Letters

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Monday
April 23, 2001

All because I defended the right to publish a joke

In response to Kerman01, "Distinguish between...", you will not give up! You do not reveal your name. God knows what you are afraid of or do they have AOL in Iran?

Everything you say about yourself cannot be substantiated unlike Mr. Javid or myself who do not try to hide anything and who write under our own name. You did not even answer any of my questions. How on earth do you expect to be taken seriously?

If this is the quality of the "followers" that Mr. Pahlavi has, I am truly sorry for him. It used to be that people would die for their king, now they won't even sign an email to defend him.

How can you even begin to talk about "democracy" when you write letters threatening to expose me -- not because because I attacked anyone personally -- but only because I defended someone's right to say a joke in his own magazine!

And now you claim that you where trying to teach me a lesson! Who are you to use this kind of tactics to tell me about the "inconstancy of my opinions and my life" even if it were true?

We will never know how consistent you are because you are only an email address. Who have I slung any mud at? Ashraf Pahlavi? SAVAK? That woman and that organization are so well known for their blood thirstiness, decadence and corruption that they have become adjectives in the Farsi language! Saying anything about them is not getting personal. Or is it somehow for you?

The truth is, if you do not have the stomach to sign your threats and allegations then why even bother taking a stance? Your letters surely do not sound like those written by someone who wants to live a "quiet life"?

As for you not being a monarchist: You say so, but you then proceed to heatedly defend the "substance of Reza Pahlavi's opinions" (talk about inconstancy)! Make up your mind.

Your letters both to me and the one in response to the "Citizen Pahlavi" editorial make me believe that you are indeed a die-hard royalist. But also one who, having realized that you picked the wrong person to bully, is now trying to exercise damage control by claiming not to be a monarchist -- or as we say in Farsi you are trying to "rad gom koni." Next you will probably claim you are a communist or a Khatami Reformist.

If Mr. Javid and I have ever done anything it has been done in such openness that anyone can easily find out about it. You on the other hand, even finding your name is a challenge. Who do you think looks like they have something to hide?

So my dear unknown, the only lesson here is that your threats do not work. And, by any standards, to play fair or to be taken seriously, you need to reveal your name.

Frankly this is the last reply that I am going to honor you with. The majority of the good readers in this forum simply do not care whether I am "consistent" or not. But I invite them all, with your comments in hand, to look under my name (I appear as either Setareh Sabety or Javid my married name or Mashadi) in the index of this magazine and read my letters and articles and judge for yourselves.

As for Mr. Javid, he has exposed himself to so much mud slinging and has been so candid about his life and opinions that any allegation or insinuation can only fall on deaf ears. The person who uses the email address Kerman01, your new letter is nothing more than an attempt to save face and to blame your big gaffe on others.

It can come from nowhere but a position of abject defeat.

Setareh Sabety

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