Kamangir (Archer)

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“Sword of Islam against Nazi Americans”

Kamangir | October 24, 2007 | Category Iran, Islamic Republic, US

The Supreme Leader today attended the graduation ceremony of Sattari Military University [Persian]. There, they had prepared a “show” for him, through which soldiers with colored outfits visualized a sword piercing through an American flag which strangely enough had a Swastika on it.

I call this brilliant minds doing their best to offend others.

See more pictures in the photoblog.

Reader's Comments

brando | October 24th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
I don’t really see it as offensive to America, but rather an oath of intent. I see it as a metaphor for the violent destruction of the United States. A Threat. An Oath. Something that must be vigorously defended against.

The IR is being open and honest about what they will do to us, unless we can prevent it.
human being | October 25th, 2007 at 2:11 am
Dear Kamangir you are a master in frightening people and convincing them that Iran is a threat.( the above post is a sincere account of what is happening in the minds’ of the people of the world.) They are convinced now that Iran should be wiped out from the face of the world. That mythical Arash saved the country and kept it alive!
All this game is played to convince people of the future aggressive actions against Iran. The only victims of a war on Iran are innocent people, not the Iranian goverment that is the closest ally of its American counterpart! You should tell the world of this game. Your arrow is aiming yourself, dear Arash. I know you are angry, as all of us, but don’t let you anger blurr your vision.
Thanks for being there and caring.

Kamangir: Please take a look at this post in my Persian blog about honesty: Link.
human being | October 25th, 2007 at 2:13 am
sorry : I should have written, the above comment.(by Brando)
RoxieAmerica | October 25th, 2007 at 7:04 am
I disagree with Human Being. Iran’s Constitution calls for the continued expansion of Islam. Iran has shouted Death to America for three decades. Iran assisted in the formation of Hezbollah and supports groups like Hezbollah and Hamas though which it engages in war outside its borders.

Iran is a threat to the world and Iran bears watching, not bombing - at least not yet. If the world is lucky, the Islamic Republic of Iran will fall. If the world is not lucky, world governments will have face the highly armed exporter of world-wide terrorism one day.

Those saying Iran is not a threat, ignore reality and cling to false-beliefs.
leo | October 25th, 2007 at 7:29 am
I hope one day instead of American flag it will be collective mullah’s ass and sword will be held by Iranian people.

Oh, and it does not have to be as colorful. I will love it anyway.
This ain’t Hell, but you can see it from here » Iran | October 25th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
[...] it must be Bush’s fault if we go to war with Iran. SoÂ I lifted this photo from my friend Kamangir; it’s a picture of a miltary academy graduation ceremony in [...]
ella | October 25th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Human Being

What is wrong with showing what IRI does? It does not frighten, it just caution against believing in “peaceful” intentions of IRI.
Whitewashing (as it seems you want to do) the IRI will not change the fact that IRI is a threat. And being a threat it should be closely observed. Bombing, if any, comes much later, when the threat becomes deadly.

Archer does not call for “wiping IRI out from the face of the world” Calls for “wiping out zionist entity from the face of the world” are coming from Ahmadinejad.
You also have not noticed the banner on the left side of the blog - I advise you to read it. It states “Iranians and Americans say no to war”.
Unfortunately I believe you have been brainwashed in believing that showing the government of Iran in the non-PC way is equal to support of the war with Iran. It is not!!

btw this event is somewhat similar to the ceremonies in former communist countries. Same show-like qualities, same “we-will-conquer-all-obstacles-and-all-enemies” type of bragging, same people some of whom do not believe in what they are doing but do it anyway because it may get them promotion/better living/better………… something.
Jonn Lilyea | October 25th, 2007 at 2:15 pm
I don’t see how publishing word-for-word Iranian news articles and unretouched photos from the Iranian news media makes Kamangir (The Archer) complicit in some US plot to destroy Iran and kill innocent Iranians. It seems to me that the Iranian government is doing that all by itself.

I wonder how loud “Human Being” would howl if an American service academy performed a similar ceremony for President Bush with the roles of the marchers reversed.
Roman Kalik | October 25th, 2007 at 6:09 pm
Human Being, let people see reality and make up their own minds. There are many people out there in the world who would have much preferred to ignore Iran, as even a show of solidarity is far too difficult for people (either the reality hasn’t been “marketed” enough, or people are loath to say anything against those who fight “American/Zionist Imperialism”). Arash shows the realities of the Islamic Republic, no more and no less. People are left to make up their own minds as to how dangerous the Islamic Republic may be.

And as someone whose direct enemies (Lebanese Hezbollah, Hamas) Iran funds, and with Hezbollah I would go as far as to say that the Revolution war-march has gotten here, I find myself a tad… concerned. Ahmadinejad’s statements and actions, when added to the above, leave me moderately worried.

Then we have the “Death to INSERT NAME HERE” thing and whatnot, which isn’t really helping.

And then you have the nuclear program, which makes me *very* worried.

Between AJ, the nuclear scare, and the Islamic Republic’s actions against people who never harmed it, I’m left quite puzzled. You see, I can’t quite comprehend how you may believe that Arash can somehow make the IRI’s public image even worse. I think he’d have to detonate a nuke somewhere to achieve that.
brando | October 26th, 2007 at 12:10 am
I’d like it to be known that I’m not flippant when I think about war with Iran. I have to openly state that I want what’s best for the American people. I’m very biased in that way. War with Iran would be messy, but preferable to being wiped out ourselves. I want neither. It’s a choice between bad and worse. But if things keep going the way they are, we must choose the least worst option. Survival’s non-negotiable.

Look. We all know it would be tough. Mountainous, big, and against a government that has shown that it has no problem using attrition warfare with a population of 65 million. I’m not giddy to support it. I just want our country to exist.
ella | October 26th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
brando

Are you jewish? I am somewhat confused because you are talking about wiping out american people. I believe that is not the case, Iranian nuclear arms do not, in the near future, are going to be a threat to the USA. Iranian nuclear arms will be the threat to Israel and probably to some european countries. I believe that the bigger threat to the USA will be instability in Pakistan, because Pakistan already has nuclear bombs, majority of people there are fundamentalists and they do believe that the west already is fighting the war with Islam.
That said, Iran is a threat because it has partial control over shi’ia terrorist organisations who do have their people in majority of western countries. IRI is also a threat because when/if it acquire nuclear armament it may blackmail some european countries and possibly the US, it may launch nuclear attack on Israel and it may provide nuclear arms to some terrorist organisations. I believe that the last is not very probable, but with Ahmadinejad and the “true believers” like him in power you can never be sure.
I really hope that the sanctions will work because otherwise US may decide to go to war with Iran.
human being | October 27th, 2007 at 6:59 am
Dearest friends,
Do you always read the first two lines of any text and then jump into a conclusion? If you had read my comment to the end, you sure didn’t say I was brain-washed. :D

I have washed my mind; though, to be free from any prejudice.;D

Love you all !
Love a nice day!
human being | October 27th, 2007 at 7:04 am
That’s the reason why I’ve always told Arash to dig down deeper?

That Game!

Are you sure those realities are real? ;)
human being | October 27th, 2007 at 7:08 am
Correction: Have a nice day!
Sorry! I was laughing :D and couldn’t see the letters L and H !
human being | October 27th, 2007 at 7:15 am
White-washers are get killed in our country;
they need those who make everything seem blacker!!!!
That’s part of the game. ;)
Roman Kalik | October 27th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
You seem to imply, Human Being, that the IRI *wants* to be attacked by the US in order to strengthen its hold on the people and keep the “Great Enemy” propanda going.

You know… I’m from the former Soviet Union, though it was my parents who took the brunt of the Soviet madness rather than myself. And let me tell you this…

Life tends to be quite simple, and not all that conspiracy-laden.

The true Great Game died a century ago. Read up on European history.

And last, but not least… In a country where access to information is restricted, the government ends up believing its own propaganda. The people on top… are just people. They’re not as clever as you may believe.
ella | October 27th, 2007 at 11:38 pm
Human Being

You are equating the government of IRI to government of USA.
You think all this is a game taking place in the theater of the real where the governments are the movers and the game pieces/the victims are the people itself. And the machinations/the games of the governments should be exposed to the “people” by “enlightened” persons.
Seems to be very elitist or a very Middle Eastern point of view.
You laugh and ask zen (or should that be koan or perhaps sufi) questions but some of us are straightforward. They may go above our heads, these meaningful (or should that be ……..meaningless) questions.
Get real. It is not equation, it is inequality. It is not complicated at all, it is simple.
But some people like their conspiracy theories, to this day some people think that Khomeini was put in power by the western governments. Some people like it complicated, do they not, Human Being?
human being | October 28th, 2007 at 6:35 am
Right on the target! i’m in love with zen koans. They give our minds some exercise to see complications more simply and also a chance to notice that even the simplest things have got a complex pattern.
i found my integrity when i studied western culture. So i am an advocate of the marriage of cultures. The child would be better than the parents.
This has been my advice to my students: Avoid xenophobia; open your hearts - consciously and attentively - to anything strange that comes toward you. It has something to teach you.

Ella, Roman : you are my new friends. Hugs! But remember i cannot learn anything from a bomb, coz it gives me no time to! ;)
brando | October 28th, 2007 at 9:54 am
Ella, no I’m just an American. As far as threat, I’m listening to the IR’s words and threats.
Roman Kalik | October 28th, 2007 at 10:48 am
Heh, that’s nice of you, Human Being. But keep in mind that the current government of Iran (which holds its own bombs) thinks quite differently from you. The Israeli government used to view Iran as a friend, and now would much prefer that Iran would leave us alone.

We don’t need enemies, we have had too many as it is throughout history.

Bombs are a matter of last resort, in my view, but I am afraid. I am afraid because in Israel, what the people think and what affects the government, whereas Iran works the other way around. I am afraid that it would require a great deal more Iranians to change Iran than it would require Israelis to change Israel, and I am not sure that we can talk and reassure that many Iranians.

And I fear that time may be running out.
human being | October 28th, 2007 at 11:15 am
Dear Roman, it’s never late!
See what has happened here? We are friends now; though, we’ve got different viewpoints. If we show this aspect (dialog not war) to other people in the world and our countries, something good will happen. And that was my point here to dear Arash. Talking of bad things increases them (We should be aware of them , though). Love can disslove the hardest stones. I truly believe in that, dear friend.
Again i should tell you that I’m happy to know you, each new friend makes my world bigger and brighter. Thanks for being there.
ella | October 28th, 2007 at 11:58 am
Human Being, you may advise your students to avoid xenophobia, but why would you think any of us, writing on this blog, is xenophobic? If you did not think so, why mention it at all? And I can assure you , majority of us do listen attentively to strange things coming towards us.

You wrote about the bomb, you are completely right, you can not learn anything from the bomb. So why IRI is trying to develop a bomb? If it did not why Pasdaran has control over the development of nuclear energy…………..Pasdaran is military organization, is it not?
You are saying that we, the west, should change but what do Iranians do to change, after all it is in their own interest to change politics of their government.
What people of Iran can do, if anything, to change politics of IRI? And do the majority of people of Iran want to change policy of their government, apart from changing the economic policy of IRI?
human being | October 29th, 2007 at 1:32 am
Ella, dear;
I understand your fear. i should do my best to lessen it. How? It takes time, but it is a ‘possible’ thing.
Ella, you are not dictating your government what to do, neither are we.
And people are doing their best to change these policies. Unfortunately you donnot know Farsi and many people who are writning and blogging,do know English. Arash can help here to inform you dear American friends to know about these facts.
You should do the same in your country . If policies of a country are not correct, should we bomb innocent people?
So that’s what i’m trying to convey from the beginning of this discussion. We can frighten people by our words so much so that they might decide to do or accept things they even do not believe in. You do not like bombing Iran, but I can frighten you deeply. Then, you will drop that bomb by your own hands.
This is defense mechanism. Politicians know psychology. They know how to move people by their inner unconscious drives and motivations. Read about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to know people much better.
And try to know the REAL Iran. You will discover a hidden part of your beautiful self.
Hugs.
ella | October 29th, 2007 at 11:56 am
Human Being

You are assuming, and assuming incorrectly.
You are assuming that elections in the west have no meaning, because that’s what you believe when you say I am not dictating what to do to my government. They have and I do, at least in part.
You are assuming that Arash is informing only Americans what is going on in Iran, he is not. He is informing english speaking people of whom americans are a small part.
You are assuming that only politicians know psychology, it is a wrong assumption.
You are assuming that I do not know of or learn about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs - again your assumption is incorrect.
You are assuming that I believe Iran consist only of thugs, basiji and pasdaran, that Iran is equal to IRI, that all Iran is “ugly” - that is also incorrect.
You are assuming that fear is in my thought when I think about IRI - it is not.
You are assuming that you can do something about my “fear” - if you are not dictating to your government what it should do, then what can you do about it?
Finally, you are assuming I am american when you write “Arash can help here to inform you, dear American friends”, but I am not.
Roman Kalik | October 29th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
I echo Ella’s comment.
human being | October 29th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
Wow!
Dear ———-friend(the blank can be filled out with any nationality, even Iranian.It doesn’t make any difference. You are a human being, any how ) , why are you so self-conscious? Why do you relate everything to yourself ? You had this attitude even toward Arash.
Assumptions are different from suggestions. All the words i’ve used dennote suggestion.
If i emphasized “American” , it’s simply because the war is going to be imposed on Iran by American government.
And although i do not dictate anything to anybody, i can try my best to do something about this fear. They are not mutually exclusive.
When we are angry our judgment usually flickers. :D
Why are you so angry with me? ;)
No matter what you call me, i do respect you, dear friend.
Have a nice time.

Kamangir: I am enjoying it myself as well. The more we talk the less people will kill each other. :)

I should also thank Arash for his patience and also providing a chance to raise the flag of ‘dialog’.
Keep up the good job.
human being | October 29th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
You got it right!
2 thumbs up for dear Arash!

May your time become double! :D
Wish you the best.
ella | October 29th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
Human Being

If someone addresses a post to me, I answer for myself. I can not answer for other people writing on this blog, how can I?
It is not a self-consciousness, it is not relating everything to oneself, it is an answer to a post specifically addressed to me.
Answering for myself, I am also not angry with you, why should I be? Just because you wrote a couple of words suggesting something? I just corrected your suggestions.
Other people may give you different answers, I can not answer for them.
And I do not call you anything. You choose to call yourself Human Being and so you are, anything else would not be true.

btw Why are you saying that the war is going to be imposed on Iran by US? Wouldn’t the more true statement be that IRI politics are the major cause of (possible) war? Imposition imply that the decisions of IRI government can not change anything, but they can, can’t they?
human being | October 29th, 2007 at 10:23 pm
A coin has two faces, but both belong to one thing.

Ella, dear friend. This time i didn’t feel any anger in your nice words. Your comment was like a glass of cold water in a summer day.
Thank you so much my dear dear friend.
Thanks for being there. Hugs.
samm | October 30th, 2007 at 6:13 pm
This is a very strange conversation.

I’m with Fareed when he says that containment is the solution; Iran’s leaders may talk big and scary, but the government (let alone the citizens) don’t wish to be bombed off the face of the earth; therefore it’s foolish to think that they would in actuality go down any path that would doom their country; IE try to destroy Israel or (gasp) take over the world for Islaam. Even Israel has responder strike submarine nuclear weapons, let alone what America would do.

It’s all political jockeying for support both inside and outside Iran. Bombing the country is the worst thing Americans (Or anybody) could do, we’d just validate everything that ahmadinejad is saying in the eyes of his people, and fuck over chances of the country glancing down the moderate path.

Though,
Human Being, you are a strange Human Being.

Kamangir:

Bombing the country is the worst thing Americans (Or anybody) could do, we’d just validate everything that ahmadinejad is saying in the eyes of his people, and destroys chances of the country glancing down the moderate path.

I do agree.
brando | October 30th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
I think that it would be about the second to worst thing.
human being | October 31st, 2007 at 1:20 pm
‘ Itâ€™s all political jockeying ‘

that game…. yup!
Bombing was one of the options presented by dear friends here. Please read all the comments again. ;)

Dear Samm, Thanks for the compliment!! I AM strange because I have heard the sound of one hand clapping. :)

Thanks for the time you spent reading this conversation. To me this conversation had come to an end. Your comment was a fresh breath.
i vote positive to that emphasis by Kamangir. If the players choose to play the game intelligently, sure they will select this option.