In Golda’s Footsteps

To Israelis, the fuss about Sarah Palin, lipstick and pigs seems a little passé. After all, Golda Meir cracked the glass ceiling some 40 years ago, and now another woman, former Mossad agent Tzipi Livni, is poised to take over as prime minister. That would put women in charge of all three branches of Israel's government—an unprecedented feat in a Western democracy. (Article continued below...)

The gains by Livni, Speaker of Parliament Dalia Itzik and Supreme Court head Dorit Beinisch are striking by Middle Eastern standards, where only 8 percent of Parliament seats are held by women (and only 14 percent in Israel), according to a new U.N. report. But the progress is misleading—an "optical illusion" in what remains a "macho society" with a rough frontier mentality, says Israeli historian Tom Segey.

Tel Aviv is more egalitarian, but Jerusalem remains under the sway of conservative religious parties. Ultra-Orthodox papers won't publish Livni's photo because she's a woman. Conservative voters may have the clout to block Livni's attempts to form a governing coalition. And sexist cracks about her are commonplace: Labor Party head Ehud Barak paternalistically refers to Livni by her full name (Tzipora), and columnists have criticized her for "lacking balls" and dismissed her as "the prettiest girl in kindergarten." Looks like the Israeli glass isn't cracked just yet.