Outrage!

I've been scrolling through our local news, catching up with a coffee in hand while I have some time. It's been great having today to sort and pack, revelations this afternoon that I'm not going to fit as much in my bag as I'd hoped.

About the outrage. Apparently there's outrage in Israel about two cafe owners in New Zealand not welcoming Israeli people to dine at their cafes. Di writes about this too, that woman must never sleep, and I thought I might add my 2c worth. I also added a comment to her entry, an abridged version of what follows.

This story of outrage seems to have taken the place of real news from Gaza, news of over 1000 Palestinian dead. 1000 men, women and children. That thirteen Israeli's also lost their lives cannot be ignored, it's also tragic. Their families will be grieving too. But over 1000 Palestinian lives? I struggle to comprehend that, the grief of a nation.

Israeli outrage, over not being served in a cafe in New Zealand, get some perspective. Think of those mothers on both sides who have lost their precious children, the loss and the terrible waste that is the Gaza conflict.

In NZ we are getting the usual media fodder from the US, not a very balanced view of the situation. Many people here don't understand the context, the history, the people. I've had heaps of heated discussions about might and right, sharing the little I know of the context, the history and most importantly of the people.

Here the word 'terrorist' has been applied to the Palestinians, children and all. The media plays on the fear this word invokes, easy when coupled with media fatigue, the phenomenon that occurs when we see so much of a story that we get desensitized to the situation and want to move on.

I would like to add that the timing of this invasion by Israel is impeccable, as is the timing of the cease fire talks. Much of the world is being otherwise occupied with news of the US elections and the swearing in of Barak Obama. New Zealand also has a new government and people seem a little detached from the news perhaps because they are on summer holidays, Christmas holidays. This week was back to work for many, back to watching the news at night and reading the newspapers more fully. Perhaps now there might be some public comment from us strangely quiet New Zealanders and our government.

I hope that these cafe incidents don't give us an excuse to focus on this small distraction. I hope we still feel outrage at Gaza, remember those who died, and hopefully feel outraged enough to condemn the aggressors in any such future conflict.