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Vahshi Bafqi
Fiction
Khuzestan in San Diego
Meeting a former "enemy" thousands of miles away
from home
January 6,1999
The Iranian
You pack your bags and leave Khuzestan. You've been through years of
war with Iraq; the battles, the bombs, the destruction, the refugees, the
revolution.
You settle, thousands of miles away, in San Diego, in southern California.
One day you meet an Iraqi. How would you react?
This is the setting in Ali Hosseini's Sayeh va Shen (Shadow and
Sand), one of the short stories in Ja be Ja (Dislocation; 1998 Passin
Publications, Cambridge, MA). Both characters remember the war years and
display emotions arising from separation from the land of their birth and
ending up in the United States.
Hosseini's sentences -- unlike so many works of Iranian writers these
days -- flow beautifully. This creates a certain intimacy with the reader,
who is already absorbed by Hosseini's powerful stories.
Some of the stories in this collection are re-writeen versions of those
published in "Barrasi-ye Ketab," "Pouyeshgaran," and
"Daftra-haaye Shanbeh" magazines. The following is an excerpt
from Sayeh va Shen (in Persian): ... GO TO PAGE ONE
Outlook
Iranian Snapshot: Idle Townsmen, Hocus - Pocus
By DOUGLAS JEHL
The News York Times
December 5, 1998
HARIS, Iran -- Aziz the Magician pulled into town in his rattletrap
Russian truck and waited for the crowd to gather. It did not take long.
There are no theaters in this depressed town of 14,000 in northwest Iran,
no satellite dishes, not even a full-size soccer field. And so even before
Aziz hauled out his primitive loudspeaker and makeshift bag of tricks,
men and boys had hurried by the dozens to the muddy lot to see what Aziz
would do.
The worn sweaters and lined faces composed a scene that could have come
from any moment in the last 50 years. But it is present-day Iran, where,
far from the big cities, people are grateful for any entertainment they
can get ... FULL TEXT
 NOT "Persian"
"Persian Zebra" breeding plan
Ey kaash man ham yek goor-e khar boodam...
The Environmental Protection Agency in Yazd Province has spent 20 million
tomans to breed "Persian Zebras" in the province, IRNA reports.
Two males and four females (male Zebra's CAN have more than one wife)
were brought to the province from their natural habitat in Shahroud and
set free in a protected 130 hectar area.
The "Persian Zebra's" distinctive features are its "chocolate
or brown color with a black stripe in the back and a white belly,"
according to the observant IRNA reporter in Yazd ... IRNA report in Persian
More Letters
* Success speaks for itself
Deep Dish (AKA Ali 'Dubfire' Shirazinia & Sharam Tayebi) write:
this is in response to the thursday, december
17 letter with respect to the
piece which was written about us in amazon.com and later displayed
in the pages of iranian.com. the letter, titled 'deep
crap', was unbelievably negative in tone. we get press clips sent/e-mailed
to us everyday. some are less insightful than others. we refrain from responding
to them directly. but none have been as humorous and ignorant as this recent
comment so we just couldn't resist...
i don't really know how informed or qualified you are about anything
remotely to do with 'legitimate' music but being unpredictable and original
is how we came to land a lucrative recording contract with deconstruction
(UK) and arista (USA) and enjoying the fruits of our labor in the form
of a highly successful and critically acclaimed remixing/producing discography.
not to mention being awarded the best international DJ award at this year's
muzik magazine award ceremony in london where the likes of noel gallagher
(oasis) were presenting. oh, and we also run a successful record company
called yoshitoshi ... FULL
TEXT
* Conference: US-Iran Relations: Has
the Time Come?
The American-Iranian Council in conjunction with the Asia Society and
the Asian American Center at Queens College is proud to present a lecture
and discussion panel with the Honorable Cyrus R. Vance, former Secretary
of State:
US-Iran Relations: Has the Time Come?
When:
January 13, 1999
Eftar Reception: 5:30-7:00pm
(Hosted by Mondoil Corporation)
Lecture and Panel: 7:15-9:00
Where:
Asia Society
725 Park Ave
New York, NY
Phone: 212-327-9292
The January 13th lecture marks the first occasion Secretary Vance has
spoken on US-Iran relations since 1980 when he left his post as President
Carter's Secretary of State. This event will open the American-Iranian
Council's Distinguished Speaker Series ... DETAILS
HERE
Book of the Week
To See and See Again
A Life in Iran and America
By Tara Bahrampour
From A beautifully written memoir that delivers much more than the story
of a young woman's life. Bahrampour, a Princeton Ph.D. candidate in sociology,
grew up in two culturesAmerica and Iran very much in conflict. The daughter
of an Iranian father and an American mother, she claimed American habits
as her early norms. However, the young Tara grew attached to Iranian ways,
so when the family returned to the U.S. due to the Islamic Revolution (she
was 11), the author's sense of dislocation only heightened. - Kirkus
Reviews
Also read the New York Newsday review of Bahrampour's book
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FULL
COVERAGE OF NEWS ON INVESTIGATIONS INTO RECENT MURDERS IN IRAN
Secret services badly shaken by role in
murders
TEHRAN, Jan 6 (AFP) - Revelations of the involvement of intelligence
agents in the murders of dissident intellectuals are seen as a blow to Iran's
dreaded secret services and a potential boost to President Mohammad Khatami's
efforts to carry out reforms. In a stunning admission, the intelligence
ministry said Tuesday that "some renegade, irresponsible and misguided
colleagues" carried out the high-profile kidnappings and killings of
several liberal writers early last month. The announcement was welcomed
by others here as a sign of the ministry's "courage," given its
long tradition of secrecy and repeated complaints that the secret services
have overstepped their mandate and acted above the law ... FULL TEXT
U.S. praises Iran murder arrests
Jan 6, (BBC) - The United States has welcomed
the arrest in Iran of intelligence agents said to be responsible for the
assassination of several liberal writers and intellectuals. The arrests
were announced on Monday by the Intelligence Ministry, and were praised
by Iranian President Mohammed Khatami. Supporters of the reformist president
are now calling for the resignation of Intelligence Minister Qoorban-Ali
Dorri-Najafabadi ... FULL TEXT
Assailants attached bomb to Iran cleric's
car
TEHRAN, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Iran's Interior
Ministry said on Wednesday that Tuesday's attack on Ali Razini, head of
the Tehran judiciary, was carried out by two people on a motorbike who attached
explosives to his car. In a statement faxed to Reuters in Dubai, the Mujahideen
implied it was responsible for the attack ... FULL TEXT
Iran releases Montazeri supporters - magazine
TEHRAN, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Iranian authorities
have released four backers of dissident Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri
who were detained for protesting against the senior cleric's house arrest,
a weekly magazine reported. The moderate weekly Aban said Hadi Hashemi,
Montazeri's son-in-law, and Abbas Ali Fateh, an official at the senior cleric'
office, were among the freed. It did not elaborate. Fateh was reportedly
held last month along with six students of Montazeri who had distributed
pro-Montazeri leaflets ... FULL TEXT
Iran state body blocks liberal law on trade
zones
TEHRAN, Jan 6 (Reuters) - A top Iranian state
body on Wednesday blocked new legislation which would have provided investment
guarantees to woo foreign funds to Iran's free trade zones, the official
news agency IRNA said. It said the Guardian Council, a body of Moslem clerics
and lawyers which vets bills passed by parliament, objected to provisions
in the law allowing majority-owned foreign and private banks and insurance
firms in the trade zones ... FULL TEXT
More digs at the "Burnt City"
Tehran, (Hamshahri) - Archaelogists are conducting
more digs at the site of "Shar-e Sookhteh" (Burnt City) which
is thought to date from 3200 BC. Located 55 kms southwest of Zabol in Sistan-Baluchestan
Province, "Shar-e Sookhteh" is among the oldest examples of urbanization
in the Middle East ... FULL TEXT IN PERSIAN
Esteqlal 3 - Bank Melli 1
Tehran, (Hamshahri) - Esteqlal pulls off a badly
needed win even without its key players, some of whom may start playing
in the German league. And you know who's coaching Esteqlal? Nasser Hejazi
... FULL TEXT IN PERSIAN
Human Rights
New mailing list
I have started a new mailing list called "Ascent." The aim
is to address humanitarian issues on the verge of the 21st century. I am
trying to promote it and attract members.
To subscribe, send an email to majordomo@im-ins.com
and type "subscribe ascent" in the body of the message.
Camelia Akbari
$ Rate
The
dollar now offered at up to 712-714 tomans
Source: Sehaty Exchange (U.S.) Tel: 602-595-0777
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Tehran
Times
Iran's biggest English-language newspaper. Not very informative,
but sometimes offers interesting news and commentary on foreign policy matters.
Beyond Iran
Revealing Things
A look at people, possessions, and culture at the Smithsonian's
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Quote Unquote
Our colleagues
A few of our colleagues -- irresponsible, devious and obstinate persons
-- were among those arrested.
Iran's Intelligence Ministry statement
"Iran
Officials Arrested in Slayings"
Associated Press
January 5, 1999
Photo of the Day
Fun at the park
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Music
Musician of the Week
Parivash
The Queen of "Koocheh Bazaari" music in the 1950s
and 1960s.
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