The Wall of hypocrisy and double standards
This text is my attempt to communicate the same idea as I previously expressed here in Russian language. I figured that I want my English speaking friends to know my opinion on the matter. Thank you for reading.
I grew up listening to “The Wall” by Pink Floyd. In Soviet Union at the time it was although a small but sure an act of defiance. The coffins of the Soviet Army soldiers were still coming from Afghanistan and we tried not to think about the coming day of the military draft when you turn 18.
We copied records of “The Wall” on bulky reel to reel tape recorders hoping to preserve the quality so we could get the words clear. None of us knew English well enough to understand the whole thing, but we knew it was all about freedom, justice, and truth uninfluenced by the decisions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party or any other party for that matter.
Through noises produced by the means of radio warfare we listened to BBC programs about news in the rock music where Seva Novgorodcev often explained to us what the texts were actually about.
We envied the freedom these musicians enjoyed in their countries and respected their courage telling the truth.
I never imagined to ever being able to attend concerts of Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Dio or seeing “The Wall” live. After moving to Canada it became a possibility. So last year, as soon as I have seen an upcoming Roger Waters “The Wall Live” show advertised, I knew I had to go. I bought two tickets – to go with my son and show him what real “stuff” looks and sound like.
Roger Waters was one of these idols whose names you remember no matter what, whose authority you do not question. They were out there forever those guys… they know it all… They are like gods. Their views are above everything. They never lie.
The show started the way I remembered it, but later on, this black pig appeared and got me thinking… There is nothing unusual in the appearance of the flying non-kosher animals at Floyd concerts. They have used them forever. They wrote things on them and drew signs. This one wasn’t different – it also had signs. Actually, almost the same signs as were posted on the bombs earlier in the show. With only one exception – the bombs had signs of all three main world religions: Christianity, Islam and Judaism.
I don’t want to go too deep into how fair it is to blame a particular religion for the fact that people may be using it to kill others. In fact, my opinion is that religion (not the faith) is an establishment which tends to limit personal freedoms the same way governments and regimes do. So it can be criticized as such.
Anyway… the only missing religious symbol on the piglet was, of course, the one of Islam. Why of course? When I came home and did some research on the Web, I found that Roger Waters was a big supporter of Palestinian war against Israel’s existence and a critic of the defense barrier that keeps terror out of Israel. He is one of those who would have certainly enjoyed Jews being thrown into the sea or elsewhere.
Honestly, you don’t want to go to a predominantly Muslim place after drawing their sacred symbol on a pig… Simply their understanding of freedom of expression is somewhat different than this at the West and in Israel for that matter.
As someone who grew up in a society where double standards were a norm, I am quite sensitive to these issues. While Soviet regime officially promoted ethnic equality, in reality, some people were more equal than others. Plus I am a Jew, even though religion doesn’t play a significant role in my life. Also, I have lived in Israel for long enough to know well what things look like there and what people there have to deal with every day.
Researching the Web I also found that Roger Waters is an active promoter of boycotting the State of Israel politically, economically and culturally. Apparently, Israel has no rights to defend itself… He makes sure to be one of the first to blame Israel for military actions against terrorists while the murder of Israeli civilians or civilians in other parts of the World doesn’t seem to bother him at all.
I could not believe that someone like Roger Waters would do that. He should know better! He has millions of fans and has no right to make a mistake like that.
If the idea is to promote freedom and equality, protect the innocent from the war – it should work both ways. All the possible ways.
Waters did not go to protect people of Syria killed by their government troops and the rebels alike. He did not go to Israel to check out on people hiding in bomb shelters from thousands of rockets thrown at them courtesy of peaceful people of Gaza.
He chose to build a new wall in place of the one he thought he helped destroying. The new one is built out of hypocrisy and double standards. He spat in the face of thousands if not millions of fans who believed in the ideas of freedom he promoted.
P.S. Just look at what recently happened in Boston after the marathon bombing… The Huge city was in the lockdown when security agencies were locating the suspect. And no one complained. Quite on the contrary – they were thanking the FBI and the police for protecting them and saving their lives. It is not subject to comparison, but still, most bombings in Israel done by Palestinian terrorists had way more causalities. Why then this defense barrier such a big deal? It serves the purpose and saves lives. Why the life of Israeli child is not worth the inconvenience of a Palestinian?