I just got a call telling me that my Israeli passport is ready.
I didn't know that I needed one until recently, when I made one of my rare family visits to Israel. Usually the family is over this way -- or at least in some mutually convienient location -- often enough that I don't need to bother going all the way there. On this visit I was advised on my exit that I was, in fact an Israeli citizen and had a passport in the past, 1973 to be precise.
I knew that my dad was originally an Israeli citizen, and apparently I had a passport myself for a while due to difficulties of traveling with him otherwise. Since I've been an adult and traveling myself, this has never been an issue and I've used my American passport with no problems.
But Israel has apparently upgraded their systems and identified me on a combination of name, birth date and place of birth. (Our TSA, apparently, still dreams of such capabilities.)
So, I proceeded to the Israeli consulate here in LA to deal with the paperwork, figuring it would be a major pain in the ass despite downloading all the necessary forms in advance from their website.
Turns out it was not so hard. I had to fill out a few extra forms to explain why I didn't serve in the military and was warned that getting those cleared could take two weeks. I also had to go back yesterday with a police report explaining that I had "lost" the 1973 passport that I never knew I had. I was once again told that it could take up to two weeks to get military clearance and have the passport issued.
I got a call this afternoon telling me the passport is ready. About 48 hours after dropping off the military forms, 24 hours after dropping off the applicaiton and "proof" of previous passport loss.
This, at a small, cramped consular office that is responsible for what is probably the fourth largest Israeli city in the world, after Tel-Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa.
And this, for a service that the US government can't perform for its own citizens in less than 12-16 weeks.
15 years ago Israel was a basketcase of ingrained, socialistic, self-serving and insular government. The thought that they could do anything well, let alone better than the US government would have been laughable. The thought that El-Al would have ever been one of my prefered carriers would have been ridiculous.
Yet today they do things better than the US government. I'd rather fly El-Al than any of the pathetic US airlines and most of the European ones. I won't even get into which airport I'd rather deal with security in. (Hint, Israel's is less onerous, while similtaneously much more effective.)
In all this, there is a glimmer of hope though. If Israel of 15-20 years ago could turn itself around this well, we probably can too. But we have to get over the hysterics and decide that it's both possible and necessary. Until then, even former third-world basketcases will continue to do a better job than we do.
-btc
Comments (5)
I've noticed that smaller nations excel in a lot of areas that the US falls short. My strongest theory is that citizens feel much more connected to their nation, and understand a direct correlation between their nation's interest and their own best interests.
Considering Israel's constant security issues, and that every citizen has done the compulsory 2 years of military duty, they have much better job candidates than the TSA could dream of.
(Ironically, I've got a post about the US passport debacle sitting in my saved files waiting for a clean-up.)
Posted by aspeth | June 28, 2007 3:35 PM
OT, but wanted to point you to a funny at EN last week. Someone said that I am "arrogant as fuck," to which I replied:
@3:19...It's already been said about me, and in much better ways. BelowTheCrowd's assessment is "I find beneath it the subtle yet unmistakable odor of Greenwich in the autumn oozing from your every pore..."
So as far as respect, I lean toward the folks who can parse a phrase like that. How's that for arrogant as fuck?
Posted by aspeth | June 28, 2007 3:41 PM
Aspeth,
A couple of things:
The point to the Israel story is that they've made a huge change in recent years. A couple of decades ago it might take years to get a residential phone installed by the (then) government controlled phone company. Israel was the world's leader in cellphone penetration for a reason: you just couldn't get anything else.
The security issue is more one of attitude, and always has been. They focus on security as a human problem, to be dealt with by humans, not as a systematic problems to be dealt with through rules and systems. The guy you talk to at the airport in Tel-Aviv is not worried so much about what you've got in your bag as he is about what and who you are. They're trained interviewers who spend all their time looking for liars and stressed out individuals.
And of course, they're hired from a completely different social and educational strata. "Security screener" is the best paying government job that does not require a college degree and most of the people doing it are college-bound eventually. What does the TSA pay?
Bottom line to me is that we're moving in the wrong direction: towards more bureaucracy, process and systems as our safeguards against human issues. They've gotten over that problem, and are increasingly doing what most successful companies are: focusing on well-trained and talented individuals who have some flexibility in what they do so that stuff can get done.
Of course, another part of this is that Israel has long ago discovered that trade (and thus travel) is its lifeblood. Making it as hassle-free as possible while still being secure is essential to them. So they got away from unnecessary and cumbursone rules regarding travel by their own citizens, and make it as easy for foreigners to get in and out as well. Their new airport infrastructure was designed precisely for that reason. Here, the standard line from the DHS about any inconvenience is "it's a price we have to pay..." Not a good position for the world's greatest debtor nation to be taking. Some people will eventually decide they're not really welcome and figure out ways to go elsewhere.
-btc
Posted by BelowTheCrowd![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.belowthecrowd.com/nav-commenters.gif)
|
June 28, 2007 4:18 PM
As to your second comment, I thank you for appreciating the tone of my post. Don't think I was specifically thinking of arrogance there, but rather an overall attitude, of which arrogance is only one discernable element.
Let it just say that it takes one to know one, though Greenwich was not the town in question. We were a bit up the coast, where Jews and other weird types were more socially acceptable. :)
-btc
Posted by BelowTheCrowd![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.belowthecrowd.com/nav-commenters.gif)
|
June 28, 2007 4:22 PM
The US attitude toward bureaucracy and those inclined toward civil servant jobs are entirely different. Here, the TSA folks are most likely rejects from the postal service and DMV.
I think it stems from 'quantity vs quality' in this case, w/gov't officials saying "Well, we installed x hundred thousand TSA agents to make things safer." Which is a joke, of course. Most of the TSA employees I've seen look like the graduating class of the local GED certification center.
You make some great points about Israel's complete opposite approach to the situation. With any luck, someone with half a brain in the State Dept is taking cues and actively asking for assistance in this area.
Posted by aspeth | June 28, 2007 9:05 PM