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Iranian reformist party wants IRGC held responsible - Iranian reformist organization, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, issued a statement in support of the seven plaintiffs who have filed a lawsuit against Commander Moshfeq of the Revolutionary Guards Corps. -Zamaneh 9/8/10
NIAC Calls on Obama Administration to Support a UN Human Rights Monitor on Iran - The National Iranian American Council calls on President Obama to support the establishment of a UN human rights monitor on Iran at the upcoming session of the UN General Assembly to report on violations taking place inside the country. 9/8/10
Iranian photographers win top prizes at U.S. exhibit - The 2010 PSA International Exhibition of Photography recently honored a number of Iranian photographers with gold, silver and bronze medals. -Tehran Times 9/8/10
Iran announces self-sufficiency in petrol production - Iran's oil minister, Massoud Mirkazemi, announced that Iran has now become self-sufficient in its petrol production and is no longer dependent on foreign imports in this regard. -Zamaneh 9/8/10
Iran audit body slams subsidy plan, privatisation work - Iran's main audit body has slammed the government's plan to scrap subsidies from later this month and its policy of privatising state firms, Iranian media reported on Tuesday. -AFP 9/8/10
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Fidel Castro Criticizes Iranian President Over Anti-Semitism - Former Cuban revolutionary and President Fidel Castro has been quoted as criticizing Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad for espousing anti-Semitic attitudes and denying the Holocaust. -RFE 9/8/10
IRAQ and the US Continued Saga - In retrospect, one can only surmise as to whether or not it was in the best interest of the American people to wage this endless war against Iraq. Was the one and only aim to remove Hossein or there were some ulterior motives having to do with the multinational conglomerates' and/or some third country's agenda? -David N. Rahni, New York 9/8/10
Iran, world's 8th biggest electricity producer - The Iranian Energy Minister said the Islamic Republic ranks 8th in generating electricity in the world. Majid Namjou told IRNA news agency on Tuesday that Iran currently has 51 power plants with a capacity to produce 57,000 megawatts of electricity per day. -MNA 9/8/10
US Treasury Department Targets Iranian-Owned Bank in Germany - The U.S. Department of the Treasury has targeted the Iranian-owned bank Europäisch-Iranische Handelsbank (EIH) based in Germany and accused it of facilitating Iran's "Proliferation Activities." Iran has repeatedly stated that their nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and denied there is a military aspect to it. 9/8/10
South Korea Imposes Sanctions on Iran - South Korea is the latest country to impose independent sanctions on Iran for its nuclear program. The announcement comes after weeks of internal government discussions and pressure by the United States. -VOA 9/8/10
US and Iran favour Maliki as Iraq PM six months after polls - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has the backing of Washington and US arch-foe Iran to keep his job, six months after he narrowly lost an election to ex-premier Iyad Allawi, politicians said Tuesday. -AFP 9/8/10
From a Bruising Sport, a Friendship of Champions: Iranian motocross racer's visit is chance to ride with her American friend - Noora Moghaddas and Ashley Fiolek have little in common, but it's more than enough for them to laugh together like the good friends they have become in a few short days. Moghaddas is Iranian, on her first visit to the United States. Fiolek is the reason she made the trip. -Jeff Baron, America.gov 9/7/10
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Featured Video
Shadi Ghadirian from Robert Adanto on Vimeo.
Shadi Ghadirian: Pearls on the Ocean Floor
Farsi1: Satellite TV Dramas Take Iran by Storm - A satellite TV station broadcasting from Dubai is now so popular in Iran that it has the authorities seriously worried, even though its content is entertainment, not politics. Farsi1 , which has been on the airwaves for just over one year, is now much part of the social fabric that the shows it airs are popular all across Iran, even in the remotest villages. -Sahar Namazikhah, IWPR 9/7/10
Homay
and the Mastan Ensemble North American Tour 2010
Iranian duo win gold medals in World Wrestling Championships - Iran's Greco-Roman wrestlers Hamid Sourian and Amir Aliakbari claimed the gold medals in the 2010 World Wrestling Championship. -MNA 9/7/10
Photos: Historical Khan School in Shiraz Grappling With Death - The magnificent Khan school structure, which is considered one of the last sites representing Shiraz style of architecture, is on the verge of destruction. Unfortunately the cultural authorities don't seem to appreciate the significance of this historical school where once Mulla Sadra engaged in teaching. -Mohammad Hadi Khosravi, MNA 9/7/10
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Football: Iran defeats South Korea 1-0 in friendly - Iran defeated South Korea by a solitary goal at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Tuesday. Iran had not defeated South Korea in Seoul since 1971 at which the west Asian team beat its rival 2-0. -MNA 9/7/10
Iranian Political Prisoners Denied Phone Calls, Told To Recant - A few hundred inmates at Tehran's Evin prison are reported to have been denied phone calls since 17 of them launched a hunger strike in late July, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports. 9/7/10
Rights groups condemn arrest of Iranian lawyer - Nasrin Sotoudeh who has been active as the defence lawyer of a number of high-profile political detainees in Iran was arrested on the charge of activities against national security and anti-government propaganda. -Zamaneh 9/7/10
IAAB Announces 2nd Biennial Student Summit Coming to Washington, D.C. - Iranian Alliances Across Borders' 2nd biennial Student Summit will be held at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., November 5-7, 2010. 9/7/10
Mesbah Yazdi from Ayatollah Khamenei's Office: Democracy and Human Rights Have No Place in Islamic Theology - Hardline Shiite cleric and the spiritual and religious father of members of the administration said during a speech he delivered at ayatollah Khamenei's office in the city of Qom that opponents to the rule of the Islamic republic supreme leader are "moharebs" [enemies of God] and that "Democracy, freedom, and human rights have no place" in Islamic theology. -Bahram Rafiee, Rooz 9/7/10
Iran says part of IAEA report politically-motivated, has the right to pick nuclear inspectors - Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali Asghar Soltanieh said Amano manner of reporting damages the agency's status. -ISNA 9/7/10
The Greatest Sin: Being a Bahai in Iran - The Islamic Republic is merciless when it comes to members of the Bahai faith. It is the greatest sin to be a Bahai because in the eyes of Islam the idea of divine revelation after the death of the Prophet Mohammad -- the Seal of the Prophets -- is unacceptable. -Fariba Amini 9/7/10
Dutch town of Delft is center of a new Iranian activism - Over 1,000 Iranian students, the majority fresh arrivals from Iran's best universities, are studying applied physics and aerospace engineering at the Delft University of Technology, and meeting during evenings in cafes that line the city's canals. The university hosts one of the largest communities of visiting Iranian scholars in Europe, and many are involved with the Iranian opposition movement. -Washington Post 9/7/10
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San Francisco shop closes after Iran sanctions ban rugs - After nine years, my husband, Dodd, and I will end what we consider to be our life's work. Our thriving San Francisco felt rug business, Peace Industry, is a casualty of recent U.S. sanctions that include a ban on the import of rugs and other goods from Iran. -SFGate 9/7/10
Iran: Stoning Case Not Human Rights Issue - Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday that if releasing murderers is a human rights issue, then those nations should release all of their murderers from jail. -VOA 9/7/10
Iran parliament concerned over rise of retirements in universities - Iranian parliament has announced that the rising retirement of professors in Iranian universities is under examination at the parliament. In the past months, the universities are witnessing radical changes in their faculty members as tens of professors are reportedly going into retirement. -Zamaneh 9/6/10
Pearls on the Ocean Floor: A documentary about Iranian female artists - Pearls on the Ocean Floor is a new documentary by Robert Adanto, examining the lives and works of Iranian female artists living and working in and outside the Islamic Republic. Pearls on the Ocean Floor challenges the media stereotypes and caricatures obscuring the vibrant and robust culture in Iran and its diaspora. 9/6/10
Iranian authorities refuse to inform family of detained journalist - Wife of Mohammad Nourizad, the detained journalists and filmmaker, announced that she is being kept in complete blackout regarding news about her husband. -Zamaneh 9/6/10
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Photos: Qashqaii Nomadic Life - Speaking a Turkic language, Qashqais mainly live in the Iranian provinces of Fars, Khuzestan, and southern Isfahan. The Qashqaii, made up of a number of tribes and sub-tribes, as one of the country's greatest tribes, earn money from farming and animal husbandry. -Is'haq Aqaii, MNA 9/6/10
Karrubi's Son Hails Revolutionary Guards' Denial Of House Siege - The son of Iranian opposition leader Mehdi Karrubi says he is "happy" that Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has formally denied besieging Karrubi's home, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports. 9/6/10
Ignoring Khamenei's Unity Plan - While several senior Islamic Republic officials have emphasized the "necessity of unity in recent days, one of Ahmadinejad's aides yesterday announced that the chief executive did not wish to participate in the Expediency Council sessions, despite ayatollah Khamenei's request for Ahmadinejad do to so. -Nazanin Kamdar, Rooz 9/6/10
Feared Iranian Prosecutor Falls From Grace - The fall of one of Iran's top prosecutors is the latest move in a prison abuse case that has caused shock waves through the system. While the suspension of Deputy Prosecutor General Saeed Mortazavi has gratified those who accuse him of sanctioning arbitrary imprisonment and abuse, it is unlikely to herald a new commitment to human rights. -Omid Memarian, IWPR 9/6/10
Iran should engage in intellectual jihad with the West: Supreme Leader - Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says Iran should have the audacity to engage in intellectual debate with the proponents of Western liberal democracy. -MNA 9/6/10
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Haddadi claims bronze in IAAF Continental Cup - Iran discus thrower Ehsan Haddadi claimed the bronze medal of the IAAF Continental Cup in Split, Croatia on Sunday. -MNA 9/6/10
Iran: Ayatollah Dastgheib returns to Qoba Mosque after attacks - Iron fences set up in response to attacks from pro-government mobs around Qoba Mosque in Shiraz where reformist cleric, Ayatollah Dastgheib, leads the prayers and sermons, were taken down today. 9/5/10
Iran's Human Rights Lawyers Increasingly Facing Their Own Days In Court - "Currently in our country there are many authorities who violate the laws and the rights of the accused. Lawyers are the only ones to defend the accused," Mostafei says, "but their protests against such violations has angered those who cannot tolerate criticism and who are abusing their powers and imposing their personal preferences in judicial cases." -RFE 9/5/10
Iran's Revolutionary Guards Deny Link to Assault on Karroubi's Residence - "Gathering of some headstrong elements outside Karroubi's home which led to shooting from his home was organized by a number of unwise and willful elements and we strongly condemn the incident ... and those who have been behind this incident have no relation with the sacred organs of Basij and Sepah (IRGC)," the statement says 9/5/10
Beneath the Persian Sands: Persian music and dance performance in Berkeley - Zaryab, Persian music ensemble and Ballet Afsaneh present an unforgettable evening of exquisite Persian Music and Dance, unlocking hidden treasures from an ancient past. 9/5/10
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Heavy clashes in Qoba mosque in the city of Shiraz - After Friday's Qods Day rally, a group of organized thugs who were provoked by the remarks made by the representative of the supreme leader in the Revolutionary Guards of Fars province, and with the guidance of former hardliner governor of the city of Shiraz, using governmental resources entered the Qoba mosque 9/4/10
Iran's Supreme Leader Accountable for Violence Against Opposition Leaders - The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran holds Iran's Supreme Leader responsible for the safety of presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi and his family following attacks on Karroubi's home by dozens of armed plainclothes forces. 9/4/10
Arabic, Farsi Fluency Considered 'Critical' to US National Security - Summer vacation is ending and students at American schools and colleges are getting ready to head back to class. In previous years, many of them would have been taking French or Spanish as a second language. Knowledge of Arabic or Farsi is now considered "critical" to U.S. national security and more Americans are learning these languages today than ever before. -VOA 9/4/10
40 Tehran University professors retired in past six months - Deputy Treasurer of Tehran University announced today that about forty faculty members of the university have retired since the beginning of the Iranian year in March. He stressed that the retirement of professors must not be seen as a political issue. -Zamaneh 9/4/10
Cars from the “Axis of Evil”: Iran - When George W. Bush first dubbed several countries the “Axis of Evil” in 2002, few knew what that truly meant for the future of U.S. foreign policy. But no one—not even the President himself—knew then that these evildoing countries would one day have to suffer the ultimate sanction: ridicule of their homebrewed cars by Car and Driver. 9/4/10
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Iranian Pro-Government Demonstrators Turn Out for Jerusalem Day - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad condemned Israel and the US in a rally marking the annual Quds, or Jerusalem Day. Security was tight and coincided with reports that the house of opposition leader Mahdi Karroubi was under siege by pro-government militia members. 9/4/10
Iran: Hardliners Attack House Of Opposition Leader Karrubi - The son of opposition leader Mehdi Karrubi says hardliners tried to forcefully enter his father's house tonight but were stopped by his bodyguards. Hossein Karrubi -- who was at his father's house at the time of the attack -- told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that the attackers fired shots at the house and smashed the windows and surrounding street lamps. -Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE 9/3/10
Hossein Karroubi: Attack was response of Supreme Leader to my mother's letter - In an interview with Deutsche Welle, Hossein Karroubi talked about the recent attacks on his father's residence. The residence of Mehdi Karroubi was under attack by Basiji forces the night before Qhods. According to Hossein Karroubi, bullets were fired at the water pipes and the entire house was filled with water. The telephone lines in the entire building were also disconnected. 9/3/10
Iran eliminated from FIBA World Championship - Iran basketball team was eliminated from the 2010 FIBA World Championship. In the competition which is underway in Turkey, Iran failed to reach the next round after suffering four losses. 9/3/10
Organized attacks on Karroubi condemned by groups and personalities - The Assembly of Teachers and Scholars of Qom Seminary School in a statement strongly condemned the attacks by Basij and plain-clothes militia on Mehdi Karroubi's residence. In this statement the assembly by also referring to the recent attacks on the residences, mosques and offices of Grand Ayatollah Saanei in Qom and Grand Ayatollah Dastgheyb in Shiraz 9/3/10
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Iranian American's Campaign for Irvine City Council Reinforced by Long Record of Civic Participation - Since moving to Orange County 16 years ago, Iranian American Shiva Farivar has played an integral role serving the community and working to open new doors for the next generation of Iranian Americans. -Arsalan Barmand, NIAC 9/3/10
Football: Iran beats China in friendly - Iran football team defeated China in a friendly match in Zhengzhou, China on Friday. In the match held at the Xinxiang Stadium, the Iranians managed to defeat the Chinese team 2-0. -MNA 9/3/10
Iran bars prominent filmmaker Jafar Panahi from attending Vencie festival - In his statement, Panahi criticizes the authorities for all the restrictions they have enforced on his filmmaking efforts in the past five years and writes: "When a filmmaker is not allowed to make films, it means that his mind is kept incarcerated. He might not be imprisoned in a small cell, but he is wandering in a bigger prison." 9/3/10
The Important Role Of Weeping In Iran's Domestic, Foreign Policy - Blogger "Kodan-e Ba Estedad" (Talented Moron) writes about the role of weeping in Iran's domestic and foreign policy. He has put together a number of examples from Iran's recent history. -RFE 9/3/10
U.S., Iranian Players Congratulate Each Other After Basketball Contest - Members of the U.S. and Iranian men's national basketball teams have congratulated each other following a lopsided U.S. victory at the FIBA world championships in Turkey. 9/2/10
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Iranian Opposition Launches Its Own Satellite TV Channel - Ebrahim Nabavi, one of the channel's organizers, said their aim is to break the state-controlled broadcasters' monopoly on the flow of information, fight against censorship in Iran, reflect the views of all Iranian people, and frankly discuss all issues related to Iran. -RFE 9/2/10
Iran: Women's Rights Campaigners Convicted, Lawyers Under Increased Persecution - Authorities in the Islamic Republic of Iran are continuing to arrest and jail civil society activists while persecuting and prosecuting independent lawyers, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reported 9/2/10
Iran Risks Crash With Record Stock Market Boom, Say Economists - A record boom in Tehran's stock market will end in a spectacular crash that could trigger a prolonged depression producing multiple bankruptcies, mass unemployment, and acute economic hardship, analysts say. -Robert Tait, RFE 9/2/10
For the U.S. and Iran, a Friendly Competition: Match at world championship is about basketball, not nationalism - When the U.S. and Iranian national teams play one another in basketball, Hamed Haddadi says, some boastful words will be exchanged -- but that's only because the Iranian center and U.S. forward Rudy Gay are such good friends. -Jeff Baron, America.gov 9/1/10
Ahmadinejad Faces New Conservative Challenge: Relations with Motalefeh party strained by series of disputes - Protests by the Green Movement, the reformist opposition in Iran, may have faded from the streets of Tehran, but President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is now at loggerheads with a new opponent, a long-established party of religious conservatives. -Mehdi Jedinia 9/1/10
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New Sanctions and Outlook of Iran-EU Relations - Relations between Iran and the European Union (EU) have followed a sinusoidal course of "continuation and change" in the past 30 years as a result of the establishment of multilateral institutions in Europe. -Behzad Khoshandam 9/1/10
Iran: The Fourth Anniversary of the One Million Signature Campaign - Four years have passed since the start of our struggle for equality. Four years filled with major changes and upheavals for the people of Iran. -Change for Equality 8/31/10
Iran's Mourning Mothers Warn About Traumatic Consequences of Prison Torture - Several mothers who lost a family member during the post-election events have issued a warning statement about the traumatic effects of physical and psychological torture of political prisoners 8/31/10
Controversial articles of Iran's family protection bill to be reviewed - Iranian parliament has decided to send the controversial articles 22, 23 and 24 of the family protection bill to its Legal and Judicial Commission for further review. ILNA reports that a week into the reintroduction of the family protection bill, decisions regarding the three articles that have drawn the protest of women's rights activists have been postponed. 8/31/10
One fifth of Iran's workforce unemployed - ILNA, Iran's Labour News Agency, reports that while Iran's Statistics Bureau estimated Iran's workforce at 24 million last spring, the new statistics indicates that five million people are currently unemployed in Iran and unemployment, at 18 percent, has reached its highest point in recent years. 8/31/10
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Exhibition: Ahoo Hamedi at AB Gallery in Switzerland - One of Iran's promising young talents is Ahoo Hamedi. She was born in 1981 in Iran. Hamedi studied at the Azad University of Fine Arts, Tehran where she received her BA. Ahoo Hamedi's paintings are matured works of art that bear resemblance to sketches a painter would draw to start a major project. 8/31/10
Book: How Early Muslim Scholars Assimilated Aristotle and Made Iran the intellectual Center of the Islamic World - This work demonstrates how falsafah (which linguistically refers to a group of commentaries by Muslim scholars) associated with their readings of "The Corpus Aristotelicum" in Iran has been always closely linked with religion. -by Farshad Sadri 8/31/10
Iran says to launch first remote sensing satellite into space by March 2011 - Iran is to launch its first remote sensing satellite into space by March 2011, said Iranian Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Reza Taghipour. -ISNA 8/31/10
Armenians Torn Over Emigration from Iran - Tehran resident Anjik has seen her three sons emigrate to the United States in recent years, and now her daughter plans to go as well once she gets married. Anjik, 60, is a member of the Armenian community, which counts itself the world's oldest Christian nation. Although their homeland lay within the Ottoman Empire, there have also been Armenians in Iran for centuries. -Karen Stepanian 8/30/10
Tempered People: Iron Sculptures by Ahmad Nadalian - Every summer blacksmiths come to Polour. They recycle iron and make tools for workers. Most blacksmiths who travel around are Gypsies who usually widespread in Asia and Europe. Back in the days Gypsy blacksmiths followed nomad and they made tolls for them. My ancestors who were Sangsari nomad commissioned some iron tools to Gypsies. -Ahmad Nadalian, RiverArt 8/30/10
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Neda Agha Soltan's Mother Appeals to the International Community to Help Find Her Daughter's Murderer - In an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, Neda Agha Soltan's mother, Hajar Rostami, appealed to international human rights organizations and the international court in The Hague to help find her daughter's murderer. 8/30/10
Call for Dialogue: Iranian students abroad to hold conference in Berlin - Europe-based Persian student activists are coming together for a conference in Germany in October of 2010. The three-day "Call for Dialogue" will be held at Berlin Free University on the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd of October 2010. 8/29/10
Iran arrests hunters in cheetah habitat - A crackdown has been launched on illegal hunters who hunt the endangered species of Asiatic Cheetah in central Iran amid rising concerns over the species' extinction. 8/29/10
Photos: Shiraz's Historical Atiq Mosque On The Verge Of Destruction - The historical Atiq mosque, which is the oldest mosque of Shiraz, is on the verge of destruction. Unless the cultural authorities act soon and implement the badly needed repairs, there will be a grim future in store for this icon. -Mohammad Hadi Khosravi 8/27/10
High Price of Flouting Iran's Marriage Rules - In spite of legal obstacles, divorce rates are on the rise in the sophisticated metropolitan areas. This includes divorces reached by consensus, which accounted for about a third of the 125,000 legal separations in Iran last year, according to data from welfare centres. -Rasa Sowlat, Mianeh 8/27/10
Photos: Iranian Village of Ganjeh, Deprived of Basic Necessities - The village of Ganjeh, located in Iranian province of Ilam, suffers from lack of basic necessities including drinking water, healthcare, roads, and proper housing. 8/26/10
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Hejab at the Seaside in Iran - The shores of the Caspian Sea in northern Iran is the land of my childhood, on which I still look back with nostalgia. These pictures, taken nearly 30 years after my own seaside memories, show how much things have changed, especially for women who now come to the beach in full hejab or Islamic dress where they would once have worn swimming costumes or bikinis. -Javad Montazeri 8/24/10
Statement by the "Green Convergence of Women's Movement" on the anniversary of Iran's Constitutional Revolution - The 3rd session of the Green Activists of Women's Movement held in Tehran, coincided with the 104th anniversary of Iran's Constitutional Revolution. The session comprised of representatives of various ethnicities within the women's movement -Feminist School 8/23/10
Photos: Teaching working children -- Growing flowers in salty land - Naser-Khosrow Children's House, located in downtown Tehran, is sponsored by the Association for Children's Rights to provide comprehensive education to working children. -Raouf Mohseni, MNA 8/16/10
Persian Carpet of Peace and Friendship wraps up in Tabriz - The Persian Carpet of World Peace and Friendship was unveiled Wednesday during a ceremony in the presence of several Iranian, foreign and UNESCO officials in Tabriz. The project began at Tehran's Sadabad Historical Complex in 2008 and took two years to accomplish during which representatives of over 100 countries visited and symbolically tied a knot on the carpet. 8/5/10
Long Live Equality - It is very encouraging and promising to hear how the bravery of Iranian women is now widely appreciated abroad. At least there are still things to be proud of for being Iranian, in addition to our long past role in human civilization. 8/4/10
Iran: The Old Cradle of Civilization - Once again they've put those papers in front of me. Once again I should confess what I did and did not do! Once again I should say: Yes, I sinned. Please, have mercy on me and forgive my youthful follies, while deep down I am furiously screaming: I have done nothing wrong. -Khorshid 7/29/10
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