Op-Ed

Mother of all troubles

After the production of oil as a cheaper and commercial source for producing light started by drilling wells in North America during 1800’s, oil quickly grew to become one of the most important issues in the internal affairs of most nations as well as international relations. Later, discovery of electric power to produce light in United States forced the oil industry to look for other areas of consumption while drive for finding new oil resources had taken over the whole nation. Invention of gas burning engine to run a vehicle solved the most important problem which oil industry was facing in its toddler years and made it possible for this industry to continue growing in more rapid manner and generate more profit for the owners. This meant heavy competition and rivalry in the capitalist world>>>

عدم خشونت خوب است، ولی فقط برای ما؟

خیلی جالب است کسانی که تبلیغ مقاومت بدون خشونت را برای ما می‌کنند همان‌هایی هستند که تنها بودجه‌ی ارتش‌شان ده‌ها برابر کل بودجه‌ی کل ما روی هم است. آنها هر وقت پای منافع خودشان باشد کمترین تردیدی در استفاده از وحشیانه‌ترین انواع خشونت (بمب‌های شیمیایی و پلوتونیوم ضعیف‌شده و بمب‌های خوشه‌ای و شکنجه و بازداشت‌های چند ساله‌ی بدون تفهیم اتهام و ...) نمی‌کنند. ولی وقتی به ما می‌رسد یک دفعه همه چیز باید بدون خشونت باشد، چون خشونت مال آدم‌های عقب‌افتاده و بی‌تمدن است. وقتی فوکو می‌گوید سیستم کنترل در جامعه‌ی جدید از شکل‌های قدیمی و آشکار و تنبیهی به کنترل گفتمانی و ماسک‌دار و دیسیپلینی تبدیل شده است دروغ نمی‌گوید. همین گفتمان مسخره‌ی عدم خشونت یکی از همین گفتمان‌های دیسیپلین یا تادیب کننده است.>>>

In Iranian eyes

The findings of the WorldPublicOpinion.org (WPO) and Terror Free Tomorrow (TFT) surveys offer two messages to those wanting to see change in Iran's policies: (1) Iranians want their government to talk with the U.S. about specific issues and approve of their government's making policy concessions on both regional issues and its nuclear program in order to achieve normalized relations with the U.S. (2) At the same time, Iranians are relatively content with their government's responsiveness to their needs. The shortcomings many Iranians perceive in their economy are not widely blamed on President Ahmadinejad's government. While most Iranians reject the idea of a religious autocracy, most are not unhappy with the way they see their leaders being chosen and governing the country>>>

Welcome to London! Just kidding.

A few weeks ago I returned from close to four months of fieldwork in Iran conducting research for my doctoral thesis. However, I and the 460 other IranAir passengers were caught off guard by an unwelcome greeting from UK immigration officers. As we set foot off the airplane, our passports were checked, an experience I have never had flying in from other countries. Having just spent hours in Imam Khomeini airport, I was witness to the thorough and professional examination of passports and Visas; thus, I could not understand the logic behind this act except harassment of those who decide to fly with IranAir. >>>

حرکت بیباکانۀ پوتین

آیا روسیه ، با یک ارتش دو میلیونی ، تکنولوژیِ پیشرفته نظامی-فضائی و هزاران بمب اتمی قصد دارد گرجستان را ببلعد؟ آیا پوتین همانند استالین ، می خواهد گرجستان را زیر چکمه هایش خُرد کرده و به بقیۀ جمهوری های جداشده از اتحاد جماهیر شوروی ، پیامی بفرستد؟ آیا پوتین از اینکه آمریکا از یک طرف گرفتار جنگِ عراق و افغانستان و از طرف دیگر در یک بحران شدید اقتصادی دست و پا میزند ، فرصت را برای اعمال نفوذ مناسب یافته است؟ با اتکا به تفسیر متخصصین آمریکائیِ جمهوری های جدا شده از روسیه شوروی ، علت اصلی درگیری آمریکا و روسیه در گرجستان ، انرژی (نفت و گاز) کشورهای همجوار دریای خزر می باشد و در این رودر روئی ، پوتین موفق شده که بوش را مات کند. >>>

No hero

The Republican presidential candidate John Sidney McCain III is a con man. The term “con man” comes from “confidence man,” an individual who swindles his victim by first gaining the mark’s trust. Having nothing to do with the word convict, a prisoner, nowadays, the term “con man” refers to anyone who is all about deceit and lies, it is about passing fiction for reality, or inventing a myth to bolster one’s image. John McCain is a “con man” extraordinaire: his Vietnam War legacy as accepted by supporters, the media and even his sheepish opponents is not what it seems. McCain fancies himself as war hero. His supporters do not waste any moment to remind the public that he was an ex-POW (prisoner of war), who spent time at the “Hanoi Hilton,” the infamous Hoa Lo Prison, where the North Vietnamese held the American prisoners of war>>>

Smart choice

McCain's choice for VP was a very smart move. This presidential campaign will be something to remember and something quite interesting for future political advisors and analysts to ponder about. What Mr McCain did was to borrow almost everything Mr Obama was successful with, without giving up any of what he already had. McCain was known for a few things, whether true or not! He was, and is, quite an old man, a white Christian, which bodes well with most Americans (who are also white Christians), a known maverick among the Republicans and somebody who has some strong principles (sometimes more conservative, other times more liberal), and he usually acts according to those principles. He didn't have Obama's youth, and Obama's slogan of change, and these two went together>>>

Patriots who want their country destroyed

I was sent a file by a “patriot”, Arash Irandoost, with a note saying “see Mossadegh not from an Iranian perspective (which is mostly biased), but through the Western Eye. Read and decide for yourself.” Evidently though, he wanted me to ‘decide for myself’ based on the pertinent highlighted text. Yet another ‘patriot’, Roxanne Ganji,suggeststhat I read a couple of books as “proof the true face of her dear Dr. Mossadegh.” This time I see the infamous Hassan Dai’s name in the correspondence. Certainly I don’t find the truth objectionable. In fact, as a researcher, my fidelity to knowledge is paramount. But my problem is the irony of the situation.>>>

مانيفست درماندگی؟

بخش هائی از گفتگوی آقای اکبر گنجی با راديو فردا براستی اسف برانگيز است. کسی که روزگاری به کنفرانس برلين آمده بود تا توضيح دهد که چرا اصلاح طلبی آيندهء ايران را رقم می زند، و بخاطر آن به زندان افتاد، و در زندان دست به مبارزه زد، اعتصاب غذا کرد، «خامنه ای بايد برود» را نوشت، «مانيفست جمهوری خواهی» را رقم زد، تبديل به يک قهرمان ملی شد، و آنگاه يک باره و غافلگير خلاصش کردند و پاسپورتش را به دستش دادند تا از کشور خارج شده و جايزهء های رنگارنگ حقوق بشر و دموکراسی خواهی و روزنامه نويسی را درو کند و شهروند افتخاری شهرهای استخواندار دنيا شود و با بزرگان عالم انديشه بنشيند و برخيزد، اکنون ـ دو سال و اندی از آن خروج، و در پی ده ها نامه و مقاله نگاری، اعتصاب غذا و سخنرانی ـ نتيجهء مطالعاتش را از ميکروفن راديو فردا، به مخاطبان نشسته در ايران، چنين گزارش می کند که: «آن چيزی که الان هست٬ صرفاً ادعا است ـ ادعای اين که اپوزيسيون وجود دارد. ولی واقعيت مطلب اين است که اپوزيسيونی که منتهی به عمل شود اصلاً وجود خارجی ندارد».>>>

Selling sex

In my usual travels abroad, one thing has become clear, I always had the most “fun” when I was travelling in former communist and current socialist nations like Poland, Czech Republic, and Cuba. I have difficulty explaining to you why my opposite sex in these countries seems to be more receptive to my approach and more likely to hold my hands and build bridges with me. However, I can re-iterate some possible answers that have crossed my conversations. Some friends suggest that it is perhaps the perception of someone from a rich nation like Canada that makes these people excited for my love. >>>

The End of the War on Terrorism

We are SO happy to announce that the Cold War is not over after all! The bad guys are still the Russians! Whew! It was a rough patch there, the breakup of the USSR, then the nice-guy premiers they had, old pal Gorbie, Yeltsin drunk but friendly, the oligarchs, it looked like the Russkies were just homeys with a heavy accent. What were we gonna do? Do you remember back twelve years, twenty, what was it? The fall of the Berlin Wall! Détente! Friendship! Mir! Drüg! Hoo boy, what was going to happen to all those unneeded defense dollars? Remember? Nobody knew, the talking heads, Ted Kennedy, the Repubs. For a while there Ronnie Reagan had a Star Wars thing going but then he went to Reykjavik and almost called off the arms race! That’s how close it was.>>>

Persian Gulf's "occupied territory"

Last month, Tehran announced it was building maritime offices on the Persian Gulf island of Abu Musa, reigniting the long-standing territorial dispute between Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Since 1970, the disagreement over the island and the neighboring Greater and Lesser Tunbs has been mired in legal uncertainty and historical claims and counterclaims, hindering diplomatic relations between Iran and the Gulf Arab states. The recent diplomatic intensity surrounding the issue, however, including the UAE's August 21 formal protest to UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon, is a significant break from the past, and may be a forerunner to a future escalation>>>

Salve Barack Caesar!

Barack Obama’s acceptance speech on August 28 as presidential candidate of his party has been described from inspirational to transformational plus in several other laudatory terms; certainly by those in his party and so-called independents as well. The speech had carefully crafted content, almost as comprehensive as that which Christ delivered at the Mount, and one would be on the mark saying the speech was eloquently delivered, with as much or more finesse than that usually exhibited by televangelist preachers throughout this God-blessed America, and probably with far more believable zeal. This speech, timely delivered on the anniversary of Martin Luther King’s memorable “I have a dream” speech of 45 years ago, capped perfectly a four-day convention in which unity and change were the two themes>>>

In black and white

The two major American political forces, the Democratic and the Republican parties, have two types of images, a subconscious (or maybe unconscious) one, and another, an attempted one! The subconscious one for the Democratic Party is the party of Socialists and Liberals, who can rarely ally, unless (as usually is the case) in the face of a serious political or other 'calamity'. And the subconscious image of the Republican Party is the party of white Christians! White Christians, whether die-heart ones or moderate ones, can usually get along much better, though their absolute numbers are usually smaller than Socialists and Liberals put together. >>>

مشت نمونه خروار

در طول سالهای گذشته یکی از مشکلاتی که اپوزیسیون جمهوری اسلامی در ثبت و مستند کردن جنایات انجام گرفته از سوی مقامات رژیم با آن روبرو بوده، همنامی جنایتکاران است. تعدادی از این جنایتکاران دارای نام خانوادگی یکسان هستند و گاه افراد زندانی و یا کسانی که در مورد زندان‌ها می‌نویسند به علت مشابهت نام خانوادگی جنایتکاران، اشتباهاتی را مرتکب می‌شوند. از آن‌جایی که به دلایل گوناگون در فرهنگ غالب ما ایرانیان پذیرش مسئولیت اشتباه جایی ندارد، بسیاری از افراد و گروه‌ها پس از پی بردن به اشتباهشان نیز همچنان روی صحت آن پافشاری کرده و کوششی برای تصحیح آن به کار نمی‌برند. بسیاری از گروه‌ها و کوشندگان سیاسی با علم و آگاهی نسبت به اشتباهاتی که از سوی همراهان و یا هم‌خطان سیاسی‌شان انجام گرفته همچنان به اطلاعات غلط آن‌ها اشاره کرده و زمینه‌ی رشد و تکثیر این اشتباهات را فراهم می‌کنند. >>>