simcha613, taxpayer money goes to religious educational institutions in other countries as well. I know Canada is one, and I believe in most if not all of Europe as well. The ones that don’t (and even the U.S. provides a limited amount of free educational assistance to students in religious schools) are wrong. (Although that itself is a whole ‘nother topic.) The Torah world has been growing in Eretz Yisroel since the late 1800’s — before the arrival of the zionists. The medina has done just about everything in their imagination to impede Torah progress and Torah adherents. What we have accomplished in Eretz Yisroel is no credit to them. We’ve done so in spite of their impediments.
But as you said, this is a whole ‘nother topic.