Letters

October 2006
Part 1 -- Part 2 -- Part 3

October 20

Assuming women as victims

In response to Faramarz Fateh's "What has happened to Iranian men?":

Dear friends,

Having been a die hard supporter of equality of sexes all my life, I have found myself in the position to fight for equality as a man. I am going through a divorce right now after 17 years of catering 24/7 to my wife’s every whim. She has slandered and lied and the courts are set up to assume women as victims (especially when it comes to Middle Eastern men) and men as guilty abusers. She has destroyed me financially and professionally. She has taken everything including my three children whom I have not seen for almost 5 months.

You want to know why the Persian-American men are timid? Look at the injustice they face... the unfair stereotyping. This country has, in the name of equality, swung the other way and is now very prejudice and unjust to men; there has been a major over correction to the admittedly bad way women were treated historically but two wrongs do not make a right!

Striving to be His stronghold, His lamp, His dominion, His light, His glory, His robe, and the daystar of the heavens of His holiness... His servant,

Take these pointers... and shove them

In response to Sima Shirazi's "I'm the boss":

What a fantastic choice of name. Sima! are these instruction meant for a Lesbian couple? Or did you use to be a lesbo?

What a shame. You said it very well at some point in the letter that we may think that you are full of shit. Well, that was before getting to the end of the letter. Up until then, there was the benefit of the doubt, but once i got to the bottom, i could not agree with you more. You are so full of shit.

I don't think you realized that It was you and maybe your other pals that night in the car that humiliated your friend, more that his wife could ever have. I seriously doubt that you the Ba..s to talk to some one like the way you did. That is Pure BS, all the way. You think like a caveman. You've gotten it all backward. I guess somebody at some point in your life must have had you for a big fool that you were and decided to do a practical joke on you and has acted up all of this nonsense right before you and ever since then you have become a believer . You know how i can tell? Because you are still hanging around your friends until 5 o'clock in the morining doing god knows what, Instead of being home with your wife, Gf or family.

No you are not the boss. and no You don't rule anything. You are just fooling yourself to belive that such is the case. Men who talk like that to their wives and gfs in front of their friends are THE first to get their asses kicked to the curb and If you were smart enough and had eyes, you knew what i was talking about. That is the recepie for disaster, right there. from that point on the relationship will be going down and that is when all the fights start. Of course, It all depends on how you define a relationship. What i am referring to is a REAL one not the ones you and your friends might be used to.

I really think you are asking for it. Women were not made to please us. Get that bacward, weak mentality, out of your head. That is the sign of an extremely insecured male. I agree that TV fills just about anyone's mind with Peepee, But then again you will be showing respect to someone if you think that the individual is far beyond what she sees on TV intellectually and can think for herself. Unless of course, as i said before, You stick to your type of woman, which is a whole different ball game.

How the fuck canone smack someone around without hurting her? IT is like saying get a woman half pregnant. NOnsense. What you describe here as smacking somone around in a humbling way, is nothingshort of a minor form of abuse. You are a mad man. what kinda shit are you smoking now? I can tell that you are the abuser kind. By god we need a lot less of you people among us.

Has it ever crossed your shallow mind that there are women out there who in exchange for all that love showering over them, give back with more love and more appreciation for their man, rather that bitching and moaning and all that other crap? If you happen to be stuck with a woman who has the potential to cheat on you with whomever, then the man should do the smart thing from the beginning. do his due dilligence and get rid of her before showering her with love and devotion.

Smooth and firm my ass. That is THE most stupid way to approach a relationship. specially if your goal is to humble somebody. That essentially means that you are not revealing your true side to her, taking her for a fool, Lying your way through and neither one of your will ever get to know each other that well for the life of the relationship. Thinking that you can Dictate matters or as you so gently and shallow-mindedly putit Telling!, means you have so many doubts about your own intelligence and ability to live a normal life. That you are a real loser with no sense of security. A real GOod for nothing. IF you give Her the chance to disagree, THINK HARD, Her respect Level for you will Triple, If she is a wise woman. IF Not, Then shame on you for ever asking her to be your woman.

Bottom line: you Need Major therapy. You are So not aware of what women , TRUe, Real , women want out there. Leave the poor friend alone. He is just living his own life. He doesn't want to end up like you. Coming on line and start spewing Junk, under the title of how to treat your women.

The first thing i'd do if i were you? I'd checkin to a Rehab center. Maybe the one that Mark foley recently checked into.

Real or fiction?

In response to Sanaz Fotouhi's "Choice":

Ms. Fotouhi,

Please excuse my ignorance, I read your piece on iranian.com on prostitution, and wanted to know if this was a fictional story or a true story-maybe indirectly?

And please guide to know what to get out of this article after reading it. Because the outcome for the reader may vary depending on the truth of the matter. I am sure such "stories" are true on a daily basis, but this prticular writing on iranian.com must provide a specific result for the readers, if your wish is such.

Thank you for writing. [Reply below]

F. Bathaee

Based on what I saw

In response to F. Bathaee's "Real or fiction?":

Dear Bathaee,

I have received several emails as such. Some even asking me 'how long have you been a prostitute for?' While some people might find that question offensive, I take is as the ignorance of the reader who cannot distinguish between the writer and the subject about which he or she writes about. Not all that writers write are 'true' experiences of life. However, I must thank you for your question and care in reading the piece. This story is based on a scene I saw in Tehran several years ago.

Walking down the street next to Golestan Mall, I saw how cars would pass these girls and honk their horns and the girls would hestitate look into the cars and so forth. I became really intersted in understanding and presenting that specific psyche of a girl who does that. Is it out of poverty? is it out of rebelion? In a country like Iran where such acts are punishable by extremem measures I found this subject very interseting. There is an evergrowning population of prostitutes and call girls in Tehran, as I hear everytime i travel back there.

My purpose and what i wish the reader to gain from this story is a glimpse into what i imagine a girl like that might feel in that situation. It is also with the realization that the Iranian 'moral' police are not always the most 'moral' themselves and at times they use their positions for their own benefits. A girl in that business in Iran, is then, caught between the corruption of the masses and the corruption of the 'moral' police. The question it ultimately poses is, does she really have a choice, even when she wants out and realizes the danger of the situation in which she is.

But as always it is open to your own interpertation of what it means!

In a world of denial

In response to Faramarz Fateh's "What has happened to Iranian men?":

My name is Ameer and I live in Texas.

I truly believe U live in a world of denial; If U don't know it U better start realizing that they run the show; They are stronger than we are; May be U and I can lift a heavy object and they cant; but if U understand the way women process information and are Milt tasking; They are wife's, mother, child care provider scoffer cook and dress up for U voluptuously at night with perfume.

U are right truly they are fucking us not the other way around; Think about it how it feels when U penetrate that lovely piece of meat; All we need to do listen to them (of course the good ones ) there are some crazy MF out there too.

No offense I love that PUSSY and die for it! Specially my children mother's one.

Ameer e khar!!!

He's not Zan-Zalil

In response to Faramarz Fateh's "What has happened to Iranian men?":

The thumbnail that you used for the article titled “What has happened to Iranian Men?” is the photo of a friend’s husband, who is not a Zan-Zalil.
Though the wife is somewhat upset that the combination of the photo and the article depict him as a Zan-Zalil and hence imputing to her something she is not.

She contacted me seeking legal advice; and I explained to her that is very difficult to get any blood out of turnip, and you are completely broke and probably other than a pair of worn down Ray-Ban glasses not much could be had.

Could you replace that thumbnail with something else??

P

Are you serious?

In response to Kaveh L. Afrasiabi's "What nuclear adventurism?":

Dear Mr. Afrasiabi:

Your article is so riddled with flowed logic that it seems unlikely to have been written by some one who calls himself a researcher, be it in political science or in any other field. As a researcher myself, I can assure you that I read many research papers, which are full of scientific mistakes and flowed conclusions, and which I would classify as clap trap and void of any scientific value. The absence of participation in such activities does not disqualify any one, necessarily, from being informed in their area of expertise. Publishing clap trap, though, does identify you as an unqualified researcher.

If Mr. Milani has not published in any journals, but you have, it does not qualify you to make sweeping statements about your ability to do critical analysis. You accuse Mr. Milani of being uninformed because he has not lived in Iran for the past three decades, yet you disqualify Mr. Ganji, who has lived in Iran for the past three decades, as ill informed. Is there any one, other than you, who can be intelligently informed? In one swoop you have accused the Iranian academic community as being “pseudo intellectuals” with ”shallow depth”, which presumably elevates you to the position of such intellectual superiority as to judge them.

All this, because they do not sympathize with your personal ordeal and torment in the U.S.? Now, if no one else has experienced this hardship and, to the contrary, have had good fortune with their forced exile in the U.S. and cannot identify with your situation, then they are shallow and of inferior intelligence? Lucky for you there is a system of law and order in this country that allows you to have legal recourse on all your claims of impropriety, committed against you, a recourse that Mr.Ganji did not have in his unjust treatment by his Islamic captors.

“The poverty of Iranian dissidence is here partially diplayed, however. Ganji, the heroic dissident exposing fearlessly the corruptio of power, should know better than to level uncorroborated accusations against Iran, that would only endear him to Iran's enemies and, simultaneously, weaken Iran's moderate politicians, some of whom have worked with Ganji in the past. Those same politicians have rightly criticized Ganji in the past, for his excesses, e.g., vis-a-vis Hashemi Rafsanjani, and they must now reckon with the potential damage of befriending someone whose view point on the nuclear issue is at odds with the sentiment of vast majority of Iranians.”

Do you have corroborated evidence that Iran is not in pursuit of a nuclear bomb, and that there are actually moderates in the Iranian government who can affect policies to any significant degree? If not, then you are displaying the poverty of your intellectual assessment and are endearing yourself to the enemies of the Iranian people, namely the Mullah regime. The stakes are so high in this game of nuclear hide and seek that the burden must be on you and the Mullahs to prove null intent. The IAEA’s chief investigator, Mr. Al-baradei, is married to the sister of a prominent Ayatollah in Iran and can hardly be called impartial. But, given the benefit of the doubt, how would the IAEA discover the truth if Iran does not willingly open its program to inspections?

“Long ago, this author reached the point of evolution in his own political discourse, by not conflating the political value of some one's dissidence with the value of his intellectual or theoretical valor. Mr. Ganji, the journalist and great essayist, is a poor source when it comes to Iran's foreign and national security priorities and it would be ill-advised for any one to follow his ill-informed insights on that front.“

Based on the clap trap you have published here, which defies all logic, I would say you are a poor source when it comes to Iran's foreign and national security priorities and it would be ill-advised, for any one, to follow YOUR ill-informed insights on that front.

“Nor should we ignore the serious defects of his new, one-dimensional love for the United States of America, which shows the limits of his understanding of the dark sides of the US, and the post 9/11 perils to democracy and democratic rights particularly for the Middle East immigrants.”

Are you serious? What perils to democracy and democratic rights, other than those imposed by Islamic terrorists, are you talking about. Had the situation been reversed and Western terrorists had committed the 9/11 atrocities in a Middle Eastern country, do you believe, for a minute, that a Westerner could live in that Middle Eastern country and write as freely as you and criticize the defensive posture of that Middle Eastern country?

So the question remains, if you ask us to mistrust Mr. Ganji and Mr. Milani, why should we trust you and not question your motives? By attacking the Iranian academic community, on a personal matter, you have lost your credibility. But, by displaying such gullibility and shallow interpretation of Ahmadinejad’s diversionary tactics and convoluted answers, about his republic's intent, you have demonstrated a new one dimensional love for the Islamic Republic, and no one should ignore the serious defects of this new love, which shows the limits of understanding of the dark, and only side, of the Islamic Republic.

It is Ironic that, a new generation of self proclaimed intellectuals, in exile, enjoying the intellectual openness of a democratic system, are denying the suppression of intellectual freedom for Iranians, inside Iran. Frankly, it sickens me to see people like you, Mr. Afrasiabi, take up the place of the multitudes of immigrants waiting to come to this country and to contribute fruitfully to the most humanistic form of government mankind has ever experimented with. Meanwhile, it is unfair for you to enjoy the pursuit of liberty, happiness and justice, in this country, while lending support, through your actions and words, to that system of tyranny subjugating the Iranian people. You are giving aid and comfort to the enemies of the Iranian people.

You should go back and live in that paradise, that you see fit for Iranians imprisoned inside it, but see as only fit for your casual visits.

Shahriar Azadmanesh

Don't judge so fast

In response to Guive Mirfendereski's "Technical difficulties":

Although the writer, Mr. Mirfendereski, recently called me "imbecile", I partially agree with his assessment of current situation between Iran and the US.

In general, I feel that The US administration has no intentions, what so ever, to settle this problem through negotiation (referring to recent unilateral sanctions passed by congress and signed by president) and unfortunately mullahs are giving all the excuses to the neo-cons. Or they may think all the rope to hang itself by creating another Iraq.

As for the letter, don't judge so fast, it is more about friction within the current Iran regime than the actual intent. Consider that this letter was written during the Iraq war and Saddam was fully in bed with the US administration at the time and in addition Saddam also had nuclear ambition at that time.

Especially with current situation in North Korea, the US administration is becoming more belligerent than ever. I am certain if tomorrow by some magic, Iran suspends its nuclear activities, the neo-cons will demand additional concessions and on top of their list is recognition of Israel, considering recent remarks by the Iranian regime.

Unfortunately Iranian people, the true sufferers of this tragedy, are stuck between rock and a hard place.

Might wanna double check

In response to Guive Mirfendereski's "Technical difficulties":

The London gabfest (from the Old Persian gap, meaning talk, chat) about sanctioning Iran is off.

This is factually in error: gab'ber is an English word, or English origin. It does not come to English from another source.

Might wanna look at where the word "gap" comes from in Old Persian, though. English is a germanic language and is therefore from the same family of languages as Persian.

I'm not really sure why you decided to define the word in the beginning of your atticle but you could have defined it correctly at least! I paid much less attention to everything that was written afterwards!

I was wrong

Follow up response to David Maynard's "Saving Nazanin from Nazanin":

The two men that have had the most profound impact on my life could not be more different from one another if they tried. One is a proud Iranian man and the other is a humble, but headstrong American man. Just about the only thing that these two men have in common is that they both love my mother, sister and me. While both my baba borzorg and my father have greatly influenced and shaped my character and my attitudes in life, I am not exactly like either of them. Having had each one of my two feet firmly planted in different worlds growing up, one Iranian and the other American, I have been able to cherry pick and enjoy in my life the best parts of each culture and leave untouched those aspects that I don't find appealing.

Perhaps it's just human nature, but growing up in our home my sister was always closer to our father than me. Don't get me wrong, I love my father dearly, but I've always been closer to my maman than my sister was. Maybe this is the reason that I've always felt the pull of our Iranian heritage much more strongly than my sister has. I love her very much, but we are as different as the moon and the sun. She has always chosen to live the biggest part of her life in American circles while I've preferred to live mine in Iranian circles to a much greater degree. My sister has always regarded being part of the Iranian community as an obligation thrust upon her as a consequence of our mother's ethnicity while I've always felt that it is more vital to me than the air I breathe. Being Iranian is as fundamental a part of my character as being American is to my dear sister. Having said all this, I cannot and do not wish to divorce myself from those parts of my character and personality which come from my dad for he is a wonderful man and a good and loving father.

Many of the attitudes that my father holds and the values he tries to live by are different from those held by my baba borzorg. While they see eye to eye on many things, there are some things they just do not. I've learned to respect both of them, even when they're unable to agree with one another. One of the things that my baba borzorg believes strongly and has told me many times in life is that Iranian men never admit making mistakes and they never, ever apologize. My dad, on the other hand, has taught me that if I'm big enough to unjustly hurt someone, then I ought to big enough to admit my wrong and seek forgiveness. My grandfather believes that regret and contrition are signs of weakness in a man while my dad sees them as signs of strength. My father truly feels that unless a man can admit his wrongs then he is no man at all. After thinking hard about the views held by each, I've come to the conclusion that my grandfather is wrong and my dad is right.

This week I strongly rebuked Nazanin Afshin Jam in a letter to iranian.com [See: 21st century snake oil salesman]. I was wrong to have done so. In "Saving Nazanin from Nazanin" the author made very serious allegations against Ms. Afshin Jam, but offered no proof to substantiate his claims. I was wrong in allowing myself to jump to conclusions regarding Ms. Afshin Jam's guilt. I assumed that because the allegations appeared in iranian.com that they must be true. I let my judgment be swayed without ever questioning the veracity of the author or whether there was any factual basis for the allegations leveled against Ms. Afshin Jam or evidence substantiating the author's claims.

Once I realized that I had probably been duped by the author into believing his baseless allegations, I was angry at him. Upon further reflection, however, I realized that the author would not have been able to lead me down the primrose path if I had not been so eager to go. The only person I have to be angry with for my inability to see through the smear job leveled at Ms. Afshin Jam is me. David Maynard (probably a pseudonym for a jealous rival of Ms. Afshin Jam) was only able to lead me toward unjust and unproven conclusions because I allowed myself to be led. I acted like a sheep, so the writer led me (and probably others) to where he wanted me (us) to go just as a shepherd leads his flock. Unfortunately the shepherd of this article turned out to be a wolf in shepherd's clothing.

After reading the letters of support from people who know Ms. Afshin Jam personally, I got the sick feeling that I had wronged her terribly and by doing it in a public forum like iranian.com I had magnified the injustice greatly. The letters that Ms. Afshin Jam's contemporaries have written on her behalf testify to her many wonderful qualities and the good and decent character she possesses. Her many contemporaries speak of her tireless work and heartfelt efforts on behalf of Nazanin Fatehi. I know she has done far more that many other people including myself.

In my letter, 21st Century Snake Oil Salesman, I asked where her shame and honor were. She has no shame in this matter, but I do; for I, without demanding any proof from her accuser, wrongly condemned her based upon innuendo and unproven allegations. Her honor, which I so wrongly questioned, is without doubt in safest place and Iranian woman can keep her honor; her heart.

As I was quick to heap public scorn on Ms. Afshin Jam, so too am I ready to apologize to her publicly. I am truly sorry and I hope she will forgive me. Perhaps, an Iranian man would not apologize and Khoda knows my baba borzorg would not approve what I'm doing now, but it is the right thing to do, even if it isn't the Iranian thing to do.

Publicly available for Nazanin

Follow up response to David Maynard's "Saving Nazanin from Nazanin":

Mr Maynard,

After reading your article, I want to make you aware that the "telephone interview" between Nazanin Afshin-jam and Nazanin Mahabad Fatehi was actually a WRITTEN interview. Would you have taken some time to read it thoroughly, you would have noticed that.

Then you write that Ms Afshin-Jam has high-jacked a campaign which was already launched. I must tell you that at the beginning of this year, there was hardly any notice of the fate of Nazanin Mahabad Fatehi, the public declaration of Amnesty International about her and Delara Darabi being almost the only document publicly available about this case.

Ms Afshin-Jam has not seeked to high-jack any campaign, and I know it from first-hand. It was me, as a concerned individual, who browsed the internet for the name "Nazanin" after having read the story of Nazanin Mahabad Fatehi, and wrote to Nazanin Afshin-Jam, among other Iranian-born personnalities in the US, in Canada and in France, in desperate hope that they could do something. Ms Afshin-Jam learned about Nazanin Mahabad Fatehi from my e-mail.

She has then launched a petition wich has collected, when I am writing you, 218,297 signatures. She had taken time to visit the United Nations, she has delayed the release of her CD, in contrary to what you are writing.... Please take time to read on the "Save Nazanin" petition who wrote it and who signed it first.

Possibly Nazanin Afshin-Jam has not a full knowledge of juridical cases (which is also questionnable, given that she has studied at the prestigious "Sciences-Po" institute in Paris), but again if you took time to document yourself before writing your articles, you could notice that she has worked on Nazanin Fatehi's case with notorious jurists and specialists on human rights, such as Negar Azmudeh and Mina Ahadi.

All this information is extremely easily available on the internet, in the written press in Canada and in the US, and in big TV channels in the same countries.

Regards.

Vincent Maunoury

Daydreaming break

In response to Farah Ravon's "Eat. Sleep. Hike.":

Khanoom Ravon e aziz,

Being a (good) food lover and hiker myself, your photos added a short but necessary daydreaming break session to my morning. Thank you. Your passion for healthy ingredients pops right out of your photos.

I envisioned those beauties in cream to be shahtoot! (too high of elevation for shah toot/mulberry to grow, huh?)

Best wishes to you.

Keep at it,

Monda

Supreme council of ignorance

On Dr. Hasan Rahimpur Azghadi lecture, "Women, Sex, and Chauvinism in the West":

Dear Dr. Hassan Rahimpour Azghadi,

I am researching background information about your "Women, Sex, and Patriarchy in the West" speech in the "Role of Islamic Woman in Resistance to Feminism", September 1, 2006. Would you please provide me with your higher education information, university name, date of graduation, and field of study. These information are left blank in the official website of the "Iranian Supreme Council for Cultural Revolution".

Also, in your lecture you mention a husband and wife paying separately for their meal, in what western country did you observe this event, what year, how did you know they were married, did you know them prior to they coming to the restaurant, were you eating with them or sitting separately?

I have heard or read about them before, but I can not recall where and when? Have you mentioned them in your prior lectures before? Have they ever been mentioned in any of your books or articles before? Do you remember the name of the restaurant or what kind of food they serve, and whether it is prepared according to the Islamic tradition or not?

Thank you very much.

My girlfriends always know who's the boss

In response to Faramarz Fateh's "What has happened to Iranian men?":

I'm a first generation Iranian, and I agree. These younger generation Iranian guys act like most whipped American men. It's sad. My girlfriends always know that I'm the man or boss and like it that way.

What the hell was your point again? Bitch?

In response to Sima Shirazi's "I'm the boss":

Sima jaan,

Wow, you are a dumbass. That was the dumbest article I've ever read in my life. What the hell was your point again? Bitch?

zh

Giving good Iranian men a bad name

In response to Sima Shirazi's "I'm the boss":

I have just one question, what woman in their right mind would stay with you? Oh yeah that's right NONE!! It is men like you that give the good Iranian men a bad name. Go find yourself something else to do because I do not believe there is not a woman with a sense of respect for herself that would come anywhere near you. How you could ever pass this crap to out to someone is beyond me and an insult to Iranians on the whole. What a pity for you to think that you have to smack a woman around to get their respect.

You are a shame on the male gender. Hitting someone does not earn respect it just earns fear and apparently you must have some little meek woman who probably adores you but you don't give a damn about her. You wouldn't even know what to do with a real woman. You are probably some kid that thinks he knows what to do but in the end will go limp.

Excuse to nuke

In response to Sima Shirazi's "I'm the boss":

I hope this is all tongue-in-cheek and that all Iranian men aren't all like you. If it isn't, you've just given the U.S. all the justification its citizenry requires to nuke your sorry asses back to the stone age.

Panahaande Iran shavid

In response to Faramarz Fateh's "What has happened to Iranian men?":

be nazare man shoma behtare bargardid iran va panahaande iran shavid, chon dar irane shoma mard be hokme eslam mitone pooste zanesh ra bekane va bad az 30 ta 40 sal zolmo setam mitoone az khoone biroonesh kone bedoone hich haghi. omidvaram madar va khahare shoma jozve in daste nabashan.

alhagh ke baraye mardani ba afkare shoma ,haman jomhori eslami ya taleban barazande ast.

yek zane azade zolm keshide bi vatan.

A holistic solution

In response to Kianosh Saadati's "Do we really need another Bab?":

Dear friends,

While I agree that every cleric declaring himself to be “the Promised One” is frustrating and annoying but it is the sign of the times. The Bible describes it in a very colorful albeit coded way. Do we need these false profits? Yes we do! Because they were foretold and are part of the Divine Plan and provide the proof for the faithful that the Manifestations of God, including the Bab were indeed right! A quick research in the holy books will result in a clear picture of the time that the Promised One will appear and what will happen after His appearance.

Once we filter through the metaphors, linguistic, and age constraints, we can see a world of chaos and moral decay very much like we have had and a fundamental and institutional decay of the old world followed by the birth of the New Era of enlightenment. Our courts are failing, our marriages are failing, and the politics of the old world is fumbling over itself as outdated beliefs, inept and impotent institutions, and worn out solutions fail to effectively deal with today’s global world. Today we need a global view... a holistic solution. No longer does the old winner/looser model work... when there is a looser everyone looses; there is no win/loose... only win/win or loose/loose.

His holiness the Bab was executed for bringing people back to the Love of God instead of the superstitious world they lived in almost 200 years ago in Iran. He did not try to avoid martyrdom although he could have. He told people to love one another and that he was the gate (Bab means gate) to the One who would come to fulfill the prophecies of all faiths... the Glory of God (Bahaullah)... the Promised One of all faiths. He told us that the world would change and become more spiritual... he said that he was the Gate to the new Cycle of Manifestations of God and that the old cycle had ended with his holiness Mohammad (as stated in Quran as well).

To change the old world to the new, the old systems and old thoughts have to be eradicated... this takes time and has to happen in unison. The reason we see turmoil in all of our institutions and all over the world is this that the decaying, crumbling old system is decomposing before our very eyes and a new seed has germinated and has just sprouted out of the ground. It is much like a forest fire which seems so destructive and fierce but only serves to clear off the decay and provide necessary capability for the young sprouts to create a better healthier forest. We may be in the forest fire now but it helps to know that our suffering will usher the healthier, more loving new world.

The old forest was not bad! It served its purpose and was young and healthy once. In the heavens, stars are borne and stars die all the time. Like wise, Islam and all the other Dispensations of God are not bad... first grade was not bad... we just out grew it! We learned what we needed and then went on to second grade; which was more important? Does that even make any sense? Of course not! The problem is that through time, man inserts his own weaknesses into religion thus the religion practiced diverges from the original teachings of God. Instead of loving one another, we begin to kill one another in His name! This is a blasphemy of first order in my humble view.

Take heart my friends that this seeming inferno... this unpleasantness... this injustice and hopelessness is only the sign of the changing world. What lay ahead us is the Most Great Peace and the golden age and maturation of mankind. This is not just any time! There has never been a time like this time in all of creation! Indeed all the Manifestations of God yearned to live at this time! Rejoice that our inferno is giving birth to a wonderful world that we all have dreamed of as long as man has dreamt!

His servant,

Incomparable peace and justice

In response to Kianosh Saadati's "Do we really need another Bab?":

Lately I have been hearing much on Ayatollah Mohammad Kazemeini Boroujerdi. It is true that rarely one in Ithna-Ashariyyih Shia Islam proclaim an affiliation to Divine Authority in the manner that he supposedly has, even though he withdrew his claim. I find it interesting that there is so much commotion of him, when at the same time, it is not terribly unlikely that many of the clerical oligarchs of the modern era in Iran, as well as Ahmadinejad, believe stations of similar importance for themselves.

However, in his piece "Do we really need another Bab?," Kianosh Saadati condemns is claim by suggesting that The Bab by example shows that such a claim is disasterous? But why? No reasoning whatsoever was mentioned of what The Bab has done that was so bad. On the contrary, on an increasing level, historians, scholars, and everyday people are coming to see The Bab as one of the most progressive and intelligent individuals in history, even if not a Messenger of God. Additionally, the two cannot possilby be compared. I say this not as a Baha'i, but as an objective rational thinkier.

First of all, The Bab did not propose a "reformed Islam" of any sort. He declared a completely different Dispensation, like Muhammad after Christ and Christ after Muhammad. Yes, a Messenger, not simply an Imam. (Another Messenger is indicated in the Quran in the Surah of Hud, specifically in 11:120) As would be the Divine Right of His claimed station, He interepereted that the Day of Resurrection and the coming of a New Revelation is one in the same. That is, the Quran indicates that part of the Book is figurative for something else, and The Bab proclaimed that this was it.

Furthermore, He proclaimed His religious Dispensation to be a brief transition between the Muslim (Quranic) Dispensatin and that of the Promised Messenger to follow Him, Bahaullah. Thus, whether one believes The Bab or not, He was puting most of the weight on something to immediately succeed Him and Himself. So if one were to try to think of Him as someone of pride or ego, His words and ordainances show that that is clearly not the case.

The selflessness of The Bab is further seen in His lifetime of sacrifice. He was the son of a merchant and could have lived comfortably, but at 25 He went on to perform HIs claimed Divine mission. In just a few years (1844-1850) from His intimation/Declaration, to His execution by a 750 man fireing squad, He underwent persecutions and incarcerations, yet remarkably generated tens of thousands of followers (of which 20,000 were consequently killed by Qajar and clerical officials). All of which could have been avoided if The Bab had simply withdrawn His claim, as was again and again demanded of Him.

And what did all of this bring? In 1852 Bahaullah declared His mission as the Promised one of The Bab, proclaiming a universal Revelation for the establishment of Peace and Justice worldwide. The end of tyranny, the end of gender, ethnic, and religious persecution and injustice, a proclaimation for universal democracy, a call for a global commonwealth, a blueprint for a world government (the very idea of which was way of ahead of its time) that corrects all of problems associated with this notion in the current attempt of it today, so on and so forth.

Ayatollah Mohammad Kazemeini Boroujerdi, cannot even be nearly compared. All he has presented are areas of "reform" something that is prohibited in Islam unless it is Ordained by Divine Guidence. Now unlike Muslim Scholars, Boroujerdi knows the fact that this can only come by Divine Guidence, and through that probably got somewhat carried away in proclaming not Messengerdom, not (non-Messenger) Imamhood, but simply a deputy of the hidden Imam; the most remote and safe proclaimiation of Divine association one can give in Ithna-Ashariyyih Shia Islam. Most importantly, he has withdrawn this claim upon arrest and questioning.

I say this not to prove truth of The Bab's mission, but think of the classic story of King Solomon and the disputed child. Two mothers both claimed that one child was theres, one was lieing. King Solomon resolved that the baby should be split in half and each half given to each mother. The lieing mother agreed, while the true mother forefeited her right, saying it would be better the child be given to the other mother than killed. This was the test of truth. All I am saying is that there is a difference in sincereity and character here that needs to be examined, and it can be seen in sacrifice and passion, even if one does not wish to accept the work of peace and justice given by The Bab.

I wish to add as a side note to this article, that for a modern day example of this sacrifice and devotion, one need only look at the steadfast Baha'i community of Iran. Here a comunity of 350,000 can live free from injustice, free from being prohibited a right to a higher education, and so much more, simply by recanting their faith. Yet, the community has remained strong in the face of the attempts by the government to destroy the Baha'i Community and lives on by the legacy Founders of their faith. >>> More letters in October 2006 Part 1 -- Part 2

Please visit:
-- question.bahai.org
-- denial.bahai.org
-- BahaiWorldNews.org

>>> More letters in October 2006 Part 1 -- Part 2 -- Part 3
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