Letters
April 10-14, 2000 / Farvardin 22-26, 1379
Today
* Politics:
- Khatami & Nouri are not the answer
- You owe me
* The Iranian:
- Do it right!!!
Previous
* Oil:
- Amr-e digehee neest?
* Marriage:
- Rules of the game
- Jalal khaalegh!
* Fardin:
- High & low art
- Iran's John Wayne
- Trashy escapist films
- Acknowledging Pop icons
* Salar Abdoh:
- It's riveting! But...
* Reza Abdoh:
- Condemning here and there
* Criticism:
- Feminazi
* Iran-U.S.:
- Compensation, one way or another
* April fools.:
- Escrew you
email us
Friday,
April 14, 2000
* Khatami & Nouri are not the answer
Notes on Mr Abdy Hashemi's "Final
destination: Democracy":
I do have big misgivings about "Hojjat-o-eslam" Khatami due
to his clerical training and the fact that he has been raised within the
current system (and "aaghebat gorg zaadeh gorg shavad garcheh baa
aadami bozorg shavad") and I hold him personally responsible for the
atrocities committed by the present regime. However, I am still prepared
to give him the benefit of doubt and reserve my final judgment on his performance
after possibly his second term when he would have had the opportunity of
taking advantage of the newly elected "reformist" members of
the parliament. I also reserve my judgment on the Mr Hashemi's assertion
about "fantastic transition to a near-total civilian rule" supposedly
being achieved under his "leadership" (if the word really applies
to what is going on in Iran).
I have no argument about Mr Hashemi's statement that "the Shah
and his puppets ..... believed in the total eradication of opponents".
Although I would like to know who does he refer to as Shah's puppets and
where does Khatami stand in this analysis. Should we consider him a Rafsanjani's
or Khamenei's puppet by the same decree? As far as I am concerned the
"revolution" replaced one tyrant with another one, albeit several
times more vicious and fierce >>>
FULL TEXT
Jamshid Entesari
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* You owe me
I am a young student, and I was born in Iran. The politics of the region
has always fascinated me. Right now as I was reading these comments I cant
believe what I see in despair and in the sentiment of "let sleeping
dogs sleep".
I would like to point out to the older generation that you owe me and
the rest of my generation , including the student demonstrators, an explanation.
I was raised in an affluent family and all they ever talk about is the
money that was lost not democracy.
You the former rulers and the former teachers, need to explain to me
why I should be terrified to visit my country of birth. Yes the West was
involved; Russia, England, and the U.S. were involved -- but only because
we let them get involved. You let them get involved.
And please don't sit in your armchairs across the world and tell me
to let sleeping dogs sleep. Let's find out about our past and then we can
talk about from now on. We cannot fix a machine when we don't know where
it is broken.
Sahar Nahrvar
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* Do it right!!!
Why can't you get all the junk out [of the Registration
page] and put all the interesting and up to date stuff in the front - in
the beginning so we don't have to go through all this mess to find something?
Do it right!!! Can't we get it right in this country [U.S.] either??!!
Mariam Nahavandi
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Thursday
April 13, 2000
* Amr-e digehee neest?
I think you should all go back to Iran and make our gas cheaper [in
America]!
Tim Owens
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* Rules of the game
Dear Mr. D, I am so sorry for what has happened to you in our country.
The problem of "Nosy
relatives" and jealousy in our society, even among Iranian Americans,
is too obvious to be ignored. However from what you wrote in your article,
I believe the main person to be blamed is "Mr. D":
1) You read an article and went to Iran to get some "Real
Iranian girls" who in this case are apparently the virgin ones.
I spent most of my life in Iran and I want you to know having a hymen doesn't
necessarily mean you are a virgin. As you know we have few different types
of sex .
2) The "cat and mouse" game of finding a partner is not something
specific to Iran. No matter where you are in this world, when you want
to approach a potential partner you need to know the rules of the game.
One of the most important rules is that you should control you emotions
>>>
FULL TEXT
Faramarz Kaviani
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* Jalal khaalegh!
I am writing regarding the article "Nosy
relatives". from what I understood, this dude is just 24 years
old and he decides to get married on his first trip to Iran since his birth!
Jalal khaalegh! Of course this is my opinion but, hey dude! you are too
young to get married in such short period of time!
As we all know if you let families and friends get involved in your
life, they will do it without any hesitation. But what is important is
making everyone mind their own business and at the same time, not making
sure they don't get offended by your direct statements.
Also, keep informing them about what your opinions are without offending
anyone. Also, I believe the bride should have done something to help, if
she was interested! Remember that you are the one who separates the borders
around you. Eradatmand dude-e depressed and alone.
Alireza Abouhossein
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Wednesday
April 12, 2000
* High & low art
Mr.
Vakili's commentary just reminded me of an argument I have been having
with my fellow Iranians precisely about the dichotomy (as he appropriately
put it) between high art and low "mobtazal"
art. Allow me to expand on his piece since even though he touched on
all subject matters: "Culture is a living organism, making its own
rules as it goes through history."
Progress is made with freedom to explore in all direction. Picture water
flowing down an unpaved slope. It will fill in the lower parts which are
ready to accept it and eventually flow to higher grounds. This is a rule
of nature.
This reminds me for some reason of another rule: Thesis and antitheses
both have to be present to result in a healthy synthesis- of innovations
and of creativity. All elements that are in existance constitute the framework
of art- of real art not idealistic art. So if we overrule any part of our
culture, will we just fail to understand it.
Real art is non-existant without deep understanding of your culture
and society. There is a lot more that can be said...
Kasra A. Ebrahimi
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* Iran's John Wayne
I read through your essay about Fardin ["Farewell
to Fardin"]. I agree with you. Reading news about Fardin's death,
I am sure that all Iranians have some feelings for Fardin. After all, he
entertained us for more than four decades.
We all grew up with him and his fame. He was our hero. As one newspaper
said, Fardin was the "John Wayne of Iran." As a kid, I used to
keep an album full of Fardin's pictures. Now, I have a limited collection
of his movies and am looking for the ones I do not have.
Mahmoud Asadi
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* It's riveting! But...
I read Salar Abdoh's recent novel, The Poet Game ["No freedom
fighters"]. As an avid reader of literature, and especially thrillers,
I must say that I was pretty amazed by this fellow Iranian's dexterity
and writing power. He has entered an arena few of us have entered before.
But I have a problem with something: why does a writer this good have
to cast Middle Easterners in the guise of terrorists and whatnot? Why doesn't
Salar Abdoh use his considerable talent to promote Iranian culture at its
best?
I hope it doesn't sound as if I'm trying to tell this writer what he
should write about. But then again, maybe I am. I think Mr. Abdoh has a
duty as a professional to cast his compatriots in the best form possible.
Aside from that, I highly recommend it... it's riveting!
Farhad Bani
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Tuesday
April 11, 2000
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* Compensation, one way or another
I disagree with your article on the unconditional release of Iran's
assets by the United States, by virtue of the simple fact that in many
instances such an act would trample the only chance victims of misbehavior
of Iran's government might have to be compensated for damages within a
semi-civilized context ["Getting
down to business"].
As an example, for no apparant reason and subject to an arbitrary ruling
by a Revolutionary Court judge in Esfahan in 1979 (Omid Najafabadi, who
was subsequently executed in 1988 for being "corrupt on earth"
and a homosexual) my family had all of its assets -- composed mainly of
improved land- our main occupation being initially farming and subsequently
land development on a large scale about the suburbs of Esfahan -- confiscated
and turned over to the Bonyad Mostazafan...
As the Iranian judicial system seems intent on perpetuating this injustice,
I feel that it is well within my rights to seek redress against the Iranian
government and nation in a venue where my rights will be respected and
some form of justice exists. If that venue is the United States, and if
Iran's frozen assets are available to compensate me and my family for those
damages, then I and my family should be given access to that venue and
to those assets >>>
FULL TEXT
Hamid Boroumand
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* Feminazi
This recent letter
by Ms. Banfsheh Zand is just another view by some typically anti-this
group or that group. And I am tirelessly perturbed by people like her who
try desperately to make themselves feel self-righteous and justified in
"being disgusted" by the freely-expressed opinions of others
whom she so indignantly condemns and hypersensitively criticizes with such
prejudicial generalization!...
And you better watch out if you disagree with her high-handed opinions
for ye shall be ostracized and terrorized by name-calling and underhanded
"generalizations"! The attempt to say that "there is something
inherently negative" in a certain culture, is in and of it self inherently
negative, prejudicial and childish! This simply is the wannabe-campus feminazi-political
correctness which had imposed it's profundity on the U.S educational system
since the 60's!>>>
FULL TEXT
Cyrus Raafat
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Monday
April 10, 2000
* Trashy escapist films
In reference to "Farewell
to Fardin", in two words: Total rubbish!
The writer of your pompous obituary on Fardin is clearly ignorant of
everything about cinema. Fardin never wrote the screen plays of any film,
never directed any film, never edited any film and never produced any film.
He played in films under the directorial efforts and schemes of the
film makers, in his case mostly Siamak Yassemi. Therefore you cannot say
"Fardin's Cinema". Very unfortunately the films he played in
were escapist films of the worst kind...
Fardin seems to have been a simple, likeable person, a wrestler with
good looks who was used by a certain type of film producers alien to social
and artistic aims, who were riding on the crest of the incoming wave of
economical ease and the dream and expectation of an affluent life, all
in tune with the superficial state of things and the official propaganda
of the time >>>
FULL TEXT
Ashraf Esfandiary
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* Acknowledging Pop icons
I just read quite an angry
letter about "Farewell
to Fardin". I guess the author of the article on Fardin was right
in pointing out that, "to most Iranian intellectuals [Fardin] remained
an over-rated actor who represented a commercial cinema that was an embarrassment
to our national identity." ...
The article did not call Fardin a good or even a mediocre actor. Nor
did it praise his directorial talents. But every culture has its heroes
and icons. A healthy culture is one that acknowledges such individuals
and tries to live with them...
I am not concerned with the quality of Fardin's work. But you may find
it interesting that Fardin acted in fifty-seven films, directed eleven
of them, wrote the script for five pictures and produced seven...
For over twenty years we tried to isolate our pop icons; turning Fardin
into a carpet shop owner. And yet on Saturday the whole city of Tehran
was out to say goodbye to Fardin at his funeral >>>
FULL TEXT
Khosrow Vakili
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* Escrew you
Still some people don't get the joke about Albright ["Albright
in Tehran"]. Surely the Third-World mentality is still within
them therefore they haven't reached cultural maturity yet. Or, they just
got off the boat with pronunciations like :"Espoon, Espagetti, Eski,
Estay, Estop, I vant, or I vill." give them a few more years; they
will learn two things: how to talk and have sense of humor.
Naseem Baharie
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