Comments on: The Baghdad Wall http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/ Christopher Lydon in conversation on arts, ideas and politics Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:35:29 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: a wall round my heart buildin a wall inside http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-148133 a wall round my heart buildin a wall inside Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:29:06 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-148133 [...] ace process. ... No good comes from building a wall, no decent lasting, humane emotion. ...http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wallThe photo journal of peas and happ [...] [...] ace process. … No good comes from building a wall, no decent lasting, humane emotion. …http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wallThe photo journal of peas and happ [...]

]]> By: herbert browne http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-81837 herbert browne Tue, 17 Jul 2007 04:34:19 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-81837 It's interesting, if a little sickening, how the U.S. sides with the most corrupt group (in this case, Fatah) in these"divide & conquer' struggles for its proxy, Israel. Hamas was elected by a fair process; and the U.S. & Israel refuse to abide by the law & give them money to which they're legally entitled. These stories of Hamas members shooting Fatah members "without any cause", apparently, bear studying. If the source of these stories is some "even-handed" American paper, let the believer beware! The New York Times' coverage of the first year of the intifada was carefully documented- and showed that 165 Iraely casualties resulted in 197 headlines (or first paragraphs) reporting Israelis killed (sometimes mentioning the same persons twice)- and the549 Palestinian casualties elicited similar coverage on 217 occasions. Of course, Palestinians no doubt have fewer relatives in the area covered by the NYT... so why highlight their deaths to the same level? I guess the jaw-dropper (for me) was that the reporting of the deaths of Israeli children was about identical to the coverage of Palestinian children deaths, even though 5 times as many Palestinian children died in that period. If Israel chooses to "annex the west bank and Gaza" they should do it without any help from U.S. public sector money. The idea that terrorists being "run out of the whole region" are going to simply evaporate somewhere in the desert is pretty funny... might make a good Hollywood movie... like a sequel to "The 10 Commandments" maybe... we could call it "The Unchosen"... ^..^ It’s interesting, if a little sickening, how the U.S. sides with the most corrupt group (in this case, Fatah) in these”divide & conquer’ struggles for its proxy, Israel. Hamas was elected by a fair process; and the U.S. & Israel refuse to abide by the law & give them money to which they’re legally entitled. These stories of Hamas members shooting Fatah members “without any cause”, apparently, bear studying. If the source of these stories is some “even-handed” American paper, let the believer beware! The New York Times’ coverage of the first year of the intifada was carefully documented- and showed that 165 Iraely casualties resulted in 197 headlines (or first paragraphs) reporting Israelis killed (sometimes mentioning the same persons twice)- and the549 Palestinian casualties elicited similar coverage on 217 occasions. Of course, Palestinians no doubt have fewer relatives in the area covered by the NYT… so why highlight their deaths to the same level? I guess the jaw-dropper (for me) was that the reporting of the deaths of Israeli children was about identical to the coverage of Palestinian children deaths, even though 5 times as many Palestinian children died in that period. If Israel chooses to “annex the west bank and Gaza” they should do it without any help from U.S. public sector money. The idea that terrorists being “run out of the whole region” are going to simply evaporate somewhere in the desert is pretty funny… might make a good Hollywood movie… like a sequel to “The 10 Commandments” maybe… we could call it “The Unchosen”… ^..^

]]> By: tbrucia http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-64511 tbrucia Sat, 16 Jun 2007 15:50:54 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-64511 I suppose someone will next suggest putting a wall around every Hamas militant... uh, oh. They already have those... I think they are called jails. Or the alternative used in the West Bank might work... barbed wire enclosures around Jewish settlers, keeping them in their own little prisons scattered about the 'occupied territories'. What a world! Perhaps walls reflect something about human nature: fear and the willingness to make other persons fearful. Uh, oh. That's precisely the definition of cowards and of terrorists, locked in symbiotic embrace: one allowing his/her fears to rule, and the other using fear to rule. What a world! Where is the 21st century's Albert Camus? I suppose someone will next suggest putting a wall around every Hamas militant… uh, oh. They already have those… I think they are called jails. Or the alternative used in the West Bank might work… barbed wire enclosures around Jewish settlers, keeping them in their own little prisons scattered about the ‘occupied territories’. What a world! Perhaps walls reflect something about human nature: fear and the willingness to make other persons fearful. Uh, oh. That’s precisely the definition of cowards and of terrorists, locked in symbiotic embrace: one allowing his/her fears to rule, and the other using fear to rule. What a world! Where is the 21st century’s Albert Camus?

]]> By: rc21 http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-61646 rc21 Thu, 14 Jun 2007 21:42:39 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-61646 Hamas fighters have been taking members of Fatah out into the streets and massacering them even though the fatah members were saying don't shoot we are not Jews. Jimmy Carters friends sure don't seem very cooperative. My advice to Israel is either keep building. or better yet invade and run the terrorists out of the whole region annex the west bank and Gaza. Hamas fighters have been taking members of Fatah out into the streets and massacering them even though the fatah members were saying don’t shoot we are not Jews. Jimmy Carters friends sure don’t seem very cooperative. My advice to Israel is either keep building. or better yet invade and run the terrorists out of the whole region annex the west bank and Gaza.

]]> By: Takumi Ken http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60647 Takumi Ken Wed, 13 Jun 2007 16:10:04 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60647 A wall may seem like a good idea, and in history we have seen it lead to protection. The Romans kept the Scots (Caledonians) out, Berm has effectively let West Sahara stay annexed, and Israel receives less attacks due to it, but is it really worth it in the long run? Walls such as these are put up to divide people, and while that may keep people safer for a period of time, it does nothing except to breed more problems or fear. Create a near fortress wall to separate Shiite and Sunni and all you will be doing is yelling out to the world you want to keep them as a whole from talking to each other or meeting up with each other. Should the British have built a wall to separate the waring Irish from each other when we had attacks and terrorist bombs? No, for we would not have the peace we have today helped caused by both sides talking to each other and meeting up. South and North Korea's do not have a great chance at peace are not the walls and mine fields for their long running war, but family from both sides meeting up and talking to each other do aid. The Long Walls of Thrace made it harder for Constantinople to be defended. If this "Baghdad Wall" is built, we may see the same for the forces that use it. Not because we shall face the problem of too few troops to cover such an area, but because it will become a symbol or hate and a target for more violence. The best part about the Berlin Wall, Hadrian's Wall, and Antonie Wall is they came down. Many Brits made houses out of the last two and artists sold work for more due to it being on ruins of the first. Walls can help, but ones such as these will only drive the wedge in farther and make it harder for any real peace between the same people with different forms of the religion and culture. A wall may seem like a good idea, and in history we have seen it lead to protection.

The Romans kept the Scots (Caledonians) out, Berm has effectively let West Sahara stay annexed, and Israel receives less attacks due to it, but is it really worth it in the long run?

Walls such as these are put up to divide people, and while that may keep people safer for a period of time, it does nothing except to breed more problems or fear.
Create a near fortress wall to separate Shiite and Sunni and all you will be doing is yelling out to the world you want to keep them as a whole from talking to each other or meeting up with each other.

Should the British have built a wall to separate the waring Irish from each other when we had attacks and terrorist bombs? No, for we would not have the peace we have today helped caused by both sides talking to each other and meeting up.

South and North Korea’s do not have a great chance at peace are not the walls and mine fields for their long running war, but family from both sides meeting up and talking to each other do aid.

The Long Walls of Thrace made it harder for Constantinople to be defended.
If this “Baghdad Wall” is built, we may see the same for the forces that use it.
Not because we shall face the problem of too few troops to cover such an area, but because it will become a symbol or hate and a target for more violence.

The best part about the Berlin Wall, Hadrian’s Wall, and Antonie Wall is they came down. Many Brits made houses out of the last two and artists sold work for more due to it being on ruins of the first.

Walls can help, but ones such as these will only drive the wedge in farther and make it harder for any real peace between the same people with different forms of the religion and culture.

]]> By: tbrucia http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60466 tbrucia Mon, 11 Jun 2007 23:33:08 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60466 A favorite Far Side cartoon: Three fish stand outside a spherical fishbowl -- in the air -- standing on their back fins. The little house inside the fishbowl is in full flames, and the flames are streaming out of the water. One fish turns to the other and says, 'We're screwed now!' -- This always reminds me of Israel, for some reason. A favorite Far Side cartoon: Three fish stand outside a spherical fishbowl — in the air — standing on their back fins. The little house inside the fishbowl is in full flames, and the flames are streaming out of the water. One fish turns to the other and says, ‘We’re screwed now!’ — This always reminds me of Israel, for some reason.

]]> By: rc21 http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60401 rc21 Sun, 10 Jun 2007 15:54:28 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60401 Palestinian terrorists again this week have attacked Israel, and also have been lobbing rockets into civillian areas. KEEP BUILDING. Palestinian terrorists again this week have attacked Israel, and also have been lobbing rockets into civillian areas.

KEEP BUILDING.

]]> By: valkyrie607 http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60197 valkyrie607 Thu, 07 Jun 2007 21:12:11 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60197 During a conversation with a friend about crossing borders... "I hate borders. They're stupid." "Why?" "They preserve the illusion that we're not all sharing the same planet. That we can separate our fates from each other." During a conversation with a friend about crossing borders…

“I hate borders. They’re stupid.”

“Why?”

“They preserve the illusion that we’re not all sharing the same planet. That we can separate our fates from each other.”

]]> By: nother http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60034 nother Wed, 06 Jun 2007 06:22:49 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60034 So sorry about this, but I screwed up on an important sentence: "It is working through an invisible iron wall that seems to stand between what one feels and what one can do." I'll go to bed now... So sorry about this, but I screwed up on an important sentence:

“It is working through an invisible iron wall that seems to stand between what one feels and what one can do.”

I’ll go to bed now…

]]> By: nother http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60033 nother Wed, 06 Jun 2007 06:18:41 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60033 It didn't work with the HTML, but the words he underlined were: "feels", "can do", and "willed." It didn’t work with the HTML, but the words he underlined were: “feels”, “can do”, and “willed.”

]]> By: nother http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-60032 nother Wed, 06 Jun 2007 06:16:08 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-60032 I figured this would be a good chance to throw in a passage from a letter Van Gogh sent to his brother on a Sunday afternoon, Oct. 22 1882: (Van Gogh underlines certain words) "For great things do not just happen by impulse but are a succession of small things linked together. What is drawing? How does one come to it? It is working through an invisible iron wall that seems to stand between what one feels and what on can do. How is one to get through that wall - since pounding at it is of no use? In my opinion one has to undermine that wall, filing through it steadily and patiently. And there you are - how can one continue such work assiduously without being distracted or diverted, unless one reflects and orders one's life by principles? And as it is with art so it is with other things. And great things are not something accidental, they must be distinctly willed. I figured this would be a good chance to throw in a passage from a letter Van Gogh sent to his brother on a Sunday afternoon, Oct. 22 1882: (Van Gogh underlines certain words)

“For great things do not just happen by impulse but are a succession of small things linked together. What is drawing? How does one come to it? It is working through an invisible iron wall that seems to stand between what one feels and what on can do. How is one to get through that wall – since pounding at it is of no use? In my opinion one has to undermine that wall, filing through it steadily and patiently. And there you are – how can one continue such work assiduously without being distracted or diverted, unless one reflects and orders one’s life by principles? And as it is with art so it is with other things. And great things are not something accidental, they must be distinctly willed.

]]> By: Ben http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-2/#comment-58930 Ben Tue, 29 May 2007 18:54:31 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-58930 Our memories are how flexible? Twenty years ago... "Standing before the Brandenburg Gate, every man is a German, separated from his fellow men. Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar." - R. Reagan remarks at Brandenburg, June 12, 1987. "Whether the Iraqis take them down when we leave, that's on them," 1st Lt. Matthew Holtzendorff (who commands a platoon in the Ghazaliya neighborhood) said. "I don't foresee us taking it down." Time Magazine, May 9, 2007 Our memories are how flexible? Twenty years ago…
“Standing before the Brandenburg Gate, every man is a German, separated from his fellow men. Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar.” – R. Reagan remarks at Brandenburg, June 12, 1987.

“Whether the Iraqis take them down when we leave, that’s on them,” 1st Lt. Matthew Holtzendorff (who commands a platoon in the Ghazaliya neighborhood) said. “I don’t foresee us taking it down.” Time Magazine, May 9, 2007

]]> By: John Navas http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-58792 John Navas Sun, 27 May 2007 03:21:33 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-58792 For audio accompaniment, The Wall by Pink Floyd. For audio accompaniment, The Wall by Pink Floyd.

]]> By: tbrucia http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-58641 tbrucia Fri, 25 May 2007 05:56:07 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-58641 ////More Palestinian violence today. Israel would be smart to speed up the building of their wall.//// Am I the only one who feels it strange to read about Jews being confined in walled ghettos during the Middle Ages -- and now to see Jews building walls to define the outer walls of their new ghetto? If the Egyptians and Lebanese were to build a floating wall just outside the territorial waters of Israel (perhaps topped with a highway to allow easier traffic flow between Cairo and Beirut) would Israelis feel more secure? Given the history of the Berlin Wall (and the human proclivity to tunnel), how DEEP do the newest Israeli walls go? If missiles become ever more ubiquitous, can a dome be built over Israel? (Perhaps a virtual wall, made of high-energy laser beams, or perhaps a screen of anti-missile missiles, or perhaps some futuristic carbon-fibre dome with vast batteries of energy efficient fluorescent lights hanging down inside to light up Israel...) It will be interesting to see 22nd century Israel and find out what wall worked. Or if none did... And it will be interesting to see if the neighbors simply 'get over' having a Jewish nation in their midst, and simply think of it as 'the Jewish Quarter', a place one drives around in order to get from one place to another.... I wish Douglas Adams (author of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy') were still around. He would have something interesting to say.... ////More Palestinian violence today. Israel would be smart to speed up the building of their wall.//// Am I the only one who feels it strange to read about Jews being confined in walled ghettos during the Middle Ages — and now to see Jews building walls to define the outer walls of their new ghetto? If the Egyptians and Lebanese were to build a floating wall just outside the territorial waters of Israel (perhaps topped with a highway to allow easier traffic flow between Cairo and Beirut) would Israelis feel more secure? Given the history of the Berlin Wall (and the human proclivity to tunnel), how DEEP do the newest Israeli walls go? If missiles become ever more ubiquitous, can a dome be built over Israel? (Perhaps a virtual wall, made of high-energy laser beams, or perhaps a screen of anti-missile missiles, or perhaps some futuristic carbon-fibre dome with vast batteries of energy efficient fluorescent lights hanging down inside to light up Israel…) It will be interesting to see 22nd century Israel and find out what wall worked. Or if none did… And it will be interesting to see if the neighbors simply ‘get over’ having a Jewish nation in their midst, and simply think of it as ‘the Jewish Quarter’, a place one drives around in order to get from one place to another…. I wish Douglas Adams (author of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’) were still around. He would have something interesting to say….

]]> By: tbrucia http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57843 tbrucia Thu, 17 May 2007 03:33:55 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57843 Here's an interesting snippet by Leif Pettersenfrom on http://www.bootsnall.com/travelstories/europe/jul04bel.shtml .... "The menacing three mile long "Peace Wall" runs down the center of the dubious area, separating the neighborhoods like the former East and West Berlin. --- I wandered up Shankill Road first. I'm not sure what I was expecting to see, but it was pretty much like walking up any street in the U.K., other than the hundreds of Union Jack flags (the Protestant's sign of allegiance to England) decorating the entire length of the street. Businesses were open and busy, young kids were running around and little old ladies were inching their tiny carts home from the market. No one looked remotely sinister and everyone seemed indifferent to me walking slowly, taking pictures and scribbling lengthy notes. Undoubtedly, I was about the millionth tourist whose curiosity had led them up the street. --- Eventually I arrived at Northumberland Street, the lone remaining perpendicular street that intersects and connects Shankill Road and Falls Road as well as being the only break in the Peace Wall. I headed in the direction of Falls Road and was a little stunned at how the surroundings changed as soon as I left Shankill Road. The street is totally bare with 15 foot high walls enclosing it on both sides, lined on the top with steel spikes and barbed wire. The break in the Wall acts as a security check point during times of heightened tension between the neighborhoods. There are two huge, solid steel gates that are used as a pass-through lock. To get through, you pass through one gate and after it closes behind you the other gate opens. The gates are unmanned and propped open these days, but everything is in fresh working order and ready to be clamped shut if things should ever flare up again. --- Apart from the intimidating gates, the Peace Wall is huge and bare, except where political murals have been painted alongside advertisements..." Here’s an interesting snippet by Leif Pettersenfrom on http://www.bootsnall.com/travelstories/europe/jul04bel.shtml …. “The menacing three mile long “Peace Wall” runs down the center of the dubious area, separating the neighborhoods like the former East and West Berlin. — I wandered up Shankill Road first. I’m not sure what I was expecting to see, but it was pretty much like walking up any street in the U.K., other than the hundreds of Union Jack flags (the Protestant’s sign of allegiance to England) decorating the entire length of the street. Businesses were open and busy, young kids were running around and little old ladies were inching their tiny carts home from the market. No one looked remotely sinister and everyone seemed indifferent to me walking slowly, taking pictures and scribbling lengthy notes. Undoubtedly, I was about the millionth tourist whose curiosity had led them up the street. — Eventually I arrived at Northumberland Street, the lone remaining perpendicular street that intersects and connects Shankill Road and Falls Road as well as being the only break in the Peace Wall. I headed in the direction of Falls Road and was a little stunned at how the surroundings changed as soon as I left Shankill Road. The street is totally bare with 15 foot high walls enclosing it on both sides, lined on the top with steel spikes and barbed wire. The break in the Wall acts as a security check point during times of heightened tension between the neighborhoods. There are two huge, solid steel gates that are used as a pass-through lock. To get through, you pass through one gate and after it closes behind you the other gate opens. The gates are unmanned and propped open these days, but everything is in fresh working order and ready to be clamped shut if things should ever flare up again. — Apart from the intimidating gates, the Peace Wall is huge and bare, except where political murals have been painted alongside advertisements…”

]]> By: rc21 http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57839 rc21 Thu, 17 May 2007 01:42:44 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57839 More Palestinian violence today. Israel would be smart to speed up the building of their wall. More Palestinian violence today. Israel would be smart to speed up the building of their wall.

]]> By: Potter http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57834 Potter Thu, 17 May 2007 00:30:54 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57834 Is this better? The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wailing_Wall" rel="nofollow">"Wailing Wall"</a> in Jerusalem is the "Western Wall" of the Jewish Second Temple. It connects in a way with the Viet Nam Wall memorial b/c it is here that people go to pray, release feelings, remember, pay respects. It also ( along with Al Aksa mosque above, also the Temple Mount) marks a general physical ground zero in the conflict between not only Israel and the Palestinians, but also between Islam and the West and has been the site of re-ignited passion and violence over recent years. Is this better?

The “Wailing Wall” in Jerusalem is the “Western Wall” of the Jewish Second Temple. It connects in a way with the Viet Nam Wall memorial b/c it is here that people go to pray, release feelings, remember, pay respects. It also ( along with Al Aksa mosque above, also the Temple Mount) marks a general physical ground zero in the conflict between not only Israel and the Palestinians, but also between Islam and the West and has been the site of re-ignited passion and violence over recent years.

]]> By: Potter http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57787 Potter Wed, 16 May 2007 12:00:33 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57787 Wooooops sorry again. Wooooops sorry again.

]]> By: Potter http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57786 Potter Wed, 16 May 2007 11:59:18 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57786 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wailing_Wall" rel="nofollow">The "Wailing Wall" in Jerusalem is the Western wall of the Jewish Second Temple. It connects in a way with the Viet Nam wall memorial b/c it is here that people go to pray/release feelings, remember,pay respects. It also ( along with Al Aksa mosque above-The Temple Mount) marks a general physical ground zero in the conflict between not only Israel and the Palestinians, but also between Islam and the West and had been the site of re-ignited passion and violence over recent years. At the same time <a href="http://www.nysun.com/article/47616" rel="nofollow">another security fence</a> is being considered on the border between Israel and Egypt. (This was a feature on BBC news the other day but I cannot find a link for that). The “Wailing Wall” in Jerusalem is the Western wall of the Jewish Second Temple. It connects in a way with the Viet Nam wall memorial b/c it is here that people go to pray/release feelings, remember,pay respects. It also ( along with Al Aksa mosque above-The Temple Mount) marks a general physical ground zero in the conflict between not only Israel and the Palestinians, but also between Islam and the West and had been the site of re-ignited passion and violence over recent years.

At the same time another security fence is being considered on the border between Israel and Egypt. (This was a feature on BBC news the other day but I cannot find a link for that).

]]> By: Potter http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57611 Potter Sun, 13 May 2007 00:12:17 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57611 The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:TouchWall.JPG" rel="nofollow">Viet Nam Memorial Wall</a> Here is another picture, this of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Vietnam-memorial-soldier.jpg" rel="nofollow">soldier at The Wall in 2002</a> see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial (Another name was added May 5th 2007 to make 58,256 names total.) The Viet Nam Memorial Wall

Here is another picture, this of a soldier at The Wall in 2002

see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial

(Another name was added May 5th 2007 to make 58,256 names total.)

]]> By: nabobnico http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57580 nabobnico Sat, 12 May 2007 06:29:06 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57580 This is slighlty off topic, but has anyone seen this site where the iraqi is sleeping in a Chicago gallery and anyone can fire a paintball gun at him remotely via the web. He is letting his wall down... http://www.crudeoils.us/ This is slighlty off topic, but has anyone seen this site where the iraqi is sleeping in a Chicago gallery and anyone can fire a paintball gun at him remotely via the web. He is letting his wall down…
http://www.crudeoils.us/

]]> By: sidewalker http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57576 sidewalker Sat, 12 May 2007 03:58:51 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57576 Another barrier that deserves mention is US missile shield. General Yuri Balyevsky, the Chief of General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, has recently called the shield being constructed in Eastern Europe the next Berlin Wall. Another barrier that deserves mention is US missile shield. General Yuri Balyevsky, the Chief of General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, has recently called the shield being constructed in Eastern Europe the next Berlin Wall.

]]> By: nabobnico http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57568 nabobnico Fri, 11 May 2007 22:19:24 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57568 Here is Riverbend's (The iraqi blogger's) comments on the wall. Sadly, she has fled Iraq... http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/ Here is Riverbend’s (The iraqi blogger’s) comments on the wall. Sadly, she has fled Iraq…

http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/

]]> By: tbrucia http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57538 tbrucia Fri, 11 May 2007 11:31:46 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57538 When you open your eyes, it's amazing.... An excellent Israeli movie: 'The Syrian Bride' shows the effects of the fence mentality, and the solution is both obvious and inevitable. When you open your eyes, it’s amazing…. An excellent Israeli movie: ‘The Syrian Bride’ shows the effects of the fence mentality, and the solution is both obvious and inevitable.

]]> By: sidewalker http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57519 sidewalker Thu, 10 May 2007 23:45:00 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57519 Tell me, does anyone else see the irony in the fact the country at the forefront of expanding global capital markets and the unfettered flow of investments dollars is the one eagerly building border fences, prisons, gated communities and, now, the Baghdad Wall. Tell me, does anyone else see the irony in the fact the country at the forefront of expanding global capital markets and the unfettered flow of investments dollars is the one eagerly building border fences, prisons, gated communities and, now, the Baghdad Wall.

]]> By: nabobnico http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57509 nabobnico Thu, 10 May 2007 19:42:51 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57509 Peggy Sue, Another person who tagged the Great Wall was Barry McGee. He is an artist in San Francisco who I was in school with at SFAI. He is a tagger whose work is very sad and eloquent. A lot of his stuff has been in galleries too. I remember he showed me a picture of his piece on the wall but I couldn't find it on the web. This is a link to a PBS number on him... http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/mcgee/index.html And also, there is Banksy, the secretive artist, who we should have a show on simply becaus he is amazing, but here is link to a piece he did on the Israeli Wall... This is the Google list... http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=banksy+israel&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2 And this is my favorite... http://www.perfect.co.uk/2005/08/postcards-from-palestine Peggy Sue,

Another person who tagged the Great Wall was Barry McGee. He is an artist in San Francisco who I was in school with at SFAI. He is a tagger whose work is very sad and eloquent. A lot of his stuff has been in galleries too. I remember he showed me a picture of his piece on the wall but I couldn’t find it on the web. This is a link to a PBS number on him…

http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/mcgee/index.html

And also, there is Banksy, the secretive artist, who we should have a show on simply becaus he is amazing, but here is link to a piece he did on the Israeli Wall…

This is the Google list…
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=banksy+israel&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2

And this is my favorite…
http://www.perfect.co.uk/2005/08/postcards-from-palestine

]]> By: nabobnico http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57508 nabobnico Thu, 10 May 2007 19:32:17 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57508 There is also the idea of us and them that was mentioned earlier. The Berlin wall isolated one family from the other, neighbor from neighbor but over time the "wall" of diference between the two grew ever stronger, as new generations were exposed to different things and lost the shared cultural memory that defined them before the building of the wall. As one side fattened themselves on McDonalds and became acustomed to the signs of the west, the other wallowed in a pit of fear and paranoia. Has thaqt wall come down in the twenty years since the fall of the wall? Or is it more durable? Edward Said's point in his book Orientalism is that the west, through her academies, her institutions, created an "unnatural" wall of seperation between Us and Them, between the Occident and the Orient. It seems to me that this idea could be quite widely expanded to include the actions of an occupying power to divide or seperate a population from itself. What are the dynamics of power involved in this, and how readily does the divided population accede to this? Arguably, the residents of Sabra/Shattila have a very different cultural background after three generations behind a wall than do an equivelent palestinian family living in say, Bekka? Has the manifest wall served to create a larger, cultural wall? I guess my point is that we create an "other," an "orient" as soon as we build a wall seperating someone from someone else. Nick's question is very interesting—it makes us even more of a colonial power when we arrive, as a third party, to seperate one from the other, shii'a from sunn'a. Once again we are bringing our constructions of a safe and pleasurable world and importing them into and onto another society... There is also the idea of us and them that was mentioned earlier. The Berlin wall isolated one family from the other, neighbor from neighbor but over time the “wall” of diference between the two grew ever stronger, as new generations were exposed to different things and lost the shared cultural memory that defined them before the building of the wall. As one side fattened themselves on McDonalds and became acustomed to the signs of the west, the other wallowed in a pit of fear and paranoia. Has thaqt wall come down in the twenty years since the fall of the wall? Or is it more durable?

Edward Said’s point in his book Orientalism is that the west, through her academies, her institutions, created an “unnatural” wall of seperation between Us and Them, between the Occident and the Orient. It seems to me that this idea could be quite widely expanded to include the actions of an occupying power to divide or seperate a population from itself. What are the dynamics of power involved in this, and how readily does the divided population accede to this? Arguably, the residents of Sabra/Shattila have a very different cultural background after three generations behind a wall than do an equivelent palestinian family living in say, Bekka? Has the manifest wall served to create a larger, cultural wall?

I guess my point is that we create an “other,” an “orient” as soon as we build a wall seperating someone from someone else. Nick’s question is very interesting—it makes us even more of a colonial power when we arrive, as a third party, to seperate one from the other, shii’a from sunn’a. Once again we are bringing our constructions of a safe and pleasurable world and importing them into and onto another society…

]]> By: nabobnico http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57506 nabobnico Thu, 10 May 2007 19:19:56 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57506 Nick, In response to your question about walling off within one country...the English built a hedge (albight one with sharp thorns) down through the middle of the Indian sub continent in the 1840's (while I normaly don't cite Wikipedia, at the moment this is the best I could do...) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Hedge_of_India And I think the Australians did something like that to control the movement of Aboriginals—there was a movie called Rabbit Proof Fence out a few years ago that dealt with this... What were our fences like around the reservations? What about around plantations? The Japanese internment camps? Nick,

In response to your question about walling off within one country…the English built a hedge (albight one with sharp thorns) down through the middle of the Indian sub continent in the 1840’s (while I normaly don’t cite Wikipedia, at the moment this is the best I could do…)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Hedge_of_India
And I think the Australians did something like that to control the movement of Aboriginals—there was a movie called Rabbit Proof Fence out a few years ago that dealt with this…

What were our fences like around the reservations? What about around plantations? The Japanese internment camps?

]]> By: peggysue http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57498 peggysue Thu, 10 May 2007 17:41:35 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57498 Back when we were talking about global hip-hop I read about a young chinese girl who tagged the great wall of China. Back when we were talking about global hip-hop I read about a young chinese girl who tagged the great wall of China.

]]> By: hurley http://www.radioopensource.org/the-baghdad-wall/comment-page-1/#comment-57464 hurley Thu, 10 May 2007 12:31:13 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1068#comment-57464 Synchronicity alive and well: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070509/lf_afp/chinaheritagegreatwall_070509153014 Synchronicity alive and well:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070509/lf_afp/chinaheritagegreatwall_070509153014

]]>