Kamangir (Archer)

IR MP: Punish UK for What US Has Done

Kamangir | March 26, 2007 | Category Iran

Baztab quotes a member of the Parliament saying,

This is not the first time that when the interests of the UK are endangered, lobbies [inside the administration] push for actions towards their [UK's] satisfaction. This time, the Foreign Ministry does not have the right to back off. They must be determined to defend the logical and lawful stance of Tehran in prosecuting the invaders.

After two months from the detention of the Iranian diplomats in Arbil, which was carried out completely unlawfully, no effective action has been taken by the ministry. Thus, insistence on the fundamental stance of the Islamic Republic is the least the Foreign Ministry could do.

The European countries must know that for the Islamic Republic the occupiers of Iraq are alike and if Iranian nationals and diplomats do not have security in Iraq, there is no reason why we should treat those who invade the Iranian territory humbly.

Amid the Battle, or George W. Ahmadinejad is Speaking

Kamangir | March 26, 2007 | Category Iran

Today, I was looking everywhere for more information regarding the ongoing Iran-UK face-off. Checking different websites I found a link from a fellow Iranian mentioned here and there. The content of that post is simply pictures of a military compound east of Tehran, where some reports say the captured British navy personnel are being held. Winston, the author of that blog, proudly calls himself a “Pro-America, Pro-Israel Iranian neo-conservative, seeking regime change in Iran”. So, I guess, to him it is nothing but a patriotic obligation to help “others” overthrow the regime. The big question is, what am I doing? Am I another Winston?

I have all reasons to criticize the Islamic Republic and the mainstream Islam, and I do it whenever I have the chance to. However, I am not a fan of “Operation Iraqi Freedom” and other big names like that. If this blog has a constitution that is no lies from any side. A lie is a lie, whether it is an Islamic Republic phony information or a lie published in a Western newspaper.

As I can communicate in Persian and as I am more familiar with the Iranian politics/culture, the focal point of this blog is Iran and what is going on in that country. Accidentally, the Islamic Republic is one of those governments who still afford to have state-run and state-controlled media and thus can enjoy telling big lies. Thus, clearly, there is always something deceitful going on in Iran. That’s where I turn my computer on and start translating a piece of news.

I don’t blame Winston, despite our not so friendly relationship in the past. But I think there is a thin line between telling the truth and becoming a war advocate. I do all my best to be the first and not the second.

I think it is important to realize, and appreciate, the situation of blogging when both sides are pursuing equivalently unacceptable causes. The Islamic Republic, to my understanding, is a religious warmonger regime which does deserve criticism. However, it is important to remember that the US is not following a decent cause either. I emphasize that the US, and the Americans for that matter, do have the right to expand the US empire, as Iran did a few thousand years ago. While that’s the inevitable fate of an expansive entity, please do not ask me to hail Imperialism.

Blogging has been a great opportunity to me to understand what the politicians are engaged with. There are readers in this blog from many different, and even opposite, perspectives and I think that’s what makes this experience fascinating. When I try to follow my own moral code and yet keep different people’s friendship, I tell to myself, this is what politics is. Sometimes, this experience gets amazingly delightful. To the people who think CNN is biased, because of a Zionist conspiracy, I suggest they look at two of my blog-friends and how they have reacted to the posts in this blog. Jim (from Gateway Pundit) and Antony Loewenstein (from a blog with the same name) are both good friends of mine. While Jim is more into the idea of thinking about the US as the great freedom fighter, Antony is an intelligible Jewish person who is a serious critic of Israel and follows, to my understanding, a pacifist agenda. I guess it would be amazing to have Antony and Jim talk together, and I am not sure if that could last for more than five minutes.

It so appears that both Jim and Antony follow Kamangir selectively, and I do not blame them for that. I guess this is a good example which when manifested in a huge organization like CNN would produce what we see on TV and makes some of us irritated, if not frustrated. Jim has been so kind to me to link to Kamangir in his high-traffic blog. But, apparently, he does not like it when I speculate that AP may have misquoted Ahmadinejad. On the other hand, Antony and I do not seem to find common ground, despite a good friendship, but he does find that story important. Strangely enough, he does not find the sequel to that post interesting, where I come to the conclusion that in fact I had been wrong and AP had done a perfect job. Amazingly, Pajamas Media, so blamed by some Iranian bloggers to be a neo-con tribune, does pick both stories (1) (2).

With the experience of blogging, every one of us becomes a George W. Bush or Tony Blair or even an Ahmadinejad and that’s the aspect of blogging I admire the most.