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* Best novel
I am still following every chapter of "Conspiracy
in desert one" with great enthusiasm. This is one of the best
novels I have read in English in recent years. Thank you for sharing your
writings with us.
James W. Young
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Monday
March 27, 2000
* Love affair
I read the beautiful story about your sojourn in Iran ["Absence"].
Very well written. It was an adventure for me, one that I will likely never
have opportunity to experience myself.
You also demonstrate your intellect and understanding of the good of
both countries while remaining honestly objective. Bravo!
And the love affair with your heritage, -- I nearly wept, and yet I
have not one drop of Iranian blood in my veins.
Walt Williams
Go to tp
* Get smart
I think the report by Kasra is 95% correct and the woman who used to
be a prostitute did change overnight. ["She
changed overnight"].
Most Iranian women who migrate to the U.S. have a tendency to be like
that these days and I feel sad about the men who fall for these beautiful
monsters. I have seen so many cases that I think I can make a fair generalization
like this.
I think we men need to grow up and get smart: AVOID MARRYING WOMEN FROM
IRAN. IF YOU DO YOU BETTER STAY IN IRAN. DON"T BRING IRANIAN WOMEN
TO THE U.S. THEY WILL DESTROY YOUR LIFE. Don't listen to me and experience
it for yourself.
Dr Sadeghi
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Friday,
March 24, 2000
* Satan incarnate
Oh please. You are either blind or unwilling to accept reality here
["Can't
just fake it"]. It t is true that we don't know Mr. Kasra's wife's
side of this story, if there even is one, but it does not take a psychiatrist
to realize that some of these Iranian women -- mainly those that just come
over from Iran, are Satan incarnates running around.
It is an undeniable fact that many of these Iranian women change DRASTICALLY
once they reach American soil, DRASTICALLY. All of a sudden they have all
this freedom and they don't know what to do with it. This often times leads
to very unacceptable behavior on their part, and eventually leads to the
marriage falling apart.
I have seen it personally TIME AND TIME AGAIN. I don't doubt for a second
that what Mr. Kasra says is true ["She
changed overnight"]. Because his story is nothing new. There are
thousands of Iranian women just like his ex-wife out there. In my opinion,
they deserve nothing more than to be sent back to Iran where they belong.
Nariman N.
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* Tired of not getting along
I am tired of our countries -- the U.S. and Iran -- not getting along.
I was very pleased to hear that maybe open trade of Iranian products in
the U.S. can occur ["Ball
in Iran's court"].
I do not know much about Iran and it's people. Only what I hear on the
news on TV . It's time for the blocked doors of both counties to open.
I am interested in learning and knowing the people, culture, art, living
views of the people.
I would buy Iranian products if they are good products to have in my
home. I hope we can start trading and talking. It will not hurt our countries'
individuality.
L. Brown
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Thursday
March 23, 2000
* Great disappointment
Letter to U.S. Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright:
National interest or political expediency overrides any consideration
for propriety and loyalty. However, higher standards are expected from
a super power. For those Iranians who worked hard and served their country
before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, your speech at the American-Iranian
Council came as a great disappointment...
The U.S. government, driven by its own national interest and at the
prodding of the British, decided to assist the Iranian opposition to Premier
Mossadegh who was in clear breach of the Constitution. The role of the
CIA in the uprisings of August 1953 has been greatly exaggerated. Do you
really believe that it is possible with a budget of "one, or perhaps
two, hundred thousand dollars" to have a national uprising and a change
of government? Your assessment of the situation is an expedient rewriting
of history. Many Iranians who played a part in those events find your remarks
objectionable >>>
FULL TEXT
Kambiz Atabai
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* Pro-American
Your newsletter seems to be biased in favor of Western (American junk)
culture as per articles published herein. I believe the people of the world
desrve a more balanced, well researched presentation. Still I'm thankful
of your efforts to upgrade eastern media activities. I'm for preserving
native cultures and get banged up by junk! In solidarity with the great
Iranian people!
rogelio-rustico X
Roger Teves
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Wednesday
March 22, 2000
* Don't deify Khatami
In response to Abdy
Hashemi's letter I should add that had the Shah and his supporters
"eradicated" their opponents there would have been no revolution.
Or at worse, there would have been a civil war.
When Dr Bakhtiar persuaded the Shah to leave Iran "temporarily"
in order to find a "political" solution to the crisis he also
released the 2,300 so-called political prisoners in the imperial jails
(not the 100,000 claimed by Western reporters and the Iranian Confederation
of Students and other opponents of the monarchy).
Nevertheless, Dr Bakhtiar had his throat cut under the noses of the
French police in Paris and this was ordered by the Ministry of Intelligenece
in Tehran. The remaining 158 or more assassinations were part of a plan
by Rafsanjani's governmnet to "exterminate" so-called counterrevolutionaries.
Khatami was aware of these atrocities and knew about them. He reminds
me less of Ghorbachev and more of Khruschev who tried to save his cronies
from blame by turning on the Stalinists a clever deflection. So let us
not kid ourselves.
However, Khatami has ushered a significant change and I support anybody
who helps our countrymen. But let us not deify him until we see complete
freedoms. Will he allows women to unveil themselves in public as they did
in the 1920s? That would be a day to celebrate.
Cyrus Kadivar
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* Hope Khatami is not Khomeini
In response to Abdy
Hashemi who wrote: "[President Khatami] respects oppositions;
always reciting 'long live my opponents' .....Now Khatami, as a true follower
of Khomeini, is leading the same people to their final destination - DEMOCRACY!"
Do you see any irony in the above sentences? I do not know if some people
recall the past or they forget the past the moment they change from former
hostage takers and executioners to modern day reformers, but let it be
clear, that you can not be tolarant of your opponent and at the same time
be a "true follower" of Khomeini!!!
Ayatollah Khomeini is the same person who executed 100,000 people, who
ruined a nation, and whose reign led to the departure of over two million
Iranians. Under his reign, which was the darkest hours of our nation, most
people did not dare to speak. His reign of terror was so massive that even
today many Iranians fear to express their ideas.
There wasn't a day where someone somewhere would get arrested or executed
or tortured under his reign for often unfounded accusations and for the
simple reason of not believing in his way!
We lost a generation to him and we fell hundreds of years behind as
a result of him. I hope to God that whoever Mr Khatami is and will be,
his legacy would not resemble that of Mr. Khomeini.
R. Khalili
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Tuesday
March 21, 2000
By Banafsheh Zand
The sad fact is that in 21 years neither Iranians nor Americans have
learned ANYTHING. The cavalier American still figures it can bamboozle
anyone and the Napoleon-complexed Iranian still begrudgingly placates.
If Americans don't stop hustling the world, and Iranians don't realize
that they shouldn't be selling themselves short, we'll be back at square
one in no time >>>
FULL TEXT
Banafsheh Zand
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* Bunch of crap
Excellent observations by Mr. Mirfendereski ["Not
so bright"]. Reading on, I recall an incident with the USS Vincennes
and an Iran Air carrier not more than a few years ago. You'll recall how
much press coverage that little SNAFU (situation normal all f**ked up)
got in the US.
Further, about five or six years ago there was a rather small incident
in China (Tiananmen Square protests)! You guys remember that, don't you?
It had all the human rights agencies screaming bloody murder. However,
China gets rewarded with the Most Favored Nation status which essentially
means (no tariffs) its goods will compete with local goods. >>>
FULL TEXT
Ali S.
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* Why wear the hejab?
Reading your feature on "Why
women don't learn Karate" brought back my experience with similar
questions as my daughter was growing up...
Nastaran is 13 now and her questioning of the world and its politics
has changed. Also she was born in Iran and lived there for nine years which
will make it all different from other Iranian children born outside of
Iran. When she was very young and was living in Iran it was a question
of wanting to wear the hejab as a sign of being an adult. >>>
FULL TEXT
Yasaman Mottaghipour
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Monday
March 20, 2000
* Better Noruz
Just wanted to thank you (and all the donators) for the photos and info
about our past on your page. They really gave me a better Noruz than what
I had in my lonely life - presently; THANX!!!
Noruz-e shomaa ham mobaarak,
N.S.
Go to tp
* Very sad
Your story of Haft Seen ["Noruz
in spirit"] was very sad and questionable:
1- When a young girl is determind to make a Haft Seen and fails, it
must be because there are obstackles and it is your duty to figure it out
and remove those obstacles. It is a serious matter to me.
2- Why are you smoking? It is depressing when your daughter is looking
for a "Seen" and comes up with cigarettes.
3- She might miss something that stops the action. Where is your spirit?
To me Haft Seen is not important but the understanding of the people and
their awareness of the reasons for that particular action is important.
Spring is in the air so they say but you also have to see and feel it
. It this year something is wrong, it can be corrected as soon as you are
aware of it. When the spirit and feelings come back, one can feel Noruz
anytime even in the middle of winter.
Sudabeh
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Friday,
March 17, 2000
* Yaar dar khaaneh
In reply to Gold-Boy:
Naameye ziba va saraasar ehsaase to ra be Iranian khaandam va baraaye
tamami e ensanhaye paak va sadeghi ke az zendegi yek donya entezaar va
hezaarha aarezoo daarand geristam....
Man ham paj saale pish dorost baa hamaan afkar va ehsaasate to az Iran
khaarej shodam va mikham kami az tajrobiate khodam baraat begam. Man injaa
baa iraanihaye ziadi barkhord kardam va be jor-at meetoonam begam ke hichkodaam
az aanha ehsaase khoshbakhti nemikonnand. Aadam vaghti ke hanooz tooye
Irane hameye moshkelaate khodesh ro be vaziate jaame-e nesbat mide, amma
vaghti ke vaarede donyaye be-estelaah AZAD mishe taaze halish mishe ke
ei baaba faghat ghesmati az oon moshkelaat marboot be ouzae-ejtemaaii boodeh.
To migi tafrih nadaari. Fekr mikoni injaa tafrihe javoona chie? Unhayee
ke saalem hastand tafriheshoon Cinema, koohnavardi, safar va injoor chizast
ke dar Iran ham gheire momken nist, amma ba kamaale ta-asof bayad begam
ke tafrihe kheiliha gozarandane shab taa sobh dar disco, mast kardan va
baalaa avordaneh >>>
FULL TEXT
Neda X
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Thursday
March 16, 2000
* Final destination: Democracy!
In an eye-scatching demonstration, on 18 February, the people of Iran
elected a new reformist parliament and set aside most of the conservative
heavy weights. More than 300 international journalists reported this event
which brought recognition from world politicians, including those at the
White House.
This fantastic transition to a near-total civilian rule is largely the
outcome of President Khatami's policies. He respects oppositions; always
reciting "long live my opponents". Unlike the Shah and his puppets
who believed in the total eradication of opponents, Khatami encourages
criticism but needs support at the same time; after all "Rome was
not built in one day". He is steering Iran, in a very charismatic
and diplomatic way, towards democracy and is pulling the support of the
masses and intellectuals...
Before his triumphant return to Iran Ayatollah Khomeini was pictured
in Paris waving to his followers. Time magazine printed this on
its front cover with the caption "The hand that shakes the throne".
Now Khatami, as a true follower of Khomeini, is leading the same people
to their final destination - DEMOCRACY! >>>
FULL TEXT
Abdy Hashemi
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* Cheraa roozegaar eentoree kard?
man yeh javoon-e Irani hastam. chand kalameh harf daashtam. meekhaam
begam keh cheraa roozegaar eentoree kard baa maa? cheraa tafreeh nadaareem?
cheraa maa hameh khasteh shodeem? cheraa hamash hamin chizaaee hast keh
too TV neshoon meedan? ["Breaking
the rules"]
aahaay kasee keh een email ro meekhooneh: een harfaa dard-e del-e tamaam-e
javoonaast. hamamoon yaad gerefteem sobh paasheem bereem sar-e kaar, berim
daaneshgaah, nemidooneem chee meekhaaeem. aslan cheh kaar baayad bekoneem?
faqat taa cheshm baaz kardeem joz badbakhtee cheez-e degehee nadeedeem.
baabaab maa ham aarezoo daareem beh khodaa. aarezoom een hast keh yeh
rooz az Iran beram valee cheh kaar konam? nemeetoonam. chon poolesh ro
nadaaram.
omidvaaram keh yeh rooz Iran az shar-e een aakhoondaa raahat sheh.
Gold Boy
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Wednesday
March 15, 2000
* Nothing has changed
Like many concerned Iranians in the United States, I have been paying
close attention to developments in Iran for years now. This is partially
why I do not find the recent parliamentary elections to be a surprise.
Everyone from CNN's Christianne Amanpour to the fellow expatriate next
door have heralded this election as the dawn of a "new" Iran
["High
hopes"].
I suggest Mrs. Amanpour and Iranians in general (especially Iranian-Americans)
wake up. The political system set up 20 years ago has not changed at all.
Many critics of the Islamic Revolution (or any revolution in Iran) have
always stressed on the shortcomings of the promises of the revolution.
It is ironic how quickly we all forget the fact that Iran was in a war
for eight years during which the nation's very integrity was threatened.
This does not leave much time for social introspection or many "domestic"
issues when you have Mr. Hussein attempting to annex Khuzistan.
In addition to the Iraqi-Imposed War, Iran has suffered from the economic
aftermath of the war (that we are still witnessing) and the rapid inflation
and destruction of the infastructure of the economy.
Khatami was elected under the system set up after the Islamic Revolution.
The new parliament has also been elected under that same system. Nothing
has changed in Iran.
When the country is no longer at war and is now recovering from the
economic impact of that war, the Iranian people can concentrate on reforms.
This includes the purging of opportunists in a democratic government (ex.
Mr. Rafsanjani).
I have always had faith in democracy, Islam, and the Iranian people
and know that, eventually, the major problems that are present in the country
will be solved through the existing democratic Islamic government.
Arya Abedin
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* C U soon
"Dialogue
among ourselves", a letter to President Khatami, from Roozbeh
Shirazi was traslated into Farsi and published in "Mosharekat"
newspaper (Thursday, 19th of Esfand. Page 6 : "Javaan" page),
one of the most important Iranian dailies.
C U here in Iran, soon. =)
nEgAr Mortazavi
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Tuesday
March 14, 2000
* Have some mercy
In the editorial intro to "Breaking
the rules" you wrote: "Yesterday's assassination attempt
against Saeed Hajjarian, a pro-Khatami newspaper publisher, was a shocking
reminder that Iran's conservative hardliners will resort to any means to
try to stop the movement toward a more open and liberal society. But, as
this feature clearly shows, Iranian society is going through fundamental
changes, regardless of what the extremists expect the Islamic Republic
to be."
I think all regular readers of the forum you publish (=The Iranian)
are already quite familiar with the domain of concerns of Ms. Fassihian
through her lengthy articles ["Breaking
the rules"]. I myself were once tempted (you can read "fooled")
and took time and responded to one of her early articles, although I later
realized that it probably wasn't worth the effort. Oh well.
Anyway, I'm getting used to the very narrow sense of the word "freedom"
that she and other people like her advertise and advocate, either out of
ignorance or deliberately pursuing some purposes. (Take CNN's Christianne
Amanpour's so-called "Revolutionary Journey", for example.)
What bothers me, however, is how you could be so ... [Forgive me, but
I yet have to find the right word to fill in there. "Cruel",
maybe? or "narrow-minded"? I'll let you know as soon as I come
up with something fit.] to connect the sad assassination of Hajjarian to
the content of "Breaking
the rules".
It reminds me of Amanpour's recent (purposely?) misleading report where
they show student rallies right after whinings of some soosool losers about
how hard it is to party there, as if the students were beaten by police
just because they were not allowed to party. Oh please!
Honestly, isn't that because you needed to rationalize publishing such
an article at a time when the "local Iranians" (as Ms Fassihian
uses the word) are concerned about those who are fighting for the true
meaning of the (much abused) word "freedom", and thus paying
such high prices? Please open your eyes, and have some mercy for those
who fought for you.
Ataollah Togha
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* Reply: Not the right time
In reply to Ataollah Togha:
I also expressed to the editor that I didn't think it was the right
time to publish "Breaking
the rules" because of the tragic incident regarding Mr. Hajjarian.
So I appreciate this particular concern. It was the editor's decision,
with my hesitation, to publish it with a section on top about Hajjarian.
This article was a simple piece on how young Iranians in Iran spend
their free time and where to dine in Tehran. And so the remainder of your
criticisms are irrelevant, vague and unintelligible.
Sorry, but just because you have chosen to not appreciate a group's
point of view - -in this case the majority of Iranian youth -- does not
invalidate their beliefs and feelings. It seems you are the one who is
narrow-minded and intolerant, not to mention highly disrespectful.
Dokhi Fassihian
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Monday
March 13, 2000
* Sikh
Thanks for the pictures of the women's protests ["Right
to choose"]... "mu beh taneh aadam sikh misheh".
Zahra Mahloudji
Go to tp
* Passion
Just read a note on "Shoor-e
Zendegi". A reader's opinion, yours and someone else's that you
had asked.
"Shoor" under the context used (shoor-e zendegi) would be
more appropriate to be translated as "passion": Passion for/of
life. Don't know the intent for this issue that you discussed with that
reader, but if it's for something of importance/ to be shown, I would give
more thought and would possibly go for the word "passion".
Kaveh
Go to tp
* Missing the point
You are missing the point. The "shoor" in SHOOR-E
ZENDEGI is not felt by taste-buds. Here it means, as Neda
X wrote, fervor and enthusiasm - a completely different meaning for
the same word. A third (and somehow related to the second meaning) is the
name for one of the Persian classical musical dastgah.
Hossein Bagher Zadeh
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Friday,
March 10, 2000
* Deep emotions
I, too, stayed up all night searching for news about the elections of
the Majlis ["Misplaced"].
Shadi Mokhtari captures the deep emotions of quite a few more people than
she might realize. And she does this with an even-handedness, compassion,
intelligence, and honesty that is simply beautiful.
Behzad Sadeghi
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* Salty head
In your Photo
of the Day (March 9), you translated SHOORE ZENDEGI as salt of life!
Just for your information I must say that SHOOR does not mean salt. The
word SHOOR is one of the most beautiful Persian words which means sensation,
emotion, passion, fervor and enthusiasm. By your translation, the song
EMSHAB DAR SAR SHOORI DAARAM, EMSHAB DAR DEL NOORI DAARAM ..... must be
translated as, "Tonight, I have lots of salt in my head!" :-)
Neda X
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Thursday
March 9, 2000
* Unreliable
Mr. Fisk's piece ["Revealed:
Role of a president in the murder of his people"] has a few factual
errors which make the whole article unreliable.
He maintains that Rafsanjani was the first to disclose the Iran-Contra
affair. Anyone familiar with Iranian politics knows how impossible that
could be. In fact the first to blow the whistle on the affair was Mehdi
Hashemi, Ayatalloah Montazeri's son in law who leaked it to a Lebanese
journal (he was summarily executed, and initiated the rift between Montazeri
and Ayatollah Khomeini).
Fisk also claims unequivocally that both Saidi Sirjani and Said Emami
were murdered by potassium injection. The official announcement is that
they died by heart attack and swallowing hair removing paste respectively.
Does Mr. Fisk have any new information to confirm they were murdered? He
has not made such a claim in the article and no source has been mentioned.
Lastly, Mr. Fisk writes that Rafsanjani did not gain more than 25 percent
of the votes in Tehran, but he did. Calculate the number of voters divided
by the number of votes for Rafsanjani and see.
Rasool Nafisi
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* Don't give up
In reply to Kasra's article "She
changed overnight":
Dear Friend : I know exactly how you feel and I was as naive as you
are and experienced a simmilar situation and ended up having a child as
well. We aredivorced now.
If I am not wrong, according to immigration rules, her Green Card becomes
valid two years after she has received it and only if you are still married
and only if you still are willing to petition for her. Therefore, if the
same rule still exists, the ball is in your court and you may void her
Green Card.
Truthfully, I think you got lucky that you got to know her BEFORE you
ended up having kids. This way she can go her way and you never have to
see her again.
Get on with your life and leave this ugly memory behind you. But don't
give up on beautifull Iranian girls, they are the best. Next time PLEASE
do your homework and marry someone with a clear background.
Ahmad from Atlanta
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Wednesday
March 8, 2000
* Scientology
You think the Anthony
Robbins thing is bad? I was working for a professional translation
company and those guys put me in touch with this F R E A K who calls me
asking me if I would translate L. Ron Hubbard's "Dianetics" --
the Scientology Bible -- into Persian!
I told the guy... Boro Aghaa khejaalat bekesh ... Irooniaa beh andaaze-ye
kaafee pedareshoon az dasteh deen dar oomadeh.
The guy then tells me that that is exactly the reason they need Scientology
back in Iran -- to free themselves of Islam. So I said, you know, sorry
I'm a heathen and don't believe in replacing one addiction with another.
Ban Ban
Go to top
* Broken promises
My coming to America was a dream. I once thought I was lucky to a country
with lots of hope. My mother didn't want me to leave. She had raised me
single-handedly for twelve years under harsh war-timeconditions. She raised
me without my father, without the help of a single family member or friends.
She dreamed that some day I would become somebody -- somebody who could
make her proud.
The sad part is that I was tempted -- tempted to see, to know, and to
experience what was happening on the other side of the world. I chose the
U.S. over my mother, my loved one, and the only person who could understand
me. I left her only because of money, greed, and lack of family.
God, I miss those days when I would wake up in the morning and ask my
mother to give me 10 tomans, so I could go to the noonvaii and by two barbaris.
God I miss the days I came back from school and there was always delicious
food waiting for me, and my mother was waiting for me at the door to greet
me and say " azizam chetory, madreseh chetor bood?"
Well, I made a choice. I left Iran to experience something new. However,
no matter how amazing those experiences were, to me the experience of being
with my mother was the best. I was just a victim of promises.
Mehrdad S.
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Tuesday
March 7, 2000
* Redemption
It's tragic enough to be young, energetic, enthusiastic, bright and
intelligent individual in Iran; just image being all that and a woman.
Imagine your day to day life of restrictions, a constant reminder of being
a second rate citizen in your own home. It's no wonder how Iranian girls
are dying to get out of the country at any price. Marrying a strange man
half way a cross the world is a ticket for FREEDOM! It's not necessarily
about marriage; it's about recovering from a lifetime of destitute and
faded dreams. It's about gaining their basic rights as human beings first,
not as married wives. It's about redemption! >>>
FULL TEXT
Saghi Zarinkalk
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* Bombay hostages
How about this for a story: Because of a dispute between Iran, Britain,
and Afghanistan (the siege of Kabul), a whole bunch of Iranian businessmen
and merchants were taken hostage and shipped to Bombay sometime in 1850s.
By the time the ship got there, the dispute was over, so they freed the
hostages in Bombay.
My great great grandfather was one of them. There was no such thing
as POW exchange, etc. So, many of them stayed there and that's how my dad's
family ended up in Burma. I'm taking dad to Burma next week. He hasn't
been there in 58 years!
We found the street he lived on in the city map. I'm going to find out
more about the history of the Iranian community there. Dad is very excited,
so am I.
Shirin Bazleh
Go to top
Monday
March 6, 2000
* Seven sisters
A new phase of "Dowom e khordad" is unfolding, which is a
calculated attack on the "Bonyads" or various charity fundations
supported by the state's annual budget. Recently President Khatami asked
Bonyad e Mostazafan to start a "self critique." A deputy of the
Behzisti Organization also criticized openly the Bonyad e Emdad e Emam
Khomeini >>>
FULL TEXT
Rasool Nafisi
Go to tp
* Owe apology
First off, bravo! for the excellent work! I am a devout fan : ) However,
I am writing in regards to the story "She
changed overnight." I am writing not in regards to the author
or story, despite the apparant flaws of both.
Rather, I would like to respond to the editorial comment "sadly,
it is not uncommon" which ran as a header over the story. So, this
type of thing happens all the time, does it? It is "not uncommon"
for Iranian men to travel back to the homeland and marry part time prostitutes
and drug abusers? It is "not uncommon" for Iranian women to behave
in such a depraved fashion?
I believe in freedom of speech and have no problem with the printing
of this article, despite my disgust for the author and his wife. However,
I hold your editors responsible for the offensive header. The vast majority
of Iranian women are neither drug abusers nor part time prosititutes. Frankly,
you owe us an apology.
Shokooh Miry
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Friday,
March 3, 2000
* I want justice, or else
[After the victory of the reformists in the Majlis elections] Mr. Khatami
has NO EXCUSES when people such as I and my family press for justice:
Mr. Khatami, I want those responsible for the murder of Dr. Abdolrahman
Boroumand arrested, prosecuted, and punished according to the Shari'a.
Mr. Khatami, I want those responsible for stealing and selling-off my family's
properties and assets arrested, prosecuted, and punished according to the
Shari'a... and I want compensation -- in full -- for the damages my family
has suffered. Mr. Khatami, I want a public apology for the manner in which
my family, and many other Iranian families, have been treated over the
past twenty years.
Mr. Khatami, I assure you that if this minimum of action is not instituted,
you and your reform movement will find the Iranian people pointing you
in the same direction as your predecessors- the direction of the garbage
bin. I also assure you that I will NOT remove the pressure from you until
justice has been served. Reform is not a slogan; it is a very real commitment
to change.
I also want to take this opportunity to very publicly say: Mr. Khomeini
(and everything that has followed since) has been the very worst thing
to have ever afflicted Iran's recent history. The people of Iran could
have arrived at this same point twenty years ago without pain and injustice,
if it weren't for the misguided selfishness of that old man. The truth
must be said, even if it hurts.
Hamid Boroumand
Go to top
* Implausible
I am sending you this email in regards to "She
changed overnight". Kasra claimst an Iranian woman married him
supposedly for Green Card and then changed overnight after she got ot.
The story has several implausible premises. But the most obvious and
amazingly stupid flaw of the story is the claim that his bride got her
Green Card less than a year after marriage! Well, unless he and the rest
of the non-immigrant population of America are dealing with two different
INS, this claim does not even qualify as a good lie.
I am not saying that a lot of Iranians do not run into trouble when
they marry virtual strangers half a world away and try to make a life with
them. But publishing an email like Mr. Kasra's does not generate any sympathy
for this group.
I guess the moral of his story is do not marry part-time prostitutes
(his words , not mine) and expect a wholesome harmonious relationship.
Brian Mottaghi
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Thursday
March 2, 2000
* Zendeh baad!
I just wanted to render my unconditional BRAVO again for a wonderfully
professional job, week in and week out! I've really enjoyed your coverage
of Iran's recent elections and the related pieces you have presented.
Ben Bagheri
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* Mordeh baad!
Recently I sent you an article about the accomplishments of my nephew
which was not only in the newspapers, but it got him interviews with Voice
of America, ANT, the Today Show and more.
But unfortunately our own people didn't even acknowledge his accomplishments
to show the Iranian readers that there are many Iranian children who are
academically successful.
You are a shame not only to Iranians but to the country of Iran.
Nana Farshad
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Wednesday
March 1, 2000
* Knows nothing, obviously
In reply to Michael
Chessman's note to The Iranian:
I must first and foremost repudiate the basic point you try to argue.
Iranians are NOT European, they NEVER have been European, and they MOST
CERTAINLY will never be European. Iranians are descendants of the nomadic
tribes of Central Asia, who migrated south and settled on the present --
day Iranian plateau 7,000-10,000 years ago. These people were known as
the Aryans.
There was another group of Aryans who split off and migrated westward
toward Europe, and so it can be argued that Iranians share common ancestors
with some modern-day Europeans.
But so what?
Frankly way too much has been made of the whole bit about Aryan ancestry.
At the end of the day, it doesn't matter. But to claim that Iranians actually
descended from some blood line originating in Europe is absolute rubbish.
It's obvious that this guy knows nothing whatsoever about history. He's
just making arguments based on racist underpinnings.
Nariman N.
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* Tears, almost
Reading Roozbeh's moving letter to Khatami ["Dialogue
among ourselves"] almost brought tears to my eyes, especially
because I find this kind of compassion towards their homeland quite rare
among second generation Iranians.
I hope our beloved president hear Roozbeh's voice and he and his parents
can visit iran soon.
Ataollah Togha
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