Thursday 30 January 2014

SCARLETT JOHANSSON: SODASTREAM, SCRUPLES and SEX

 
Why the uproar over Scarlett Johansson? Is it that a prominent Jewish American woman openly supports Israel? This is shocking? Actually it is. Or is that an A-List Hollywood personality ~ named the “sexiest woman alive” ~ has found her inner chutzpah and gone rogue against Hollywood’s 99 percent liberal establishment? ~ Jack Engelhard, Aaretz Shiva
Dear reader, you must be aware that the beauteous Scarlett is, first and foremost, “a nice Jewish girl” who has now begun to behave as a good Jew should when it comes to Israel. This could also be an attempt to pull in the average young American Jews who are not so interested in Israel, to give it a “hip and modern” flavour.

OVERVIEW:  
~ Johanssen resigned after eight years with Oxfam
~ She left the humanitarian group which said her Soda Stream adverts were 'incompatible' with her role as an ambassador 
.
~ She has been criticized for promoting the Israeli firm that operates in a settlement in the West Bank  
.
~ Oxfam oppose all trade with Israeli settlements built on land occupied in 1967  
.
~ The first advertisement by Johanssen is already in the midst of a great deal of hoopla creating a huge buzz for SodaStream just prior to the prestigious prostitution advertising campaigns unleashed during the Superbowl. This is not, I believe, an entirely serendipitous chain of events.
.
~ The SodaStream company has been under international boycott and just recently won a high level case against the boycott movement in France (FRENCH COURT RULES BOYCOTT OF SODASTREAM ILLEGAL)

 

ED Noor: Here we have another pre-fabricated story ~ involving the alleged sexiest woman in the world, charity, greed, product and SPORTS!  When I first read the headline, my naive hope was, “Yes! She has seen the hypocrisy involved with the UN or SodaStream and going public!" Imagine my great disappointment to find out that this actress whose work I have sometimes enjoyed is just another card-carrying Zionist shill! 

I like fizzly drinks ~ the bubblier the better. It is not so much about the sweet as it is about the fizzy so pop was never much of an attraction to me. Aspartame or sugar, either way pop was a death wish.

When I heard of SodaStream I looked into it immediately. By then I was already boycotting everything Israeli and was quite disappointed to discover the story of the company. I still get my fizz kick in alternative healthy fashions (Kumbacha Tea for example). Just the contents of those little containers of brew is rather frightening so not a healthy alternative. 

That Johansson resigns so publicly from her UN position within weeks of being signed on as spokeswoman for a company ~ SodaStream currently in the international headlines for its unsavoury business practices from an illegal settlement in the West Bank ~ is in itself suspicious. 

The fact  that this makes headlines days before her big debut as spokeswoman at the prestigious, pretentious commercial madness known as the Superbowl, speaking for this company, is very suspicious. This is, beyond all else, a totally commercial and manufactured event. Who stands to gain here. Qui Bono? There are of course great rewards in store for Johanssen, but the big winner is an illegal Israeli settlement in Palestine.  

Just to set the mood, I did a little search and found a lot of images of Scarlet and SodaStream of interest. Just what is she doing with all those precious semi pornographic poses with her hands and lips sensuously caress and sip from a tall cold glass of product. Edward Bernays might have been embarrassed at how overt the sexual overtones are; on the other hand, considering Bernays, he would probably take full credit for the concepts implemented in this entire SodaStream campaign.  

AND WHY IS THIS AD BANNED FROM THE SUPERBOWL?  

Certainly not for consideration of the Palestinian people!

It turns out that Pepsi is sponsoring the half-time show for Super Bowl XLVIII, and the NFL didn't take too kindly to the line, “Sorry, Coke and Pepsi.” Thus FOX, the network airing the big game, asked Sodastream to excise that disparaging line from their commercial.


Factory in the West Bank: Critics including Oxfam oppose all trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. Soda stream operates a factory, pictured, that employs both Israelis and Palestinians in the settlement of Maale Adumin, pictured

“To be an active member of the community, to be a responsible citizen and to engage politically have always been part of my awareness and part of my life.” ~ Scarlett Johansson, before SodaStream became part of her life


“If you already have the spotlight shining on you, it’s great to direct that toward a cause you believe in and that you can stand behind. It’s nice to be a voice for people who don’t have a voice.” ~ Scarlett Johansson, before she got paid to be the voice of SodaStream

“I’m not here to be diplomatic ~ All causes worth fighting for are going to be controversial.” ~ Scarlett Johansson, speaking on causes she is not paid to fight for 

PART ONE: SCARLETT JOHANSSON DOUBLES DOWN ON APARTHEID RESIGNS FROM HUMANITARIAN GROUP

Actress Confirms Commitment to Apartheid and Ethnic Cleansing by Resigning as Ambassador for Goodwill and Peace in Favour of Company that Illegally Confiscates Land of Indigenous Peoples while posing as Ec0-Friendly Company  

By Johnny Punish  
.
Yesterday, Scarlett Johansson announced that she is ending her relationship with a humanitarian group after being criticized over her support for an Soda Stream, an Israeli company that operates illegally in the West Bank on confiscated lands of the indigenous populations. 
.
A statement released by Johansson’s spokesman Wednesday said the 29-year-old actress has “a fundamental difference of opinion” with Oxfam International because the humanitarian group opposes all trade from Israeli settlements, saying they are illegal and deny Palestinian rights. 
“Scarlett Johansson has respectfully decided to end her ambassador role with Oxfam after eight years,” the statement said. “She and Oxfam have a fundamental difference of opinion in regards to the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. She is very proud of her accomplishments and fundraising efforts during her tenure with Oxfam.” 
Earlier this month, “The Avengers” and “Her” actress signed on as the first global brand ambassador of SodaStream International Ltd., and she’s set to appear in an ad for the at-home soda maker during the Super Bowl on Feb. 2.

SodaStream has come under fire from pro-Indigenous peoples activists for maintaining a large factory in an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, a territory captured by Israel in 1967 and claimed by the indigenous peoples.

In response to the criticism, Johansson said last week she was a “supporter of economic cooperation and social interaction between a democratic Israel and Palestine.”

Oxfam took issue with Johansson, noting it was “considering the implications of her new statement and what it means for Ms. Johansson’s role as an Oxfam global ambassador.”

Johansson had served as a global ambassador for Oxfam since 2007, raising funds and promoting awareness about global poverty. In her role as an Oxfam ambassador, she traveled to India, Sri Lanka and Kenya to highlight the impact of traumatic disasters and chronic poverty.

Yesterday, OXFAM sent an email to Veterans Today saying that they were reviewing Johansson’s relationship with their organization. So appears that Johansson may have just decided to job on and double down on her commitment to Eretz Israel and Zionism, further separating herself from the dignity of man, justice, and liberty for all in favor of profits and her ideologicial commitment to the bigoted, racist and imperial tenants of Zionism.

Oxfam representatives did not immediately return messages seeking comment. However, I am sure we will hear from them later today. And Veterans Today has repeatedly attempted to contact Scarlett Johansson as for her to respond in her own words and not the words of her lawyers. Of course, nothing!
.
 
OXFAM RESPONDS TO VETERANS TODAY UPDATED AT 12:34pm EST Thursday Jan. 30, 2014 

“Oxfam has accepted Scarlett Johansson’s decision to step down after eight years as a Global Ambassador and we are grateful for her many contributions. 

While Oxfam respects the independence of our ambassadors, Ms. Johansson’s role promoting the company SodaStream is incompatible with her role as an Oxfam Global Ambassador.

Oxfam believes that businesses, such as SodaStream, that operate in settlements further the ongoing poverty and denial of rights of the Palestinian communities that we work to support.

Oxfam is opposed to all trade from Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law. Ms. Johansson has worked with Oxfam since 2005 and in 2007 became a Global Ambassador, helping to highlight the impact of natural disasters and raise funds to save lives and fight poverty.”

Mark Goldring, Chief Executive
Oxfam GB, Oxfam House
 
 
PART TWO: DECONSTRUCTING SCARLETT JOHANSSON’S STATEMENT ON SODASTREAM
January 25, 2014
Scarlett Johansson has finally issued a statement in response to criticisms over her new role as “global ambassador” for the Israeli settlement–produced SodaStream.
.
Yet her statement, at 259 words, does not directly address any of the criticisms against her. And though she expresses pride in being an Oxfam ambassador, she does not acknowledge the recent statement made by Oxfam concerning SodaStream, that:
Businesses that operate in settlements further the ongoing poverty and denial of rights of the Palestinian communities that we work to support. Oxfam is opposed to all trade from Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law … We have made our concerns known to Ms. Johansson and we are now engaged in a dialogue on these important issues.
So how does Johansson respond? Let’s break it down:
While I never intended on being the face of any social or political movement, distinction, separation or stance as part of my affiliation with SodaStream, given the amount of noise surrounding that decision, I’d like to clear the air.
She begins by referring to criticism directed at her and SodaStream as mere “noise.” Presumably this “noise” includes the “dialogue” with Johansson that Oxfam says it has been engaged in.
I remain a supporter of economic cooperation and social interaction between a democratic Israel and Palestine.
There’s a term for the kind of “economic cooperation and social interaction” that Johansson is thinking about. It’s called fair trade. Sweatshops are not fair trade. Maquiladoras are not fair trade. And as I shall explain below, SodaStream’s settlement factory is not fair trade.
.
SodaStream is a company that is not only committed to the environment but to building a bridge to peace between Israel and Palestine.

Normally SodaStream markets itself through slogans such as “Set the bubbles free” or “Simple. Soda. Smart.” It also portrays itself as “guilt free” ~ being a supposedly healthier alternative to Coca-Cola and Pepsi (although water is healthier than all three) and more environmentally sound (it outrageously claims to have “saved the world from” 4 billion bottles.)
.
ED Noor: These folks are horrendous at mathematics having a slight tendency to distort digits in a manner that inevitably profits the Tribe one way or the other. We are all aware of this character trait and must keep it in mind that we are lucky it is not a rabbinical SIX BILLION bottles! "It vass a miracle!"
 .

But in response to criticisms against its illegal settlement factory, SodaStream began employing the slogan “building bridges,” which is constantly evoked by its CEO David Birnbaum whenever the issue of boycott, exploitation, and Palestinian land theft is brought up.
So now not only is SodaStream saving the world from diabetes and environmental destruction, it is also bringing peace to the Middle East.
.
~ supporting neighbours working alongside each other, receiving equal pay, equal benefits and equal rights. That is what is happening in their Ma‘ale Adumim factory every working day.
Contrary to Johansson’s depiction of neighbors “working alongside each other,” the reality of Ma‘ale Adumim is much different. The nearly 37,000 Israeli citizens who live outside of Israel’s borders in Ma‘ale Adumim are almost entirely Jewish. Meanwhile, the Palestinian employees of the SodaStream factory are shipped in to Ma‘ale Adumim’s industrial zone and do not interact with the Israeli residents.
.
Originally lured by Israeli financial incentives, SodaStream (at the time, Soda Club) established its “principle manufacturing facility” outside of the Israel border in Area C, an area that constitutes approximately 61% of the West Bank.
.
Although 150,000 Palestinians live in Area C, more than 99% of the land is closed to Palestinian development, while 68% or more is reserved for illegal Israeli settlement use and expansion ~ a policy enforced by Israeli soldiers and militarized bulldozers.
.
 
According to numerous World Bank reports, the chief impediment to Palestinian economic growth is Israeli restrictions over Area C, which have “constrained growth, investment and consequently job creation.”
.
Because of these restrictions, Palestinians must resort to working in Israeli-owned “industrial parks” ~ located on Palestinian land, but ultimately serving Israeli industry.
Although SodaStream boasts that its factory
~ located in the Mishor Adumim industrial park 
in the illegal settlement of Ma‘ale Adumim ~
provides Palestinian employment,
its very existence as part of the Israeli settlement regime
is what prevents Palestinian self-sufficiency and economic development
~ essentially preventing a viable Palestinian future,
while guaranteeing a captive labour force.
SodaStream pretends to be the solution to a problem it has helped to create, and from which it profits by exploiting land and labour.
.
Mishor Adumim industrial park in the illegal settlement of Ma‘ale Adumim is Scarlett Johansson’s peace plan for the Middle East.
.
In a PR video to counter the boycott campaign, SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum claims that he maintains the West Bank factory out of an “obligation” to the workers ~ as if it were a Goodwill store, existing merely to provide jobs. Birnbaum further claims that “the easiest thing for me to do would be to shut down this facility,” but instead his goal is to “build bridges.”
.
.
Yet in filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, SodaStream claims that leaving the West Bank would constitute a “risk factor” for the company, which “may divert the attention of management, require the expenditure of significant capital resources and … may limit certain tax benefits.”
.
From the very start, Mishor Adumim was not intended to benefit Palestinians.
.
The mayor of Ma‘ale Adumim, Benny Kashriel, has stated that he wants his settlement “to be a legal part of the land of Israel, but to be economically independent of Jerusalem … That will be accomplished thanks to Mishor Adumim.”
.
Kashriel has also stated that ”Ma‘aleh Adumim was established to break Palestinian contiguity …  [I]f we weren’t here, Palestinians could connect their villages and close off the roads. Ma‘aleh Adumim necessarily cuts the West Bank in two.”
.
.
Nevertheless, Johansson manages to use her praise of SodaStream as a segue into Oxfam:
As part of my efforts as an Ambassador for Oxfam, I have witnessed first-hand that progress is made when communities join together and work alongside one another and feel proud of the outcome of that work in the quality of their product and work environment, in the pay they bring home to their families and in the benefits they equally receive.
In other words, SodaStream is like Oxfam ~ only publicly traded. And the solution to the poverty that Johansson witnessed in her Oxfam-sponsored trips to South Asia and East Africa is the construction of illegal SodaStream factories in those communities ~ after placing their lands under military occupation, displacing their homes, and preventing them from controlling their own economic development.
.
Scarlett Johansson in Kenya: “This would make a great SodaStream factory.”
To be clear,
the role of Oxfam “global ambassadors”
is not to advise on policy
but rather to promote fundraising efforts.
They are flown to impoverished countries for photo opportunities
and to promote a feel-good vibe
that brings in the dollars.
Scarlett Johansson happens to have the highest profile of Oxfam’s “ambassadors.” In 2008, a single 20-minute date with Johansson, auctioned off, netted Oxfam £20,000. Oxfam has so far decided that Johansson is too financially valuable to drop, despite her embarrassments to the organization.
I believe in conscious consumerism and transparency and I trust that the consumer will make their own educated choice that is right for them.
It is nice that Johansson trusts the consumer to make the right decisions. However, that is not what SodaStream is paying her for with its “multi-year partnership.” Paid celebrity endorsements are not designed to empower or educate consumers.
.

Furthermore, the issue is not about consumers “mak[ing] their own educated choice that is right for them.”
For SodaStream, Palestinians in the West Bank are the labour force, not the target market. 
.
What is “right” for the consumers is not what is right for the labourers who manufacture the product.
.
Consumers may have a choice, but the Palestinians do not.
.
“Say, do you know that SodaStream is hiring?”
And despite Johansson’s belief in “transparency,” we will not find the SodaStream “global ambassador” questioning her sponsor’s deceptive use of the “Made in Israel” label for items produced in the occupied West Bank.
I stand behind the SodaStream product and am proud of the work that I have accomplished at Oxfam as an Ambassador for over 8 years. Even though it is a side effect of representing SodaStream, I am happy that light is being shed on this issue in hopes that a greater number of voices will contribute to the conversation of a peaceful two state solution in the near future.
Recall that at the beginning of her statement, Johansson referred to criticism of her SodaStream endorsement as “noise.” By the end of her short statement, she condescendingly portrays the same criticism as a “conversation” for peace that she is proud to have contributed to with her poor decisions.
.
After she issued her statement, Oxfam appended its initial response to the controversy with the following:
We have been engaged in dialogue with Scarlett Johansson and she has now expressed her position in a statement, including stressing her pride in her past work with Oxfam. Oxfam is now considering the implications her new statement and what it means for Ms Johansson’s role as an Oxfam global ambassador.
Scarlett Johansson initially described her partnership with SodaStream as a “no-brainer,” which in a way is true. Taking money for endorsements may not require much thought, but taking a stand does.
.
The question now is whether Oxfam can stay true to its principles enough to compel Johansson to break her ties with SodaStream or else break its ties with Johansson.

PART THREE:SCARLETT JOHANSSON LOSES ROLE AS OXFAM AMBASSADOR OVER SUPER BOWL SODASTREAM AD WHICH BREACHES CHARITY'S ISRAELI BOYCOTT 

Scarlett Johansson has resigned as an ambassador for humanitarian group Oxfam in a row over her support for an Israeli company.
.
The 29-year-old actress is promoting Soda Stream and is set to appear in an advert for the company during the Super Bowl.
.
But left-leaning critics and Oxfam oppose the company because it has a large factory in an Israeli settlement in the West Bank ~ a territory captured by Israel in 1967 and claimed by the Palestinians.
.
Oxfam opposes all trade from Israeli settlements because they say it is illegal and denies Palestinian rights.
.
In response to criticism, Johansson yesterday severed ties with Oxfam after eight years saying she supports trade and 'social interaction between a democratic Israel and Palestine'.  The charity had earlier said her Soda Stream deal was 'incompatible' with her role as an ambassador.
.
The controversy has come at a delicate time for U.S.-backed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. Israeli officials fear that if the talks fail, a nascent call for an economic boycott of Israel and its settlements might grow.
.
Controversial endorsement: Scarlett Johansson, shown in an upcoming ad for SodaStream, announced on Wednesday she was ending her relationship with Oxfam International
.
Factory in the West Bank: Critics including Oxfam oppose all trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. Soda stream operates a factory, pictured, that employs both Israelis and Palestinians in the settlement of Maale Adumin, pictured
.
A statement released by Johansson's spokesman yesterday said the 29-year-old actress has 'a fundamental difference of opinion' with Oxfam. 
'Scarlett Johansson has respectfully decided to end her ambassador role with Oxfam after eight years,' the statement said.
.
'She and Oxfam have a fundamental difference of opinion in regards to the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. She is very proud of her accomplishments and fundraising efforts during her tenure with Oxfam.'
PR guru says SodaStream is biggest winner

Changing boundaries: Israel took control of the West Bank where the Soda stream in located after the Six Day War of 1967

Maale Adumin is located four miles from Jerusalem in the West Bank. It was established as an Israeli settlement in 1975 and is now home to 39,200 people
 .
A SIX-DAY WAR, DECADES OF DIVISION AND WHY JOHANSSON'S SODA STREAM DEAL IS CONTROVERSIAL


Six Day War: Israeli troops in action during the 1967 conflict which saw Tel Aviv take control of Gaza and the West Bank. The IDF has since withdrawn from much of the territory under a series of peace deals but many Israeli settlements remain
.
The political divisions fuelling the controversy over Scarlett Johansson's Soda Stream deal date back decades to the creation of Israel in 1947 and its decades of conflict with neighbouring Arab countries.
.
Critics say Soda Stream should not operate a plant in an Israeli settlement on the West Bank - which was occupied by Israeli forces in the aftermath of the Six Day War in 1967. 
.
Before that, the area was part of Palestine. Palestinians say the land is rightfully theirs and international law has declared Israeli occupation of area technically illegal for decades. 
In 1967, Israel launched an attack on Egypt and then also went to war with Jordan and Syria believing its very survival was at stake.
.
The attack had followed months of military build up and rhetoric from Jordan, Syria, and Egypt and generals in Tel Aviv believed striking first was essential to their country's survival. 
.
After a surprise air attack on Egypt that wiped out that country's air force, The Israeli Defence Force routed the combined forces of Jordan, Egypt and Syria. In the aftermath, Israeli took control of the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan heights. 
.
Tens of thousands of Palestinians fled and Israel established de-facto control over all of the area that was originally Palestine. Israeli leaders insist that they had to have control over the area to ensure the survival of their state. 
.
In the decades since, Israel has since built scores of settlements on the occupied territories which have been condemned by the international community including the United States and Britain.

Israel has since withdrawn from most of the West Bank under a series of peace deals, but many settlements including Maale Adumin, where the Soda Stream plant is, remain.
.
ED Noor: No way! Look at the stolen land mass in the above map!
.
The plant employs both Israelis and Palestinians. But activists including Oxfam say that trade with Israeli companies which operate in settlements legitimize the technically illegal towns and contribute to the continued poverty and denial of rights to Palestinians. 
.
However, the Soda Stream plant employs both Palestinians and Israelis and the company says it is a model of peaceful cooperation.
.
Both settlers and Palestinians receive equal wages and at the plant, which makes the Palestinians who work there far higher paid than average. In return, activists say Palestinians have few other employment options and are being taken advantage of. 
.
Settlement: An aerial view of the Maale Adumimum settlement in the West Bank where the Soda Stream is located
.
Unequal rights? Critics including Oxfam say that companies should not trade with companies that operate in Israeli settlements because it deprives Palestinian of their rights
.
Representatives of SodaStream, which is listed on Nasdaq in New York, say the Israeli and Palestinian workers at the plant Maale Adumim in receive equal wages and benefits that far exceed those offered in Palestinian-run areas.
.
However campaigners say they have testimony from Palestinian workers who say they are treated like 'slaves' and are fired if they become ill. 
.
Earlier this month, Johansson signed on as the first global brand ambassador of SodaStream International Ltd., and she's set to appear in an ad for the at-home soda maker during the Super Bowl on Sunday.
.
In response to the criticism, Johansson said last week she was a 'supporter of economic cooperation and social interaction between a democratic Israel and Palestine.'
.
Oxfam took issue with Johansson, noting it was 'considering the implications of her new statement and what it means for Ms. Johansson's role as an Oxfam global ambassador.'
.
Support for complete boycotts of Israel goods is composed mostly of pro-Palestinian intellectuals and bloggers, advocates for a blanket boycott of all Israeli goods and questions the state's legitimacy.
.
Doing her bit: Scarlett on an Oxfam trip to Uttar Pradesh, India in 2007
.
But there is a different consensus among international rights groups like Oxfam, however, which discourages trade only with Israeli firms located on land in the occupied West Bank.
'The very existence of (Israeli settlements) amounts to a serious violation of international law," the New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Wednesday.
.
'It is impossible to ignore the Israeli system of unlawful discrimination, land confiscation, natural resource theft, and forced displacement of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, where SodaStream is located,' the rights group added.
There are increasing fears in Israel that such calls for a boycott of its goods are growing. Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid warned this week that his country risks the 'reality of a European boycott, even a very partial one, [and] Israel's economy will retreat backward and every Israeli citizen will feel it straight in the pocket.'
 .

 
  How can the sexual implications not be obvious to even the most casual observer?

 The glazed eyes of a woman in lust. The delicate fingerplay with straw and glass?




 

ED Noor: For the commercial: Scarlett will be featured in a SodaStream commercial airing during the Super Bowl game on Sunday. These are the money shots a man like Bernais would be going for. I don't know what flavour she is drinking but she sure looks excited about it by the way she smiles and caresses that long cool glass. If those are not the glazed eyes of a woman in lust....
.
Johansson had served as a global ambassador for Oxfam since 2007, raising funds and promoting awareness about global poverty.
.
In her role as an Oxfam ambassador, she traveled to India, Sri Lanka and Kenya to highlight the impact of traumatic disasters and chronic poverty.
A spokesman for Oxfam said:
'Oxfam has accepted Scarlett Johansson’s decision to step down after eight years as a Global Ambassador and we are grateful for her many contributions. 
.
'While Oxfam respects the independence of our ambassadors, Ms Johansson’s role promoting the company SodaStream is incompatible with her role as an Oxfam Global Ambassador.
.
'Oxfam believes that businesses, such as SodaStream, that operate in settlements further the ongoing poverty and denial of rights of the Palestinian communities that we work to support. Oxfam is opposed to all trade from Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law. 
.
'Ms Johansson has worked with Oxfam since 2005 and in 2007 became a Global Ambassador, helping to highlight the impact of natural disasters and raise funds to save lives and fight poverty.' 
SodaStream had to make revisions to its Super Bowl ad after it was initially banned for making references to Coke and Pepsi, which are sponsors of the American football championship game.


But in an interview on Wednesday, SodaStream's chief executive, Dan Birnbaum, shrugged off the boycott campaign.
'To the best of my knowledge, we have not lost a single customer," he said. "If anything, it advances our awareness around the world, because people are talking about SodaStream.'
PART FOUR: HOW THE JEWS SEE IT: OP-ED: FRANKLY MY DEAR, SCARLETT JOHANSSON DOESN’T GIVE A DAMN 

Johansson is all over the news for her refusal to be indimidated by the boycott clowns.
.
By Jack Engelhard
January 28, 2014 
.
Will boycott slut Emma Thompson refuse to shake hands? Will Johansson be snubbed by Steven Spielberg and his moral equivalency pal Tony Kushner?
.
Why the uproar over Scarlett Johansson? Is it that a prominent Jewish American woman openly supports Israel? This is shocking? Actually it is. Or is that an A-List Hollywood personality ~ named the “sexiest woman alive” ~ has found her inner chutzpah and gone rogue against Hollywood’s 99 percent liberal establishment?
.
Note that in the movie business, no more than a handful is favourable to Israel. I do mean a handful. Five. Two are outspoken, like Jon Voight, to name one. The rest are in the Witness Protection Program.
.
So Johansson is all over the news for her refusal to be intimidated. The boycott clowns want her to drop her sponsorship for SodaStream, an Israeli-made soda confection that does huge business around the world but is headquartered in the “West Bank’s” Ma’ale Adumim. That puts it on the wrong side of the tracks if Mahmoud Abbas draws your map.
.
Hollywood’s leading lady has no problem with Ma’ale Adumim, says she is “building bridges for peace,” but the boycotters are restless. Be certain that those mixed multitudes are after Jewish blood. This week, for Holocaust Remembrance, thousands marched in my native France in imitation of Kristallnacht, shouting, “Jew, Jew, France is not for you.”
.
ED Noor: Remember the 6 million. Remember the 6 million. There is that reference again, folks. As we are aware, the French populace is wakening up rapidly and beginning to stand up to the interlopers. In all truth it is not so different as the civilian situation in pre WW2 Germany after it had been plundered by the Jews of the post Versailles Treaty
.
In a world once again plunged in such depravity, it is a comfort to find at least one luminous public figure arising in protest.  
.
So undeterred, this Sunday’s Super Bowl will feature Johansson’s commercial for SodaStream. The firm employees more than 500 Palestinian Arabs.
.
They get the same pay and benefits as their Israeli co-workers.
.
This is good news.
.
No it isn’t.
.
Johansson is being denounced for endorsing an Israeli-owned but Arab-made product because, people say, that makes her part of the “occupation.” But Johansson is standing tall against this deluge of criticism and she had removed herself from the ravings of the boycott hucksters.
.

Are we finally seeing a woman of valour coming to us from Hollywood?
.
Standing for Israel, however big or small the gesture, cannot be a career move prescribed by, say, Woody Allen, for whom she has made some movies ~ the same Woody Allen who denounced, cursed and molested Israel in The New York Times, January 28, 1988. That op-ed still reeks.
.
Make no mistake. Johansson is taking a chance.
.
Supporting Israel in Hollywood is a lonely business. Ben Hecht is gone. 
So is Frank Sinatra. 
.
Leon Uris could never film Exodus in this climate.  

ED Noor: He says this like it is a bad thing! The introduction of that movie was the start of Hollywood's Holocaust programming within North America. 
.
Once upon a time Cecil B. DeMille had no fear presenting a heroic and Hebrew Moses and Gregory Peck gave us a handsome King David. But that was old Hollywood. 
.
Barbra Streisand is the new Hollywood. 
.
ED Noor: This entertainer is a huge supporter of Zionist Israel.
.
In today’s Hollywood, Israel is on “rewrite.” Please name the last big movie that gave Israel some love. Exodus came out in 1960; Cast a Giant Shadow, 1966. To get a green light for your script about the Conflict, you’d better have the Palestinians come out as the good guys.
.
Is Johansson too big a star to care, or is there a risk that she will never “eat lunch in this town again?” Will boycott slut Emma Thompson refuse to shake hands? Will Johansson be snubbed by Steven Spielberg and his moral equivalency pal Tony Kushner?
.
ED Noor: Spielberg? No morals there either! Are we talking about the SAME Hollywood here? Is this the same place that, while not necessarily building Israel up certainly works very hard to control the Jewish golem known as the US. 
.
Oy vey! This writer is the master of the understated velvet sledgehammer kvetch!
.
Some will argue that Johansson is only “half kosher.” She does converse in Liberal-Speak. Well, what do you want, Golda Meir?
.
From that glittering galaxy far away, Scarlett Johansson is a rare find. She is to be admired.
.
Movie stars have it over the rest of us. They live forever. Some do so honourably.
.
If Hollywood’s most sought-after actress is truly coming home, she ought to consider Orit Arfa’s "The Settler" for her next project. Meantime there is talk about a remake of a movie based on the novel "Indecent Proposal". This time, producers say, they will be true to my pro-Israel book.
.
The book finds the heroine in a tug of war between two men, one Jewish, one Arab ~ a plotline inconvenient for Hollywood the first time with Demi Moore. Two histories are war over an American blonde bombshell. Among others, Scarlett Johansson’s name has been whispered for the role.
.
She’d be perfect ~ and let the filming be done in Ma’ale Adumim.
.
New from novelist Jack Engelhard, a Jewish filmmaker is being forced to produce an anti-Semitic film to pay off his gambling debts in Compulsive: A Novel
.

MEANWHILE IN JAPAN: