some recap of what happened this friday on Sheikh Jarahh

שלום לכולן/ם...

חשוב לי לשתף אתכן/ם בחוויה שחוויתי אתמול בשייח ג'ראח, ולבקש- תבואו, תבואו, תבואו

אני אשמח אם תקדישו כמה דקות, ותקראו עד הסוף. זה נושא חשוב ביותר

אתמול הגעתי לשייח ג'ראח, כמו כל יום שישי. עד כה, ההפגנות עברו פחות או יותר בשקט.

אתמול, ראיתי לנגד עיניי את המחזה הכי נוראי שראיתי בחיי, ובהמשך, גם הרגשתי אותו על גופי.

אתמול ראיתי לנגד עיניי פשוט שקרים והמצאות, כנראה שיש להם סיבה לשקר- לשוטרים, למתנחלים...

המהומות התחילו כאשר היינו בחצר אחד הבתים שנלקחו (בלשון המעטה), ומפגין משך את דגל ישראל שהיה תלוי שם על הקיר.

השוטרים החליטו באותו רגע לעצור אותו. הם התנפלו עליו, הכו אותו, ואת כל מי שהיה באיזור.

אפשר להתווכח אם זה בסדר למשוך את דגל ישראל ככה או לא, אך משום מה, השוטרים הרגישו צורך עז לשקר, וסיפרו שמפגינים ניסו לפלוש לתוך הבית.

הייתי ממש במרחק צעד מההתרחשות, אני בטוחה ב100% במה שראיתי. השוטרים שיקרו!

משם התחילו מהומות ברחוב. המפגינים ניסו למנוע את המעצר, ולא נתנו לניידת ליסוע, היה ריב בין בחור פלשתיני למתנחל ועוד...

הדבר הכי עצוב עבורי היה המחזה של ילדים קטנים רצים ברחוב ובוכים, מחפשים את ההורים שלהם.

הלכתי לילדים, נתתי להם יד ולקחתי אותם הביתה.

כך יצא שנשארתי מקדימה בזמן שהשוטרים ניסו לפזר את ההפגנה.

יצאתי מחצר הבית ונטפל אליי שוטר. הוא דחף אותי עם המון כוח ואמר לי "אסור לך להיות פה". עניתי לו שאסור לו לגעת בי, ושאני רוצה את הפרטים שלו. הוא כמובן לא נתן לי.

הוא המשיך לדחוף אותי, והכניס אותי לתוך המולה של מפגינים ושוטרים. הוא העיף אותי על הרצפה, ומשם אני זוכרת בעיקר בעיטות בכל הגוף

יאמר לזכותם של המגבינקים- שוויון זכויות בין גברים לנשים, גם נשים החטיפו לי

אחד המפגינים נתן לי יד והוציא אותי משם. ישבתי בצד, וירדו לי דמעות. לא מהכאב הפיזי, אלא מהכאב שבני אדם מסוגלים לנהוג כך.

חשוב לי לציין שכל אותו זמן שחטפתי, לא הרמתי את ידי ולו לרגע.

תוך כדי שישבתי על המדרכה בוכה, הגיע אליי שוטר. אל תטעו, לא בשביל להציע עזרה. הוא אמר לי "אסור לך להיות פה, תעופי", ואמרתי לו שקשה לי ללכת. הוא אמר לי ללכת למעלה ולחפש אמבולנס.

לפני המהומות, ראיתי מתנחלים שמזייפים תמונות של ילדים פלשתינים שמרביצים להם. פשוט לקחו אותם ושמו את הידיים שלהם על עצמם, וצילמו.

ראיתי שוטרים רעולי פנים, רצים ומפזרים גז מדמיע וגז פלפל

השוטרים הפצועים עליהם דווח בחדשות, "נפצעו" מהגז שהם התיזו על עצמם. כל כך אלימים, וכל כך לא מבחינים למי הם מרביצים, שהם פוגעים זה בזה. תוך כדי, הם עצרו 21 מפגינים, כאשר חלקם ממש ניסו להגיע להסדר עם השוטרים.

.נשמע כמו פאשיזם, לא?

האלימות שהייתה אתמול, עשוייה להרתיע ולגרום לכם לא לבוא. זה באמת מפחיד.

אבל מפחיד הרבה יותר לאבד את חופש הביטוי שלנו, מפחיד לתת לחוסר האנושיות הזאת להתקיים.

אני מזכירה לכם- יש שם אנשים שהוצאו בכוח מביתם!

אם אנחנו לא יוצאים נגד זה, אנחנו חלק מזה.

ורק אנחנו יכולים לשנות את זה

המילים שלי לא יספיקו בשביל שתבינו מה קורה שם.

בבקשה, תבואו.

התמיכה שלנו הכי חשובה בעולם, היא ממש מחזיקה את תושבי הכפר.

למי שלא יודע,יוצאת כל יום שישי צעדה ב13 וחצי מרחבת המשביר, ומגיעה בסביבות 14 וחצי לשייח ג'ראח.

ניתן להגיע גם ישירות להפגנה.

--

נכתב ע"י יעל מלין, נציגת החוג לחינוך באגודת הסטודנטים סיעת 'קמפוס לכולנו'

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By M C

"Remember the solidarity shown to Palestine here and everywhere... and remember also that there is a cause to which many people have committed themselves, difficulties and terrible obstacles notwithstanding. Why? Because it is a just cause, a noble ideal, a moral quest for equality and human rights."

--Prof. Edward W. Said (1935-2003)

On Friday more then 150 people marched to Sheikh Jarrah, to show support and solidarity with the families who has been evicted from their houses, and those facing evictions. Upon arriving at the neighborhood, the protesters continued to the Al-Kurd’s home where settlers have taken over parts of the house, making the Al-Kurd lives a living hell.

The marchers chanted and spoke against the settlers and the protection they receive from the Israeli courts in their attempt to remove all Palestinians from East Jerusalem. Not surprisingly, the police and Israeli soldiers protected the settlers and expressed their banal and blunt opposition to the protesters in words ( “why are we suppose to be around those who are against Jews?”) and later in actions.

After an Israeli flag which represents colonialism and more then 60 year of apartheid and ethnic cleansing was removed from the stolen settler house window, the police charged the protesters, beating and arresting 23 people, three of them internationals.

Requests by some arrestees for medical attention after being pepper- sprayed and beaten were ignored by the police immediately after the arrests. While one person was lying on the ground, calling for help and expressing deep pain at the police station, the cops were watching videos taken at the protest, and talking casually between themselves. After an hour the police officers finally agreed to call an ambulance, but refused to allow medical personal to evocate the wounded person (although a medics insistence on it). He was allowed to be taken to a hospital only after the intervention of lawyers.

All the protesters were eventually taken to the main police station in Jerusalem, where they were left to stand outside in the cold night for hours. Six protesters were signaled out by the cops, deeming them to be the “leaders” and the instigators of the demonstration. Many request to see lawyers were ignored and silenced (at one point as a direct order of the police personal in charged of the investigation), and all of the arrested protesters were charged of attacking police personal, rioting, and refusing to dispersed.

The five women who were arrested were taken to the general population in a women prison and requests by one of them for medical attention were also ignored. The eighteen men were taken to the police detention center in Jerusalem. Although it is illegal to arrest a person for more then 24 hours without a judge decision, the arrestees were held for more then 36 hours before seeing a judge (and more then 12 hours without being fed). The six person who were singled out by the police at first were charged with rioting and for “putting the public at risk” with their actions. As their statement the six express their concerns at the police action and at the persecution request that they will not be allowed to enter the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood for three month. The judge who behaved very annoyingly all through the procedure, not allowing the defense lawyers to speak freely, ruled that all the six are not to enter Sheikh Jarrah for the next thirty days. While he was speaking the chants and yelling of tens of activists were heard from a demonstration held outside of the court.

The 12 persons arrested were not charged with anything, but were also ordered not to enter Sheikh Jarrah for 30 days. The three internationals were taken by the immigration police, prompting the lawyers to quit from representing their clients for the illegality of treating the three international activists differently from the rest of the arrestees (I’m not very familiar with what happened around that).

Although the police actions, supported by the court ruling were designed to discourage those who participate (or those who are planning to participate in the future) in solidarity activities, the opposite has been achieved. The police and military were exposed again for their violence and protection of Israel’s racist policies against Palestinians, and the Israeli court was exposed for its criminalization of those challenging those policies. One activist was heard yelling leaving the court “next week we will meet again in Sheikh Jarrah”. Upon their release from the police detention (some only at 4am, hours after the trial ended), the arrestees all express their intention to come back and support the just struggle of Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah.

Free the Sheikh Jarrah six!

Support the Palestinian struggle in Sheikh Jarrah against forced removal!

Unity in struggle,

M

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For over a month now we have been having weekly demonstrations walking from the center of jerusalem to the neighborhood of sheikh jarrah, in protest against settlers taking over houses of palestinians as part of a plan to jewify the area. the yasamba, our action samba drumming group take part in this weekly, giving fun samba rhythms to the shouts and slogans. in the last few weeks the march was very successful. we got to shekh jarraj, played sang, shouted and danced with the kids and families, helping them to take out their protest and hate against their houses being taken away. this week was a bit different. when we got there, many border control police was there. we got into the yard of one of the houses that were taken by the settlers, as we do every week. we played and shouted and at some point someone took off one of the israeli flags that were next to the house. then the police (magav - border control ) started attacking, pushing and hitting the demonstrators. they said we tried to take over the house, which we didnt and actually have plenty of video footage to prove it. but we are used to have the police lie about these things. from there they started arresting protesters violently. in the end 21 of our friends were arrested but they were after all of us and tried to arrest as many of possible. they even used peper spray, u know the small ones u carry with u, but directly to the eyes. by the way, in all the new they said 6 policemen were hurt well, the only violence was from their side and the ones that were hurt was because of their own pepper spray that they didnt know how to use. officer yaniv and his friends dont know anything about the law. its funny that they are the ones who get the weapons to protect it...

the police brutally pushed us all the way up to the main street. it was important for us to stay near the families because every friday, on their way to pray, the settlers beat up the palestinian families, "oneg shabat" we call it.

a third of the drummers were arrested along with our drums - imported from brazil and worth over 7000 shekel.

and me? I was thrown on the floor one time, the second time the policeman pushed me using my breast as handles. I started shouting that he is touching my boobs (that the word that came out). when oficer yaniv started pushing me again I shouted at him dont touch my boobs. he shouted back " look at yourself u are so ugly who would want to touch u?" . I am confused, so am I not pretty enough to get sexualy harraed by magav? so why did they do it?

next, a lady magav (well I wouldnt say she was a real lady) grabbed me. I started choking cause she was pulling my sweater while accusing me of assaulting a policeman (needless to say I was passive), somehow i pulled away. most of us went through a similar experience yesterday. we wanted to have a non violent protest with drums, dance, shouts and singing and we got slamed, pushed and sexually harassed. as a finishing present 3 settlers spit on me after leaving their sabbath prayer. the mass of settlers continued walking to the neighborhood, throwing stones at palestinians and their cars (escorted by police) -though shal not do any work????? yea right!!!

we went down to the russian compound to check on our 21 friends that were arrested. they were put over night in prison. we met there one of the palestinians that was hurt from the settler's stones (and his car). he came to press charges. they wouldn't let him even get into the police station for over 3 hours. if it was the opposite they would be giving him heroic medals inside.

so what do we have? democracy? law? justice? only hate is the motivation of the policing forces. I hope one day they will understand and start hating themselves.

kick out the settlers!!! free the arrested!!! bring us back our drums!!!!!!!

by Maya Gutman 

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ENGLISH FOLLOWS HEBREW

10 בדצמבר, 2009 שייח' ג'ראח (2)

כתמיד כשמדובר באלימות, אי אפשר לגולל סיפור נהיר. סדר הדברים מתערבל, מה קרה קודם, מה אחר-כך, מי נפצע מתי. הרגעים נפרשים ללא הרף, מתנגשים, חופפים, תמונות מכסות זו על זו או משתלבות. הכאב הגופני נצור אי-שם בבטחה יחסית בכור המצרף ההזוי של הזיכרון, התואם באופן מוזר את כור המצרף החיצוני של הפעולה כפי שהתהוותה לנגד עיניך. הפעם לא אנסה לספר סיפור סדור על אופניו.

* שעת אחה"צ אפורה, קרה של יום שישי. חורף. לאוויר טעם של עוד-מעט-גשם. הצעדה השבועית לשייח' ג'ראח, אל הבתים הפלסטיניים שלתוכם פלשו מתנחלים. אנו צועדים כרגיל לקול הלמות תופים, צועקים סיסמאות. לא תגנוב ולא תרצח – צאו מיד משייח' ג'ראח! וכמה באנגלית: Five, Six, Seven, Eight ,Israel is a Fascist State! דומני שה'אנרכיסטים' סיפקו את האחרונה. האם אני מסכים איתם? לא ממש. אבל זה לא הרגע לדקדק בקטנות. ומה עם מדינה 'פרוטו-פשיסטית'? לא מתאים למשקל הקריאה. בכל אופן, זה לא מדויק. בתחומי הקו הירוק, לא כולל את מזרח ירושלים, ישראל היא מעין דמוקרטיה-למחצה. מן העבר השני, בפלסטין, מתקיימת מדינה יהודית נוספת, פורעת-חוק, נטולת-רסן, וכן – פשיסטית. הבעיה היא שהמדינה השנייה הזו כבר השתלטה במידה רבה על הראשונה.

* אנו ניצבים בחצר הבית שנגזל, לצדנו בעליו הפלסטינים. אנו כמאה-מאה וחמישים אנשים, אולי פי שניים ממספרנו בשבוע שעבר. חיילים רבים ואנשי מג"ב, גם הם רבים מאשר בהפגנת השבוע שעבר. המחאה גוברת. האווירה נפיצה. הזעם גואה. התופים מכים יותר ויותר חזק. ילדים מהמשפחות שנשדדו קושרים דגלי פלסטין קטנים מפלסטיק על חוט הנמתח מול מחרוזת דגלי ישראל מפלסטיק שהמתנחלים עטו בהם את הדלת והחלון. בחצר פזורים עדיין שרידי מה שפעם היו חייה של משפחה: צעצועים, כלי מטבח, ספה ישנה, שולחן רעוע – על הכול ירד גשם השבוע, חלק מהשרידים שקע בבוץ. אני חושב ומקווה שהסיסמאות שאנו קוראים לעבר החיילים והמתנחלים מעצבנות אותם. "משייח' ג'ראח לבילעין – מדינת פלסטין". אני מביט סביבי: רואה בעיקר צעירים, עדינים אך קשוחים, רבים מהם סטודנטים, כמה מהם מוכרים לי מהשיעורים שלי, וכן מוזיקאים, ציירים, משוררים, מודטים, פעילים, הורים צעירים עם תינוקות עטופים וצמודים לחזה – כולם לא-אלימים בעליל, כמובן. וההפגנה חוקית בעליל. אין כלל ספק בכך. המשטרה עצמה סיפקה את ההיתר להפגין.

* איכשהו זה מתחיל. מישהו נתן פקודה. אני לא יודע מי. בהמשך מישהו אומר שיתכן שזה קשור לדגלים. לא ראיתי – אולי אחד המפגינים הגיע לחלון הבית הנגזל וקרע משם דגל ישראל מפלסטיק. אולי זה היה הגץ. אבל אני חושב שבכל מקרה בער להם לקרוע את הקהל במקום. וכשרגע השלהוב מגיע, זה מתחיל אי-שם בקצה האוהל שהקימה המשפחה במה שנותר להם מחצרם ואז מתפשט בקשתות ומעגלים מתרחבים, וסוחף פנימה כל אחד מאתנו. אני נשטף בנחשול אדם הבוקע מהחצר ולתוך הרחוב. תפסו אחד מאנשינו ודוחפים אותו כנגד ניידת משטרה, אנחנו מקיפים אותם ומנסים לשחרר את העצור שלנו מלפיתתם.

* גלים-גלים של מדים ירוקים ואחריהם גלים בכחול – מגיעה תגבורת שוטרים. נשמעות צווחות רבות. אנשי מג"ב, כרגיל, הם התוקפנים מכולם. הם מכניסים אגרופים, מכים בדרכם קדימה לתוך ההמון, תופסים קורבנות אקראיים, מפילים אותם לקרקע, תופסים להם את הזרועות מאחורי הגב ומרחיקים אותם. התיפוף נמשך, מגיע לשיא, שוכך וגובר לחילופין. אנו עומדים איתן. משלבים זרועות במעגל כדי למנוע מהם לדחוק אחד מהקורבנות שתפסו אל תוך ניידת. הרבה צעקות. הם פורצים את המעגל, גוררים את טרפם בזרועות על הקרקע.

* משוטט בבועה של שקט יחסי. עוד ועוד תקיפות מסחררות לאורך כל הרחוב. עוד גל. כעת כבר גלוי הדם ונראה שהם נהנים מן הטעם. רוצים עוד. עוד ועוד. הם פושטים על שניים מן המתופפים, עוצרים אותם. רבים אחרים נראים כקורבנות אקראיים. סנדי אומר לי: 'הם כמו פלוגות הסער. זו התמונה היחידה שעולה'. כמה מאנשינו בדמעות. עוד מתקפה. נערות נגררות מן המקום, צווחות. שרה מוטחת ארצה, מוכה, נגררת. שוב אנו מנסים לסגור רווחים. עוד גלים. הזמן מתפשט, גמיש, מתפתל ומתקפל כנגד עצמו ללא לאות. הסבל לא ייפסק לעולם. כמה מאנשי מג"ב מתיזים עלינו תרסיס מעורב של פלפל וגז מדמיע, בטווח קרוב מאוד, הישר לפנים. זה לא דומה לרימוני הגז המדמיע שאני מכיר היטב: זה מרוכז, בוער וצורב כאילו חדר לתוך כל נקבוביות העיר ובמיוחד לעיניים. אפילו עכשיו, כעבור שעתיים, פניי ושפתיי כאילו נצרבו באש.

* בלב הכול – יתכן שלא תאמינו לי – קשיש פלסטיני מאחת המשפחות שגורשו מופיע ובידו מגש נחושת עמוס בספלוני קפה קטנים לבנים מפלסטיק, עם קפה מהביל. הוא נע בינינו כבחלום, מארח אנושי נחוש הדואג לשלום אורחיו. בשקט הוא מכבד אותנו בקפה. צרורות של מכות קשות מסתחררים סביבו ללא הרף.

* גיס של שוטרים דוחפים אותנו בכוח ומרחיקים אותנו בהדרגה מן הבתים שנגזלו, לעבר מעלה הרחוב. מספרנו קטן: כחמישה-עשר איש כבר נעצרו. כמה מהם מובלים, שבויים, אל תוך החצר, ואז – נודע לנו בהמשך – לתוך הבית, לקול לעגם של המתנחלים הנוכחים במקום. כעת הם אבודים לנו, מחוץ למגע. אנחנו מכינים רשימה משוערת של כל מי שידוע לנו שנעצרו. בינתיים נתפסים עוד ועוד ללא כל סיבה נראית לעין, ומוצעדים לעבר הניידות – צי רציני. כעשרה מאנשינו נפצעו. אלון, משפטן בעל שם עולמי, עמיתי באוניברסיטה, מנהל ויכוח חסר תוחלת עם הקצינים: מה שהם עושים בנו, הוא אומר להם, מנוגד לחלוטין לחוק. הוא מצטט את החוק. החיילים מכים גם אותו.

* צעקות בחרוזים נשמעות באור הקלוש של שעת אחה"צ מאוחרת: "חייל, הקשב! מותר לסרב". עוד פנינה: אם תאמרו להם "חובה לסרב!" אתם עלולים להיעצר בגין הסתה. "פושעים! פחדנים! גנבים! אתם מגינים על גנבים!" כמה מתופפים עזי-נפש עדיין הולמים בקצב. הקצין הבכיר מנסה נואשות לצעוק במגאפון שעלינו להתפזר מיד, אחרת ניעצר כולנו. התופים מחרישים את קולו. עוד מתקפות, עוד גל. עוד ועוד ועוד. ככל שזה נמשך, מתבהרת והולכת התמונה: זה לא עניין אקראי, פעולת שיטור שיצאה מכלל שליטה. מישהו למעלה החליט לשים קץ למחאה במזרח ירושלים.

* הערב נר ראשון של חנוכה, עוד אחד מאותם חגי חירות יהודים. הבוקר השכם הציתו מתנחלים מסגד בכפר יסוף בצפון הגדה. הם הותירו גרפיטי על הקירות: "נשרוף את כולכם!" ספרי קוראן נקרעו והוצתו, שטיחי תפילה גם כן. יהודים עשו זאת. חשוב להבין את משמעות המשפט הזה. יש משקעים אצלנו למלה "שריפה". אין ספק שמנגנון הכיבוש יגן על מבצעי הפשע. וגם אם בדרך נס הם ייתפסו וייעצרו, ובכוח נס גדול עוד יותר יועמדו לדין, אפשר לסמוך על בתי המשפט הישראליים שישחררו אותם בלא עונש. כך פני הדברים כבר עשרות שנים. חיילים, מג"ב, ובוודאי גם סוכנים בלבוש אזרחי – אלה המכים את הסטודנטים שלי, מרססים אותנו בגז, דוחקים בנו באלות ברחוב כאילו היינו בקר. כל זאת כדי להגן על המתנחלים הבריונים שהשתלטו על בתים אלה. אותם חיילים ושוטרים מגוננים דרך קבע על מתנחלים ברחבי השטחים הכבושים. אני מניח אפוא שחנוכה כבר לא נחשב כשמדובר בחירות. או אולי הוא רק חוגג את חירותנו לשקר לעצמנו ולאחרים, כפי שעושה ביבי כשהוא מעמיד פנים שרצונו בשלום בעת שהוא ממשיך להשפיל את הפלסטינים ולפגוע בהם. והרי אין לזה סוף, רק חשיכה מעמיקה והולכת, תחילת החורף של הנשמה. פתאום אני תופס שאנחנו, הישראלים, מעולם לא היינו חופשיים באמת, חרף כל מה שנאמר. זהו חוק טבע: אינך יכול לצמצם בחירות האחר מבלי להזיק ואף לחסל את חירותך שלך. אני מקווה שיבוא יום והיהודים, גם הם, יגלו בעצמם את האומץ להיות בני-חורין.

תרגמה: טל הרן

December 10, 2009 Sheikh Jarrah (2)

As always in violence, it's impossible to put together a coherent story. You lose track of what happened first, what came next, who got hurt when; the moments stretch out endlessly, run together, overlap, images are superimposed or interwoven; the physical pain gets buried somewhere safe, more or less, inside the surreal limbo of your memory, which seems oddly to correspond to the external limbo of the action as you saw it unfold. So this time I won't try to tell the story. Instead, a few vignettes:

* A grey, cold Friday afternoon. Winter. Fore-taste of rain. The weekly march to Sheikh Jarrah, to the Palestinian houses that have been invaded by Israeli settlers. As usual, we march to the drums, shouting our slogans. Lo tignov ve-lo tirzach ts'u miyad mi-sheikh jarrah, "Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not murder, Get out now from Sheikh Jarrah." Some in English: "Five, six, seven, eight, Israel is a Fascist state." I think the so-called Anarchists came up with this one. Do I agree with it? Not really. But this is hardly the moment to fuss over the niceties. How about a "proto-Fascist" state? Doesn't fit the meter. Anyway, it's not quite true. Inside the Green Line, but not counting East Jerusalem, Israel is a semi-functional democracy. On the other side of it, in Palestine, there's another Jewish state, lawless, ruthless, yes, Fascist. The trouble is that the latter state has largely taken over the former.

* We stand in the courtyard of the stolen house, with the Palestinian owners beside us. There are between a hundred and a hundred and fifty of us, perhaps double what we had last week. Many soldiers and border police, also more than last week. Protest is gaining ground. The atmosphere is volatile, riddled with rage. Drums beating louder and louder. Children from the dispossessed families are tying small plastic Palestinian flags on a cord stretched opposite the string of plastic Israeli flags the settlers have draped over the door and window. The courtyard is littered, still, with the detritus that was once a family's life: toys, kitchen appliances, an old couch, a wobbly table; all have been rained on this week, some have sunk into the mud. There's probably something a little irritating to the soldiers and the settlers, I think and hope, in the chants we are hurling at them. "From Sheikh Jarrah to Bil'in/ Freedom now for Filastin." I look around me: mostly young people, gentle but tough—many students, some I know from my classes, musicians, painters, poets, meditators, activists, young parents with babies folded in slings on their breasts—all of them totally non-violent, of course; and the demonstration is perfectly legal, no question about that, the police themselves issued the permit.

* Somehow it begins. Someone gave the order. I don't know who. Later someone says it may have been connected to the flags. It's possible—I didn't see it—that one of our demonstrators reached the window of the stolen house and tore down the plastic Israeli flag. Maybe that triggered it. But I think they were anyway just itching to tear into this crowd. So when the moment comes, it starts somewhere at the edge of the family's tent set up in what's left of their own front yard and then swirls rapidly in widening arcs and circles, a vortex drawing each of us in. I am washed by a human wave out of the courtyard and into the street. They have grabbed one of our people and they are pushing him up against the command car and we surround them, trying to release our captive from their grip.

* Waves of green uniforms followed by waves of blue—police reinforcements have arrived. Many screams. The border police, as usual, are the most aggressive. Punching, fighting their way forward through the crowd, seizing victims at random, pushing them to the ground, pinning their arms behind them, carrying them off. Drumming goes on, builds toward a climax, ebbs, rises again. We stand our ground. We lock arms in a circle to keep them from forcing one of their chosen victims into a waiting police car. Much shouting. They break through, drag their prey brutally by the arms along the ground.

* Wandering in a pocket of relative silence. Eddies of dizzying attacks all along the street. Another wave. Now they have drawn blood, and they seem to like the taste of it. They want more. More and more. They go after the drummers, arrest them. Many seemingly random victims, too. Sandy says to me: "They're like storm troopers. No other image comes to mind." Some of our people are crying. Another charge. Young girls carried off, screaming. Sarah thrown to the ground, pounded, dragged over the stones. Again we try to close ranks. More waves. Time expands, elastic, twisting and turning back on itself, remorseless; this misery will never stop. Some of the border police are spraying us with an aerosol mix of chilly pepper and tear-gas, at close quarters, straight into the face. It's not like the usual tear-gas canisters I know well; this is concentrated, and it burns and scorches as if it had burrowed into the pores of your skin and, in particular, your eyes. Even now, two hours later, my face and lips feel singed by flames.

* In the middle of it all—perhaps you won't believe me—an elderly Palestinian gentleman from one of the evicted families materializes with a round bronze plate loaded with dozens of tiny white plastic cups of Turkish coffee. He moves, dreamlike, among us, an imperturbable, humane host worried about how his guests are faring. He calmly offers us coffee. Vicious bursts of staccato blows and intimate violent follies spin madly around him.

* Pushed heavily from behind by a phalanx of policemen, we are driven unevenly away from the stolen homes, toward the upper end of the street. Our numbers have diminished: some 15 have been arrested so far; by a fluke, I am not yet among them. Some of them are herded, captive, into the courtyard and then, we learn later, into the house, with the settlers there to gloat at them. They are lost to us for now, out of contact. We make rough lists of those we know are under arrest. Meanwhile more and more are seized, for no apparent reason, and marched off into the waiting vehicles—by now a considerable fleet. About ten of our people have been wounded. Alon, an internationally known jurist, my colleague at the university, is arguing fruitlessly with the officers: what they are doing, he tells them, is totally illegal. He quotes the law. The soldiers rough him up, too.

* Cries floating through the late-afternoon space, in rhymed Hebrew: "Soldiers, listen well, you have the right to refuse." Another nicety: if you say to them, "You have the duty to refuse," they can arrest you for incitement. "Criminals! Cowards! Thieves! You're protecting thieves!" A few courageous drummers are still beating out the time. The senior officer tries desperately to shout through the megaphone that we must disperse at once or we will all be arrested; his voice is drowned out by the drums. More attacks, yet another wave. On and on and on. The longer it goes on, the clearer it becomes that this is no random business, a police action that got out of hand; someone higher up has taken a decision to stamp out dissent in East Jerusalem.

* Tonight is the first candle of Hanukah, another one of those alleged Jewish festivals of freedom. Early this morning, at Kafr Yasuf in the northern West Bank, settlers set fire to a mosque. They left some graffiti on the walls: "We will burn you all." Copies of the Koran were torn and torched, prayer-rugs burnt. Jews did this. It's important to understand what this sentence means. Burning means something to us. No doubt the occupation system will protect the perpetrators; and even if, by some miracle, they're pursued and arrested and, by a still greater miracle, brought to trial, you can depend upon the Israeli courts to set them free without punishment. It's been that way for decades now. Soldiers, border police, probably plain-clothes intelligence agents too—they're the ones beating my students, spraying us with gas, prodding us like cattle along the street; all this to protect the settler hooligans who have taken over these homes. These same soldiers and policemen routinely protect the settlers all over the territories. So I guess Hanukah doesn't really count any more when it comes to freedom; or maybe it merely celebrates our freedom to lie to ourselves and to others, as Bibi does when he pretends he wants peace as he hurts and humiliates the Palestinians ever further. There's no end to it, either, only deepening darkness, early winter of the soul. Suddenly I realize that we Israelis have never truly been free, despite what we say; for nature has a law: you cannot diminish another's freedom without impairing or destroying your own. I hope a day will come when the Jews, too, will have the courage to be free.

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23 Arrested in Sheikh Jarrah, Scores Beaten During Demonstration

Posted on December 13th, 2009.

International volunteers from PSP joined hundreds of other solidarity activists in Sheikh Jarrah on Friday afternoon to march in support of the Al-Kurd family, who have been forced from their home by right-wing Israeli settlers. The demonstration began peacefully, with activists gathering in the yard of the Al-Kurd family. However, Israeli military and police soon began attempting to disperse the crowd, using tear gas and pepper spray. What began as a peaceful demonstration ended in the arrest of 23 people, including 3 international activists, one a volunteer with PSP. Another member of PSP was lightly injured when a police van ran over his foot. Members of the police and military were observed kicking activists and beating them with their batons. After the demonstration had been broken up a group of religious settlers was accompanied by military soldiers past the group of remaining activists, spitting at them, kicking them, and being very antagonistic. The group then continued down the street, where they beat a Palestinian man who was standing in front of a school. Israeli activists called an ambulance for the man, who was severely injured. An Israeli professor from Ben Gurion University was also taken to the hospital for treatment after being severely pepper-sprayed in the eyes.
The 23 solidarity activists were held over shabbat (Friday and Saturday) and taken to court 36 hours after their arrests. There, they were ordered banned from the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah for 30 days. 6 Israeli activists were singled out as “leaders” and have had indictments filed against them for unlawful assembly. In a rare move, immigration police entered the courtroom to take the 3 international activists, presumably to start deportation procedures. Though this is often the practice of immigration police, they are technically not allowed to arrest people with valid visas; they must first invalidate the visas before beginning deportation. This was noted both by the defense attorneys, who walked out of the courtroom in protest over the internationals’ illegal arrests, and by the presiding judge. Nearly 100 people gathered outside the courthouse, protesting the arrests. After hearing of the illegal detention of the 3 internationals, after they had been ordered released by the judge, activists attempted to block the immigation police van. Perhaps because of the obvious violation of law (and threats of charging the immigration police with kidnapping), the three internationals were released later from immigration detention centers, their visas still valid.
The al-Kurd family is one of dozens of Palestinian families who have had their homes confiscated by Israeli settlers in the neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Having lost their homes and personal belongings, many families are currently sheltering with neighbouring families, many living in tents. At least 24 other Palestinian homes in the area are also at risk of eviction, potentially affecting over 450 people. Friday’s events highlight, once again, complete disregard for the rights of the Palestinian residents of occupied East Jerusalem.

from  Palastinain Solidariy Project-

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This is what the Only Democracy in the Middle East Looks Like

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This Friday, International Human Rights Day was marked for the first time in Israel. In Tel-Aviv, some 5000 people marched in a general human-rights march. It was a quiet event that was covered very favorably and widely by the press. What wasn’t being covered by the press? The second March to Sheikh Jarrah, which ended up with 24 arrests and one demonstrator in the hospital.
Putting Sheik Jarrah in Context
In 1875- Ottoman times- the Committee of the Sephardic Ethnic Group bought these lands. There was a small Jewish community living there until they gradually started fleeing, during the violence, in the area, during the 1920’s and 30’s and up until 1948. From 1948 to 1967, the land was under Jordanian control. At that time, 28 Palestinian refugee families were given lodging on this land by the Jordanian government, under the condition that they give up their UNRWA benefits and pay symbolic rent, for three years, by which time the houses will be passed under their names. The last part never happened.

In 1972 the Committee of the Sephardic Ethnic Group and the Committee of Israel’s Kneset made sure to register their ownership over the land in Israel’s Land Administration, with documents from the 19th century. In 1982, the committees sued the residents for rent. The residents wouldn’t accept the committees’ ownership and refused to pay rent.
In 1997, after years of law suits and resident evacuations, the residents began suing for ownership of the houses. It has been acknowledged by the court, in 2006, that there are problems with the committees’ registration, but the registration hasn’t been canceled.
At this point the houses are owned by a settler organization by the name of “Shimon Estate International”, who’s intent is to destroy the houses in the Palestinian neighborhood, and rebuild the land with Jewish institutions, yeshivas and homes. In order to achieve this goal, border police is brought in, doors get kicked in, windows get smashed, the Palestinian residents are violently evicted and within an hour Jewish settlers come in, throw the Palestinians’ property into the yard and stick a flag on the roof of the house. This is what colonization looks like. This is what ethnic cleansing looks like.
Testimony of a March
We were the two cars that came straight from the weekly Bil’in demonstration. We were late for the march, so we parked next to the colonized house in Sheikh Jarrah, where police and border police were already stationed in huge amounts, and walked towards the marchers, to meet them half way and walk back. We were around 150 and there were at least 3 police cars “securing” the march (this also means the march is legal). As we walked on the sidewalks of the main roads of Jerusalem, we were jeered at, cursed and even watered on from windows:

When we reached the neighborhood we entered the yard of the al-Kurd family home and filled it. The Palestinian kids were sitting on the fence of the house, cheering with us and some came in with us. Between 7-13 border police and regular police were standing on the porch and the settlers were peeking at us from the doorway. Some of the demonstrated chose to speak to the soldiers, while the rest chanted “stop the expulsions”, “stop the occupation” and other classics. I stood on the porch, where I was face to face with the soldiers. Personally I have nothing to say to them.
One of the demonstrators pulled down a string of Israeli flags, and started towards the gate of the yard, where a settler with a motorcycle helmet appeared and grabbed the flags from her hand. He went and stood on a chair behind the soldiers and started waving the flags and yelling at us. We decided to ignore him and continued chanting. A representative of the neighborhood Palestinians thanked us all for coming and we continued the chanting.
I happened to be next to Rabbi Ascherman’s (Rabbis or Human Rights) assistant, at the time, and heard a conversation between her and one of the residents, who weren’t evicted, yet. He told her he had overheard the police talking and that they are planning to evacuate another house, within the next two days. He pleaded to her:

You have to do something, next time, it’s me, or my neighbors!

This is what a desperate man looks like.
At this point, another demonstrator pulled the remaining string of flags off the wall. Within less than a second the border police and police started herding us out, hitting and grabbing and pushing and pulling. People were falling and they continued trampling us. In the case of one woman, who just couldn’t get up, we spread our arms and legs around her, in an attempt to stop the police from trampling on, until someone managed to pick her up. We finally managed to get outside, when I noticed one of the demonstrators, running to one of the police cars and yelling:

Don’t let them out!

The police had already made their first arrest and this person was in their vehicle. We all ran to the car and blocked the border police from all sides. One of the children was standing right in front of me, and as the border patrol man started pushing us back I grabbed him to me and yelled for the soldier to calm down. I could see their second detainee, a friend, his eyes red and his head hanging down. The put him in the car, shut the doors and the car started moving, with people clinging to its hood. It didn’t get far and the officers came back out and started beating the protesters on the car. I saw one protester loose his glasses, while a border patrol man shook him and shoved him violently, and managed to find the remains of them, for him, in the midst of all this mess. They move the car back into the street and there was a short ease from the police, when one of them yelled that this was an illegal gathering. That’s when the demonstration against the ethnic cleansing of Sheikh Jarrah turned into the demonstration of our right to demonstrate.
Another friend started yelling into the megaphone that he’s just come back from Bil’in, and he couldn’t believe that he’d have so much to fear, demonstrating inside Israel. He was seized by three police men, who bent him every which way and carried him to the al-Kurd family home, which from an illegal outpost has now turned into police head quarters. Scared for my friends safety, I climbed the house fence to try to see what’s happening. An officer yelled at me to get off the fence, which I did. I followed him and demanded he tell me why my friend is in the house and got no answer. I continued following him, and he went to the squad car, where my other friend, who was beaten before was still sitting. My friend was begging for water, through the glass, so I took a bottle of water out of my bag and tried to get the officer’s attention. Nothing. He just wouldn’t respond to me. The demonstrator next to me, just happened to be the activists’ lawyer, so he took the bottle from me, but didn’t make it on time, and the car sped away with three detainees.
At this point all hell broke loose and the border police and police forces started violently herding us up the street. One by one people were tackled and arrested. Mostly people who dared assert their freedom. Anyone who spoke directly to the police about their violence and injustice, as they were beating us. The brutality of their language was astonishing:

The one with the megaphone! Fold her for me!  [An officer and a gentleman.]

As a bunch of officers were walking towards us, I was walking backwards and one of the veteran activists happened to be by my side. He didn’t say a word, just crossed his hands over his chest and looked them straight in the eyes. All of a sudden, another officer appeared from the sea of border patrol and pointed at him:

Him! I want him! Bring him to me!

My friend was grabbed and within seconds disappeared inside a jumble of officers. I witnessed 3 more arrests. No one lay a hand on these rabid servants of the state. This is what law and order looks like.
About 50 of us stayed at the outskirts of the neighborhood. Legal and media phone calls were being made, trying to see if our friends were under arrest or just detained and who exactly was arrested. As night fell, more and more settler families passed by. Leisurely strolling in their fur coats and hats, while police lights rotate red and blue in the background. I tried to talk to an officer to let me through, to get my car, but he claimed the area is now closed, as 2 bearded men passed right by us. This is what simple logic looks like.
When the last jail van with our friends inside passed by, we all arranged in our cars and each one left back home (some stayed the night in Sheikh Jarrah). News started coming in, of our friends. Who was taken where? And what their charges were. One of our friends was admitted to the hospital with a dislocated shoulder.
The Media and the March
In the car, I heard the 6 o’clock news:

Leftists activists rioted in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, six police officers were lightly injured and treated on sight.

The mainstream media didn’t bother coming to this march. After all, who cares about a few “Arabs” (never Palestinian), being kicked out of their homes, right? I was astonished to see how we do all the dirty work for them. As we were waiting on the outskirts of the neighborhood, one of our friends made calls to all the major networks, and they came by cab and took the tapes we had to offer them.
Interestingly enough, not one of the articles mentioned our wounded, but the six lightly wounded soldiers are always in the sub-header. All articles, but one state that a “confrontation developed”, as if this was a natural occurrence. Many of the articles give the police’s statement, that we tried to enter the house, which is a complete lie, and never even give one demonstrator’s eye witness account. In none of the articles is true context given about Sheikh Jarrah and why we were even there, in the first place. In most cases the background that is given is deceiving:

People of the left and Arab demonstrator came to the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem to demonstrate in front of houses where Jews live. [Yediot Acharonot]

The protesters on Friday marched from the city center to Sheikh Jarrah, where police said they tried to enter a home that is partly occupied by Jews before being stopped. [Ha’aretz]

Reading Yediot, you may possibly think that leftists and “Arabs” (who aren’t Palestinians because there’s no such thing) have it in for Jews. Reading Ha’aretz doesn’t help much in understanding the situation, because it’s confusing that the house is “partly‘ occupied by Jews. What doesn’t that even mean?
Without actually being there, without knowing the context, with only hearsay to report with, our press marginalizes us, demonizes us and confuses the public, leaving one falsity as fact: The police is there to keep the peace. This is what our watch dogs look like.
Testimony of a Courthouse Protest
The following evening, over 50 of us got down to the court in Jerusalem, to express support for our fellow demonstrators. The first thing to strike me as odd was the fact that they only let family members in. The court of law is to be open to the public. But this was to be only the first in some strange twists and turns. The presiding judge wasn’t very interested in getting the show on the road, and although present, just wouldn’t begin the hearing. The lawyers filed a paper, demanding that he begin, as detainees have a right to be heard by a judge within 24 hours of their arrest. The judge just didn’t care.
Outside, we chanted as loud as possible, people brought extra coats and a huge pot of soup. Every once in a while news from the lawyers came out. The internationals were to be deported (which is completely illegal), some of the detainees were to be held in custody until due process (which could take months), they won’t be allowed into Jerusalem (which is where some of them live). All kinds of creative ideas were brought up by the judge and prosecution. This is what justice looks like.
Some time around midnight, we were told the first six are to be released. It would take about an hour of chanting and we were slowly joined by a group of counter-protestors, who jeered, cursed, pulled out a switch blade and threatened some of the women with rape, just for laughs and bravado. The police saw it fitting to get a little aggressive, when we shook one of the automatic roadblocks (which we would later cross anyway, as our people started coming out). Joined by the first six, we continued chanting for another 3 hours ( fortunately, the jolly counter protest,b yelling “death to the Arabs” was gone after about two hours). We stood outside the courthouse for a total of 8 and a half hours, until all our friends were in our arms. This is what democracy loks like.

By Tali Shapiro and the fanstic website PULSE

Mesopotamian Mythology

wriiten a few years a good for woodworks- the elfwood magazine- it an overview of ancient Mesopotamiam (ancient Iraq) Mytology

The heart of the ancient Middle East was in Mesopotamia (today the area of Iraq). The first literate inhabitants of this land were called Sumerians - it is believed that they immigrated to that area around 3500 B.C – their origin is unknown. The Sumerians conquered the inhabitants of the area, the Akkadians, and made Babylon the capital of that land. The Sumerians developed a political-religious system, in which the country was divided to cities which all had their own ruler and a deity protecting the city. The Sumerians believed that the world is filled with mysterious and dangerous forces, and so many religious scripts were filled with spells against demons and ways to read the future. There was also the official religion that was centered in the capital where the high priest was the king. Since Mesopotamia was very close to other areas of the Middle East, like Syria, ancient Israel, and Persia (Iran), and also being one of the more powerful countries in the area (next to Egypt) the Mesopotamian mythology become very influential to the other myths in the area. Even in the Bible, there are mentions of those myths especially in Genesis and the book of Job. The myth of creation (anuma alish): In the beginning nothing existed except for Apsu - who represented the mass of fresh water that was thought to exist beneath the earth and from there sprang the rivers, and Tiamat- who represented seawater. Those two Deities gave birth to many gods, the most important of them being: Anu – both King of the gods and god of the sky, and Ea - god of water and wisdom. Anu and Ea give birth to Marduk - the god of Babylonia. According to the myth, there was a fight between the old gods - Apsu and Tiamat - and the new gods - Anu, Ea and Marduk. Ea killed Apsu, and Tiamat wanted revenge. She gathered a group of monsters to help her - the snake and the leviathan (the whale), and gave her son the Tablets of Destinies (see below). Many gods tried to fight Tiamat, to no avail. In the end they chose Marduk to fight Tiamat. Marduk accepted, only in the condition that if he won, he would be the king of the gods. Marduk managed to defeat Tiamat and cut her body into two – the first half created the sky, and the second half become the sea. He then stole the Tablets of Destinies and killed Tiamat’s son, finally mixing his blood with the earth and with that created man. The Flood: The most widely known myth from Mesopotamia concerns the Flood, which was sent by the gods to destroy life on earth. The story is very similar to the one in the Bible. Four gods were involved in the planning of the Flood: Anu, Enlil (god of storm, wind and rain, and also consoler of the gods), Ninurta (the throne carrier and son of Enlil) and Ennugi. A fifth god – Ea - reveled the secret plan to a man called Ut-napishtim and told him to built a boat in order to be saved. Ut-napishtim built the boat and stored his provisions of all kinds, his family and some wild animals. The flood lasted seven days and nights. When it was over the boat came to rest on a mountain. Ut-napishtim sent out a dove, then a swallow and lastly a raven. The first two returned to him, but the raven did not, which showed him that the water had subsided. Ut-napishtim made a sacrifice, to which he invited all the gods except Enlil, who was principally responsible for sending the flood. Enlil was angry that anyone could have survived, but he agreed to bless Ut-napishtim and his wife, and said that they would become like gods. Finally, Ut-napishtim was taken to live in a distant place, at the mouth of the river. The Tablets of Destinies: One of the symbols of Marduk power and authority was his possession of the Tablets of Destinies. Although it is not clear exactly what they are (probably royal symbols of authority), there is a myth about them being stolen by a mysterious bird called Zu. Anu asked two gods: Adad (the storm god) and Gibil (the god of fire) to kill Zu, but they declined fearing the power that Zu now had. In the end someone did rise to the challenge, it is not known which one of the gods it was, but there is a version that it was Ninurta who defeated Zu and returned the tablets. In the end Zu was brought to trial before Ea who ordered Zu to be killed. The Descent of Ishtar: Ishtar: the goddess of love and war went down to the underworld, probably to conquer it. Ereshkigal, the queen of the underworld, ordered the gatekeepers to treat Ishtar according the law. The goddess has to pass the seven gates of the underworld; at each gate she had to strip of one of her garments, until in the end she stood naked in front of Ereshkigal. She was weak as it was her garments brought her her power, but tried to conquer the throne of Ereshkigal and failed. Ereshkigal had her tortured and killed. Ishtar’s eunuch came to the underworld and offered himself in exchange for Ishtar. Ereshkigal ordered Ishtar to be sprinkled with the water of life, and then is escorted out of the underworld with her garments returned. The Epic of Gilgamesh: One of the most famous Epics in Mythology, tells the story of Gilgamesh, an ancient hero. Gilgamesh is described as been two-thirds a god and one-third a man. Gilgamesh was hard on his subjects in Uruk, so in order to restrain him the gods sent Enkidu - a wild man covered with hair that lived with wild animals. After having sexual relationship with a harlot, Enkidu lost some of his wild nature. Enkidu and Gilgamesh fought each other, but in the end they become friends, going on heroic adventures like killing the giant Humbaba. When they returned, Ishtar offered Gilgamesh her hand, but Gilgamesh declined. As revenge the goddess sent the Bull of Heaven, but Gilgamesh and Enkidu defeat it. The gods decide that Enkidu must die because he killed Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven. Enkidu’s death made Gilgamesh search for the secret of immortality. He went to meet Ut-napishtim, the only man that had gained immortality. Ut-napishtim tells him about a plant found in the bottom of the ocean. Gilgamesh found the plant, but a snake stole it from him. In the end Gilgamesh returns to Uruk. Other deities in Mesopotamian mythology: Ninhursag- goddess of earth, consort of Ea Shamash- god of the son Sin- god of the moon Tammuz- god of vegetation, lover of Ishtar Nergal- god of war and plague, consort of Ereshkigal Nabu- god of speech and writing, son of Marduk Asshur- the national god of Assyria -one of the countries in Mesopotamia

Sci-Fi and Politics part 1: Oh what a wonderful world

In the interdiction of this series I mentioned to book- “1984” and “The Space Merchants” , both of them can be put in the category of dystopia which is according to wikipedia: "dangerous and alienating future societies, a fictional dystopia serves to critique then-current actual cultural trends observed by its author. It is a culture where the condition of life suffers from deprivation, oppression, or terror.”.
Dystopias are by all account are angry prophecy of the future that awaits for us if we continue in the roads we are going on right now.

Of course in most cases the prophecies where a lot stronger then the actual result, the memories of them still rings in people head- if you wont be careful (the human race) it can still happen.

Now there are plenty of dystopias, two of them I talked in my interdiction. Here I will talk about two more, both play with the idea of an utopias who isn’t perfect as it originally seems- something is rotten in this world, and only the main character- an outsider, see the world as it really is.
Another common point they both deal with the issues of eugenics and genetic manipulation.

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Probably the most important fact about this book was the date it came out- 1932, the year Hitler rose for power- and many commented about the fact that a book talking about racial and genetic segregation came out in that period of time.  It is also important to note the popularity of scientific theories like Eugenics (the study and practice of selective breeding applied to humans, with the aim of improving the species. Widely popular in the early decades of the 20th century, it has largely fallen into disrepute after having become associated with Nazi Germany.) which the book also refers to.

Brave New World starts by introducing us to an utopia- a world that at least on the surface seems perfect. The society is separated to 5 sects, with the Alpha and the Betas are relativity free in their choices- and the lowest sect is mainly used as workforce (with their intelligence fitting their position). They also live  in an over-consumable society, that encourage drug use, and free sex.

In to this world, two alphas, a male and a female, are taking a trip to the wilderness out side the city. There they meet a group of “savages”- people who aren’t part of the new world cities, do not live with technology, and bear children naturally. In there they discover a woman from one of the male character past, who disappeared during a trip and was forced to live amongst the “savages”, and eventually giving birth naturally to the male character son. 
The son -John- attractiveness, and mystery air about him- makes him the toast of the upper-class. But John is quickly disenchanted, seeing the emptiness and shallowness of the society he lives in.- the utopia isn’t as nice as he was led to believe.
In the final chapters, John isolates himself from society in a lighthouse outside London where he finds his hermit life interrupted from mourning his mother by the more bitter memories of civilization. even there is life is interrupted by outsiders from the city coming to watch his strange actions, and eventually cause john to commit suicide.
 Social critic Neil Postman contrasts the worlds of Nineteen Eighty-Four and Brave New World in the foreword of his 1985 book Amusing Ourselves to Death. wroth:  “What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance.” (from wikipedia)

“what happened in Gattaca?”

“what happened in Gattaca?” or just “Gattaca” is a sci-fi movie from 1997 staring Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman and Jude Law.
The story happens in a utopian like future, where children of the middle and upper classes are selected through preimplantation genetic diagnosis to ensure they possess the best hereditary traits of their parents.  The ones who are conceived by traditional means are considered “In-Valid” and have most job opportunities closed (creating a new lower class, similar to the lower classes in “Brave New World”).
Ethan Hawke plays and In-Valid- Vincent Freeman, who works in a high profile job in the space agency Gattaca, under a fake identity.  The identity he uses is of Jerome Eugene Morrow (Jude Law), a practically perfect person, a swimming star that after a failure in the Olympics (he only won the silver medal) tries to commit suicide unsuccessfully, and is left paralyzed from the wrist down.
After a murder accurse in Gattaca, Vincent/Jerome identity is jeopardized- and while trying to hide the truth from the police- Vincent relationships with the people around him is reveled. Between is “valid” younger brother Anton- who despite being genetically superior to Vincent, his older brother manage to over-shadow him, to Jerome- who despite being perfect genetically, is a “failure”, to Uma Thurman character Irene- a “valid” with a heart defect.
The movie deals with the question of Genetic engineering- does being “perfect” makes you better, or is it the person flows that makes him what he is. Vincent is far from perfect- he has heart problem, weak eye sight etc. but that’s doesn’t stop him from being better then the so called “valid” people.

Science Fiction and politics- introduction

A few years ago I finely decided it is time to read “1984”, as a pop culture “fanatic” and a scifi geek- it was time to read the most famous dystopia out there.

I must say I was kind of disappointed…

While every dissident and progressive alive is busy moaning about the “Big Brother”, and how we live in an Orwellian world, but frankly I found the book, well, in nice word a bit outdated. Actually I have the suspicious feeling the book became so famous cause it was an anti-communist book that came out in a period where the west was terrified with the spread of communism and what it will mean for the future.

About a month later, in an used book store in Jerusalem, I stumbled on am unknown book called “The Space Merchants” by Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth - the anti-capitalist answer for “1984” (it came out around the same period as 1984). While the book is considered a classic, it is little known out side the hardcore Sci-Fi readers.

The book description (according to wikipedia) is as following: “In a vastly overpopulated world, businesses have taken the place of governments and now hold all political power. States exist merely to ensure the survival of huge trans-national corporations. Advertising has become hugely aggressive and by far the best-paid profession. Through advertising, the public is constantly deluded into thinking that the quality of life is improved by all the products placed on the market. However, the most basic elements are incredibly scarce, including water and fuel. The planet Venus has just been visited and judged fit for human settlement, despite its inhospitable surface and climate; the colonists would have to endure a harsh climate for many generations until the planet could be terraformed.
The protagonist, Mitch Courtenay, is a star-class copywriter in the Fowler Schocken advertising agency who has been assigned the ad campaign which would attract colonists to Venus. But a lot more is happening than he knows about. It soon becomes a tale of mystery and intrigue, in which many of the characters are not what they seem, and Mitch's loyalties and opinions change drastically over the course of the narrative.”

The experience of reading this book was a lot different then reading “1984”. you see the world described in this book- as almost eerily like ours- the book talks about over consumerism, and about a world controlled by corporations. This little (less then 200 pages) unknown book , managed almost 50 years ago, to predict the life we live right now- a lot more then “1984” ever managed.

It was not the only book or movie that managed to deal with political issue- and managed to make a realistic and important conversation about the future, conflicts and the world we are living in. unfortunately, outside the genre fan- very few people know or seen those stuff… so I decided in this series of articles to expose them to the wider public.

(for a longer review about “The Space Merchants” check out: http://www.wereadscifi.com/the-space-merchants-by-pohl-and-kornbluth/

Sci-Fi Pinps - Part 2 (the 80’s to present day) - Of Warriors and Geeks

It is hard to say what exactly cause the shift in the Sci-Fi genre- from an almost exclusive male interest, to a genre that has more and more of female readers/ writers/ watchers etc. suddenly , it was ok for a girl to like the genre, and more and more girls started to take interest. (according to some polls- 80% of the genre readers are girls, but I am not sure of it‘s accuracy).
Such shift, has to (and did) cause a change inside the genre- suddenly there was a all new crowd to satisfy- and still keep the older crowd interested.
Probably the most important feminist icon that appeared at the beginning of that era (aside from Princess Leah of course) was Ripley- the main Character in the Alien series- a strong warrior, a survivor, and in certain case a mother and a protector. She was later followed by Sarah Conner from the terminator series- who showed growth, from the damsel in distress from the first movie- to the strong independent woman of the 2nd one.

Ripley, and similar characters like her, where strong woman, but they where far from being attractive. Strong and muscular, they where ideal for fighting the bad guys, not for sexual fantasies.
Only toward the late 90’s sexier yet strong female characters started to appear.

Number 6
In the previous blog I talked about the sexy robot, at the beginning it was the Metropolis model that was usually used, but over the years the idea of the Robot evolved- from Machine to Android, a robot coated with human flash.
Whiter it was Data from Star Trek the Next Generation, Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminator, to the Androids in Blade Runner- the new Robots had a human face and some human characteristics. When it come to female Androids- they where usually perfect, beautiful but not necessarily sexy, a perfect female. They also had a few human qualities- in many cases there was a almost fragile feeling about them. A powerful machine, but one that you feel the need to protect.
In 2004, the Sci-Fi channel lunched a remake of the 70’s Sci-Fi show, Battlestar Galactica. The new show was more realistic, grittier and much more pessimistic then the original show. The premise of the show was about the fight between the last surviving humans, and a robot race- the cylons. We soon learn that the cylons managed to built a Human looking Android models. 
The first android cylone we meet is mostly known as Number 6 (she has plenty of other names- but she  is most known as Number 6). She is a bit of abnormality, in a series composed of strong female characters, a character that is basically introduce as a sex object seems to not really fit in.
Number 6 is a sex object, a blonde supermodel (played by underwear model)  in a tight barley there red dress- the ultimate male fantasy- and the one that brings humanity to it’s almost ultimate destruction, all by using her female “charms”.
And in many ways, this is her main job- she is a male fantasy, and ultimately is obsession (especially with regard to one male character in the series). It is only as the series progress we see other sides to her- the ruthless leader, a religious
fanatic, a pacifist and at times even a victim.



Xena Warrior Princess

Xena Warrior Princess was a spin-off series off the television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, and quite quickly become much more popular then it’s predecessor. The show was a combination of Greek mythology and D&D adventure, with some pop culture humor thrown in the mix.
Xena almost legendary outfit- a short leather mini dress, was directly related to the Warriors appearing in the Dungun & Dragon artworks and designs.
For example:

Xena, raveling outfit and strength sparked the imagination of male fans- and made her a sexual icon for many male fans. But Xena real popularity came from a completely new source- Lesbians.
Xena Strength and masculinity coupled with a certain feminism (she was still an attractive woman), but especially her ambiguous relationship with her sidekick Gabriel- attracted the Lesbian community, and made Xena a Lesbian Icon- maybe the first such Icon in the Sci-Fi genre.








The hot geeky Girls

Female Geeks where ,until a few years ago, stereotypes- in reality and in the media, as unattractive (to say the least) girl. But in the last few years, with the change in the genre himself, more and more girls are now considered them selves geeks- an now it’s becoming ok- to be an attractive geek. That change is also feathered in the media.
This trend is by all account the fault of  Joss Whedon. In the late 90’s, Joss Whedon created, the new cult series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The show premise was built on the idea that the hot blond that always dies in the beginning of the movie, is actually the one that beats the bad guys- the damsel in distress is really the one who is goanna rescue you.
While Sarah Michelle Geller (the actress who played Buffy) was an attractive girl, she wasn’t the one that become a sex icon from the series. But rater other female characters- especially Willow that filled the rule.

Alyson Hannigan

Maybe the first of the Geeky Sexy Girls, she was Buffy nerdy sidekick- Willow. And while in the first few season she was Nerdy and (supposedly) un attractive, but by the time the 3rd season rolled in she was starting to discover her sexuality (in her case Lesbian sexuality) . And she quickly started to over shadow her co-stars. While Alyson, didn’t continue to play in the Sci-Fi genre (she now plays in “How I met your Mother”), she is still on of the first sexy geek in American television.









Summer Glue

 another Actress that started her career because of Joss Whedon , at first appearing in guest roles in his shows. She later became a cast member in the short lived Joss Whedon  series- Firefly. Her almost innocent Lolita looks, coupled with her strength and fighting ability (she was a ballet dancer before becoming an actress, so her flexibility and strength was very useful), later helped her get the role of Cameron the innocent/strong/Lolita like character in the Sarah Conner Chronicles (and also John Conner secret crash). She is now rumored to play a guest role in Joss Whedon  new series- The Doll House.
Her sexy geek image was cemented in an episode of  the comedy show “The Big Bang Theory”, where the geeky cast members of the show meet her on one of the
episodes.

Felicia Day:

And yet another actress that appeared in a guest role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (season 7).  Felicia Day, gained fame among the geek community, not only because she is a geek her self, but mainly because of her successful web series The Guild (http://www.watchtheguild.com/) and in Joss Whedon “Dr. Horrible’s  Sing Along Blog”

Kristen Bell:

 Kristen Bell started her career as the main heroine in the show “Veronica Mars”. while not strictly a geek in the show, she was the beautiful, clever outcast that solved complex mysteries. She later joined the cast of Heroes, and appeared in a few films- including “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”.
She also stars, in the geeky Starwars inspired movie Fanboys- as the hot geeky girl (of course).


Also check out: http://www.wired.com/underwire/2008/12/sexiest-geeks-o/


Death- the Sandman

Maybe a bit of a controversial choice- since I have the feeling she is considered a sex symbol more by (straight) female audience then male one.

Death is the creation of Neil Gaiman- one of the most popular Sci-Fi/Fantasy writers out their (he is especially popular among female fans). In 1986, Gaiman started writing a comics book series called the Sandman- who quickly became one of the biggest master pieces in the comics book genre (Gaiman himself is called the Shakespeare of comics), and a series that is credited of brining many female fans to the genre. Death was the older sister of the comics main hero-Dream.
A spunky, attractive, Gothic and female Death, she is a different version of the Grim Reaper we all know and love. The comics describe her as someone that you instantly like- a best friend or a lover. One male character described her as someone you instantly fall in love with.

Who Speaks for Islam

a very intresting show, worth an hour of your time

Who Speaks for Islam

The Vision of the end of days in the Jerusalem mall

The wolf will live with the lamb,
The leopard will lie with the goat,
The calf and the lion and the yearling
Together;
And a little child will lead them
(Isaiah 11 6)

Some times walking the Jerusalem malcha shopping mall, you sort of feel like you live in Isaiah vision of the “end of days”. Ultra orthodox Jew, sitting on a bench next to a scholar Jewish girl, Hyjab covered Arab woman shopping for clothes in Israeli clothing chains while Christian Priests are escorting disabled children around the mall. Children of every color and nationality playing in the children designated area- while their parents watch them. Where workers in the stores are Arab and Jews- and they get along with each others.
It almost seems like the conflict and the hate is forgotten- here is a place where everyone lives in peace, where everyone can get along… all wrapped up in a neat little capitalist package.

But it is all deception….

We start with the most simple fact, the mall it’s self is a symbol of the conflict. A fancy big mall built on lands that was once Arab- Malcha was an Arab village that was attacked by the Irgun in the 1948 war. After a terrible battle with casualties from both sides, the village was conquered- the original villagers flew and their houses, and new Jewish resident moved in. in the 1990’s a new upscale neighbored was built next to the old Arab village. But unlike other cases, the resident (which I am one of them) cannot fully ignore the history of the place- the village is still there, including the mosque, and still inhabited (by Jewish resident).

You also can’t really ignore that fact that 10 minutes ride from there, there is a wall and beyond that you have Bethlehem, Bet Jalla and similar west bank cities. The resident of those cities cannot go shopping in this mall- the Arabs who shop there come from inside Jerusalem, and amazingly enough also from Jordan… but someone from the west bank cannot go there.

You cannot ignore the fact that sign of racism are always there (and I go there a lot- I should know). From the guard that makes racist comments to Arab woman when they enter the mall… to the occasional  violent fights between teenage Jews and Arabs. And the one simple fact- now it relatively quite in Jerusalem, once things will no longer be quite, the this capitalist Utopia won’t be the same anymore.

But for now, when I go to the mall, I try to ignore all of those issue and for a short time fell a bit like I’m in the end of days utopia- granted not the one envisioned by the prophets- but one more fitting to this day and age.