ABSTRACT
Since the end of the 1980s Israel appears to have begun a fundamental transformation. From a militarized economy characterized by large government deficits, heavy dependency on the United States and intense stagflation there is also now a decisive move toward peace and regional integration, coupled with continued economic growth and declining military spending. These developments come amidst a deep ideological and cultural change which sanctions the centrist/liberal world-view of the Labour and Meretz parties. Increasingly, there are calls not only for a more open foreign policy but for an entirely different regime based on political democratization and economic liberalization. The emphasis is on small government, sound finance, and market reform; the acceptance of laissez-faire brings lower income taxes, smaller fiscal deficits, scaled-down social services, and a heightened process of privatization. The Zionist-collectivist ethos seems finally to have given way to the universal culture of business enterprise.
