Monday ponderings - a rare political post
First and foremost, I'm thinking about Iran. Today, my iGoogle home page provided me with this quote from Thomas Jefferson: "The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it always to be kept alive." It immediately summoned to mind yesterday's article in the New York Times, "Clerical Leaders Defy Ayatollah on Iran Election". The Association of Researchers and Teachers of Qum have declared the election results improper, thereby refusing to bow to the power of Ayatollah Ali Khameini, whose word is supposed to be final in Iran. It's been called "the most historic crack in the 30 years of the Islamic republic" by the director of Stanford University's Iranian Studies Program.
The committee that wrote the article not only questioned the election results (disparaging the Guardian Council in the process), but also "invoked powerful imagery, comparing the 20 protesters killed during demonstrations with the martyrs who died in the early days of the revolution and the war with Iraq, asking other clerics to save what it called 'the dignity that was earned with the blood of tens of thousands of martyrs.'"
I hope that the world will manage to keep some of its focus on Iran, in hopes that international attention helps to protect the many people in the country who continue to protest, whether by wearing the color green or by standing on their rooftops in the evenings hollering "Allahu akbar!" ("God is great!") The nightly chorus has its roots in the days and weeks before the Iranian revolution. It was a way for people to connect and reassure one another that they aren't alone. According to this article in the LA Times, the nightly cries include more than blessings to God; also included is the cry "Marg bar dictator!" ("Death to the dictator!")
At the end of the day, I do not have a personal stake in who is in charge in Iran. If Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won fair and square, so be it. But as it now stands, nobody can assert that with any credibility. In a country where ballots had to be counted by hand, results were released before the polls had even closed. According to the official report, in regions where the challengers, Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, were very popular (including, say, their home towns), the government claimed nary a vote for either man. To which pretty much anyone with any sense has called bullshit, as one might expect (if they live in a free society, that is).
That the people of Iran and a number of clerics have started to say so as well means that this is a dangerous time in Iran. I continue to hope that the people of Iran will not pay too heavily with their lives for their efforts to become a free society.
I know that The Daily Show is fake news. Truly, I do. But if you haven't seen it yet, I hope you will check out Jason Jones's series Behind the Veil. Jones actually visited Iran prior to the election, and his series will give you a sense of what life is like in Iran. I actually believe that Jones's final installment, "The Kids are Allah Right", is worthy of a journalistic award.
The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cJason Jones: Behind the Veil - The Kids Are Allah Rightthedailyshow.comDaily Show
Full EpisodesPolitical HumorJason Jones in Iran
The committee that wrote the article not only questioned the election results (disparaging the Guardian Council in the process), but also "invoked powerful imagery, comparing the 20 protesters killed during demonstrations with the martyrs who died in the early days of the revolution and the war with Iraq, asking other clerics to save what it called 'the dignity that was earned with the blood of tens of thousands of martyrs.'"
I hope that the world will manage to keep some of its focus on Iran, in hopes that international attention helps to protect the many people in the country who continue to protest, whether by wearing the color green or by standing on their rooftops in the evenings hollering "Allahu akbar!" ("God is great!") The nightly chorus has its roots in the days and weeks before the Iranian revolution. It was a way for people to connect and reassure one another that they aren't alone. According to this article in the LA Times, the nightly cries include more than blessings to God; also included is the cry "Marg bar dictator!" ("Death to the dictator!")
At the end of the day, I do not have a personal stake in who is in charge in Iran. If Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won fair and square, so be it. But as it now stands, nobody can assert that with any credibility. In a country where ballots had to be counted by hand, results were released before the polls had even closed. According to the official report, in regions where the challengers, Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, were very popular (including, say, their home towns), the government claimed nary a vote for either man. To which pretty much anyone with any sense has called bullshit, as one might expect (if they live in a free society, that is).
That the people of Iran and a number of clerics have started to say so as well means that this is a dangerous time in Iran. I continue to hope that the people of Iran will not pay too heavily with their lives for their efforts to become a free society.
I know that The Daily Show is fake news. Truly, I do. But if you haven't seen it yet, I hope you will check out Jason Jones's series Behind the Veil. Jones actually visited Iran prior to the election, and his series will give you a sense of what life is like in Iran. I actually believe that Jones's final installment, "The Kids are Allah Right", is worthy of a journalistic award.
The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cJason Jones: Behind the Veil - The Kids Are Allah Rightthedailyshow.comDaily Show
Full EpisodesPolitical HumorJason Jones in Iran