Paving the road to war: Israeli diplomacy and the 1967 crisis

This chapter argues that the future of Israel is as yet open and undetermined. It outlines institutional redesigns directed at upgrading Israeli capacities to engage in deliberate future-weaving. Zionism is one of the greatest success stories in human efforts to weave the future. First, Israel is more powerful than ever, in terms of its human capital, economic resources and military capabilities, and external political support. The importance of realistic visions as compasses for decision-making, in addition to their functions in consensus-building and as a motivational device, is well recognized in modern management practice and literature. The guideline to deepen the Jewish nature of Israel derives directly from both realistic nightmares and realistic visions. Ideological divisions and differences of opinion are natural to the Jewish people and to social processes taking place in Israel. Moving away from decline towards prospering within rapidly changing twenty-first-century environments requires the extensive restructuring of Israeli society.