VIEW

Moral advice from a criminal

So how should those clueless new graduates behave as they step out into the real world after George Bush's sermon?

by Rostam Pourzal
09-Jun-2008 (101 comments)
I was shocked when I read that George Bush advised the graduates at a college the other day to "act responsibly" in their adult life. He told of his dream for a "culture of responsibility" to spread in America so people stay away from too much drinking, sex, and drugs. This immediately reminded me of that proverbial Iranian story about an elementary school teacher who had trouble pronouncing some sounds. When he tried to teach the first letter of the alphabet, his students heard "anef" instead of the correct version, "alef." Naturally, they mispronounced, too. So he got impatient and yelled "when I say anef, don't say anef, say anef" not realizing that the kids were copying him faithfully>>>

FIVE STARS

دو توصیه و یه پند غذایی!

بنده به عنوان یک انسان مثلأ آزاد چرا از ٍآلبوم جدید (خال پانک) گروه مستطاب ۱۲۷ خوشم میاد!

by Arash Sobhani
09-Jun-2008 (7 comments)
۱۲۷ گروهی است متشکل از یک سری هنرمند خوش سلیقه که چند وقتی است کارهایشان را این ور و آن ور می شنویم، ولی به اعتقاد من کارهای قبلی ایشان پرسه زدن در وادی های مختلف موسیقی بود در جهت اندوختن تجربه و پخته شدن و اشباع شدن از ایده های نو و «همه اش دود بود، خبری نبود از کباب» ! پس از مدتی تجربه کردن امکانات مختلف موسیقی، این دوستان به یک ساختار موفق و نوآورانه رسیدند و بالاخره جواب دادند که «من کی ام». آلبوم خال پانک به اعتقاد من تمام شاخصه های یک کار نوآورانه را دارد، کاری که در عین داشتن پیچیدگی های یک اثر هنری، آنقدر ساده و قابل هضم است که به محض شنیدن آن آدم احساس می کند که با این آهنگ خاطره دارد.>>>

MUSIC

No ceiling

Interview with Haale

by Lalé Shahparaki Welsh
09-Jun-2008 (2 comments)
It was pretty natural for me to start drawing on my Persian heritage in the composition of my music. All artists establish a palette and a vocabulary for their work that is based on what they've heard and seen through their lives. I was born in NYC and grew up all around the East Coast with Iranian parents, so I heard Persian music, Persian poetry, alongside American music and poetry. It's been a pretty natural for me to draw on both cultures in my work. It feels more authentic to blend the two than to exclude one or the other in my work. >>>

SAFARNAMEH

ایمانژا

سفرنامه برزیل

by Firoozeh Khatibi
09-Jun-2008 (4 comments)
هرچند ما ایرانی ها امروز در همین لس آنجلس ترجیح میدهیم با بچه هایمان به زبان انگلیسی صحبت کنیم اما انگلیسی ها و فرانسوی ها و همین پرتغالی ها از صدها سال پیش تر به اهمیت حفظ زبان برای بقای فرهنگ پی برده اند. آنها طی قرون گذشته پیش از هر چیز دیگر ، زبان پرتغالی را در کشورهای تحت استعمار خود رواج داده اند. همین امروز بعد از سالهای طولانی که از استقلال "هند" می گذرد – زبان انگلیسی – هنوز هم زبان اول این کشور محسوب می شود. در الجزیره و بیروت و حتی ویتنام زبان فرانسه زبان رایج و معمول مردم است و در آنگولا از کشورهای قاره آفریقا – زبان اصلی مردم پرتغالی است! >>>

POETRY

Beyond the Flesh
by Cameron A. Batmanghlich
09-Jun-2008 (16 comments)
How far beyond the flesh can you go?
How are your taste buds trained? By Coca-Cola, chewing gum and cereal? Or by bourbon, tobacco and the taste of a woman?
How does your breath smell like? Fire or a none-smelling fart?
How soft are your lips? Soft as an angel’s feather or coarse as used sandpaper on wood?
Are you repulsed by sagging breasts and do not see the beauty of a bosom?
Are you turned off by wrinkles around her eyes and miss the sparkle in those eyes? >>>

IDENTITY

Challenging Name

“Hi, I’m 872390, pleased to meet you.”

by Homayoun
07-Jun-2008 (10 comments)
One challenge I have faced, and I’m sure many others have as well, is my Name. After living for almost 22 years outside Iran, still saying my name and introducing myself to foreign audience is a challenge for me. Well, to be honest, it’s more than challenging, I’m actually fed up with my name. And to us, Iranians, I haven’t even got a very difficult name, but I’m still not comfortable with it. OK, by now you of course wonder what the hell is this guy’s name?? Well, my name is Homayun Mohasel Zadeh, as it is in my passport. So, let’s analyze this name first among Iranian names. >>>

HUMOR

Look-alike

"So, harassing the ladies is what you do everyday?"

by Seyed-Mehdi Shojaie
07-Jun-2008 (4 comments)
"Excuse me," said the man, addressing the woman who obviously thought she was oh so beautiful, "you're not Sharon Stone, are you?"
"Well, no," said the woman flirtatiously, "but …"
"I thought so," the man interrupted her, "because …"
"But," said the woman, interrupting him, "everybody tells me I look like her a lot. Don't I?"
"Well, no," said the man firmly. "Everybody's wrong. Sharon Stone is a beautiful woman. You, I'm afraid, are not beautiful at all. That's why I thought you could not be Sharon Stone.">>>

JEBHE MELLI

آسايشگاه يا زايشگاه؟

آيا می توان، در ميان شرح بيماری های اين مريض کهنسال، نسخه ای کارآمد برای نوتوانی آن نيز يافت؟

by Esmail Nooriala
07-Jun-2008 (3 comments)
سمينار جبههء ملی شاخهء آمريکا، که بمنظور تسهيل همفکری های اهل انديشهء سياسی در مورد «همبستگی نيروهای ملی و دموکراسی خواه» برگزار شد، اگرچه در سطح خود سمينار بجائی نرسيد و داد و ستدی انديشه برانگيز را در بر نداشت اما می بينم که امواجی را در مرداب سياسی کنونی ما آفريده و مطالب مطرح شده در آن، يا پيرامون آن، فضای تازه ای از گفتگوهای گاه دوستانه و گاه پرخاشنده را فراهم ساخته است. بنظر من، هر دو نوع اين واکنش ها مفيدند چرا که واقعيت رنگارنگ را آنگونه که در ذهن آدميان انديشنده دربارهء اوضاع کشورمان وجود دارد رو آورده و مطرح می کنند.>>>

MAN

الکساندر

الکساندر هیچ جنگجوی بزرگی نیست. او حتا جنگجوی کوچکی هم نیست، نه خونخوار است و نه کشورگشا

by Mahasti Shahrokhi
07-Jun-2008 (5 comments)
الکساندر نه ربطی به اسکندر مقدونیه دارد و نه شبیه ریچارد برتون است. او هیچ ارتباطی به "اسکندرنامه" هم ندارد. الکساندر خوشگل نیست ولی جوان است و برومند و خیلی خوش مشرب و خوش تعریف. الکساندر همیشه در حال گفتگو با کسی است و همیشه موضوعی مناسب برای گفتگو پیدا می کند. من و الکساندر با هم فقط سلام و علیک داریم و هیچ چیز از هم نمی دانیم. ما حتا اسم یکدیگر را هم نمی دانیم. اولین باری که با هم سر کار حرف می زنیم و اسمم را می پرسد به شکل حیرت آوری متوجه می شوم که بلد است نامم را تلفظ کند؛ و "ه" را از توی اسمم حذف نکند. تعجبم را بیان می کنم: "فرانسوی ها بلد نیستند اسمم را تلفظ کنند، تو چطوری توانستی؟" >>>

LIFE

The beggar

Holds her head high like a tree

by Rashel Zargaryan
07-Jun-2008 (4 comments)
When I was student some years ago, I was living in Des Moines city in Iowa State of America. During the noon hour I sometimes used to drive into the city and eat at McDonalds. The routine was usually the same, except for that day that I remembered was Tuesday. I ordered the same thing as always: a Big Mac, large fries, and a small coke. I proceeded to find a seat. The moment I sat down, I realized that I had to fight through the large crowd of hungry people; I hurried up to get my ketchup. After about four minutes, I returned to my seat. When I returned to my seat I was stunned. In the seat that I had previously been sitting in, there was an elderly lady eating my lunch>>>

LIFE

We, the Short People

I am one thousand six hundred fifty millimeters

by varjavand
05-Jun-2008 (16 comments)
Once I told my female students wittingly if you want to get married, make sure to find a short man. A short man makes an ideal husband. He is not only more economical to maintain, but also you have the upper hand in case you get involved in physical altercations with him. You can hit him on the head with your shoes very easily! Furthermore, you don’t suffer much emotionally if he leaves you! You see, the best way to avoid costly lawsuit is to let others laugh at your expense! For years, we thought that socioeconomic status and opportunities are awarded by the society based on established criteria such as, education, skills, productivity, experience, lineage, wealth, name recognition, etc. >>>

SHAHNAMEH

Simply dazzling

Shahnameh Millennium Concert at the Iranian Studies Biennial in Toronto

by Ari Siletz
05-Jun-2008 (2 comments)
Ferdowsi packs so much literature in his verses that storytellers, singers, percussionists, and painters have traditionally helped unpack his work for us. For a thousand years, this collaboration of the letters and the arts in ghahveh khaneh (coffee house) settings has upgraded and refreshed the Iranian national identity. To commemorate the Shahnameh millennium, the Seventh Biennial Conference of the International Society for Iranian Studies will include a multi-media concert combining Shahnameh storytelling (naghali), Shahnameh-inspired orchestral music, and visual presentations of scenes from the epic>>>

MUSIC

Fresh addiction

Five stars to "Khal Punk", the new album by the rock band, 127

by Jahanshah Javid
05-Jun-2008 (10 comments)
Last weekend I met two (wonderful) 127 band members Sohrab Mohebbi and Salmak Khaledi at the home of BeyondPersia.com's Lalé Welsh and Amir Salamat near San Francisco. We listened to their entire new album "Khal Punk" and I was quite devastated by their musical range (mixing rock, rap, jazz, Iranian... ) and powerful lyrics. Their songs are addictive, and smart, and fun, and full of energy and lots and lots of plain truth. Ladies and gentleman, we have another super band! >>>

RIGHTS

Open intolerance

Treatment of Bahais: A test of human rights in Iran

by Mehdi Khalaji
04-Jun-2008 (20 comments)
Considering Iran's clerical establishment believes the existence of religious minorities undermines official Shiite orthodoxy, these latest arrests are just another black mark on Iran's long and dismal record of protecting individual human rights and religious freedom.... The Ahmadinezhad government argues that according to the constitution, Bahaism is not recognized and therefore is not protected in Iran. The president's tougher stance toward Bahais is probably also motivated by his apocalyptic views and his special attachment to the idea of the Hidden Imam. Ahmadinezhad, who believes that his government is under the supervision of the Hidden Imam, cannot tolerate a religion that denies the Imam's existence, even as the Bahais keep out of politics. >>>

LETTER

C’mon Senator Barack Hussein Obama

I too want to believe you in your campaign of Hope and Change. But I need more.

by PedramMoallemian
04-Jun-2008 (19 comments)
Dear Senator Obama, These are some of your quotes I have collected in my head on Iran. You see, I am a bit sensitive on Iran as my grandmother’s house is less than a block from what will probably be one of the first targets against the Iranian “nuclear facilities” in a precision targeted bombing attack, and seeing how imprecise some of them worked in Iraq, it worries me. It is actually just a university, but most of their research is done there and I really love my grandma. You have said: “[T]he big question is going to be, if Iran is resistant to these pressures [to stop its nuclear program], including economic sanctions, which I hope will be imposed if they do not cooperate, at what point, if any, are we going to take military action?” >>>
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