Unintended good

The second installment of the greatly anticipated two part miniseries “In the name of Democracy”, a production of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), has come and gone. Although it was billed as tell all about the sinister plots that are hatched to overthrow the “first government of Allah on earth”, the docudrama/ confessional series did not deliver on its billing. In fact, the program came across more as a how to manual for achieving good, in this case democracy, than how to avoid the bad, subjugation. To put it simply, if the intent was to paint the main actors, the hapless prisoners, as the instruments of the evil-intentioned powers to be, it failed. The show portrays the prisoners and their supposed masters as crusaders of Johnny Appleseed kind of good>>>

Blood money

I should give a little background information. The US government basically wrote a draft law for Iraq’s government to pass setting up the rules and regulations for awarding contracts on Iraq’s oil and gas resources and industry. This law basically opens up Iraq for the taking. It puts in legal framework for rape of Iraq. The passage of this law has been included as one of the benchmarks for Iraq government to achieve in order to show progress in Iraq. This subcommittee was reviewing progress on passing this law. One could say this law is the Holy Grail of the Iraq invasion for Bush administration and the very symbol of the War for Oil>>>

Seeing the “real” Iran

A country’s history is much like wine. Considering Shiraz is the birthplace of the seductive grape to which it gave its name, I believe my thought is reasonable. With age, a culture grows more attractive, increases its depth and notes, and heightens in value. Hence, I have concluded that Persia, with its three thousand years of flavor is one of the finest in the world. Having spent majority of my twenty-one years in Australia, I could not avoid becoming a jolly wine follower. We proud Aussies swear by our top quality Shiraz, but will always be haunted by the fact that it originally ain’t really our grape. Bugger.>>>

You get the picture

TEHRANGELES -- I was browsing iranian.com when I saw a link to a picture showing a women without hejab riding on the back of a guy on a street racer bike. I was thinking to myself how badbakht have we Iranians become when a picture of woman without a head scarf, in the year 2007, finds its way to the home page of a site with a lot of readers. A few moments later, I started reading the letters page. As usual, many well written letters with great content. While basking in the thoughts of how well some of my countrymen and women write in English, I came across a letter by the "individual" with the internet pen name of Issa Hajizadeh>>>

A chance to meet

With the recent defeat of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill in the Senate, a major opportunity was missed to strengthen and improve our broken immigration laws. Although the proposed Bill was not perfect, there were areas that affected the Iranian American Community such as the H1B visas and sponsoring family members for green card. The Bill is dead for now, but the debate is not and there is a good chance that another Bill will surface in the next Congress. We, as Iranian Americans, must pay close attention to the new Bill and lend our voice to the debate as our community is for most part an Immigrant Community, meaning majority of us was born outside the United States>>>

Hitler's legacy

There are indeed many who identify themselves as proud Iranians who would get angry for calling Iran a backward country, or even to associate Iran with the neighbourhood. They would argue that Iran is unique, great, and notably different from not just its peers but also from the rest of the world. And to prove this, the so-called Persian/Iranian nationalists (not calling them racists is just being nice) would proudly identify and associate themselves with Aryans, with no reserves at all, openly and arrogantly. Clear sign of backwardness! No further proof is needed. No further comment is needed. And in case, one, like me, would dare to question the legitimacy and diplomacy (is it okay in today's world to bring words about such a dodgy identity that has been buried by Westerners more than half a century ago?!) of such a popular stance, these proud Aryans would not hesitate to attack>>>

A Kiarostami day

At the Berkeley Art Museum a fan blew at one Kiarostami photograph. The rest of his works remained still--like the audience in a theater-- while this projected video of branches and leaves apparently swayed in the turbulence created by the fan. The famed film director had broadened me forever with awareness of the very air between the projector and the screen. Beware, those who would walk blithely into Abbas Kiarostami‚s mind, the door you entered through will be too small to let you back out.>>>

Unpleasant truth?

Contextually, this important admission by the British Foreign Minister of absence of any evidence linking Iran to the violence and instability in Iraq was preceded by the discussion about Iran’s nuclear programme and Britain’s readiness to impose another set of punishing sanctions on Iranian people, for Iran’s non-compliance with the security council’s resolutions which have no basis in international law, imposed on supposed suspicions for which again THERE IS NO EVIDENCE>>>

Must-see TV

The very first time that I saw a confessional show on IRIB, I was captivated. True, in the beginning it was crude, the interviewer was always out of camera range barking out the “questions” and the subject’s physical pose was unnaturally rigid for someone who was unburdening himself... Our beloved IRIB has just announced the two episode long confessional show to be broadcast on its channel one on this coming tonight and tomorrow night (Wednesday and Thursday) at 21:45. The stars are to be one Haleh Esfandiari, a sixty something grandmother and Kian Tajbakhsh, a father of a spanking new baby>>>

They're not Ron Paul

Let's rather talk about the candidates I feel most American-Iranians feel compelled to vote on, the democrats. Out of these candidates naturally we have the "handsome and dazzling" Obama. Its about time we had a black president right? I mean, Martin Luther King wasn't bad was he? Also we have Hillary Clinton, the woman. Its also about time the US got a female president, no? Its about time women got to control the White house, yeah? Wrong to both, let's just compare their voting record to Ron Paul on certain key issues and you will understand what I mean:>>>

The Tehrangelesazation of Brooklyn

East Tehrangeles. Not literally, of course. There aren't scores of 'Purshian' mafia running around with sharply gelled tips, fake boobs, and nose jobs. NOT YET. But I tell you, if the L.A. Persian hipsters ever find a way out of SoCal and get into tattoos, thrift shop chic, and adopting Asian babies, I think they would feel right at home in say, Park Slope or in the other colonized neighborhoods in BK. Why, you might ask. Because the kinds of people that have taken over Brooklyn's choice neighborhoods increasingly exhibit the same social ambitions and hang ups as my West Coast brethren. Smug sense of satisfaction with their zip codes? Check. Pride at being able to say they live in a particular neighborhood? Check>>>