What the hell is going on with Netanyahu? - opinion
Columnist Ben Caspit excoriates Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposal for a 'bypass economy' or 'blockchain economy,' calling it 'insanity' that would crash the stock market, collapse high-tech, and lead to sanctions like those on Iran and North Korea. He contrasts this with Netanyahu's past role in saving Israel's economy.
Columnist Ben Caspit launches a blistering critique of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's recent proposal to shift Israel toward a 'bypass economy' or 'blockchain economy,' made in a Friday interview with a business news channel. Caspit argues the idea is 'insanity' and would crash the stock market, collapse the high-tech sector, and lead to international sanctions similar to those on Iran and North Korea. He contrasts Netanyahu's current stance with his past role in saving Israel's economy through privatization in the 1990s. Caspit warns that Israelis would lose pensions, savings, and the ability to travel abroad, and that entrepreneurs and investors would flee. He attributes potential US sanctions not to the war in Gaza but to Netanyahu's coalition partners Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, and to unchecked Jewish rioters in Judea and Samaria. The piece calls for a return to 'sanity' and democracy, framing the situation as reversible.