by Boaz Arad
The "problem," especially for those touting these statistics in a disproportionate manner, is that the situation is different, and poverty -- objectively measured by nutrition levels, consumption of goods and services, the quality of education, health care, etc. -- has, in fact, decreased.
There is never a
perfect time to release a national poverty report, but we still find
ourselves subjected to a series of reports based on questionable data,
unreliable individuals, misleading headlines, and populist campaigns,
all of which are trying to convince the public that Israel is on the
verge of plunging into an economic abyss.
The "problem,"
especially for those touting these statistics in a disproportionate
manner, is that the situation is different, and poverty -- objectively
measured by nutrition levels, consumption of goods and services, the
quality of education, health care, etc. -- has, in fact, decreased.
Paradoxically, misinformation on this issue harms primarily those who
truly suffer from poverty.
Ahead of Passover this
past year, the State Comptroller's Office released a grave report, based
on a phone survey conducted by the National Insurance Institute, which
found that the number of people going hungry in Israel was on the rise,
and that the middle class was on the verge of collapse. A report by the
Taub Center for Israel Studies, based on Central Bureau of Statistics
data from 2011, echoed the findings; and perhaps the most manipulative
report, based on subjective sentiments expressed by those polled and
only a few solid facts, was released Monday by the nongovernmental
organization Latet.
The 2011 CBS report
clearly indicated that the average family's income was lower than its
expenses. The reason for that was simple and rooted in a methodological
error -- people rarely reveal their true income to pollsters, and they
usually state it is lower than it actually is. This is especially true
for the lower socio-economic echelons, where people often earn money off
the books. Data collected on income is harder to substantiate than data
on expenses, which can be more easily discerned.
This is the hollow
foundation on which various research centers and interested parties
base statements suggesting the public's economic situation is
deteriorating. Since 2011, the CBS has been correcting its faulty data,
but that has not stopped various groups from using it as the basis for
their reports.
A recent report by the
Jerusalem Institute for Market Studies, a body which rarely receives any
media coverage, found that in terms of actual quality of life, the
poor's situation has been gradually improving. Between 2002 and 2008 the
real disposable income per capita in the lowest socio-economic decile
has increased by 8.2 percent, and home ownership rates have increased by
12.5 percent. Since the 1970s, Israel has experienced a gradual
increase in real wages, which represent the average Israeli's purchasing
power, which in turn sets the cost of living, and the situation has
only been improving.
The embellished reports
and gaudy headlines, which are trying to convince the public things are
getting worse, do little to help those who are truly in need. On the
contrary -- the constant demand for state interference, via budget
appropriations and raising taxes, for the sole purpose of being "more
social," only impedes the efforts made by those trying to better their
own situation and exit the cycle of poverty.
The situation in Israel
has improved over the past few decades, and it could improve further if
we free the market from the levies impeding imports, from unions whose
demands raise the prices of goods and services, and from regulatory
measures and redundant bureaucracy that contribute to the high cost of
living and impeded business development.
We would be able to
truly help the poor only when we free the market from these obstacles
and study reality for what it is -- not through a distorting lens that
seeks to serve foreign interests.
Boaz Arad is the director of the Ayn Rand Center Israel and co-founder of the Israeli Freedom Movement.
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=11011
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment