Armchair activism has a particularly disgusting side as it brings out the trigger happiness in people. In light of recent events, dozens of hawkish Facebook groups were created by Israelis, advocating the annihilation of the Gaza strip. All you have to do is click the ‘Join’ button, and you have instantly shown your degree of ‘patriotism’. Here is a selection of those Facebook groups:

• Demolish Gaza (5,155 members)
• Turn the Gaza strip into a parking lot (5,649 members)
• Push Gaza to the sea (3,245 members)
• Erase Gaza (723+617+529+425+422+358+277+146+124+115+77+23+22 = 3858 members)

 
In this atmosphere of collective zeal, I think nothing can be more patriotic than watching War, A Rock Opera this coming Wednesday in Tel-Aviv. The show was created by Israeli musician Kobi Vitman based on his ordeals as an IDF reserve infantry soldier during Operation Defensive Shield in 2002, but it was painfully relevant to the 2006 Lebanon War -- and even more so now, as the conflict in Gaza escalates into a ground invasion. The collective Israeli memory is notoriously short, and so watching this show is an excellent reminder of what war is really like in a country where every citizen is a soldier.

What: War, A Rock Opera
When: Wednesday, January 7, 2009 at 10:30pm
Where: Tmuna Theatre, 8 Soncino street, Tel Aviv, Israel
Who: Kobi Vitman, Dvir Benedek, Ayelet Robinson, Yaniv Levi
Why: Read my critique

Similar Posts:

• War, A Rock Opera -- Read My Critique – or, Better Yet, Skip My Critique And Just Buy Your Tickets Today!
• War, A Rock Opera -- Now Available For Free Download
• Missing Them: Waiting for Ron, Gilad, Ehud and Eldad in Airports around the World
• Worst Facebook profile ever*: Dana Avraham with 199 applications**
• Kate Miller-Heidke -- Are You F**king Kidding Me?

Highlights:
Cast: Dvir Benedek plays an excellent IDF commander, with just the right amounts of arrogance and smugness he reminds everyone the army commander each one of us had in our time.
Music: Vitman wrote some powerful songs, some of which are bound to enter the Israeli pantheon of political tunes. Most of the lyrics are written tongue in cheek and appeal to a cynical generation all too familiar with the knee-jerk sentences Israeli political figures dish out oh so easily.
Band: Electric guitarist Ron Bunker should be singled out for praise. While the entire band plays awesome rock, Bunker’s solos brought the roof down. Bravo!

Lowlights:
Sound: As I have said before, this is my biggest pet peeve when visiting the Israeli theatre. You always have to strain your ears to distinguish the words from the music. If they can balance it well abroad, why can’t they do it in Israel?

Have a listen to Sleep My Child (Shan Yaldi), one of many songs that so eloquently convey the pathos used in the efficient indoctrination of the Israeli citizen in the acceptance of perpetual war. My ad-hoc translation of the lyrics into English is provided for your listening pleasure.

[See original post to listen to audio.]

Sleep My Child (Shan Yaldi) – War, A Rock Opera – lyrics:

Here you can watch snippets. Here you can buy tickets.

Similar Posts:

• It’s Like Déjà Vu All Over Again
• War, A Rock Opera – Now Available For Free Download
• Israeli Avenue Q – Follow-up #3: Read My Critique – or, Better Yet, Skip My Critique And Just Buy Your Tickets Today!
• Rent Extended – Additional 141,120 Minutes to Catch the Broadway Musical
• Israeli Avenue Q – Follow-up #1: Rehearsal Sneak Preview