I spent the day reflecting on what I was going to write about the conviction of former President of Israel, Moshe Katzav's recent rape conviction. It is clearly a very sad day for Israel. It is saddening to have someone who served as Israel's President be convicted of rape. Of course, the very fact that a President could be charged and convicted shows that Israeli justice works. As a father of two daughters, one of whom is about to join the IDF, I am glad that slowly, but surely, the whole question of what is and what is not acceptable behavior between men in power and woman has been changing. I am glad my daughter is entering the IDF of 2011 and not the IDF I served in during the mid 1970’s.However, the conviction raises a number of serious questions. First, how did Katzav ever become President? Katzav was never known as any more than a second bench politician, and rumors of less than stellar behavior toward women was widely known. Yet, pitted in an election against Shimon Peres, Katzav won? I do not see any Likud members who arranged Katzav's capturing the presidency taking responsibility for Katzav's election. The second problem Katzav's trial underscores is the incredible length of time it takes to bring someone to justice in Israel.Once accused, tt took two and a half years for Katzav's trial to begin. It then took another year and half for the trial itself to take place. The American concept of the right to "a speedy trial" does not exist in Israel. The American system of a trial beginning and continuing until it ends also does not exist in Israel. Trials begin, stop, start, and then conclude. Instead of a swift verdict, it takes weeks (and sometimes months) for judges to render their decision. In this case, Katzav was sitting comfortably in his home in the interim, so in this particular case, the delay worked in his favor. However, in a very different case, the driver who killed the son of former Supreme Court Justice Cheshin in a hit an run accident, was released to home confinement, after spending six months in jail awaiting trial. That defendant was only released because the State Prosecutors have been on strike (which ended today). The accused driver was kept in jail on the pretense that he was a danger to society. And, of course Israel does not have the same basic bail rights as the US.The largest question is: Why are there so many public officials who have been charged with or under investigation for alleged crimes? The former Finance Minister is sitting in jail for the crime of embezzlement. Former Prime Minister Olmert is in the middle of a number of trials. Lastly, we have been waiting for two years for the prosecutors office to decide whether to endorse the recommendations that Foreign Minister Lieberman be indicted. That’s without focusing on the statistic I recently heard that fully half of the mayors in Israel are either under investigation or have been indicted for some crime or another. So maybe the justice system in Israel works, sort of, but what about the morals that future Israeli leaders have been, and are being taught?If you want to be further depressed read Jeffrey Goldbergs Article What if Israel Ceases to be a Democracy