Don Futterman, Noah Efron and Times of Israel Ops & Blogs Editor Miriam Herschlag discuss three topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week.

Listen to the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon

—“Unity is the Thing We Seek”—

Opposition leader Yair Lapid says he wants a right-left-and-center “National Unity Government.” The fact that it won’t be able to do anything about the occupation is a feature, he says, not a bug. Does he have a point?

—How Do You Solve a Problem Like Ben Gvir?—

Kahanist MK Itamar Ben Gvir represents an outlook that most Israelis find loathsome. Is it better to fight him, or just ignore him?

—Hip Like Us—

Does what we Israelis wear tell us something about who we are?

—Mask-Free and Prosper—

For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion, we talk about this strange pandemical moment, after the mask mandate was rescinded this week, when things seem to be opening up both higgledy and piggledy, which moment feels both like a resurrection – We hath risen! — and also maybe like a prologue to a setback down the road. It’s weird, so we talk about it.

All that and the great first record of Minus Efes!