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The Israeli Media and " Operation Cast Lead "

By Tali Shapiro at Jan 01, 2009

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It's a circus down here, in rural Israel. The politicians are falling into regular patterns of self-gain and violence (I'm still deciphering means from ends-neither ever seem justified), and the media is on crowd control. I've been following mainstream media closely, this time, and here's what I got so far:

  1. Warspeak - Why don't they call it what it is? They keep on calling it an "operation". Why? It is a war, isn't it?

    "Grad" is the new "Katyusha". Every war, the media drills some kind of technical term and it becomes a part of the collective memory. Four days ago, no one knew the words "Grad bomb". Now, when they interview the affected public, it's a mainstay of the vocabulary.
  2. Why this is happening - Every time a war breaks out, I naively ask myself "why?". It's never for a good enough reason. I don't think Ehud Barak or Ehud Olmert ever gave two shits about Gilad Shalit (the supposed reason behind Lebanon War II) or Beber Vaaknin. Anyone following the Israeli mainstream media, in the past two months can find motives for the current war. This is my theory:

    Barak is the obvious one: There's an election coming up. All he has to do is get a notch in his Minister of Defense sash and he's constituency will grow substantially (that's how trigger happy Israelis are).

    Olmert is now facing criminal charges and is stepping down in disgrace. He will be PM for 2 more months. About a week ago he started talks with Turkish President Abdullah Gul (Turkey has been mediating indirect talks between Syria and Israel), and coming out with unabashedly optimistic statements about an achievable peace with Syria. My contention is that these statements and this war are his pathetic last stabs at a legacy.
  3. Buried foreign media - I already wrote the updates on this, but this is crucial. For 2 months, foreign media has been kept out of Gaza. It's now (after a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court) been allowed to enter 8 journalists, when the checkpoints will be opened. Now all that's left is to see when they'll be opened. (Maybe when "Operation Cast Lead" is over?)
  4. Israel/America against the world - Let's hope Obama takes better care of his constituency than foreign affairs. This is what he had to say about the state of affairs:

    "Israel has the right to respond while seeking to minimize any impact on civilians." (click for the rest of this grotesquely 1984ish letter)

    Arabs all over the world are in the streets. Israeli's are in the streets. All of them protesting this war. The UN is against it. European PM's have been encouraging ceasefire. Which, do you think, is visible in the Israeli news?

    The Sarcosi ceasefire talks, by the way, were dismissed as unrealistic, by both politicians and  the media.
  5. The latest advancement - I fear that the Gazans are looking at much more extreme destruction. Yesterday evening talk of conquering Gaza began. Of course, it was said with much dismay: "Do you mean to say this might lead to the taking over of Gaza?!" Says wide-eyed Micky Heimovitz, favorite co-anchor in the 8:00 O'clock news, and an effective instrument of calming the renegade public. 

Comment On This Blog Post  See All Comments (2)

Img_9835

Escalation

By Andrews, John at Jan 02, 2009 13:01 PM
Tali
 
I don't think the killing of Nizar Rayyan will benefit anyone other than perhaps the 4-Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Nothing has ever been gained by such assassinations; I do not know why the Israeli government persists with such flawed behaviour.
 
I don't know how much recent history of the middle east you have read, probably a damn sight more than I have, but if you have not read it, I would strongly recommend "The Great War For Civilisation - The Conquest of the Middle East" by Robert Fisk; published by Fourth Estate, London; ISBN 1-84115-007-X in hardback and ISBN 0-00-720383-7 in paperback. It is, in my opinion, an absolute masterpiece and should be obligatory reading for all politicians and aspiring politicians who may have any involvement with a country in the Middle East. Had Bush / Blair read this mighty tome, I doubt if they would have been quite so quick in interfering in the affairs of Afghanistan and Iraq.
 
Your government does not have a monopoly on stupidity and brutality. I think the British government may have invented these concepts and passed them on to other states around the world. The problem in your case is that your country is surrounded by potential enemies and your government uses this threat, and the fear of what has gone before, to exacerbate its stupidity and brutality in the name of security, patriotism and religion.
 
Keep safe.
 
All best wishes
 
John Andrews

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Miss_s_clause

Re: Escalation

By Shapiro, Tali at Jan 02, 2009 14:46 PM
Thanks for the recommendation John. :) Israel (I dare not call it MY country) is NOT surrounded by potential enemies. It's surrounded by human beings that are just as stupid and conditioned as we are. If this cycle could be broken easily- it already would have been. But it will take generations of re-education to achieve that. Also, the government is constantly claiming to be precise in killing members of Hamas: They call the residents of the building and tell them to clear the building because their going to blow it up. This is their claim to humanitarianism! Nizar Rayyan was not assassinated, he was a part of/an excuse for mass murder. As for Britain's governmental stupidity, I absolutely agree! I think history speaks for itself: Colonial times are over, but the ex-colonies are left with the pieces. Britain has done its share in good ole Palestine. But really, looking that far back for the blame is just as much a waste of energies as Israelis claiming we have a biblical right to be in here. These energies could be far better used to solve the problem at hand. ho! and with all due respect to the Brits, I hardly think I can credit you with the invention of brutality... Ever see a cat play with it's food before eating it? ;) Tali

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Img_9835

Thanks

By Andrews, John at Jan 01, 2009 10:55 AM

Tali

Thanks for the contemporaneous blog. I don't know Israeli society at all but I'm certain that the vast majority of Israelis just want to get on with their lives in a normal way like the rest of us but are stuck in a really bad situation. The cycle of violence must be broken. Hopefully, one day soon, your voice in the wilderness will become the mainstream. 

All best wishes

John Andrews

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Miss_s_clause

Re: Thanks

By Shapiro, Tali at Jan 01, 2009 15:50 PM
Hey John, Of course they are and so was I. I don't blame the majority of the population- we're conditioned thoroughly from a very young age. The media spin is just one facet of this. I actually don't watch mainstream media, but I'm visiting my parents and getting a good glimpse of it. The scariest part is my parents reactions. I'm talking about two intelligent people, a doctor and nurse. Their reactions are illogical fear and a violent militancy. And the most ironic part is I WASN'T RAISED THIS WAY! I hope you're right, John. I hope people will wake up, but I find it hard to believe they will. History seems to be coldly repeating itself.

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