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Sovereign patriotism By Na'ama Shefi Tags: israel, israel news, gaza  The few journalists critical of their colleagues are right, as is Keshev - The Center for the Protection of Democracy in Israel, which follows imbalanced reporting. The print and broadcast media are rife with chatter about the justice of this war, about the excellence with which it is being carried out and the wisdom of its commanders. While in normal times it is possible to see an element of beauty and innocence in this national conscription, the current blatant patriotism is inherently dangerous. The excessive praise lacking any caution about things to come raises concerns that, once more, complications might arise costing human lives. But there isn't enough evidence to the say the press is too mobilized and enamored with the aggressive values the state represents. Most journalists are not the state's mouthpieces; they are mouthpieces of the political leadership and army during a peak of excitement when the smell of gunpowder overwhelms them. The journalists had eight years to prove the extent of their concerns and sympathy for the area of the country for which the current war broke out - the same war that these momentary patriots are now supporting. Advertisement A whole chunk of the country was attacked from dawn to dusk, but the journalists failed to see the absurd: The State of Israel surrendered its sovereignty and a piece of territory that is part of the cease-fire agreements of 1949. They abandoned it to the whims of groups and individuals in the Gaza Strip and the indifference of Israeli politicians. Instead of denouncing the government for its cynical attitude toward an area bordering the northern Gaza Strip, most journalists chose to criticize the battered population. The residents of Sha'ar Hanegev and those worse off in Sderot were depicted as hysterical, lacking the moral stamina to withstand a few "flying pipes" - people who ran for their lives the minute random explosions were heard. The media did not dare consider a different possibility in which the abandoned citizens would respond in kind, ignoring the state and launching their own homemade rockets at their personal, private enemies. Still, the population in the south that is taken for granted remained loyal, albeit battered. Only when the rockets landed far from their launch sites in Beit Hanun and Beit Lahia, and the Gazan "pipes" turned into real missiles and the watered-down Color Red alerts were replaced with proper alarms, were the shocked citizens smothered by the sweaty embraces of journalists, politicians and other Israelis. If there is anything to blame the journalists for, it is not their excessive patriotism. It is their magisterial and patronizing patriotism. When the state turned a cold shoulder to the south, the journalists presented the local population in a ridiculous light; when the state used the citizens' misery as a reason to go to war, the journalists extolled the successes of the savior army. Tomorrow, when the war turns out to be costly in human lives, the journalists will abandon the political leadership and suggest they be crucified. The day after they will also forget the people of the south, turn a blind eye to their postwar security situation and deny the emotional accounting that the war will leave on the people within the expanding range of the enemy's fire. If there is anything revolting in the approach of the journalists who are goading the battle on, it is not their fake patriotism or their populist, spineless enlistment to the cause. Until a moment ago they justified years of neglect. A few hours after the war they woke up to the realization that there could have been negotiations earlier, and not only with those who live in relative calm in the West Bank. Bookmark to del.icio.us   'With total determination' Widow of IDF soldier killed Monday remembers her fallen hero. Anti-Semites unite! Protests against Gaza op worldwide have had a hateful, violent tone.

Read & React Bradley Burston / Gaza War Diary III: If Mexico shelled Texas, like Hamas shells Israel Responses: 151 At least 30 die in strike on Gaza school; IDF: Troops fired in self-defense Responses: 103 ANALYSIS / Israel is on its way to reoccupying all of the Gaza Strip Responses: 32 ANALYSIS / Price of stubborness over Gaza exit is dead Israeli soldiers Responses: 59 More Headlines 02:12 Abbas at UN calls for Gaza truce, fresh peace talks 01:51 Israel to establish 'humanitarian corridor' for Gaza Strip 01:55 Egypt's Gaza truce plan: ceasefire followed by border security talks 00:21 IDF shell kills 30 in Gaza UN school; Israel mulls appeal over Hamas fire from UN facilities 22:47 Obama breaks silence on Gaza, calls civilian deaths 'a deep concern' 23:03 Al-Qaida No. 2 urges Muslims to attack Israeli and Western targets over Gaza op 23:50 Five Israeli soldiers killed in 24 hours, as IDF closes in on Gaza cities 23:42 French TV claims photos from 2005 showed damage from Israel's Gaza operation 16:21 Gaza rocket hits Gedera, 30km from Tel Aviv; baby lightly hurt 17:12 ANALYSIS / Price of stubborness over Gaza exit is dead soldiers 18:20 Get up to the minute coverage of the warfare in Gaza directly to your email 00:22 'You'll be proud of me, yet' slain IDF soldier told family before entering Gaza 21:45 The view from Ramallah / An Intifada in its infancy? 22:19 Turkey-Israel basketball game canned after pro-Gaza protesters storm court 14:37 ANALYSIS / Israel is on its way to reoccupying all of the Gaza Strip 19:17 'Iran pledged Hezbollah won't respond to Gaza op,' says top Lebanese MP 18:39 Jewish and Arab students clash on Gaza offensive 13:06 ANALYSIS / The unspoken goal of bringing down Hamas in Gaza 20:07 Hospitalized but defiant, Israeli soldiers eager to return to Gaza battle 13:40 Israeli general: Never knew I was evacuating my wounded soldier son from Gaza 13:00 Burning car rams synagogue in southwest France 13:46 Egypt bars doctors from entering Gaza Strip 05:44 Hamas puts Gazans in danger by drawing IDF into urban warfare 18:21 PICTURE GALLERY / Gaza incursion sparks protests around world Previous Editions Select Day 06 jan 05 jan 04 jan 02 jan 01 jan 31 dec 30 dec 29 dec 28 dec 26 dec 25 dec 24 dec

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