Archive - Aug 2007

New dimensions of stupidity

Nahid Shafiei writes: I just read an article from Time magazine (on the Iranian.com site) that kept saying this U.S. administration wants to "get rid of the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Gurads Corps or Sepah-e Pasdaran) by bombing them or placing them on the "terrorist" black list, etc. etc. The article kept talking about this "getting rid of" as if this military unit is a house or a building or a specific location that they can just bomb and "get rid of". >>>

Clear distance

Of course, as we had predicted, US pressure on Iran, the threat of war, sanctions and plans for regime change from above, Bush-style, will only lead to further repression, executions and detention of the very activists who lead genuine anti-capitalist, anti-imperialist struggles - while Iran’s islamic regime is busy negotiating with the US and UK governments over the terms of all three parties’ interference in the internal affairs of imperialist-occupied Iraq. Public hangings and mass arrests are part of this government’s efforts to impose an atmosphere of fear and terror at a time when large sections of the working class are protesting against low wages and lack of job security. >>>

I will love once again

Courage is not the absence of fear.

Courage is when you shake in your underwear and still face the melody.

Courage is being numb of pain and still not surrender.

Courage is to see the last light of your aura being drained and consumed by the invisible and faceless pain and still stand there and smile.

Courage is to never let them make you a victim. >>>

اراذل و اوباش حکومتی

اگر دلیل مجازات رذالت و اوباشگری ست, کدام یک رذل تر و اوباش ترند ؟ آمران و عاملان طناب به گردن روشنفکران و روشنگران گرانقدری چون محمد مختاری و محمد جعفر پوینده انداحتن و آنها را خفه کردن , وبا قمه هنرمند گرانقدری چون فریدون فرخزاد را مثله کردن , و با چاقوی آشپزخانه سیاستمدار برجسته ای چون بختیار وهمکارش رابه قتل رساندن, و با دشنه پیکر فروهرها را دریدن و قلب کارون 9 ساله را برابر چشم پدر شاعرش حمید حاجی زاده دریدن پیش از آنکه شاعررا مثله کنند و........ , یا زور گیران و باج گیران ؟ >>>

Beautiful Nancy

Last time we went was a planned camping holiday with my sister and brother in law. This time we booked a couple of B&B’s, one in Nancy (200 miles from where we live) and the other in Dijon (350 miles from where we live). Nancy has special significance for me because my maternal grandfather studied medicine there between the two world wars in the 1930’s. So it was a pilgrimage of sorts. I never met either of my grandfathers, but here at last I had the opportunity to follow in one of their footsteps. And what breath taking footsteps; this city could be the love child of Barcelona and Bath in the UK. The architecture is simply beautiful.>>>

Raging against the gods

In the thirteenth century A.D. there was Rumi and Shams. In 2700 B.C. there was King Gilgamesh and Enkidu. The heroes, Rumi and Gilgamesh, were civilized masters of their domain, enjoying a small greatness in their time. Shams and Enkidu were untutored outsiders who burst in from the wild to become the heroes' beloved companions. The same extraordinary spiritual upheaval created by the unlikely friendships launched both Rumi and Gilgamesh out of their time and into legend. George Charbak's play, The Epic of Gilgamesh with a long prologue, thankfully does not dwell on the Enkidu-Shams comparison. In fact Enkidu's god protector is simply referred to as the sun god, sidestepping the god's real name Shamash, the root for the Arabic word Shams >>>

Shadows of mistrust

Decades after the events of 1950's in Iran, there is still a lot of heated debates about what happened, who was to blame and why? The issue which in some people's view, originated from intervention of foreign elements in order to influence Iran's political process, had profound impact on the future events which happened during the years after that. Antagonistic atmosphere of Iranian politics has always been filled with extremist tendencies and emotions towards one side or another during this period which contributed a lot to creation of many unfounded stories around those events that eventually resulted in start of one of the cruelest governing systems of the world in our country.>>>

Guys, it’s time to move on

Yet another anniversary of 28th Mordad, and I can’t stand it! Like the 3rd of Esfand 1299 nothing shows the divisions amongst Iranian nationalists up as much as the anniversary of these events and the (mis-)treatment of history by all involved. There are many lessons that need to be learnt by Iranians from these episodes of their history but having learnt those lessons (long ago) they need to move on. Unfortunately we don’t seem to be able to do this judging by the idiotic emotion ridden pieces of tripe written every year by all sides. >>>

کاشانی و مصدق

پس از 30 تیر 1331 تاریخ نهضت ملی ایران به دو بخش تقسیم میشود و شاید بخش دوم از اهمیت بیشتری برخوردار باشد از آن جهت که پرده ها فرو می افتد، رفته رفته نقش ها آشکار می گردند، عهدها شکسته، دوستی ها بدل به دشمنی و خیانت ها هویدا می شوند. علت تغییر موضع 180 درجه ای آیت الله از آن جهت که یکی از دو رهبر نهضت ملی ایران بود، محتاج بررسی و تحقیق ریشه ای است و در این فرصت کوتاه دست نمی دهد. اما آنچه مسلم است این است که از فردای 30 تیر 1331 رفته رفته غرور و نخوت در رفتار و کردار آیت الله به وضوح مشاهده می شود. >>>

Cloudy, with a chance of war

As an American-born Iranian, who has lived and studied in Iran, Ebtekar’s war images are influenced by the Iran-Iraq war. “My earlier works borrow a lot from the Iran-Iraq war. If you look closely at my earlier works you will see jet-planes and tanks that are direct references to the ones used in the Iran-Iraq War.” But war does not stop there for the globe, nor for Ebtekar. He explains: “When 9/11 happened I stopped working on this manner and felt as though I couldn't continue in that political climate. However when current war was declared shortly after, I remember saying to myself I have to continue working, it’s actually more important to do it now that any other time. So I continued, and now the references are not solely from the Iran-Iraq war but from a larger body of sources and material that are coherent with contemporary geopolitical crises we are in.”>>>

Mehdi Khalaji: Friend or Foe? That seems to be the real question.

At this time in the evolutionary stage of our development towards becoming a free culture, capable of having a civilized public discussion, taking the "heat" in this "kitchen" includes talking back to your detractors. No matter how ridiculous or immature the claims made against you. When someone calls you out, you come back at them with your position. So people know the truth.>>>