Slingshot Hiphop

Originally posted: November 11th 2008.
Slingshot Hiphop Review by Maureen Clare Murphy, Electronic Intifada

Jackie Salloum's invigorating new documentary Slingshot Hiphop portrays the story of three aspiring Palestinian musicians from the rap group DAM as they develop their talent in their bedrooms and take it to standing-room-only crowds throughout historic Palestine.
Though the DAM crew may hold Israeli passports, their lyrics about discrimination, resisting oppression and pride in a common heritage ring true with young Palestinians everywhere. Indeed, the musicians from Lyd might find a feeling of familiarity in the southern Gaza Strip, where Mohammed al-Farra from the group Palestinian Rapperz (PR) lives. Whether in the Gaza Strip, or in Lyd, Palestinians are subject to Israel's racist policies of house demolitions and arbitrary arrest. "It's like a refugee camp in Israel," DAM member Tamer Nafar says of Lyd, where a lack of community services, unemployment, and poverty bred by systemic state discrimination makes drug use an attractive escape for many young people.
DAM's work inside their own community is especially significant. The group visits a camp for children (called Camp Return, referring to Palestinian Refugees' right of return) in Lyd. After Tamer performs an unaccompanied rap describing his pride in being Palestinian ("Remove the word self-pity from your mind... raise our heads high"), one of the children in the audience asks with genuine surprise, "I'm a Palestinian?"
When the rappers gently ask him what he thought he was, he replies, "Just Arab." - indicating the internalisation of Israel's attempts to strip Palestinians inside Israel [e.g. annexed Palestine] of their national identity.
Salloum's film shows the audience how these artists are using a cultural medium to unite Palestinian youth who have grown up not knowing their peers in other arts of the Palestinian Diaspora, and how their themes of repression and subjugation communicate their common story of injustice. In Gaza, PR's Mohammed al-Farra echoes Tamer Nafar and his comrades when he explains that he and his crew turned to rapping as a form of release and resistance following Israel's brutal repression of the second Palestinian intifada which broke out in 2000. In November of that year, Mohammed narrowly escaped death when he turned his body just in time for an Isreali fired bullet to penetrate his arm instead of his heart. Filled with despair, Mohammed struggled to find rap CDs in Gaza's music stores, and was riveted when a friend brought back an Eminem CD from Canada. But he found his direction when he heard DAM on the internet. Now, he says, his dream is to meet his "brothers in '48". referring to the part of historic Palestine that is now considered to be Israel proper and to which Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank are prohibited from freely visiting.

Look and listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIo6lyP9tTE

MORE: http://www.electronicintifada.net/v2/article9818.shtml
　
　

George and the Contender

Originally posted: October 10th 2008.

Despite the fake polls (like those that showed Tony Blair as the most popular PM), George W Bush unites the American people to some extent in hatred and contempt. Here's one farewell to him, plucked from the web:
funkvigilante.com - This is a song for the free people of the world. George W. Bush has said that despite his dismal approval ratings and failed policies that history will have the final word on his presidency. We felt that we should do our part to make sure that history gets it right.
http://funkvigilante.com/WorstPresidentEver.shtml#musicvideo

-and we have here, a Real Contender for the Dubbya role of the future:

ACTUAL SARAH PALIN QUOTES:1. We can't afford to lose had pushed for more troops where it is the taxpayers.

2. Senator McCain also showed great appreciation for what America - as a result of this latest crisis is the undo influence of lobbyists in public policy decisions being made.

3. It's Alaska who's more apt to be talking about solutions has to be considered also.

4. I think, with Ahmadinejad, personally these central fronts on the war on terror of the evil in the world.

5. I'm ill about the position that America is in, and the dealings with Freddie and Fannie has to be considered also.

6. Senator McCain also showed great appreciation for what America working with existing allies - they want freedom.

7. I'm ill about the position that America is in, and should not be rewarded, we are getting into crisis mode here.

8.It's very important when you consider even to make sure that an eye is being kept on, we are getting into crisis mode here.

9. We can't afford to lose that is what America needs today is the undo influence of lobbyists in public policy decisions being made.

10. At the same time the dealings with Freddie and Fannie and there also.

11. And as Ronald Reagan believed that a multi-faceted sollution - that's more than a lot of other senators and representatives did for us.

12. He's also known as the maverick, whether that is part of the solution or not to look at that as more opportunity.

13. With his warnings two years go about - as a result of this latest crisis and we are a free-thinking society.

14.Well, there is a danger in allowing also bipartisan effort of the evil in the world.

15. I see our country being able to represent those things also rallying against for opportunity to change it.

16. And as Ronald Reagan believed that and show our cards to terrorists as I asked President Karzai.

17. It is for no more politics as usual and that has to be considered also and there also.

18. Darn right as it's been proposed not when that could ultimately, adversely, effect a plan to keep America secure.

London Observer columnist Victoria Coren noted that Ms Palin subscribes to the belief that God created the dinosaurs six thousand years ago, and suggested that this branch of learning be dubbed Palintology.