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Thursday, June 18, 2009

There's a Man with a Gun Over There: Who Hates Who Hates Whom

It's been widely observed that, lacking any weapons and on their own, the Mousavi protesters may not be able to bring down a deeply repressive regime committed to holding on to power. Some of the security forces would have to change sides for protests to become revolution. The IRGC has gained so much from the current regime -- indeed, some would say, it is the current regime -- that it seems an unlikely candidate. This is, in fact, why repressive states create parallel armies like the IRGC in the first place. Remember, the Revolutionary Guards are not the Iranian army, nor are they the Iranian police. Twitter-based rumors suggest that the conventional security forces may not be pleased with apparent theft of the election and subsequent crackdown, and presumably, they're less loyal to the supreme leader than the IRGC. Nazi Germany had the SS to keep the army in check. Iran has the IRGC. Khamenei and Ahmadinejad are hoping that if they wait long enough, the protests will dissipate on their own. The protesters, on the other hand, seem to have no clear road to victory. So long as the Guardian Council can't be relied on for a fair recount -- and presumably, it can't -- then there is no apparent legal, procedural avenue for Mousavi to become president. It's now pretty hard to imagine a scenario in which Khamenei backs down, inaugurates Mousavi as president, and everything goes back to normal. This means that either Ahmadinejad will probably remain in power, or he'll probably fall from power in an extralegal, nonprocedural fashion. That is, the people with the guns stick with Ahmadinejad, or enough of them desert him to give Mousavi a literal fighting chance. And if Iran is looking at a fight between a loyalist IRGC and a dissident army, that sounds like civil war, and the furthest thing from normal.

link: Who hates who in Iran | Salon News


A Sick Mind in a Sick Body Politic

In its March 31, 2002 edition, a feature in The Hindu (India) said that disharmony between the constituent parts within a society promotes a pattern of illness not only in individuals but extends to such macro-systems as societies and nations. When these symptoms of collective pathology are neglected over time, societies begin to degenerate and collapse into anarchy.

link: MYREPUBLICA.com - News in Nepal: Fast, Full & Factual

Metaphysics of Racism

The Imam yesterday urged the authorities and the Church to raise their voices against "evil" racism and to mete out appropriate punishments against those who committed racially motivated crimes. Imam Mohammed El Saadi said too often the sentence handed down against racial aggression was "too light", which sent the wrong message to the perpetrator. "Racism is a protest against the will of God," he said, during the short funeral service of Sudanese immigrant Suleiman Ismail Abubaker at the mosque in Corradino.

link: timesofmalta.com - Imam condemns 'evil' racism

Don't Mess With The Twitterverse

TPM's Eric Kleefeld reports that Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-MI) received "massive heckling" from other Twitter users after he wrote: "Iranian twitter activity similar to what we did in House last year when Republicans were shut down in the House":

ArjunJaikumar @petehoekstra i spilled some lukewarm coffee on myself just now, which is somewhat analogous to being boiled in oil

chrisbaskind @petehoekstra My neighbor stopped me to talk today. Now I know what it is like to be questioned by the Basij!

luckbfern @petehoekstra I stand in solidarity with the oppressed rich white men of Repub Party in the House. #GOPfail Allah Akbar!

ceedub7 @petehoekstra I got a splinter in my hand today. Felt just like Jesus getting nailed to the cross.

TahirDuckett @petehoekstra ran through the sprinklers this morning, claimed solidarity with victims of Hurricane Katrina

paganmist @petehoekstra Had to move all my stuff to a new office w/o a corner view. Now i know what the Trail of Tears was like. #GOPfail

link: The Hotline's Blogometer

The Dark Side of the Force

There's a potential dark side to the Twitter revolution. The New Republic's Jason Zengerle points to an Ethan Zuckerman interview on NPR's On the Media from April in which Zuckerman, a fellow at Harvard's Berkman Center for the Internet and Society, talks about his study of Moldova's Twitter revolution. Zuckerman found evidence that several days into that rebellion, Twitter was "being used as a disinformation channel by forces who might have been aligned with the government, essentially trying to scare people away from demonstrating again." How long before the secret police start sending out organizational tweets—"We're massing at 7 p.m. at the Hall of the People for a march to the Hall of Justice!"—and busts everybody who shows up?

link: Let's not get carried away about Twitter power's role in Iran's demonstrations. - By Jack Shafer - Slate Magazine

From Soccer To Bear-Baiting

Despite his status, analysts said, Khamenei has little room to maneuver: There appears to be no constitutional mechanism to end Iran's biggest political challenge in 30 years, and the nation's factional politics have become a blood sport.

link: Iran: Another day of protests begins in Tehran - Los Angeles Times


Darfur is a Genocide Still

Jeffrey Weiss writes:

What should we do? What should anybody do? If politics can accomplish anything, surely it should be able to address genocide? If religion and morality mean anything, surely they should address genodice? The least we should do is not forget it's happening. You are now reminded.

link: Darfur is a Genocide. Still. -- Politics Daily

Facebook Persian

Facebook tonight has released a test version of its site available in Persian, the native language of Iran. The social network claims that amidst this week’s Twitter use for communication around events in Iran, its users were sharing content in Persian, however the site navigation was only available in English. This change will make it so that “Persian speakers inside of Iran and around the world can begin using it in their native language.

link: Facebook launches in Persian to support communications around events in Iran | Social Business | ZDNet.com


Daddy, daddy, you bastard, I'm through

Ahmadinejad said that the official results, which gave him an overwhelming margin of victory that many Iranians are challenging as rigged, mean that "everybody is victorious ... We are a big family, and we have to put our hands together."

link: Ahmadinejad says remarks taken out of context - CNN.com

"I only want to speak about what I have witnessed." Message from Iran

"What I have witnessed"

A powerful note from a female medical student in Iran, translated from Farsi by a trusty reader.

Hello,

It's painful to watch what's happening.

I don't want anything to do with what has been said this far, as I neither have the strength nor the resilience to face all these unfathomable events.

I only want to speak about what I have witnessed. I am a medical student. There was chaos last night at the trauma section in one of our main hospitals. Although by decree, all riot-related injuries were supposed to be sent to military hospitals, all other hospitals were filled to the rim. Last night, nine people died at our hospital and another 28 had gunshot wounds. All hospital employees were crying till dawn. They (government) removed the dead bodies on back of trucks, before we were even able to get their names or other information. What can you even say to the people who don't even respect the dead. No one was allowed to speak to the wounded or get any information from them. This morning the faculty and the students protested by gathering at the lobby of the hospital where they were confronted by plain cloths anti-riot militia, who in turn closed off the hospital and imprisoned the staff. The extent of injuries are so grave, that despite being one of the most staffed emergency rooms, they've asked everyone to stay and help--I'm sure it will even be worst tonight.

What can anyone say in face of all these atrocities? What can you say to the family of the 13 year old boy who died from gunshots and whose dead body then disappeared?

This issue is not about cheating(election) anymore. This is not about stealing votes anymore. The issue is about a vast injustice inflected on the people. They've put a baton in the hand of every 13-14 year old to smash the faces of "the bunches who are less than dirt" (government is calling the people who are uprising dried-up torn and weeds)

This is what sickens me from dealing with these issues. And from those who shut their eyes and close their ears and claim the riots are in opposition of the government and presidency!! No! The people's complaint is against the egregious injustices committed against the people.

Twitter Intelligence

  1. political situ in Iran is v/complex - for every decision there are reasons - some we cannot mention here - #Iranelection
  2. http://bit.ly/CTpRh - Proxy methods - #Iranelection
  3. cannot reply to all our followers but pls be aware that all info we provide is 100% accurate - situation here is serious - #Iranelection
  4. برادران و خواهران عزیز - بیمارستنهای ایران کمبود خون دارند - وظیفه شریهٔ همگی‌ کمک رسانی فوری هست - #Iranelection - RT RT RT
  5. hospital source - severe shortage of blood supplies accross ALL Iran hospitals - pls donate blood - #Iranelection - RT RT RT
  6. hospital source - Tehran hospital doctors are on 24 hour standby - #Iranelection
  7. http://bit.ly/1uRaDK - we need more proxys - #Iranelection - do not post on twitter
  8. http://bit.ly/NU7Cd - #Iranelection -
  9. CONFIRMED - MOUSAVI & KAROUBI ask supporters NOT to attend Friday prayers inTehran - #Iranelection RT RT RT
  10. The security situation in Tehran is very dangerous - 100's arrested every day - #Iranelection
  11. Thursday Sea of Green was more than ONE MILLION people - #Iranelection
  12. confirmed - the wife of Saeed Rajaie, a prominent Iranian wartime martyr, has been arrested while praying in Qom - #Iranelection
  13. unconfirmed reliable source - several commanders of Revolutionary Guard Force arrested today - #Iranelection
  14. We have unconfirmed reports that there is dissent among commanders of the Revolutionary Guard Force - #Iranelection

The Enigma Illusion

[S]kewed coverage is the reason why American readers were so flummoxed by the results of Iran's 2004 presidential elections and the sudden emergence of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Instead of searching for flaws within, pundits began to blame Iran for being enigmatic. But this enigma, like most others, was only the product of flawed insight. The Bush years did not help. Any multifaceted assessment of Iran that included an account of the regime's mismanagement or mistreatment of its citizens was taunted as an invitation to another military occupation.

link: Roya Hakakian: The Feast and Famine of Iran Coverage in U.S. Media

A Double Edged Sword in Every Pot


Last night on FNC, former Sec. of State Henry Kissinger became one of the more high profile Republicans to endorse President Obama’s handling of the post election situation in Iran. Kissinger said that any vocal US support behind one of the contenders would handicap that person.

O Arizona: A Special Place in Hell for Sheriff Joe

Stephen Lemons writes:

KPHO Channel 5 has picked up on the story of Katherine Figueroa, the nine year-old girl robbed of her parents by the MCSO during its raid on Phoenix's Lindstrom Family Auto Wash last Saturday. Her tearful testimony pleading for President Barack Obama's help in springing her parents Sandra and Carlos from Tent City was captured by local pro-immigrant activist Dennis Gilman in a powerful YouTube video, which I posted to this blog Monday morning.

Channel 5 interviewed the girl again and confronted Sheriff Joe Arpaio with the human misery resulting from his immigration raids. True to his egocentric worldview, his first thought was not for the child, but for how the video impacts him.

"That's what this is all about, to embarrass the sheriff," claimed Arpaio, slipping into the third person of a confirmed megalomaniac.


link: Phoenix New Times

But Some of These Fellows are Hardly Even In the Running!


The World Beard and Moustache Championships 2009 in Anchorage, Alaska.


Psychic Justice, Naked at Last (But Was That Really Necessary?)

Occasionally, when [Abraham] Hochman did something really dramatic, news of his exploits would appear in the general press. The New York Sun, among other outlets, reported on an episode in May 1904, when a bushy-haired Hochman waltzed into the Essex Market Police Court and inexplicably paid the bail for Abie Langener, who’d been arrested with seven other youths on a burglary charge. The magistrate asked why Hochman was paying bail for someone he didn’t know.

“I can read the future,” he replied. “I have read this man’s mind and know he is innocent. I can also read your mind. You will discharge him when the case comes up before you tomorrow. If he were guilty, I would know it and I would not bail him out. I will be here tomorrow to show you that my predictions come true.”

Hochman did, in fact, show up the following day. And, sure enough, when Langener and another suspect were brought before the court, the magistrate released them due to lack of evidence.

“What did I tell you?” said Hochman.

The psychic was mobbed outside the courthouse by hundreds of friends of the accused who, according to press reports, practically tore off his clothes. It’s not clear why this would be necessary and, in any case, the courthouse bailiffs came outside to rescue him from his demonstrative well-wishers.


link: Tablet

O Arizona: Senator McCain, Open Up Those Courts!

You don't need to go to Iran or North Korea to find secret courts. They're alive and well right here in the United States. On March 26, 2009, I was denied access to immigration courts in Eloy and Florence, Arizona, even though a federal regulation states, "All hearings, other than exclusion hearings, shall be open to the public" with a narrow range of exceptions--none of which were cited as a reason for excluding me.


I'd heard horror stories about mass hearings and the humiliation of detainees by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) attorneys and judges, and I wanted to see for myself. But a guard told me only family members or attorneys could be admitted. An attorney in the lobby affirmed the legality of my request and invited me to attend his hearing. After waiting forty-five minutes and missing his hearing, I was told by the head of security to go to my car and call Eloy's ICE office. That's when I learned that detention centers across the country were restricting public access to immigration courts.

Iran Twitter

  1. Tehran is alive with the sound of people on their balcony shouting 'Allah Akbar - Ya Hossein - Mir Hossein ' - #Iranelection RT RT RT
  2. to protect us all followers pls change your twt location to IRAN GMT+3.30 - #Iranelection RT RT RT
  3. Hospital source - increase in admission of people injured and beaten by Baseej - all Tehran hospitals in high alert - #Iranelection