Category Archives: International issues

Being called racist or sexist does not “destroy” people, and, Joseph Levine’s defense of calling someone an awful human being

Posted on December 29, 2014 by Ampersand

On drawing breaks lately, I’ve been leaving comments on Ozy’s blog, which I feel a bit guilty about since I’ve been neglecting my own blog. (Leaving comments on someone else’s blog is, somehow, easier and quicker for me than writing … Continue reading →

Posted in Civility & norms of discourse, Palestine & Israel | 161 Comments

Workplace Politics: Is the Risk Worth the Danger?

Posted on September 2, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

In “Story 16” in “Padeshahan,” or “Kings,” the first chapter of Sa’di’s Golestan—the stories are simply numbered; they are not given titles—the protagonist is having a hard time earning enough money to support his family. He has become so poor, … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Writing | 11 Comments

This is (Potentially) a VERY Big Deal: Hamas drops call for destruction of Israel from manifesto

Posted on August 10, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

ETA: When I first read the Guardian article, I carelessly did not look at the date, which is January 12, 2006, and so this is not so much a big deal now. Nonetheless, it is significant that Hamas has taken … Continue reading →

Posted in International issues, Palestine & Israel | 4 Comments

I’ve Lived Until The End of My Desires

Posted on August 8, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

I’ve heard more than a few jokes about men who, after finding the proverbial genie in a bottle, manage to screw up their three wishes. The one that comes to me now involves a man who walks into a bar … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Writing | 11 Comments

The Viper Strikes, and Lives

Posted on August 1, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

I have been fascinated by metaphor since I was an undergraduate linguistics major, when one of my professors assigned parts of Metaphors We Live By, by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson. In that book, Lakoff and Johnson argue that, as … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Writing | 18 Comments

I Can’t Think of a Better Reason to Write

Posted on July 26, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

You never know how people are going to find your work, and you never know how it’s going to touch them or why. Earlier this month, a man contacted me asking for a copy of the uncorrected proof of my … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Writing | 2 Comments

In Them Alone My Spirit Will Endure

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

Towards the end of his preface to Golestan, Sa’di—that’s a picture of me at his tomb in Shiraz–says: Long after we have crumbled into dust, and the grains of who we were are far-flung atoms, these words, well chosen and arranged, will live, … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Writing | Comments Off

The Calligraphic Art of Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi – The Tehran Times

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

The Tehran Times has a beautiful gallery up of calligraphic art, which I know next to nothing about, except that I think it’s beautiful. Here are a couple: You should check out the rest for yourself.

Posted in Abortion & reproductive rights, Iran | Comments Off