How Has Israel Changed Since Oct. 7?

"As a Jew, I have long cared about the great experiment that is the state of Israel," writes economist Russ Roberts in his book Wild Problems: A Guide to the Decisions that Define Us.

Roberts moved from the U.S. to Jerusalem following an offer to become president of Shalem College in late 2020, leaving behind his job at Stanford's Hoover Institution, a decision he describes as one "only a fool" would make "on narrow utilitarian grounds." But for Roberts, this wasn't a simple utilitarian calculation. It was a wild problem.

"[W]hen it came to who I am and who I want to be, it was a no-brainer in the other direction," he writes. "To play a role in an institution that hopes to prepare the next generation of leaders in Israel would be a privilege close to my heart."

Join Reason's Zach Weissmueller and Liz Wolfe for a discussion with Roberts about life in Israel after the October 7 terrorist attack this Thursday at 1 p.m. Eastern on Reason's YouTube channel.

Sources referenced in this conversation:

1. Russ Roberts tweet thread, Oct. 25, 2023
2. Rashida Tlaib's Oct. 8 statement on "Ongoing Violence in Israel and Palestine"
3. "What Palestinians Really Think of Hamas," by Amaney A. Jamal and Michael Robbins, Oct. 25, 2023
4. "Israel Proves the Desalination Era Is Here," by Rowan Jacobson, July 29, 2016 
5. Resident patent applications per capita and R&D expenditure per capita, World Intellectual Property Organization 2023 report