Bavafa

Diagnosis for Mehrdad

by Holden Caulfield on Sat Feb 27, 2010 03:55 PM PST

Your intention is noble, you feel frustrated, you want to give a voice to the "middle person", and you have no plan...

How about calling it " The Green Movement" syndrome.

Dear Ari

by Souri on Sat Feb 27, 2010 03:51 PM PST

Good example. I'd read that story and enjoyed it a lot. Actually I read more articles than the the blogs and always (almost always:) look at the photo essays....but when there's no discussion I usually don't leave a comment (unless I'm highly emotional after reading that text)

But I don't understand your suggestion, clearly. What you  mean by :

"Maybe there should be a "like-not like" button available to non-registered users only. "

Everybody is now registered. we don't have unregistered commentator!

And what is the point of "like" or " not like" thing?

I don't think this would be encouraging for the writers who will get too many "not liked"  rate. It is not fare and not nice.

As I'd already mentioned, this is not a concour. 

If we don't like something that we read, then we will leave a comment to say " agha jan in che mozakhrafi boud ke neveshti? aslan khosham nayoumad........lol"  ;-)

No need to give a grade mark . What do you think?

Number of comments may not be a good indicator

by Ari Siletz on Sat Feb 27, 2010 03:32 PM PST

It seems most readers of non-janjaali pieces don't leave comments; they enjoy the works and move on. For example, this literary work. Or photo essays, book and art reviews, etc. which traditionally get high reader count to comment ratio. Controversial pieces just get more rowdy--not necessarily more crowded. A concert hall crowd is quieter than the local bar.    Maybe there should be a "like-not like" button available to non-registered users only. Registered users can leave comments, or maybe also have a fancier button with an obscenity option.

I know I have not offered

by Bavafa on Sat Feb 27, 2010 03:04 PM PST

I know I have not offered any suggestions, perhaps because I don't have any good ones at this point. But maybe it would be a starting point for gathering suggestions and thought and how every body else feels about it.

I am certainly not advocating out casting members or censorship, but I would suspect IC could lose many "middle the road" contributors if nothing is done.

Mehrdad

Mehrdad - A Very Good Point!

by Humility on Sat Feb 27, 2010 04:48 PM PST

You have brought up a very interesting point here!

Let me share with you what I think:

A great deal of animosity that you have outlined in your blog, stems from the fact that many of these contentious blogs get featured on the first page - As a result, the people participating in such heated discussions, either directly, or indirectly, get encouraged to be even more distatseful, and obnoxious!

I have to say that I find the second page (Blog Central) of this web site much more intriguing and appealing - Without mentioning any specific names, there are some very nice blogs on poetry, both original, and from the Masters, sometimes accompanied with Deklameh; also, some very nice music-videos of all kind :)

Generally, these over-looked (meaning not getting featured on the front page) blogs on the second page, are extremely well-presented, with beautiful pictures and sometimes even with attractive Persian Calligraphy!

Perhaps if Jahanshah would bring some balance to this issue, and have a good mix of both cultural blogs, that I have mentioned above, and political blogs, featured on the front page, then we would not have as much cut-throat and unattractive discussions as we presently do!

Let's hope for the best :) I believe that such changes would enhance the overall standing of the web site :)

Respectfully,

H.

P.S. I believe that if more of us raise this issue with Jahanshah, then he may do something about it - I have noticed that he doesn't generally change things, unless he absolutely, positively  has to!

 

 

I agree, Bavafa

by Sargord Pirouz on Sat Feb 27, 2010 02:17 PM PST

I had the same observation (but kept it to myself).

Consider where I'm coming from. I voted Green in the election. But I am not a protester, nor am I a subversive. Apart from voting for a candidate that turned out to have minority national backing, I consider myself mainstream (represented inside Iran) and an element of the silent majority (represented inside Iran).

The only place where I am considered anywhere near an "extremist" is within a gathering of disgruntled exiles hell bent on subversion.

How can IC be changed? I don't think it can as long as the extremist exiles consider any view other than outright subversion as an "extremist" view. What this accomplishes is alienating 75-85% of Iran's electorate, myself included.

How do I personally handle such an extreme environment? I speak my mind, point out obvious factual inaccuracies or accuracies, and don't allow myself to be drawn out into extended tit-for-tat, repetitive arguments. Which means I take rants and shrills from the extremist exile camp as a matter of course, to be generally avoided.

you might find this interesting Bavafa jan -EDITED

by capt_ayhab on Sat Feb 27, 2010 02:30 PM PST

//iranian.com/main/blog/capt-ayhab/honest...

Allow me quote[Are WE ever going to EVOLVE from this staled state of mind of attacking whomever that has a different view from us OR have we PROGRESSED enough to sit down, set aside our TALKING points, put our gray matters together and come up with a unified voice that can be lend to our brothers and sisters in Iran?]

Seems like we always need some one to be the MOBSER to tell us what to do and what not to do. Many times we[myself included] antagonize others, and expect silence.

-YT 

Souri jan, yes blocking the account of abusers has been good.

by Anahid Hojjati on Sun Feb 28, 2010 06:27 AM PST

 

Souri jan, yes blocking the account of abusers has been good.  Thank you Jahanshah for this.

"Those in the Middle.."

by bomannyali on Sat Feb 27, 2010 01:48 PM PST

I suggest that when they get upset they either go with

1. One order of Beef Shawerma, some Tabouli, hummus, purple dyed turshi and a few kebabs

or

2. Ash Reshte with vinegar, some dried onion pieces, a bit of the green stuff that they also have at Abbasi Hotel

With the above suggestion, you can sleep real good and forget about all the non sense from the neo conservative nutjobs

What can Jahanshah do for that?

by Souri on Sat Feb 27, 2010 01:38 PM PST

Bavafa,

I understand what you say, even if I don't fully agree with it. My question is what do you suggest?

What should J do to change  this climate  for the better?

I admire his patience and his determination to save the context of freedom of speech along with rules and regulation.

Blocking the account of the abusers, was really a very great rule that Jahanshah put in action last fall. Flagging the offensive comment is another way.

All in all, I like IC much better since the time that the real abusers have left the site because they have been sanctioned.

Granted there are now too much of political debates always from two particular groups, but this is also the image of the political life in today's Iran .

People have less the taste for the poetry or literature of other things, but that doesn't mean those topics are not posted here. There are many apolitical articles and blog here which go unnoticed or get very little attention.

Nobody's fault!! Just a pity :)

.

by The Phantom Of The Opera on Mon Apr 05, 2010 06:40 AM PDT

The Pahlavis, all mullahs, and all public figures associated with the Green Movement  must disclose the source and the amount of their wealth/income.

Some extremists on IC have all the time in the world to argue

by Anahid Hojjati on Sun Feb 28, 2010 06:33 AM PST

 

One problem that I see is that some extremists on IC have all the time in the world to argue.  Sometimes when I want to make a comment about a political bog, I remember all extremists on IC who seem to be ever  present. Their language is nasty too.