disgusting capitalist propaganda

[punisa]

This is a brand new commercial for Cellphone company in Israel - Cellcom Israel Ltd.
Depicting Israeli soldiers kicking a soccer ball back and forth with unseen Palestinian Authority Arabs over the separation wall between some Arab and Jewish areas in Judea and Samaria. A voiceover enthuses "After all, what are we all after? Just a little fun."
The advertisement was produced by McCann Erickson, part of U.S. Interpublic Group.
This, and many others, show no dignity for human life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AH02uc1vB4k

[Stranger Than Paradise]

Very disgusting. The fact they portray the Israeli's as these smiling, happy go lucky, peaceful soldiers and leave the arab people faceless and unseen as if they are cold and hateful in contrast.

[AnthArmo]

I think you may be mis-interpreting it, it seems to be calling out for greater peace between Isrealies and Palestinians, saying that they are both fundamentally the same.

[A New Era]

I agree. It is of course an Israeli-centric commercial but it doesn't portray the Palestinians as evil, and maybe there is a reason why we don't see the Palestinians in the commercial, as if they are being forced out of sight. There are many ways to interpret this commercial. As I see it, the commercial says two things:

1. Israeli soldiers are loving, happy people.
2. It is possible for Israelis and Palestinians to have fun together despite the conflict and The Wall.

[Stranger Than Paradise]

I think you may be mis-interpreting it, it seems to be calling out for greater peace between Isrealies and Palestinians, saying that they are both fundamentally the same.

Then why not show the Arab people's faces? They may be setting it up like that but very subtly they are portraying the Arab people as sub-human in comparison to the Israeli's. I think that is obvious, especially as A New Era said it being an Israeli-centric commercial whose capitalist class has no interest in peace with Palestine.

[A New Era]

Well, as I said earlier in the post, there might be a reason why we don't see the Palestinians in the commercial. Maybe they don't show the Palestinians because they want to show part of the purpose of the wall (besides the economical); That palestinians are forced out of sight. The other being of course that it is an Israeli commercial and seeing smiling Palestinians on a commercial would be controversial. I don't see the commercial as anything bad though.

[Dimentio]

I do not think the intention is to be Anti-palestinian. The colonial mentality is uninentional on this one, because it is so ingrained in the surrounding society that the advertisement makers took it for granted.

[Stranger Than Paradise]

Well, as I said earlier in the post, there might be a reason why we don't see the Palestinians in the commercial. Maybe they don't show the Palestinians because they want to show part of the purpose of the wall (besides the economical); That palestinians are forced out of sight. The other being of course that it is an Israeli commercial and seeing smiling Palestinians on a commercial would be controversial. I don't see the commercial as anything bad though.

Well that seems to be quite obvious anti-arab proboganda. That's how I see it anyway. All commercials are bad in some way though.

[NecroCommie]

Even if it is not anti-palestinian, it is pro-Israeli army = shit.

[9]

With all the horrendous bullshit Israel coughs up, this hardly seems like something worth getting angry about.

[Dimentio]

Even if it is not anti-palestinian, it is pro-Israeli army = shit.

Of course it is. I find it somewhat entertaining that the Israeli army is painting itself like a cuddly white rabbit. Armies usually paint themselves as brutal destruction machines.

[punisa]

I really think that some of you completely missed the point here..
Perhaps you don't get that portraying the people's suffering in any way - even if making them happy soccer fans - to make ****ing profit is wrong.

It involves direct conflict imagery: wall and army.
And you do NOT turn that into a mockery, or a commercial for your damn cellphone company, no matter how good your intentions were (and this commercial had NONE).

Faceless people behind the walls are not a commercialy exploitable material.
It's not just an insult to them, its an insult to any inteligent viewer.

Just as if someone made a commercial of firefighters and rescue workers playing a little soccer ball in break time while the twin towers were a burning ruin. "Hey, despite that we are under a terrorist attack, let us not forget that life is fun".

[Killfacer]

Ah those IDF guyz, they're just regular hardworking joes like us. All they want is a laugh.


:blink:

[n0thing]

I think you may be mis-interpreting it, it seems to be calling out for greater peace between Isrealies and Palestinians, saying that they are both fundamentally the same.
I saw this too.

[NecroCommie]

It's not just an insult to them, its an insult to any inteligent viewer.

That is very true! I dislike most adds actually due to that very factor. Do they honestly think me so stupid that I could not see through something that obvious?

[zerozerozerominusone]

Faceless people behind the walls are not a commercialy exploitable material.
It's not just an insult to them, its an insult to any inteligent viewer.

An insult? Jeez... if you feel injured by a lousy TV ad I'd say you have a very serious problem and need to cowboy up a little. There's a wide gap between finding something disagreeable and insulting. In case you have not looked it up, an insult is an injury. Doctors refer to injuries to the body as "insults". That is the real meaning of the word. If you call me some nasty name, I may find it disagreeable, but I will not be insulted. If you take a swag at me with a fist and connect, then I would be insulted. My point here goes to use of language. Proper use, that is, and no it is not all relative. Words have meanings and if one fails to use them properly, then what issues from their mouths is of no use to anyone. I point this out because it is an important issue. Clear and effective communications between people is paramount in getting useful things accomplished. Improper use of language is a sign of either ignorance, dishonesty, or ignorant dishonesty and it is rampant, and that is dangerous whether people recognize it or not.

As for being injured by words, the only way that happens is when the "injured" party injures himself. I've been in the martial arts for most of my life, better than 35 years now, and we have a little of everything in our dojo. Black, white, Indian, you name it. First thing we start on in training is to call everyone a nigger or spic or kike, dago, faggot... you name it. By the time a couple of months pass, even the most sensitive among us has become insensitive to the words and thereby a major factor weighing against one's survival in combat has been eliminated. What we learn is that words hold only as much power as one agrees to let them have. It is a lesson for one and all to take to heart, IMO. So who cares what someone says? In the vast and overwhelming cases, words mean nothing if you let them mean nothing.

[gorillafuck]

Video has been removed

[Pogue]

I'm trying to decipher this. Its wrong for them to show the IDF as nice fun loving people, they'd more likely lob a grenade back over than the football, but its not meant to be sinister I don't think.

[Stranger Than Paradise]

I'm trying to decipher this. Its wrong for them to show the IDF as nice fun loving people, they'd more likely lob a grenade back over than the football, but its not meant to be sinister I don't think.

The thing that concerns me is that if they wanted to preach a message of equality then they could have just gone out and done it, they could have had a football game with each other in the advert. Instead they leave the Arabs behind the wall, and it is ambiguous. Why do they not give the arab people a face, we don't know what they are thinking on the other side of the wall. In my opinion that is what the advert is trying to achieve. Sympathy for the Israeli's and uncertainty towards Arabs.

[rednordman]

It is a typical stupid capitalist advert that somehow happens to be both insensitive and offending, while at the same time, funny and lighthearted. It depends on which way you look at it. One thing is for sure, the company which is responsible for this daft piece of crap is only interested in its image and profit, and was probably well aware that it was going to make a bit of commotion.

Stranger-than-paradise is correct, they should have shown the faces of the palistinians on the other side of the wall too.

[9]

It is a typical stupid capitalist advert that somehow happens to be both insensitive and offending, while at the same time, funny and lighthearted. It depends on which way you look at it. One thing is for sure, the company which is responsible for this daft piece of crap is only interested in its image and profit, and was probably well aware that it was going to make a bit of commotion.

Stranger-than-paradise is correct, they should have shown the faces of the palistinians on the other side of the wall too.

Somehow I don't think it made much commotion in Israel... where there actually is a wall which they use to keep Palestinians out. In real life.

[punisa]

Video has been removed

Thanks for letting me know, I've just updated the link. All seems to work now.

[punisa]

An insult? Jeez... if you feel injured by a lousy TV ad I'd say you have a very serious problem and need to cowboy up a little. There's a wide gap between finding something disagreeable and insulting. In case you have not looked it up, an insult is an injury. Doctors refer to injuries to the body as "insults". That is the real meaning of the word. If you call me some nasty name, I may find it disagreeable, but I will not be insulted. If you take a swag at me with a fist and connect, then I would be insulted. My point here goes to use of language. Proper use, that is, and no it is not all relative. Words have meanings and if one fails to use them properly, then what issues from their mouths is of no use to anyone. I point this out because it is an important issue. Clear and effective communications between people is paramount in getting useful things accomplished. Improper use of language is a sign of either ignorance, dishonesty, or ignorant dishonesty and it is rampant, and that is dangerous whether people recognize it or not.

As for being injured by words, the only way that happens is when the "injured" party injures himself. I've been in the martial arts for most of my life, better than 35 years now, and we have a little of everything in our dojo. Black, white, Indian, you name it. First thing we start on in training is to call everyone a nigger or spic or kike, dago, faggot... you name it. By the time a couple of months pass, even the most sensitive among us has become insensitive to the words and thereby a major factor weighing against one's survival in combat has been eliminated. What we learn is that words hold only as much power as one agrees to let them have. It is a lesson for one and all to take to heart, IMO. So who cares what someone says? In the vast and overwhelming cases, words mean nothing if you let them mean nothing.

Is this supposed to be a vocabulary or a general critique of some sort?
I said that such media works are an insult to an inteligent human being and I stand by it, reason why I keep that stupid tv box off.

But maybe you'd prefer if I have said that it degrades human perception towards a recent armed conflict on a disputed part of land?

In either way, that piece is higly political and thus I published it here - in "politics" section.

Media production is a collection of slimy greedy capitalists. BUT I do not get upset when they make a TV ad shot from an angle so the girl that is drinking Sprite seems as if she is performing an oral sex on a guy.
That is just plain stupid and shallow, but not the material I would want to share with you guys.

This arab-israeli footie match is an insult to the people who are on the other side of wall and is also an insult to inteligent viewer.

I do thank you for the bit of knowledge you aquired with your martial arts training and for sharing it with us (which sounded rather kinky, but that's just me).
But I believe I speak on behalf of all, or majority, of members here - that by this ad nobody is insluted in a way that would make him/her mad, angry or in any other way pissed.
It is an "insult" (in lack of a better word) to our inteligence, cause it carries two messages:
1. use our cellphone company (which we could not care less about)
2. war ain't so bad when you have cool corporations like ours. As a matter of fact - agrresors are all smiley and lovely young - beverly hills 9012whatever kids, not interested to torture people on military controlled borders, but solely to connect with faceless guys over the wall in a friendly soccer game.

THIS is propaganda, a huge machine working against all of us on daily basis. The moment we consider it "not so bad" or "actually showing how both sides could be friends" is the moment you should recalculate your revolutionary potential.