Monday, February 1, 2016

Working Away....

It has been a busy one yet again at #Outsiders. Although we will be on "duty" as we do the daily Social Media Roundup for our "hashtag" watches, the team will be working on the latest series of notations over the ensuing days. It has also been an interesting evening with reports out of Iowa on the win by Ted Cruz and the razor trip win by Hillary Clinton. 

This week is also quite a week. The 37th Anniversary of the Iranian Revolution is being celebrated by the Regime in Iran. As President Rohani has been on his charm offensive, the reality inside the country has been different as the team has been working away on some of the realities inside the Country. I was on the grid for the night as I ran across this by one of the preeminent contemporary historians of our Time, Professor Touraj Daryaee of UC Irvine as noted below: 
Revolution: It is only a passing observation and note as a historian!
It is the 37th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution and two images has kindled my memory of what was at stake. First is the front page of Hamshahri Newspaper in Iran, which has a picture of the early revolutionary days, where men and women, both with tie and without, and women with and without hejab came together. No one forced the other to dress or behave in a way that was not in accord with their own beliefs.
These people revolted for "freedom," for the release of political prisoners, end of torture, freedom of the press. They revolted for people to have a say in a political system where before it had no vote and no real say. As Zibakalam has mentioned, the chanting of "death" to this and that was only minor a part of this revolution which became louder and lost its real substance.
The other picture comes from Mehr Nameh which reviewed Ayattollah Khamenie's recent 992 page biography. The picture is telling of who was involved in the early days: Ayattollah Kahmenei representing the clergy, Foruhar and Bazargan, the National Front, as well as Amir-Entezam, and finally Chamran the idealist fighter. In religious garb, in suits with ties, without ties, etc. The image showed the diversity and inclusiveness. Some people may want us to forget this and recreated a totally different past, but the historians who be the gatekeepers here.
37 years forward and we have a totally different Iran, where many of the early ideals have given way to chants of death, rule by one fraction of the people with a specific ideology, holding the rest of the people in limbo.
But, this is the story of revolutions, where it takes time for it to show its results. It seems everyone fought each other after the victory, and little by little groups and people were pushed aside and one group won the day.
The real question is whether this group would at some time allow others to participate and achieve the dream that was the revolution, or it would become a dictatorship of one man-one party where the minority rule over the almost 80 million people.
دو عکس از روزهای اوایل انقلاب مرا بیاد آنچه این حرکت قرار بود انجام دهد انداخت. دکتر زیبا کلام چندی پیش نیز این موضوع را در سخنرانی بیان کردند. انقلاب برای آزادی بود. آزادی بیان آزادی مطبوعات آزادی زندانیان سیاسی و پایان شکنجه و فشار و مهمتر از همه ظلم به مردم ایران.
عکس نخست که از مهرنامه گرفتم و از کتاب خاطرات آیت الله خامنه ایی است نشاندهنده این باز بودن و آزاد بودن دوران اوایل انقلاب است. با کروات و بی کروات و با عبای روحانی. چپی و لیبرال و ملی مذهبی و مذهبی همه دست در دست هم دادند برای آزادی.
عکس دوم از همشهری گرفته شده است که با تیتر "همان مردم" گویای این بود که زن با حجاب و بی حجاب با کت و کروات و بی کت همه در این انقلاب شریک بودند. آمده بودند تا آزادی را تجربه کنند. نزدیک هفتاد سال بود که زحمت کشیده بودند که یکنفر و یا یک حزب برای همیشه بر مصدر قدرت نباشد. بله قربان نخیر قربان و دلا و راست شدن جلوی کسی انجام ندهند.
سی و هفت سال از آنزمان گذشته است. امروز چه داریم؟ معلوم است که یک گروه از میان همه بازی را برد. دیگران که این بازی را باختند بی گناه نیستند چون همه به جان هم افتادند.
اما زمان می برد تا انقلاب نتیجه واقعی خود را نشان دهد. چه خواهد شد؟ آیا گروهی که بازی را برده حاضر است با مردم و دیگران قدرت را تقسیم کند یا اینکه بمانند زمان شاه یک حزب و یک نفر و یک گروه به نام اسلام (انگار که فقط آنها مسلمانند) فقط حق تصمیم گیری برای همه مردم ایران دارند؟
تاریخ به سوال پاسخ خواهد داد. باید صبور بود




Sunday, January 31, 2016

On the Dawn of Feburary 2016: Reflections.....

It has been quite a week yet again as we bid farewell to January and begin February.   It has been a rainy and now windy one here in Southern California as I finish off some thoughts.

January 2016 saw the Eastern Part of the United States buried under Snow.  One of my Facebook Friends featured a work by her husband that was a site to see which I wanted to share here:




This was also a month that saw Implementation Day and I was on the record in support of the Nuclear Deal while continuing to be vehemently opposed to the policies of the Islamic Republic.     The Iranian President made the rounds in Europe including a meeting with the Holy Father:




The Third person on this picture is an old classmate of mine who was present at the meetings and it was quite gratifying to be witness to it.    As Iran was making the rounds signing deals, the distressing reality in Iran was of profound concern that our team is working on a notation soon.   I was truly surprised when I saw editorials in both the New York Times and the Washington Post on the reality in Iran on the eve of the elections.   It was surprising how they agreed on the dire situation in the country as over 90% of the so-called reformist camp were disqualified.    Even the grandson of the Founder of the Islamic Republic was disqualified because he was not "schooled enough in theology".    This noted in the New York Times said it all:





It is absolutely on pointe as it was pointed out that Mr. Rouhani is a product of the system but when he notes that if the opposition is disqualified, then when is the point of the election--hopefully someone will notice.    This was also as this program on the Voice of America's Farsi Service laid out a very devastating reality on how Iran is today and the outright theft and corruption seems to be rampant: 



The broadcast is in Farsi--but the realities it lays out is extremely troubling.  

As I was working away gearing up for the new week,   I was also supporting the team as the team continued its' on-going daily Social Media Curation.    The latest carnage in Syria was of profound concern as #Daesh attacked the holiest Shiite site in Damascus that ostensibly Iran sent forces to protect resulting in the death of 60 people.     I was so moved when I saw this while on Twitter to underscore how challenging a time we are faced with as another round of talks on Syria begins:

It is striking how the Iranian Official News Agency is headlining again the days that Khomeini returned to Iran as the regime commemorates what is referred to as "Fajr" whereby there is a 10-Day celebration leading to the day the Revolution was formalized.

There is another "Dynamic" going on as Iowa officially launches the Presidential Campaign.   There is some speculation now as I was assessing it all that it appears that Donald Trump will run away with it all for the GOP despite all the efforts to stop him.    Our team finished a final wrap with a snapshot of the discourse from all campaigns on the eve of Iowa.     I could not help but pick up what Andy Borowitz noted though: 
We will spend over 5 billion dollars on the 2016 elections. There has to be a cheaper way to find the worst people in the country.
Posted by Andy Borowitz on Sunday, January 31, 2016
As I look forward to February and supporting the on-going development of #Outsiders, I took heart in this admonition: 

Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground ~ Theodore Roosevelt 

Onward to February with all the possibilities!!



Friday, January 29, 2016

On the Eve of the W-End.....

As I hope all enjoy The Friday Musical Interlude the Team has chosen, I was briefly "on the grid" before running off and ran across this from the great Rumi that to a large extent talks about the challenge we have here at #Outsiders:


The sage battles his/her own ego. The fool battles everyone else's.~ Sufi Poverb
Posted by Rumi on Friday, January 29, 2016


May we all remain humble!!

Wishing all a Fabulous Week-End!!!