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guive@aol.com

>>> Guive Mirfendereski's new index

Stupid is what stupid does
Before you go to Iran, ask yourself, why are you not there to begin with
May 21, 2007

Dar vasfe ghater
Nobody knows how and why the country of Qatar got its name
February 28, 2007

Dar vasfe khar
For a long time now I had assumed that khar also meant “big”
February 23, 2007

Golden dreams
Giving the king the finger!
February 21, 2007

Pussy
The present enmity between Iran and Israel is like the game of cat-and-mouse
February 13, 2007

Folan fellow shodeh
A few thoughts about adaptations
December 21, 2006

Technical difficulties!
Selling Boeing spare parts to Iran
October 6, 2006

No thank you
Khatami in Boston
September 8, 2006

Game over
Iran 12 - International Community 0
September 6, 2006

Flags of dissent
Confronting fascism with fabric
September 5, 2006

A semantic exercise
Nuclear weapons
August 28, 2006

Iran 6 - International Community (still) 0
Iran’s non-response -- all of its 23 pages -- was delivered in Farsi. You’ve got to love it...
August 23, 2006

Missing pieces
Will the soul of Lebanon ever return?
August 8, 2006

Iran 5 - International Community (still) 0
Can anyone explain to me the immutable logic behind the Security Council's one-month long ultimatum?
August 2, 2006

Purging Persian
Language
July 31, 2006

The vulgar American
Random thoughts on bad manners
July 25, 2006

Iran 4 - International Community (still) 0
The first loser in the Lebanon Crisis is the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty itself
June 20, 2006

The cup that ran empty
Random observations on the Iran-Mexico match
June 11, 2006

Iran 2 - International Community (still) 0
Keeping score in the nuclear football between Iran and EU-US
June 7, 2006

Is this anything?
Iran’s response to the nuclear deal
June 4, 2006

Threat? Prove it.
Security Council needs to determine Iran is a threat to international peace and security before imposing Chpatter 7 demands
May 3, 2006

I speak Irani
The case for a supra-national lingual identity
April 17, 2006

Premature celebrations
Obviously nobody told Ahmadinejad that with becoming a nuclear country also comes enormous responsibility
April 15, 2006

Beesharmi
Characteristics of America’s diplomatic culture
April 4, 2006

The game will go on
Iran 1 - International Community 0
March 31, 2006

Lousy shot
Iranian-American driving jeep through college crowd
March 11, 2006

Loving the "L" words
Could the Persian "loos" (spoiled) and English "luxuriant" (lux) be far behind?
February 14, 2006

Haya
It is ultimately all about the failure of the rule of law and process to address grievances
February 7, 2006

Nonsequiturs
Of Quince, Kid and Lout
January 20, 2006

13-Bedar
An international day of remembrance
January 10, 2006

Ahasuerus
Who is he?
January 2, 2006

Gerdu
An Iranian love affair
December 23, 2005

The Ahmadinejad in us
A Look at Iranian anti-Jewry
December 18, 2005

Narangi and Porteghal
Bowlful of fruity meaning, Part 2
December 12, 2005

On the wings of anger
The C-130 transport plane that crashed into an apartment building near Mehrabad was a first rate catastrophe
December 8, 2005

Bowlful of fruity meaning
Part I: Etymology of Anar
December 1, 2005

Stretching it
Giving thanks to the "kesh"
November 25, 2005

Farewell, Dehkhoda!
A few days ago, I repacked the 50-volume collection into my car and drove it to Sabatico’s house. Letting go was hard to do...
November 15, 2005

Persian plus
Persian plus all those other wonderful Persian words that enrich it
November 10, 2005

For the love of P
Farsi is not Arabic
October 21, 2005

Mellow thoughts
The Persian link in the etymology of “lullaby”
October 18, 2005

Beyond far and good
Faraatar & behtar
October 10, 2005

Things you don't want to hear
Fantasy speech at the UN on the nuclear crisis
October 5, 2005

The soccer player
Paying the debt owed to me
October 4 , 2005

Labor of lab
What if the giving of lip-kiss “lab dadan” and receiving of it “lab ghereftan” served the religiosity of some distant time by covering the true desire of the participants -- to engage in carnal relations?
September 24, 2005

The Saka nomenclature
The peaceful exchange of ideas is the soil in which the very best periods, movements, and aspects of human civilization have historically taken root
September 15, 2005

Sweet Farsi
It is any Farsi-speaking person’s god-given right to call his or her language Farsi in any language
September 3, 2005

Lovely word
Next time when I say “I love you” to an English-speaking person I will do so with the reminder that the word “love” is of Persian origin
August 31, 2005

Tying-up loose ends
Aftabeh, democracy and terrorism
July 22, 2005

Unveiling Ashuradeh and Absukun
Searching for the origins of names off the southeast corner of the Caspian Sea
July 15, 2005

Necessity & nostalgia
Book review
July 11, 2005

It's about oil
Many charge that the United States is in Iraq for the oil and oil alone -- a perception that has hardened by the obvious fact of the U.S. dependence on oil
June 30, 2005

The coming second qiyamat
When a system lacks a responsive legislator, independent judiciary and enlightened leader or executive, then the recipe for political and social change, even if it is regressive, will require violence
June 26, 2005

More caviar, please
And other afterthoughts
June 24, 2005

Kneading a meaning
Etymology of caviar
June 10, 2005

To be Iranian
Anyone who wishes to be an Iranian, is
June 6, 2005

Done & buried
Saka tombs in Iran
May 31, 2005

The Saka Legacy
... in ancient Iran
May 24, 2005

Homavarka
The potheads of ancient Iran
May 17, 2005

In search of lost meanings
Part 1: Mountain majesties of Iran
Part 2: The riddle of Abvand
Part 3: Alvand the inspirational
Part 4: Band and Vand -- Reappraisal
May 2005

From Ardebil to Ardeville
The mystery of the names of Ardebil & Birjand
May 6, 2005

Goudar gourmet
Roast pork from northern Iran
May 2, 2005

Of wine and war
Party time in ancient Iran
April 28, 2005

When "kaboud" is not
Illusions of color
April 25, 2005

Plain of paradise
Origins of Fenderesk
March 27, 2005

Redemption
Poem
With Shahrzad Irani
March 10, 2005

Performer's choice
The Aghdashloo controversy
January 27, 2005

Amou Manouchehr
No other name could have captured as neatly the expression of this man's essence
December 29, 2004

Rising sun
At father's place of eternal res
May 5, 2004

A Norouz of improvisations
My haftsyn, especially this year, represents a distillation
March 21, 2004

Victor's justice
Case for US trial for Saddam Hussein
December 23, 2003

Signs of life
Recollections from an autumn on the road
December 2, 2003

The place of paranoia
... in Iran-U.S. relations
November 5, 2003

Crimes against history
Toponymics of political change
October 24, 2003

Project Norouz
Noticing a novel set in Iran that caused a stir 20 years ago
July 17, 2003

Naked in a tree-less forest
Bush's shameless hypocrisy
June 20, 2003

Unspeakable solution
For Iraq
May 10, 2003

The culture gaff
The message that we deliver often assumes that the audience is a knave, fool, or rascal
April 21, 2003

Straight talk
A very short story
April 3, 2003

March 14, 2003
The war brief
In support of the war against Iraq

February 21, 2003
The last stand of all things Persian
Why some damage the very cause they espouse

January 30, 2003
Neon congress
School mates, Hossein's buffet and other impressions in Las Vegas

November 29, 2002
Long live monarchists
A thanksgiving

November 9, 2002
The unelected few
Promoting undemocratic governments around the world

September 13, 2002
Pyramid of loyalty
God, King, Country? The very notion of kingship runs counter to the universally recognized rights of the citizen

August 28, 2002
Negotiating courage
Meeting an old friend & going to the iranian.com event in Berkeley

August 21, 2002
The company you keep
Abject poverty in the area of elemental discourse

July 26, 2002
For the love of toot
Sketches from a Boyhood in Golhak

July 9, 2002
Give this republic a chance
I will

May 30, 2002
Caspian quartet
Part (1) (2) (3) (4)
On the environmental demise of the Caspian Sea

February 19, 2002
Keeping an open mind
Monarchy, republic, or secular democracy

February 7, 2002
Of kings and cylinders
Nothing among Iranians is ever as it seems

January 16, 2002
All choked up
From Ground Zero to Iranian arms shipmenmts

October 12, 2001
Half-ass
The limits of American resolve

October 11, 2001
Origins of Farur
The toponymy of a Persian Gulf island

September 20, 2001
Iran's chance
Active role in the war against the Taliban

September 13, 2001
Defining moment
Fight against terrorism should focus on fostering republican democracies

September 4, 2001
Far from Nantucket
Postcards from the islands

July 27, 2001
Diplomatic History of the Caspian Sea: Treaties, Diaries, and Other Stories:

Old spoils and the sea
Diplomatic history of the Caspian Sea

Making virtue of necessity
Diplomatic history of the Caspian Sea

The Shah's Northern Navy
Diplomatic history of the Caspian Sea

Taming the Turkmans
Diplomatic history of the Caspian Sea

Filling a void
Diplomatic history of the Caspian Sea

Testimonials
Diplomatic history of the Caspian Sea

July 13, 2001
Hendorabi
Island

June 18, 2001
Hengam
Island

June 5, 2001
The Ostrich Syndrome
Can't afford to hide in the sand

June 1, 2001
Article 64
Separating minorities from the rest of the nation

May 17, 2001
Great Little Tonbs
A brief history

April 9, 2001
Bully in the china shop
Severe case of American amnesia

March 12, 2001
Euqal but undevided?
The Russian-Iranian gambit in the Caspian Sea

February 22, 2001
Petition by one
Write to your representative

February 1, 2001
Power of one
The PWC will be stronger without me

January 18, 2001
Face in the mirror
Plight of Iranians in American airports

January 4, 2001
All rights reserved!
One must give credit to others' work

November 14, 2000
Keep it the way it is
Clinton & the Iranian-American community

October 16, 2000
Crooked wall
Blind support for Israel undermines U.S. as peace broker

September 22, 2000
Clinton's legacy?
Clinton & the Iranian-American community

September 20, 2000
The Tonbs
The Haute Couture connection

September 13, 2000
Sag mahi
The theology of caviar

August 23, 2000
Snake island
Great Tonb and the zoological evidence

July 20, 2000
Due process
The Sherman proposal is anemic

March 29, 2000
Getting down to business
The future of Iranian assets and claims in the U.S.

March 22, 2000
Deli diplomacy at Purim
Iran, America & Iranian Jews

March 20, 2000
Not so bright
Secretary Albright's olive branch has neither leaves nor olives

January 20, 2000
All tied up
Reflections on the Iran-USA ball game & ballistics

January 13, 2000
Goal!
Normalization of U.S.-Iranian relations
With Najmedin Meshkati

December 9, 1999
Keep it simple
Free thoughts on Iran-U.S. normalization

December 9, 1999
Sweet surrender
Poerm
With Shahrzad Irani

July 14 1999
Gridlock
Student protests, the government and the constitution

June 8, 1999
Sleep-walking economy
"National resolve" alone will not awaken the economy

April 22, 1999
Cucumbers and tomatoes
Becoming a part of the societal salad bowl

February 24, 1999
Bad oil policy
Short-term need for cash prompt excuses

January 19, 1999
Just pretend we have no oil
An economy based on taxes instead of oil

January 11, 1999
The blame game
Iranians are masters of finger pointing

January 7, 1999
Will law rule?
No principle is higher than the presumed innocence of the accused

December 18, 1998
Freedom not to react
... especially when there is lack of knowledge

December 10, 1998
Tonban-e Abu Musa
Squeezing a laugh or two from the Iranian foreign ministry's secret files

November 10, 1998
Giving Batul a chance
Changing one's name for practical purposes

October 29, 1998
Lost at sea
Iran's revolving legal position in the Caspian Sea

September 18, 1998
Clinton & the Constitution
Impeaching this president is constitutionally unsound

May 20, 1998
America's scuttle diplomacy:
The case of India nuclear tests

January 10, 1998
Hands off the tonban, please
A compromise over the disputed Persian Gulf islands?

January 6, 1998
The other peace process
Tips on how Iran and the U.S. should start normalizing their relations

December 1997
Shedding inhibitions
Observations on the Gary Sick interview

October 1998
Rouge is relative
Rubbing Iran's nose further into dirt

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Bio
Guive Mirfendereski is a professorial lecturer in international relations and law. He is the principal artisan workins as Guy vanDeresk (trapworks.com).

Born in Tehran in 1952, he is a graduate of Georgetown University's College of Arts and Sciences (BA), Tufts University's Fletcher School (PhD, MALD, MA) and Boston College Law School (JD).

In 1987-1991 he served as a corporate lawyer in the High Technology and Venture Capital Group of Gaston, Snow, Ely & Bartlett (Boston). In 1992-1994 he was General Counsel at Zarc International, Inc., a less-than-lethal weapons manufacturer based in Bethesda, Maryland, and also served as legal consultant to The World Bank's private sector development projects. In 1995-1999 he taught as adjunct professor of international law at The Fletcher School and Brandeis University's Graduate School of International Economics and Finance while serving as sole in-house counsel at the biotech company Vicam Limited Partnership from 1997 through 2003.

He is the author of  A Diplomatic History of the Caspian Sea (2001) and numerous articles. His recent publications include entry articles in Oxford Encyclopaedia of Maritime History (forthcoming 2006) and Encyclopaedia Iranica. To top