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Rethinking Modernity in Iran
Dr. Abbas Milani in his book, in a collection of several essays written since 1991,
embarks to dislodge Islamists main argument against modernity in Iran; Islamists
proclaim modernity is the pretax of western foreigners for colonial and cultural
domination. Dr. Milani, himself a product of modernity in Iran, tries to prove
modernity has its seeds in Iran for centuries and nurtured by most learned Iranians.
The foundation he builds for his argument stretch from ancient Persia to modern
time.
The Hezb-Allah Back to Future.
The recent mass Iranian’s freedom fighters revolt against Hezb-Allah’s regime, which
followed the last Islamist traditionally fraudulent election, manifested the re-
emergence of the Shiites’ Islamist historical memory. The political imagination of Hezb-
Allah is confined to the historical events caused by the first great civil war in the
nascent Islamic world, which rose from the Shiite struggle for political power. The third
Rashidun caliph Uthman (644-56) favoritism to Umayyad clan derived companions of
Prophet Mohammad, then nobility of Medina including Mohammad son in law, Ali the
forth caliph (656-61), to resent him bitterly. After the assignation of Uthman, during Ali’
s caliphate era he faced a great number of armed challengers.
election gets closer?
With less than a month to Presidential election the political landscape is getting more
complicated. The student organizations could not get their choice to become
candidate for election, and they are now considering endorsing another reformist
candidate. The reformist political activists, other than the goal of removing
Ahmadinejad from office, condition their support for the reformist candidates to their
specific demands. The interesting developments in this election are the formation of a
few new voting blocs.
presidential election is scheduled for June 12, 2009, has brought a new life to political
activity in Iran. Popular elections’ legitimacy for the government became a well
respected tradition since the 1905 Constitutional Revolution; although most of the
times since then they were a façade for dictatorial regimes. For a peculiar internal
structure of Shiite branch of Islam, Shiite authorities keep their independent from the
most revered or powerful; in short, there is no firm
The hard line Islamist who won the majority in the last Majlas (parliament) election
pushed reformist further away from center of political power of the Islamic Republic
(IR). Although Majlas deputies political power has been eroded considerably, but the
supreme leader (Faghih) ability to pack Majlas with hand picked deputies
demonstrates expansion of his power at the expense of moderate Islamist. Considering
A Leftist Childhood Stories, Wrongly Named Persepolis
By Marjane Satrapi
Persepolis was written and published in Paris in two volumes in 2000 and 2001.
Therefore, the book can be called comic and caricaturing memoirs of Satrapi from her
childhood limited to the Islamic revolution era and regime. In the separate sections,
Satrapi tells the story of the major events of Islamic Revolution before and after its
victory from a childish point of view heavily influenced by her parents’ political
October 14, 2007
In a conflict between the democracies of the world and Islamo-fascist of the Islamic
Republic, which side will Iranians, who call themselves democrats, choose to stand?
Will Iranian democrats by misinterpretation of nationalism support Islamo-fascist? Or,
true long term nationalism prevail and rationalism lead democrats to prepare to fill the
political vacuum in Iran after demise of Islamic Republic with their support in the hand
of the west?
Iranian commentators in US media, with the impressive professorship credentials from
prestigious universities or other institutions, are engaged in providing considerable
misinformation to the American public concerning the course of action that US should
take for overthrowing the Islamic regime in Iran. After twenty seven years dealing with
Islamic regime, the US government and the united stats people have no doubt in
hostility they are facing from Hezb Allah regime.
The recent arrest of several Iranian visiting academics in Iran surprised pro-
engagement with Islamic Republic (IR) through negotiations. These are the Iranians
who left their country after the 1979 revolution and became US and European Nations
citizens; they traveled to Iran regularly to visit their families while observing political,
social, and economic development and gave guidance to the US regarding the best
course of action in dealing with the Islamic Republic’s hostile posture.
Khomeini the original ideologue of Hezbollah victoriously returned to Tehran and
founded the Islamic Republic with the help of naive and unsuspecting well formed,
shaped, and educated middle class; he turned his decade long dream into a reality
which had began from chaotic political freedom after the invasion of Iran during World
War II.
VOICE OF AMERICA IN FARSI
Radio Farda “tomorrow’s voice” is the radio broadcast and Internet site which is paid
and managed by Americans; Radio Farda is supposed to present in its daily news and
commentaries, if any, the United States’ point of view to Farsi speaking Iranians and
neighboring countries.