THAT - AMERICAN GUY

This video was taken from the top of Mount Laguna, about 50 miles east of Downtown San Diego. You are seeing the smoke of 1 fire only, there were two others burning but you can't see their plumes of smoke in this image. The video begins just after sunrise and squeazes the entire day into 45 seconds. One frame of video was taken every minute. Never before in California history has a fire gotten so large so fast. Look for the first signs of billowing smoke on the right of the screen the moment the film starts. Mount Laguna is about 6000 ft above sea level, and 50 miles east of the Pacific Ocean. Usually, you can see the Ocean from up there on a day like this - if it wasn't for the smoke. When the video first starts the fire measure about 10 miles across, then builds to about 40 miles by nightfall. This is the fire they call the "Cedar Fire". It now holds the record for the largest in California history.

Slow conections click here to view.

That odd looking circular object is the sun. The color of the sun that afternoon was a deep red. No problem at all to look directly at the sun.


I-15 where it crosses Highway 52, near Tierasanta and Marine Corps Air Station - Miramar. Looking west towards La Jolla. Photo was taken Sunday afternoon at around 1 or 2 in the afternoon. Luckilly this was also at about the time the wind began to die down in that area. If it had not, the fire would have traveled to the Ocean by nightfall. Through great efforts of firefighters and Marines, the westward progression of the fire was stopped before it crossed I-805 and entered San Deigo's coastal comunities.

Today's picture from space shows active fire areas. This image shows all of southern California.

Photo, courtesy of New Scientist.

Last night I thought the worst was over. It wasn't. The fire continues to burn out of control in an eastward direction. The smoke got even heavier today. The smoke was so thick that the street lights were on at 3 pm. It seems that as the Cedar fire burns up the mountains the vegetation gets thicker and taller. The volume of smoke produced is massive. I've lived here during some pretty big fires, but this one out does them all many times over.

From the upper left, you are seeing fires in the following communities: Simi Valley/Ventura County, San Bernardino/Lake Arrowhead area, just west of Big Bear. Directly underneath that, the fire with the narrowest plume of smoke is in extreme northwestern San Diego County, near the point where Orange, Riverside and San Diego Counties come together, it started on Camp Pendleton Marine base and is now burning near the small town of De Luz. Directly to the right (east) of that fire there is a little bit of smoke from an older fire east of tenuously, below that is the "Paradise Fire" in Valley Center California. Below and to the left of that is the "Cedar Fire", that has been the most destructive so far. It's the one that burned through the Scripps Ranch neighborhood of San Diego on Sunday. As I'm typing it is devastating the communities of Julian, Descanso, Pine Valley, Julian, and Cuyamaca. My cousins have a vacation home up there that has been in the family for over 40 years, we don't know if it has survived or not. I have many fond memories from my visits there as a child. I hope it survives. I have a good feeling about it. Ensh Allah.

The other minor fire straddling the border is fully contained now. There is a new one on the map today, located at the lower part of the image, it is burning near Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. When the wind shifts, sometime tomorrow, all that smoke that's out over the Pacific Ocean will come back through and push up against the mountains. That will be lovely...NOT! Blech.

San Diego usually has some of the cleanest air in California. I miss it.

Today I bought a new mobile phone. I suspected the woman who ran the store was Iranian, but I managed to hold off on asking her until I was almost ready to leave. She has a very obvious accent, but it wasn't readily identifiable as Iranian, at least to me. So I asked her the cliche: "Where are you from?" She didn't seem to be the least bit offended by it. We talked for about a half hour or so after that. (Business was very light today, because of the fires.)

Strangely enough, she was another Jewish Iranian. I've mentioned at least once before that I tend to meet more Jewish Iranians here in San Diego than anything else. We seem to have a large population of Jewish Iranians and Christian Iraqis, here in San Diego.

I could write so much about our meeting, but I only have a little time. What I wanted to mention, is that she is yet another Iranian who supports US military intervention in Iran. Like me, she believes it would save many many Iranian lives. The Mullahs are not going to give up their power easily, like the Shah did.

While I would like to see the people free themselves, I do not think they will get the chance. For the time being it appears the Mullahs have solved the nuclear standoff, but for some reason I doubt their sincerity. I still hold to my opinion that some sort of US military action will ensue before it is all over.

The Mullahs must not be allowed to get the nuclear bomb, their support of anti-Zionist terrorism will have to be dealt with soon. I just can't imagine how the Iranian people are going to oust the regime without some help. If they could pull it off, many thousands would have to die for it, unnecessarily.

Image of Scripps Ranch neighborhood on Fire.

I lived in Scripps Ranch with my parents for about a year in 1983. People were talking about the high fire danger because of all the trees and cedar shake roofs, way back then. Cedar shake is commonly sold in front of grocery stores - for kindling. Most of the homes lost, had cedar shingle roofs. As of this evening's latest news conference, they are now saying that the number of lost homes in that neighborhood is closer to 300 than 150. Scripps Ranch has lots of tall Eucalyptus trees. It's located just north of MCAS - Miramar, on the East side of the freeway. Scripps is a beautiful family neighborhood with homes from $500k to over $1 million.

Last night's air quality was deplorable at my house. I'd say it has improved at least 60% since then. I drove up to Del Mar this afternoon and the air was clearer up there. It seems to be the worst near downtown San Diego and Mission Valley, where Qualcom stadium is. Everything is covered in ash and the air is not just smoky, but filled with little tiny particles of ash. Yesterday I was having pieces of debris up to the size of a half dollar coin falling on my house and yard. The nearest fire at the time was about 5 miles away. Today I collected oak leaves which fell in my yard - completely intact - although looking a bit toasted. That's quite an updraft! All the fires in or near town are out now. There are still active fires in the foothills and mountains though. Winds are light now, and humidity is rising. They could burn for another week or more, but won't cause the kind of catastrophic damage they did yesterday, because they are in sparsely inhabited areas now. If the winds had not let up yesterday afternoon, the fire would have made it at least to Mission Valley and possibly all the way to the Pacific Ocean near La Jolla. What a blessing the winds died down.

There were three main fires. As I listened to yesterday's news reports, it was hard to imagine that the most devastating fire had started way out in Ramona. It burned through Lakeside, Poway, Scrips Ranch, skirted Santee on the north, then burned as far west as I-805 and highway 52. The Marines fought the fire as it came onto the base at Miramar, and the City of San Diego landfill, south of the base helped to keep it from reaching the La Jolla area. The fire got within about 4 miles of the Ocean, when a wind driven ember landed in Clairemont along the west side of I-805. Luckily, the wind had died down near the coast by then. If it hadn't we would have lost houses there as well. That was all from one fire. That fire measures about 30 miles from where it started, to its western terminus - as the crow flies. It is still burning near Lakeside and Alpine, along the I-8 corridor. The eastern edge of that fire is still advancing towards mount Cuyamaca and the town of Pine valley tonight. So that's 30 miles west and 20 miles east of where the fire began on Saturday night. That's a 50 mile long wildfire. It's a miracle we didn't lose even more homes. Another fire started Early Sunday near the Mexican border, out highway 94 near the rural town of Dulzura. It burned as far west as the Otay Mesa area of Chulla Vista. As far as I know, no homes were consumed by that fire. It has burned over 20k acres. Luckily Otay reservoir stopped its western progression. West of the lake it is solid suburban development all the way to the bay. Another blessing that the wind died down. It's not that wide of a lake!

The third fire started in Valley Center, which is a semi rural area located between Escondido and Mount Palomar, about 40 miles north of San Diego. Many homes were lost up there as well. That fires is still burning east of Valley Center moving towards Julian. It is now in very heavy brush and mountainous terrain. The south side of that fire burns near the Wild Animal park tonight. The eastern edges of the two northernmost fires will become forest fires soon, as they move into higher elevations with pine forests.

As usual Gray Davis reacted too late. It seems he didn't want to help until the cameras were ready. This will grown into a scandal, as the truth comes out. We needed air support from the beginning, we still do. Too many resources were up north in Simi Valley and San Bernardino. The governor had the power to cut through the bureaucracy, but evidently he thinks that bureaucracy is more important than human lives. Today the bureaucracy is still in place and the fire still burns. He had some great photo ops though.

San Diegan's who have to venture outside are wearing particle masks. The smoke was so thick yesterday, I had to have inside lights on for much of the day and some of the street lights came on at mid day. Tonight's crescent moon came out briefly and looked blood red. I think last night was the new moon, which is my favorite to look at, and even though my window faces west, I never saw it.

Thousands of San Diegan's are homeless tonight. At least 12 people are dead. Over 300k acres have burned, county-wide. I worry about all the animals that lost their lives. This was the worst fire in San Diego history. It could have been even worse if the wind had not died down.

PS: As I mentioned yesterday, the national news media was slow to grasp the severity of the situation. They didn't seem to get it until this morning. Unless you knew San Diego well, it was difficult to tell how widespread the fires were, and just how fast they were spreading. I suspect the governor didn't understand for quite some time as well. I guess it's too late to recall him over it now, though. ;-)

The air at my house is beginning to choke me. The air is brownish orange. When I awoke at 8 am the fire was about 10 miles north of me in Scripps Ranch. Since then it has burnt through several miles of brush, jumped highway 52 and continues to spread south and west. It is now within about 5 miles of my house. Not only that but there are fires in a 40 mile long line from Valley Center to the Mexican border near Dulzura and Otay Mesa.

This is unprecedented in California history. We have fires every year, but this is so big the firefighters can't even begin to get a handle on it. Our fire fighting equipment such as helicopters, air tanker planes etc. had been loaned out to fight the fires in San Bernardino County, near Rancho Cucamonga.

I may have to leave to get out of the smoke. At this writing things are getting worse, not better.

So far, national news outlets have failed to grasp the severity of the situation.

Humidity 7%, air temperature 90 degrees F, winds NE at 7, gusting to 28 mph.

Watch live breaking coverage. (Will no longer offer live coverage of the fire, but they have pre-recorded video available. You just have to look around for it.)

UPDATE - 5:40 PM Pacific standard time: It is now dark outside. The wind has died down a little and the temperature has cooled down considerably. The sun never came out today because of the smoke. I am not in imminent danger where I am - from fire - but the smoke has gotten very thick. I can barely see street lights that are less than a half mile away. The nearest flames are about 4 and a half miles NE of my location in central San Diego. I hope the winds remain calm over night. The percentage of containment is ZERO %.

UPDATE 7 PM Sunday: The Mayor has now asked all employers in the county to give employees the day off tomorrow. There are so many closed freeways and roads that it would cause grid-lock tomorrow morning. That could end up being lethal for people who get trapped in their cars when the fires comes through. Almost every school, government offices, and many businesses have announced they will be closed until further notice.

San Diego from space: I live in the midst of all that smoke. The fires in Riverside and San Bernardino County are causing that smoke way up in the upper right hand corner of the image, out over the Pacific Ocean. That narrower plume in the upper middle comes from the fire on the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base. That fire has been burning for several days already and seemed big until Sunday morning. Usually our wind comes from the Northwest brining in cool moist air off the Pacific Ocean, the hot, dry "Santa Anna Winds" come from the inland desert regions, which are at higher elevations. As the wind comes over the mountains it rushes through the canyons and heats up. The tiniest fire from a cigarette or something can quickly become a raging wildfire durring a Santa Anna.

This image shows an area about 70 miles by 120 miles wide.

He's the young gentleman in the famous image above. Click on him to sign a pettition for his release. He's been held in prison for over 4 years. His crime???

Someone took this picture of him, holding up the bloody shirt of one of his classmates. The picture was then published.

What??? You're saying there is no crime in that? EXACTLY!

So sign the pettition.

I have a freind named Fez. He loves the Persian dish "Fesenjen" so much that he changed his name because of it! Yes, I kid you not.

Last year, I swore that I would make myself some Fesenjen. (Sometimes spelled Fesenjoon.) I never got around to it. This year I swear I will. In fact, I plan to go out to an Iranian restaurant to try some of it. I figure that will help me to be able to mimick it in my own kitchen, or at least act as some inspiration for me. You see, I never had the pleasure of eating any while I was in Iran. But Fez has inspired me to try it.

So what I am looking for is your family's favorite way of making it. If you can please send in your recipes. You can either cut and paste it into the comments for everyone to see, or send it to me through e-mail.

American bashing exists in Canada for some of the same reasons it does in Muslim dominated societies. The shear size of our economy causes American culture to spill over into their culture. It's very difficult to get away from American influence in today's world. Add a little ethnocentrism, and a national identity crises (in the case of Canada), and you get a lot of pent up resentments.

Most Canadians live within 50 miles of the US border. They can receive US TV and radio stations. They shop in American malls, smoke American made cigarettes, etc. (over-generalizing a bit, of course. Not all of them do.)

There are so many similarities between Americans and Canadians that Canadians have had a long standing identity crises because of it. I can't say I really blame them. I would too.

What Canadians might not understand right now is what it is like being an American in today's world.

When you are on top, there are always a lot of people attempting to knock you down a few pegs. Quite simply, our political, military and economic power causes a lot of jealousy. Many are threatened by it.

In the Muslim world, political and economic power have historically been tied to religious power. The boundary between religion and politics is often blurred because of that. Banditry and thugery are longstanding ways of gaining wealth and power, which is often legitimized through religion. The mix is quite toxic. To maintain power, successful leaders have often resorted to identifying an outside threat to rally the people behind them. The people must remain convinced that they need the leaders in order to protect their way of life.

For along time, it was the Jews, then the Christians, up until about 50 years ago, Great Britain was the favored scapegoat. In short, anyone who could truly pose a threat to the wealth and power of the ruling class had to be vilified.

Today the threat to that power is the United States. But this time, it is not just our power and economic might which causes a threat, but our political ideology. It seems the whole world wants to be free. Therein lies the problem.

For many thousands of years the way to power in the middle east has been gained and maintained through rather brutal means. Power and wealth has always rested in the state, which then, typically meters it out unevenly, with the larger share going to the most loyal subjects. Those who are seen as different than the ruling class then become an underclass who works largely to support the ruling class.

Then, about 70 years ago, those who lusted after political power in Muslim countries began to notice a brand new power had arisen in the world. Their people were free and prosperous. In that country political power rested in the citizenry, who then metered it out to those they wanted as their leaders. The people could giveth, and the people could taketh away.

In this system, the old ways would never work. It was a major threat, so they set out to vilify America. When the populace began to emulate Americans and demand American like freedoms, those who lusted after power could see their whole power structure was threatened. That is why the worst form of anti-Americanism emanates from the middle-east.

It is the only form which poses a threat to our safety. In truth, Canadians and Americans do share a lot of the same values. It's just that Canada is in a completely different position in world politics. That simple fact may make Canadian culture more different than ours in the future than it has been historically.

These are my thoughts on the issue so far. This is the first time I have attempted to write about it, so I got a little long winded. That's why I decided to post it here, instead of in Faramin's comments section. Over time my beliefs and thoughts will surely evolve.

I missed most of last weeks Frontline, on PBS. I lost track of time, so I just caught the end. So I was quite pleased to find the entire episode can be viewed from their website. I'll be writing about my thoughts and feelings after I've viewed the entire thing. Here's a link if you would like to watch it yourself. I found the sound garbled on the windows media version. The Real Player version is better.

I consider Frontline to be a highly credible source of information. I love watching their documentaries. There is a new episode on tonight that should interest readers of my blog. They usually come on at 9 PM local time on PBS. Tonight's episode is about the Lackawanna 6. Alleged Terrorists rounded up near buffalo New York last year. I'll write about tonight's show too, in a separate entry.

Armed and dangerous - Iranian women's police force:



"Conclusion: The first two and a half years of the above training was spent towards avoiding a crucial and commonly fatal accident caused by tripping over the Chador (Islamic veil/covering) while carrying guns and rifles.

(I'd imagine the ACIDENTAL BEHEADINGS would really be a problem too. As they trip on their CHADORS and fall on their SWORDS. They sure look cool in their uniforms though. The swords make a great accessory, really livens up the drab black. - American Guy)

Asghari, watch out! there maybe bullets in your Khoreshe Gheymeh* will be their very intimidating motto.

*a favorite Iranian dish"


I can't stop laughing. Thank you very much Toomar!

There seems be some confusion caused in the minds of some because of my choice of names. It seems that some people think that because I call myself "American Guy", that I somehow claim to speak for all American's. I assure you, nothing could be further from the truth.

As you can see, this blog is rather Iran-centric. I decided on it after spending several weeks reading the other Iranian blogs - last spring.

I had this little idea pop into my imagination of a group of Iranian blogers gathered together in a coffee shop, discussing the latest entries in the Iranian blogosphere. Since I am the only American bloger I know of (so far), who writes mostly about things pertaining to Iran, I imagined one of them saying, "you know, that - American Guy...Ohhhh, what is his name again?" So I thought I'd save all you nice Iranian blogers out there from the trouble of trying to remember my name, and just call myself: "that - American Guy".

I do not claim to be a mirror of what American's are thinking, nor do I attempt to speak for them. What I am is an American guy who once lived in Tehran and still care very much about what happens to the good people who live there.

The article also mentions that she has been imprisoned by the Mullacracy. The list of people who have is like a "who's who" in Iranian human rights circles. I pray that she will be protected.

["Ebadi's challenge to her country's rulers is to show them that sharia (Islamic law) can be compatible with democracy and equal rights without undermining Islam. The religion must be interpreted for the modern age, she says, and women can't be subjected to roles they had 1,400 years ago. (I would so love to hear how she proposes to do this. PLEASE SEND LINKS!)

She's personally experienced the ups and downs of women's rights in Iran. Under the shah, women gained freedoms that led Ebadi to become the nation's first female judge. But after the Islamic Revolution of 1979, women were barred from such posts because hard-line theocrats saw them as "too emotional." ]

...


["In trying to bargain with this pious patriarchy, Ebadi has used both Islam and women's rights in her arguments. This "conscious Muslim," as the Nobel committee called her, wants a separation between state and religion, but also wants Islam to support democracy and human rights. Iran can't have one small group of men assume power by a claim to divine authority and then "shove its patriarchal interpretations down our throats."

The dignity of each individual is the basis of every religion, and Ebadi deserves this honor for trying to genially persuade those in power that Islam gives that dignity to everyone."]

...

And I thought this paragraph from the Christian Science monitor was particularly poignant.

The list of laureates includes the Buddhist Dalai Lama, Roman Catholic Bishop Carlos Belo in East Timor, Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Mother Teresa, and former US president Jimmy Carter. Those particular awards serve as a reminder that the concept of rights and nonviolent activism originated and flourish within communities of faith.

Photos posted on Tehran 24

www.tehran24.com

I thought I heard her home was in Paris, am I incorect?

As SleepWalker has informed me, Ms. Abadi lives in Tehran. I have removed an earlier statement that she lived in exile in Paris, from my entry entitled "Nobel prize for a pooped Pope?" That's what I get for trying to work and listen to the news at the same time. ;-)

And by the way. I meant no offense to Catholics with that remark. He has looked a little pooped lately, hasn't he?

When I heard the banter on several American TV stations this week over who was more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize, Pope John Paul or Shirin Ebadi - I had to cringe. One of the arguments seemed to be: Give it to the Pope, before it's too late. They were of course, assuming that because of his frail health he won't be around next year.

I love and respect Pope John Paul II. He's been an awesome leader for the Catholic Church. However, giving him the prize would do nothing to further the cause of peace and justice in the world. (IMHO)

Shirin Abadi was unknown to almost everyone who heard the news last week when she was awarded the Nobel Prize for peace. Today, I'd dare say that half of the people in the western world know her name and that she is an Iranian human rights activist.

The fact that she did most of her great humanitarian work since the rise of the Islamic Republic rose to power in 1979, makes it all the more noble. She was under constant threat of persecution for her beliefs from the powers that be in Iran. It has not been an easy road for her to travel.

If the Pope had won, nobody's life would be changed for the better, but by giving it to an Iranian Human rights activist they have drawn attention to the plight of the Iranian people and elevated her profile in the western media. This has the potential to help many millions of people and will make her future work more effective.

Those of us who write letters of support and sign petitions for victims of Iran's human rights abuses sometimes wonder if anyone important really notices. These campaigns to draw attention to the plight of these victims rarely even make a ripple in the news media. Now, when her name is part of it, there is a very good chance that the story will get picked up in western news media.

While there were many people who deserved it, awarding the prize to them might not have a positive impact on as many peoples live's.


I hope Ms. Abadi's newfound prominence will help many, many Iranians and help to bring down Iran's repressive - dictatorial - regime.

(My comments are in itallics, below.)

[Israel's air strike on Iran

Two possibilities came to my mind once I read about the military plan of a possible Israeli air strike against "six" nuclear sites in Iran (three of which is not known to the world according to a leaked report). However, it seems there are some people who have more or less the same ideas as I do.

When a military plan from a professional military force, like that of Isreal, is leaked to the outside world, you can't help but wonder that either:
1- it is all a bluff, and has a clear signal embedded for Iran.
or
2- Isreal is so certain of its military superiority and Iran's inability to prevent it that the publication of this news, to the Israeli planners, will not change the outcome of the air raid.]


WhoMan,

I think both are right.

On the one hand, Israel might be "leaking" this information as a sort of diplomacy by threat tactic. That is, hoping that the threat by itself will be enough to deter the Islamic Republic's nuclear ambitions. That way they avoid the political negatives that would come from a pre-emptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.

I'm sure Israel is quite confident in their ability to take out these sites, whether Iran is expecting it or not.

I must take issue with Faramin's comments, above (included herein):

["This might give an excuse to Iranian government to claim this as double standard and as a result to not cooperate with the International Atomic Agency, and subsequently an opportunity for the Americans to claim: "ahha, see Iran is not coperating" and increasing the level of fear factor in the world and in the US about the threats from Iran and setting the stage to attack Iran." - Faramin]

From what I've read, his seems to be an attitude shared by many Iranians. Those Iranian's seem to think protecting Iran's national pride is more important than protecting the lives of the inocent Iranian's who would become casualties of Israels air raids.

Iran has set the stage for an attack all on it's own. Iran openly supports terrorist groups. They have made it abundantly clear that their goal is "death to Israel" and "death to America".

At the present time, it looks to me like the confrontation may be inevitable. If it indeed comes to pass, I hope the Iranian people will have the soberness of mind to realise that it is not an attack on them, but a defensive measure necesitated by the actions of the IRI itself.

The IRI has made Iran, international parias. Now they have brought Iran to the brink of war with the western world. If Iranians decide that notional pride is more important and thereby decide to unite in support of the regime, it will be a disaster for the freedom movement. However, if the people place the blame for the crises on the failed regime who created the problem in the first place, then they can use it for a rallying cry to end the oppresive Mullacracy.

In this case, the spin one puts on the attack could make all the difference. If played right, the attack could be a blessing in disguise. - American Guy

[Beets
We were walking down the street when K spotted steam coming from a food cart. "Labu," he said excitedly. As we got closer we saw towers of red, steaming beets. Some of the beets were the size of mush balls (any mush ball players out there?) I am not sure how they get to be so big.

The beets are sold by weight. The guy behind the steam cuts them up, gives you a plastic fork, and you eat them on the street.]

From: View from Iran

But their Persian cuisine section doesn't include Fesenjen. The cool foggy evening tonight reminded me of it. One of my friends goes nuts over it, I've still not tasted it.

Everything you wanted to know about Persian Culture - but were afraid to ask.

A very interesting and long - article. I haven't read the whole thing yet, but I will on the morrow. I agree with the conclusion, though. However, US intervention would register pretty high on the Richter scale and is still possible.

[From this expose, what becomes evident is that there will likely be no more revolutionary earthquakes in Iran. The impassioned demonstrations and student frustrations are aftershocks that, with time and perseverance, will eventually lead to a new political consensus and pluralist polity. What shape the future government will hold is uncertain. And Abdo and Lyons discuss only the Islamic democratic option, neglecting the entire debate around a secular democratic alternative. Evidently, though, this current reformist movement is neither cohesive nor widespread enough to effect radical or immediate change. The reformist factions remain at odds over their disparate political visions. This is why Abdo and Lyons deem the opposition movement embryonic.

Ultimately, however, there is no doubt that change will come for the Iranian people. As Abdo and Lyons have shown, even clerical opposition runs in tandem with the rigid nature of the regime. They have revealed that it is not only the average Iranian worker, bazaari, or student who struggles to survive in the midst of these theocratic contradictions, but also a clerical class that feels stifled by the hypocritical quality of the political system. It is this clerical opposition, the challenge from within, that poses the greatest threat. Hence the need for silence, the need to control the press, the need to contain the idealistic student groups, the need to maintain domestic unity as the American shadow ominously looms on the horizon. The conservatives in power can muffle this opposition only for so long. With time and increased momentum, the fault lines will continue to grow and, with them, so will the hope of achieving the dream of freedom.]

Read the rest:

This situation sucks.
I hope this remains peaceful, but I'm worried. Law and order must be maintained. You can't just release people from jail because an angry crowd demands it. Due process must be followed. The protestors need to know this. If they become violent it will be most unfortunate, because the American troops guarding the complex will have no recourse accept to use force.

It does sound like this cleric was planning an uprising. They're just going to have to learn to live together. I don't want to see Iraq balkanized, that is broken up into many small countries divided along ethnic lines.

If they want a certain amount of autonomy for their region, they are better off to wait until the country stabilizes. If they revolt now, they will end up worse off in the long run than if they sat tight.

Thirty seven thousand people have already died in fighting between Iraqi Kurds and Turkish troops. Allowing them to serve would be to destabilizing. Sorry, but we just don't need their help that bad.

I agree, that neighboring countries should not provide such direct support as sending in troops.

Here is an article about the situation.

Like most Iranian observers, I've met the words of Hossein Khomeini with great interest. Unfortunately, I knew nothing about him until I saw his name in the American press a few weeks ago. This article helps to fill in a few blanks. The more I learn about him, the more I want to learn. I'm quite fascinated that his views are sooooooo different than his Grandfather's. (Well, I guess I shouldn't be, really. My views are quite different from my grandfather's.) here are a few excerpts to wet your appetite. Click here to read the entire article.

"[Shiite Islam] considers earthly kingship to be profane. But no one can be completely uninterested in heredity per se, and my first thought, on meeting Hossein Khomeini, was that he has his grandfather's eyebrows. Still, our conversation quickly banished the notion that this 45-year-old cleric is the least bit interested in running for his grandpa's job."

...


"We cannot nowadays have executions in this form." Indeed, he added, it was the policy of executions that had turned the Islamic revolution in Iran sour in the first place. "Now we have had 25 years of a failed Islamic revolution in Iran, and the people do not want an Islamic regime anymore."

It's not strictly necessary to speak to Hossein Khomeini to appreciate the latter point: Every visitor to Iran confirms it, and a large majority of the Iranians themselves have voted for anti-theocratic candidates. The entrenched and reactionary regime can negate these results up to a certain point; the only question is how long can they do so? Young Khomeini is convinced that the coming upheaval will depend principally on those who once supported his grandfather and have now become disillusioned. I asked him what he would like to see happen, and his reply this time was very terse and did not require any Quranic scriptural authority or explication. The best outcome, he thought, would be a very swift and immediate American invasion of Iran. ']

Intriguing thought.

Notice the title of Christopher Hitchens book, at the bottom of the article. "Christopher Hitchens is a columnist for Vanity Fair and author of "The Long Short War: The Postponed Liberation of Iraq." If that's Hitchens thesis for the book, I'd have to agree with him. It isn't easy being a trend setter, but it is oh so satisfying - later on - when others who are more learned than I, adopt the same ideas. It's a curse being so bright. ;-)

Among America's Granola eating types (hippies), there is a straw-bale house movement. They build houses out of straw, then they are usually stucco'd over so they end up looking almost normal, (in an Arizona-ish sort of way). To prove to people that their beautiful homes really are built out of straw they leave what they call "Truth Windows". I thought of them as I looked at this image on Iran Va-Jahan's web site.



Does she look oppressed or what?

[World > Middle East
from the September 25, 2003 edition

SHOW OF FORCE: Iran kicked off 'Sacred Defense Week' with a military parade in Tehran on Monday. Despite hostile rhetoric, there are signs Iran may try to thaw relations with the US.

Hostile in public, Iran seeks quiet discourse with US

A saber-rattling military parade in Tehran this week belies a number of diplomatic openings.

By Scott Peterson | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

TEHRAN, IRAN – As a half-dozen of Iran's most advanced ballistic missiles roll by, at the climax of a military parade this week, the anti-US rhetoric appears unchanged.
"We will crush America under our feet," the painted lettering reads, on the Shahab-3 missile - a rocket with a 1,000-mile range that the Islamic Republic vows can "hit the heart of the enemy" US-ally Israel. ]

The rest of the story may be found - here.

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[ "Hizbollahi have come to my concerts, but they listened, because of the poems I chose to sing about," says Assar between practice sets for the upcoming concert. "Music is not a kind of war, where we [musicians] are fighting [the Islamic Guidance Ministry] and Hizbollahi."

He notes that Iran has "Islamic rules," and that performers "must understand their people. Maybe [Iranians] like heavy metal - I love it - but it is not our culture. To play that, you must know who is listening to you ... and this kind of music has side effects."

The result in Iran is a mixture of musical styles, and degrees of legality, as Iranians explore ways of expression. "People are looking for a new reality," says one amateur musician who first picked up a guitar during high school in the 1960s. "I couldn't find anyone interested in playing with me then, but now it is like a fever."

That fever is spreading. A website called "Tehran Avenue" (www.tehranavenue.com) launched a competition between underground groups last year. The competition turned into a big deal for local bands. Now on the site is a link to "Setting up a performance: A survival guide," that notes potential pitfalls.

....]

Great article on Iranian musicians from - Christian Science monitor.

This guy is growing on me. His take on things is uncanilly similar to mine. (Well, and Ledeen's, they have been hang'n together like buds you know. )


Cleric's grandson applauds the U.S.
United Press International - By Eli J. Lake
Oct 1, 2003



The grandson of the late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini is in Washington this week and giving his blessing to the United States should it decide to invade Iran and throw the clerics out of power.

"The establishment of democracy should be taken very seriously in Iran," Hossein Khomeini said in an interview.

"Even if the situation necessitates for the United States to take military action in Iran, they should not hesitate," Mr. Khomeini said.

He called Americans liberators for invading neighboring Iraq and throwing out the regime of Saddam Hussein.

Hossein Khomeini has his grandfather's eyebrows, dark bushy lines arched like wide triangles over his dark eyes, but similarities to his grandfather, who established Iran's theocracy in 1979 and labeled the United States the Great Satan, end there.

For the interview, he wore loose-fitting gabardine slacks and a gray long-sleeve T-shirt with the outline of two arrows.

Mr. Khomeini said he opposed Iran's sponsorship of terrorism, a point he made last week at the United Nations for a terrorism conference.

"I like Washington," he said. "But I really love New York. The city has such a warmth to it."

Mr. Khomeini, a junior cleric, moved to the Iraqi holy city of Karbala last spring during the U.S. war against Saddam.

While he said he used the occasion of his Friday sermons to criticize the Islamic Republic while he was in Iran, since his arrival in Iraq his words have become sharper.

"The rulers of Iran have to go and they have to go forever," he said. "If the Iranian people rise up, they will kill them all."

This may be unsettling news to some in the Bush administration who had hoped for a bloodless revolution in Iran.

The State Department, for example, held preliminary talks last month to discuss how to funnel nonmilitary assistance and training to democratic groups in Iran.

Mr. Khomeini said he believed that President Bush's encouragement over the last year and a half to the democrats in Iran would ultimately be helpful to their cause.

"If there is honesty in what the president says and he follows up with it, it may not give them the result we want immediately, but in the long run, if the United States is committed to democracy and freedom for Iran, it is going to be effective and not hurt us."

But he also warned against U.S. policy-makers putting too much stock in the opinions of Iranian Americans.

"The United States should not make the mistake of looking at this generation inside Iran from the perspective [of the] Iranian community here," he said.

"With all due respect I have for the Iranian Americans, because of the historical baggage they carry they cannot be representatives of the young generation in Iran."

I'd be all for this. Isfahan is one of my favorite cities in the world.

From SMCCDI: daneshjoo.org

Current News & Articles
Iran's capital should be moved, says quake expert
Reuters - World News
Oct 1, 2003


TEHRAN - Iran's capital is in such a perilous location it should be moved, a leading Iranian earthquake expert told Reuters on Wednesday.


The sprawling concrete jungle of Tehran is perched on lethal geological faults and experts estimate six percent of the population, or some 720,000 people, could die if "the big one" shakes its ramshackle buildings to the ground.

Bahram Akasheh, professor of geophysics at Tehran University, has formally suggested to President Mohammad Khatami that the centre of government be moved deeper into the interior.

"It would be better to have the capital in somewhere near Isfahan: that would be safer. Other countries have changed their capital without any adverse effect," he said.

Iranian monarch Shah Abbas the Great made Isfahan in central Iran his capital in the late 16th century. Government was moved to Tehran in 1788 and around 12 million people now live there....... ]

Read the rest of the article - here. Faramin has an entry about this too. with a picture of a huge tower they are building in Tehran.

If Ayatolah Montazeri were the leader of Iran, I wouldn't be so affraid of visiting there. I do wonder how he ever got to be such good friends with Khomeini. They seem so different. I feel love for him. He stands up for what he believes, no matter what. I have to respect that. I wish I knew more about him, if you do or know where I could go to learn it for myself, I'd love to read your comments.


[ From SMCCDI: daneshjoo.org

Current News & Articles
Top Iran Clerical Dissident Calls for More Freedom
Reuters - World News
Oct 2, 2003



QOM - Iran's leading dissident cleric urged ruling authorities to ease restrictions on a restless population and said President Mohammad Khatami had failed to capitalize on the huge mandate he had won for reform.

"If officials really want to solve the crisis and satisfy the people, they should put aside their strictness. People should be free to express their ideas," Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri said in an interview at his home Wednesday.


Montazeri, 81, one of a handful of Shi'ite scholars to attain the rank of Grand Ayatollah, has first-hand experience of the consequences of standing up for his ideas.


Jailed and tortured under the former Shah for his close ties to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini before the 1979 Islamic revolution, he spent five years under house arrest for criticizing Khomeini's successor, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, before being released earlier this year.


But the short-statured cleric, whom Khomeini once referred to as "the fruit of my life" and designated as his natural successor, remains undaunted.


"This country and the revolution belong to the people and the officials are their servants. If the officials review their behavior, everything will be fine," he said, seated in his study in Qom, the center of religious studies in Iran.


Montazeri said the restrictive climate in Iran, where scores of liberal publications have been closed and dozens of writers, students and political activists jailed in the last four years, was forcing thousands of Iran's best minds to leave the country.


He highlighted the actions of the judiciary, where the Special Court for Clergy and Revolutionary Courts have jailed dozens of Khatami supporters in recent years, often after closed-door trials without a jury.


"We do not have Special Courts and Revolutionary Courts in our constitution, both have been invented. They should close these courts and stop the judiciary's harshness. Then many things could become better," he said.


Montazeri, sidelined by Khomeini in 1988 for criticizing the execution of political prisoners, has recently returned to teaching after a bout of heart problems leading up to and following his release from house arrest in January.


Analysts say hard-line officials released Montazeri because of fears that his death while under arrest could become a lightning rod for protests against the political system.


MESSAGE OF TOLERANCE


Around 300 men, including many senior reformist clerics, packed into a simple classroom Wednesday to listen to Montazeri's message of tolerance and equality.


"My point is that all human beings, no matter whether they are believers or not, or whether they are Muslims or not, should be respected," he told the attentive audience.

... ] Read the rest of the article - here.

Excelent article! We all need to know this stuff. Unfortunately, the oil money we pour into the mid-east enables them to bring their Jihad here. And Robert Spencer is right. Too many are whitewashing Islam in the name of political corectness. They are doing all of humanity a grave diservice. The truth will set you free.


Whitewashing Radical Islam
By Robert Spencer
FrontPageMagazine.com | September 17, 2003


The Economist this week demonstrated anew just how deeply dhimmitude has penetrated into Western thinking about Islam. Dhimmitude is the institutionalized subservience mandated by Islamic law, the Sharia, for non-Muslims, primarily Jews and Christians. Dhimmis must endure inferior status under the Sharia; if they protest, they risk forfeiting the “protection” that they buy with their special high tax rate (jizya) and their humiliation.

The elaborate legal superstructure of dhimmitude in Islamic law is founded on the Qur’an’s Sura 9:29, which calls on Muslims to “fight” against the “People of the Book” (primarily Jews and Christians) “until they pay the Jizya [special tax for non-Muslims] with willing submission, feel themselves subdued.” A vast body of Muslim theology and jurisprudence guaranteed dhimmis relative security as long as the jizya was paid; if payment ceased, jihad would resume.

This is the origin of the system of dhimmitude — a vast, uniquely Islamic institution of religious apartheid, implemented for over a millennium across three continents (Asia, Africa, and Europe) and still influential in Islamic nations’ policies toward non-Muslim populations. The native “infidel” populations of lands conquered by Islamic armies were required to pay the jizya, recognize Islamic ownership of their land and accept laws forbidding them to own weapons, ring church bells, build new places of worship or repair old ones, testify in Muslim courts, or dress like Muslims. If they complained about these inequalities, they risked forfeiting their “protection.”

Through political correctness, multiculturalist myopia, and the politicized pseudo-academic writings of dhimmi scholars such as Edward Said and John Esposito, the silence and subservience of dhimmitude has entered the public debate about Islam in America and Western Europe. It threatens to strangle that debate with whitewashes about the roots of jihad ideology, the reality of dhimmitude, and more.

A notable example appears in the September 13-19 issue of The Economist. In an article entitled “In the name of Islam,” Peter David goes so far as to acknowledge what few other analysts have dared to: that the jihad ideology that gives rise to terrorism “has, or claims to have, connections with some of the fundamental ideas and practices of the religion itself.” However, he never provides readers the smallest glimpse of what these fundamental ideas and practices might be. Instead, he shifts direction and explores the thought of the influential Egyptian Muslim radical, Sayyid Qutb (1906-1966), who taught that no (Muslim or non-Muslim) state, ungoverned by Sharia, had any right to exist.

David states that much radical jihadist theory “is modern, as political as it is religious, with origins in the late 20th century.” But his Economist piece offers no hint of the great pains that Qutb took in order to show the foundations of his teachings in traditional Muslim sources. David quotes Qutb as dividing the world into the House of Islam (dar al-Islam) and the House of War (dar al-harb) but makes no mention of the fact that this is an ancient distinction established by some of Islam’s earliest theologians and jurists, or that it remains significant to Islamic law today. Qutb himself was not so circumspect: he completed an immense thirty-volume commentary on the Qur’an, In the Shade of the Qur’an, in which he attempts to demonstrate again and again that the pure Islam of the sacred book is today’s radical Islam of blood and terror.

Qutb’s tradition is not the only one in Islam, and millions of peaceful Muslims would reject his theological and political ideas. But to imply that religious violence and religious terrorism are newly minted elements of Islam with no plausible traditional foundations is to ignore how jihad ideologues read (and use to recruit) the Qur’an, the Muslim Prophet Muhammad’s example, an elaborate body of Islamic theology and jurisprudence, and fourteen centuries of Islamic history.

David underscores his omission by breezily dismissing jihadist justifications for violent jihad, stating, “Islam has a concept of jihad (holy war), which some Muslims think should be added to the five more familiar pillars of faith: the oath of belief, prayer, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. But the Koran also insists that there should be no compulsion in religion.” Had David read Qutb further, he would have found, the great Egyptian radical also insisted that jihad in no way involved forced conversion. However, that is not the same as saying jihad is not violent. As I detail extensively in Onward Muslim Soldiers: How Jihad Still Threatens America and the West, Qutb drew on traditional concepts of Islamic law to inveigh against the concept of jihad as a forceful means of converting people to Islam. Rather, he insisted, jihad was an offensive struggle to establish the hegemony of the Sharia and subservient dhimmi status for all non-Muslims — who would then be free, of course, to ease the pain of their inferior condition by converting to Islam if they chose.

According to David, “Only a small fraction of [the world’s] 1.5 billion Muslims will have heard of, let alone subscribe to, the ideas of theorists such as Qutb.” These ideas may be more widely diffused than he thinks. A casual look today at the Muslim blogspot www.clearguidance.com, run out of Staten Island, turned up bloggers quoting the writings of Qutb, Osama bin Laden’s mentor Abdullah Azzam, and Osama himself. Maybe there are few people reading such books, but only a few are needed to commit terrorist acts.

David goes on to say that “Islam and Christendom have clashed for centuries. But if there is something in the essence of Islam that predisposes its adherents to violent conflict with the West, it is hard to say what it might be.” The ignorance of this statement is nothing short of breathtaking. According to a traditional source of Islamic law, Muslims must make “war upon Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians . . . until they become Muslim or pay the non-Muslim poll tax.” This obligation is amply delineated in numerous traditional Islamic sources, and it is the foundation for the institutionalized oppression inflicted by dhimmitude laws, under which Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians, Hindus and others have suffered for centuries.

Knowingly or not, The Economist whitewashes radical Islam’s sources in Islamic theology and tradition. This plays into terrorists’ hands as clearly and directly as a whitewashed portrait of America’s pre-Civil War South plays into the hands of white supremacists, or a whitewashed picture of Nazi Germany into the hands of anti-Semites. A new organization, Dhimmi Watch, is forming to oppose all such whitewashes — on behalf of human rights victims of jihad and dhimmitude now and throughout Islamic history. Whitewashes have no place in any serious, honest analysis of modern-day terrorism.

Robert Spencer is the author of Onward Muslim Soldiers: How Jihad Still Threatens America and the West (new from Regnery Publishing) and Islam Unveiled: Disturbing Questions About the World’s Fastest Growing Faith (Encounter Books, 2002). He is an Adjunct Fellow with the Free Congress Foundation.

Below is an excerpt from an entry in Faramin's blog, "Human first, then proud Iranian". He does specify that feeding the child is just for one day, but that isn't very applicable to the real problem the analogy deals with, which is the Israeli (Well fed child) Palestinian conflict. (To his credit he does go on to say he knows the analogy is not that good. ;-) )

After I posted my comments, I re-read what I had written and thought it would be worth sharing. I hope you agree. :-)

["Equaltiy in coverage? NO.
"Three years into the Aqsa Intifada Israelis suffer, Palestinians too"
This is what you see highlighted on the side of an article in Toronto Star called 3,432 graves mock notion of peace (NOTE: over 2/3 of the killed are Palestinian but the Star gives the priority in mentioning Israelis first: "..Israelis suffer, Palestinians too"). This is of course accompanied by a picture showing the pain of an Israeli woman after loosing her loved one perhaps after a suicide bombing. Pictures similar to this are frequently published in the Star; perhaps one of the most balanced papers in north America (imagine how terrible the rast are), but you know, you don't see many pictures of Palestinians suffering, you don't see the pictures showing Palestinians' pain of loosing their loved ones. Even if the content of the story is fair, still the impact of the picture is much more that the story itself, because many people don't even read the whole story and the sole picture gives them plenty of stories.

If a paper such as the Star, with millions of readers, is so much biased in what it publishes, how do you expect me to attribute the same and equal coverage of pain imposed to Palestinian and Israelis?

Again, I will not be so simple to think I have to pay the same attention to both in order to be fair. No, I shouldn't. let me show you what I mean, by an example:

If I have some limited amount of money (my money) in my pocket that I want to spend on buying food for two kids whom I am looking after for one day (and only one day), if one of them is always fed properly and the other one usually suffers from malnutrition and doesn't get much chance for good food, I will definitely spend more money on the second child, while I will still feed the first one. Is it because I dislike the first child? No, but I realize the first child will not suffer if the quality of his food is a bit less (for a day) but the second child does not get much chance like this. Here if I apply equality to both, I am just satisfying myself by feeling: "I am fair". But no, then I am in fact very unfair."]

To which - I replied:

Generosity of heart, without wisdom is folly.

I would also feed the hungry child.

But it would be much more effective to deal with the underlying causes of his (I shall assume the child is a boy) poverty and hunger than to just keep feeding him, out of my own resources. The responsibility goes first to the child's own family, then to the community he lives in, his own society, and finally to the larger world community.

I too would feed the child right away. God has seen fit to bless me with abundance and I am always willing to share it with others. The world is an abundant place. There is always enough for everyone. God designed it that way. Not sharing is too painful for me. I share when I can.

But I don't always share, because that isn't always what's best for them. Like when I see an alcoholic or drug addict pan handling. Money is what they are asking for, but giving it to them will never solve the underlying, true cause of their problems. If I did, I would become their enabler, and we would both end up worse off in the long run.

What's really sad for me is when the child lives in a society that cares less about feeding it's own children than it does about prolonging a senseless war, because hatred and selfishness rule their hearts. That's when it really hurts, because then there is little anyone outside that society can do to end that child's suffering.

Until the critical mass inside that child's society reaches a point where the dominant feelings of it's inhabitants are love and humility, then the suffering will continue.

A permanent sollution is so simple, yet it is also very hard without believing in, and trusting in a loving God.

The conflicts in Northern Ireland and Palestine come to mind. The inhabitants of both places are more willing to sacrifice their own children than to find humility inside themselves. Hatred has become their God, and unfortunately, it's not a very good provider. Hatred is a false God.

Believing in, and trusting in it will lead to famine. -- American Guy

His blog is getting better as of late, but saddly, as he gets more realistic and less radical (and therefore, more convincing) he is also less funny. I didn't even laugh at him once this time. ;-)