Archives
February 2005
February 26
* Petition: No US intervention
Open Letter to the
American People
In the wake of the death of
tens of thousands of Iraqis and over twelve thousand Americans
killed or wounded, immeasurable destruction, and continuing
instability resulting from the US occupation of Iraq, we the undersigned
express our deep
alarm at the prospect of US direct or indirect military action in Iran >>> Sign
petition
We firmly
believe that the discontent with, and opposition to, the ruling theocracy in
Iran does not mean that the Iranian people support military operations against
their country by the United States or any other foreign power. Iranians still
remember the serious blow to freedom in Iran by the US covert operation against
the democratically elected government of Dr. Mossadegh in 1953.
Iran is a country
three times the size and population of Iraq, with a history of struggle against
foreign invaders that dates back thousands of years. The
human cost, in terms of Iranian and American lives, of any US military intervention
in Iran may prove to be much higher than in Iraq, with incalculable damage
to Iran's economy and national assets. Any invasion or bombing of Iran will increase militarism,
strengthen the grip of religious fanatics over the state and nation,
and further erode democratic
and human rights in Iran.
We ask you to oppose any military intervention in
Iran and work to promote genuine peace in the region >>> Sign
petition
-- Forwarded by Bendad
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*
Blood in your Oscar caviar
DEAR MEMBER OF THE ACADEMY
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION:
THERE IS BLOOD IN YOUR IRANIAN CAVIAR!
Dear distinguished members of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts
and Sciences, nominees and other guests of the post-Oscar Governor's
Ball,
Please be advised that there is blood in the Iranian
Osetra Caviar that your beloved Wolfgang "Puke" Puck
is serving you in your post-Oscar bash.
Yes. I am talking to you. you bleeding heart liberal, self-hating
American, Michael Moore infatuated, pot-smoking, PETA member, NOW
member, SAG member, Tree-hugging, France haute-couture wearing,
so-called lovers of freedom of speech and fighters of censorship
who take every opportunity to trash our President and this great
land called America: there is blood in your Iranian Caviar.
While you will be sipping your fine French champagne with your "Iranian" Caviar
just remember there is Blood in your Iranian Caviar. You beloved
President Clinton, in his infinite wisdom to buddy-up to the terrorist-mullahs
who rule Iran lifted the restriction on the importation of Iranian
caviar, pistachios and carpets so that they can better fund such
terrorist groups as Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and fund their
other little hobby of building a nuclear bomb. At that time, a
true friend of the Iranian people, A Democrat of all people, Rep.
Brad Sherman of California (who has a huge Iranian constituency
in his district) was brave enough to go to the floor of the House
of Representatives and criticize the move by reminding President
Clinton and his administration that the true cost of the Iranian
Caviar is paid by the blood of innocent Iranians who live under
the nightmare called the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Every time you dip your silver special spoons into that slimy Iranian
Caviar just remember: women are being stoned to death in Iran,
Virgin Iranian female students are raped by prison guards so they
don't go to heaven after their execution in Iran, Jews, Evangelical
Christians and Bahais mysteriously disappear never to be heard
of again in Iran , students are tortured for expressing their views
in Iran, bloggers are sentenced to jail terms for writing out their
thoughts in Iran and opposition figures have been assassinated
in the most vicious ways possible.
And if for some reason you do not care about the people of Iran
(the biggest pro-American population in the muslim Middle East) just
remember which regime took American diplomats as hostages,
blew up American marines into pieces in Lebanon and who is largely
responsible for the Iraqi insurgency that claims the lives of the
patriotic men and women in the military.
So again, just a health advisory, I would like to submit for your
consideration the idea that since you are all such wonderful human
beings----- may be you should consider skipping the Iranian Caviar
in the Governor's Ball after the ceremonies. For those of you who
still want to dip into that Caviar, be careful, so you do not choke on
the blood in your Iranian Caviar.
Pooya Dayanim
President of the Iranian Jewish Public Affairs
Committee (IJPAC). Info@Iranianjew.org
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February 24
* Which children of the revolution?
Thursday night (25 Feb) Iran
Heritage Foundation (IHF) -- a UK charity -- is hosting an event on the future of Iran's "children
of the revolution" at the Royal Geographical Society in London.
Stars of the show are the Islamic Republic-friendly English writer
Christopher de Bellaigue and Ali Ansari, an Islamic Repubic-friendly
political scientist (one foreigner, one Iranian Brit, both with
questionable connection to under-25s. The future looks bright!). IHF is after all an Islamic Republic-friendly charity,
run by the super-rich. It is unlikely that tonight that there will
be any
mention of Arash
Cigarchi. As of this week, Cigarchi can look
forward to 14 years in prison, for writing a weblog. The Islamic
killers
who run our country are threatened by a lad who if Google serves
me right was born in 1979, the year of the revolution. At 25
or 26 he's around eight years younger than me. When he leaves he
will
be six years older than I am now. By that time he will have had
his youth demolished. The youth whose discontent the Islamic-terrorist
system has nourished for 25 years, is locked up for expressing
it.
If Bellaigue and Ansari tonight mention the issue
of imprisonment and torture of dissenting youth, and slam the Islamic
government I might apologise for doubting their integrity. But
if as I suspect they will not, at their next outing Chris and Ali
wear your turbans.
-- Peyvand Khorsandi
To top February 21
* Black History Month
Cia Davoodi is a young teenager living in Toronto.
He was born in Iran and raised in the U.S. & Canada. This is
an email
he sent
to his
father in Iran
last
week:
Salam Baba,
In article mane
keh tooyeh School Newspaper chap shod. har mah yek dooneh minevisam
vah be shoma ham miferestam, Thats
if you are interested :D
As we all know, February is Black History Month.
But most of us don't know why it is recognized as Black History
Month. We have celebrated black history annually since 1926.
The event started
as "Negro History Week" and was later re-named.
Although
the black population had been part of society in North America
from the time of European colonization, their history was
barely recorded. If it ever was, they were often referred to
in ways that reflected the inferior social position they were assigned
at the time.
We owe the celebration of Black History Month and
the study of black history to Dr. Carter G. Woodson. In 1915,
He
founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History
(now called the Association for the Study of Afro-American
Life and History) and in 1926 he created the Journal of Negro
History. In the same year he established Negro History Week to
attract
attention to the contributions of black people in American
history.
This
year in Parkdale C. I things are going to be done a little
different than usual. The Annual Black History Month will reflect
on contributions made by Black Canadian Icons. There will
also
be other events and happenings in order to commemorate the
contributions of blacks made in Canada. Every student should
show participation
and come out to celebrate black history.
-- Cid Davood
scarface_tha_second@hotmail.com
To top 
* Swatch: Golestan
Swiss watchmaker Swatch has a new Iranian design
>>> Golestan
-- Sourena Mohammadi
To top
* The Islamic Republic of Malibu
So last Saturday morning during the
brief lull in the string of 18
tropical storms hitting Los Angeles (Global warming? What global
warming?), I went to my favorite newsstand and noticed that every
issue of
my favorite photo magazine had been given a plastic
hejab. Didn't
Iranians
pioneer this technology in the 80s? I seem to remember a gaggle
of
chador-adorned women using marker pens to cover up every offensive
picture
in every foreign magazine. Twenty-six years later and here we
are, I'm so proud.
-- Kambiz
The Islamic Republic of Malibu
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* Namak magazine (Los Angeles)
I'd like to introduce a new magazine I'm publishing
called "Namak"!
It's aimed at young Iranians living outside Iran and covers a wide
range of topics, including: film, fashion, music, nightlife, health,
sex, relationships, community, culture and more...
The premiere
issue will be available in March. It'll be entirely in
English, full color, high gloss and provocative. Namak will speak
to
and celebrate a new Iranian generation that is simultaneously
connected to its rich Persian culture and deeply entrenched in
the
broader "mainstream" community. You can help!
- Spread the word
- Subscribe
- Advertise
- Come to the launch party on March 19th!!! Please forward this email to your friends and family.
-- Behzad Tabatabai
To top
* Obituary: Gholam-Hossein
Djabbari
Goholam-Hossein Djabbari, Iranian Statesman and
pioneer in Iranian culture and fine arts died of pneumonia at age
89 in Santa Monica, California. The first graduate of Tehran University
in Archaeology in 1938, he entered public service and played a
major role in the development of Film and Audio Visual Education
in Iran.
As the Permanent Undersecretary for Culture And
Fine Arts for over 27 years he directed and oversaw the building
and establishment of more than 600 museums, libraries and schools
dedicated to culture, fine arts and archaeology throughout Iran.
Prior to this he was the Administrative Director of the joint Point
Four Program with the United States, as a result of which he completed
his postgraduate studies at Syracuse University.
His other legacies include the historic Coronation
of the Shah Of Iran in 1967, the building of Roudaki Hall, Iran's
first and largest Opera House, and the growth and expansion of
the Iranian Film Industry.
Mr. Djabbari was born in Iran in 1915 and moved
to Los Angeles after the Islamic Fundamentalist Revolution in Iran
in 1979. His wife of 53 years, three sons, one daughter and eight
grand children survive him.
-- Said Jabbari To top
* Let's save Hubble
Dear Iranian.com... Greetings!
I'm a big fan of your site, I'm really happy that
this site is running for soo many years.
I'm not a good writer, I can't write, my I had something
in mind for sometime that I wanted to suggest to the Iranian.com
board, perhaps you guys that propose it to the rest of Iranians
around the world.
The subject is about Hubble Telescope . As you guys
might heard, NASA is planning to bring Hubble down for good due
to lack of funds!
And I've been reading that there are lots of rich
Iranians around the world buying football clubs, promoting science
etc. I just thought if few capable Iranians come together and sponsor
Hubble, this will be really great for the Iranian community, science
it will last forever. And it will improve the image of Iranian
around the world. That we do care about science and technology.
Anyhow, this was just a suggestion, if you guys think
it's appropriate to write about it, it might encourage some Iranians
to come hand in hand and support this great piece of art in the
space .. It will also help the Iranian and other scientists in
the world.
Merci,
-- Baher Seioshansian
To top
* Tonight I am reborn
I visited Shiraz for the first time in March
2004 as part of my trip to Iran. This was a page from my journal: Saturday, March 20, 2004:
SHIRAZ -- On this night of a thousand stars...the first night of
spring, the first night of a new year...I stand on the same earth
as the great mystics stood. It is easy to understand how they
created such magical poetry while standing underneath this sky.
The stars are so close they seem to whisper music into the soul
and make slow dancing with the earth feel like obligation.
This
city is my nucleus...the romantic city whose perfumed gardens
inspired poetry of exquisite beauty. Every thing I've ever
loved or am is spawned from here. That magical empire of arts,
literature
and majesty that I read about my entire life is here. Tomorrow
I will go to Takhte Jamshid (Persepolis) and hope to see my
existence through its glory. I've traveled to many places in Iran...Esfahan,
Mashhad, Tehran...but none feel as fulfilling as this.
Yesterday, I visited Hafez and Sa'adi's shrines
and with gratitude paid homage to the treasure of their words for
my heritage. They
molded Persian culture with artistic grace through their timeless
verses. To capture the essence of a people that withstands time
and endures all hardships is truly the gift of God.
This place
where Cyrus, the "King of Kings, the King of the
world, King of Babylon, King of the four quarters..." called
home, this air that was breathed by Prophets and Poets, this soil
that remains rich with the tears of fallen angels...this is Shiraz.
To be here is to be all of those things that only our mind's eye
can recognize. My heart has opened. How blessed I am to be borne
from this soil. Tonight I am reborn...on this night of a thousand
stars, the first night of spring, the first night of a new year... -- Sahar
Shobeir Shokati To top
February 12
* Condoleezza Rice, by Gilan pharmacist
My sister Saiedeh Sadadi is a pharmacist who runs
a pharmacy in Rostam Aabad-e-Gilan (If you remeber the Abbas Kiarostami
movies: "Khaneh Doost Kojaast", "Zire Derekhtane
Zeitoun", "Zendegi va digar hich", all filmed in
this small town in Gilan) This is her painting of Condoleezza Rice,
US Secretary of State!
-- Reza Sadadi
To top
February 8
* Barfieh.... Barfieh... Today, I was recording a video-clip of my son and
his friends playing in the
snow -- which hasn't stopped falling on Teheran for the past few
days, btw --
when I decided to go out and take a look in the street.
What happened
next
is what you see
in the clip. I felt that this
could be
interesting, as you never get clips recorded with the
actual sights
and sounds of daily life in Iran, and after all, that is what
would probably
touch the nostalgic readers of your web site, perhaps even more
than
pictures. I'll include the actual conversation that took place
between me and the "barfi" in text format below so that
your readers can figure out what was
said in case they can't hear the audio well.
Barfi 1: (from afar): Barfieh...
barfieh... (It's the snowplower... it's the snow plower...)... Barfi
1: (after having seen me recording the scene):
Agha shabakeye chandom
pakhsh misheh? (Sir, which channel will broadcast this?)
Me: (laughing): Az in shaansaa nadaari...
(No such luck...)
Barfi 1: Bezaar
tu Jam-e-Jam.... (Put it on Jam-e Jam TV)
Me: Ru maahvaare pakhshesh mikonim.
(We'll put it on satellirte TV)
Barfi 1: (now near)
Agha salam. Biaaym paaroo konim? (Hello sir... should we come in
a plow your snow?)
Barfi 2: Khasteh nabaashin... (May
you not be tired...)
Me: Merci, ghorboone
shomaa. Na... (Thank you very much, no thanks...)
Barfi 1: Tooye Jame-Jam bezaar oonaayi
ke oonvare aaban befahman maa che
gereftariyi daarim. (Put this on Jam-e Jam TV so that people on
the other side of the ocean know what kind of problems we have..."
Me (laughing): Areh, vaasat mizaaram
hame tamaashaa konan. Ma'roof mishi tu
Amrica. (Yeah, I'll air it for everyone. You'll become famous in
America.)
Barfi 1: Areh baba, chikaar konim
digeh... (Yeah... what else can we do? ...)
-- Parham
To top
February 6
* Hejab exhibit: Near Chicago Please join us with guest Amir Normandi for a bag lunch (provided)
and a discussion of two ground-breaking works from Iran. Iranian-American
photographer Normandi brings to campus a collection of haunting
images of women under the Hejab (dress code) taken by him and his
Iranian students. They risked imprisonment and torture to smuggle
these images out of Iran.
February 18, 2005: 11 a.m.-12 noon,
Harper College, Ground Floor of A Building (Student Lounge), 1200
W. Algonquin
Road,
Palatine,
Illinois (near Chicago). The exhibit will end February 24.
-- Fazi Riahi
To top
February 5
* NoWarOnIran.com
Dear all,
As the news about a possible military attack on Iran has been
appearing in the media, some Iranian bloggers have started to mobilize
and
show their preemptive dissent. In order to reach the English-speaking
people in Europe and North America, two group-blogs (in English)
were formed this week.
The goal of both blogs is to let the world
know that unlike what the Bush administration would like us to
believe, Iranians are not sitting in front of their televisions,
cheering for the U.S. military to come and bring them democracy! One of the blogs, No War on Iran, is written by four Iranian
graduate students in Jordan, The U.K., and the U.S. The url is:
NoWarOnIran.com
The other
blog, Iranians for Peace (PeaceIran.blogspot.com)
is open
to submissions by anyone who wants to write against war. The
organizers of
this group-blog are based in Iran and the U.S. and the articles
come from all over the world. Please visit these blogs and read what Iranian bloggers who are
concerned
about a military attack on Iran have to say. If you have a blog,
please give a link to these blogs; and if not, circulate this
message widely. We are hoping that our voices of dissent can
reach as many
people as possible.
-- Sima Shakhsari
To top
February 4
* Urgent help: Cancer victim
My dear friends, I have pledged $1000 with the help of 100 of my friends in
this email distribution. $100 myself + $10 min
if each of you guys donate. Please help
me beat my pledge to Farshid. (Think you are buying a
lunch for me!!!!) You guys still can help more, but this
is my personal request to you. Just email me back with your donation
amount for my pledge. -- Thank you, Mazdak
Rooein
URGENT HELP NEEDED:
32 year old San Francisco Bay Area Persian female in need
of financial help for her cancer operation
Over the years our Iranian community in the Bay Area has gotten
involved with many good causes. We have helped many in need --
from
earthquake, tsunami, and poverty victims to individuals fighting
with
diseases, all around the world.
This time we have one of our very own who is in dire need of
help.
A
32 year old, Bay Area professional Persian female, a kind and
generous soul who always helps others unselfishly, and an old
dear
friend to me personally, is now fighting an advanced thyroid
cancer
which has dangerously spread in her body. She has a 4 cm tumor
in
her neck that must be removed immediately by means of a complex
surgery in Stanford Hospital. Unfortunately she does not have proper medical coverage for the
operation, the cost of which is estimated to be $150,000. She
is in
desparate and immediate need of funds so that she can proceed
with
the operation.
We have an opportunity to help her get her life back. I am
writing
to ask for your help in this matter. I hope you will all
join me in
helping her out. Your donation will be greatly appreciated.
And I
am certain that your good deed will be returned to you before
long.
You can provide financial help via one of the following 4
methods:
1. Send check
2. Send money via Paypal.com
3. Transfer or wire money to the bank account
4. Donate stocks or other securities
For any of the above methods and more info contact:
-- T. Ansari: cancer.fund@gmail.com
-- Jamileh Mokhlesi: to_jamm@yahoo.com
-- Farshid Ketabchi: farshidk@yahoo.com
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