Wonder Woman Banned in Lebanon

EDIT: So, movie theaters across Lebanon got an email asking them to not screen Wonder Woman as planned tonight. More details as I get them.

I don’t think this has happened since the last Tiesto concert… The kind of fuss and hypocrisy by some overzealous slacktivists waging BDS wars on phones with chips manufactured in Haifa. I guess the boycott just stems to stuff you don’t like or need, not everything. Regardless though, I will not get into this complicated clusterfuck right now.

Wonder Woman Debuts in Lebanese Theaters Tonight

If you’re a fan of Wonder Woman, and are glad that there’s finally a superhero movie where the main character and most the cast is female, you can watch Wonder Woman in theaters tonight. I spent today and yesterday following up this issue with several concerned parties, and the movie is definitely not banned and probably won’t be.

The General Security OKed It

The General Security Censorship Bureau is notorious for their absurd censoring and banning practices. So much so in fact, we have an entire museum dedicated to everything they’ve banned, both online and offline.

The General Security is also headed by Abbas Ibrahim, a staunchly pro-Hezbollah security chief that would definitely not be, as the slacktivists would say, “pro Israel” because he didn’t ban the movie.

That means the only way of this getting banned is if the boycott and divestment bureau in the ministry of trade and economy decideds to ban it. Lebanon and Syria are the only two countries in the world where there’s an actual government body tasked with banning Israeli stufff. However, given the track record of this bureau, they usually just shy away and waste time instead of bear the brunt of criticism for censoring something. Remember the Viber thing? And more recently, they thought they censored Batman vs Superman, when all of you went to the movies and stuffed your disappointed faces with popcorn at the unbanned, but shitty movie.

So, I don’t think the MoE is gonna ban anything, and anyway, they’re kinda late and lots of Lebanese have already seen it in the press screenings and avant premieres this week.

Colluding with Oppressive Governments Because You Hate Israel is Kinda Ironic

Israel is an occupying foe. The Lebanese government is supposed to be our public servants. You’d expect a vicious, evil regime like the extremist zionist one to behave that way with Palestinians. What’s our government’s excuse for their behavior? They don’t let elections happen, they steal all our public money, they assault without getting punished at every chance they get, they even fucking built a wall of shame like Israel’s when we were protesting them drowning us in garbage.

So, how is colluding with a horrible government much better than “supporting Israel” (as you blame those against the ban) exactly? How is working hand in hand with an illegitimate, oppressive and rudely criminal government to ban a superhero flick any better? It’s like the people who love Assad just cause he says he’s against Israel, disregarding the fact he has done far worse to many Arab peoples, including his own, than Israel has ever done.

Boycotts Are Good, Please Do Them, But

Boycotts are a civilized, effective and peaceful way of voicing one’s political opinions and applying pressure against causes you do not support. However, boycotts are very different from bans. People boycott things willingly, bans are done by force. So, if you ban things, and chuck it in the category of boycotting, you’re kinda missing the point, and maybe apply to be an Arab dictator instead of an activist fighting an occupier and oppressor of Arab peoples.

In other words, it’s kinda like fasting for Ramadan. If you’re doing it willingly, then bravo, you are a good person practicing their faith. But, if you force everyone else to fast too, that kinda defeats the purpose, and you’re a terrible human being for thinking and doing that. Same goes for boycotts, you can win over people’s hearts and minds to support your cause, but forcing them to without having a choice, cheapens and distorts the good work you’re trying to do.

So, if you are with the government banning this movie, then you do not have my support and the support of many who support the idea of BDS, just not the kind that’s institutionalized by the same government that won’t let Lebanese moms pass down their passports to their kids for fear their dad might be Palestinian.

Hypocrisy Has Some Limits

I know you guys love Facebook and Starbucks too much to boycott using them, so no one holds it against you when you do. However, to be a hypocrite, you need a little more sense. How did half a dozen movies featuring the same artist in the past few years escape your vigilant boycott eyes? How did it take you like 7 times to notice Tiesto has performed in Israel? What about all the anti-BDS celebrities, like Steven Spielberg, Kanye West, Scarlett Johansen, Seth Rogen, Kelsey Grammar (Fraiser) and many others? Does that mean we can’t watch ET anymore, or Pineapple Express?

And here, I’m not saying this because I want to force you to not be hypocrites, like you are trying to force Wonder Woman fans to not watch the movie. I say this because I’m sad when I see the subjective flip-flopping which makes an otherwise noble and just cause, look silly and stupid, like the Catholic Information Center banning The Da Vinci Code. Y’all really wanna be compared to those people?

Enjoy the Movie!

Censorship is wrong. Period. Even if it’s stuff you’re against, banning it is Saudi and Iran shit, not ours. You have every right to boycott and criticize, even protest. However, getting in the league with censorship done by the Lebanese government is an unforgivable sin, and I hope you don’t fall into that.

Book your movie tickets here or whichever is your closest or favorite cineplex!