With all the events going on in the Middle East right now, and with the people over at Fox News anxiously hoping for World War 3, I can't think of a better time for people to watch the documentary Peace, Propaganda, and the Promised Land over at Google Video.
The documentary examines the cause of the conflict, but perhaps more importantly, the inaccuracy and bias that is seen in the US media. This is shown through comparisons of news clips from the US and from foreign sources, such as the BBC. Commentary is provided by journalists, rabbis, Palestinians, former Israeli soldiers, media analysts, as well as Noam Chomsky.
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I saw it a few weeks ago and it is indeed a good documentary, well worth the time. Thank you for the link. Another interesting film on the subject that's available on the Google is Tragedy in the Holy Land. It is an overview of the historical background of Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unfortunately, the quality of the video is not great.
That was a good documentary. Such a marked difference between US media coverage and BBC media coverage. I don't watch TV, but I find this disconcerting, knowing that millions of Americans are picking up these sentiments without even noticing.
-Mookie
I loved the first part..."In 1967, following a war between Israel and the countries of Syria, Jordan and Egypt.....". Didn't these "peace loving" countries attack Israel with the intent of wiping it off the face of the earth? Now that's propaganda. Can't anyone present both sides honestly and accurately?
Is this the religion? or the atmosphere of violence? I saw news reports of the Palestinians raising their kids to sing songs about stabbing Jews, etc, like the Nazis did back in the day. I can imagine this having some effect. But what about the Israeli kids that grow up knowing that they get to live in lush suburbs whilst just down the road live thousands of people in poverty? We shake our heads and wonder why, unable to offer an answer that doesn't involve religious conversions, violence, and oppression.
Sigh.
And with the recent labeling (by necon cheerleaders) of these skirmishes as "World War III", we can't help but notice that the defense companies would stand to make a lot of money in sustained military action.
-Mookie
sh,
The film looks interesting, but unfortunately you're right, the quality isn't very good. I can get it from other sources, and I look forward to watching it. Thanks= )
ed,
Didn't these "peace loving" countries attack Israel with the intent of wiping it off the face of the earth? Now that's propaganda
No, they did not. Can you cite something here? Israel striked Egypt first, and the UN was busy condemning Israel's actions almost a year before the war even started. From UN Security Council resolution 228 of 1966,
Reaffirming the necessity for strict adherence to the General Armistice Agreement,
1. Deplores the loss of life and heavy damage to property resulting from the action of the Government of Israel on 13 November 1966;
2. Censures Israel for this large-scale military action in violation of the United Nations Charter and of the General Armistice Agreement between Israel and Jordan;
3. Emphasizes to Israel that actions of military reprisal cannot be tolerated and that, if they are repeated, the Security Council will have to consider further and more effective steps as envisaged in the Charter to ensure against the repetition of such acts;
4. Requests the Secretary-General to keep the situation under review and to report to the Security Council as appropriate
Mookie,
Is this the religion? or the atmosphere of violence? I saw news reports of the Palestinians raising their kids to sing songs about stabbing Jews, etc, like the Nazis did back in the day. I can imagine this having some effect. But what about the Israeli kids that grow up knowing that they get to live in lush suburbs whilst just down the road live thousands of people in poverty?
I imagine most of the frustration and anger comes from the violence and injustice. I think religion helps to fuel the hatred in that it makes it easier to believe that one's enemies are genuinely "wicked". Religion's disregard for life in preference to the afterlife makes it more likely that people will be willing to die for the cause, rather than work for some sort of peace. They've got a lot of fences to mend, but I can't imagine any of that happening as long as Israel controls all of the Palestinian territory.
we can't help but notice that the defense companies would stand to make a lot of money in sustained military action
Exactly, and the defense companies don't even have to have the US directly involved since Israel buys (and is given) US weaponry. With Israel having one of the best equipped militaries in the world, there's a lot of money to be made by avoiding peace.
I saw news reports of the Palestinians raising their kids to sing songs about stabbing Jews, etc, like the Nazis did back in the day.
It's true that fundamentalists teach their children to hate "the enemy". Unfortunately, it happens on all sides of the conflict. Media, however, appear to mostly report one point of view: "Arabs hate us". Here are some images that came out over the last few days that show one instance of indoctrination of children in Israel.
Oh wow, that is horrible.
Delta
3. Emphasizes to Israel that actions of military reprisal cannot be tolerated.....
Reprisal?
Don't get me wrong, I'm not taking Israel’s side here. I think what they are doing in the occupied territories is deplorable. The film really does tell the Palestinian side very well. There are always two sides.
B.F. Skinner comes to mind here. He found that positive reinforcement was better than punishment. Behaviours that were to be repeated were picked up faster when done with rewards, not with negative reinforcement. In his mind it was a matter of practicality to train people with positive reinforcement.
A scary thought that along with this is the understanding that humans tend to repeat behaviours that yield a successful or desired outcome. The slave owners would beat the slaves into submission, and, learning quickly that working spared one the whip, the slaves would do what the slave drivers wanted. The slave owners would then learn that whipping and beating the slaves was a good way to get them to do what they wanted. So they kept doing it, not because it was the best course of action, but because it seemed to work.
Maybe both sides in this conflict consider violence as an option because they see positive results when they resort to it.
Something to think about.
-Mookie
hello .. has anybody seen the documentary where a couple of american documentarists rent a palestinian license plated car and show how that works out for them???
If so, WHAT IS THE NAME???
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