The upcoming 10-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks will provide a time for reflection and review. While keeping an eye on future threats, both domestic and foreign, it is crucial that we recall the bizarre position American society faced in the weeks and months after the attacks and continue to try learning from it. Perhaps an unlikely source for juxtaposition are the current tent city protests, that have sprung up all across Israel.

The protests began in early July in response to the gradually rising prices of housing and basic food products in Israel, which the media has portrayed as otherwise reasonably unaffected by the faltering global economy. A law passed in the Knesset in mid-July to prohibit domestic calls to boycott Israeli products, a method frequently used by activists to protest Israel's occupation of the West Bank, may have also inspired the widespread protests, as some on the left fear that the law discourages free speech.

More than anything, these tent protests prove that Israelis are not willing to sacrifice government attention to their pressing domestic concerns just because the external political climate is as tense as ever. The Israeli middle class has been stretched far too thin by economic constraint, high taxes and frozen social mobility, and it has, for the past month, been adamant in its declaration that it will not abide by the status quo.

The threat of terrorism has not paralyzed Israeli society like it did in the U.S. 10 years ago. Though the Sept. 11 attacks certainly brought out a rejuvenated sense of brotherhood and patriotism throughout the country, evidenced by the flags waving from almost every suburban home in the fall of 2001, they also led to an alarmingly unyielding faith in the executive office. Former President George W. Bush's approval rating, according to a Gallup Poll, reached 90 percent in the days after Sept. 11—in my opinion, due to little more than the president's donning a windbreaker and a bullhorn and perching among some World Trade Center rubble. His approval ratings remained remarkably high—above 80 percent—until April 2002. This desire for strong leadership led to the misguided Iraq War and the suppression of basic First Amendment freedoms under the Patriot Act. Also characteristic of this era was increased evidence of xenophobia and persecution of Muslim Americans, motivated by fear and rampant distrust under the false label of "patriotism."

Israelis could live like this all the time. Their leaders certainly try; constantly reminding their constituents of the many daily threats they face from neighboring enemy governments is a go-to tactic for quelling opposition to unpopular domestic policies. And though there may be a degree of truth in this assessment of Israeli society, Israelis do not live in an atmosphere similar to the one seen in the U.S. in the months after Sept. 11. The recent protests are a testament to the spirit of self-criticism within Israel. Though Israelis live under a near-constant threat of attack, Israeli society is not plagued by fear and paranoia, and Israelis are not afraid to question the authority of their leaders.

Finally, the spirit of these protests demonstrates the true beauty and diversity of Israeli society. People are really coming together from all facets of life; Der Speigel writes that "Artists, boy scouts and lesbians sit alongside soldiers, settlers and devout Jews, next to the shopping carts of the homeless" in such scenes of "cheerful anarchy," as they put it. The snapshots of long-haired Tel Aviv hippies sprawled on the threadbare couches that seem ubiquitous in these tent cities are heartwarming (and perhaps a symbol of the middle class that intends to remain in these tents for as long as it takes but wants to lounge on something more comfortable than slabs of cardboard in the downtime between rallies?). Their harem pants and acoustic guitars remind us of the liberalism and idealism that first accompanied the Israeli democratic tradition 60 years ago. More symbolically, Jewish and Muslim Israelis alike have joined in on the protests, as the inequality and high cost of living affect all regardless of religion. This is nothing like the xenophobia the U.S. saw after Sept. 11; it is the mood we should constantly strive for in a democratic society.

Nor is this "Israeli model" one that should only apply in times of vulnerability. Politically, this has been one of the most divisive summers in recent American history. Our polarized Congress is merely the tip of the iceberg revealing the deeper truth that Americans can't seem to agree on anything. Obviously neither extreme is preferable: Americans need to restore the spirit of political cooperation and empathy by fighting together for whatever it is they want. It would be tragic, in more ways than one, if it took another terrorist attack to pull us together again.