THE IRANIAN -- Update
Jahanshah Javid
T H E I R A N I A N
Monday, July 28, 1997
New in THE IRANIAN
FEATURES
* Interview: More than a country of Ayatollahs
* Book: The inside story
* Aqa Ne'mat (Aghassi)
* Diling diling telecommunications
LETTERS
* More than 80 comments from readers
OPINION
* Get over it: A petition
* Yaadaavari koochak
SHORT STORY
* Hitchcock va Aqabaji
MUSIC
* The thundering santur (Allan Kushan)
* Making it (Faranak Shahrouzi)
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FEATURES
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More than a country of Ayatollahs
An interview with Roxane Farmanfarmaian, co-author of "Blood & Oil:
Memoirs of a Persian prince":
Q: What is your reaction to criticism, especialyy among some Iranians,
that you are glorifying your family rather than describing history?
RF: That's an interesting question because I haven't noticed it in the
reactions to the book. One of the things we tried to do is to present a
much larger picture of Iran rather than talk about our family. The
family connection is that they happened to figure in so many events that
had an impact that it was only natural that they would be mentioned. For
instance, talk around the dinner table often turned into policy.
Of course my father did want to include more things about the family --
"my wonderful sister this and my great brother that" -- but I convinced
him to keep it to a minimum. I certainly did not want it to be
nepotistic or narcissitic... FULL TEXT AT:
http://www.iranian.com/Features/July97/Roxane/index.html
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The inside story
An excerpt from "Blood & Oil: Memoirs of a Persian prince":
What's happening now in Iran has all happened before. I've seen it two,
three times -- the violent separation from a superpower, the shudder to
live up to its own sense of sovereignty, the shattering disappointment.
When Mohammad Mossadeq, my cousin, ran the Shah out of Iran in the 1950s
and nationalized oil, his actions were ill-conceived and as regressive
as any of Ayatollah Khomeini's. Iran was as isolated then as it is now.
Opposition was silenced by threat of assassination or, worse, public
accusation of collusion with the British government. Many in London and
Washington thought Mossadeq was a madman. He wasn't. He tried to do good
by Iran. He was loved by the people. He evinced a simple honesty the
Shah never attained. He permanently evicted the British from the oil
fields. But in all else he failed ... FULL TEXT AT:
http://www.iranian.com/Features/July97/Book/index.html
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Aqa Ne'mat (Aghassi)
By Aref Erfani
... Aghassi has always been an interesting figure in my mind, partly
because he represents what many older members of my family, as well as
many self-proclaimed sophisticated yet closed-minded intellectuals
detested and tried to keep a distance from. He is from a working-class
background and at best, is usually classified as a street-level
musician/singer. His lyrics are of the street conversation kind and
while not vulgar, refer to the mundane and the obvious... FULL TEXT AT:
http://www.iranian.com/Features/July97/Aghassi/index.html
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Diling diling telecommunications
By dAyi Hamid
... What disturbs me is that Iranians rarely introduce themselves when
they call. In Iran it's not common to say who you are. We usually say
"alo" and wait for the calling party to talk. Even in Germany or Italy
they pick up the phone and only say "Hallo" or "Pronto". But in the rest
of the civilized world the calling party tells her/his name.
My beloved Iranians though are a little different: "yeki az hamsAyehAye
mA, keh
bAbAsh sarhangeh, yeh dafeh az dare khuneye pesar ammeye bAbAbozorge
baqqAliye sareh kucheye shomA rad shodeh budeh, va chon dokhtar ammeye
pesaramush yeh dafeh akse shomA ro tu internet dideh budeh, goftam
telefon konam yeh ahvAli beporsam" and I'm supposed to recognize her
voice on the phone... FULL TEXT AT:
http://www.iranian.com/Features/July97/Diling/index.html
LETTERS
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More than 80 comments from readers
The Letters section has been updated... go to:
http://www.iranian.com/Letters/July97/index.html
Here's a sample:
Ironic entrance
From: Vida <vi...@wam.umd.edu>
I did mind the sketch of a naked woman on this month's cover
<http://www.iranian.com>, which was ironically placed on top of the
"enter" button for the magazine.
Seeing a woman's derriere be it art or anything else is disruptive and
disrespectful. Maybe in a museum amongst other portraits of the same
variety would be understandable. You wouldn't see that on the cover of
any other Iranian publications of the same caliber.
Maybe as an Iranian-American woman who just does not want womanhood to
be seen
as sex object, I can objectively say, along with my family, that we were
really
disappointed.
If you want to put art on the cover of an Iranian magazine, try the
outstanding art of ancient Persian miniatures or those that can simply
be found in the pattern of a Persian rug.
OPINION
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Get over it: A petition
From: Trita Parsi <m74t...@students.su.se>
Dear Iranians and non Iranians,
We are a group of concerned Iranians that believe that a dialog between
the US and Iran will decrease tension and increase the chances of a
positive development inside Iran. We also believe that the US sanctions
against Iran are counterproductive and only hurt our people, instead of
the clergy.
We have drafted a petition at:
http://www.iranian.com/Opinion/July97/Dialog/index.html
It urges the U.S. to lift the sanctions and commence a dialog. We aim to
send it to ALL members of congress in the next coming weeks.
Please take a look at it, and if you agree, please fill out the
signature form in the bottom. Also, please do distribute it to EVERYONE
you know.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Zende Bad Iran,
* Trita Parsi, Student, Stockholm, Sweden - email:
<m74t...@students.su.se>
* Soleiman Kiasatpour, PhD candidate, Riverside, CA, USA - email:
<skia...@wizard.ucr.edu>
* Mohsen Shabanian, Instructor, Effort Trust, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
- email: <msha...@chass.utoronto.ca>
* Zard Sarty, Architect/Designer, Field Manager/Educator CHAOS, Canada -
email:
<zsa...@oanet.com>
* Mehdi Ardalan, Journalist, Lindfield, N.S.W, Australia
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Yaadaavari koochak
Amid Naeeni is the editor of "Payam-e Emrooz" (Today's Message), a very
respected monthly news magazine in Tehran. In his editorial, written
shortly before the presidential elections, he reminds the future
president of his responsibilities by quoting parts of the constitution;
parts rarely promoted these days. (In Persian):
http://www.iranian.com/Opinion/July97/Oath/index.shtml
SHORT STORY
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Hitchcock va Aqabaji
It sort of strange when your grandmother asks you to take her to the
movies, especially to see Hitchcock's "Psycho". A short story by Behnam
Diyani, in Persian:
http://www.iranian.com/Arts/July97/Aqabaji/index.shtml
MUSIC
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The thundering santur
... suddenly, a series of thunderous sounds rocked the hall. People's
jaws froze instantly and they began to listen. A delicate santur
couldn't make such sounds, surely. But Allan Kushan's can. And the
effect is absolutely magnificent ... FULL TEXT WITH MUSIC SAMPLES AT:
http://www.iranian.com/Music/July97/Kushan/index.html
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Making it
Every time I see Faranak Shahrouzi, an Abadani in her late twenties, she
is brimming with excitement about a current or future project that would
put her on the music map -- prominently. And every time I notice that
she has made good progress... FULL TEXT WITH MUSIC SAMPLES AT:
http://www.iranian.com/Music/July97/Kushan/index.html
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