RAP performance, Kensington Market, Toronto, 2008 (Michel Botman photography)

Yesterday, I wrote a satirical, letter to Laura Di Battista of CBC radio regarding a piece of RAP Poetry aired on CBC radio on October 18, 2012.  My observations are of course “tongue in cheek” commentaries and should be taken as such.  I however believe that public radio – unlike blogs – has a duty to provide balanced reports on issues at stake, including allowing detractors to voice their concerns, albeit in an ironical manner this time.

Dear Ms. Di Battista,

What do RAP poetry and Military Intelligence have in common?

Military Intelligence: “Severely indulgent form of mistaken martial presumption”

RAP Poetry: “Oxymoronic form of verbal regurgitation, often requiring a ‘C’ before its name”.

On Thursday October 18, 2012, CBC Radio aired, during the show Here and Now, a graceless piece of “RAP poetry” written by an artist calling himself “Ritalin”.

Of course we ought to respect freedom of speech, even when dreary and distasteful, but we also ought to voice concern when hostile discourse is broadcast on public channels, fueling antagonism and, in this case, promoting mediocre literature.

In his piece of work (some may have used a more scatological substantive), Mr. Ritalin, equates the Berlin wall with the Israeli security barrier.  To the less than astute observer, the comparison may seem indeed appropriate; after all, one severed a country for half a century, imposing a brutal and totalitarian regime to occupied Germany, while the other protects civilians from snipers, terrorists and suicide bombers.

Imposed conciliatory political solutions are rarely perfect and neither is the Israeli security barrier, but detractors too often forget that there was a time in the eighties and nineties when every week seemed to be punctuated with explosions in the streets and busses of Jerusalem or cafes, cinemas and restaurants of Tel Aviv.  Since the construction of the security barrier, the numbers of innocent civilian victims in Israel and Palestinian territories have been drastically reduced.

May I suggest to your guest, a gentleman named Greg, I believe, that he adopt a more appropriate medicinal name?

“Ritalin” does not reflect adequately the agonizing experience inflicted upon your unfortunate audience.

In my humble opinion, a more appropriate name would be:

“Pepto Bismol;  nausea, heartburn, upset stomach, indigestion, verbal diarrhea.”

Yours truly,

Michel Botman