Look forward to seeing the film. My English teacher at school put on a production of Max Frisch's The Fire Raisers, seen as a metaphor for the rise of Nazism. He showed us Triumph of the Will and a section was used to finish the play. A very progressive thinker and a long term influence. I gather the film was banned for years as it was deemed too powerful. Years later, living in Kenya, it turned out that she had done her sub-aqua at the place we would go to to dive on the coast and I have a copy of her book along with Last of the Nuba. Little did we know...
Visiting Dachau, just outside Munich, we were struck by how people must have known what was happening there. Individuals and societies that lose all morality and not just accept but exploit the situation. The festival that was held in Israel where the people were murdered was set up very close to the border with Gaza, so those imprisoned in Gaza would have known and been able to hear what was going on. Every day, Israelis in the West Bank drive on their private roads, past those Palestinians whose land they have taken whilst their fellow citizens supported by the military are free to attack and kill Palestinians, trashing and stealing ever more of their land and property.
There are too many worrying parallels between Germany in the 1930s' and the steady elimination of the Jews from German society, and what is happening in today's Israel. Israeli media acting as the Riefenstahl's today, glorifying the Israeli military who are carrying out the slaughter. As Israeli society, excepting a brave few, loses all sense of right or wrong.
And not just in Israel. It is only too easy to be a Riefenstahl, 'playing the game', taking advantage of the situation. It is happening in America, with for instance the 'techbros'. When society and norms breakdown, it takes decades to rebuild them.
I had looked it up and it's about 4k from the Gaza border, close enough to be heard - judging by my experience of festivals. Whether Hamas were aware or not I cannot comment. It seemed to be remarkably close, and perhaps reflected that lack of awareness amongst the participants, even though by some criteria they were sadly amongst the more liberal. And as we know, Israeli media is silent on the experiences of Palestinians, be they in the West Bank or Gaza. Silencing the media being the mark of a certain kind of state.
Yes, I thought at the time that it could have been heard too. And I also wondered how such a festival have been staged so close to Gaza (which doesn’t mean its participants deserved what happened to them). But if it had been heard, presumably Hamas would have factored into their ‘calculations’ beforehand?
Who knows how much Hamas would have been aware beforehand. Gaza has been a pressure cooker waiting to explode and the festival was tragically hit by that explosion. As you have written, oppression and terrorism are ugly bedfellows.
Have now found you on RLF and will listen to Grim Up North - grew up near Carlisle.
Look forward to seeing the film. My English teacher at school put on a production of Max Frisch's The Fire Raisers, seen as a metaphor for the rise of Nazism. He showed us Triumph of the Will and a section was used to finish the play. A very progressive thinker and a long term influence. I gather the film was banned for years as it was deemed too powerful. Years later, living in Kenya, it turned out that she had done her sub-aqua at the place we would go to to dive on the coast and I have a copy of her book along with Last of the Nuba. Little did we know...
Visiting Dachau, just outside Munich, we were struck by how people must have known what was happening there. Individuals and societies that lose all morality and not just accept but exploit the situation. The festival that was held in Israel where the people were murdered was set up very close to the border with Gaza, so those imprisoned in Gaza would have known and been able to hear what was going on. Every day, Israelis in the West Bank drive on their private roads, past those Palestinians whose land they have taken whilst their fellow citizens supported by the military are free to attack and kill Palestinians, trashing and stealing ever more of their land and property.
There are too many worrying parallels between Germany in the 1930s' and the steady elimination of the Jews from German society, and what is happening in today's Israel. Israeli media acting as the Riefenstahl's today, glorifying the Israeli military who are carrying out the slaughter. As Israeli society, excepting a brave few, loses all sense of right or wrong.
And not just in Israel. It is only too easy to be a Riefenstahl, 'playing the game', taking advantage of the situation. It is happening in America, with for instance the 'techbros'. When society and norms breakdown, it takes decades to rebuild them.
Thanks for that thoughtful response Robin. My mother had that book on the Nuba too. My only quibble with your observations is the notion that the festival could be heard in Gaza. I remember thinking the same thing following October 7, but it seems that Hamas wasn’t aware of it before the raid/massacre: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/18/hamas-had-not-planned-to-attack-israel-music-festival-israeli-report-says
I had looked it up and it's about 4k from the Gaza border, close enough to be heard - judging by my experience of festivals. Whether Hamas were aware or not I cannot comment. It seemed to be remarkably close, and perhaps reflected that lack of awareness amongst the participants, even though by some criteria they were sadly amongst the more liberal. And as we know, Israeli media is silent on the experiences of Palestinians, be they in the West Bank or Gaza. Silencing the media being the mark of a certain kind of state.
Yes, I thought at the time that it could have been heard too. And I also wondered how such a festival have been staged so close to Gaza (which doesn’t mean its participants deserved what happened to them). But if it had been heard, presumably Hamas would have factored into their ‘calculations’ beforehand?
Who knows how much Hamas would have been aware beforehand. Gaza has been a pressure cooker waiting to explode and the festival was tragically hit by that explosion. As you have written, oppression and terrorism are ugly bedfellows.
Have now found you on RLF and will listen to Grim Up North - grew up near Carlisle.
Look forward to Patagonia book. Stunning place