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December 22, 2006
The Media as Theater of War Conference: the debate begins
Hertzliya, Israel, December 17-18, 2006.
All my posts about the conference are collected here, also links to other blogs writing about the conference.
I have a lot to say about the Media as Theater of War Conference, but like most attendees I am still digesting it and taking care of other business. Lisa is not happy about the conference, but she's moving this week. Yael is also not happy. Michael has a "just got back from traveling immune system abuse" cold (which hasn't stopped his commenters from going at it about Lebanon and Hezbollah). Mary says "More later" (but check out her reports from Beirut). So far Fernandez has only written about the voyage. My impressions are similar to Allison's, and she says she'll write more later. The official conference site has posted one paper so far, with more to come. This is one of the presentations which provoked the negative reaction described below.
The most comprehensive reports at this time are podcasts from Aussie Dave (of Richard Fernandez, Michael Totten, and others) and reports from Ami Isseroff and Liza of Somethingsomething. Ami is fairly positive, although he shares the viewpoint of some that "right-wing" spokespeople are detrimental to the cause.
Liza is the only blogger who has plunged into controversy so far, with a very critical post on one particular panel, which some of the participants seem to portray as characterizing the entire conference. The comment thread is long and still growing, with conference organizer Richard Landes, and attendees me, Don Radlauer, Ami Isseroff, Benjamin Kerstein, and Lee Smith weighing in.
My own tardiness is due to being a tourist in Jerusalem for the first time since 1967 (or was it 66? I was young . . . ) and struggling with internet access problems, which have been allieviated by generous loaning of Macintosh by Prof Landes. (And if anyone has a remedy for laptop screen death, let me know. I am given to understand that this means you give the computer a decent burial and go shopping. Oh well, my faithful Titanium Powerbook - which never gave me a moment's trouble for 3 years of 8 hrs/day use - was five years old, which is about 85 in human years.) Everything is backed up on my iPod . . . which is formatted for Mac . . . and Prof Landes has the only Mac in Israel, I think. I downloaded some stuff which promises to make it accessible to PCs without me having to reformat it. We'll see. . . .
I have a lot of great photos from my new Canon, and also a few AVI movies from various panels. I hope to post them in the next few days. Once I figure out how to turn AVIs into something I can post on the blog.
Meanwhile, Shabbat is coming, I have a dinner invite, and I'm going to daven at the Kotel tomorrow. More later.
Judith | 12/22/06 at 04:02 PM | Categories: - Media as Theater of War
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Comments
There used to be a Mac store in Jerusalem, Judith. I had a mac when I lived there, so if you are there anyway, check to see if it is still around.
Have a great shabbat and enjoy yourself in Jerusalem and at the Kotel, etc.
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| December 22, 2006 09:53 AM
I looked online and asked repeatedly of both individuals and telephone directory assistance - everyone said no Macs in Israel. They were very definite about it.
Judith | December 22, 2006 04:08 PM
Before pitching the machine, remove the hard drive. It can be put into a usb case for about $20, and used with your new computer.
There is a company in Atlanta that does LCD screen repair, but you are probably better off with a new machine.
Robert Schwartz | December 23, 2006 01:04 AM
I looked online and asked repeatedly of both individuals and telephone directory assistance - everyone said no Macs in Israel.
None in the whole country, even in techie Tel Aviv?
I saw a couple of Macs in Beirut. I wonder what kind of stakes Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have in the Middle East. This could be as big as the cola wars.
Hope you're enjoying your vacation!
mary | December 23, 2006 09:56 AM
Judith,
Great write-up! I probably won't be posting about the conference on my blog. You probably understand why.
Enjoy Jerusalem!
Charles Malik | December 23, 2006 10:55 AM
I do, Charles. Stay well and safe.
Judith | December 23, 2006 11:04 AM
Robert, I think I will sell it on eBay for parts. Or bury it in the back yard with honors. (If I had a back yard.) The HD is 30 gb, and my iPod has that much. And I have 600 gb in external HD, which cost me .50/gb. Your solution costs me $6/gb. I can get a new Mac laptop with more HD for $900.
Judith | December 23, 2006 11:26 AM
Liza is an idiot who thinks it best to demonize Israelis while turning a blind eye to the hate eminating from other Palestinians. Her idea of "dialogue" is listening to the Palestinians telling her how bad Isreal is and just agreeing with them. That is not dialogue. That is lunacy.
Liza's sorority of North American aliyah blogger friends were posting a lot during the Lebanon War, which is when I discovered them. I forget which one's blog it was on, but there were some very nasty Lebanese people leaving messages on their blog during the war. Not one person refuted these people. I mean their rants were listened to, agreed with, sympathized with etc by all the lefty Israeli friends. That is all fine, no problem. However, when I dared respond to one of their fallicious claims, the blog author literally jumped down my throat as did other readers.
I say bravo to Mr. Landes and yourself. I feel that this conference was å wonderful idea and it's too bad some people had to bash it to make their "friends" feel good. I think it's clear the Isreali left has been out of touch for a very long time.
Realist | December 24, 2006 08:06 AM
One question - is it still considered a sorority if we let men in the group as well? Hmmm...
My Dear "Realist", Well aren't you the thoughtful one, explaining my thoughts and ideas to the masses, using snappy words like "idiot" and "lunacy" to convey that we aren't in complete agreement. Just out of curiosity, what is your idea of dialog? Does it involve speaking to people on the other side of the conflict, speaking to people with whom you disagree, or is it strictly limited to people who share your sentiments?
It must be nice to criticize and resort to name-calling from the comfort of your armchair, somewhere far away from Israel, I'm guessing. I assume you don't live here, since you seem to have problems spelling the name of the country...
Liza | December 25, 2006 04:38 AM
Oh yes, a spelling mistake on a blog indicates that someone is or is not Israeli. As usual, you are spot on. Many of your like-minded blogger friends have only recently moved to Israel so let's stop pretending that you are all Sabras who speak for Israeli society. Let me ask you motek when exactly did you serve in the IDF? What about your friends? I have served in the IDF and in the PR arena. Have you? And by the way demonizing Israel to your 5 Arab friends is not considered PR. You will be very unsuccessful in this endeavor, I assure you.
I have talked to many Arabs in my lifetime, many more than you I'm sure, but talking is not a one way street. I am not afraid that by telling them they are wrong they will not be my friend, just as they are not afraid to tell me the same.
Realist | December 25, 2006 10:59 PM
Realist - just on a couple of points:
You say "not one person refuted these people" and then describe what happened when you did just that.
And if several bloggers "literally" jumped down your throat, yiu should be careful that you don't end up putting one of their feet in your mouth.
Rob | December 26, 2006 12:17 PM
