Iran

I got my passport back! I had to get extra pages added to my U.S. passport. The website says it can take up to six weeks, but I got mine back in under two. Sweet! Today, I went to the Asian Art Museum and met Ala Ebtekar, a Berkeley-born Iranian hip-hop visual artist. We chatted a bit and he told me to Rose Market in Mountain View to get some real-deal koobideh as well as other staples like bastani (Persian…

My second cousin, Karim Sadjadpour, an analyst on Iran, is giving a talk on Iran right here in San Francisco at the World Affairs Council of Northern California. Thursday, July 13 2006 Registration 5:30 PM, Program 6:00 PM, Members – FREE, Nonmembers – $15, Student nonmembers – $5 World Affairs Council Auditorium, 2nd floor, 312 Sutter St., San Francisco

NYT: Iranian’s Letter to Bush Emerges Um, guys, this letter isn’t from just any Iranian — IT’S FROM THE PRESIDENT! And if you’re curious, you can read the letter (in English translation) here (PDF).

NYT: “I love my country, but I hate these mullahs,” said Houshang Samandi, a television director for an Iranian satellite channel whose life in Los Angeles remains so completely Iranian that after 14 years he still asks a fellow exile to translate the word “sanctions.” “Sanctions will only harm the ordinary people,” Mr. Samandi said. “If there is a military attack, they will be killing my people. But if they don’t attack, the mullahs will never leave.” I think this…

“The Iran Plans”, The New Yorker; April 17, 2006: In recent weeks, the President has quietly initiated a series of talks on plans for Iran with a few key senators and members of Congress, including at least one Democrat. A senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, who did not take part in the meetings but has discussed their content with his colleagues, told me that there had been “no formal briefings,” because “they’re reluctant to brief the minority. They’re…

A Very Happy New Year to All! I have the good fortune this year of being able to celebrate Noruz with my family tomorrow morning following a ridiculously early flight to LA (6 am) — and will be back 16 hours later. Norouz is the festival of (the first day of) spring and the beginning of the Iranian Year. It is celebrated by some communities on March 21st, and by others on the day of the astronomical vernal equinox, which…

Apparently the LA Times just figured out that there’s TONS of amazing Persian food all over LA. But nevertheless, for the uninitiated, here it is. LA Times: It’s punched-up barbecue, barbecue for the nose: smoky grilled meat swathed with heady scents of saffron, butter, onions and aromatic rice. No wonder the shah of Iran wanted his chelo kebab. About 150 years ago, Naser od-Din Shah was yearning for the kebabs he’d grown up on in Azerbaijan, so he ordered an…

Hi, I’m President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad. Either I’m trying to get the world really really pissed off at me, or I’m just being an idiotic asshole. You decide. BBC: “If European countries claim that they have killed Jews in World War II… why don’t they provide the Zionist regime with a piece of Europe,” Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told Iranian television. “Germany and Austria can provide the… regime with two or three provinces for this regime to establish itself, and the issue will…

Hi Cyrus, Just wanted to let you know that I enjoy your blog and am going to link it to mine. In particular I thought your Persian Web 2.0 post was very cool. As it happens, I am also a persian involved with Web 2.0! I guess we are really all over that. Anyway, keep up the good work. Have a good one! Cheers, Hooman Radfar Pittsburgh, PA

Marjane Satrapi (of Persepolis fame), has joined the NYT as an online cartoonist/columnist, drawing mini vertical comics for the web. They’re pretty damned sweet. Unfortunately, you have to be part of the TimesSelect thing to see them.