Israel likely to cut funding for popular Jewish-Arab dialogue

[cali]

By Eli Ashkenazi | Mar.18, 2013 | 1:40 AM | 2

By Dina Kraft | Mar.18,2013 | 1:40 AM | 5

A project that brings Jewish and Arab teens together to replace alienation with respect is at risk of closing down after Passover, as funding promised by the Education Ministry has not been forthcoming.

The Mifgashim program ‏ Encounters‏ at the Givat Haviva Educational Center in the north involves a two-day seminar on the Givat Haviva campus, where Arab and Jewish high schoolers meet for workshops defined as “providing an initial basis for fashioning a future in Israel based on mutual respect.” Additional workshops are held afterward in the pupils’ schools.

<snip>

The ministry committed to this arrangement for the 2011/12 and 2012/13 school years with an option for an additional year. As a result, the plan for this year was to double participation to 3,000 teenagers.

But according to Yaniv Sagee, Givat Haviva’s director, “When the school year had barely begun, this past October, the Education Ministry began to back off and told us that there was a problem with continuing the initiative because the funding wasn’t certain.”

<snip>

http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/israel-likely-to-cut-funding-for-popular-jewish-arab-dialogue.premium-1.510133

[LeftishBrit]

1. Don't know whether the cuts are based on ideology or plain penny-pinching, but either way disgusting

These initiatives are vital if there is ever to be peace

[holdencaufield]

2. What a shame ...

... the program was having such a profound impact on the peace process.

[cali]

3. I take it that's sarcasm. If so, pathetic.

Anything that fosters co-existence is a good thing unless you're a rabid war mongering asswipe.

[holdencaufield]

4. I wouldn't say "rabid"

[Ken Burch]

6. Why can't you just admit that it's always wrong to discourage dialogue in a situation like this?

The key to ending this conflict is to get both sides to see each other's humanity. That can't be achieved by force, y'know.
Neither side can win this militarily, and neither can kill the other side into accepting it.

[LeftishBrit]

5. In isolation, probably not a lot. 'But if two and two and fifty make a million....'

Anyway, any efforts toward peace and co-existence are better than none

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

7. How do you feel about this Cali, and even more to the point

how do you feel about posting important articles like this only to be met with sarcasm and mockery that stifles the conversation?

[pelsar]

8. there is no 'stifling of the conversation...

I always find those type of remarks amusing...this is an open internet forum, anybody can talk about anything and ignore anybody who doesnt suit them. Nobodys shutting down anything, nobody has that power here

what i believe is upsetting (when that accusation is made) is that its just a reaction to a post that is not following the assumed PC/acceptable version of what should be......some people simply dont like it when people disagree with them.

what i find far more interesting and its not about "stifling" its about the "no go areas"....that i find always find more fascinating (you know, the things that can't really be discussed because they're not about vague proclamations and group acceptable feel good posts about "justice", but actual decisions made and their possible consequences, all of them,

thats what find interesting, but thats about being uncomfortable

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

10. Wrong. Neither you or Holden had the cojones to address the article.

Both posts by you and H had zero to do with what Cali posted.

One was snark, and yours was IMHO defense of snark.

Now, unless you want to continue the snark why don't you address what Cali had posted or is that too hard for you?

[pelsar]

12. so are you "stifled"....is your keyboard locked?

Presently I"m more interested in understanding how a conversation on an open internet forum can be "stifled"

you can ignore me and make additional comments on the original post, in which case clearly you are not "stifled"

so perhaps you might expand upon your accusation how it is you've been "stifled"

in fact i'll make a deal with you..I'll answer what cali posted and you'll answer any question of mine that has to do with the conflict...but you have to answer the question....then you wont feel "stifled'...
______

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

13. Now, unless you want to continue the snark why don't you address

what Cali had posted or is that too hard for you?

[pelsar]

14. deal to difficult?..its therapy

i'll answer cali and you answer me...consider it therapy, this way when you answer you'll feel a freedom to answer any of the simple questions that may or may not be asked of you....once you get through the tough ones, the rest will be childs play.

come on...show some of that "internet courage"


i answer, then you answer one of mine.....

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

15. Cali is waiting for your reply. Is that too dificult?

It's strange that you want to continue marginalizing her OP by distracting from it.


Please proceed, Pelsar.

[pelsar]

16. Cali is not waiting for anything..at best

shes enjoying this.....

i guess we shall call it day: but to summarize:

i am willing to answer calis OP which in fact isnt difficult, but apparently you are not willing to take up the challange of answering a different question.

I always find that fascinating, people who are more than willing to moralize to others, to criticize others yet....when things get a little bit difficult (hell on an internet forum i cant even call it "difficult), they seem to "shrink".

so how about this then, perhaps explain why you dont want to take up the challenge? you are after all a humanist, which means (actually i have no idea what that means)

and then i'll answer Cali (you've successfully negotiated me down, i've reduced the conditions)

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

17. So you walked into her thread without any intention of addressing her thread.

Good.

I have my answer, and you have yours. You are nothing but a distraction.

[pelsar]

18. no..i was just reading....

and came upon your response, which i found rather strange, so i thought i would take up the opportunity to ask you about it...and here we are.

as far as me being a distraction, thats one way of describing someone with a viewpoint you disagree with, hardly one that i would call "tolerant" or open minded or even at a minimum "suffering" but i've learned its a by product of identity politics and PC mentality.

its ok..i'll try again some other time, though a few here actually have the 'internet courage" (you'll note i call it internet courage, because as far as I'm concerned its about as low as one can get on the "courage" scale and if anybody really believes that it takes "courage" to answer a few questions on an internet forum, well they really really have to get out of the 'basement" and leave the plasma behind....

u seem to lack that "courage" so no medal for you.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

19. Thanks for the kick for Cali. I'm sure she appreciated it.

[delrem]

30. You still haven't responded to the feckin OP! sheesh. nt

[pelsar]

31. thats bothering you?..

i dont respond to zillions of posts....maybe if Cali asks me nicely I'll consider it, i hadn't realized that my opinion on such a matter, was such a topic of interest here.

actually, if my opinion is not known by the posters here, then there is a serious miscommunication going on here. As much as i have made my opinion, what I believe to be very clear, on such matters, obviously, not clear enough (i do have a theory however)

I'll tell you what..same deal, new variation.
you tell me what you believe is my opinion on the subject, and why...then i'll respond.
(it may get you the infamous internet medal of courage)

[azurnoir]

20. Thank you lol n/t

[Ken Burch]

24. You find it interesting to say that dialogue SHOULDN'T be tried in the I/P dispute?

And you'd rather enjoy the sense of getting "uncomfortable" than try to actually find a way to end the war?

How is that a responsible position at all?

How can NOT dialoguing be a better choice?

How can giving up on showing each side the other side's humanity EVER lead to things getting better?

Those are real questions, and I don't think that you care about them.

We've already established that you can't bomb the Palestinians into changing their attitudes...the history of this conflict has proved that over and over again...force NEVER makes them become less extreme.

[pelsar]

25. Ken, i believe you missed the whole 'posting"

it had nothing to do with the original post at all, i was just commenting on how its impossible to stifle, limit, stop, 'shut down" a dialog on this internet forum, as per the post that caught my eye.....none of the posters here have that capability

that was the discussion..... it took a few amusing turns but nothing of any substance.

[Ken Burch]

26. Derailing a thread, as that poster's original snark did, is a form of stifling.

Derailing is about denying that the subject in question deserves to be treated with respect and seriousness...it's the cyber equivalent of the schoolboy who picks up a dog turd on a stick and jabs it in the faces of the other kids.

That's why we would call it stifling.

[pelsar]

27. given the fact that no one has to respond to my post....

means that my ability to "stifle" is absolute zero.

heres the question:
if there was no response to my post (or any other singular post)....then how would that stifle the conversion here?

you see the problem that your referring to is not the one who makes the "snark" comment, its the fools who respond and then complain he is stifling the conversation....

[Ken Burch]

28. it was holden who did the derailing.

n/t.

[pelsar]

29. holden derailed nothing...

it was the fool who responded...and then complained that he stifled it.

dont respond to the "derailer" and then nothing is derailed...pretty simple solution. Infact there was a single post by holden, and single response and that was the end of it. clearly nothing was stifled nor derailed.

unless of course you define a derailing and stifling as a single post, inwhich case you too will be found guilty of "cyber bulling" (horror of horrors)

it was my posts that kept getting responses that took up the bulk of this.....

[cali]

9. Honestly, I'm fine with whatever people want to say. I give better than I get.

I'm not known here for pulling punches. I used to post a lot in this forum and took an extended break. And Daneel, I've gotten it from both sides in equal measure because I don't fit easily on one end of the spectrum or another.

What does make me feel discouraged is that we can't all agree that programs like this are absolutely a positive and should be encouraged and funded.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

11. I'm not sure where the money is going to be diverted to, but you're right to feel discouraged.

Anything that helps to discourage misunderstanding is important.

[azurnoir]

21. yes I remember quite vividly

eta originally I came here to say this si a sad development sounded like a worthy project

[cali]

22. but slagging me off was more important. Got it, dear.

[azurnoir]

23. I was stating fact I do remember

sorry if you feel that is slagging you off

[Violet_Crumble]

32. That's not good at all. These sorts of projects are so important...

Bringing Arabs and Jews together, especially when they're young, so they can meet and learn to understand and trust each other is so vitally important if there's ever to be a peaceful resolution to the conflict