Israel: Arab Governments Are 'Borat'-ing Us

According to Israeli public relations official Ido Aharoni Tuesday: "The Arabs, our adversaries, have succeeded in doing to us what 'Borat' did for Kazakhstan," Haaretz reports. The reference is of course to Sasha Baron Cohen's 2006 film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, which depicted an anti-Semitic, primitively atavistic and oblivious Kazakh journalist touring America through a slew of outrageous and embarrassing scenarios using seemingly innocent civilians.

Following Borat's release, the Kazakh government in September 2006 launched an advertising campaign to combat the the scurrilous image of the country that Cohen portrayed in the film, according to the Telegraph.

Likewise, Aharoni, who heads the Brand Israel project, insists that Arab governments "have created an image [for Israelis] whose connection to reality is very weak," according to the Haaretz report, and that his complaint echoes a similar one made by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who bemoaned the image of Israel held by many throughout the world.

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Comments

[Copeword]

At least they're not Bruno-ing you.

[Nutcase]

I would suggest that the Israelis did it to themselves.

[Better-Future]

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has caused massive bloodshed, destruction, and most importantly created an atmosphere of intense hatred, distrust and violent hostility. Furthermore, the scale of this conflict has expanded to other parts of the world through the actions of those taking sides to further fuel this hostility, This long conflict is going to go down in history as a very dark chapter in humanity. It is really shameful that despite enormous progress, here we are in 21st century, unable to resolve the dispute between two groups of people who are looking for nothing more than stable and peaceful environment to live in. The enormous amount of resources wasted in the continuation of this conflict is only benefitting power hungry politicians, hard-liners, defense contractors and other opportunists while disrupting lives and alienating the spirit of generations of Palestinians and Israeli citizens. I got to believe that the ordinary citizens, especially the young want nothing more than peaceful living despite the prevailing feeling of disappointment and helplessness imposed on them by those profiting from the status quo. I get encouraged by groups like J Street whose members work hard to counter the hardline groups Like AIPAC, Israeli soldiers refusing military actions based on moral grounds and also the Palestinians and Israelis who team up to pursue more peaceful means. Violence does not work, so it behooves us all to pursue different paths and reject any notions of stereotyping and disrespect for others.

[hollybork]

Excellent post. Well conceived and well written. Thanks.

[karela]

Israel doesn't seem to get it that the whole world watched what they did in the recent Gaza war. We saw the phosphorous and the burns on the women and children. We saw the over kill attack that was planned to take place under Bush and end just before Obama. We see the settlements that shouldn't be there at all, let alone have continued building. We have seen the pictures of abuse taken by Palestinians with cameras provided to them by Israeli mothers. We know that Israel takes the water for settlements and refuses water to Palestinians who have watered their goats there forever. If Israel wants the world to think better of it, it must behave better. We demand the same of Palestinians, but right now, it is Israel who is holding up progress. Pressuring the U.S. government to keep the money flowing won't work if the American people are against it in large numbers. The underlying rule to all American politics is that politicians want to keep their jobs and they can't if we won't vote for them. The Americans who pay the taxes are tired of having our money paid out to governments who are bullies and who mistreat people. Right now, Israel fits that scenario. Israel needs to stop the settlement building and they need to move out of the settlements or replace every bit of land and water that they took. Period.

[Macready]

well said karela . . . israel has to assume responsiblity for the atrocities it is committing . . for far too long the US has provided money, arms and an umbrella which has allowed the israelis to continue to bully, steal land and water and kill . . no more . . . the plug must be pulled on israel or they will not stop . . they will continue to do what they have been doing . . .

[Prattvictory2]

Exactly and to portray the negative view the world holds of them as being "Borated" is to treat it as though it is comical just proves how much they don't get it.

[johnfrum]

You're not being "Borat"ed my friend, you're the real McCoy.

[Paul Hackett]

Maybe Israel's problems are less to do with PR and "perception" and more to do with outright racism and double standards. Take a look at the below story, also from today's Haretz, specifying how a zionist settler who was videotaped shooting two Palestinians in an unprovoked attack last December is now not going to be prosecuted.

This is especially ironic given that yesterday the Israeli courts decided that a crowd who beat to death an AWOL Israeli soldier after he killed four innocent Palestinians on a bus should be prosecuted! So apparently you are liable for prosecution if you stop a maniac that is killing innocent people on a bus (provided the maniac is jewish), however you will not be prosecuted if you are a maniac who shoots Palestinians without provocation (again provided the maniac is Jewish). This is so blatantly unjust that it is laughable. And to think that Israel tries to portray itself as a western style democracy.

PROSECUTION DROPS INDICTMENT AGAINST SETTLER FILMED SHOOTING PALESTINIANS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bV-dy8p7TM

VIDEO OF ABOVE INCIDENT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bV-dy8p7TM

IDF SOLDIER KILLS FOUR ON BUS AND WOUNDS 20, SURVIVORS ARE PROSECUTED FOR "LYNCHING" HIM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eden_Natan-Zada

[Sentientbeing09]

Man. Thats terrible.

We need to end support for Israel today. The Israeli settlements need to go.

These people are loons. No more cash. No more diplomatic support.

[sonoffestus]

I wonder if they'll get nominated for an Oscar?

[RaWash]

yah, it's arabs fault:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxt9HwfPwPo

[DCX2]

Maybe Israel is Borat-ing themselves.

[jeanrenoir]

Exactly. Israel's in very deep trouble now, because of its arrogance and that of its neocon operatives in America. The folly of the proxy war for Likud waged by the neocons in Iraq was the beginning of the end for Likud and the Israel Lobby in America. The war on Gaza, and the threat to bomb Iran, regardless of the catastrophic economic consequences for America and the rest of the world, have further tarnished Israel's image in America. Now a solid majority of Americans has arrived at about the same reaction to Israel as that in enlightened Europe. Israel must wake up and smell the political coffee in America, or risk losing American support, the ultimate potential catastrophe for Israel.

[LMPE]

Arab governments don't have to; Israel does it to itself.

[Tasies]

Absolutely frivolous compared to Hollywood's depiction of Arabs.

[Taxi]

Did I just read that Israel scored another own-goal?

[MimiGardner]

I wonder how Israeli officials felt about Cohen's negative stereotypes of the people of Kazakhstan.

[Aziat]

There are no stereotypes of Kazakh people in the Borat movie. Not even close. If you know how people from Kazakhstan look, you'll know that

[arle]

That's rather like arguing that the old Vaudeville acts of white performers in black face couldn't possibly be stereotypes of African Americans because the performers don't properly "look" black.

[k6007]

They're using everything they learned in wwII, on the pals. relocation, isolation, economic oppression, ghettoconfinement.
http://palestinethinktank.com/2006/05/10/the-shrinking-map-of-palestine/

If it wasn't for the msm, americans would be besides themselves.

[Obamalicious]

Sweet reference.