Letters
February 28-March 3, 2000 / Esfand 9-13, 1378
Today
* Persident:
- I want justice, or else
* Green Card:
- Implausible
Previous
* The Iranian:
- Zendeh baad!
- Mordeh baad!
* President:
- Tears, almost
- Deltang o beegharaar
* Race:
- Knows nothing, obviously
* Paintings:
- Kiss the hands
* Elections:
- Political maturity
- Milking the masses
email us
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
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* 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.
Dennis Brandon
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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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Tuesday
February 29, 2000
* Kiss the hands
Thank you very much for publishing Ms. Amimi's paintings ["Hand
me a pillow"]. It was high time for our painters to come out of
their restrictive shell and express themselves freely.
The works of Ms. Amini is a breath of fresh air much like what our late
Forough Farrokhzad brought to our poetry. The only thing I can say is that
I wish I could kiss the hands that worked on these paintings. What marvelous,
refreshing, thought provoking works of art.
I wish Ms. Amini well and The Iranian, which provides us with
the opportunity to discover highly talented compatriots.
Hodjabr Hakimi
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* Deltang o beegharaar
Mr. President,
man 13 saal-e pish vatan raa tark kardam. Az roozi ke shomaa President
shodid kheili doost daashatam keh biyaam beh vatan, amaa hanooz ehsaas
raahti nadaaram ["Dialogue
among ourselves"].
omidavaaram keh shomaa va melat betavaanid keh emkaan-e bargasht bataa-ye
iraaniaan khaarej az vatan raa raaht-tar konid keh maa in tars raa az del
biroon konim va pedar va maadar va saayer khaanevaadeh raa bebinim chon
man 11 saalam bood keh aamadm khaarej vali hich-jaa vatan nemisheh.
hameh-ye iraaniaan vatan raa doost daaram va aarezoie movafaghiat. bebakhshid
agar faarsi khoob naneveshtam.
deltang o beegharaar az U.S.A I hope you win again.
Pezhman Kayedan
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Monday
February 28, 2000
* Political maturity
In reply to
Jafar D.'s letter:
Your point is well taken. I agree full-heartedly that Iranians should
always strive for improvement and should never settle for anything but
the highest standard of governance. But, the fact is that there is no perfection
in democracy. Democracy is an ideal and a philosophy toward which we strive.
We all know that there are different forms and different degrees of democracy
around the world--all with room for improvement.
That said, my reference to "democracy arriving" was regarding
the level of political maturity among Iranians here, which is absolutely
astounding ["The
ballot box"]. I was not referring here to the system or the current
political process, which continues to have deep and fundamental flaws >>>
FULL TEXT
Dokhi Fassihian
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* Milking the masses
In reply to
Jafar D.'s letter:
As an ever cynical Iranian I always wonder how did Mohammad Khatami
ever receive the blessing from those who decide who can be a candidate
for elections. Same goes for all those 6000 or so candidates who ran for
the sixth Majlis. To me they all belong to the same family and the fact
they have been vetted by the Council of Guardians clearly indicates that
even the so-called reformists are nothing but a farce ["The
ballot box"]...
How can [Khomeini's] successors be pardoned and forgiven for all the
cruelties they committed over the past 21 years? Why are the Iranian people
happy with superficial "freedoms"? Who is Mohammad Reza Khatami
and who is Ali Reza Nouri [who were elected to the Majlis from Tehran]?
Are they of a different fabric than their brothers? Are they really Iranian?
I suppose some may say , Who cares what happened in the past? It seems
to me that Iranians as a nation always forget the fact that the past provides
guidance for the future... [The clergy] have been milking the nation for
over 20 years and keep milking it. Rafsanjani's family has become pretty
fat and now it's Khatami's family's turn. Is this what the masses of Iran
want or it is what the elite of Iran, those who have always been reaping
the benefits by milking the masses, want? >>>
FULL TEXT
J. Entesari
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