Bahram G

Princess ?

You write, "Bahram, No worries, I completely understand. I suffer from the same affliction, explaining my sense of humour, that is. :)

So you are also carrying that defective gene? Then we must be very very close relatives. Possibly as close as being members of the same species, do you suppose?

It is very comforting to learn that I am not the only one victimized by this handicap. My hope is that you don't suffer excessively from it. Others suffering from it is okay. It makes them co-sufferers and in a sense may create a closer bond with you.

By the way, how is your royal family doing these days? Do you have to settle for less these days? Are you still getting your Caspian See caviar regularly? Your cocktail parties would be a drag without them, wouldn't they? To compensate for the absence of caviar, you probably generously sprinkle your more precious than gold sense of humor on the crackers. More precious than gold, you ask? Yes. It is royal is it not? And it is dispensed by a princess, no less.

Seriously. It is humor that is our precious comforter in this badly troubled world where we have our own personal tragedies and co-suffer helplessly in the suffering of our compatriots in Iran and our human family in places such Haiti.

Stay Princess.

Bahram G

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Bahram, No worries, I completely understand. I suffer from the same affliction, explaining my sense of humour, that is. :)

Ari, I think someone should make the movie "Being Ari Siletz".

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In Spain there was this news yesterday that some rich man had died and left his tens of millions of wealth to the already rich bastards of the Spanish royal family:

//www.20minutos.es/noticia/607178/0/empresari...

Now that the internet allows people to comment, it was so funny to read the comments people left on the articles related to that news. Most of the comments were insults for that creepy old unimaginative bastard who died and waisted all those millions by not helping anyone.

//www.irannostalgia.com/faq.html

Ari khan

you're the bestEST,wisEST,inteligent contributor to iraniandotcom and I thank you for it.             Maziar

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Hi Bahram,

      I did get your joke....you wrote that JJ should get a new pair of shoes.....it really cracked me up....but right after that I felt like crying....the whole thing is kind of sad!!! Thank you for your blog, I hope more people are as kind as you and start to pitch in for IC.

P.S. I got an e-mail message from Professor Gorji. I recall you re-published his letter on IC several months ago. He wrote a draft open petition to IRI regarding the slaying of Professor Masoud Ali Mohammadi.....it is a great letter, he asks IRI to investigate the death of Professor Mohammadi and ensure other professors' safety......I hope you have received a copy of the draft letter from him already.......this guy truly cares about Iranian people and he is also very patriotic!

please take care!

yolanda

Yolanda you proved my point

What I wrote about dividends and all was a sort of satire -- humor-- and you took it as a serious comment :)). That's why in the same post I confessed that there are times that I have to explain my jokes to people in order for them to get it and force a laugh or even a smirk out of them.

Okay. It was a joke. A joke. A joke. I was teasing JJ for telling me that IC was not a "non-profit" operation. That's all. By the way, Yolanda, I believe that you had said that you are not Iranian. Well, dear friend, you'll just have to get used to our sense, or the absent thereof, of our humor. And not all Iranians have off-beat sense of humor like the one I have. I don't want to use a wide brush in painting my Iranian compatriots.

Warm regards,

Bahram G

p.s. Maybe I should work on my sense of humor. But, again, I have so many things that need more work that I am not likely to get around doing that.

Tips for the rich

1. While the prestige of being an IC supporter far outshines that of owning a BMW M6 convertible, you should appear to live above the boring chesmo hamcheshmi crowd. Make your IC donations anonymously but drop hints of bravado at party pissing contests: "I told that IRS olaagh, just because I donate a few thousand to IC now you audit me!? If I say its tax deductible, then who're you to tell me it's not?" With one stroke you've demolished all their obsoleted "I ripped off the other guy" stories.

2. If you are a rich male: these days when beautiful women smell Lalique Pour Homme Panther on you they will be turned off that you didn't have the taste to spend the 800 bucks on a bottle of Le JJ Pour IC. Women go wild when they smell serious culture and politics on a man. Don't let the$50 Honda guy get the girl.

3. If you are a rich female: Tell your best friend that you've donated to IC, but don't tell her the amount. Sit back and enjoy as she stresses over whether she's been able to outspend you. 

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Hi! Bahram,

    What profit? JJ was $500 in the red? When I was in graduate school, I was better than that.....I was as poor as a church mouse, but I was never $500 in the red! Hopefully things start to improve!

thanks, 

Then where are my dividends?

JJ, you write,"Also iranian.com is not a non-profit." So, it is a for profit outfit? You could've fooled me. Since it is for profit, then what are you doing with all the money you are raking in? Are you holding out on us shareholders and not distributing any dividends for all these years? :)).

masoudA. Your point is well-taken. Yeah, a wide base of support keeps IC from becoming a mouthpiece of the powers that be. I fully agree with you with a minor modification. Instead of 10 people giving $50 each, how about 50 people giving $50 each -- $2,500--to help pay JJ's rent and get him a pair of new shoes :).

Princess. Great minds work in tandem and on the same frequency and phase sequence, they tell me. This comment is intended to be funny and I had to explain it since many of my humors are not all that self-evident or even very funny. But again, I am the one who suffers most from my own sense of humor because I can't get away from it. Seriously, thank you for thanking me. Remember that the world is a mirror. What you say and you do reflects right back to you.

Bahram G

It is better

to get $50 from 10 people, instead of $500 from one.    I just hope Iranians do understand and appreciate this form of "free speech" and make sure it remains what it is.   Usually as the case even here in America - when big companies want to quiet a medium - they become their biggest doner or advertiser.  

I agree Bahram G: tax deductability...

Should not be an issue since I suspect average donations to be rather small. My 2 cents.

I have some reactions

To you JJ, just because what you pay is not tax deductible is a lame reasoning/excuse. All of us pay all the time for all kinds of goods and services which are not tax deductible. Right? So, what that has got to do with it?

You get value. You support a project for its own merit. It is no different than buying any other thing or experiencing any event. And I am not blaming anyone for not stepping to the plate the way I hoped we all do. I am just airing out my frustration and you and IC are making it possible for me to say my 2 cents. That ought to be worth something to me although I can't do it at the expense of the IRS. And I don't care.

Yolanda. You are a very gracious person. I thank you for your generosity of heart, words and deeds.

Fariba. You certainly have a point. In many instances, that seems to be the case--those who have more, are needier, as the classic saying goes. At the pragmatic level, you don't stay "rich" by generously dispersing your funds. We, all of us, are temporary travelers of this material world that requires material means to fuel our journey. We all need enough fuel to move us along and keep us "warm," so to speak. The hugely excessive amounts we horde are truly more burden than assets.

Thank you all for doing good with your talents, funds, and resources. Doing "good" is the end-product of our precious ancient triad belief: Good thoughts, good speech, and good deeds.

Bahram G

This has been my experience...

ANAAN KE GHANI-MAND TARAND, MOHTAJ TARAND!

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HI! Bahram,

     Thank you for your blog, very interesting! Apparently the rich people don't visit IC or have not heard the calling to donate. I also want to add that "It is better to give than to receive!" You can donate your time, money, or simply helping other people, the blessings will be returned to you in a different form.

thanks, 

Enjoy the ride

Bahram G, when it comes to parting away with money, it's difficult to pin point why some are reluctant to do so.

After four or five online donation drives and benefit events in the past 15 years, the only attitude I've adopted is to be thankful towards those who make donations. There's no point in asking why some don't. People have their own reasons and I accept them, no matter what.

Also iranian.com is not a non-profit. Those who do donate substantial sums for various causes expect tax-deductible status.

So, my heartfelt thanks to those who believe this site is important enough to support, and no hard feelings towards those who only enjoy the ride.

Bahram G

I had the same thoughts and questions in reaction to JJ's comment yesterday. It is very disappointing to find that the Iranian-American society, which boasts of its level of education, financial wealth and continuing achievements cannot do any better than this.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.