The Israeli Economics of Socialism

The WSJ reveals the extent of the drag of socialism on the Israeli economy. It's worse than Europe!

...the bursting of the technology bubble combined with four years of intifada have brought serious economic pain [To Israel]. But in the end these developments have only accentuated a structural problem long in the making. In the last 30 years, GDP per capita in the G-7 countries has risen by 82%. In Israel, it increased just 48%, a consequence of Israel's years of unproductive socialist experimentation, overregulation, underdeveloped financial market and high transfer payments and taxes. Even excluding Israel's high military spending, public expenditure accounts for about 46% of GDP, compared to an average of only 40% in the OECD.