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Hmm. Are you thinking of this cartoon?
Heya, Barry! I'm so sorry if this isn't the place for it, but I sort of vaguely remember you doing…
To be admired, no. Capable of standing up to world leaders better than Trump? Yes. Not that that's exactly a…
"Have they never heard of Angela Merkel? Theresa May? Margaret Thatcher even? " Probably not, no. (I´m not sure I…
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Category Archives: Iran
A Gay Iranian Mullah Who is a Refugee in Turkey
This is a pretty remarkable story.
Posted in Iran, Islam, Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans and Queer issues
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Would We Be Living in a Better World if the Tyrants of the Past Had Never Existed?
When Someone is Driven to Murder, Where Does the Responsibility Lie? It’s been a very long time since someone called me a bleeding-heart liberal, a label that was never complimentary and always carried with it a connotation not simply of … Continue reading
Posted in Iran, Religion, Writing
5 Comments
Sa’di’s Most Famous Lines Hang on the Wall of the United Nations
I am a few days late with this post because we had some renovation issues to deal with in my house last week and they left me no time at all to write. The extra time, however, did help me understand better … Continue reading
Posted in Iran, Writing
9 Comments
Say Nothing If You Cannot Say It Well
I think this week’s Sa’di Says speaks for itself: A seasoned speaker knows his craft demands careful thought or his words will go to waste. Follow his example. Say nothing if you cannot say it well; make silence the voice … Continue reading
Posted in Iran, Writing
3 Comments
Thank You, Veterans
I wrote this on November 11, and then before I could get a thumbs-up from certain people to post it, life intervened. So, it’s a little late, but still worth saying. As GB Stern said, silent gratitude isn’t much use … Continue reading
Posted in Afghanistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iran, Iraq, Korea
38 Comments
Saleh Noh Mobarak! Happy Persian New Year!
Eid Moborak! Norouz Pirouz! I am a little late this year in putting up a post for Norouz. Here is a lovely video of translations of poems by Hafez, one of Iran’s most important poets, that I found on The … Continue reading
Why I’d Have To Think About Who To Vote For, Barack Obama or Ron Paul
Let me say, first, that I’m confident this is not a choice we’ll ever face. It’s going to be Romney versus Obama. (Unless Ron Paul decides to run as a third party candidate, which, from a Democratic point of view, … Continue reading
Posted in crossposted on TADA, Elections and politics, Iran
79 Comments
In his speeches, [Khameini] has often cited Lenin’s phrase that if an ideology is not supported by art it will die.
From an article called “The Secrets of Khameini’s Life,” written by Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf. Khameini, Iran’s Supreme Ruler, cares deeply about poetry and what I finnd interesting in this brief profile is the account of how poetry and politics … Continue reading
Posted in Iran, Iran, literature
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An Iranian Version of the Daily Show
Edited to embed the full interview. These guys do an online show called Parazit that does to Iranian politics what The Daily Show does to the politics of this country. Unfortunately, the shows are in Persian and I haven’t been … Continue reading
Persian Poetry Tuesday: Ghazal 10 from "The Green Sea of Heaven," Translations of Hafez
Khwaja Shams ud-Din Muhammad Hafez-i Shiraza, the acknowledged master of the ghazal form in the Persian canon, was born sometime between 1317 and 1325. He died in 1389. His poems are among the most popular in the Persian-speaking world, where … Continue reading
Posted in Iran, literature
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YES! THANK YOU! It's been driving me crazy. Though I think I was also combining it on my head with…