Israel to World: "Suck It."

"Banhart's agents said that the musician was pressured into canceling the performance for political reasons.

"We love the land and people of Israel, and have been looking forward to our third show there with unimaginable anticipation," Banhart's official website said.

"Unfortunately, we tried to make it clear that we were coming to share a human and not a political message but it seems that we are being used to support views that are not our own. We will be overjoyed to return to Israel on the day that our presence is perceived and reported on as a cultural event and not a political one. We truly hope that day comes soon."

xpost
the rumours about the life thretening came from the producers.

History, I'm honestly not trying to be super-argumentative here, just saying something very simple: yes, there are Israeli "leftists" who would support certain types of boycotts or sanctions. I'm not saying that's anything like a mainstream opinion, but it is an opinion that is held by some number of Israeli citizens. We don't need to argue over the meaning of the word "plenty" to agree that this group exists, right?

And again, I don't say this argumentatively, but the wording of Banhart's statement is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about above. That statement says:

Unfortunately, we tried to make it clear that we were coming to share a human and not a political message but it seems that we are being used to support views that are not our own.

Like I said:

Devendra is who I was referring to above when I said "it really is being contextualized as support, on a political level, even with acts not nearly significant enough that you'd think it'd matter."

I am not trying to argue about whether his decision was right or wrong. But I would suggest that when shows like this are embraced as political statements -- "these other artists canceled, but Devendra loves and supports Israel" -- it may actually scare certain artists off. Because it strips them of the ability to say "I'm just a musician, I only have a human message, this is not political." Using their appearance in a political way forces them to make a "political" decision about it that they might not have made otherwise.

every1 can agree with the last paragraph

We don't need to argue over the meaning of the word "plenty" to agree that this group exists, right?

welcome to ilx!

There are even Jews in Israel who agree with Helen Thomas' sentiments, like Shlomo Sand.

well we kicked out one of our israeli embassy staff for forging the passports used in the assassination of a hamas leader last year.

that'll teach em.

Israel to World: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/06/20/israel.gaza/?hpt=T1
Cynical View: "We need public approval, so here are some concessions."
Optimistic View: "Point taken."

I'm optimistic.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g-1KFy3GhfXq8rFDmSsW58wx0CPw

Turkey bombs kurds, kills 4 including 15-year-old girl.

Wrong thread?

That Israel Thread.

Ugh.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/29/world/middleeast/29gazabrief.html

...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/21/arab-guilty-rape-consensual-sex-jew

(which led me to discover this o_O http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/6589249.stm)

if that kind of 'rape by deception' is a viable claim, then wonderbra better ready themselves for the mother of all class-actions

Wouldn't one look at his penis tell her the truth about his religion? I thought that Jews were pretty much the only people outside the US that did circumcision.

Male circumcision is also a Muslim practice.

So many cultural practices of Jews and Muslims overlap, sometimes I feel like they should stop taking shots at each other and live in pork-free, circumcised, behatted harmony like they do in St John's Wood.

kind of lol but mostly sad

I'm not actually sure the verdict is racist. Apparently it was judged based on a precedent from another case:

In 2008, the High Court of Justice set a precedent on rape by deception, rejecting an appeal of the rape conviction by Zvi Sleiman, who impersonated a senior official in the Housing Ministry whose wife worked in the National Insurance Institute. Sleiman told women he would get them an apartment and increased NII payments if they would sleep with him.

That case only involved Jews. The real problem is that the High Court made a bullshit precedent. They're appealing it, and it'll give the High Court a chance to decide differently, but looking at that precedent I'm not convinced that it was a racist decision. If misleading people is rape (nb: dearest, k3v, I do not believe it is rape and I do not agree with the verdict personally ie: in my personal life), then it makes sense the law would apply like that in this case.

Link btw: http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/jurists-say-arab-s-rape-conviction-sets-dangerous-precedent-1.303109

1) I think it's a bizarre law and 2) the way it was actually applied (that this case was even looked at) might have racism behind it, but 3) I'm not sure the way it was ultimately decided in light of the precedence was itself racist, and 4) it should be overturned ASAP because you can't throw every guy in jail who convinces a women to sleep with him by lying.

It's a terrible law, though I can see justification for a sexual assault-type offence where there's an aggravation like abuse of power or breach of trust - there's been a spate of bent coppers here pulling such tricks. Don't know whether that applied here, but if the sole deception was ethnic origin then that's shameful - as darragh says, wonderbra should be next unless the law is sexist too. Calling this rape diminishes the gravity of the word - it can't be one of the ultimate taboo offences and cover stuff like this.

Just read the Ha'aretz article, seems about right. Fraud would be a far better way to deal with this, if at all. I shall be steering clear of the other thread in any event.

Exhibit number one for why anti-Israel commentators in the United States often freak me the fuck out: http://mondoweiss.net/2010/07/the-new-mixed-jewish-establishment.html

Obsessive anti-Israel commentators have done a splendid job of making me more sympathetic towards Israel.

http://www.haaretz.com/culture/jethro-tull-won-t-be-pressured-into-canceling-planned-israel-show-1.303802?localLinksEnabled=false

In his letter, Jethro Tull's Anderson said that his decision to keep the band's August 7 Israel performance does not mean that he is "about to tell the rest of the musicians or crew what views they should hold or what to do with their remuneration."

"Nor do I feel pressured by human rights groups, national interests or any individuals to perform or not to perform in Israel or anywhere else," Anderson said, adding that he would make up his "own mind in light of available facts, with my own experience and a sense of personal ethics."

"To 'those who tell me I should 'boycott' Israel (or, for that matter, Turkey or Lebanon)," Anderson wrote, "I can only point out that on my travels around the world I am continually reminded of atrocities carried out historically by many nations who are now our friends, and it serves to strengthen my resolve that some degree of peace and better understanding may result from my and other artists' professional and humble efforts in such places."

"If I had the opportunity to perform today in Iran or North Korea, hell - I'd be there if I thought it would make a tiny positive net contribution to better relations," he added.

fuck yeah

love jethro tull

<3

"High Court Justice Elyakim Rubinstein said a conviction of rape should be imposed any time a "person does not tell the truth regarding critical matters to a reasonable woman, and as a result of misrepresentation she has sexual relations with him."

Rubinstein said the question was also whether an ordinary person would expect such a woman to have sex with a man without the false identity he created."

This is such such crazy talk. Also, in the thoughts I probably shouldn't post department, did anyone else expect Mr. Kashur to be more attractive?

Exhibit number one for why anti-Israel commentators in the United States often freak me the fuck out: http://mondoweiss.net/2010/07/the-new-mixed-jewish-establishment.html

― Mordy, Monday, July 26, 2010 8:44 AM (11 hours ago) Bookmark

would bet the author's jewish? obsessing about who is and isn't jewish is such a typical jewish parlor game (at least in my mishpacha). It's not just the anti-semites who do it.

he might be, but the author is also a well-known outspoken critic of Israel and he was writing that post in the context of American support for Israel. so he was simultaneously linking being jewish to automatic lobbying for israel and hunting through wedding announcements to create lists of the jews who are secretly in power and running the show. both are super creepy things to do, whether you're jewish or a gentile.

like if you want to play jewish geography, play it in your private social circles, not on a vehemently anti-Israel blog where people routinely comment with things like:

Mooser July 25, 2010 at 5:44 pm
Richard, you are watching the anti-Zionist, or Israel-critical narrative develop. A lot of it is unpleasant in certain ways.
Some of it may not even be true. Some of it may be anti-Semitic.
But if it works, it may save many, many lives, perhaps even prevent a people from being wiped out. And just think how much the Palestinians will benefit, too!

lol @ jethro tull

agreed that was a pretty inane post regardless of dude's background

About Mondoweiss
Mondoweiss is a news website devoted to covering American foreign policy in the Middle East, chiefly from a progressive Jewish perspective.

It has four principal aims:

1. To publish important developments touching on Israel/Palestine, the American Jewish community and the shifting debate over US foreign policy in a timely fashion;

2. To publish a diversity of voices to promote dialogue on these important issues;

3. To foster the movement for greater fairness and justice for Palestinians in American foreign policy;

4. To offer alternatives to pro-Zionist ideology as a basis for American Jewish identity.

Biography

This blog is maintained by Philip Weiss and Adam Horowitz. Weiss is 54 and lives in New York state. Horowitz is 36 and lives in New York City.

We maintain this blog because of 9/11, Iraq, Gaza, the Nakba, the struggling people of Israel and Palestine, and our Jewish background.

http://palmgoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/the_more_you_know2.jpg

lol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnpilMYsR0I

this isn't really israel telling the world to suck it, and who am i to talk because lol america, but this is depressing

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/03/world/middleeast/03children.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=israel%20400%20children&st=cse

Former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala was detained and interrogated for two hours at Ben-Gurion Airport last month, according to The Chronicle for Higher Education’s blog The Ticker.

Shalala is currently serving as president of the University of Miami; she was on her way back to the U.S. following a visit to Israel as part of a delegation of U.S. university presidents. An Israeli media report stated that she was subjected to a “humiliating” security debriefing and asked “invasive” personal questions because of her last name.

Shalala, 69 years old, is of Lebanese decent.

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/08/06/donna-shalala-detained-interrogated-at-israeli-airport/

good lord

Seminar: Wikipedia Editing for Zionists (you can win a prize!)

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/wikipedia-editing-for-zionists/

OMG OLIVER STONE WAS RIGHT

(octopus not pictured)

"I’ve personally tried to edit things in Wikipedia that were against Israel, small things, and my changes were erased or undone and I didn’t understand why."

There's only one logical explanation: everyone in the world is wrong except you.

This whole situation is making me rethink my opinion that negotiating with Hamas is a worthwhile strategy. Dudes are just fucking assholes.

they aren't negotiating w. hamas

or at least, not as part of this DC summit

(That said, it's making me respect Abbas more and more everyday.)

I'm aware, but I've held the opinion that they should negotiate with Hamas. Except that Hamas decided that rather than let Abbas negotiate out a state in the West Bank that would improve quality of life and give agency and political representation to Palestinians in that area, they'll do their best to derail talks by killing Israelis and demanding the Old City. They're asshole.

Hamassholes.

it's definitely a credit to Abbas + Netanyahu that they haven't already cancelled talks. it makes me feel like this restarted process won't be a total disaster. and maybe if they can hammer out a deal, Gaza will vote out Hamas in favor of Fatah.

in fairness, demanding the Old City is not a position unique to Hamas, but I take your point. The attacks on the Hebron settlers do seem more in the mould of going "look everybody, we're still here" than anything calculated to actually advance the interests of the Palestinian people.

dudes should just put the guns down and settle this with a game of counterstrike