"All my life I chose Likud. I can't move, even when there is anger at Bibi"

Is the situation in the country better than ever or the worst in our history? Is this generation exemplary or desperate? And who should one vote for? Ahead of the elections, we brought together pairs of grandparents and grandchildren for serious conversations about the differences between the generation that built the country and the generation of TikTok and high-tech, as part of the "Skip a Generation" format.

In the first program, Grandma Malka Levi Eliyahu and granddaughter Or Yaish met, both residents of Ness Ziona. Malka's parents immigrated from Yemen in the Great Aliyah of 1949, bought a house in Ness Ziona, and spoke to the children only in Hebrew — but curses in Yemenite-Arabic, she admits, she managed to learn. She worked for years as an inspector on behalf of the Ness Ziona municipality, and did not like to give out tickets, so as not to hurt people's pockets. Throughout her career, she only gave out warnings, and was nicknamed "the Sheriff of Ness Ziona".

About Or, she says: "I always say she is the smart girl. Obviously, she is my favorite. That's why I call her all the time. She loves social life. That she took from me. I am noisier. She often makes comments to me: 'Grandma, quiet'. Why, who is sleeping that I should be quiet?".

Or also loves Grandma very much — although there is a disagreement between them about her way of expressing it: Or claims that she visits Grandma every day, but Malka answers: "You are a liar. When I call you, you say: 'I can't, I'm busy'". Or answers that Malka simply thinks the visits are not long enough — and Malka admits that is true. "My generation took care of the parents — by day, by night. Your generation — can come to visit, but that's it. The father or mother doesn't feel well — at most they bring them a caregiver, or send them to some nursing home". According to Or, the reason is that the connection between parents and children today is much less deep, because most parents today send them to after-school programs and summer camps and spend less "quality time" with them. In addition, when they do have to deal with them, they are afraid to say "no" to them, and the younger generation grows up with a sense of superiority.

Malka defines her own childhood as a "wonderful childhood". According to her, they had sheep, a cow, chickens, ducks, swans. "We didn't feel that we didn't have food in the house". "I also, thank God, don't lack anything", admits Or, but adds: "In my grandmother's time, every person who worked and respected himself could afford a place of residence in Israel. When I looked for a place to rent with my partner, we were shocked by the prices. I live in a 40-meter studio in a semi-basement for four thousand shekels. A young couple, if they don't have support from the parents, how can they live in Israel?".

"In my time too, it was hard to get an apartment", answers Malka. "Nobody got it in their hands. We fought". However, she adds: "We never protested. Even when prices went up, we said what idiots our people are for not fighting like in France. The whole country should have stood on its feet — and the price would have gone down". Or goes a step further: "There is no time to go out to the streets, because then you won't have money to eat. They bring you to a situation where you won't even have time to express your opinion. Even when Yair Lapid was and even when Naftali Bennett was. It has nothing to do with who was in power. They never relate to the citizens. We are a country that is always dealing only with the outside, with security".

By the way, regarding security, the grandmother and granddaughter from Ness Ziona are shocked by the situation in the North. Malka says that she once loved to travel to the North for vacations, and today she cannot, due to the sorrow caused to her by the sights of destruction there. Or tells about business owners there who got into difficulties, but is impressed by the firm faith of the residents.

Another issue that bothers Or is "the hatred between us", which she says stems from the fact that on the Knesset channel they constantly show politicians screaming at each other. She calls on politicians to hold calmer discussions, with mutual respect, that will trickle down to the viewers. This respectful speech is part of what led her, according to her, to vote for Bennett in 2021 — a revelation that shocks her grandmother, who has voted for Herut and Likud since Menachem Begin arrived in Ness Ziona when she was 17 and "captured my heart". "How did you do such a thing?".

After Malka "incriminates" another granddaughter in voting for Itamar Ben Gvir ("now they will say we are stupid right-wingers"), Or admits that she also voted for him in 2022. Malka says that "all my life I chose Likud, and I am unable to move my hand, even when I am disappointed, even when I have a lot of anger at Benjamin Netanyahu. That's what there is. When I look at all the contestants, I say, God, who really, really pulls? What to do? When someone else rises, Bibi will go home. But there is no one else". She adds that it is most important not to vote for parties that will not pass the electoral threshold. To Or, it matters less — she has no high expectations from the leaders: "No one will bring peace, no one will lower the cost of living, no one will take care of the young, no one will do anything. It doesn't matter who is elected, everyone will take care of their own ass. The only one who takes care of those who vote for him — is the Haredim".

The talk about Haredim ignites Malka. "I, Haredim, God forgive me, cannot stand. They only make a mess. 'We will die and not enlist' — I wish you would die". This sentence shocks Or, who says: "One shouldn't hate them. One needs to understand that this is how they grew up". But the grandmother adds: "I grew up in a religious home and I don't know their nonsense. Who needs all this? I didn't see that it contributed that they burned roads, disabled cars".

Grandma, who constantly mentions that she grew up in a religious home, says that her second husband became religious. "Creator of the world, may He forgive me — not for me to be religious". Despite this, they continued to live together for 13 years without hurting each other's faith. With her first husband, the story was a bit more complex: according to her, he had a "serious disease — a disease of women". He cheated on her, moved to live with another woman and demanded a divorce — but she did not agree. "I loved him", she declares. But she also emphasizes that couples who no longer have love between them should not stay together "for the sake of the children", because it causes the children much more damage than divorce. Or, who at 25 has not yet married, she criticizes, and when Or says "not now" she answers: "Okay, not now. Wait a quarter of an hour".

One of the most unexpected moments in the conversation comes when talking about ethnicities. "As a mixed girl, but between Eastern ethnicities, there were times I felt that they looked at me as Eastern, and then it is automatically inferior, not smart", says the granddaughter, and adds: "There is still an ethnic difference, for example when you enter an Eastern home compared to when you enter an Ashkenazi home. It is heaven and earth". Malka, on the other hand, sees fewer ethnic differences: "All ethnicities mixed in food, they no longer relate to these things". Or tries to lighten the mood: "Anyway, sushi is the tastiest", and Malka is shocked: "Sushi is disgusting food".