New Radiohead (1 Viewer)

I don't really know the circumstances of the Ken Loach film being screened in Israel but if this is simply a case of the film being screened in cinemas then this is a cheap shot. I imagine this is part of some sort of worldwide distribution arrangement that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to exclude specific countries from (anymore than Radiohead could, if they wished, exclude Israel from distribution arrangements for their CDs or Spotify streams or whatever). If however Loach is travelling to Tel Aviv to attend the opening of a film festival who are screening the film and interviewing him about it then that's another matter and the charge of hypocrisy is valid. I don't think that's the case though but open to correction if I'm wrong.
 
Also, there is no organised and well established campaign for a cultural boycott of the US (who would organise such a thing and what would they hope to achieve anyway?) so Yorke bringing up Trump is just a distraction tactic. There is such a campaign with respect to Israel/Palestine and by going there to play they are deliberately choosing to defy it, thus delighting the Israeli government and disappointing many of their opponents. It's a political act and Yorke should stop whining about people calling him out on it.
 
Also, there is no organised and well established campaign for a cultural boycott of the US (who would organise such a thing and what would they hope to achieve anyway?) so Yorke bringing up Trump is just a distraction tactic. There is such a campaign with respect to Israel/Palestine and by going there to play they are deliberately choosing to defy it, thus delighting the Israeli government and disappointing many of their opponents. It's a political act and Yorke should stop whining about people calling him out on it.
It's an interesting one. In one way I agree with APs point that it's faintly ridiculous to say Israel are cunts in one region of the world target them, whereas the US are cunts all over the place so let them off the hook. But of course you're right, it's eminently more practical and effective to cancel one show and back one specific campaign than to uproot a whole tour for an altogether more vague protest.

Yorke could have a point in that he wishes to communicate to people in his own way rather than through the silence of a boycott. It'll be interesting whether or not he just means "through his music, man" or whether he'll actually use the platform to say something to the audience. Which could be pretty powerful given the furore of the build-up.

Public opinion can be fickle when it comes to these things. The Lions tour to South Africa in '74 was enormously unpopular - until they started winning and then it was like "yeah we smashed those racist bastards". But the Dunnes Stores protest 10 years later shows just how effective these boycotts can be.
 
U.S. Lawmakers Seek to Criminally Outlaw Support for Boycott Campaign Against Israel

But now, a group of 43 senators — 29 Republicans and 14 Democrats — wants to implement a law that would make it a felony for Americans to support the international boycott against Israel, which was launched in protest of that country’s decades-old occupation of Palestine. The two primary sponsors of the bill are Democrat Ben Cardin of Maryland and Republican Rob Portman of Ohio. Perhaps the most shocking aspect is the punishment: Anyone guilty of violating the prohibitions will face a minimum civil penalty of $250,000 and a maximum criminal penalty of $1 million and 20 years in prison.

I'd say this can't come soon enough for Thom, it might get a few people off his back
 
No fan of the Israeli government or what's carried out in their name but it still isn't the same as South Africa and I'm fairly undecided on the cultural boycott myself o_O

Having said that, and even though I'd say Radiohead should do whatever they want, playing Israel isn't neutral and Jesus they should fucking address the issue properly instead of avoiding it with pithy 2 sentence or whatever responses.
 
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I would have thought it's far worse than South Africa. Israel bomb hospitals, torture captives, cut off power and food supplies, kill international journalists and peacekeepers, ignore international consensus. Plus they have nuclear weapons.
 
I would have thought it's far worse than South Africa. Israel bomb hospitals, torture captives, cut off power and food supplies, kill international journalists and peacekeepers, ignore international consensus. Plus they have nuclear weapons.

It never seemed to affect your chronic Dana International masturbatory sessions
 
I would have thought it's far worse than South Africa. Israel bomb hospitals, torture captives, cut off power and food supplies, kill international journalists and peacekeepers, ignore international consensus. Plus they have nuclear weapons.

I'm open to correction but I believe the cultural boycott in South Africa was somewhat effective because of the legally enforced cultural separation of (3) races, with the whites dominating in all aspects; I think black women might not even have legally been considered adults? That was a complete understanding of humanity that needed to be tackled at every level.

In Israel they don't deny in theory that a Palestinian deserves the same full human rights Israelis have, they just don't practice it. The very idea that Israel is occupying the West Bank shows that there's a tension in ideas there, it's not the entire foundation of their thinking.

I take your point that in practice this might mean that it is worse to be a Palestinian because there's pretty much open war that'll kill you as opposed to a slow denial of your humanity over your entire life.

I dunno, I'm conflicted and certainly no expert and I'm always wary of supporting anything I don't understand very well.
 
It's kinda irrelevant whether or not one country is worse than the other, even if prominent South African anti-apartheid campaigners say the situation in Israel is worse than it was in SA. Palestinians are basically being ethnically cleansed, international diplomacy is accomplishing nothing or making it worse. What's left except boycott? Write to your td? Call Joe?
 
Israel is as bad if not worse in terms of human rights violations. And in practice far more oppressive in terms of the use of violence. Also, once you factor out the US, there's as much an international consensus of condemnation. The unfortunate thing is that the US is just such a big player in international affairs.
 
It's kinda irrelevant whether or not one country is worse than the other, even if prominent South African anti-apartheid campaigners say the situation in Israel is worse than it was in SA. Palestinians are basically being ethnically cleansed, international diplomacy is accomplishing nothing or making it worse. What's left except boycott? Write to your td? Call Joe?
So should we also boycott the USA culturally because they prop up Israel? or for their own warcrimes in places like Yemen?

Or maybe we could stop the USA and UK and whoever else from selling weapons to Israel. Impose economic sanctions?

You know there's a lot more left than pulling a few gigs.
 
The unfortunate thing is that the US is just such a big player in international affairs.

And record sales for all the bands that are vocal on the Isreal thing but. Oh and Oil is really useful for fu manchu inspired road trips and lugging mega rigs around world and flying city to city for easter break and all these things. I just see it as people being simultaneously complicit with the parts that prop up their lifestyle and being outspoked about things that wont effect their doorstep. Like we should boycott stuff, but not stuff that is hard to boycott, just stuff we can easily live without. I've taken a stance by not attending any gigs in Isreal. If we actually gave a fuck (me included) we'd boycott oil and high dollar electrics which have crazy mining going on in their construction.

Sill hungover here.
 
So should we also boycott the USA culturally because they prop up Israel? or for their own warcrimes in places like Yemen?

Or maybe we could stop the USA and UK and whoever else from selling weapons to Israel. Impose economic sanctions?

You know there's a lot more left than pulling a few gigs.
Israel are the ones doing what they're doing and make themselves a logical starting point
 

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