SORAYA
Shah's second wife on cover of Mexican comic book
by
Darius Kadivar >>>
CARTOON
Research has shown that in most cases Americans’ attitude toward other nations is a reflection of our government’s foreign policy. This is ever more the case when there are hostilities between two countries and the lives of ordinary people are affected by such hostility. Media frenzy and sensationalism can further reinforce such hostilities and adds fire to the flames of stereotyping, stigmatizing, dehumanizing, and even war-mongering. Unfortunately, this has been the case for the United States and Iran since Nov. 4, 1979, when Iranian students took American diplomats as hostages and held them for 444 days.
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Michael Ledeen, the neo-conservative enforcer of war on Iran, has
continously made outlandish remarks in supporting war against. And yet
despite the fact that he has never been to Iran, nor has an academic
background in the area, nor does he speak farsi, he is classified as an
"expert" by conservative media outlets like Fox News, and even some Iranians in the United States, including Amir Abbas Fakhravar, particularly those who support regime change.
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BOOK
Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian's meomirs
While I found myself concerned about this being another nostalgic look back at Iran through the eyes of an Iranian woman’s memoir, instead I encountered
A Mirror Garden as a bildungsroman—a tale of growing up and self-realization—and of the ways that a woman’s perseverance, vision, and good fortune, lead not necessarily to a fairy tale ending, but a rather, a clear sense of being and acting in the world. This is a narrative that indeed runs against the notion what has been so regularly drummed into Americans—that women of Middle Eastern cultures — whether Iranian or Arab — are merely being acted upon and have no agency.
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POETRY
دوستت دارم
اما تنها به اندازه ی آن نیاز سراپا مستی
که در رگهایم هست سرشار
به قدر آن شعبده ی ظریفی که در لبخنده ات پیداست
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SON
My precious boy was and will always be the best ëreal Iranian
Forty-three days ago, my wife and I buried our only son. Although he was a teenager, he was our baby. He was his mother's bright and shining angel and he was my best friend. I feel so broken and empty because now that I have had time to replay his short life in my mind a hundred thousand times, I don't think that I told him enough just how much I loved him and how very much he meant to me. The thing that hurts the most is that I know that there's nothing I can ever do to change any of that now. If God would give me just an hour to sit with my son and tell him goodbye, I would be willing to pay any price, but I know that is not going to happen.
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گاه حوادثی هست که اگرچه ما نقشی در انجامشان نداشتهایم اما بار سنگین گناهشان را مجبوریم به دوش بکشیم. مانند میراث خونی که برخی پادشاهان گذشتهمان در لشگرکشیهایشان به اینور و آنور به جا گذاشتند و هنوز لکه ننگ خونریزیشان در کتابهای تاریخ خشک نشده است. یا آنچه امروز برخی سردمدارانمان میکنند و نام ایرانی را میآلایند. این هم یکی دیگر مانند همانها٬ کمی دم دستیتر اما تلخ تر و تلختر از همه...
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SYMPATHY
I continue to cry for the victims of September 11
I asked the young Russian woman who was my translator whether they were saying anything about Ahmad Shah Massoud’s health after the explosion. She listened and said: “Some say he is still alive. Americans say he is dead.” In the afternoon, as we were driving back into the city, I asked her again if there was any news about Ahmad Shah Massoud. She listened and said: “No news about Shah Massoud. But they say an airplane ran into the World Trade Center in New York.” I didn’t believe her. She had made some mistakes with her English earlier that week, and I was sure she didn’t know what she was talking about. She was quiet and I kept quiet, too.
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POETRY
اینجا هنوز
زمستان در هوا موج میزند
دستها
سرما را
تا مغز استخوان رسم میکنند
قاصدک
گویی خیال رساندن پیام بهار را ندارد
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Are we being honest with ourselves in assessing the current economic climate as a simple recession versus a full-blown depression?
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COMMENT
Many didn't want to register just to leave a comment. Now you don't need to.
You need the greatest amount of freedom for the greatest possible diversity. So I am happy to announce that from this moment on EVERYBODY can leave a comment below articles, photos, cartoons, etc.
You do not need to register. We were hoping that most people would see value in registering. But since the launch of the new design, it has become apparent that the registration process has not appealed to average users. I got lots of feedback about this and the number one complaint was the need to register.
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Condemning the persecution of labor rights advocates in Iran. (Introduced in the US House of Representatives)
Congress...
(1) condemns the Government of Iran for the arrest and imprisonment of
Iranian union leaders Mahmoud Salehi and Mansour Osanloo and demands
their immediate release; and (2) expresses its solidarity with the workers of Iran and stands with
them in their effort to bring political freedom and individual liberty
to Iran.
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YUMMY
… and the pancakes are highly recommended!
by
shahireh sharif >>>