می بخور، منبر بسوزان - مردم آزاری نکن

So you are an IRI stooge

What took you so long, brown cat?

Peeshi=Jolly=Baluchi=Rainbow Country= Aynaki = IRI tool

So you are a Jew

is that an issue?

Why do you people have to prove you are this and not that to be a human being?

jeeeeeeeeeeeez

glad I am a peeshi and not anything like you people

Jews are the best

Doctors

Scientists

Lawyers

Actors 

Investors

Entrepreneurs

Real Estate owners

Designers

Architects

....

vpk

"we can get over it and work with our neighbours"

indeed part of the problem is alienation, ostracism, rejection of outstretched hands. this breeds new indignation. people's upbringing and traditions, and family and community pressures, sometimes very subtle, inhibit them from getting over certain indignations passed down sometimes for many generations. it is perceived as a breach of loyalty. and change is so uncomfortable, even if it brings a better life. we see this in victims of abuse, for example.

if you can get over it, than we can too. maybe that will be the new contagion. it is hard work, but rewarding.

Iranians; Arabs and Israeli's

First of all Iranian people include a lot of groups. There are plenty of Iranian Arabs and Jews and so on. So I am only talking about our neighbors not our ham meehans. 

IMHO Iranian people need to have good relationships with all their neighbors. That includes Arabs; Israeli's; Armenians; Turks and so on. The problem is that some people put their own personal agenda ahead of Iran. Those tend to be the ones who want us to get into the Arab Israeli conflict and take sides mostly on the side of Arabs.

There are also Iranians who have not ever forgiven Arabs for invading Iran. Some may say that I have fallen into that trap from time to time. The good news is that we don't need to fall for it. We can get over it and work with our neighbors.

VPK

thank you mehrdad

i think i have the luxury that my life is not threatened from where i am, so i can say all these things. i wonder if i'd have the courage to do so under more limiting conditions. like for instance those of people in iran.

it is in the context of comparing my situation with theirs that i can recognize and admire real courage. this reflection has taught me many lessons, and put my hard look in the mirror into real focus.

all this considered, it is so disappointing for me that i myself and many people in my country, who are not so limited and threatened, do not do more to expedite improvement. but if change is to be real, deep, and autochthonic, it can not be 'instant'.

i highly value your frank words of encouragement, for there is lots of hard work ahead.

Samer & humanbeing:

At the risk of being repetitive on this blog, I do want to say that I share your sentiments fully. It is so sad to see that so often we hear complaints on this site from some folks (without pointing fingers of course) who complaint about rudeness of others, lack of logic, racism or what have you, yet in the very same post they go and apply the same manners which they are complaining about to others and justify it that if he is IRI supporter or Zionist supporter then it is OK.

@ humanbeing - I admire your honesty and sincerity and ability to look both inward and outward and the wish of better things for ALL and not the people of your country ONLY.

I have been very critical of the policies of your country towards Palestinians, at the same time have had Israeli friends who have been brave enough to call it what it is and be open minded about those policies. I think it is easy for an "outsider" like me to be critical but for an "insider" being honest and open minded about your own people take much more courage. And just wanted to share how much I admire your honesty and civility.

Mehrdad

well stated, samer

i feel encouraged by your no-nonsense attitude. i think if in ME we each did a little home improvement before jumping to criticize our neighbours, things would look better: a long hard look in the mirror, some positive education and ridding of incitement, and respect for human life and neighbour's honour will go a long way.

pipedreams again. i hope your country enjoys peace and prosperity and real independence. 

i know many countries have contributed to the mess in lebanon, in addition to internal strife, but i can only express shame for what my country did.

i have been accused of being a humanistic troll, so i end by saying constructive action should be encouraged.

Shazde thank you for your post.

No one can deny that the Jewish people have sufferred greatly, pogroms and massacres through the ages. We can also be critical of Israel´s occupation of Palestine; in fact many Jews are outraged and disappointed in Israeli policies too.

A personal reflexion; I find it very ironic that we Middle Eastern people, regardless of our religious affiliation, are constantly taking offense and shouting against the "other´s" fanaticism, when we fail to see our own. We slam the Israelis, Hamas or the Iranian government as extremist fanatics, and yet inside we fail to see our own fanaticism: royalists, MKI supporters, hard-core secularists (just examples, not thinking of anyone in particular!). I take the example of Lebanon; I sometimes hear  criticism of Hezbollah by Lebanese Christians, i.e. that they are Islamists, that they have an agenda blabla, and everyone nods their heads in agreement, but those same Christians are hot-minded, racist, fanatics! No better or worse than Hezbollah if you ask me, and yes, they have an agenda too.

I am a student of Iran; and while it is nice to read and contribute to these debates, it makes me sad that if one day, as Iranians in Iran and exiles, u may have to build a democratic harmonious society, how will u overcome deeply ingrained clashing ideologies or racist views? How can intolerence or rejection of the other build a unified society?

Iran is your land and your love; if you love her, then u need to respect each other; respect the religious and respect the atheist, respect the Zoroastrian and the Bahai, and the ethnic minorities who have a different culture or language but who are also Iran.

Don't become like Lebanon, in public we pretend we all get along and are respectful, and at home or in our communities we spend our time badmouthing, insulting and generalizing about other communities. We are flesh and blood, and whether we are Muslim or Christian or atheist, we all need faith and spiritual fulfillment and belonging. Apologies if I went on a tangent. Keep up the discussions!!

.....

Hi! Kooshan,

    Thank you for your post, great job & well-said!

Jewish people (compared to

Jewish people (compared to their population throughout histor) had the most impact on human history as we know it. This by itself means they will have friends and enemies because they stand out.

However, judging people based on their background is not rational. The good, The bad and The uglies of the world belong to people from any background.

Lets judge people based on their deed NOT how they are branded.

Can't we just share the Earth peacefully thru our Journey in this world?

IHACOAT: We Persians are just a bunch of idiots please teach us

Please guide us comrade IHACOAT. Do we have to send more oil money to Hezbollah? How about those poor Hamas terrorists? They seem not to have enough missiles, Katusha and Scuds!

Please guide us dear IHACOAT, where should the ignorant people of Iran invest our money? How can we defeat Israel, after finishing off the Green Movement?

For memory aid ... you were the person who said "Iran needs a Tiananmen Square" during the Green uprising.

You have been the same person cheering when Iran refused the nuclear deal. YOU said "yippee, Iran has 70 million people against the 7 million Israeli ... Israel is toast!"

Please guide us stupid Persians towards another war, COMRADE!

Sister IHACOAT- Many Hozeyeh Elmiyeh Boshkeh (Barrels) of

blessings  upon you, brother Tehran Sagord Pirouz Bob, brother Mola Nasserdin, brother i_support_khaymenie, and the rest of the IRI supporting brothers and sisters...

Pastor Bill Rennick

pastor bill that's all you have to say??

you're a dime a dozen. keep it up. make sure you get enough nutrition in between your BS sessions on IC condemning IRI. Freedom fighter! lol

Shazde

Do you think Sister IHACOAT has been in the same Boshkeh as Brother Tehran Sagord Pirouz Bob?

the questions in this blog prove how uninformed you are

about the arab israeli and israeli WORLD conflict. it's always the non-israeli party's fault, eh? good for you. now go pay your taxes. Israel needs more phosphorous bombs to wipe out palestine on your dime. Get up and go Shazdeh! go! do it. your children's school teacher should suffer a pay cut, your roads can stand to be sh*tty, but Israel MUST get its money to pay for "defense."

Israel is a big failed state. They have only succeeded because of hardworking American tax dollars. Such a shame. 

دیوانه عزیز

اگر "عاقل ها" یک صدم شما شعور داشتند، کار دنیا به این خرابی‌ نبود!

That would be $9.99 ... please visit again!

Possibly you would charge us for reading your blogs

Thanks Shazde, only your humour and tact can handle such sensitive issue. You are very right, who can blame Israelis for fighting for their own country and nation. I join others to condemn the land grabbing practices by the Israelis, but which country was ever built on its own land? Not an excuse for the Israelis to infringe on the Palestinian rights, but an observation of the laws of the human jungle. 

Thanks for the humour and understanding

If you don't mind, ' taking this blog as an opportunity to reiterate:

it is AGAINST

humanitarian aspirations to identify oneself within a single group.

Recently. Is the US Census on now ? because this would be a wonderful opportunity for all! (short video). Tick 'other', sign as 'human'.

CARTA's "The Evolution of Human Biodiversity"Ajit Varki:

There are various studies, but Professor Amartya Sen's is the most famous:
"Identity and Violence: The Violence of Illusion"

Pastor Bill

Kindly answer my questions.

-YT 

Brother Capt Ayhab

Please view my sermons for further discussions on Islam.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkGnrzS2bKI

Pastor Bill

Being a Pastor, you should know the answer, or I suppose.

Lets start with Abraham.

He had 8 children, but two were rather very significant.

Ismael: The firstborn, Father of Islam.

Issac: Father of Hebrews.

Can you take it from here?

-YT 

P/S Abraham/Ibrahim is mentioned in 24 out of 114 Sura's[chapters] in Qur'an.

PP/S I wish those two stupid brothers had stopped fighting

i agree

bottom line do we retain our humanity. and humility. i ask myself this every day, and i'm sure i often don't make the grade. i keep trying.

thanks for the reminder.

ideologies, loyalties, traditions, religions vary, humanity is universal.

Question is not whether we are Jews, Muslims or Christians

Question is how much of a human beings we are.

Are we slaves to our ideologies? which dispenses us to everything that is ugly, or masters of our beings who have apathy and empathy toward anyone in pain.

Pain and misery know no boundary, neither should humanity. Everything else is pretension at its best.

-YT 

The question is whether Muhammad was a Jew?

Any take on this?

Bavafa, your Israeli-Palestinian news

bavafa: //www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/04/19/the_false_religion_of_mideast_peace

And here is response:

//walt.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/04/28/a_question_for_aaron_miller

Yes, bavafa, those

Yes, bavafa, those governments are puppets but the solution is not to replace them with Hamas, or Islamic brotherhood. They are not in the business of giving freedom to anybody.

vildemose:I certainly don't know but here is what I know:

1- the alternative that has been brought to them by the puppet governments (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, etc) is any thing but good.

2- The atrocities that has been inflicted on Palestinians by Israelis are far worse then it has been inflicted by the Islamism, yet one can argue that the Islimist have not had much power so far so I guess yet to see.

Mehrdad

Bavafa: What brand of

Bavafa: What brand of freedom do u think Hamas and Islamic brotherhood and Hizballah are going to bring to their respective countries?  Freedom to impose puritanical/fundamental Islam Inquistion style as Khomeini et al did.

Read the Charter of Hamas and Hizballah to see what kind of "freedom" they have in mind. Already Gazan women have been victims of acid-throwings since Hamas took over...

Don't forget

One man's Terrorist = another man's freedom fighter

However, I think this fits the definition of terrorist much closer. Just listen and judge for yourself.

//www.democracynow.org/2010/5/4/exclusivesecret_recording_of_erik_prince_reveals

Mehrdad