What the Leaked 'Blackout Scenario' Document for Israelis Truly Means
Stock up on medicine, prepare to survive without electricity: the list of items Israelis have been told to have on hand for a 'blackout scenario' shows the government leaves us to our own devices
A few weeks ago, the Justice Ministry published a list of equipment that it recommends that its staff acquire for their own needs in case a "blackout scenario" materializes -- that is, should there be a massive power outage as a result of, say, a huge Hezbollah missile attack.
The list, of course, did not remain within the confines of the ministry's corridors, but was quickly leaked to every anxious WhatsApp group in the country.
Before reading the list, you should have some benzodiazepine on hand: According to the document, a war in the north is liable to deprive 60 percent of the country's population of electrical power.
In addition to purchasing a generator, the ministry also recommends stocking up on bags for collecting sewage, medications, mobile phone chargers, a camping stove and so on. War framed as an annual school outing -- minus the cheery mood and the snacks. The cost of the suggested equipment and supplies, by the way, runs to about 3,000 shekels (about $840) for the minimizers; maximalists can purchase more sophisticated equipment for the equivalent of several monthly salaries.
Since the war started, the state has proved time and again its inability to look after its citizens.
This isn't the first time that dire warnings of this sort has descended upon us. Already on October 9, two days after the war broke out in the Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces Home Front Command recommended that the entire population stock up on enough water and food for 72 hours.
The result: Basic foodstuffs and other necessities summarily disappeared from the shelves of the country's supermarkets. In light of the army's claim that the October 9 announcement had been disseminated by mistake, we can only read with astonishment the ostensibly orderly one that's now been issued by the Justice Ministry to its employees. Among other things, it has already spurred Channel 12 News' consumerism reporter, Maayan Parti, to interview the owner of an electrical goods store who related that he's sold thousands of generators to panicky customers.
"Since the war started" lol. As if it wasn't orchestrated by the state of Israel.