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For a perfect example of the stark contrast between the state of the nation and the conduct of its leaders, one had only to drop by at the commencement of the Knesset’s darkest summer session since the founding of the state. Despite the war, the atmosphere inside the building shows that nothing has changed.

On the first day of the session, May 22, mounted police were lined up across the road outside the chamber to greet Kaplan demonstrators who promised to appear in force, but ended up making a rather anemic showing. Driving on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road on what was announced as a “day of sabotage” showed me that the protest is struggling to get off the ground, with numbers far below what we were accustomed to during the judicial reform protests, before the outbreak of the war.

To overcome the embarrassment, the demonstrators armed themselves with megaphones that reverberated well inside the building, which bustled with lobbyists and activists — as if there was no war going on. One could compare it to passengers squabbling over catering arrangements on a sinking ship.

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What perhaps best reflected the bubble inhabited by Israel’s political class was the Likud faction meeting, attended by a black-shirted Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.