opinion
Thane Rosenbaum
I t was just Presidents Day in America, which,
for reasons having perhaps something to
do with slumbering patriotism, has long
been associated with mattress sales. This year,
however, there’s a real fear that America’s
friend Israel is in danger of putting its democ-
racy to bed.

That’s right: Israel, the only democracy in
the Middle East — or anywhere near that
region, for that matter — is undergoing a
constitutional crisis. The country has been
democratic since its inception, commencing
with a Declaration of Independence the day before five
Arab armies declared war against the fledgling Jewish
state. America has a similar origin story — with 13
colonies taking on the British Empire soon after July 4.

When these allies of the Enlightenment — America and
Israel — speak of shared values, that’s what they mean.

This week, Americans may be reclining, but Israelis
will be standing upright in mass protest. The new
coalition government, the most conservative in Israel’s
history on a range of issues, is moving against its
own Supreme Court with a panoply of reforms that
opponents believe would undermine the separation of
powers and the principle of judicial review.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Israel is still a
very young country, nearly 75 years old, and very much
a free society in an increasingly less democratic world.

In 2012, there were 42 liberal democracies. Today, there
are but 34. Poland, Turkey, Hungary and Russia are
clearly now off the board, precisely because, among
other features of authoritarian rule, none possess the
checks and balances of independent judiciaries.

Many Israelis see the overhaul of their Supreme
Court as an ominous sign that they are next. It is
an especially sensitive subject. Maintaining Israel’s
democratic character is a numeric challenge in a nation
that intends to remain a Jewish state. Israeli Arabs
already comprise 20% of the population. There are
other minorities in Israel. With declining Jewish birth-
rates and loud whispers within the new government of
annexing the West Bank and absorbing its Palestinian
population, the Jewish majority will dissipate further. A
majority-rule voting public could one day take the Star
of David out of the Israeli flag.

Suddenly, the conflict with the Palestinians is being
subordinated to an internal conflict among Israelis
about the contours of their democratic governance.

In principle, the Knesset really should address serious
16 FEBRUARY 23, 2023 | JEWISH EXPONENT
problems with its judiciary that are long overdue. There
is no appellate court other than the Supreme Court in
Israel. That means that its 15 justices hear everything
— the appellate review of trial court decisions, the inter-
pretation of its Basic Laws and the legality of military
operations, security fence and building of settlements.

There is probably no more overburdened high court, or
one with a broader portfolio, on the planet.

Moreover, unlike the American judicial system, Israel
largely places the responsibility of selecting judges
in the hands of lawyers — not voters, legislators, the
cabinet, prime minister or president. Perhaps that’s too
much independence, which is why the government is
seeking more control over judicial appointments. And
the Israeli Supreme Court, unlike most liberal democ-
racies, exercises almost unchecked authority in inval-
idating legislation. That’s why the new government’s
overhaul proposal includes an override that would
enable lawmakers to preserve legislation that the court
may have just ruled to be unconstitutional.

Speaking of the constitution: Israel does not actually
have one. It may be a constitutional democracy, but it’s
one of three countries (England and New Zealand are
the others) that functions without a written constitution.

Israelis just never got around to drafting one. They
have Basic Laws (think of them as an evolving Bill
of Rights), which they have enlarged and amended
repeatedly. The expectation was that eventually they
would all become incorporated into an actual Israeli
constitution. Days and years passed, along with wars
against its Arab neighbors, the terrorism of Palestinians,
startups in high- and biotech, the blooming of barren
land and desalinating of the Mediterranean Sea.

Honestly, who had the time for a constitutional
convention? America had its constitutional drafters in James
Madison, Alexander Hamilton and The Federalist Papers.

Israel became better known for its Mossad and
Nobel Prizes. Being surrounded by two major
oceans gave America room to operate — to
develop a body of law with oversight from three
distinct branches of government.

Israel has never had that geographic luxury,
is not set up for such governmental interplay
and has never known a single day of peace.

It has always been a magnificent work in
progress, blessed with the agility of a people
who know how to improvise and mobilize in a
hurry. Like the ancient Hebrews baking bread
without yeast in the desert, Israel inherited
that same resourcefulness, making do with all
deficits with deftness and calm.

All that enterprise came with consequences, however.

Some things simply got left undone. Israel developed
a shadow constitution on the fly and without a name. It
borrowed elements from other democracies — England,
Norway, France and Canada — and even some features
from the Ottoman Empire and Bahrain. Yet, it even forgot
to include freedom of speech as a Basic Law.

Perhaps it’s now time for Israel to finally anoint its
Basic Laws with constitutional status. And that same
constitution should clarify the powers and limitations of
the Supreme Court. Judicial review and independence
must be respected, but the Court can’t hold absolute
veto power over the actions of the government and
legislation of the Knesset.

Americans who were displeased with the Supreme
Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade knew that
individual states were free to enact a woman’s right
to choose, the House and Senate could codify a
federal right to an abortion and the president could
issue an Executive Order doing the same. That’s what
Separation of Powers means in practice, and precisely
what Israel lacks.

Democracies are messy. But Israel has never shied
away from conflict. It might just emerge stronger from
this constitutional crisis. Actually, it must. As a beacon
of freedom, the light must stay on. Israel knows that its
neighbors are despots and theocrats, and that minori-
ties, women and homosexuals around the region all
wish they lived in Tel Aviv. That has everything to do
with the freedoms that are enjoyed in and the moral
authority bestowed on a liberal democracy. ■
Thane Rosenbaum is a novelist, essayist, law professor
and distinguished university professor at Touro
University, where he directs the Forum on Life, Culture
& Society. He is the legal analyst for CBS News Radio.

This was originally published by Jewish Journal.

Rawpixel.com / AdobeStock
Israel’s Shadowy Constitution



healthy living
F TAY-SACHS
REE ISRAELI RESEARCHERS:
Aerobic Activity Can
Reduce Risk of Metastatic
Cancer by 72%
JE Staff
A Courtesy of Tel Aviv University
new study at Tel Aviv University
found that aerobic exercise can
reduce the risk of metastatic cancer
by 72%. According to the researchers,
intense aerobic exercise increases the
glucose (sugar) consumption of internal
organs, thereby reducing the availability
of energy to the tumor.

The study was led by researchers
from TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine:
Professor Carmit Levy from the
Department of Human Genetics and
Biochemistry and Dr. Yftach Gepner
from the School of Public Health and the
Sylvan Adams Sports Institute.

Levy said the study has led to an
important discovery that may help
prevent metastatic cancer, which is
the leading cause of death in Israel.

The paper was published in the journal
Cancer Research.

Levy and Gepner explained that
“studies have demonstrated that physi-
cal exercise reduces the risk for some
types of cancer by up to 35%. This
positive eff ect is similar to the impact
of exercise on other conditions, such
as heart disease and diabetes. In this
study, we added new insight, showing
that high-intensity aerobic exercise,
which derives its energy from sugar, can
reduce the risk of metastatic cancer by
as much as 72%. If so far as the general
message to the public has been ‘be
active, be healthy,’ now we can explain
how aerobic activity can maximize the
prevention of the most aggressive and
metastatic types of cancer.”
‘A rise in the number of glucose
receptors’ The study combined an animal model,
in which mice were trained under a
strict exercise regimen, with data from
healthy human volunteers examined
Dr. Yftach Gepner
before and after running. The human
data, obtained from an epidemiological
study that monitored 3,000 individuals
for about 20 years, indicated 72% less
metastatic cancer in participants who
reported regular aerobic activity at high
intensity, compared to those who did not
engage in physical exercise.

The animal model exhibited a similar
outcome, enabling the researchers to
identify its underlying mechanism.

Sampling the internal organs of the
physically fi t animals, before and after
physical exercise, and also following the
injection of cancer, they found that aerobic
activity signifi cantly reduced the develop-
ment of metastatic tumors in the lymph
nodes, lungs and liver. The researchers
hypothesized that in both humans and
model animals, this favorable outcome is
related to the enhanced rate of glucose
consumption induced by exercise.

Levy noted that “our study is the fi rst
to investigate the impact of exercise
on the internal organs in which metas-
tases usually develop, like the lungs,
liver and lymph nodes. Examining the
cells of these organs, we found a rise
in the number of glucose receptors
during high-intensity aerobic activity
& CANAVAN
SCREENING — increasing glucose intake and turning
the organs into eff ective energy-con-
sumption machines, very much like the
muscles. We assume that this happens
because the organs must compete
for sugar resources with the muscles,
known to burn large quantities of
glucose during physical exercise.”
Consequently, she continued, “if cancer
develops, the fi erce competition over
glucose reduces the availability of energy
that is critical to metastasis. Moreover,
when a person exercises regularly, this
condition becomes permanent: The
tissues of internal organs change and
become similar to muscle tissue.” ■
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