Israel at 70: 25 Reasons to Love Israel

Seventy years ago on the Gregorian calendar, the Israeli Declaration of Independence was proclaimed. The Declaration established a Jewish state in the land of Israel, which came into effect right after the termination of the British Mandate on May 14, 1948. The state of Israel already celebrated Israeli Independence Day (יום העצמואת) last month since it was commemorating the Declaration on the Jewish calendar, and not the Gregorian one. It is on this anniversary that I would like to provide a list of reasons to love Israel, and I will preface by saying that the list is not a complete one.

1. Israel is the only democratic country in the Middle East. According to Freedom House, "Israel is a multiparty democracy with strong and independent institutions that guarantee political and civil rights for most of the population."
2. Israel is the most accepting of LGBT individuals in Middle East, and indeed, the entirety of Asia. Israel is also home to one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world: Tel Aviv. 
3. Israel is consistently ranked as one of the happiest countries in the world. In the 2018 World Happiness report, Israel ranked as the 11th happiest country.
4. Israel contains holy sites of the three major Abrahamic religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.
5. Israel has had 12 Nobel Prize winners, which ranks Israel 15th on the list for number of Nobel Laureates. When adjusted for per capita, that ranking increases to 12th.
6. With more than 200 museums, Israel boasts of having the most museums per capita in the world.
7. Israel's intelligence apparatus has helped thwart terrorist attacks in multiple countries (see here, here, here, and here).
8. Israel leads the world in recycling wastewater at 90 percent. This is at least four times more than any other country.
9. Israel has 3.5 physicians per 1,000 people, which is well above the world average of 0.3 physicians, and exceeds many developed countries (World Health Organization).
10. From a linguistic standpoint, Israel was able to do something no other group of people has done, which is take a dead language (at least in the vernacular sense), revive it, and have it spoken by an entire nation of people. 
11. Israel has two official languages: Hebrew and Arabic. Throughout the land of Israel, you can see signs in Hebrew, Arabic, and English, thereby showing another example of inclusiveness. 
12. For the first time in centuries, there is an actual Jewish state. With the rise in anti-Semitism, if Jews want to leave their currently brutal living situation, they have somewhere safe to go. The same could not be said for Jews during the Holocaust, which is another reason I am glad that Israel exists. 
13. Israel ranked 10th on the 2018 Bloomberg Innovation Index. In terms of sub-categories, Israel ranked first on researcher concentration and R&D intensity. 
14. Intel's presence in Israel has been significant in technological research and development, and has brought such advancements as the P55C chip, Core i7, and the Skylake microprocessor. 
15. The technology for Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP), you know, the technology that brought you such services as Skype, was created in Israel.
16. Four Israelis at Mirabilis developed ICQ, which is the technology that allowed for instant messaging. 
17. Polish-Israeli engineer Simcha Blass was responsible for developing the modern-day drip irrigation system, which helps save water and nutrients in the agricultural process.
18. In 2017, Israel led venture capital on a per capita basis with $447.17.
19. Israel's success with Iron Dome has been great enough that Europeans have caused a boom in Israel's defense exports.
20. Israel is a prominent player in the solar power market, and is looking to acquire 17 percent of its energy from solar power by 2030.
21. The Israeli economy is one that is developed enough (see latest IMF report here) where it is part of the OECD, not to mention the number of trade agreements. Per Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom, Israel has improved enough over the past decade where it went from being categorized from "Partly Free" to "Mostly Free."
22. The Israeli Defense Force provided the self-defense and fighting system known as Krav Maga.
23. Being surrounded by four bodies of water (Mediterranean Sea, Dead Sea, Red Sea, Sea of Galilee), there are plenty of beaches to go to in Israel. 
24. Shawarma and hummus. Need I say more?
25. As a hat-tip to current events, Israel represented at Eurovision 2018 and won this past weekend.

Is Israel perfect? No. Name me one country that had its act together during its 70th anniversary. Can Israel improve? Of course. At the same time, it has done well for itself at its 70th anniversary. I look forward to see what the next 70 years bring.