US-Iran Foreign Relations

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US-Iran Foreign Relations
by eroonman
16-Aug-2008
 

His name is Hamed Ehadadi (I know, I haven't heard that kind of last name berfore either), and he is possibly the brightest shiniest star and pure basketball talent to come out of Iran since Ali Daie, when Aii Daie was the nice Ali Daie, not Ali Daie the latest Iranian Dictator he has become.

But Basketball?

I mean we all used to occasionally gayly toss the orange ball into that ridiculously high net when we were kids and the varzesh teacher would make us stop playing soccer to learn another skill now and then, but Iran's Olympic team? Give me a break!

Although Iran's national sport and passion and fever is soccer or football, cleary, as a national sport, we aren't very good at it. Traditionally, we have been productive in weightlifting (an individual sport), wrestling (an individual sport), and the international world record holders of Dictatorship, but pretty much that's been it. So as team sports go, fine, I'll say it, we suck. (Proof? Easy! As of today in Beijing, Iran is 0-4 in Basketball so far, and we've never even gotten past the first round in the WC if we even make it in). But every now and then, whether a Daie or a Azizi, or a Roshan or Nasiri, there is a diamond in our rough.

So goes the latest shiny object to spring from the painful loins of Iran. Ehadadi has been on the minds of the NBA from that year's draft in 2004, and has been a free agent ever since, playing for several of Iran's professional clubs (Yes! Iran has a professional basketball league! Man! These Mullahs think of everything! It almost makes them cool!).

This July in Utah, the NBA Invited Iran's team to play in an invitational, and after the performance by Ehadadi, Daniel Stern the NBA Commisioner (and a Jew at that!) gave the league's legal department the go ahead to start the proceedings to bring Ehadadi to the US as a player for the NBA.

Enter the mighty (out dated) US State Department.

As if to spoil everyone's fun, like that ugly old lady in the neighborhood who used to spoil the fun by telling all the kids to stop playing in the Koocheh and to "Go home! My husband's taking a nap!, the USSD has reminded everyone, "UhUhUh! Don't forget that there is a federal statue prohibiting a person or organization in the United States from engaging in business dealings with Iranian nationals. Now go home! George Bush is taking a nap!”

So, sorry Ehadadi (or whatever your name is), while it would have been fun to watch you in HD, while we toasted you with a Belgian Bud (just to spit in the eye of the Mullahs who lost the pleasure of your company!) at the Applebees on Thursday nights, it looks like we'll have to wait a while longer. Maybe President Obama can get you in based on him being a moslem according to Sean Hannity.

In the meantime, I'm going back to watch the national Iranian team to see how close they can cut it to barely squeaking into the world cup again. I think they are playing at 3:47am against the national team of the Royal Emirates of Al-Shash. You can watch it in half black and white, half color, but full 72 dpi on one of those crappy obscure Al-Jazeera, satellite channels. You know the one installed by that unshaven guy who comes around your house on Sunday nights to install it for 200 bucks lifetime. It's on channel no. 3243-alsat, I believe. No wait, That's Tapesh!

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Mehdi Mazloom

Interesting facts

by Mehdi Mazloom on

It is interesting. Those akhoondah  in Iran will prohibit jeans, and other American made products from being displayed or used in Iran - But they will allow a purely American (Basketball) and British (Football) invented sport to be played in Iran.

It is just a matter of time befopre Ehadadi will be pitching on Iranian TV all those Coca Cola and Burger King franchises owned by Rafsanjabni's vast business holdings.