mdd: quite a few actually – have you heard of matrix?
Personally I don’t work there, but it is a system set up completely for chareidi women to work in hi-tech and it has several branches. The salary there is not competitive with the hi-tech sector, but for families who live simply, it is enough.
Mine was just meant to be a case in point that kollel families can be self-supporting.
Maybe you didn’t see part of my post: the gov’t stipend is approximately 700 nis/month – less than $200! Why do you think that this is the kollel system’s lifeline?
There are many poor who benefit from gov’t programs in israel, and I wouldn’t be certain that the lomdei torah are the majority in that group. Have you done a statistical study on this?