[Boycott - Cultural] Dylan sheet music site boycotts Israeli web users
Niv Lillian, Ynetnews.com 12 June 2010 Operator of website that distributes tabs, lyrics to Bob Dylan songs decides to impose private cultural boycott on Jewish state by blocking Israeli users from site
Bob Dylan
Israeli web users accustomed to surfing the site dylanchords for tabs and lyrics to Bob Dylan songs have recently been blocked from the IP address as the site operator has imposed his own cultural boycott on Israel after the flotilla raid at the beginning of last week
Israelis fall victim
The site is not the musician's official site, or even a site on his behalf. It is purely a fan site. In 2005, the site was shut down by the Recording Industry Association of America, but continued to operate under mirror sites.
The site, which identifies Israeli users by their IP addresses, redirects users to the webmaster's blog instead of presenting content. The person operating the site is a doctor of musicology from Denmark.
This is what was posted on the blog on Saturday:
"As a contribution to a cultural boycott of the state of Israel—a long overdue reaction to the absurd inhumanity that is demonstrated in its actions and that goes against everything that I and this site stands for—access to dylanchords has been blocked for visitors from Israel.
If you think you have been blocked incorrectly, drop me a note, and I'll see what I can do.
If you think you have been blocked unfairly, vote differently in the next election, and convince your family and friends to do the same.
Just so that is mentioned: The boycott is not directed against individuals of Jewish descent or religion, but against the state of Israel and its actions. I feel sorry for those Israelis who have fallen victim to the aggression and violence in the area, no less and no more than I feel for the Palestinians in the same situation."
Source: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3903610,00.html
Unofficial Bob Dylan website bans Israelis in wake of Gaza flotilla
Haaretz Service 12 June 2010
Dylanchords says block is a contribution to the cultural boycott of the state of Israel, over its 'absurd inhumanity.'
One of the largest fan sites dedicated to Bob Dylan songs, dylanchords, has recently blocked Israeli IP users access over the Israel Defense Forces' raid on the Gaza –bound Freedom Flotilla two weeks ago.
Israelis who wish to learn how to strum the Dylan song "The times they are a' changing," will have to look elsewhere, as the webpage redirects Israeli web users to the webmaster's blog.
"As of today, visitors from ip-addresses in Israel are blocked from dylanchords," the online message says. "As a contribution to a cultural boycott of the state of Israel - a long overdue reaction to the absurd inhumanity that is demonstrated in its actions and that goes against everything that I and this site stands for—access to dylanchords has been blocked for visitors from Israel."
"I consider my blockade as part of a cultural boycott of the same kind as that against South Africa in the 1980's," the blog post under the title "Cultural Boycott- some reflections".
The music site, which supplies guitar chords and tabs of tens of Bob Dylan songs, including news and biographical information for the fervent fans, was founded by Danish music expert Eyolf Østrem several years ago, yet it was closed down in 2005 due to American copyright violations.
Since the site was officially shut down, it has run on unofficial mirror versions.
Last week, veteran American rock band Pixies canceled their upcoming concert in Israel, the organizers of a festival in which the band was to participate.
The announcement followed recent concert cancellations by the Klaxons and the Gorillaz Sound System in the wake of Israel's raid of the Gaza flotilla.
Source: http://www.haaretz.com/culture/unofficial-bob-dylan-website-bans-israelis-in-wake-of-gaza-flotilla-1.295749
This Twice - dylanchords.com blog
Eyolf Østrem, Things Twice blog (www.oestrem.com/thingstwice/) 12 June 2010
Cultural Boycott — some reflections
A week ago, I started my cultural boycott of Israel, in direct response to, but not caused only by, the events surrounding the murders (or war crimes) on the Freedom Flotilla. These are some reflections on the boycott itself and on the reactions it has caused.
What is a cultural boycott, and is it fair?
I consider my blockade as part of a cultural boycott of the same kind as that against South Africa in the 80s. As such it is a gesture which some people will feel is hurting them unjustly.
On an individual level, that is entirely true: why should all the good-hearted, friendly citizens of Israel, those who have never voted for Netanyahu and who are against the blockade of Gaza and feel sorry for the citizens of Gaza – why should they be punished for the transgressions of their Government and the IDF?
But this misses the fundamental character of a cultural boycott: Unlike trade embargos or disinvestment it is not meant to hurt the economy, or to pressurize or punish individuals through the means of market economy (”we have something you need, but we won’t give it to you”). Rather, it is a symbolic gesture, aimed to send a signal: “judging by your behaviour, as a group, we can’t regard you as decent people. We can do without that contact. It’s up to you to give us a reason to want talk with you.”
This is the perspective in which I see the boycott: as an explicit act of non-communication. The way you let yourselves be represented as a collective (and, I must add, present and re-present yourselves, again and again) I don’t want to talk with you, just as I didn’t want to help the schoolyard bully with his homework, even when he hadn’t done anything to me directly.
It has been said that a boycott of this kind is based on a fundamental trust in the people one wants to reach and influence. The comparison with South Africa is illustrative: the apartheid rulers were – or wanted to be – an integrated part of international society, and they wanted to be seen as decent people, by themselves and others. That’s why the boycott worked.
As far as I can tell, the same can be said about the people of Israel: they want to be met as decent people. I hope that’s true.
Reactions from Israelis
So far, I’ve received lots of emails from Israeli citizens in response to the boycott. It has been a depressing read.
There are two trends in these mails.
First, there is the hoard of mails with the main or – usually – only message: “go fuck with dogs you mother faker”, “you are a pig and a dog”, “your children will be sick”, “ISRAELRAPEDYOURASS”, “Go to the hell, idiot!!!”, “Good day to you, Adolf”, “bloody antichrist” (which I found oddly amusing, coming from Israel. Could have been a Christian Israeli, of course), and “you nazi pig. we know where you live”. These are exact quotations, and just a small selection
A large portion of them also seem to know exactly how much – or should I say: how little – I know about the true situation, that I only know what I’ve seen on CNN and other brainwashed media.
Quite a few tell me – openly or indirectly – that the reactions against Israel in general and the boycott in specific are anti-semitic, that the boycott is a hostile assault or even an act of violence.
..
See full article
Source: http://oestrem.com/thingstwice/2010/06/cultural-boycott-some-reflections/
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