Listening to Ahmadinejad in these interviews is sickening because
1. The translator (with a annoying high voice and an accent that matches Ahmadinejad's lower-class manner of speech) "makes up" things a lot of time.
2. Ahmadinejad lies through his teeth: for example he talks about all the polls taht have been showing in Iran that he will be a winner! This is FALSE: polls taken in Iran indicated taht he will be the looser! Or, he talked about how it was the friends and supporters of Mousavi and Karoubi who "ran the election". Again another falsehood--which has been OFFICIALLY complained against by all three other candidates: the fact that even their monitors were forced out of the branches towards the closing of the polls and was made unable to participate in the count.
3. He diverts attention from the questions at hand. For example Charlie Rose puts a very direct and the most interesting question anyone has put to him yet; which is: "Ayatollah Khamenei, in his speech, said that he doesn't think that the British and the Americans were masterminds of this public revolt.". Then Ahmadinejad says: "no he didn't say that?". Charlie: "he didn't? what did he say?" Ahmadinejad, then diverts teh attention to his interview with Katie Couric, and the "picture-exchange" of that fiasco!
Anyways, a couple of days ago I was wondering why Karoubi is so quiet. I was told that he is waiting for this "National Unity" plan and that in his latest meeting with Larijani, he was given assurance that his concerns will be addressed. That he speaks now means his hopes have waned and he is taking matters in his own hands again. It is becoming apparent that the IRGC is not interested in national unity plan (judging from Jafari's statements (persian) who considers militarization a sign of IRI's success and a necessity for guarding the revolution--from the founders of revolution, like Hashemi, Montazeri, Beheshti, Mousavi, Khatami et al.), that the judiciary that was supposed to be independent is just smoke-screening a new wave of brutality that on the one hand releases Hajjarian after depleting him of influence by putting this disabled man on public TV to deny he has ever meant any of what he has said; and on the other hand issues new arrests, severe punishment for students who have been undermining official's presence on Iranian campuses in the past two weeks, and especially handing out the first death penalty (persian) to at least one of these protesters who has confessed to having link to a Monarchist organization (persian)--so obscure an organization that I had to google it up! Another 25 years old protester is charged with "moharebeh" (fighting against the Establishment) which carries death penalty as well. And interestingly, in his interview with Rose, Ahmadinejad is unequivocally clear: "we don't give a damn these people have a long history of service to the revolution; we have had election so that people won't come on street, and if these people keep protesting, we will deal with them as opposition." Keep in mind that the official opposition to IRI have been: Kurdish resistance; MKO, and Monarchists! All these "opponents" who were caught in the IRI have long met their makers!
Ahmadinejad's wounds are not one or two:
Again, Hassan Khomeini snubbed the regime by not attending the oath of faith ceremony of the armed forces taking place in Khomeini's mausoleum. Also, over 190 of CONSERVAIVE (i.e. right-wing; anti-reform) members of parliament were ABSENT from his Government-Parliament meeting. This is an unmistakeable snub! He dodged Charlie Rose's question about how unpopular he is--but the history is written on a daily basis. Ahmadinejad's only base is GUNS; INTIMIDATION and BULLYing.
In any case, things are moving in the wrong direction--an inch every day.
Perhaps this is why Karoubi's broken his silence and has written to the state television, asking to be given air time, and to refute Ahmadinejad's lies on PBS--which was recently broadcast in Iran. Karoubi insists on evidence of torture in IRI prisons.
10 comments:
This reminds me sooooooooooo much of the poem:
First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
(I know it has different versions.)
But they are starting the death sentences with a so called "monarchist" ... who is to say that they won't slowly come for the "insiders" too?
(technically of course, they have. with all of those who were killed and tortured.)
They need to say something - do something. This is beyond horrific.
You mean Brecht's poem?
(I posted it on June 14th ... We knew this would come! Now let's see if these self-loving Mullahs-Khatami & Hashemi & Sanei & all included, will ACT!)
I don't know who wrote it! I've seen other sources that attribute it to Martin Niemöller ... but yeah, that one!
:(
hahha funny; In Iran it''s attributed to Brecht! Maybe German can shed a light on it for us :)
Dear Naj, Dear Pedestrian
"First they came ..." is popular poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group:
“First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.”
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_they_came...]
Are reasons for hopes as to the capacity of human beings to change their opinion justified in any way?
Some light on a possible answer is shed by this part of Pastor Niemöller’s life:
»However, Niemöller only gradually abandoned his sympathies with National Socialism and even made pejorative remarks about Jews while protecting converted Jews in his own church. In one sermon in 1935, he remarked: "What is the reason for [their] obvious punishment, which has lasted for thousands of years? Dear brethren, the reason is easily given: the Jews brought the Christ of God to the cross!" «
[ref: a comment on one of your blogs recently was persistently denying implicitly that people might shift their perspective and view due to their experience in the course of their lifetime]
Thanks for your question
Ludger Gesigora
Source for that bit on Niemöller’s life:
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Niem%C3%B6ller
Sorry, I forgot!
Ludger Gesigora
Thanks GErman,
I was indeed looking for teh English or GErman version of this all over; but because I thought it is Brecht I couldn't find it. And Brecht was something I had imprinted in memory.
Can you please write tis in German too? Thanks!
Dear Naj,
big honour!
the quote in German:
„Als die Nazis die Kommunisten holten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Kommunist.
Als sie die Gewerkschafter holten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Gewerkschafter.
Als sie die Sozialisten einsperrten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Sozialist.
Als sie die Juden einsperrten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Jude.
Als sie mich holten, gab es keinen mehr, der protestieren konnte.“
source:
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Niem%C3%B6ller
Thank you very much for your question.
Ludger Gesigora
from Gunni:
the german version
Als die Nazis die Kommunisten holten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Kommunist.
Als sie die Gewerkschafter holten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Gewerkschafter.
Als sie die Sozialisten einsperrten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Sozialist.
Als sie die Juden einsperrten, habe ich geschwiegen, ich war ja kein Jude.
Als sie mich holten, gab es keinen mehr, der protestieren konnte.“
Martin Niemöller
Greetings to Naj
Thank you ALL for the education. I have now updated my post; and because I am sure of teh writer now, I fixed the title accordingly :)
And, I couldn't understand any of the German, other than ich! :)
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