Clowns Representing My National Team!

 

The picture is from a friendly game between Iran and Uruguay, on September 23, 2022.  These are Iranian players celebrating the goal by Mehdi Taremi. 

Just to put it into context: on the same date city of Oshnavieh was the scene of heavy protest and clashes between people and police. Heavy fights were reported in Isfahan at dusk. Universities shifted to virtual teaching mode to avoid further students protests.

On the same date, state-organized rallies in support of the hejab and the government were held (The government claimed that the rallies were spontaneous, while many reformist parties within the system were frequently denied the right to gather and demonstrate). Furthermore, The United States Department of State issued a general license facilitating US corporations' access to the Iranian Internet market. This was followed by ecstatic news of Elon Musk expanding Starliknk services to cover Iran as well.   

But back in the Iranian footballists' delusional bulb, the outlook looked vastly different. They see rosier landscapes. Impending world cup, impending demonstration of their talents, and abundant luxury contracts would be awaiting.  Many Iranian football players are professionals on fat contracts engineered by astute agents who are handling their affairs. Many of them are playing in European leagues. They are not the best examples of education and social/political maturity. 

In fact, the behavior of many of the Iranian national team squad was deemed as tone-deaf toward the social milieu they come from.  Their social media can be a good measure to evaluate their stance. They are a generation of players who express opinions over various issues on social media. From the quality of the kits they used to wear at the national team to the birthday greetings, etc all were expressed through these popular platforms. However, they switched to a mute mode and opted a neutral stance regarding what was happening in the streets of their homeland, probably their hometwons, probably members of their families. Understandably, Iranian fans were infuriated and they feel divorced from this so-called "National Team" or "Team Melli". Words are raped once again in the current politically-stained rhetoric and Iranian uprising intends to reclaim their vocabulary. "Team Melli" is from "Mellat (People), and plays for Mellat. 

These players (and again reiterate there are exceptions within the current squad who were vocal and proactive) are symbols of complacent conformity. They are a bunch of careerists running in circles to satisfy career goals. This career trajectory will not ultimately move them a jot toward becoming mature humans. 

Sometimes a win represents a million losses.

Pedram, November 22, 2022

The Oppressed

 وَنُرِيدُ أَن نَّمُنَّ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ ٱسْتُضْعِفُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةًۭ وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ ٱلْوَٰرِثِينَ

But it was Our Will to favour those who were oppressed in the land, making them models ˹of faith˺ as well as successors

(Al-Qasas-5)

The Crazy Art of Tehlonoius Monk

 

I just saw the documentary "Straight, No Chaser" depicting life and art of Mr. Thelonious Monk.

What impresses me the most?

-"He was a genius jazzman." Yes, I already heard a few things!

-"He had an unorthodox style." Yes, he was the phenom

-"He had a problematic mental health history." Yes, like many artists, TM had his fair share of mental health issues.

All of them aspects are important and well-documented about him.

What I had not appreciated, what I could not grasp via listening to him, was how transcendence is embodied in one's art. Him dancing in such maniac fashion in between pieces on stage, is something out of this world. 

I witnessed greatneness, transcendence, and oneness! Body shuttles a spirit in perpetual burn.

Pedram

October 29, 2022

Washington D.C. March, October 22, 2022

 

How Did Mahsa Amini Become The Key?

From time to time, life takes some unpredictable turns that catch us all off guard.

Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old girl from the Kurdish city of Saqez in Iran traveled to the capital to have a few days of fun and visit her relatives. She was apprehended by Morality in Tehran and died under suspicious conditions while in custody.

The way the news spread and the heartbreaking nature of this death, gravely saddened millions of people in Iran. Nationwide protests flared and a full-blown crackdown ensued.

These are not unfamiliar scenes for many middle-aged Iranian people. Over the past 25 years, there have been a number of protests over various social, political, and economical crises. However, this time looks different to many observers. Here are a few points that in my opinion make this round unique by the standards of Iran's protests:

1- Generation Z: This is a fundamental factor, the demographics of this round of protests make it completely different. The majority of individuals on the streets are from Generation Z. This generation is well recognized for its particular characteristic and their different upbringing conditions. The main player is ubiquitous Internet access. The new technologies are the bedrock of their  There is a demanding aspect of societal management of movement. 

2- Woman, Life, Freedom

A central theme of this movement is women demanding their fundamental rights. They feel the regime has robbed them of their innate rights throughout the past four decades. The motive here is captured in the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom". This is a very modern, politically-neutral, and timid type of manifest encapsulating the core values of modern civil society. Coming out of decades of policies crushing middle-class society, facing such a slogan becoming the canonical point of protests is telling.  

3- A Leaderless Movement

This is massive without prominent leadership. The conventional conservative, reformist, and opposition fronts are completely out of the leadership picture and are actually catching up with the slogans and the mindset of protests.

4- The Role of Social Media

As global connectivity soars, the news of the Iranian protest broke despite strict censorship by the regime. The shocking footages, voices, pictures spread to the people, and news agencies in the free world. Social tools such as hashtags were decisive in attracting attention and most online activities were spearheaded toward promoting these hashtags with the canonical one of #MahsaAmini and later #NikaShakarami 

5- Diaspora and Expats joining Iranians Inside Homeland:

Usually, Iranian expats are demonstrating poor collective spirit, communicating and finding the common ground. This time is different. Probably scope and depth of human tragedy, affected people across the political and ideological spectrum alike, Large unprecedented marches in more than 150 cities across the globe with a consistent slogan (Woman. Life. Freedom) is a testament to this evolution.  

While there are some distinct characteristics in this "Woman.Life.Freedom" movement in 2022, there are similarities with the previous civil movements in 2009 and the students' unrest as in both we have the central role of universities and the security measures against these highly influential institutions, shows how much the authorities rate and deter the elites. While this is in continuation of 2009unrests, the government did its best to rattle the foundation of grass root institutions/organizations such as labor unions, or student groups. These were originally designated as valid roots for citizens to engage with policymakers and explain their concerns. The logical outcome of this is that society resorts to violence and a flurry of radical slogans. As a person who was closely witnessing 2009 unrests, I can notice the stark turn in the contents of slogans as they've become extremely radical with profane language targeting the supreme leader. Interesting is that the protestors do not address anyone below the supreme leader of Iran in their slogans and this may suggest the common consensus that all the rest of the political figures in the system are insignificant in deciding the main policies. 

حالیا مصلحت وقت در آن می بینم

 که کشم رخت به میخانه و خوش بشینم

جام می گیرم و از اهل ریا دور شوم

یعنی از اهل جهان پاکدلی بگزینم

جز صراحی و کتابم نبود یار و ندیم

تا حریفان دغا را به جهان کم بینم

سر به آزادگی از خلق برآرم چون سرو

گر دهد دست که دامن  زجهان در چینم

حافظ

Tranquil

 

Tremulous!

Just stay calm! Transduce the negativity into loving, positive, and caring waves of life.

Pedram, 9/11/2022

Picture: East Liberty Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, PA

Populism: Gendered and Dangerous

This was a fantastic article by Julie Mostov.

The article points out that populism follows a gendered undertow and always jeopardizes democracy. The undercurrent of populism movements is the strengthen the "us" vs. "them" narrative. Populism is all for the continued rule of majority and the would-be infiltrators of the status quo are not desirable players. This POV also affects immigration policies and curbs democratic institutions with the intention of serving the national interest. This will most likely progress in parallel with the disenfranchisement of entities deemed as disloyal and the silencing of the suspect voices within the demos. 

Link to the Article