Peres Criticized for 90th Birthday Extravaganza

[Lipush]

There was much criticism in Israel on Wednesday of President Shimon Peres’s lavish 90th birthday celebration, which took place at the International Convention Center in Jerusalem the previous evening.

The extravaganza was attended by some 2,000 people, including Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, singer Barbra Streisand and actors Robert de Niro and Sharon Stone, to name a few. The event was broadcast live on Israel’s three main television networks as well as on the radio.

Uri Orbach, the Minister for Senior Citizens (Bayit Yehudi) who did not take part in the event, said on Wednesday that he thought it was done in "bad taste."

Speaking in an interview on the Knesset Channel, Orbach jokingly suggested that the Peres’s 91st birthday next year should be the main theme at the annual torch-lighting ceremony on Yom Ha’atzmaut (Independence Day).

Channel 10 News’ political commentator Raviv Drucker, said that the lavish celebration was “reminiscent of North Korea and of Brezhnev.”

"This event could have been shown for two minutes on the news, not for two live hours,” said Drucker. “Peres has the abilities to bring all of us to a point in which we are sucking up to him. This was a blatant example of the huge gap between what is happening in social networks and what is happening on television.”

Peres Criticized for 90th Birthday Extravaganza - Inside Israel - News - Israel National News

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Finally some sanity in this state

 

[Sweet_Caroline]

When I think how Israelis are scrimping to pay their bills, are having to survive on minimum wage, how the poor are having to rely on charity etc., I am opposed to wasting money like this.

 

[krych3k]

Peres is a disgrace who is more concerned with himself than with Israel.

 

[Lipush]

When I think how Israelis are scrimping to pay their bills, are having to survive on minimum wage, how the poor are having to rely on charity etc., I am opposed to wasting money like this.

I think some modesty was seriously required!