Iranian Woman

2011-12-23T03:51:00.004-12:00

The Armenian Genocide

France's Parliament passed a bill where the denial of the Armenian holocaust is a crime but the Turkish PM calls it racist and anti-Muslim. Why not demand that the slaughter of Algerians during French colonization to be addressed instead of calling every right action anti-Muslim or racist?

2011-12-18T09:21:00.001-12:00

Dictators and parasite hardly leave. Great minds like Vaclav Havel and Christopher Hitchens hardly come to life and leave too soon!

2011-12-17T02:41:00.003-12:00

Why are there so many gods?

Christopher Hitchens, a great writer who valued rationality over religious hypocrisy has died. In 2009 after a Danish newspaper apologized for publishing cartoons of the prophet Muhammad that led Muslim organizations to threaten legal action he wrote: "It's not enough that faith claims to be the solution to all problems but is now demanded that such a preposterous claim be made immune from any inquiry, any critique, and any ridicule." He was a friend to Iranians and defended the rights of Iranian women.

2011-11-27T05:02:00.000-12:00

Heat shock, revolution shock, war shock: A brief & excellent segment excerpted from Iran’s Generation X

2011-11-20T15:30:00.003-12:00

Steady

And so it happens that today I started my last year in a decade of thirties. Roses, the company of my family and friends, an enjoyable evening at Ritz-Carlton and my daughter’s beautiful gift.

2011-09-26T02:11:00.002-12:00

The harrowing ordeal in Iran

Shane Bauer: "How can we forgive the Iranian government when it continues to imprison so many other innocent people and prisoners of conscience?"

2011-07-28T13:20:00.008-12:00

گندابِ فرهنگ و فرهنگِ گنداب

میروسلاو هولوب، شاعر چکی، می گوید به همان اندازه که انواع مختلف سگ در دنیا هست انواع مختلف شاعر هم هست. هیچ کس نمی تواند اعتراض کند که چرا شاعری اینگونه می نویسد یا آنگونه رفتار می کند. بعضی شاعران سنتی اند، بعضی مدرن. بعضی سخاوتمندند، بعضی خسیس. بعضی رُکند، بعضی تعارفی. تا زمانی که حدی نگه داشته شود و خصیصه اخلاقی شاعر موجب تجاوزی به حریم خصوصی افراد نشود، می شود بر شاعر بداخلاق یا بدرفتار بخشید. اما وقتی که بدخویی، بدطینتی می شود و سهو، عمد آنگاه باید مرز کشید و اخطار یا افشا کرد.

لیلا فرجامی یکی از موارد بارز نمک خوردن و نمکدان شکستن، واز آن بدتر، مار خوردن و افعی شدن در کامیونیتی ادبی ما است. من به فرجامی به عنوان یک همکار ادبی و دوست نگاه می کردم و سالیانی چند تمام کوششم را کردم که به او کمک کنم (به عنوان مثال او را با ناشر آمریکایی ام در تماس قرار دادم و به صدای آمریکا و مجلات اینترنتی مختلف معرفی اش کردم تا در موفقیت حرفه ای اش موثر باشند). اما او چه کرد؟ محبت های مرا به سخیفترین و حقیرترین نوع ممکن پاسخ داد و به اسم من در مورد شعرها و نوشته های دیگران در سایت های ادبی کامنت های مغرضانه و کینه ورزانه نوشت تا رابطه میان من و آن نویسندگان و شاعران را خراب کند. ابتدا به این خیال که این رفتار مرضی فقط متوجه من است و ممکن است نتیجه سو تفاهمی باشد واکنش چندانی نشان ندادم. اما به تدریج دیدم که قصه سر دراز دارد و او با بسیاری همین کار را کرده و می کند.

فرجامی در سال ۲۰۰۷ در برنامه ای در یکی از تلوزیون های لس آنجلس با مجری به این دلیل که شیدا محمدی، شاعر و فعال حقوق زنان، را به برنامه دعوت کرده بود درگیر شد و این درگیری در حالی اتفاق افتاد که برنامه به طور زنده پخش می شد. در همان سال ادعا کرد که حسین فاضلی (نانام)، شاعر و کنشگر مدنی، قصد تعدی به او را داشته است. مدتی بعد به لجن پراکنی در مورد فریبا شاد کهن، شاعر ایرانی مقیم سوئد پرداخت. اینها مشتِ نمونه خروار است. آخرین افتضاحش را فرجامی چندی پیش در رابطه با جایزه شعر خورشید بالا آورد. او گمان می کرد که کتاب شعرش که یکی از ده کاندیدای ربودن جایزه بود حتما برنده خواهد شد. وقتی که نشد، بنای حمله به دبیران جایزه را گذاشت و آنان را متهم کرد که بدون اجازه کتابش را در مسابقه شرکت داده اند (ظاهرا بیش از ۲ دهه زندگی در غرب هنوز به او نیاموخته که این ناشر است که کتاب را برای جوایز ادبی می فرستد نه نویسنده، و هم اوست که وظیفه دارد نویسنده را مطلع کند.)

البته هیچ کدامٍ این حرف ها به خودی خود مهم نیست. آدم مریض و مغرض در این دنیا زیاد است و نوشتن مطلب و مقاله در مورد تک تک این افراد در بهترین حالت اتلاف وقت و انرژی است. آنچه که مرا به نوشتن این مطلب وامی دارد خودِ لیلا فرجامی نیست، معضلی است که او نماینده و سمبل آن است. مشکل، فرهنگی است که امثال لیلا فرجامی تولید می کند. بدِ دیگران را خواستن، خود را محق و دیگران را بی حق و حقوق دانستن، باند بازی و شارلاتانیسم یک گنداب فرهنگی است. از دل این گنداب است که چنین رفتارهایی بیرون می آید.

نویسنده و شاعر باید تلاش کند که سرمشق جامعه باشد. باید بتوان به جمعِ قلم به دست تاسی کرد، نه اینکه مانند ویروس از دستشان گریخت! مساله جدی تر از یک مشکل شخصی است. آدمی که رفتارش در حیطه های حرفه ای از رفتار چاقو کش های چاله میدانی هم زشت تر باشد چه حقی دارد که در شعرش دم از درست و نادرست و نیک و بد بزند؟ آنچه که مرا وا می دارد که در اینجا در مورد لیلا فرجامی بنویسم همین سوال است. اما بگذارید سوالم را بسط بدهم:
آیا جامعه ما به این دلیل درگیر با حقارت، دورویی و حق کشی نیست که بسیاری از نویسندگان و روشنفکرانش خود آدمهایی حقیر، دورو و حق کشند؟
این سوال خطرناک ولی لازمی است. سوالی که باید پرسیده شود. مشکل، از دید من، لیلا فرجامی نیست. او تنها یک عارضه است. بیماری را باید در جای دیگری جست.

وقتی که مبنای رابطه نویسنده با کارش عشق و از آن مهمتر نیاز به بیان حقیقتی نباشد، به جای اثر، روابط عمومی اثر و به جای شعر، شاعر مهم می شود. گنداب اینجاست که شکل می گیرد. به گمان من این نیاز حقیرانه و مرضی به تک بودن و بهترین بودن زاده رابطه کاذبیست که با قلم وجود دارد. رابطه سطحی صاحب قلم با قلم این گندابِ فرهنگیِ را می زاید.

گنداب کرم تولید می کند. می شود کرم ها را تک تک بیرون کشید. اما با این کار معضلی حل نمی شود. باید گنداب را خشکاند!

2011-04-30T08:18:00.001-12:00

Azadeh Pourzand: "I will never forget what they did to you. I will never forget how they tortured you with their disgusting hands. This is a promise! I will not let the world forget."

2011-04-08T04:29:00.000-12:00

Camp Ashraf residents are Protected Persons under the Geneva Convention. Those who claim are "human rights activists" should stand for the rights & fundamental freedoms of others including those they disagree with.

2011-03-15T01:41:00.002-12:00

The speech attributed to Taeb is only published in Facebook pages and sites belonging to reformists. How do we know that Mousavists and Reformists are not playing to create divisions. If we want to believe in conspiracy theories it would be much stronger case to think Mousavi was created by the regime to destroy the opposition and ensure the continuity of the regime. I don't want to advocate any of these theories but my point is we have to focus on what we think is right not what someone else wants us to believe, especially when that someone else has such a questionable past.

Women on the Frontline

2011-03-08T04:41:00.000-12:00

2011-02-21T06:57:00.001-12:00

Call for no fly zone in Libya.

2011-02-21T02:20:00.001-12:00

"Hamid Dabashi on BBC: Mirhossein Mousavi is Iran's Mandela."

I wasn't aware Mandela had overseen thousands of executions from his prison cell! If Iran has a Mandela that is Amir Entezam.

2011-02-15T07:57:00.001-12:00

Syria: Tal al-Molouhi, a 19 year old girl, sentenced five years for blogging.

Petition

2011-02-03T06:14:00.004-12:00

Courage

Nicholas Kristof: "One of the people I met on Tahrir today is a hero of mine: Nawal el-Saddawi, a leader of Egyptian feminism. She's 80 years old and frail, but she told me that she will sleep on Tahrir tonight to do what she can to protect the democracy movement. Raw courage!"

2011-01-29T05:14:00.002-12:00

The Greater Middle East

For years USA supported military Dictatorship throughout Latin America but in the 80's they started the Democratization of that region. Now a similar wave seems to be sweeping across the Middle East.

2011-01-24T04:13:00.003-12:00

Maktab Tarighat Oveyssi Shahmaghsoudi

The gender segregation in the MTO Sufi order in nature is similar to that of IRI gender apartheid.

2011-01-15T17:39:00.004-12:00

Nikahang Kowsar: Mousavi talks about the "Golden Years" under Khomeini, Karroubi is nostalgic for the "Dear Imam", Khatami supports Velayate Faghih, Rafsanjani addresses Khamenei as the "Dear Leader".... Now do you get it why Ben Ali escaped and Seyyed Ali is still in power?

Jahanshah Javid: All the Leader's Men

They are all still under the umbrella of velayate faghih. Just like in 1979 when even Bakhtiar and other tolerated internal opposition figures did not speak about abolishing the monarchy. They all want to make reforms from within, when it is too late, when reform has lost it's meaning, when there's nothing worth reforming, when the system is rotten to the core.

2011-01-15T10:09:00.003-12:00

Iran: Human Rights Crime

The 28 year old political activist Hossein Khezri was executed this morning.

2011-01-11T03:19:00.004-12:00

Human Rights Violations

Human Rights are said to be, rights inherent to all humans, rights that we all are entitled to without discrimination. How is it that many Iranians who hope for their country to one day become a democracy don't defend the rights of others, i.e. Mojahedin-e Khalgh. 7 killed (2009) and 175 were injured, 83 of those are women (2011) when Iraqi special forces and agents of Iranian regime attacked Camp Ashraf. Please speak up against human rights violations. Be a voice against dehumanization.

2011-01-10T03:54:00.001-12:00

Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh is sentenced to 11 years in prison. In other words say goodbye to the joy of parenting when you live in a country ruled by thugs.

2011-01-08T05:16:00.004-12:00

Prince Alireza Pahlavi was innocent of his father’s human rights violations. His exile and death resonates with the Pain of millions of Iranians who live in exile.

Earlier today someone on my Facebook asked if I support Iran going back to a monarchy. This is my response to that question. I, Sheema Kalbasi, support a DEMOCRATIC Iran and one that is hopefully a REPUBLIC where every qualified Iranian regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, ideology, etc. can be a candidate to SERVE the nation. As for the Pahlavi family well it is a historical fact that Reza Khan Pahlavi changed the face of the country in less than two decades - something that was never done before or after him. As for Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, he too wanted a modern Iran. Despite his deep religious fears and traditionalism and even inferiority complex, he tried his best. It was during his time that Iran experienced religious and cultural Freedom as well as Progressive REFORMS such as women's Voting and family Rights. But Prince Alireza Pahlavi was innocent of his father’s human rights violations. His EXILE and death resonates with the PAIN of millions of Iranians who live in exile.

2010-12-28T03:08:00.002-12:00

Iranians get convicted of waging war against God. What are we now? Real time Don Quixotes of 21st century?

2010-12-27T03:21:00.001-12:00

20 more political & civil activist have been arrested. Iranian poet Simin Chaichi is amongst those arrested with Latifi's family.

2010-12-26T12:58:00.001-12:00

Earlier today the Iranian regime arrested Habib Latifi's family.

2010-12-25T09:46:00.001-12:00

Hamid Dabashi claims as an American citizen he doesn’t have any oversight and control over Congress run VOA. What media outlet does he have control over? Islamic Republic Broadcasting Corporation? Corporate run media like CNN? He says his objection is not to people but establishments or organizations. Doesn’t he know that people make up the establishments or the organizations? Mohammad Javad Zarif job in NY is not to hang around with Dabashi but to watch for the interest of Islamic Republic of Iran. Friendship with Zarif means friendship with Islamic Republic. Period.

2010-12-17T05:34:00.002-12:00

Everyone but the LA based Muhammad Sahimi should withhold their opinion of Mir Hossein Mousavi!

2010-12-12T23:31:00.003-12:00

The Sneaky Santa

A hot discussion went on in my kid's class about Santa Claus. My daughter insisted Santa Claus isn’t real and the FBI agent's son responded by saying my daughter doesn’t believe in Santa because she doesn't have a religion! On the way home my daughter said but how on earth can a fat man climb down a chimney!

2010-12-09T02:51:00.002-12:00

The Iranian blogger Hossein Derakhshan is free.

2010-12-06T17:27:00.001-12:00

The Islamic scholars like Tariq Ramadan or Reza Aslan speak about Islam in such a way as if they address Westerners instead of Muslims in Islamic Countries. They ask Westerners to be tolerant of Muslims. They are champion in the art of projecting Islam as the religion of peace, and expect their rights to be respected, to build mosques and Islamic centers, to be treated differently from the terrorists or militant Muslims but can’t speak out against the case of Asia Bibi!

2010-12-01T07:09:00.010-12:00

Reza Aslan

An article by Reza Aslan was circulated on social media recently. While Aslan simply dismisses the possibility of Islamic regime's hand in these terrorist attacks as not founded in facts he makes wild accusations against CIA, the intelligence agency of the country that has given him everything, based on pure speculation!

2010-11-30T08:01:00.003-12:00

Iran: Another execution, another woman

Shahla Jahed who was charged for the murder of a well-known Iranian football player's wife will be executed tomorrow.

2010-11-17T05:16:00.003-12:00

Like Majid Tavakoli of Iran, the recently freed Burmese opposition politician Daw Aung San Suu Kyi discusses sanctions in hope of a democracy for her country. She wants the international community "to play an active and constructive role, most immediately by pressing the authorities to release the other 2,100 political prisoners."

2010-11-12T04:36:00.003-12:00

The Color Purple movement : Mahmoud Ahmadinejad twenty years later. Make sure not to ask him what crimes he committed during Khamenei's golden era. It may weaken the movement!

2010-11-03T04:50:00.008-12:00

The sue-happy Trita Parsi of NIAC who accuses Iranian exiles of being on a MKO payroll, Neo-con supported agents, and warmonger happens to work for U.S. State Department in addition to his work for CIA!

2010-11-02T10:31:00.002-12:00

For more than a year people of immigrant (Muslim) background are killed in Malmö and the Swedish Police hasn’t found the shooter??!!

2010-10-10T12:37:00.001-12:00

'Genius' Blogger Sentenced To 15 Years

Iranian blogger Hossein Maleki Ronaghi has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.

2010-09-29T08:35:00.001-12:00

The universal rights of all People is finally addressed

CNN: U.S adds sanctions against Iran for human rights abuses. Citing "mounting evidence" of repression of the Iranian opposition, the Obama administration added more sanctions against Iranian government officials, members of the Revolutionary Guards Corps and others accused by the United States of being responsible for human rights abuses.

2010-09-22T03:53:00.001-12:00

Subject: Sign the Petition / Canada asking for consular access
A petition site to urge for the immediate release of Hossein Derakhshan.

Your signatures will be directly and automatically sent to officials of the Federation of Canada, urging them to do whatever they can to demand the immediate release of Hossein.

2010-07-15T03:37:00.005-12:00

Thank God for people like Jefferson who gave us an enlightened world to live in. Otherwise we (at least I) should have put up with people like these.

2010-07-09T16:12:00.002-12:00

July 11th is the International Day Against Stoning. Fifteen people are awaiting execution by stoning in Iran, all of them on adultery charges.

2010-07-04T12:27:00.003-12:00

"Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better." -- Albert Camus

2010-06-26T07:44:00.003-12:00

Sanctions against IRI are bloody murder!

While Mandela supported sanctions against the apartheid regime, there were those in the West (mostly on the right) who opposed them by arguing that sanctions would only hurt poor black people. We all know that the opponents of sanctions against the apartheid regime couldn't care less about poor South Africans but worried about their trade with that country. In the same way, many who oppose sanctions against IR worry more about their UAE-based businesses than ordinary Iranians. Now that more countries are joining the sanctions, you see folks who never said a word about the misery of the Iranians in all these years are sticking their heads out and crying bloody murder!

2010-06-17T02:35:00.002-12:00

Iranians involved in 1988 massacres remain in public life

Geoffrey Robertson: "Those who conducted the prison massacres in 1988 are not only guilty of directing torture and murder but of implementing a plan to exterminate. That amounts to genocide and there is an international obligation on all nations under the Genocide Convention to bring them to book."

2010-06-12T03:40:00.007-12:00

I Am a Witness

I am a witness to the sacrifices that take place to appease a deity. I am a witness to the immolation, rape, murder, manslaughter, stoning, slavery, submission of the masses and binding people as sacrificial victims in the name of religion. I am a witness to the crimes committed by the Iranian regime. I am a witness to the changed history of my people in textbooks. I am a witness to the economic disaster and Iran’s sex slave industry. I am a witness to the murder of children, and men and women in the streets of Tehran who marched in quiet for their green votes. I am a witness to the death of Neda. I am a witness to the death of Sohrab. I am a witness to the murders of Zahras and execution of Farzad. I am a witness to the exile of my people. I am a witness.

2010-05-28T11:11:00.002-12:00

If you wanted to lose weight two pounds a week you would have had lost a lot of it by now. If you had a new born, he or she would be 19 months old by now. If you had a candy bar left out of its wrapper, 19 months later you couldn’t recognize it. If you had bought a pair of shoes it would be worn out by now. Right? Now imagine Hossein Derakhshan sitting in a cell in Iran for 19 months. Now there is this blog launched by his family seeking justice for a man whose pending case is not attractive enough for the Canadians, the country of his citizenship, to follow up on it! Only if Juliette Binoches of the world would carry names of each and every social and political prisoner in Iran.

2010-05-28T02:14:00.003-12:00

مجید توکلی: "موضوع فروپاشی در ایران در ابعاد مختلف سیاسی،‌ فرهنگی، ‌اجتماعی و اقتصادی موضوع بسار پر اهمیتی است. از سال ها پیش تقدم و تاخر مسایل بالا مطرح بوده است و عده ای ایجاد نارضایتی و فراگیر شدن آن را با تشدید هر یک موثری دانسته است. چنین بوده است که برجسته کردن تفاوت فرهنگی و اجتماعی امروز ایرانیان با قرائت رسمی حاکمیت در رعایت امور فردی چون پوشش و عموم تفریحات و سرگرمی ها و ارتباطات در ادامه نیز موثر خواهد بود. در باب اهمیت و تقدم فروپاشی اقتصادی نیز – که تسهیل کننده شرایط انقلابی است، تحریم های اقتصادی که در چند سال اخیر روند تشدیدی داشته است در این روزها رو به افزایش است که اگر چه شرایط زیست و پیشرفت را در کشور با مشکل روبرو می نماید ولی با توجه به خطرات آن برای استحکام قدرت استبداد در ایران هم از کمبود منابع و هم از هزینه منابع قبلی در جبران محرومیت های اساسی مورد نظر خواهد بود و هم از وضعیت نارضایتی که ایجاد خواهد کرد. بنابر این افزایش محرومیت و سختی که در بستر جمهوری اسلامی به یک واقعیت تثبیت شده منتهی شده است در چند ماه آینده نمی تواند چنان فاجعه آمیز برای آینده ایران در نظر گرفته شود. زیرا که پس از دوران سخت دیکتاتوری در ایران، روزهای خوش نیز فرا خواهد رسید."

2010-05-27T08:22:00.004-12:00

IRAN: Prisoner Raped

Bahram Tasviri Khiabani, a prisoner held in Rajaiee Shahr prison in Iran, was raped by two Islamic Republic Revolutionary Guards. The victim talks on camera from inside the prison.

2010-05-16T12:56:00.002-12:00

Cookingpundit: "What’s exile? My daughter’s question surfed in the air as I went to close the door behind her music teacher with the two year old toddling next to me. What’s exile I asked myself? Maybe it’s not having had tasted those crazy beautiful white mulberries of back home for over twenty years. Maybe it’s those field trips and setting up a large brezent canvas on the ground to try and catch white drops of mulberries."

2010-05-14T06:47:00.007-12:00

Please execute Sanandaj
Decapitate Mahabad
Please don’t let our babies be born
And don’t let rain to rain and plants to grow
And earth to breath!

Sherko Bekas

2010-05-10T12:13:00.002-12:00

Mir Hossein Mousavi on the execution of five activists: "Is this the divine justice that we were seeking?"

2010-05-09T16:16:00.003-12:00

Execution of five Iranian political prisoners. This is the headline. Farzad Kamangar, Farhad Vakili, Ali Haydarian, Mehdi Eslamian and Shirin Alam Houli were hanged at Evin prison today. Perhaps these executions sit well with us or our Noble peace price winner, Shirin Ebadi, in a speech would not have had said: "Human rights is the foundation of a true democracy therefore the rights of majority must be the main goal of such a government."

2010-05-07T10:17:00.002-12:00

Our Male Chauvinistic Culture

Cultural campaign for women equality is a worthy cause which can be best carried out at the grass root level in a democratic society inside Iran. The virtual space or exile are not the best venues for such campaigns. That is why I think the biggest challenge of our time is political in nature. One may bring up the chicken-egg paradox and argue that these cultural issues breed the kind of backwardness, discrimination, and violence that characterizes the regime in Iran. That might be true to a certain extent in the same way as some may argue that Nazism or Fascism had their underpinnings in the European culture. The political project not only must go on but also given the first priority in my opinion because without the success of the political project, the social project for change has little chance of success.

I believe despite all our cultural deficiencies and chauvinistic males and so on we can do better than this. Some may even argue that many of the things that Shadi Sadr says about Iranian men, are things that western feminists might say about western men. Obviously most of us would trade their political system and democratic institutions for ours in a heart beat. The logical conclusion of Ms. Sadr arguments is that this regime, by virtue of representing our male chauvinistic culture, enjoys some degree of legitimacy although she may not have put it this way.

2010-05-06T02:43:00.003-12:00

The Dual Burdens

Whilst Iranian women struggle for an affirmation of their status as equal citizens and are demanding withdrawal of discriminatory laws against them, the United Nations elects the country’s totalitarian regime to its Commission on the Status of Women. The conditions under which the Iranian women live, have enough grounding for the United Nations to call the regime in Iran on their gender apartheid; instead they have promoted IRI to a seat on CSW. When the laws of a totalitarian regime are supported and legitimized by the international community they will have a direct effect on the perpetuation of injustice, as well as continuation of segregation in the society. This in my opinion is justifying more domestic violence. Sadly what we witness first hand is that Iranian women’s suffering is underestimated by the United Nations recent act. They seem to treat this primarily as a fictionalized case. But these are not the reasons why I write this note. I am writing this because a few days ago I read an article by an Iranian women’s rights activist named Shadi Sadr. In that article Sadr makes several statements against Iranian men and compares them all with the totalitarian regime’s Imam, Ayatollah Seddighi, a man who called women the reason for earthquakes in his Friday sermon, and represents a regime that arrests, rapes, and kills.

Iranian men unfortunately are once again victims of stereotyping and this time not by the American Betty Mahmoody in a movie called “Not without My Daughter” but in Sadr’s article titled “What is Different between Tehran’s Friday Sermon Imam and the rest of Iranian Men?”. The image she has portrayed of Iranian men in her article is misleading. Without raising objection to the original comments and minimizing the Ayatollah’s statement she takes Iranian men to a kangaroo court and denies them all due process rights. Based on Sadr’s statement half the population of the country is guilty of sexual harassment as well as mischievous behavior against Iranian women. Where is the logic in such a comparison? Those men are mostly innocent of the crimes Sadr is convicting them of. After all Iranian men are not a bol de soupe that everything could go in. This is simply wrong.

But then some may say I question Sadr’s motives in writing such an article because I have not been victimized or assaulted in the streets of Iran. I assure you that will be a failing argument. Like some Iranian women I too have experienced that type of vulgarity in the streets back in Iran, i.e. age 9: a young man grabbed my bosom as I walked with my mother and brother, age 13, covered in the mandatory Hijab and walking to school a man came close to me and said: “I want to eat your pussy,” at age 14 I was harassed by a Basiji on several occasions. In his last attempt he pushed me against the wall and pressed himself against me. Whatever our personal experiences may or may not be, we can not deny men’s rights by collectively putting them all in the same camp as the Imam.

Although subjects such as women’s oppression in Iran and gender apartheid are important issues to be raised and discussed, none should admonish us to forget that most Iranian men support Iranian women in their struggle to gain equal rights. We need to acknowledge the difference between the totalitarian regime’s men and the Iranian male population. There’s no room for bias in women’s movement that is supposed to be fighting against bias!

2010-05-02T15:56:00.010-12:00

Stereotyping Half the Population

After Ayatollah Kazem Sedighi’s comments about women causing earthquakes, an Iranian lawyer and women's rights activist Shadi Sadr wrote: “I don’t see any difference between Ayatollah Sedighi and every Iranian man.” She went on to add: “Iranian men belong to the same camp as the [ruling regime’s] Ayatollah.” More than addressing the Ayatollah’s comments Sadr’s article in my opinion is minimizing the issue as well as stereotyping half the population of the country.

2010-04-29T11:21:00.002-12:00

FOXnews: "Without fanfare, the United Nations this week elected Iran to its Commission on the Status of Women, handing a four-year seat on the influential human rights body to a theocratic state in which stoning is enshrined in law and lashings are required for women judged "immodest."

2010-02-17T02:47:00.002-12:00

NIAC

In my opinion this organization is trying to wield control on Iranian-American media (of which VOA is an example), represent itself as the only voice of the Iranian-American community, and even monopolize Iranian rallies held in the US. This kind of monopolistic behavior especially when it is about free exchange of information does not sit well with me.

2010-01-25T15:16:00.017-12:00

Denmark's Saxo bank makes outrageous predictions every year to challenge markets' wisdom and assumptions in the year ahead. By putting together bits and pieces of information, especially Mousavi's and Karoubi's latest statements and the crisis in the banking system, some similarly outrageous predictions could be made about the direction of events in Iran. Ahmadinejad has apparently dissolved Iran's equivalent of federal reserve board of governors in recent days, which even in normal countries would send tsunami waves throughout the system. This is just the beginning: as the sanctions go in full gear and the subsidies end, people may end up paying many orders of magnitude for basic products and services. All this combined with the inability of the regime to crush dissent and defection among its own ranks has made many within the regime skeptical as to the ability of the Ahmadinejad administration to carry on (aka buyer remorse). But since Ahmadinejad has the backing of Khamanei, sacrificing him has to be done in such a way that Khamenei doesn't lose face. One way is for Majlis to impeach Ahmadinejad and/or his ministers over the economic crisis forcing him to resign which after thankful acceptance by Khamanei will pave the way for new elections. Reading between the lines of Karoubi statements today and Mousavi's statements a few weeks ago, one could sense some outcome like this might be in the works/promised to these gentlemen. A lot will depend on the events in the next 3-4 weeks, especially 22 Bahman and unfolding of the banking crisis. This is just an outrageous prediction but one with a pretty good chance of coming true. At a minimum it makes us think "outside the box" in the same way that Saxo banks predictions are designed to.

2010-01-22T03:35:00.001-12:00

To those who advocate pacifism blindly. You shook hands with the devil thirty years ago and brought us this national disaster. Now you ask us to shut up, don’t rock the boat and perhaps let another thirty years go by. Have you ever wondered that the birth of Islamic Republic when seen from historical prospective could be the beginning of the end to the life of Iran as a nation? Nations have come and gone. This could be the beginning of our demise. This is when the intellectuals come in to keep us away from such national calamities. They failed miserably thirty years ago and some of those who advocate blind pacifism in my opinion are failing miserably again.

2010-01-21T15:38:00.008-12:00

الف) آقای کدیور بعد از شش صفحه استدلال و فلسفه بافی نتیجه گیری کرده با آنکه ولایت فقیه و این نوع حکومت را قبول ندارد ولی از دید وی حرکت در چهارچوب ولایت فقیه تنها مسیر ممکن است! شکی در این نیست که جایگزینی ولایت فقیه با یک حکومت دموکرات کاریست دشوار و در موفقیت آن تضمینی نیست ولی عدم اطمینان از رسیدن به مقصود مطلوب بسیار والاتر است از مطالبه ای که نه مطلوب است و نه عملی. تجربه پانزده سال اخیر نشان داده که ولایت فقیه حتی کوچکترین قدمها در جهت گسترش جامعه مدنی را بر نمی تابد و از این رو حتی رسیدن به کف مطالباتی که از سوی موسوی مطرح شده است به گواه این تجربه پانزده ساله در قالب حکومت ولایی نا ممکن است. علاوه بر آن کسی که با ادعا و یا بدون ادعای رهبری با صدور بیانیه ده ماده ای پنج نفره به شکلی دست به تبین خواستهای جنبش سبز می زند چگونه مردم را به چیزی فرا می خواند که بگفته خود به آن اعتقاد ندارد.

ب) محمد خاتمی بنا به خواست ولی فقیه اش ظاهرا دست به شفاف کردن مواضع خود زده است و در این راستا افراطیون دو طرف را مورد حمله قرار داده است. حال ببینیم افراطی آن طرف کیست و افراطی این طرف کیست. افراطی ان طرف می کشد، تجاوز می کند و می گوید فتح المبین می کنیم، با ماشین از روی معترض رد می شود و به جای دستگیری قاتل، شاهد قتل را دستگیر می کند، ندا را در روز روشن در خیابان می کشد و می گوید ندا خود نقشه قتل خود را کشیده بود، خواهر زاده را ترور می کند و قتل را به گردن دایی اش می اندازد، پزشک کهریزک را مسموم می کند و با کمال وقاحت وعده سرکوب هر چه بیشتر می دهد. افراطی این طرف دستمال سبز به دهان می بندد و فریاد نه شرقی نه غربی جمهوری ایرانی سر می دهد. افراطی این طرف قاتل ندا را می گیرد ولی پس از شناسایی آزادش می کند. افراطی این طرف ... و افراطی آن طرف...

2010-01-16T03:48:00.000-12:00

The Fierce Urgency of Now

There is a group of “veteran” Iranian politicians with a track record mostly characterized by longevity than accomplishments whose idea of nonviolent activism can be better described as some toothless pacifism. Ezatollah Sahabi is an excellent example of such veterans. The sad irony is that someone who published a circulation titled “Iran-e-farda” (Iran-of-tomorrow) is so incapable of understanding that the “tomorrow” has actually arrived and if not seized on today will be wasted as the past thirty one years have. How many opportunities did we miss in the past 31 years? At the time when the end of cold war era was about to bring renewed hope for prosperity and freedom to many nations, we began a backward search in the dungeons of the dark past. The collapse of the former Soviet created historic opportunities for Iran to form strong alliances, cultural or otherwise, with the former Soviet republics in the south and near the Caspian Sea. Instead the incompetence of the regime; its repulsive ideology and the way of life it promotes; its dumb fascination with nuclear program; and obsessive hostility towards US and Israel not only deprived us from seizing on this historic opportunity but even led to Iran’s diminished role in the Caspian Sea area as the Mullahs were desperate for Russian support. And where are we now? We have a population of 70 million, 75% of whom are under 30 years of age, many of them well-educated. The regime does not even remotely understand the desires and aspirations of this population. On the other hand the regime is facing unseen pressure by the international community on its nuclear program. It is reacting by ending subsidies, which will lead to higher prices of basic products and services, creating grounds for an effective large scale civil disobedience campaign. If we cannot seize on these opportunities and the potential offered by this vibrant populace to make political transformation and rebuild our nation now, we will be missing another historic opportunity, this time with far more catastrophic consequences than anything we have seen in the past. “Tomorrow” will be simply too late. Is there anyone who understands “the fierce urgency of now”?

2010-01-11T17:22:00.002-12:00

On the 10 commandments of the 5 musketeers!

The more I read the 10 commandments issued by the gang of 5 (Ganji et al), the less it made sense to me. Even if there was a semblance of meaning to be extracted from this 10 point declaration - which only Robin Wright was apparently able to decipher - the follow up interview by a member of the band (Mohajerani) sent me back to square one. Never mind what this declaration is all about. Let’s consider an easier question. Who is the target audience of this declaration? Obviously not me, and most likely not you my dear reader. And absolutely not the Iranian diaspora. Oh, Mohajerani said it in his interview: it’s talking to all the good God fearing people of Iran who according to Mohajerani make up the majority of the people. So let me see if I get it now. People have been risking their lives, tortured, raped, killed because they want Khamenei to answer to the Assembly of Experts. Hmm, are we talking about the same Assembly of Experts whose speaker is Rafsanjani, whose members are tied via a circular process back to Khamanei himself, and which by the way reinstated Khamenei in his position just a few months ago? Of course! How ignorant of me! Now that the gang of 5 has spoken, the Iranian people who have been incapable of expressing their demands by now, have suddenly found a new meaning and purpose in life. Yes! It’s all clear. It all makes sense now! Never mind who this declaration is talking to. Let’s consider another question. What happened to the Ganji of the Republican Manifest? What happened to the person whose courage and intellect broke new grounds? What happened to the person who set a new discourse in the fight against religious tyranny? What happened to the person who you could not stop admiring even if you didn’t agree with a word of what he said? I want that Ganji back. We need that Ganji more than any other time.

2010-01-09T16:43:00.003-12:00

Those Leverettes

I have made several comments under SKA here and below is my latest.

Leverettes' arguments are so void of intellectual rigor and knowledge of the Iranian history and culture that their "three questions" come across as mere rhetorical ones. As a matter of fact their "questions" are nothing more than simplistic highlighting of contrasts between this movement, and in their mind, the Islamic revolution of 79. Their argument then goes something like: the 1979 Revolution succeeded, our three questions show how different these two movements are, therefore this movement is doomed to fail! Then they look for "data" from regime's propaganda outlets and a questionable poll to back their so called "analysis". This is so embarrassing for someone who carries the titles of director of this and professor of that. Even their knowledge of the 1979 revolution seems to be embarrassingly shallow and limited. For example, contrary to what Leverettes think the only clear consensus among the political forces of the time was to depose Shah. Even the constitution that according to the Leverettes Khomeini had in hand upon return to Iran was 180 degrees different from what was passed later on (the first version was pretty much a copy of the French constitution and there is no such thing as Velayate Faghih in the French constitution the last time I checked).

Now let's be more specific about their questions. The 1979 revolution obviously enjoyed strong central leadership. Let's even give it to the Leverettes that its "demands" were crystal clear from day one. Nowhere in their piece have they shown that strong central leadership or clear demands are prerequisites to success of a movement. Josh Sharyar refuted this claim by means of an example. Another example is Iran's Constitutional Revolution of 1905- 1911 that succeeded with almost no central leadership through a loose alliance of merchants, western educated intellectuals, clerics, provincial strongmen, and tribal leaders. As a matter of fact there are other parallels between the two movements. They both started from relatively limited demands but expanded later, to some extent as a result of the brutal actions of an unyielding government (the Constitutional Revolution initial demands were establishment of the so called "house of justice"; the green movement started off with "where is my vote" slogan) . The increased communication and exchange to the rest of the world are key factors in both movements. More interestingly they both display a serious rift within Shia clergy as to the role of the religion in matters of State.

During the past few months, the protesters seem to be increasingly united around their opposition to Seyed Ali Khamanei. No one can tell exactly the circumstances by which Khamanei may be deposed or the movement may succeed in its minimal demands. One thing that is near certain is that the regime will have extremely hard time surviving events of magnitude and intensity similar to Ashura's if spread continuously over several days/weeks.

2010-01-06T17:02:00.003-12:00

A new outlet for Leverettes' op-ed pieces

The opinions of two kinds of experts should be always viewed with deep suspicion: those who are driven by ideology and those who are driven by agenda. While the first group is blind to facts, the second group does everything to blind others from seeing the facts the way they are. Flynt Leverett is of the second kind. Everyone knows he is after a "grand bargain" with the Iranian regime. An idea that got some following in Washington on the basis of a fax sent by Iran ambassador to France at the height of Bush administration's campaign in the Middle East and Mullahs fear of being next in line.

Back to the claims of the article. First Leverettes do not have the courage to reveal their sources of "data" when assessing the size of pro and anti government demonstrations. But someone familiar with the Iranian media outlets can have a pretty good idea where these numbers may come from. The 2000 to 4000 number comes most likely from daily Kayhan, the mouthpiece of regime's security apparatus. When it comes to accuracy, fact checking, and quality of journalism, Weekly World News stories can be taken far more seriously than Kayhan's. How about Leverettes' claim of million march in support of government in Tehran which was organized by bussing people from all around the country, giving them free metro tickets, juice and cakes? Leverettes' "reliable source" seems to be tabnak.ir. Not as bad as Kayhan but not as reliable as Leverettes would like you to believe. This is a site that is close to Mohsen Rezaii, a former IRGC commander who despite his attempt to play the middle of the road game these days cannot be regarded as an independent party by any stretch of imagination. If Leverrets want to play the number game why not quoting Ghalibaf the mayor of Tehran (another former IRGC commander) as to the size of demonstrators who filled the Iranian capital in opposition to the fraudulent elections last summer? His estimate was 3,000,000. So according to Leverretes' calculus that would make it the largest gathering in the capital after Khomeini's death, right? And by the way Ghalibaf is by no means a reformer or an opposition sympathizer and is definitely no less independent than Mr Rezaii is.

The point here is that the Leverettes are using "demonstration size" data from regime's propagandists and other questionable sources to make a claim that is just as grand as their "grand bargain" idea. That the regime is here to stay. Something that even Khamanei is not too sure about these days.

I strongly recommend Levrettes to start sending their op-ed pieces to where they get their facts from, i.e. the daily Kayhan. I am sure they will be more than happy to publish them!

2009-12-27T05:38:00.003-12:00

IRAN

The collapse of communism aired live from Russia. Lech Walesa pulled his pants up we heard about it every hour. Where are TV News reports of Iran?

2009-12-10T16:54:00.002-12:00

Set the discourse, control the agenda.

2009-12-01T15:06:00.013-12:00

Human Rights Impostors

During a Middle East Policy Council held on Jan. 18. 2008, Trita Parsi, the head of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) was asked: “Why NIAC never takes any meaningful stand against Human Rights Violations in Iran?” His answer was: “NIAC is not a Human Rights organization. That’s not our expertise.” Truer words have not been spoken by Mr. Parsi in a long time. But it was then. It appears now that in less than two years, NIAC has reinvented itself as a human rights organization and its leader, Trita Parsi, has become a human rights activist overnight. These days, on NIAC website we read: “NIAC advocates open, constructive, and unrestricted dialogue among all people and institutions that care about improving human rights in Iran and elsewhere. Through its programs, NIAC encourages discussion and debate on how best to advance human rights in Iran.” And again in an interview he declares: “We want human rights in Iran to be respected [1].” Maybe campaigning for human rights is where the funding goes these days? Just a wild guess!

With a membership tally of about 3000, NIAC claims to be a uniting force for hundreds of thousands of Iranians who live in the US. In reality however this organization has done more to divide than to unite. As a participant in the Washington DC July 25 rally in support of the people movement in Iran, I witnessed the uncivilized behavior of the event organizers (all NIAC people) in confrontation with a peaceful group of flag carrying compatriots. Although I participated without carrying any banners or signs, it is beyond my comprehension how the event organizers could find this flag so offensive, so much so as if Swastikas were being carried around. As a matter of fact, an event associate likened the divide between the flag carrying crowd and the rest to the difference between Nazi sympathizers and anti-Nazi demonstrators [2]. An organization that claims to be “advocating dialogue among all people” is apparently incapable of having a dialogue with a peaceful group of Iranians who hold a flag that has deep historical, even Islamic roots. Thanks to the Internet and websites like Youtube, the intolerance of NIAC affiliates during this rally is well documented.

NIAC routinely uses offensive language against people they disagree with. This can hardly serve unity, human rights, or any other noble cause NIAC might be operating under these days. In his recent interview with Zamaneh, Parsi slandered everyone who disagrees with NIAC, as warmongers and neo-cons [3]. NIAC claims on its website: “The campaign against NIAC is coordinated by far-right neo-conservatives and figures associated with the Iranian terrorist organization the Mujahedin-e Khalq.” NIAC dares to call those disagreeing with its pro-regime stance every name but when it gets the scrutiny it deserves its leader and followers start yelling and kicking and suing.

The goals and the agenda of NIAC is not of much concern to me as long as they are honestly articulated, even if those goals include lobbying for the Islamic regime or Iranian-American businesses who would like to see the sanctions against IRI lifted. I just find it charlatanism plain and simple for an organization to hide its true intention behind the cause of “human rights” in Iran or “solidarity with the Iranian people” while turning a blind eye to worst cases of human rights violation that happened during the first decade of IRI’s foundation, even going as far as blaming the victim for those atrocities. When an organization behaves this way, everyone has not only the right but even the duty to call them out on their deception.

2009-11-30T11:08:00.004-12:00

Freedom of Religion in Switzerland

Freedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or not to follow any religion. This is article 18 of the Universal Deceleration of Human Rights. Now if the country in question was Iran where Bahai's as a religious minority experience constant and continues attack it wouldn't be a surprise. After all the Iranian regime is known for its lack of freedom and crimes against humanity but Switzerland is a democracy. The rights of minorities should be recognized and respected.

2009-11-23T02:12:00.001-12:00

NIAC charlatanism is not about things that I disagree with. Rather it is about this organization's attempt to hide behind causes such as human rights to promote specific lobbyist agendas. For example everyone knows who Reza Pahlavi is. I have no problem if Trita Parsi tells everyone what he really is, i.e. a lobbyist. Charlatanism begins when lobbyists start calling themselves "human rights activists" (as Parsi does) and others who disagree with them warmongers. Why in the interest of free dissemination of information doesn't Parsi attend a debate with Hassan Dai but instead decides to act like a coward and silence his voice by hauling him to the court? Dai's position is that NIAC is a lobbyist group. We all know that lobbyists cannot and do not operate in vacuum but are tied to governments. So what is all this suing fuss about? In comparison, regardless of whatever I think of someone like Hooshang Amirahmadi, I command him for being more transparent and deciding to debate Dai on VOA.

2009-11-22T06:41:00.009-12:00

Do Trita Parsi and NIAC use porn as a way to force-feed their pro IRI policy and is NIAC a murky organization?

(This posting is not about the implants of Amina Parsi (Semlali) shown off on public Facebook pages in a bikini but rather to know why NIAC is pushing for a talk with the IRI that suffocates Iranian women who may just want to have the same freedom of choice in clothing.)

These are good questions but what I like to know is why NIAC would want to stop everyone from expressing their views! Recently an Iranian.com contributor indicated that I am upset because a NIAC supporter has expressed personal opinion about my poetry. I don’t know where in my response this conclusion could be reached. What I know for a fact is that last week I wrote back to the person who writes under the assumed name of Qumars Bolourchian, a full time representative of NIAC on the Iranian.com, and asked that person to stop sending me porn. The only conclusion for me at this time is that NIAC and several of its members call those who don't share their views Neocons, MEK supporters, Monarchists, Pro-war, Communists, and more.

In my opinion NIAC's Trita Parsi not only sues any person who as much as questions NIAC's pro IRI policy but seem to seek every opportunity to cash on Iranian people’s misery!

2009-10-22T15:04:00.003-12:00

Nobel prize ceremony with victims' mothers

A group of Iranians that includes writers, artists, journalists, humanitarians, and political and social activists living in exile request that the Norwegian Nobel Committee for Peace Prize invite to the ceremony the mothers, or another immediate family member, of those killed in recent protests. More can be read here.

2009-10-17T16:01:00.009-12:00

NIAC

“Why would Ambassador John Limbert, a former hostage imprisoned for 444 days by the government in Iran, join the advisory board of an organization that supposedly represents the interests of the very same government that imprisoned him?” This is the statement made by Trita Parsi of NIAC which means nothing. There are also some families of the Pan Am Flight 103 victims who believe in conspiracy theories. The fact that Trita Parsi uses such a shaky argument to prove NIAC’s independence shows that what we have here is murky organization.

2009-10-15T02:02:00.002-12:00

Yes! There is a connection between human security and human rights!

Today a representative from the White House will speak in my daughter's class about leadership. Last night their homework was to write a letter to the president. The representative will put their letters with the White House mail. This is what my seven year old wrote to her president.

Dear President Barack Obama,

My name is /////. I go to ///// elementary school. I am in second grade.
There was an assignment in my class to write a letter to you about the issues and ideas I have.

One: You should help more people to get health insurance.

Two: Every child has to have healthy lunch choices at school.

Three: Every Human has rights. Please support Human Rights in Iran.

Four: Everyone should have a good security system so that no one will break in to their homes.

Sincerely,
/////

2009-08-29T04:23:00.003-12:00

Iran: Crimes Against Humanity

This report may help the identity of the perpetrators become widely recognized as a first step in one day bringing them to justice.

2009-07-29T04:45:00.007-12:00

An Open Letter to Hadi Ghaemi of United for Iran

As a participant in Washington DC July 25 rallies in support of the people movement in Iran, I am saddened to express my utmost frustration with the uncivilized behavior of the event organizers in confrontation with a group of flag carrying compatriots.

I participated without carrying any banners or signs. However it is beyond my comprehension how the event organizers found this flag (which by the way has both pre-Islamic and Islamic roots and by no means is an ideological sign) so offensive as if Swastikas were being carried around. As a matter of fact, in her futile attempt to convince the police to intervene, an event associate likened the divide between the flag carrying crowd and the others to the difference between Nazi sympathizers and anti-Nazi demonstrators (her conversation with the police is captured on youtube). But who were these threatening scary banner carrying folks? A younger mom who was quietly shedding tears to the voice of Dariush as she was holding her 5-6 year old daughter. A mild mannered gentleman who was watching in disbelief the intolerance of the increasingly loud and noisy organizers. One organizer stood behind the microphone shouting to the flag carrying crowd, "have your own protest!" Have your own protest? And you call it a "unity rally"? Shame!

Such behavior and use of deeply offensive language does not help the cause of the Iranian nation, but perhaps the cause of an organization such as NIAC, which apparently cares more about its "special interests" than anything else.

2009-06-28T06:28:00.002-12:00

Iran

It looks like that Reza Aslan and Trita Parsi were having tea together a few days ago discussing the recent movement and vending their frustration and in the process discovered it was all exiles' and their neo-con backers' fault!!! Reza and Trita: I understand your frustration but you are aiming it at the wrong target. Exiles have virtually no effect on what's going on except that they give moral support through their demonstrations abroad which by the way has been very effective in a positive sense. Stop blaming the victim instead of the perpetrator.

2009-06-18T10:41:00.002-12:00

Security Apparatus versus Pasdaran

I am not so much into conspiracy theories but the mass movement in Iran appears to be a revolt led by regime's intelligentsia, of course with active participation by large segments of the population. I cannot imagine such large scale operation and the organization behind could have taken place without tacit consent of key elements within regime's security apparatus and propaganda machine. The movement has obvious support among key clerics and the new class of technocrats whose father figure (or godfather if you will) is Rafsanjani. Whoever not already on-board the steamroller will be flattened. There was a time Khamanei could have jumped on-board but he decided not to. There is no reason why the steamroller should stop now for Khamanei. The movement has obviously targeted the power seeking Pasdaran elements without whom Khamanei is a nobody anyways. Each passing day he is proving to be less and less relevant.

The regime has been worried about a "velvet revolution" in Iran for several years. These worries were apparently not totally baseless.

2009-06-14T01:56:00.001-12:00

Not What It Was Supposed to Be

It was supposed to be the perfect script. Mousavi’s victory was supposed to be hailed as the indication of Iranian rulers having “unclenched their fist”. It was supposed to be the perfect time for reconciliation with Mullahs. It was supposed to be the clearest sign yet of the success of Obama administration’s soft spoken approach towards the Muslim world. It was supposed to be the time for celebration of the Obama effect.

Ahmadinejad’s coup d'état changed the game altogether. It sent all the deal-makers and rapprochement enthusiasts of Washington think-tanks back to the drawing board.

The most important foreign policy implication is that the coup d'état government is dead serious about going nuclear. Any “grand-bargain” between Washington and Tehran under Mousavi would have led to concessions on Iran’s nuclear program. This would have been unacceptable for the Pasdaran commanders who will not be content with any less position than the one enjoyed by their Pakistani counterparts.

As the western governments and in particular US will be wrestling with the question of legitimacy versus negotiations, the coup d'état government will use the time to make as much progress as possible in its nuclear program. Unlike what many might think, the coup d'état government will in fact embrace doubts on its legitimacy to further complicate the issue and seize on it as an opportunity to blame the West for interference in Iranian domestic affairs. As the game continues, Israel will see no choice but to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities. What will happen next is anyone’s guess.

This is all obviously conditioned on the success of the coup d'état which by no means is a given at this time. The arrests made by the coup d'état government yesterday has no significance other than a show of force. Rafsanjani is the only person who, as the head of the assembly of experts, has the authority to remove Khamenei from power. He has the will but the question is whether he has enough number of votes (i.e. enough support among clerics). Many believe that he is in Qom to make such assessment. Additionally, such high risk move has a chance of success only against the backdrop of mass dissatisfaction with the election results and at least some support from the armed and security forces.

A velvet change is underway. Whether it turns out to be a velvet revolution or velvet coup d'état remains to be seen.

2009-06-13T03:59:00.002-12:00

From Theocracy To Junta

Yesterday even before the news of Ahmadinejad's win was released I declared in my blog that something funny was going on. Today it is even more evident that something really really funny is going on. Rafsanjani's house is apparently surrounded by security forces. Let's face it Rafsanjani has the most to lose here. His and his sons head is on the line. If there is any chance that this trend is going to be reversed, Rafsanjani will be the key player. Today is the day that the Islamic Republic officially transformed from a theocracy supported by Pasdaran to a Junta supported by a handful of clerics. Whether or not the mullahs who were apparently outraged by Ahmadinejad's statements during televised debates sit on the sideline and watch remains to be seen. The people should not become pawns in this power game.

2009-06-12T05:15:00.005-12:00

The fake Velvet revolution is under way in Iran!

Rafsanjani's letter to Khamenei, gathering of the crowd with green banners outside the Ministry of Interior, and the warning issued by the Revolutionary Guard Corps are these all indications of a fake velvet revolution to replace Ahmadinejad and even perhaps Khamenei with Mir Hossein Mousavi (Iran's prime minister during the 1980s, the worst years of terror and repression) and Rafsanjani and call it a new era?!! These are more speculations at this time but something funny is happening!

2009-06-06T17:42:00.002-12:00

Iranian Presidential Election, 2009

Watch the debates (1), (2). Four sentences suffice.

Mir Hossein Mousavi: Sent by Rafsanjani's Mafia to take back power especially now that there is prospect of negotiation with the U.S.
Ahmadinejad: A Paasdaar
Karrubi: A total idiot who is corrupt to his teeth.
Rezai: also run (Nokhodi)

For people who want to vote take your pick.

2009-06-05T10:12:00.001-12:00

It’s a shame to watch these characters for Iranian presidential election when Iran has people who are truly qualified to lead the country.

2009-04-13T04:06:00.002-12:00

Fed contractor, cell phone maker sold spy system to Iran

Washingtontimes: "Two European companies — a major contractor to the U.S. government and a top cell-phone equipment maker — last year installed an electronic surveillance system for Iran that human rights advocates and intelligence experts say can help Iran target dissidents."

2009-03-27T07:22:00.003-12:00

Change for Equalit: Twelve women’s rights activists were arrested today on March 26, 2009, on Sohrevardi Avenue in Tehran, while meeting up to go for New Years visits of families of imprisoned social and political activists. Ten of those arrested are members of the One Million Signatures Campaign.

2009-03-27T03:05:00.003-12:00

The Poetry of Iranian Women

This anthology had an amazing and at times hard journey for the past 6 years. Now that it's out for a second time I think it's been a great experience.

2009-03-18T08:32:00.002-12:00

Earlier today the Iranian blogger Omid Reza Mirsyafi who was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for insulting authorities died in Evin prison.

2009-03-17T14:56:00.004-12:00

Flashcards

According to someone very close to me with an endepth knowledge of economics the stock market bottom was reached last week. The recession will be over in summer.

2009-03-02T12:04:00.004-12:00

Has it ever crossed your mind Mr. Fareed Zakaria that Bush's relentless efforts might have something to do with decline of Bin Ladenism and had he pursued the same type of campaign against the radicals the situation might have been quite different? After all, the article's example judge was appointed by Karzai. The truth is that Bush's team subscribed to many of the ideas expressed in this article especially during his second term and here we are reaping the crop. I recall a recent article of yours entitled "What Bush Got Right" praising the Bush administration for some of its acts of appeasement. A better title would have been "What Bush Got Exactly Wrong".

2009-03-02T02:42:00.002-12:00

The executions of ethnic minorities continues in Iran and Farzad Kamangar, a teacher, a trade unionist, and human rights activist is at risk of execution. It was a few days ago when the 27 year old Iranian Kurd, Mehdi hasemzadeh was executed. In addition the Iranian regime forces cracked down on hundreds of protesting university students and arrested around hundred of them. This should not go unsaid that the US journalist Roxana Saberi was arrested in Iran recently.

2009-02-26T23:06:00.002-12:00

Iran: Human Rights Crime

A sixteen year old Iranian Kurd has been tortured and killed by the regime's revolutionary guards.

2009-02-24T03:17:00.002-12:00

Slowing demand in the U.S. and the related decrease in the oil prices will contribute hundreds of billions of dollars towards reducing the deficit enough to compensate for fallen revenue due to decreased domestic output. Cleverly President Obama would like to take credit for that by hyping these fiscal responsibility mantra.

2009-02-09T14:36:00.003-12:00

Mohammad Khatami is a president for the international affairs and not domestic. He came to power in the aftermath of Mykonos and now in the aftermath of President Obama's election. He is a gimmick, an international ploy to deviate attention from what is happening inside Iran. He is a cover for Iran's nuclear program and a savior of regime in light of the looming economic disaster given the free fall of oil price.

2009-02-05T03:16:00.002-12:00

A century and a half of oppression and silence is enough!

Every Iranian, “without distinction of any kind, such as, race, color, sex, language, religion, politics or other opinions,” and also without regard to ethnic background, “social origin, property, birth or other status,” is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, from the very inception of the Baha’i Faith, the followers of this religion in Iran have been deprived of many provisions of human rights solely on account of their religious convictions.

Please join the signatures here.

2008-12-26T11:09:00.002-12:00

Hojjat al-Islam Gholam-Reza Mesbahi-Moghaddam, head of the parliament's Economics and Finance Committee under the current Iranian regime, says: "Iranians should feel the pain caused by the international reduction in oil prices."

2008-12-20T09:19:00.003-12:00

Mcgill Tribune: "Bahá'ís in Iran have been the target of very widespread persecution and prosecution since the revolution," said Hadi Ghaemi, coordinator of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. "There's great sensitivity towards Bahá'ísm [in Iran], and there is much cultural bias and attempts [by the regime] to portray them in a wrong light for the general population."

2008-12-19T04:52:00.003-12:00

The UN General Assembly’s plenary resolution has criticized Iran’s use of torture, the high incidence of executions, the violent repression of women, and increasing discrimination against Bahá’ís, Christians, Jews, Sufis, Sunni Muslims, and other minorities. Looking at the countries that have voted Yes or No tell us where these governments stand on the issue of Human Rights!

2008-12-18T02:00:00.000-12:00

Hossein Derakhshan’s position regarding a number of prisoners of conscience in Iran has been a source of contention among the blogging community and has caused many to distance themselves from him. This, however, doesn’t change the fact that the freedom of expression is sacred for all not just the ones with whom we agree. Any blogger who wishes to add his or her name in support of this letter, please sign here.

2008-12-13T02:54:00.000-12:00

Iran

I received this document in a mass e-mail. It shows in the case of IRI’s revolutionary guards they didn’t receive blood transfusion from the blood bank. The political prisoners who were to be executed had to undergo the blood collection. A catheter would be inserted into their vein and their blood was collected for transfusion.

2008-12-10T05:05:00.000-12:00

Five years has passed mother. I miss you every day.

2008-12-09T08:10:00.000-12:00

Theglobeandmail: "Through Toronto-based blogger and family friend Nazli Kamvari, Mr. Derakhshan's family said he had been arrested at his residence in Iran on Nov. 1. The family has spoken to him four times since then, each time in a phone call lasting less than one minute, Ms. Kamvari said. But family members haven't heard from Mr. Derakhshan for 13 days, and are now becoming worried."