'Building bridges' with Lisa Goldman
Following the rapid blog evolution in the Middle East, observing academics have been quite skeptical about the extent of bloggers' power.To that extent, Lisa Goldman and I were running around Swedish universities last week, introducing what bloggers in different middle eastern countries write about, peace bridging between Arabs and Israelis through blogs and the diversity of opinion the medium is offering for the virtual masses, especially in covering and commenting on conflicts.
Trying to sell the idea of my thesis, which maps out all Middle Eastern 'conflict blogs' according to the theory of Peace Journalism, we have got great responses after giving a lecture for Orebro's Masters of Global Journalism Programme, talking to journalists from 12 different countries.
Lisa was able to play the movie, 'the bubble,' to these students to give them a hint of what it is like living in Tel Aviv, entrapped in a bubble away from the real conflict. Meanwhile, flyers were pinned up all over the place at the prestigious Stockholm University's Journalism Department, saying that we're coming for the weekly open seminar they have for the country's top journalism students. TV8 saw the flyers and asked us for an interview, which I will post about once an internet streaming is available.
The seminars at SU went quite well, students were interested to know about blogger's security in thier home countries, the future of the blogosphere, and were to some extent surprised to see and Arab and Israeli put this effort together, or at least, so I have heard. They asked for a list of links, and for copies of our presentations.
We had a great evening with some interesting bloggers, in a small little cottage in the middle of stockholm. Ibn-ad-Dunya and Kajsa arranged for it, Tommi from the Ministry of Integration joined, as well as some others in a perfect 'orientalist night in stockholm'. Later, I met an interesting blogger, who covers security issues in Eastern Europe.
We spent the weekend in the countryside with Petra, enjoying the hospitality of some warm Swedish people in high places. You can see it all as viewed by Lisa's lens.
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41 comments:
You got the link wrong - it's blogware, not blogspot. The blogspot person is a bit confusing.
fixed
Excuse me,but who really appoints people to work on "peace bridging between Arabs and Israelis", and who is asking for such bridging?!
Maybe to you it is worth getting involved in some normalization conferences since you have no problems (personal or even "national" (after all both Jordan and Sweden have peace treaties and diplomatic relations with the Zionist sector and they both retained all their rights) with the Zionists and their occupation.However there is still a conflict (which you may or may not care for) and any talks of normalization and "living happily" in a peaceful is unacceptable.
anonymous.. so what do you suggest, we open the borders, call to arms and engage in a battle that could bring the end of mankind?
Sorry to tell you that not everyone thinks the way you do. People are fed up with wars and occupations, time to mature up and find new solutions.
Anonymous, Rami is right. It is time for everyone to start realistically working for the future, not desperately trying to preserve the past, which you clearly seem to prefer, given that you pointedly refuse to use the word "Israel" in your comment.
As important as it is for the occupation to end, this is something that won't happen until people like you stop pretending that Israel doesn't exist. It does, and neither Israel nor the Palestinians are going anywhere. Both sides must accept this for the occupation to end, otherwise, nothing will ever change.
And since you asked, yes, there are many people who are interested in bridge-building between the Arabs and the Israelis, people on both sides of the conflict who are interested in ending the bloodshed and finding a peaceful solution that shows respect for all parties involved.
Fantastic! I wish I had known before, I live a stone's throw away from the uni.
Doesn't the movie "the bubble" have explicit homosexual sex scenes in it.
It seems like Tel Aviv is a very sleazy place, similar to San Francisco (or San Fransicko as many people have started calling the city).
It is no wonder why Israel lost their last war. Why would G_d help them when it seems like they have forsaken Him. The only wars they have ever won have been wars where they have had G_d's help.
People watching the film "the Bubble" should have gotten the impression that at least that part of Israel is very sinful similar to Sodom and Gomorrah and we all know what happened to those cities.
She showed a movie with explicit homosexual sex scenes in it?
Ever wonder why Jewish people are often hated.
It has nothing to do with Jesus. It has to do with attempts often coming from Jewish Intellectuals to degenerate a society.
Nothing can justify what Nazi Germany did to her people. Nothing. But the reason Jews were such a target back then was because during the Weimar Republic there were Jewish intellectuals and Jews in Art who were promoting some very degenerate things within German society.
Anita Berber for example was a famous erotic dancer of the time whose stage acts revolved around masturbation, cocaine, and lesbian love.
Magnus Hirschfeld co-wrote and acted in the 1919 film Anders als die Andern ("Different From the Others"), where actor Conrad Veidt played possibly the first homosexual character ever written for cinema.
It is an unfortunate truth that in German society at that time prominent Jewish citizens were polluting German society with filth which caused a backlash. That backlash happened in the most unjustified way possible, and ironically put perhaps predictably most of the people who were responsible for the degeneracy were able to escape Germany leaving mostly innocents to suffer.
Filth will in the end be rejected by society. It is an act of self preservation. Hopefully this rejection will not take an unacceptable form like it did in Germany, but still why does she want to create such ill will against the Jewish people by showing that film?
Anonymous,
Please spare us the nonsense about Israel losing the war last summer
because we've "forsaken God". We lost the war because our military leaders weren't prepared, our defense minister is probably the worst defense minister we've ever had, and our government is totally dysfunctional. No delusions about God, if you don't mind.
Tim,
Don't look now, but I believe your anti-Semitism is showing...
Let me tell you what's up with that movie...
It is obviously meant to address an audience that knows nothing about what's going on in the region.
It definately reenforces certain stereotypes about arabs and israelis. Lets take it from the top.
The movie is about an Israeli soldier who falls in love with a palestinian man, after they meet on a check point.
They meet in tel-aviv, where life seems to be so smooth away from the conflict. The movie shows arabs with donkeys, women giving birth at checkpoints, it shows the poor face of the palestinian populations. On the other hand, it shows how cool life is on the other side, sex, drugs, parties, flowers and beaches, carefree youth..etc.
The palestinian guy goes to tel aviv and he seems to like it, he finds a black market job but escapes back to his town fearing getting caught. The israeli man goes for him and they meet again.
The palestinan guy's sister is getting married to a person working with the islamic jihad, he manages to arrange for a suicide bombing in tel-aviv. The israeli army reacts by killing the sister.
Then the palestinian guy, devastated with his sister's death, goes to tel aviv, hugs his israeli lover, and blow thier bodies to ashes. Despite that during the whole movie, he was shown as some one who is very peaceful, always arguing against violence and trying to convince his people there's another way.. he just gave it all up, gave up his life and his lovers life.
For a foreign audience, i think the final image is that arabs will blow themselves afterall, no matter what. That was a huge disappointment.
It is a movie afterall, and the audience that viewed it is a very critical, highly educated in film studies, besides being professional journalists. It is a crowd that can make up their minds based on well informed perspectives.
All that stuff about nazis and jews, well, there were many stories about nazis being child molesters, starting all the way at the top. No one is innocent here.
Here in sweden homosexuality is accepted and integrated in the social norms, even giving a title for a group of people based on their sexual orientation could be insulting around here, they are what they are and everyone is entitled to be what they want to be. Academia here is very liberal, open to all sorts of ideologies, and is nurturing diversity. Nakedness is not a big deal here, even on public television, the point behind showing the movie was not about the homosexual explicit scenes, it was about the 'bigger picture', which unfortunately was very disappointing.
The big picture seems to be that they have a lot of Gay Sex in Tel-Aviv. Perhaps part of the reason the Palestinian blew himself up with his homosexual lover is because of what the Israeli turned him into. A homosexual. Obviously he must have had some homosexual tendencies himself but might have been able to suppress them had the Israeli not encourage him in this behavior.
The Palestinian was obviously ashamed of the behavior he was engaging in with the Israeli and that is why he made sure the Israeli died with him.
I doubt he will be seeing virgins.
"For a foreign audience, i think the final image is that Arabs will blow themselves after all, no matter what."
Well, you know what the scorpion said.
"Can't help it. It's my nature."
Once long ago in the vast lands of the desert there was a great and vast river that had to be crossed for animals to seek food and water elsewhere in the desert. As it was on this day Fox had come to the point where it had to cross the river in its travels. As it stood contemplating the best way to cross the river safely a Scorpion came upon it and began to talk to Fox.
"Fox as I was walking along the river bank looking for food I noticed a particularly easy place to cross the river where the water is not so deep and not so swift. As it is I would like to cross over myself also but as I am so small it would be impossible. Would you be willing to take me across if I show you this place to cross the river?" asked Scorpion.
"Why should I take you across? How could I possibly trust you will not sting me on the way across?" asked Fox.
"Why would I sting you? For if I stung you it would mean you would drown then both of us would die." replied Scorpion.
Fox thought this over for a bit while carefully watching Scorpion with a distrustful eye. Eventually Fox said, "Show me where the place is and I will take you across."
"First place me on your back and then I will show you. For otherwise you may jump in and leave me behind once I show you." replied Scorpion.
Fox thought this over for a bit while carefully watching Scorpion with a distrustful eye. After a few minutes of thinking Fox reluctantly walked over to Scorpion and allowed Scorpion to climb onto its back.
Scorpion directed Fox to where the river was not so deep nor so swift such that it was a safer place to cross over. As Fox was swimming across the river and had reached the middle of the river Fox felt a sharp stinging sensation on its back and realized it had been stung by Scorpion. Fox cried out, "How could you sting me we shall both drown now?"
"I couldn't help it," said the scorpion. "It's my nature."
Jewish societies will always be degenerate and Arabs will always blow themselves up. Both Jews and Arabs seem very destructive, albeit in different ways.
Gay sex, ugh. It is too bad that Tel Aviv and Israeli society in general is going the way of the Weimar Republic.
hey it wasnt a fox, last i knew it was a frog (read the post about peace journalism with jake lynch, i wrote it about a year ago).
jews are gay, arabs are suicide bomber - give me a break man! you can't be serious.
90% of arabs doing want israel, and 90% of israelis would not trust an arab, what i am trying to do is get the remaining 20% to sit down on the table and find creative solutions, not necessarly have gay sex, but if they do, then making love is far better than making war, no?
Is destroying a society from within by perverting its culture worst than attempting to destroy it through explosives?
Good question. In the end I think it is more destructive to a society to have its culture perverted.
Arabs rejoice for the suicide bombers. It is part of their culture to embrace death.
Jews rejoice for their intellectuals who promote all kinds of deviant behavior. In that way their culture embraces death as well.
But for the Jews at least it isn't too late. Jews might have an tradition of their intellectual leaders embracing perversion but they also have a rich religious tradition that rejects such stuff as well. I am sure there are many many Israelis who would be offended by "the Bubble" if they saw it. They just need to stop being intimidated by the so called intellectuals and return to their religious traditions.
Praying to G-d is the best way for them to start returning Israel to their moral foundations. As soon as they start acting like G-d's chosen people, G-d will again reveal G-d's greatness on the battlefield.
Perhaps Israel's leaders can have a national day of Prayer where people throughout Israel gather together in the towns square or somewhere and pray for victory over Israel's enemies. With all these people praying all at once for the same thing, perhaps then G-d will grant Israel's prayers and crush their enemies as G-d has done so many times in the past.
"not necessarily have gay sex, but if they do, then making love is far better than making war, no?"
NO!
Not gay sex. G-d has supported even demanded that Israel go to war at times in Israel's history, but at no time in Israel's history has G-d approved of Gay Sex.
2 Chronicles 24:20
Then the Spirit of G-d came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, "This is what G-d says: 'Why do you disobey the L-RD's commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the L-RD, he has forsaken you.' "
"We lost the war because our military leaders weren't prepared, our defense minister is probably the worst defense minister we've ever had, and our government is totally dysfunctional. "
And why does G-d allow Israel to have such poor leaders?
It all goes back to obeying G-d covenant.
Exodus 19:4-6
4 'You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, 6 you [a] will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites."
Leviticus 18:22
22 " 'Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable
"Is destroying a society from within by perverting its culture worst than attempting to destroy it through explosives?"
i do not see it as perversion. this is the 21st century. Think about this on a personal level, would you rather say your son gay, or your son dead?
I respect the fact that you are a religious person, and you are very knowledgeable of your faith, I do not have a problem with that. I have a problem when knowledgeable people like yourself prefer the death of a society if it doesnt follow your faith.
I mean if 'g_d' exists, let 'g_d' be the judge, not you, after all you are a human like any other and you will be judged the same.
"arabs embrace death"???
I'd like to invite you to read beyond the media propaganda, go and sit, live and talk with Arabs and see if they embrace death.
In all societies, there are extremists, criminals, 'terrorists', and there are good, open people who want realistic solutions and decent living. I think in total the number of the latter exceeds by far the first one. Take a long break and try to see things from a different view, perhaps, a personal one, put yourself in other peoples shoes and try to understand their mentality.
I personally think it is religion that has brought the most devastating wars and human atrocities.
" Think about this on a personal level, would you rather say your son gay, or your son dead?"
I rather say that my son is dead than to say that my son is gay.
Especially if it was an honourable death fighting for his country.
See the enemy thinks that they love death more than we love life.
The truth is that we love killing more than they like dying.
Just ask the city fathers of Hiroshima.
I rest my case.
There's no war (or country)worth dying for. Life is too precious, and this is from an an Arab!
I would die for my country.
But I would much rather make the other guy die for his.
yee haa..
can you hear me all the way back to the dark ages?
No, just a far back as World War II.
One of our great generals once said
"Now, I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country. Men, all this stuff you’ve heard about America not wanting to fight, wanting to stay out of the war, is a lot of horse dung. Americans traditionally love to fight. All real Americans love the sting of battle. When you were kids, you all admired the champion marble shooter, the fastest runner, the big league ball player, the toughest boxer. Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser. Americans play to win all the time. I wouldn’t give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That’s why Americans have never lost and will never lose a war. Because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans..."
We have the finest food and equipment, the best spirit and the best men in the world. You know, by God I actually pity those poor bastards we’re going up against. By God, I do. We’re not just going to shoot the bastards, we’re going to cut out their living guts and use them to grease the treads of our tanks. We’re going to murder those lousy Hun bastards by the bushel."
The Left in America has tried to stamp out that kind of attitude in America. But it is still there waiting to be revealed.
In the end it is more destructive to a society to have its culture perverted. But the Left hasn't succeeded as much as they think they have. You can still find the WWII spirit in America. Sure all our dregs in our society get all the Press like that bitch who offed herself last week, but I live here and I know that there are still many people out there in America with rough hands and ready hearts who are willing to do violence on those who seek to harm us.
Do you know how popular 24 is in America?
http://www.fox.com/24/
A new leadership is rising in America. One who didn't grow up during the 1960s with flower power and all that stuff but instead grew up with Ronald Reagan, Rambo, etc.
Do you know how angry people here are about that terrorist attack Monday. The government is holding us back, trying to hold us back, but you can only do so for so long.
Americans are buying guns like never before. We are practicing them in our forests. We are urging our government to fight Islamoterror in the Jack Bauer way.
You should sometime list to Mike Savage. He is the voice of the people now, not the Left, and not the neo-cons (neo-cons were never true conservatives but instead were liberals who became conservatives).
http://streamingradioguide.com/radio-show.php?show=328
http://streamingradioguide.com/radio-show.php
?show=328
All one line of course
http://streamingradioguide.com
/radio-show.php?show=328
I can't see that your american 'patriotism' fits under the topic here. Please go rave somewhere else, preferrable within your borders, after all the whole world is sick of cowboy politics, other cultures have matured a long time ago, and you're still stuck in WWII, if not the dark ages.
This conversation is over.
My heroes have always been Cowboys.
Did you see "Die Hard".
The terrorist in that movie called John McClane (the Character Bruce Willis was playing) a cowboy.
To that he said Yippie Ki-Yay and totally defeated the terrorist.
You are right.
We somehow lost sight of the topic here.
The topic here is how decadent Israel has become (worst than the Weimar Republic?) and has lost G_ds favor as well as their will to fight.
But, in America you still have a great number of Godly people willing to stand up and fight for their country. It is just that our government is holding them back. Someday something really big (even bigger than 9-11) will happen and these people will be held back no longer.
Is the same true for Israel? I can't say. Perhaps Tel Aviv isn't like most of Israel for if it is Israel will soon be destroyed.
People like the guy who wrote "the Bubble" will be the end of Israel unless the Israeli people rise up against their dysfunctional government in some kind of revolution and destroy their enemy within.
Perhaps patriot Israelis should go and attack Tel Aviv.
"A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within."
-- Will Durant
That is what is happening to Israel right now. It has become divided and decadent and has been abandoned by G-d for not living up to their end of the Covenant.
Interesting analysis.
Israel's biggest threat to its survival isn't Hezbollah, the Palestinians, or even Iran.
Israel's biggest threat to its survival is Tel Aviv.
Perhaps there needs to be a revolution in Israel. Patriotic Israelis should rise up and attack Tel Aviv. Israel's survival may depend upon it.
Then perhaps once Tel Aviv is under control they can start fulfilling their part of G_d's Covenant with them and then G_d will help them destroy their external enemies.
I don't have the energy nor the willingness to argue with such stubborn extreme religious views. Your views represent the different side of the terrorist coin.
Rami sorry you got such awful bigoted comments for your efforts to find another way. Surely you don't deserve them. What a shame. Do you know about Just Vision? It's a Palestinian-Israeli production company that just made a documentary called Encounter Point, about Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilders. See www.justvision.com This is what we need to focus on: it is far harder to build bridges than to live behind a wall of hate.
hi rami, i'm sorry that i didn't see your comment until now. at least i'm finally back blogging! imaan
Hej Imaan, valkommen tillbaka. Hoppas allt e bra med dig, jag vill titta pa din blogg nu.
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