|
....is off his meds...you were warned.
Location: The Wild Wild West
|
A Different Take on Iran
In a different thread, I talked about the danger as I perceive it, from Iran.
Today, I read a few things that have changed my opinion....in a way. I still think the government of Iran is very dangerous, but after reading these two things, I have newfound hope for the people of Iran.
Two links: The first is five page letter (.pdf) from the March issue of the Smithsonian Magazine and the second link is a comment made by the editor.
From the "letter":
Quote:
The police officer stepped into the traffic, blocking our car. Tapping the hood twice, he waved us to the side of the road. My driver, Amir, who had been grinning broadly to
the Persian pop his new speaker system thumped out, turned grim. “I don’t have a downtown permit,” he said, referring to the official sticker allowing cars in central Tehran at rush hour. “It could be a heavy fine.” We stepped out of the car and approached the officer. He was young, not more than 25, with a peach fuzz mustache. “I’m a journalist from America,” I said in Persian. “Please write the ticket in my name. It’s my fault.”
“You have come from America?” the officer asked. “Do you know Car . . . uh . . . Carson City?”
Carson City? In Nevada?
He crinkled his eyebrows. The word “Nevada” seemed unfamiliar
to him.
“Near Los Angeles,” he said.
It’s a common reference point.
The city hosts the largest Iranian diaspora in the world, and homes across Iran tune
in to Persian-language broadcasts from “Tehrangeles” despite regular government efforts to jam the satellite signals. The policeman said his cousin lives in Carson City. Then, after inspecting my press pass, he handed it back to me and ripped up the traffic ticket. “Welcome to Iran,” he beamed. “We love America.”
|
and
Quote:
Perhaps the most striking thing about anti-Americanism in Iran today is how little of it actually exists. After the September 11 attacks, a large, spontaneous candlelight vigil took place in Tehran, where the thousands gathered shouted “Down with terrorists.” Nearly three-fourths of the Iranians polled in a 2002 survey said they would like their government to restore dialogue with the United States. (The pollsters—one a 1970s firebrand and participant in the hostage-taking who now advocates reform—were arrested and convicted in January 2003 of “making propaganda against the Islamic
regime,” and they remain imprisoned.) Though hard-line officials urge “Death to America” during Friday prayers, most Iranians seem to ignore the propaganda. “The paradox of Iran is that it just might be the most pro-American—or, perhaps,
least anti-American—populace in the Muslim world,” says Karim Sadjadpour, an analyst in Tehran for the International Crisis Group, an advocacy organization for conflict
resolution based in Brussels.
He is hardly alone. Traveling across Iran over the past five
years, I’ve met many Iranians who said they welcomed the ouster of the American-backed Shah 26 years ago but who were now frustrated by the revolutionary regime’s failure to make good on promised political freedoms and economic prosperity. More recently, I’ve seen Iranians who supported a newer reform movement grow disillusioned after its defeat by hard-liners. Government mismanagement, chronic inflation and unemployment have also contributed to mistrust of the regime and, with it, its anti-Americanism. “I struggle to make a living,” a Tehran engineer told me. “The government stifles us, and they want us to believe it is America’s fault. I’m not a fool.”
|
Then, we have the comment from the author's editor:
Quote:
Second Thoughts
Things are not always what they seem
Editor Carey Winfrey
"Iranians are overwhelmingly hospitable people," says Afshin Molavi, an American journalist born in Iran who returned there to report "A New Day in Iran?". Molavi, author of the book Persian Pilgrimages: Journeys Across Iran, was careening through Tehran's streets in a taxi when the driver asked him what he missed most about the city. "Fresh pomegranate juice on every street corner," Molavi answered, trying to sound casual. Slamming on the brakes, the driver spun his car around, then speeded the wrong direction up a one-way street to stop in front of a fruit juice stand. "Shaken, I gulped the sour, cold pomegranate juice, and reached for my wallet to pay. 'No, you are my guest,' the merchant said. 'No, you are mine,' the driver said. 'No, you are both mine,' I insisted, ordering another round. Then we haggled on the side of the road over who would have the 'honor' of buying the juice."
|
Indeed, as the editor points out, things are definitely not as they seem.
Since I was the one who started the thread about the dangers of Iran, I felt that, after reading this, it was something I should pass on.
It seems to be that there is some hope brewing in Iran, mayne good things for that country are in the future--we could at least hope.
Now, the question: Do you think the people of Iran will be able to make any positive changes in their country (specifically changes in the gov't)?
We at least have an idea how many Iranians feel, but are they going to do anything about it...or...as the letter points out, they will listen to what they gov't says and then ignore it.
Or, is that more dangerous (the people letting the gov't continue while they ignore what the gov't says and does)?
LINK to the .pdf version of the letter
LINK to the editor's note
__________________
Before you criticize someone, you need to walk a mile in their shoes. That way, if they get angry at you.......you're a mile away.......and they're barefoot.
|