Happy Birthday, Israel, by Israeli military historian and theorist Martin Van Creveld
On the 67th birthday of Israel, Martin Van Creveld explores the impressive gains Israel has made not only since its inception, but also since 1984, when the country was on the brink of bankruptcy.
The country has grown from 4.1 million inhabitants in 1984, to 8.2 million today. The post-2008 recession and anti-Semitism in many countries has led to increased immigration. The GDP, he notes, has increased markedly, and Israel has a 21st century workforce attracting top companies.
Van Creveld quotes American businessman and philanthropist Warren Buffett: “ ‘Israel has a disproportionate amount of brains and energy,’ said Buffett (who, putting his pocket where his mouth was, by spent some $ 2 billion buying some Israeli companies).”
Buffett is not the only one to recognize the strength of Israel: “300 leading international companies, including Facebook, Microsoft, IBM, Google, Apple, HP, Cisco, Motorola, Philipps, and Siemens either already have R&D centers in Israel or are building them now.”