Politics disguised as a game
Disengagement, the video game
Left-wing activists behind 'Day against Occupation for Democracy' introduce politically themed game to internet: Move the settlers
The organizers of the "Day against Occupation and for Democracy," which will occur on June 17, have found a creative new way to get across their political message – by way of a free, Flash game
on the internet that allows users to play IDF soldiers removing settlers from the territories.
"This is your opportunity to remove the settlements and get Israel out of the territories," the game's home page says.
To remove a caravan, the player need only click on it once, but when the caravan turns into house, two clicks are necessary to remove it. The game gets trickier when it comes to removing a settlement guarded by soldiers.
"To get rid of a settlement, you have to drag back the poor soldiers who have to guard it back across the Green Line – to Israel," the game explains.
The game's left-wing developers do have their limits, though: Those who toss Israeli soldiers into the sea do not get any points.
Once the soldiers are removed, the settlement can be taken down, but it is an almost Sysiphean task as the settlers keep on coming back to rebuild.
If the player loses the game, the screen displays a particularly bitter message: "One more settlement and the country is lost."
It should be noted that, until now, the left-wing presence on the Net is negligible as compared to the right-wing, which runs many forums and sites.
In 2003, left-wing activists published the addresses of residents of the Gaza settlement of Netzarim in order that people can try to persuade them to leave the area of their own free will.
