Heated Facebook discussions often end badly, sometimes involving a Hitler comparison or two. Recently I had one that ended surprisingly well, with all the parties friending each other. But it was quite heated nonetheless. The subject was some recent comments by Norman Finkelstein. [...]
Author Archive
January 13th, 2010 - 1:39 pm § in Uncategorized
Privileged Pessimism: On the Israeli Mainstream
Contrary to popular belief, Marx never used the term “false consciousness”. He assumed that what prevented the disadvantaged from revolting was usually the “dull compulsion of economic relations” – the simple need to make a living (quoted in Scott’s fascinating Domination and the Arts [...]
January 8th, 2010 - 5:01 pm § in Uncategorized
The Israeli Experience Mystique
Here we go again: a Jewish American friend of mine posted a critique of Israeli policy in Gaza on her Facebook profile. Immediately, she got bullied: “I’m there right now and it’s very easy to post things on your facebook without having any first hand encounters. Rather than copyin[...]
Imagining Return
Dedicated to my comrades in Students for Justice in Palestine I should have taken your email! People were all around us at the rally, shouting and singing, I really wanted to talk to someone but I didn’t notice how well you were listening, how you had patience to talk to me and read t[...]
November 4th, 2009 - 1:03 am § in Literature, Politics
Learning About 1948
I remember when I bought my first copy of Benny Morris’ book on the Birth of the Refugee Problem. It was book-week in Rabin Square, Tel Aviv, over ten years ago, all lit up and bustling with crowds of people. I didn’t know what to expect: a part of me didn’t want to know, really [.[...]
Why Talk of a One-State Solution?
Yesterday, Students for Justice in Palestine held its first event of the year at UC Berkeley. The Multicultural Center at the MLK student building was packed – I had to sit on the floor between the aisles for most of the evening. Our speakers, Israeli refusers Maya Wind and Netta Mishly, gave a h[...]
July 24th, 2009 - 3:02 pm § in Activism
Ma’asara 7/24/2009
We hear too little about non-violent Palestinian resistance to the occupation. Today I was in the village of Ma’asara, south of Bethlehem, and this is what happened. A friend from Berkeley arrived in Israel yesterday, and asked if I wanted to hang out. I was looking for someone to come with [...]
July 2nd, 2009 - 6:44 am § in Activism
One Email a Week
Years ago I shared a flat in Tel-Aviv with a guy called Teddy. He didn’t do most of the housework, but I did appreciate his storytelling: he always had hilarious tales of disastrous dates, pompous bosses and army commanders whom he had managed to outsmart (he spent most of his service near the[...]
Beware Self-Righteousness
When people write about lessons to be drawn from the Jewish Holocaust, they often contrast two distinct positions: the nationalist interpretation, and the universal one. The first school’s lessons usually involve the deployment of military force. A typical example is the Israeli Chief of Staff[...]