18.1.09

Marketing

After the cannons have hushed down a little, it is time to inspect the damage in Gaza. Initial estimates say that Israel have bombed Gaza with around 1000 tonnes of bombs. This is a little less than half of the tonnage dropped by the Brits on Dresden during the Second World War. Allegations of war crimes have evidence from all around Gaza with Red Cross testimonies and evidence in support of these allegations. The world voiced its concerns against what was happening throughout the past three weeks, with major demonstrations going out in almost all parts of the world. But what will this lead to? Sanctions against the rogue state? War crimes tribunal? personal trials of those who led the massacre that killed more than 1200 Palestinians in just three weeks?
Of course none of that. All of this will lead to only on thing: a huge marketing/PR campaign! This campaign has been going on since the beginning of the war. It attempted to deviate public attention from the grotesque abuses of human rights committed in Gaza and focus it on the number of rockets being fired.
Inside Israel, the bait has been taken easily. You rarely see an argument in the press against the war of even slightly mentioning the plight of Palestinians. All you could see over the past three weeks are articles of praise for the boys in the field as they went on a rampage whose resemblance can be found in stories of medieval wars when the victor sows destruction unto the families of the loser. Even the pictures you saw in Israeli press, they were either of soldiers showing their heroism, or of a bombing of structure, show from afar, and labeled as a terrorist infrastructure. The Israelis didn't see what their hands did to little kids of Gaza. Their press didn't tell them about the use of white phosphorus and what it does for its victims. (By the way, if this weapon is so illegal, who makes it?)
Unto the world a new campaign will be unleashed. The will show Israel both as a country that stands strong against terror, yet a country that is so peaceful. The world will forget what happened in Gaza. After all, who would want to remember those horrific pictures? Only a few committed souls will continue to be agonised by the presence of beast amongst the nations of the world.
The rest will just live as they always did, and when they will hear of Israel in a couple of months they will think of sandy beaches, the dead sea, good universities, maybe a football match or a singer in the eurovision. And some, only some, will have a distant memory of a war that took place here, they will not remember the details they will however remember that there was a terrorist group involved.
It's elementary, in a capitalist world, you can market anything, even a war criminal.

3 comments:

Avi said...

Hamas is guilty of war crimes for hiding among women and children. It is a shame that Israel halted its offensive before completing the job. Don't you fear- as soon as real Jewish leadership takes over, Hamas will be out.

End the Arab occupation of Gaza!

Anonymous said...

Bar Kochba, how about ending the Zionist occupation of Israel/Palestine?

nina said...

Bar Kochba, give us a break with that hamas bit. Really.
Israel wants security?
How about a just peace for everyone?
Denying the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and lands is a war crime and an act of aggression which deserves action.
But I guess, nothing can change your point of view.