In this video, people are chanting in support of Karoubi, and then he gets out of the car.
In this video See Khamenei's savage guards:
So my earlier hypothesis is REJECTED! These savages have totally lost it ...
But here is the spirit of hope and courage:
16 comments:
Iran protesters hijack 30th anniversary of US embassy seizure
Unfortunately the savagery has increased but people are also not afraid anymore! They've broken many of the "red lines" of the regime even destroying the pictures of Khamenei...
This is the worst fear of any dictator, they rule by keeping people in fear.
Ali;
absolutely right!
My fear: street-war ... and of course; we should remember that crime is not just a political tool in Khamenei's hands. The country actually has a poor safety/security record; with BLEAK economic forecasts I am not foreseeing anything great coming out of this chaos!
So frightening are these times, that I am watching them with eyes wide shut ...
it seems like to me that this savagery which you speak of represents almost a desperation on the part of khamenei/the coup. june's outpouring elicited an immediate reaction from the regime. since then, no doubt that demonstrators have been brutally beaten, but there has still been a sort of adjustment going on, no? rafsanjani's sermon in july saw a sort of wait-and-see approach from the regime: basij/sepah were out in full force, but the response was much less violent than in june. on qods, the massive turnout seemed to give them a reason to reassess. 2 months later, with all the warnings and recent sentences handed down, it seems like the results of that assessment was that there's no way out of this crisis. either concede and lose, or go down fighting.
that's my take, anyway. i honestly don't see how this situation is sustainable. this isn't like 99---people aren't (and haven't) going away. what are they going to do, just make continuous and systematic clampdowns a fixture of the IRI? no government can survive that a constant challenging of its legitimacy---let alone by a (growing) majority of the population.
Masoud; I think you are right. This is the sense that I have too; however, this was a GOOD chance for Khamenei (which he missed AGAIN) for reconciliation. I just don't know who is directing this show; this is neither benefitting teh regime, nor the greens. And on top of all this that fucking zionist congress is INTENT on messing up the nuclear shit. Iran was ready to give it up, but no way jose, Israel lobby is not satisfied!
These increasing sanctions on Iran is going to BACKFIRE big time!
But Masoud, as you know; we are "survivors" and I think collectively, nationally we will take a pause to restrengthen ourselves. There wll be a little fatigue setting in; and people will have to find new loopholes to circumvent the military dictators this time. In the long runm Iran's on the right track; but I don't foresee any big change in the next four years.
If I were in IRan, I would give up this khamenei bashing; and put the screw on Ahmadinejad and his financial institutions through the parliament!
I have decided to listen to some happy music today; so Mr Khamenei no way you will push me to depression and inaction! I just know how to manage my resources; we Iranians all do! We are survivors! Ours, IS a tale of resilience!
Naj, I couldn't agree with you more. I really think, especially after it is probably the case that Rafsanjani is not going to be a big powerful player in any of this (who is in the assembly of experts and who was our closest shot to doing something about Khamenei) ... we should let go of the SL for now and focus on Ahmadinejad.
What's up with his subsidies bill? Did you hear his speech AFTER parliament had already approved the bill? This man is MAD. He's psychotic.
yeah you're right--no doubt it was an opportunity reconciliation. honest though...maybe the last? not that the greens are suddenly going to become the revolutionaries that the west wants them to be. rather, i really think a certain sense of certainty is going to set in that not only CAN'T you reconcile with this ugly, ugly regime, but they don't want anything of the such. where that leads, who knows. you are right, iran is a country of amazing resilience. i don't know about you, but i truly believe that i WILL see a democratic iran in my still-young lifetime (and sooner rather than later). but when i think about--again, 'where that leads'--i can't help but just turn away, like a child at a horror film.
Ped, Masoud:
This was a dimple that needed a little knife ... in hindsight; maybe it was GOOD that they cheated in the election.
How else will have people been able to drag down and march Khamenei's picture?
Yes I listened to his parliament speech re subsides ... he IS psychotic!
Will have more on this soon.
"I don't know why in this country it's not allowed to make any kind of criticism of you," he told Iran's most powerful cleric, who has the final say in all state matters. "In the past three to five years that I have been reading newspapers, I have seen no criticism of you, not even by the assembly of experts [a clerical body with the theoretical power to sack the leader]. I feel that if this doesn't happen this situation will lead to discord and grudge."
Very very brave student!
Iranian student dares to criticise Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to his face
Dear Naj,
"[M]aybe it was GOOD - How else will have people been able to - ". It was good that the people had to find out via the election process some basic insights into reality around them.
I admit to have to agree decidedly with your assumptions.
Like in the fairy tale by Andersen: The Emperor believes some advisers to be clad in the clothes from a fabric invisible to anyone and does not dare to doubt about that, because he does not want to appear unfit for his position or just hopelessly stupid. When marching in procession before his subjects, a child in the crowd calls out “But he has nothing on at all.” "Good heavens! listen to the voice of an innocent child," said the father, and one whispered to the other what the child had said. "But he has nothing on at all," cried at last the whole people.
In Iran ideas, ideals, ways of thinking, thoughts – before imprisoned by ideologies, by beliefs, by gullibility, by religious attitudes, the main aim or main effect was a misguided fanaticism - have freed themselves irreversibly from these mental, ideological, intellectual, philosophical, religious and spiritual bars and chains of that cage. For good !
That development has before not been imaginable. When reading Naj’s or Pedestrian’s blog on the times of the Khatami era (between the lines) the mental, political and religious atmosphere must still have been decidedly different, somehow not being enabled to see a more complete picture or reality. There are obviously some people in Iran, some of the rulers that is, who seem to hope or think, that history will repeat itself literally. But a literal repetition – letter by letter - of history is not possible.
Like I mentioned to Pedestrian some time ago the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus (535-475 BC; Ephesos, Asia Minor, today Turkey, Greek by culture and language, but under constitutional law a Persian citizen of the Achaemenid Empire ! [ – which says (more than) a lot about Persia’s forgotten brilliant, ingenious, glorious, open-minded, tolerant past - ]. In Fragment 91 he [your late “constitutional compatriot” that is] sums that up :
• ποταμῷ γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐμϐῆναι δὶς τῷ αὐτῷ.
• You cannot step twice into the same rivers.
German
German, the invisible clothes is such a fit example!
I think several things can put these idiots in IRan in a nice corner:
1) Peace in Palestine
2) Arab countries on the Persian Gulf adopting more "liberal" behaviors (e.g. female parliament members who are not OBLIGED to wear Hijab)
3) people "teasing" the security and fascist operands.
This last one will be most important. We see horrendous pictures of beating and violence; but we also have to be mindful that these are ISOLATED cases. Notice the video I have posted here. When the guard starts beating the girl, people rush to her help. People rushing to help the weak is something Iranians do, often. The government is trying to intimidate; but they know full well that they cannot keep this on for long. They won't have ENOUGH thugs to carry out their crimes for them. And, especially since the parliament has put a stoppage to Ahmadinejad's proposal for unaccounted access to revenues from abolishing subsides; then he will have less money to "hand out".
Ahmadinejad's grave's dug in the economic holes he has created.
He will attempt agitating situation into an apocalyptic scale; he might even promote Israelis to attack ...
The story of the king you mention is one that I think every Iranian kid is familiar with; but our folklore stories and literary heritage is FULL of stories of how to deal with tyrant kings and bring them down. Submissive, we are not! There is a reason why Iran is the ONLY island that was never colonized in that region :) So, the history WILL repeat itself; but there will perhaps be something new: this time around, maybe we won't make a "new King" ... maybe for the first time, we too wil kill our 6000 years old "single" god; and join the assembly on Mont Parnasse; giving many gods a little space to do their little things here and there :)
BTW: typically , that fairy tale is - of course - not German, but Danish - Christian Andersen [we talked about BRAVE Denmark when you mentioned the "Global Dialogue Prize" for Darius Shayegan].
The Danes!
In contrast to the Germans, who are to be characterized by the aphorism:
"I did that," says my memory. "I could not have done that," says my pride, and remains inexorable. Eventually--the memory yields.
source: "Beyond Good and Evil" by Friedrich Nietzsche
http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext03/bygdv10.txt
Ahmadinejad's grave's dug in the economic holes he has created.
Naj, we know your view about Iran Uranium program, is it better Iran step back and take care of her bad economy and leave all the troubles with international community
sorry, I forgot to add the source:
1) details on the fairy-tale "The Emperor's New Clothes":
"Andersen's source for his story is a German translation of a tale found in a medieval Spanish story collection by Infante don Juan Manuel."
[so might lastly be of Persian/Arab origin !? - just my personal, uneducated guess]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Emperor%27s_New_Clothes
2) the text of that fairy-tale:
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Emperor%27s_New_Clothes
Post Scriptum:
1) re: quote by Heraclitus:
• ποταμῷ γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐμϐῆναι δὶς τῷ αὐτῷ.
• You cannot step twice into the same RIVER.
The translation (rivers)was slightly wrong
[correct: RIVER, singular-I had just taken over this translation without checking on its correctness],
the interpretation thus liable to misunderstanding:
"When you step into the river a second or third time
a) you have changed
b) the water has changed
irreversibly!"
2) re: Andersen's fairy tale "The Emperor's New Clothes":
Here you and I ought to shout "Eureka" ("I have found it out!"- ancient Greek Εὕρηκα, attributed to the physicist and mathematician Archimedes).
Your hint/reference to similar stories you have listened to in Iran sensitized me and gave me no peace:
consulting the German edition of wikipedia I had to read the following explanation now
[for reasons of verification translated into English by me and the German original version]:
[Hans Christian] Andersen varied a story (Ejemplo XXXII) of Don Juan Manuel, initially published in the book “El Conde Lucanor” in 1335 and OBVIOUSLY ORIGINATING FROM THE MOORISH NARRATIVE TRADITION. Andersen confessed this borrowing in his diary with reference to the collection of short novels by Eduard von Bülow.
Andersen variierte bei dem Märchen eine Geschichte (Ejemplo XXXII) der spanischen Sammlung von Don Juan Manuel, die ursprünglich 1335 im Buch „El Conde Lucanor“ erschien und OFFENBAR DER MAURISCHEN ERZÄHLTRADITION ENTSTAMMT. Andersen bekannte diese Entlehnung in seinem Tagebuch unter Hinweis auf die Novellensammlung von Karl Eduard von Bülow.
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Des_Kaisers_neue_Kleider
Thanks so much for your hint! - Just to think of that chain of transfer from 1335 to 7th November, 2009 !
All the best
German
Just received this tragic-optimism message via "private messenger" on a debate-forum I post on - it's from a forum-friend who had been posting extensively from inside Iran but fell silent in late August:
"I've been warned to lie low. The situation here is dreadful. But fortunately the regime is digging its own grave. Cheers.
This bears out everything you're saying here. Great relief to know he's still OK but... :-(
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