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Tech Bootcamps in Palestine
- mlevental 9y agoi haven't been to palestine (yet) but one of my closest friends is palestinian from west bank (and i've been following the occupation closely since i met him 10 years ago). it is astonishing to me that they're running this in gaza as well as west bank. i wish them well and wish i could support the effort somehow.
- galazzah 9y agofrom the link: https://www.visitpalestine.tech/get-involved-details/ https://www.visitpalestine.tech/get-involved-details/ lots of options here. Cheers!
- hacktavist 9y agoGreat find!!!
- eanzenberg 9y agoThe "occupation". There are 1.8+ billion muslims in the world. Who is occupying whom.
- dang 9y agoReligious flamewar is not allowed on Hacker News. We ban accounts that do this, so please don't do it—regardless of how provocative you found another comment. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html Edit: we've asked you at least half a dozen times to stop posting uncivil and/or unsubstantive comments to Hacker News. If you keep doing it, we're going to have to ban you. Please re-read the guidelines and take the spirit of this site to heart when commenting.
- isostatic 9y agoLogistcally getting in/out of Gaza is far more difficult than the West Bank. A western passport means you get get to places like Ramallah by simply driving there, some checkpoints you barely need to slow down, others they stop you and check your passports, but even late at night at Qalandiya, a British Passport works wonders (Different story if you're from the west bank of course) Gaza on the other hand requires a ton of permits to get in
- mlevental 9y agofrom what i've heard from my friend (who has both passports) the waits at checkpoints in the west bank are potentially interminable. now he does have both passports so that might be why
- isostatic 9y agoDepends so much on the checkpoint, time, method and mood. If you're a white family driving back from Bethlehem to Jerusalem at 8pm with a foreign passport, you'll barely notice it. If you're an Arab looking young male walking through qualandria at 8am with a West Bank ID card, you're screwed. Gaza is a different ball game, it's always quiet, almost eerie at Erez, but it will still take over an hour to get out from being dropped off. Getting in is a little quicker.
- ds2643 9y agoyou spelled palestine wrong
- dopeboy 9y agoI went to Gaza in the summer of 2016 and did a mini-AMA here on HN [0]. In short, it was a tremendously rewarding experience and I'd highly recommend it. The Gazans I met were driven, friendly, and very curious about what life in the states was like. Happy to answer any questions not addressed on the site. [0] - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11858963 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11858963
- Cyph0n 9y agoHeh, I remember that thread as if it were posted yesterday! A great article and discussion honestly.
- yostrovs 9y agoIs calling them Gazans accepted? Some time ago they'd be referred to as Palestinians.
- bitumen 9y agoSome time ago there was a real peace process, a real Palestinian government, and real international support. Now there’s a blend of far Left support on an ideological basis, which is finely blended in Europe with a thousand+ years of antisemitism, no real peace process, and no real political will to change that. What harm wasn’t done by Arafat giving up on the peace process was done by the rise of Hamas. So call them what you want, but the reality isn’t one or two states.
- dopeboy 9y agoYou know, I actually don't remember if they referred to themselves as "Gazans". I definitely remember colleagues calling them that.
- isostatic 9y agoI haven't been to Gaza for a few years, I think they were still stamping passports at Erez even after they stopped stamping at TLV. Were they still stamping at Erez in 2016?
- lurker9 9y agogotta be careful, might get bombed by the israeli's
- tytytytytytytyt 9y agoDo you know what apostrophes are for? Do you follow any rules when using them, or do you just 'season to taste'?
- dang 9y agoWould you please stop posting unsubstantive comments to Hacker News? https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- lurker9 9y agowhat is not substantive about raising awareness regarding the genocide that is underway in Palestine? Trying to silence this makes you complicit in the abuses occurring there.
- dang 9y agoThe problem with replying properly to a comment like this is that it would take me perhaps an hour to put the pieces of the reply together and perhaps another half an hour to go over it to make sure most readers will get what I mean. The more inflammatory the topic, the more critical it is to avoid misunderstandings. It's not that I don't think the question matters or that I don't care or don't want to reply properly—especially to such a horrible accusation as justifying genocide. It's that I literally—in the general case—can't. Even 5 of me couldn't. So I'll just say that your comment broke this guideline, among others: "Comments should get more civil and substantive, not less, as a topic gets more divisive." The only thing that posts like "gotta be careful, might get bombed by the israeli's" and "what a slimy little weasel he is" do is rile people up and make this site worse. So you can't post like that here. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- zallarak 9y agoI visited Palestine last year and met a few university students. They were so hungry to learn but lacked the resources. Great initiative.
- hacktavist 9y agoAwesome!
- hacktavist 9y agoVisited Palestine in 2016 - such humble people and sad to see how they are treated. This is an awesome initiative and would be awesome to help out with.
- GirlsCanCode 9y agoIt's even sadder to see how they treat others.
- z0ltan 9y agoYou have been banned from /r/IDF.
- Girlang 9y agoMy Grandparents were born in Gaza city. They were kicked out in 1929. I am unable by law to return there because I am Jewish.
- Kluny 9y agoI applied. Who knows, maybe my job will let me take a month off :)
- bsaul 9y agoHonest question : there are a few engineers in SV that are jews. Are they allowed to come in ? (and is it safe for them to do so ?)
- galazzah 9y agoYeah its perfectly acceptable and safe to do so, as you can read in the FAQ. Palestinians (I am one) have nothing against Jews
- dmritard96 9y agoI believe that you don't have anything against jews. not sure you can just generalize across the board though. And this applies jews -> palestinians and palestinians -> jews.
- cobookman 9y ago"Avoid wearing outward signs of support for Israel (and, if possible, symbols of Judaism) inside Palestinian areas as you may be mistaken for a Settler intending harm" So you are saying it's not safe for a Jew to come. As wearing a kippah can lead to altercations.
- 2muchcoffeeman 9y agoWell they also say “Avoid wearing outward signs of support for Palestinians (kaffiyah, slogan t-shirts, etc.) and/or Islam in Settler-controlled areas in the West Bank” Takes 2 to tango right?
- reissbaker 9y agoWhataboutism doesn't really change the answer to the question... Edit: considered not responding more, but since this seems like a possible safety issue: having spent many years living in the region (and with family who still live there), if you're an openly practicing Jew you should not spend extended amounts of time in the West Bank or Gaza unless you're willing to risk your life for your cause. A day trip is probably fine.
- John_KZ 9y agoUnfortunately the only reasons these "bootcamps" exist is to creater cheaper workforce for tech companies. They don't provide good education, just specialization in the areas that the tech companies decided they want.
- forvelin 9y agoIsn't it a good step towards a greater good ? If tech companies start to hire from ME, regardless of country, those people can make an impact for their own homelands.
- gaius 9y agoDepends what you mean by greater good. Offshoring is pretty good for Western managers. No appreciable benefits for Western shareholders or customers, and big negatives for Western workers. What about the offshore workers? They might benefit for a short time until an even cheaper location opens up, that’s all. Once the jobs are mobile, they will keep moving. Far better to create indigenous industries.
- Rescis 9y agoIs that wrong? Learning topics like computer science, which lack the ability to be generalized to other aspects of life, if and when there is not enough demand for it is worthless (in the sense that it has no value). However, if companies desire a specific set of skills related to, but not exactly computer science (programming), it makes a lot of sense to create school focused on that particular subject — especially if they're willing to sponsor it. Further, it adds value to society as a whole, as by creating the goods/services people want cheaper, standard of living goes up.
- tomcooks 9y agoDon't you think that being a hub for foreign companies would be an excellent way for Palestine to be recognized (and possibly protected) by the rest of the world?
- zpatel 9y ago
- toomanybeersies 9y agoThis is a cool initiative. I've always been a bit bummed that as software engineers, there tend to be less overseas volunteering opportunities than other forms of engineering. I'll be honest and admit that I just want to go to cool places and do work there. There's always lots of roles for civil and mechanical engineers, as well as doctors, but there's never much need for software engineers in the jungles of Cambodia or the beaches of the Solomon Islands.
- slim 9y agoIf I apply, do I need go through israeli cutoms/police/checkpoints? I might have problems or be expelled
- jgb1984 9y agoYes you have to... but if there is no real reason for you to be expelled and you don't declare your participation they won't have a problem with it.
- peterburkimsher 9y agoI travelled to Hebron and Bethlehem last month. Crossing the checkpoint was very easy. I just took an Israeli Egged bus to the settlement, visited the Cave of the Patriarchs, and walked to the checkpoint. The Israeli guard didn't mind, just glanced at my passport and visa slip. A Palestinian hostel owner who happened to be on the street asked where I was staying. I told him I was going to stay with my friend Mo, who is a CouchSurfing host with hundreds of references, extremely hospitable, and truly legendary. You must visit him. That hostel owner said he knows Mo, and told me it's the right way! I wasn't sure about how to take a bus and didn't want to pay for a taxi, so I walked for 45 minutes to Mo's place next to the university. During that time, people struck up conversations 3 times. That's more outgoing than the previous 3 days in Israel! People were happy to see a tourist there. Water shortage is an issue. I was told that the Palestinian authorities can't improve the water supply because it's controlled by Israel. Palestinians pay double taxes, to both governments. Israeli shekels are used. It's peaceful, although the streets look like images from the news of bombed-out areas in Syria after 10 years of peace to rebuild and start businesses. What is more comfortable to you, riches with inequality or people living in equal poverty? Israel, on the other hand, is rich and clean, with a good bus network (except on Fridays). People are more wary of strangers, though. I hadn't made an opinion of the political situation until my visit. Re-entering Israel was easy, on a bus from Bethlehem to Jerusalem. Some military came on board and looked at the passports and visa slips, but didn't cross-check anything online. On the way out at Ben Gurion airport, they didn't ask where I'd travelled on that trip. Instead, they noticed I'd been to Malaysia several years ago, and asked me many questions about that (Malaysia is a Muslim country). I had no problems with the Taiwan passport sticker [1]. They gave me another passport sticker [2] with a barcode beginning with "5", meaning I'm low-risk. They didn't check electronics. Most likely, you won't have a problem. If you're from a "Muslim country" then perhaps you can visit through the border with Jordan instead, just to avoid Israel. But Israel's quite nice to visit too (the sunset over the ocean from Haifa is beautiful). [1] https://www.facebook.com/TaiwanPassportSticker/photos/a.1466957400280696.1073741832.1465796757063427/1571504209826014/?type=3&theater https://www.facebook.com/TaiwanPassportSticker/photos/a.1466... [2] https://bemusedbackpacker.com/2017/01/16/what-to-expect-at-israels-airport-security/ https://bemusedbackpacker.com/2017/01/16/what-to-expect-at-i...
- Method-X 9y agoYou don't need an expensive coding bootcamp. I honestly think you'll get more value from something like https://edabit.com https://edabit.com or http//codewars.com
- tomcooks 9y agoI don't think this is what the website is about, is it? Give it another read. Edit: ahh I see it was casual spamming of your own site.
- anoplus 9y agoAs someone who lives in the region I am delighted to see initiatives like this. I wish in the future companies and personals will create bonds across the harsh borders.
- petra 9y agoBnds accross the border are a good thing for sure, but I don't see how this will change anything today, and the only way forward to a Palestinian non-extreme democracy which is a precondition for peace, is through local resistance.
- notahacker 9y agoEngaging Palestinians in international collaborative projects which treat them like normal human beings and are aimed at doing something other than reinforcing their antipathy towards Israel is a helpful step towards non-extreme democracy
- mudil 9y agoIs Gaza still controlled by Hamas?
- ExcelSaga 9y agoVery much so, yes. They’re not completely unaware of the need for PR though, so you’re unlikely to be hassled. Unlikely, but I for one wouldn’t take the chance. I realize that sentiment around this issue is massively polarized, but the reality is complex. Nobody likes to talk about what persona non grata Palestinians are in other Arab nations, and the degree to which their current circumstances are the result of that. The reasoning for that policy of containment by Arab nations ranges from political expediency, through racism, into genuine fear. It’s worth understanding the rationale for the whole spectrum before making a trip to Gaza. It’s not as simple as people on either extreme of the issue would have you believe.
- cvaidya1986 9y agoTech like chess is a great unifying force.
- FSharper 9y agoThese people voted for Hamas to rule them.
- RWilliscroft 9y agoI am astonished that an American would help Hamas educate its young people in high-tech ways to kill Israelis and Americans. I mean no disrespect to anyone who honestly wants to learn modern technology for personal enrichment. I have a problem, however, when a government, like the Palestinian government, has as a specific and stated policy the destruction of the Jewish State. As free Americans, we SHOULD NOT help them achieve this!
- GirlsCanCode 9y agoJudea and Samaria are fine, but I'd stay out of Hamas-controlled Gaza.
- geverett 9y agoI traveled to Gaza to mentor with Gaza Sky Geeks in December. While I was there Trump decided to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and the leader of Hamas decided to respond by declaring a 'Day of Rage'. My writeup of that experience here: https://medium.com/@gillianim/what-its-like-in-gaza-on-a-day-of-rage-8940ce42871 https://medium.com/@gillianim/what-its-like-in-gaza-on-a-day... The TL;DR is that the majority of Palestinians are trying to live normal lives and don't care much about international political chess. As a foreigner I felt completely safe. Many Jewish people have mentored at Gaza Sky Geeks and had no issue. I traveled through the Erez checkpoint and didn't have my passport stamped, though I'm pretty sure some malware got installed on my computer when they took it away for 'screening'. Logistically, I had to apply for permits about two months in advance, and you never know whether you'll get in or not; but all in all my experience at all checkpoints and entrance/exit to Israel was straightforward. It was an incredible experience all around and I was so impressed with the Palestinian people in Gaza that I met. Happy to answer any questions for people thinking of going!