You might not feel like you're pushing bycotts, but I felt pushed, despite supporting the ideas of consumer power and ending Israel's transgressions.
I don't mean to criticise, so much as give feedback. I'm not even sure why I feel pushed given you specifically asked for opinions about boyoctts. There's a psychology in there somewhere that's maybe to do with your history of posting about the Israel/Palestine conflict and the boycott image you chose. Imagery is powerful and perhaps overrides the written word in our consciousness.
You certainly got me thinking about the efficacy of boycotts and inspired me in a round about way, but I suspect for the majority it just feels like, 'Oh, here we go again...'
I agree, change happens by increments and everything contributes to that, but how much time do we have under the circumstances? How do we make these issues more accessible and acceptable to increase the size of the steps towards equality and basic human rights?
The way I look at it, in my totally inexpert way, is that Israel is in breach of international agreements and ethical codes of conduct on a number of levels. There's no question about that.
However, their behaviour as a country, or a people won't be all 'bad'. Likewise, the behaviour of the Palestinian country and people won't be all 'good'.
To come to resolution we have to understand why people think what the think and do what they do. It's no different from the conflicts you get on CS where people spill their own issues all over each other: without understanding and awareness of ourselves and others we will continue to assume first, fire bullets next and generally get it all wrong.
I'm passionate about consumer choices which I believe gives us a greater power to create change than having the vote. If progress is made convincing people that consumerism is a power tool that makes a pneumatic drill look like a damp paper straw, and progress is made in truly understanding the issues in the Middle East, then people can make their own choices about who to give their hard earned to.
Pushing boycotts when people understand neither issue means you are only accessing the choir with your sermon and that won't be enough to create change.
I also think that perhaps the Middle East issues might be better served if the culture of sport was used in the same way that the Barenboim-Said ethos has used the culture of music. It's perhaps common ground wasted if we crush it with a funding boycott.
Y'know, might it be better if Puma were persuaded to financially invest in both Israeli and Palestinian sporting events, thus bringing like-minded people together with common goals. I don't know how feasible that wuld be, it just popped into my head as a potential synergistic pathway.
And there are no big predators here as such. There are rumours about big cats released into the countryside following a change in exotic pet licensing laws some decades ago, but no definitive proof as yet.
We could do with a few pigs round here where there are pine plantations on the mountains. Some of mountains are topped with slag from the history of coal mining though, so I don't know if that's pig friendly.
jac_the_gripper Forum Posts (5,363)
RE: Make a band name edible...
BB King PrawnHas that been done?
It's not good to overdo prawns.