VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED.
Today is December 21, 2011. It is also the 25nd day of the Jewish month of Kislev--the first day of the Jewish holiday Chanukah. Chanukah is the story of Jews of old who fought the Greeks in a battle for Jewish survival more than 2,100 years ago. To honor their courage and success, I bring you two videos to remind you that we, too, fight a battle for Jewish survival. These videos are not pleasant. Indeed, the first may shock some of you; but what you see is real. This is what Arabs age 25-30 have literally grown up watching on TV. At a broader level, these two videos are also a sample of modern Arab school curriculum and TV programing.
It is a Chanukah story for 2011.
The first video, though posted in 2011, covers TV examples from the period 2001-2008. It may be 'old', but as stated above, it was what today's 25-30 year-old Arabs grew up watching. (h/t to James1v27 for this video. The youtube address for it is
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7Gzyeo1Z1I4#t=0s).
WARNING: this site address has other videos, some of which are not appropriate. You may wish to skip this first video!
The second video is from May, 2011. I post it to let you know that the ideas of the 'old' video are still 'au currant' .
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The video below shows Hamas MP Yunis al Astal on Hamas Al Aqsa TV in early May, 2011 talking about Jews and Arabs. Listen carefully. Please note that when the speaker here refers to 'Palestine', he refers to modern Israel; when he speaks of 'resettlement plans' he is explaining how the Arab refugee problem will be solved. ( h/t Daphne Anson for the video--and MEMRI). This video presents to the viewer a way to understand the significance of the first video:
Many Jews in America join with the nations of the world to press Israel to make concessions 'for peace'. They, along with the current US administration, are relentless with that pressure. For example, in early December this year, US Secretary of Defense John Panetta lashed out at Israel, ending his verbal attack with, 'just get back to the damn [negotiation] table', as if lack of progress in talks with Mahmoud Abbas was all Israel's fault.
Since so many Jews feel that Mr Panetta is right, I thought you might wish to celebrate your Chanukah with a look at these (above) examples of Arab elementary school education and daily/weekly Arab TV. After all, this is what we hear about in Israel. We heard it in 2004, in 2008, in May, 2011, etc. It is the reality of the Arab culture that surrounds us. So as we in Israel compare Mr Panetta's hostile pressure on us against such examples of Arab culture as you have just seen (and these are not singular or unique examples), many of us in Israel conclude that either our 'friends' have no clue what the Arab thinks or, worse, they don't care what the Arab thinks--so long as we make those damn concessions (to paraphrase the American Secretary of Defense). Somehow, inexplicably, many of us in Israel are not impressed by our friends' urgency. Indeed, as strange as this may sound to you, when we see such Arab TV and education videos as you have just seen, we do not rush to offer concessions.
By the way, with so many of our American Jewish friends pressing us to make peace, perhaps you noticed that nowhere in either of these two videos do we see discussions of 'justice' or 'peace treaties', or a desire for 'self-determination' for the Arab peoples in Gaza or the West Bank--or even any suggestion of peaceful coexistence with Jews. These videos focus on Arab 'ideals' that have nothing to do with peace-with-the-Jew. Justice, coexistence or peace appear to have no place in the current Arab culture. These videos present hate such as you may have never seen and may find difficult to imagine; but then, it's all right there-- in Arabic, in every Arab home, within virtually all Arab school curriculums and on TV.
Did you notice that?
The nations of the world, including many American Jews, feel very strongly about justice and peace. Such ideas are very important to them. The Arab, on the other hand, talks about something else altogether...
If you lived in Israel, who would you believe?
Happy Chanukah.
(h/t to Love of the Land--www.calevbenyefuneh.blogspot)
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