Police On Agripas Street DSCF1891 Jerusalem

I hate guns, but that is a great picture for his actuality... The guy sending most probably a love sms to a girl, with his gun on the back... A whole history in one picture. Congrats.

Thank you. I only just now discovered (9 days later) your comment. Great thought about the sms. You see more than I see.

Your cell phone equation caused me to stop and think to myself...I have a lot of photos of guns in Israel. I almost specialize in this genre. The photos do not draw much attention. They might pass through photo.net with about 5 visits, 1 anonymous rating and no comments. Israelis are not interested because they see these guns everyday, everywhere. Seeing guns here in Israel is about as interesting as seeing cell phones. Americans (I suppose Europeans too) do not take much notice to this photos because it is happening somewhere else -not in their home. For Americans this is a photo of another planet; it is an irrelavency. But If I posted this photo and it was taken in American outside of a food market as this photo is... well Marie, I"d get screens and screens of critiques and "bravo"s and dialog about "Change" and what has "our" world come to (no one seems to consider what has "my" world come to). Photos like these taken in Ameirca would start to get about as noisy as the guns in the photos could be. So I am thinking that it does not much matter whether this is a good photo or not a good photo. What matters is where it was taken.

Thanks for your thoughts, Meil.

Thanks for drawing my attention to this image and the commentary. I do not understand the cell phone reference, as I do not know what "sms" means.

 

However, as is not unusual in our case, I would like to point out a slight difference in our opinions. The reason nobody finds these folks armed to the teeth extraordinary is because that is exactly the image most Americans have of your country (right or wrong). By the same token, one might think of a Latin American country where there are guerrillas, and it conjures up an image of a somewhat disheveled gunman with a mishmash of both clothing and armaments. In this country it is generally presumed that in Israel there is a need to have that. That is not to say that it is a good way to live, but there it may be the only way. But your people have those guns because it is necessary to have them.

 

When we discussed this on my image, "POLLUTION," I and some others were lamenting the fact that the advertisement was encouraging people to try out an automatic weapon just for fun. Guns should not be considered fun. They are made for killing. And those who hold some romantic conception of guns as fun or useful, or sport, are merely fooling themselves.

 

I have owned guns all my life. I'm trained in their use. That does not change my belief that any society where guns are common and used frequently is a society that is not very pleasant or conducive to engendering the highest ideals of mankind.

I did not know that you think this about Israel? Guns are not legal in Israel! This is not Gaza or Lebanon. sms has to do with sending text messages on a cell phone the way you send email.

 

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The point I am trying to make is that guns are essential in your country, but I doubt that there are many that view them as fun things to be played with and to spend time playing with for no other reason than pleasure. I assume in your country they are a deadly serious business. And that's as it should be. Here they are more like toys. I reiterate that any country where guns are prevalent, is probably not a great country to live in. That does not mean that there is something wrong with Israel, merely that the constant need for security is a less than ideal way to live. There is something appealing about peace and calm, and human kindness.

That made me smile. A friend of mine living in America once said to me why don't I go live some place like Spain were it is more peaceful. I do not speak Spanish. I do get your point; I got it back on your photo. Israel I think is more civilized than the west and crime-wise a safer place to live.

Meir, i have no problem with this man carrying a weapon as he is obviously in the military, and i would assume (and sincerely hope) trained in the appropriate use of one. i realize that sometimes countries need to use at least the threat of violence for reasons of security. i am glad i do not live in such a place. the last time i flew to Mexico (8 years ago) i found it very un-nerving to see armed guards in the airport. the people walking around this soldier in the photo don't even seem aware that he has a gun. obviously they do not feel threatened. this is very different depiction of a gun, than in David's photo. in David's photo, the gun is being advertised much like a car one would go out and test drive. i have said before, and i stand by my opinion that automatic weapons should only be used for military purposes. even then, i think if men and women were forced to use knives instead of guns in war, sometimes they might look in the other's eyes and recognize their shared humanity. am i an idealist? absolutely. do i think people would ever give up guns for fighting wars? unfortunately, no.

I understand and.... Mexico is a whole different kind of thing. Israel doesn't have much crime... .....Thanks for commenting.