FREE KIAN June 23, 2007

Letter

RELEASE KIAN TAJBAKHSH!

By Aryeh Neier

To the Editors:

On May 11, a few days after the detention in Tehran of Haleh Esfandiari, another Iranian-American scholar, Kian Tajbakhsh, was also detained. On May 29, Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence charged both with endangering Iranian national security and espionage. The charges have no merit. Dr. Tajbakhsh is an urban planning and urban policy expert who received his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1993 and taught at the New School in New York from 1994 to 2001. He has been a consultant for the Open Society Institute in Iran for the past three years, focusing on public health —particularly, treatment for Iran’s vast number of users of injected drugs—humanitarian assistance, and urban planning. Dr. Tajbakhsh has also served as a consultant for a Dutch urban planning group, for the World Bank, and for several Iranian government organizations. We know little about Dr. Tajbakhsh’s treatment in detention. As I write, nearly three weeks after his arrest, he has not seen a lawyer or family members. Though he may make one-minute phone calls to his wife, what they say is obviously monitored and she is understandably reluctant to repeat what he says as the only thread that keeps them in contact could be cut easily. In seeking the release of Dr. Tajbakhsh, the Open Society Institute is eager to see that his case does not heighten tensions between Iran and the West. That would undermine Dr. Tajbakhsh’s efforts to promote a peaceful resolution of differences by his engagement in scholarly and humanitarian projects that involve collaboration between Iranians and Westerners.

Aryeh Neier President

Open Society Institute

New York City

Ahmadinejad’s Dream May 12, 2007

Funny animation clip on You Tube:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=piRAbbx21vU

Photo Essay April 27, 2007

The Imam as an Idol ……. and they say sculpture is blasphemy??

“Walls of Martyrdom”: Tehran’s Propaganda Murals

By Fotini Christia http://www.wcfia.harvard.edu/misc/publications/centerpiece/win07_vol21_no1/feature_christia.html

A Nation of Nose Jobs, Not Nuclear War April 27, 2007

Peter Hitchens is the first American journalist to go into Iran since the hostage crisis. What he discovered surprised him – and should make everyone think again about their views on Iran.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23393411-details/Iran%3A+A+nation+of+nose+jobs%2C+not+nuclear+war/article.do

Cartoonbox: Prelude April 19, 2007

Iran’s Quiet Revolution April 19, 2007

Stellar article on Walrus magazine by Deborah Campbell.   Snappy & highly readable.

http://www.walrusmagazine.com/articles/2006.09-international-affairs-irans-quiet-revolution/

Finding Nabavi April 19, 2007

Speaking of satirical “noon”s, for a year now I’ve been trying to read Ebrahim Nabavi’s Alef Noon, titled to pun on the spelled-out version of the prez initals  … finally ordered it from karoon.com  (the persion version of amazon) and crossing my fingers customs will wave me by …  I will post any good excerpts here next month.   

George, Mahmoud, and the F Word April 15, 2007

 

In fall 2006, David Ignatius of the Washington Post in his editorial A Virtual US-Iran Dialogue, optimistically asked what “Proximity talks” -a diplomatic term for indirect negotiation -between EvilAxis & GreatSatan were going … 

Today, most bloggers I read are pro-talk and anti-preempt.  But it wasnt always that way …… many comments had to be exchanged, networked, and linked betwisxt the global citizenocracy.  It would seem that “CONVERSING” promotes”COMPROMISE,” in some abysmal age-of-communication way …..

I suggest that Bush get a blog (WB.gov … nifty acronym, compared to the duh! ahmadinejad.ir) .  The two fatheaded foes can open fire, fury, flaming fuckall on each other in an open feedback forum.   If they desire a more private ring, they can Twitter (the 140-wrd limit will be thier mediator).  Or A&B can webcam-conference with Condi, Dick, ElBaradei  … Ki-Moon, Larijani, Tony, etc.   

After all, how difficult is it really, to discuss the power of the US dollar viz. oil exchange currency ….?

SERIOUSLY!  How zeitgeist would that be??  The first world crisis resolved online.   We can rename Web 3.0 in their honor:  the Force.          

   

[excerpt from a girl's journal across the world] April 15, 2007

   from persepolis to palenque

even after the highly publicized persian art & history exhibit at the museo nacional de antropología, the largest of its kind ever seen in north america, interest in that particular culture seems to linger in mexico city. the other day i eavesdropped on a group of teenagers shopping for persian classical music (of the santoor variety) at a bootleg market. and then, a few days ago, ambigous 8-feet tall posters with colorful pictures and factoids about iran turned up in various corners of the mall in which’s unfortunate basement i teach english. i assumed that it was some kind of tourism campaign waged by iran. but, instead, there is now a sprawling exhibit/market of persian and other middle eastern handicrafts – from lush rolls of persian carpets to silver-plated evil eyes.who is responsible for this? the man behind the counter, an egyptian-mexican sporting a nehru cap, told me that they just want to promote aspects of persian and arabic culture otherwise unseen in mexico. i think they’re doing a good job. i am inclined to believe that a finely executed persian miniature is bound to make a stronger impression than years of propaganda by every wicked american presidential administration since 1979.whiteasjasmine.livejournal.com -April 14, 2007
 

Dissidents in DC: Sign Petition 4 No War on Iran April 15, 2007

• Seymour Hersh (New York Times) has reported that U.S. Special Operation Forces are already operating in preparation for a possible attack via use of “a bunker-buster tactical nuclear weapon” against Iran’s underground nuclear sites
• US-backed guerrilla cells have entered Iran from Pakistan, engaging in sabotage & car bombings
•  U.S. Navy involved in the largest military exercises in Persian Gulf since the invasion of Iraq. Two immense aircraft carriers are steaming off the coast of Iran, according to the Associated Press (AP). 
• Al Jazeera reports, “American military domination of the Middle East is maintained by a vast network of military bases throughout the region. The US military in case of war has the capacity to crush Iran by round-the-clock bombing using cruise missiles and hundreds of warplanes.”

In the Spring of 2007, activists from across the globe signed on Stop War on Iran. We marched in Washington (above) and have collected tens of thousands of petition signatures. Sign the petition @ http://stopwaroniran.org/petition.shtml