Hi - I wanted to post this to the list; it applies to this month's topic.
Dehumanization is a common technique in the military of course; it places
within the abstract and virtual, that which is abject and concrete. Songs
like this can tunnel through.
I'd like to all the guests this month to comment on this. Part of the
original theme for the month, dealing with pain, suffering, and death,
emphasized the virtual - and I'd like to return to this, wondering if, for
example, the song itself might be considered as opening into the virtual;
I remember Mikel Dufrenne talking about the world of the book, which
relates of courses to diegesis, etc. It's a short step from this world to
the text-based worlds of MOOs and MUDs etc., and from there to the audio-
visual worlds of Second Life, Open Sim, etc. The next step would be the
Holodeck of course.
So where, within all of this, is the location of the body's pain? I keep
returning to this on one hand, and Diane Gromala's work on the other.
Comments?
Thanks, Alan
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 25 Oct 2012 23:03:34
From: Portside Moderator <modera...@portside.org>
To: ports...@lists.portside.org
Subject: Israeli Song About Learning to Kill and Dehumanizing the Enemy is
Going
Viral in Israel - Banned From Army Radio
Israeli Song About Learning to Kill and Dehumanizing the
Enemy is Going Viral in Israel - Banned From Army Radio
1. Israeli Protest Song Banned from Army Radio (Richard
Silverstein in Tikun Olam)
2. Song critical of the IDF goes viral after being banned by
Israeli Army Radio (Annie Robbins in Mondoweiss)
=====
Israeli Protest Song Banned from Army Radio
by Richard Silverstein
October 15, 2012
Tikun Olam
(Promoting Israeli democracy, exposing secrets of the
national security state)
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/2012/10/15/israeli-protest-song-banned-from-army-radio/
There was once a time when Israeli songs like A Matter of
Habit were routinely written, aired and became hits. These
were songs of political commentary or protest, songs of hope
and idealism. They represented the aspirations of Israel's
secular liberal (generally Ashkenazi) elite. But that was
long ago.
Which is why the popularity of A Matter of Habit is so
extraordinary in today's political context. The song, sung
by Izhar Ashdot and written by Alona Kimche, speaks of how
an Israeli soldier begins slowly to become degraded to his
own humanity and that of the Palestinians among whom he
patrols. It's not only a powerful political and social
statement, it has those infectious pop "hooks" that are the
mark of a lasting hit. As we used to say way back in the
1960s when such music was popular here: it's got a message
and you can dance to it.
The song's popularity will no doubt be amplified by a ban
that Galey Tzahal, Israeli armed forces radio, slapped on
the song for "degrading" the IDF. I'm always amazed that
whenever the misdeeds of the IDF are documented and
criticized that doing so somehow in itself becomes an
inhuman or degrading act. So goes the logic of the
oppressor who never knows or understands his own power and
oppressive acts.
Here's a peek into the mind of the military oppressors:
The radio station announced that "Due to the song's
contents, which debase IDF soldiers, the station
commander decided that there is no room on Army Radio to
publicly celebrate a song that denigrates and denounces
those that have sacrificed their life for the defense of
the country."
The statement continued, "the artist Izhar Ashdot is
held in high esteem by Army Radio. In this specific case
however, we believe with the artistic leeway afforded to
artists by this station, Army Radio, as a station of
soldiers, where many soldiers perform their military
serve, should avoid celebrating a song that demonizes
those soldiers."
It appears that the soldiers of the IDF are so fragile that
they cannot withstand even a bit of scrutiny or
introspection without collapsing into a morass of self-doubt
and moral paralysis. God forbid that any such soldier
should question himself or his comrades. The entire
military order might collapse leaving Israel defenseless
before the massing hordes of Arab enemies.
Here are the lyrics translated into English:
Chorus: Learning to kill is a matter of a push
It begins with something small, then it comes easier
Patrolling all night in the Nablus casbah
Hey, what here is ours and what's yours
The beginning is an experiment
A rifle butt banging on the door
Fearful children, a terrified family
Then a closure, there's already danger
Death lies in wait around every corner
You cock your weapon and your arm trembles
Your finger tightens around the trigger
Your heart goes crazy, beats in fright
It knows that the next one will be a lot easier.
They aren't men or women
They're only things and shadow
Learning to kill is a matter of routine.
Chorus
Portents from heaven fall upon the streets
There's no chance of life going on
The end is near
Prophecies of terror
Like the cries of ravens
Lock the shutters
Seal yourself in your homes
We're but a handful
And they are so many
A tiny country consumed by enemies
In their hearts there's only hatred, evil intent and
darkness
Learning to fear is a matter of habit.
Learning cruelty is a matter of a push
It begins with something small, and then gets easier
Every boy is a man thirsting for conquests
Hands behind the head, feet spread apart
It's a time of danger, a time of terror
A solder who weakens isn't worthy of mercy
Your cousin is like an animal
He's used to seeing blood.
He doesn't feel any pain
He's not a human being.
A field uniform, a jock itch, fragility and routine.
The distance between stupidity and evil is short.
The land of Israel is ours and ours alone
Learning cruelty is a matter of habit.
Little boy, little boy stop
Little boy, little boy come back
Come to me sweetheart
Come to me my baby
The skies are threatening and it's gloomy outside
Your tin soldiers are still here under your bed
Come on home little boy
Come home
Come home.
Learning to love is a matter of tenderness
With a careful step
And a gentle cloud
We hesitate and melt
Become soft and round
Learning to love is a matter of habit.
Being a human being is a matter of a push
Conceived like a fetus and then it's delivered
For a moment to be only here, only today
And to be on the other side of the checkpoint
But our heart's already become coarsened
Our skin thickened
Deaf and blind in a bubble of this existence
In wonder we'll watch the falling angel
To be a human being is a matter of habit.
The images in the video don't just represent the lyrics,
they expand upon them visually and reinforce them. They're a
work of art in themselves. The last image, as Ashdot sings
of a falling angel and being a human being, shows the
bruised back of a tortured Palestinian prisoner. It's an
ironic twist on the lyrics that brings home the message that
we Israelis have become these torturers, but we must strive
to be human beings instead.
That such a song, summoning Israelis to return to their
innate humanity and turn away from the brutes they've
become, should be censored by Israeli media is the crowning
commentary on what latter-day Israel has become. Interesting
also that the song has 460 "Dislikes" and only 330 "Likes."
It's apparently hit a very raw nerve.
For those seeking similar wonderful Israeli songs of
protest, read my posts on David Broza's B'Libi
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/2005/03/24/david-broza-wis/ and Chava
Alberstein's Chad Gadya
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/2006/08/10/chad-gadya-chava-alberstein-protest-against-israeli-militarism/
[Richard Silverstein has been writing Tikun Olam, one of the
earliest liberal Jewish blogs, since February, 2003. It
focuses on Israeli-Palestinian peace and includes commentary
on U.S. politics and human rights. Technorati ranks this
blog 21st of all world politics blogs and a member of the
Top 100 in that category.
He attended Jewish Theological Seminary and Columbia
University, earning a BA and Bachelor of Hebrew Literature,
has an MA in Comparative Literature from UCLA and studied
toward a PhD at UC Berkeley. My languages were Hebrew and
Yiddish. He spent an undergraduate and graduate year
studying Hebrew literature at the Hebrew University and co-
founded of the Bay Area Jewish Music Festival.
"I have been interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
since I was a teenager in 1967 and have worked all my adult
life to promote dialogue and mutual recognition. I am a
progressive (critical) Zionist. I support Israeli withdrawal
to pre-67 borders and an internationally guaranteed peace
agreement with the Palestinians."
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/about-me/]
==========
Song critical of the IDF goes viral after being banned by Israeli Army Radio
by Annie Robbins
October 17, 2012
Mondoweiss
http://mondoweiss.net/2012/10/song-critical-of-the-idf-goes-viral-after-being-banned-by-israeli-army-radio.html
[Video and audio of A Matter of Habit sung by Izhar Ashdot
http://youtu.be/q-NRrB9pbKs ]
An Israeli song about learning to kill and dehumanizing the
enemy is going viral in Israel. After Israel's Army Radio
canceled a live broadcast of the song and banned the song from
the station it was thrust into the national (and
international?) spotlight. A Matter of Habits, the title
track of popular Israeli rock band Tislam's new album has
everybody talking. Tislam's co founder, Izhar Ashdot, is
husband and life partner to Israeli novelist Alona Kimhi (both
legendary artists in Israel). Kimhi wrote the lyrics after a
Breaking the Silence tour of Hebron a few years ago.
http://972mag.com/a-song-was-born-the-tale-of-a-controversial-tune/57783/
Thus far the song has 2,174 'dislikes' on youTube, if that's
any indication of the controversy it's generating. Some
critics are literally fuming about the content while others
are clearly more offended by the fact it's been censored by
Army Radio although it's still getting play on Israel radio.
It's not a shoot and cry -- it's corpse-like cold in it's
directness which is why it is threatening: "The cousin like an
animal/Used to blood/doesn't feel suffering/Is not human."
Uri Blau at Haaretz writes people do not want to know, they
don't want to think about it:
Under Dekel's baton, the Army Radio station introduced a
new slogan to its broadcasts: "What's happening now."
Until this week the slogan sounded simply hollow, but the
censorship of Ashdot's song proved that it is also the
opposite of the way Army Radio operates. In his decision,
Dekel did exactly what the public wishes, as reflected in
the responses to the song's banning. What's happening now
is that many people don't want to know, don't want to hear
and don't want to think about what's being done in their
name and what happens to their children when they don a
uniform and are transformed from boys into an occupying
force.
But Dekel is a journalist rather than Army Radio's public
relations agent. He is supposed to report to his listeners
what's happening on every patrol by soldiers and at every
checkpoint manned by Border Police. "Our heart is already
coarse and our skin is so thick, deaf and blind in the
bubble of the present," sings Ashdot. By imposing
censorship on the song, Dekel proved that every word is
true, and chose to conceal the truth, to whitewash the
reality and to pat ourselves on the back. That's a mistake
and it reinforces an image of what's happening that is
definitely not what's happening now.
http://www.haaretz.com/misc/writers/uri-blau-1.605
LATimes:
The song was welcomed by liberals as a protest of Israel's
actions in the West Bank but fiercely criticized by
others, who defaced Ashdot's official Facebook page last
month, with one angry reader referring to Ashdot as a
"draft-dodging dog" - though he didn't evade mandatory
service.
Army Radio stuck by an advance invitation that Ashdot
perform in its studios but expressly vetoed the playing of
this song. The station later issued a statement saying
there was no room on the military station for a song that
"denigrates and denounces those who have sacrificed their
lives for the defense of the country."
"I am worried when songs are banned for broadcast in a
democratic country," Ashdot told Israeli media, adding he
was shocked by the "incitement" against him that the
statement encouraged. The decision and statement were
issued by Yaron Dekel, a veteran journalist appointed to
be the station's military commander in February. ......
Michael Sfard, an activist attorney who represents
Breaking the Silence, called the decision a "sad instance
of political censorship" and wondered if an interviewer
speaking, not singing, the same critique would be
censored. ....
The political party Meretz, which opposes Israel's
continued occupation of the West Bank, used its social
media platform to recommend the song and ushered its
supporters to YouTube to 'like' "Ashdot's courage and
Kimhi's uncompromising text."
Jerusalem Post: One song our soldiers won't be marching to
And these words caught my attention:-
They translate as
"Hey, what here is ours and what belongs to you?"
Who is he singing to?
Who is the "we" and who the "you"?
Is the Arabic-styled font intended to suggest Arabs are the
"you"?
Is this a political song?
But to the point: IDF soldiers learn to defend and to do that,
they must be trained in warfare and how to kill. There is no
room for pacificism here.
http://blogs.jpost.com/content/one-song-our-soldiers-wont-be-marching
===
For background on the origins of Kimhi's Breaking the Silence
tour check out - A song was born: The tale of a controversial
tune by Yuval Ben-Ami at 972+ . He offers a translation of the
lyrics below.
http://972mag.com/a-song-was-born-the-tale-of-a-controversial-tune/57783/
Learning to kill
Is a matter of momentum
It starts small
And then it comes
Patrols every night
In the casbah of Nablus
Hey, what here is ours
And what is yours
At first just a drill
A rifle's butt bangs on the door
Children in shock
A family terrified
Later - closure*
There's danger already
Death is lurking
Behind every corner
Cocking the weapon
Arm shaking
Finger is firm
Against the trigger
The heart goes wild
Beats, terrified
It knows - next time
It will be easier
They are not a man, not a woman
They are just an object, just a shadow
Learning to kill
Is a matter of habit
Learning to fear
Is a matter of momentum
You start small
And then it comes
The news from above
Reaches the street
There's no hope of living
The end is so near
Prophecies of terror
Like the crow of a raven
Close the shutters
Close up in the homes
we're just a few
And they are so many
A tiny country
Devoured by enemies
They have only hate in their hearts
Evil, dark urges
Learning to fear
Is a matter of habit
Learning cruelty
Is a matter of momentum
It starts small
And then it comes
Every boy is a man
Craving victory
Hands behind the head
Legs spread
It's a time of danger
It's a time of destruction
Soldier, toughen up
There's no good in compassion
The cousin like an animal
Used to blood
doesn't feel suffering
Is not human
Field uniform and chafing
Exhaustion and routine
From stupidity to evil
The route is short
All ours, all ours
Israel's land
Learning cruelly
Is a matter of habit
Son, son - stop
Son, son - come back
Come to me, sweetheart
Come to me, my baby
The sky is so gloomy
Outside, already dark
Tin soldiers still
Under the bed
Come home, son
Come home
Home
Home
Learning to love
Is a matter of tenderness
A careful step
In a cloud of gentleness
We will hesitate, we will come apart
We will soften, we will round out
Learning to love
Is a matter of habit
Being human
Is a matter of momentum
It grows like an unborn child
And then it comes
For just one minute
Just now, just today
To be on the other side
Of that same checkpoint
But our heart has hardened
And our skin is thick
Deaf and blind
In the bubble of the present
We will observe in amazement
The falling angel
Being human
Is a matter of habit
*"Closure" is a military term referring to a situation in
which inhabitants of a village or town are prevented from
traveling outside it.
Mondoweiss contributor Ira Glunts had this to say which about
wraps it:
A country raised on "purity of arms" and all this other crap
is reacting like a cornered animal to charges of cruelty and
worse.
Ben-Ami predicts the song will be legendary and all we need to
do is be patient. I'm sitting back and grabbing the popcorn.
This isn't going away anytime soon.
[Annie Robbins is Writer at Large for Mondoweiss, a mother, a
human rights activist and a ceramic artist. She lives in the
SF bay area. ]
==========
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