's Grassroots Revolts in Historical Cross-Comparative Perspective
Bibliography
Index