I've stopped posting political stuff here, but this morning the Guardian ran a feature on how an number of academics were boycotting Israel and I thought that was interesting in light of the planned YAPC::Israel.
I know my reaction to seeing YAPC:Isreal was 'good for perl, bad for palestine'. One of Isreal's core industries is IT, and it is at the cutting edge.
This means as much as I respect people Like Moshe Bar for their technical ability I have to wonder : how can you live in and support such a nation ?
The thing is YAPC being in Isreal will probably do more good for perl than any effect a boycott would have. Wirhout people like moshe bar and respected Isreali technologists talking out there is little that those of us outside the middle east can do to remedy it. Why is there such silence from isreali technologists - its not like they are ignorant of what is going on. I have been happy to speak out against the UK government and its allies.
I already boycott isreali goods, but feel that sharing knowledge is always a good thing and that boycotting conferences, has little positive impact and removes a platform that could be used for speaking out.
OTOH ...
autarch on 2002-12-12T17:35:31
... just going to Israel means spending money there. I wouldn't do it, personally, unless I were going to do something like help the ISM or something. I wish I were that brave.Re:It is interesting
pudge on 2002-12-18T03:08:24
This means as much as I respect people Like Moshe Bar for their technical ability I have to wonder : how can you live in and support such a nation ?
I have to wonder how an intelligent person can wonder how someone else can have a differing point of view.
Sorry to break this to you, but you don't know everything. You are wrong on a great many things, as everyone else is. Perhaps you could start making the world a better place by respecting this fact, and encouraging others to do likewise, rather than asserting the notion that your perspective is the only reasonable one. I can assure you that it is not.
