Will Israel turn into the fascist State of Judea by 2022?
Israeli artist Yosi Even Kama's exhibit on display at Shenkar sees civil war between religious right and secular left only a decade away.
By David Sheen Tags: Israel newsState-wide censorship of sexually explicit material on the internet. Laws prohibiting driving vehicles on the Sabbath and Jewish holidays. Women allowed to bathe in the Mediterranean only a few hours a week. The face of Baruch Goldstein on the 20 shekel bill. A national holiday celebrating our spiritual founding father, Rabbi Meir Kahane.
Sound ludicrous? It's the nightmare scenario of art school graduate Yosi Even Kama - and the subject of his 4th-year thesis project. Any Israeli can step into his dystopia, on exhibit at the Shenkar College of Engineering & Design in Ramat Gan until the end of July.
The project consists of four cylindrical public notice boards representing four different snapshots in time from the streets of Tel Aviv, between the years 2020 to 2023. In this twisted parallel universe, the government of Israel finally signs a peace deal with the Palestinians, in which it agrees to withdraw from the West Bank and share control over Jerusalem.
Incensed by what they believe to be high treason, Jewish supremacists manage to mobilize tens of thousands of Israeli citizens and successfully carry out a coup d'etat. In the newly-established State of Judea, there is no freedom, no feminism, and no fun. Only fascism.
"I read the most recent survey of Israeli society and I was shocked," Even Kama recalled. That report, commissioned by the Tami Steinmetz Center for Peace Research at Tel Aviv University, found that most Israelis believe that "there is too much freedom of expression" in Israel.
So this is what will come to pass in only ten years' time? "It won't happen exactly like that. But it's already happening right now, bit by bit: the loyalty oath law, the religious conversion law, the ban on commemorating the naqba, the ban on demonstrating at the homes of high-ranking army officers... When you break down the basic building blocks of democracy, fascism will fill that void."
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Artist Yosi Even Kama |
| Photo by: David Sheen |
They are not our brothers
In the run-up to a totalitarian state, Even Kama's made-up religious right-wing extremists combine visual imagery of slithery snakes and armies of insects with slogans that demonize democratic institutions. In the following year of this imaginary timeline, the rebels post pictures of snakes being sliced open and bugs being squashed, as they make their power play with an armed insurrection.
Following the fictional narrative, what remains of the liberal left in Israel sells off its properties and evacuates the country while it is still able. And finally, fabricated rabbinical edicts quoting traditional texts provide a religious justification for the execution of the secular heretics that resist the new order.
Destroying Democracy
Unsurprisingly, Even Kama's provocative project has angered many people on the opposite end of the political spectrum. On srugim.com, an internet news portal for the nationalist-religious community, many have vilified the artist, and the Shenkar school for providing him a platform. But other visitors to the site admit that they admire his designs and even advocate adopting them. "I would use different colors, but this is basically what I believe," wrote one commenter.
These undercurrents have not escaped the attention of more mainstream political commentators. Last month (June 22, 2010), reporting on the same set of phenomena that is frightening Even Kama, retired judge and Yediot Ahronot Legal Affairs Editor Boaz Okon wrote in a chilling op-ed piece: "These dots are growing evidence of the lack of spirit of freedom and the emergence of apartheid and fascism."
Using iconography that references our historical memories of evil dictatorships is bound to push people's buttons; the most amazing artwork almost always does. It is easy to dismiss the "State of Judea" as agitation against Even Kama's political opponents. But it's a lot harder to dismiss the anti-democratic parties and populist movements that he parodies. One thing is certain: if his deepest fears are realized, he could be the first one to be burned at the stake.
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all the wonderful things like equality between the sexes and loving your neighbour you can do without god so why bother about god?
when the only time in Israel's history where Jews have raised arms against other Jews was the Altelena...also while the Islamic Movement can run in Israeli elections, Kach movement is outlawed....so who should be afraid of suppression of speech and fascism?
I vote for option B.
Did Adonai not just punish you for 2000 years for no reason, or was it because of breaking the rules of the covenant? Learn not the ways of the nations? It's like... you're calling it fascist for a Jewish state to be Jewish. You want to be like the gentiles then go live with them. How dull do you have to be to be against not doing things that make God allow tradgedies such as the holocaust? How many bad things have to happen to Jews to get it through their heads? It shouldn't have to be law to be religious, it should be expected. The entire basis for Israel's existence is the covenant with God and it's like these people think that they don't have to follow God's rules. Is it fascist to keep Israel Jewish? This is no atheist state, this is supposed to be the example of a Godly state. But no, sinners think they should do what the gentiles do. Protecting the right to keep God furious with the Jews?
Just google <2022 Israel> for confirmation and details. What's troubling is that when 2022 comes around and Israel is not falling apart - artist Kama's fantasies notwithstanding - the Islamists will certainly try to actualize their "prophecy". So while Kama is simply profiteering off of hysterics, I do believe a very reasonable prediction is that there will be a MidEast war starting most likely in 2022, and it could become a world war depending on obvious factors. Interestingly, futurist Dr. David Passig foresees a major MidEast war on the horizon, with a 65% chance in 2020 based on his statistical model.
isnt it?
Unfortunately this non-fictional narrative illustrates why we should keep on singing, talking, dreaming and in short still keep paying lip service to peace and not actually try and make it happen. If God forbid it happened, we the Israelis would be at each others throats before one could say Allahu Akbar. For the time being this is only in theory as our interlocutors are farther from peace than we are.
I pity this untalented designer. Not an artist yet. Just a fraud.
Tartuffe you just have missed the point. Artist or fraud, the guy has a valid argument. We are already high up the creek with a broken paddle.
we are already half way there. this guy is a prophet, a Cassandra, halas !
Gaza is already a fascist state ! Meanwhile , Abbas sits on the West bank, a self proclaimed dictator who refuses to hold election though his term has expired. The only democracy in the Middles East IS Israel. If Israel is fascist then I say ' Zionism uber alles' ! Israel will continue to grow, prosper and will be THE dominant power n the Middle East and a dominant power in the world. They will kick ass and take care of business when needed. I am proud to be a Zionist ! The Star of David in no longer an emblem of shame to be worn on tattered concentration camp garb. You will see it everywhere and it will strike fear into the hearts of the enemy! !
Sounds like Josiah Jacob Ben David got the artist's message, the red armband with the white circle around the blackened star of David.... Josiah's reactions: "Zionism über alles", "striking fear into the hearts of the enemy", and "Israel ... will be "The dominant power in the Middle East" and ..." in the world" are so reminiscent of a past state which went down in flames that to those of us who remember, it is heartbreaking to see them re-emerge once more, and in Israel, of all places on earth!
The real Jews won. The fake Jews fled. We remember this war every year at Hannukah. Our rabbis have to do a better job of educating our people that this war 2200 years ago was Jew vs. Jew, a battle over a Hellenized, fake Jewish practice. There were no Greeks, no Syrians in the fighting. It was the "Orthodox" Jews vs. the Greek "Reformed" Jewish quislings of that period. The Jews won, and will win again if the need arises to fight this battle again.
Meir Kahane, Baruch Goldstein and the national-religious settlers would not create that ugly graphic copy. The only miscalculation for an otherwise important exhibit.
a true artist blends knowledge with wisdom -these pillars of ignorant arrogance simply spell out the crisis of immature Jews who continue to not understand and rebel against their Judaism and an Israel which is Jewish driven. His 'landmark' worries are surely more representative of a liberal leftist crybaby who has enough intelligence to see the writing on the wall but not enough smarts to see how his life is so devoid of any significant Jewish essence. an artist of his low calibre is truly a wily propagandist only appreciated by his ilk while the rest of the art admiring world can only shake their heads in disbelief over nightmarish rubbish. It proves, as history has proven, artists require no real education and their work, while protected by abused concepts of 'democracy' fail to offer anything constructive. No great artist ever had to exhibit "in your face" demeaning 'cut and contrived pastings' and use it as a platform for their shortcomings. Any art program that tries to teach real art and produces these masterpieces of folly have a lot to learn themselves. some groups are getting dumber and dumber and dumbe offend major groups
I see no evidence of what you're saying in the article...could you please give some? And could you please actually address the points he's making?
The cautionary tale, while present in global society throughout modern history, seems to have been making a stronger showing in recent years (examples like "Children of Men" come to mind). Yes, no one can predict the future, but by dreaming up these nightmarish futures, the creators force us to examine ourselves through a lens of a different sort, and to ask ourselves if this is the path that we want to embark on. I hope that this is not the path that Israel follows, and I imagine that it will not happen anything like this. If Israel is EVER to fall apart from war (something I consider to be an unlikelihood), I seriously doubt it would happen from within. We Jews may like to disagree with one another, but for the most part, we've managed to do it with a degree of civility since time immemorial. This exhibition is merely a cautionary tale, extrapolated from modern-day observations into fears of what might happen in order to ensure that these nightmares in fact DO NOT come to fruition. I commend Yosi for making these pieces, reminding us of what people have become in the past, and what they could become again if not guided in the right direction. As an American who just went to Israel for the first time 2 weeks ago and fell in love with it, I sincerely hope such a bleak future never comes.
"We Jews may like to disagree with one another, but for the most part, we've managed to do it with a degree of civility since time immemorial." Please explain to me what was 'civil' about the reaction to Judge Goldstone's report on the Gaa invasion? Alan Dershowitz comparing him with Dr. Mengele? His being barred from his grandson's bar mitzvah? The current lobbying to deny him entry to the US? Not the only prominent case either, and presumably the tip of an iceberg. If you don't even recognize this as a problem, the future may indeed be bleak
A society that celebrates terrorists and murderers, that restrict political freedom, that rolls back the emancipation of women...such a society already exists...in the Hamas-ruled Gaza strip...and in PA-ruled territories of the West Bank.
So the busses in Jerusalem where women and men have separate seats are just an illusion? These things only happen in Palestine? This society already exists IN ISRAEL!
This exhibition seems to me like the best reason to visit this country since...1948?
Okay, sorry, maybe that was a bit harsh.. But interesting work he has done, though
yes, it was a bit harsh, but so are a great many comments here about the Palestinians, Hamas, the PA. And none of those commentators ever apologizes. You did
If Israel is so lucky to go into the RIGHT direction, I am available ! With the help of some 'old comrades' we will totally change Israel and the whole Middle East, give us only four (4) years ! We will have one party, one goal and one common future for the Whole World !!! We will be victorious, purified and enlightened to a new beginning for the human race. In this, ... there is a place for YOU. Join me now in making this possible. Free yourself from your physical and mental bonds and fight this holy struggle and give me your trust and holy force of labor, (especially a young strong artists like yourself), together we will triumph ! Victory.
Doesn't add much to the corpus of anti-Jewish incitement. Despite the similar intent it will never out compete the classics of the 1920's
Fascism is the cousin to socialism, Marxism, NAZIsm and all other liberty-destroying collectivisms.
but in the end they are all one-dimensional stupidty
is task for liars and the insane. No one can predict what will happen.
contemplate the idea of the 'promised land'?
If one wishes to project nightmare visions on the Israeli future one needs only view the media of our neighbors and prospective peace- partners. 1) They speak endlessly about our destruction 2) Visions of our destruction through most horribly nuclear night. Ahmadinejad and Company are working on this. So are others. 3) Visions of our being surprised by a combination of new Islamic enemies including Turkey and Egypt. These combined of course with traditional enemy forces like Syria. And of course the newly trained by the Americans Palestinian mini- Army thrown in. 4) Visions of the world as a whole abandoning Israel. 5) Visions of U.S. incompetence making Israel's ability to resist external enemies much smaller 6) Oh one more vision. The forces of the radical Left in Israel including media and cultural elites moving to total support of the Palestinian Arab hegemony in the Greater Land of Israel. This eventually leads to Jews being driven out of the land completely. Where is the one original Israeli artist who will deal with such material, and not with the cliche propaganda of the radical left?
This is not a "new" scenario. In his book "After The Rain" Israeli author Itzhac Ben Ner described a fairly similar reality. If there is anything to learn from history I'd say it is time now to evacuate the state of Israel. Property prices are still high and High-Tec is in much demand. The late great Israeli poet Dalia Rabikovitz wrote in her poem "Two Isles Of New Zealand:..."we are an experiment that didn't come right"... This futuristic vision was commonplace already 25-30 years ago, and events in Israel are consistent with that vision.
Ah yes, "Ilan" loves the late poetess Dalia Ravikovitch, and cites her poem "Two Isles of New Zealand." Of course, it is typical, mindless leftist prattle, of exactly the sort that leftists love, devoid of connection to reality. The supposedly "peaceful" world of New Zealand is extolled as far superior to the terrible Israel, TOTALLY IGNORING THE GENOCIDE OF THE MAORIS.
The right wing is starting to talk about granting West Bank Palestinians citizenship so they can annex the land, keeping a Jewish majority. This strategy of divide and conquer started years ago by isolating Gaza (1.5M voters) and not allowing migration between the two occupied regions.
The CIA "reported" this? So why not bother to link us to this report, you're on the internet after all. I don't know why I even bother to read comments any more, the lack of intelligence here is astounding.
This "report" was publicised by Iran's PressTV and I suspect it is bogus. However, whether Israel - as a Zionist ethnocratic Jewish State - still exists in 20 years is far from certain. I hope not.
And Hamas is completely fascist
This CIA report didn't come from Iran. It was revealed to the world by Wikileak, which is probaby best described as international. They dump such reports to servers here and there around the world. so no single government can block the release of revealed secret intormation. Their purpose? To force governments to be honest.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/138739 Of course, to the Left, truth is never important - they follow their leader, Goebbels.
When I was a graphic design student at Bezalel, one of my classmates presented a closeup image of herself mastubating. I thought, "How original. This reminds me of kids in nursery school, trying realy hard to be original and shocking by whipering 'Kaki pee-pee" And Haaretz devoted an article to this? Of course!] Kaki Pee-Pee!
will be a liberal one against haredim and the radical right. At the end of the day secular leftists joined by right wing seculars will find out that if they don't join forces they will become a minority. The secualr left and right are the bourgeosie and are totally invested in a national project which does not fit the clerical fascists. Likud Kadima Labor Meretz will finally lead a secular coalition which will drive out of the camp the useless radical right and haredim. The world will support this new type of secular authoritarianism. This secular "liberal democratic" authoritarianism is making its first steps in Europe as well. Nothing new, liberal authoritrians were against fascism.
The way things are going . the ridigness of the present government, the fanatism of the people, the brain washing of the population - looks like the day is not far when our beloved Israel will be history again - might be the shortest life of a country in recent memory. The population is decreasing - jews from other parts of the world do not want to even visit us - forget about settling here. Population of Palestinians is exploding within the borders - we will be in minority soon. Best thing is to give back the land and go for a two state solution with Jerusalem being an autonomous capital of both countries if we do not want to divide it. Go back to 67 borders and live peacefully and let them live like human beings. Enough is enough - how long like this - lost 2 generations - I don't want to loose my children and grand children for real estate.
That begs the question of asm; do you then expel Palestinians with Israeli citizenship in order to maintain Jewish supremacy?
No, they won't. We will just withdraw a few excuses for them. They will find new ones or recycle old ones. Somebody at this very talkback says Israel occupies Gaza. That said, I wholeheartedly agree with your wish and right to live in peace in Israel. And certainly, if I had the means, I would visit Israel once every year.
sounds like good fun, mazel tov ! hitler wins in 2022 ? if this should come to pass, the state of israel would perish and for good reason too . how about adressing some real issues for a change ?
If Yosi Even has nightmares living in israel - he is invited to live in Saudi Arabia there are no jews over there
This article and the discussed art is a reflection on confusion of our left wing establishment. They use word DEMOCRACY as a leaf protecting inability to think and make conclusions. The truth is that our electorate is moving to the right because Labor, Meretz and other left wing parties failed to produce co-existence arrangement with our Arab neighbors. We have paid a heavy price in human life for their Oslo experiments and now no way Israel electorate will go this road again. As far as the lamentations about Kahane and fantasies about observant Jews, it is a blackmail that does not scare anybody in this very vibrant, tolerant and beautiful country. If you disagree, just come see by yourself.
The Israeli business class (disguised as nationalists) further their stranglehold on Israeli politics. Within a few years the "security" they have established starts to crumble and the fate of Israel is decided by the United Nations. The "clever" right wingers may well be remembered as opportunists who tragically refused a fair peace when it was available.
The most unbelievable part of this entire scenario is that it begins with Israel signing a legitimate peace deal with the Palestinians to allow a Palestinian state and shared control of Judea. This will never happen. Why bother with the rest of the story? It is even too much for fiction.
based on current birth rates, the next generation to be born will be more than 1/3 ultra-orthodox. secular israelis will become a dying breed. if a palestinian state is not formed before them i fear the situation may be even more dire, with the haredi and religious palestinians warring with each other.
i thought they left that to others
Although he doesn't realize it, this "artist" is exactly the same as religious settlers he hates so much. Both are extremists pushing nonsensical ideology with complete disregard of reality around them.
Right wing extremists kill Israelis and label their opponents as treason and traitors. Left wing people don't like settlers because of the racist and inhuman rules we are dragged into enforcing to keep their lifestyle. This is not how we want to be.
Rabin killed Jews in the Altelena, research it and you will see. While their was 1 killing of a leftist, and it was Rabin- WHY? Because he himself was a Rodef when he gave guns to Arabs who were murdering Jews, and one who endangers your life and the life of other Jews you MUST kill him/her first.
Israel is already there. The best remedy for both Jews and non-Jews is to remake Israel a secular democracy. It can retain Judaism as a state religion, much like the role of the Church of England, but other then that treat ALL the inhabitants equally. The final act would be to merge the West Bank into Israel and all inhabitants as equal citizenship. In essence, dump zionism. It's not compatible in todays world. It's a racist fascist ideology.
...feeling that the artist was "channeling" George Orwell. Of course, Orwell proved to be 100% dead, flat wrong! (Well, maybe not 100%, but--hey, look, could you step a little closer so I can talk more softly?...and do you mind terribly much if I check to see if you're wearing a wire?)
Do you know how many Israelis read Haaretz because they think its headlines reflect reality? It's a dismal share. And mind you, Israel has one of the highest per capita reading population of the world. It's for Western, leftist-epatér-le-bourgeois, and slightly anti-Semitic consumption. That's it's niche, it's marketing target. People like you for example.
Fear of the unknown, the desire for revenge, (whether justified or no;t), fear of the "other", the policy of governments since 2002 to play on the paranoia of a people already suffering from a certain level of justifiable paranoia. All of the above.
rememebr when Mapai, Ahdut Avoda , Mapam kept on calling Menachem Beging a Hitler and Herut a Fascist Nazi like party. That kept Herut from winning elections until 1977. And then surprise. It was Begin as PM who signed a Peace Agreement with Egypt. Stop crying wolf... We are tired of Haaertz lies.
to be intellectuals. To ignore the arab position whether a peace agreement or not is beyond niave.
The most frightening thing is ARROGANT intellectuals pretending to be people. Since only the Israeli Jews have position in the land, there is no need for a peace agreement with the arabs.
ahh, christian humility (and religious anti-intellectualism)
Israel will seize to exist by 2022.
he could not fund a real subject for his thesis so he invented a populistic one...... and he got a publicity.
This "artist" is merely looking for attention. If he'd predicted that the "Palestinians" would take over Israel, he would have been condemned. If he'd predicted that Israel would be a happy and peaceful country, he would have been ignored.
and if h'd predicted the palestinians would take over you would have agreed and not called him a publicity seeker. duh
perhaps this man is an artist simply doing what artist tend to do, that is stand aside from society, observe and create their representation. if you disagree with him then fair enough but isnt it to your contries credit this artist is allowed to provoke thought through his art. Beware the time when journalists and artists are censored.
The same thing happened at a lower scale after 9/11 in the US. France also became more authoritarian during the Algerian independence war, there's nothing new in that. Countries facing wars a more likely to become more nationalist, less tolerant and more racist. People who brake the consensus are called traitors and civil liberties are suspended. When you look at people like Moshe Ya'alon calling Shalom Arshav a cancer, you have a perfec example of that.
Israel is pretty amazing as it is, with freedom and civil liberties (for every citizen including 1.5 million Arabs) often beyond many western countries (if you chuckled at this point - you are an anti-Semite, this was a test). Just imaging what Israel would be like without the war.
We just don't buy the political line that Israel is the Greatest Democracy on the face of the earth. Disagreement does not equate to being anti-Semitic.
In keeping with your statement, freedom and civil liberties in Israel (for 1.5 million Arabs) often lag far behind many Western countries (if you chuckled at that, you are an idiot, this is a test). Congratulations on being somewhat average.
You should not compare the rights of Israeli Arabs with those of majority constituents of other Western democracies, rather, with minority members of those same democracies. To wit: compare the burqa bans that are profligately proliferated in many E.U. countries. You shall see that the civil liberties of those Israeli Arabs are not very dissimilar, and in some cases (such as the burqa) even more permissive. That said, the freedoms of "Palestinians" in the West Bank, and even more so in Gaza, is a discussion of paramount relevance.
why would disbelieving that Israel provides civil liberties beyond many western democracies make me an anti-semite? ignorant, perhaps (or perhaps not), but why anti-semitic? that just makes no sense
There are none so blind as those who refuse to see.
So the burqa is a symbol of liberty, and outlawing it is oppressive? You can't fool the French with that: individual rights trump religious freedom. I'm with the French on that one
"...there is no freedom, no feminism, and no fun. Only fascism." You mean Israel will turn Islamic?
No, he says it will turn Ultra-Orthodox. Troubling to see how much in common Haredim and Islamists have, isn't it?
what kind of a judenrat is this guy? equaling israel withe arab states (fashists) is pure fashism.
They are (mostly) dictatorships. Also you will note that "this guy" is not equalling Israel with a fascist state. He is predicting that it will evolve into one. (And equalling Israel with a fascist state would not have been fascism)
arab states are build on the muslim suremacy ideology. some of them belive that a fammily schold rule. some calling themselv kings. stoneage dub ignorant. predikting such a rediculus thing and all the blabla about israel and nazi - fashism is treason, derekted to hurt israel just cuz its jewish. pure fashism.
did you know that? I can assure you that there will not be any war between different political streams in Israel, there are enough war probabilities that the neighboring countires are planning for us. Secular right person
by then the Haredi took over and as no men are working and the women need to take care of the 10 kids per family, Israel will be bankrupt! Jews abroad see nof need to invest as and the end money needs to be made.
you display the cultural pitfalls of ignorance and separation from your people. how many of your family have intermarried and or have too few children? your connection to Torah Judaism is so faint, you probably would suprise anyone around you that you were a Jew. Get some honest knowledge and replace it with your infantile rantings that reflect your one and only source of Jewish information- haaretz! how depressing!
At least I am a jew who fits in a modern society! At least I am raised by my parents showing the world from different perspectives. At least I have a job in Israel supporting the Israel economy and pay taxes. At least I am more than just a voice! I have real outputs unlike you! Stop reading! Work!
What makes you Jewish? You have a Jewish mother? Is that all? Why not be Jewish the way your supposed to be? I dont mean to be insulting, but why brag with "at least Im Jewish" if you don't follow the Laws that a Jew must keep? Who's side are you on? G-D's, or soo called "modern society" ? you decide.
Jews should not go back in time. Modernise!!!!
The world is not about modernisation, but about stopping eating up the planet. That's for all to share as the main concern.