1) I do not see Iranian women or men as an illiterate bunch that must be lured into being civilized. I believe that the current generation is much smarter than that. We need clarity and transparency more than anything else.

2) I believe the society's overwhelming desire is to move towards a secular democracy. We need thought leaders that would show us how, rather than tell us how to derive human rights from fegh (Islamic jurisprudence). An example of a significant move in the right direction was Mr. Akbar Ganji's Republicanism Manifest, which despite being widely misconstrued by the exile community, created a big impact.

3) There are plans to demonstrate against Ms. Ebadi in Oslo when she receives her award. Although I have criticized Ms. Ebadi and I stand by my criticism, I believe such demonstration will be a very wrong move. This reminds me of an equally despicable act by some Iranians who were collecting signatures to request termination of Professor Rob Sobhani from Georgetown University. Whether we agree or disagree with Ms. Ebadi and/or her approach, we have to remember that our nation has been honored with its first Nobel Prize because of her.