The Political Fish

This summer the world has watched in horror as the Iranian people took to the streets to protest the fraudulently obtained election victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The government unleashed hell upon its own citizens for doing this, as the Fish had documented for weeks during the start of the summer. Part of the hell unleashed was the Basij, a plainclothes para-military group, who some even suspected of being Hezbollah. These plainclothes men came through town beating the Iranians for their descent.

In America, we have not gotten to that widespread point as of yet. But, we do have the American version of the Basij now among us. Goon squads from the SEIU and other union organizations have now been invited to these townhall meetings to stack the deck in favor of the Democrat Representatives, who have faced shouting (yet peaceful) opposition to the Presidents healthcare takeover. Witness this attack on Kenneth Gladney, who attended the townhall meeting held by Missouri 3rd district rep Russ Carnahan. Watch as the goon squad from the SEIU (complete with identifiable t-shirts) beat Mr. Gladney for his dissenting opinion….Is this Tehran or St. Louis?

And now, the woefully inept response from Rep. Carnahan as he is pushed to answer to the fact that the goon squad that he brought there beat a man…mind you, this is painful to watch, how was this man ever even elected??

And one last video, this is the response by once again peaceful Americans, including Mr. Gladney’s lawyer, outside of the SEIU local office.

St. Louis Tea Party Protest @ SEIU Office – August 8, 2009 from Brian Simpson on Vimeo.

As Mr. Gladney was being beaten, he screamed some very important words. DONT TREAD ON ME! The Gadsden flag has never been more important in American history than it is today, in my opinion. The United States government is waging a smear campaign, complete with inflammatory and defamatory language aimed at its own citizens. Obama is attempting to divide us…

On Thursday, the White House was prepping Representatives for the inevitable dissent that will happen at their upcoming townhalls. (Hello, Maybe Americans really dont want HR 3200). From Politico.com…

“If you get hit, we will punch back twice as hard,” Messina said, according to an official who attended the meeting.

 

The hourlong session was the last opportunity for Democratic leaders and the White House to prepare senators for what will be a crucial month in shaping public opinion on health care. With no final legislation to promote, senators have expressed concern about dealing with questions and criticisms about the almost $1 trillion overhaul. The spate of confrontational town hall meetings have raised the stakes.

 

“They are just helping us understand the fringe that is trying to mess up our meetings,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

Punch back twice as hard eh? It seems the SEIU (like any good union worker) took this in the literal sense. Just ask Mr. Gladney when he is finally able to speak.

Dissent is Democracy. Do not forget that!

As our friends at RedState.com remind us, if you attend these events…take a camera. Document what you see.

A great photo blog on the city of Tehran Iran. Very beautiful place, this should erase some of the Western perceptions of what kind of place Iran really is..at least it did for me having never travelled there. Here is one picture, go visit TehranLive.org to see the rest…good stuff.

In an effort to disperse the massive crowds that gathered today in at Tehran University, police and Basij used tear gas…The Friday prayers were highlighted by a powerful sermon from Ali-Ahkbar Hashemi Rafsanjani who criticised the Supreme Leader and spoke out for the Iranian peoples struggle since the disputed election in June. More on that later, here is the video.

Here is an account from an Iranian blogger:

The more I kept walking, the more chants I would hear: Death to Russia, Death to China, Free Political Prisoners. So I had to get out my radio to hear the sermon.

I was walking down and listening to the sermon when I suddenly saw my aunt. I wanted to go say hello when I saw our neighbor in the row in front of her. And my old classmate!

And amidst all of this, Rasanjani was going on with an awesome sermon! We were riled up. We would only repeat the Allah o Akbar we were invited to chant. No one felt like saying Death to America or any of the other stuff.

After the sermon, we got up to pray. And we suddenly noticed how cozy everyone had become [Many leading clerics believe that men and women should not stand side to side when praying (Sane’i is amongst those who doesn’t). But today, they were praying next to each other which is unprecedented].

After the prayer we got up to leave, but we were being instructed to chant Death to America. We would answer back with Death to Russia. He would want us to say the blood in our veins is a gift to our leader, but we would say the blood in our veins is a gift to our nation.

We were walking happily along until we reached 16th of Azar Street. And there we got to know what tear gas really means. And this is how our dear militia finally got into the game! Later on I heard from a friend who had been elsewhere that this had been going on from 12:30 in other locations [before the prayer]. There was a guy beside us, who kept instructing us to escape using the street routes. But we would insist that we wanted to go farther. We could see armed men standing behind the gates of the University of Tehran. The guy beside us kept saying: “Do you know what will happen if these guys are ordered to come out?” We finally agreed to let him take us out of the crowd. We were happily leaving when we saw a HUMONGOUS crowd run our way. People were scrambling to escape. When I spoke to one person later, when he had calmed down, he just kept saying: “Whatever that was, it wasn’t tear gas. My entire body is burning.”Once on the main street, we could see our dear militias on their motrocyles.I just got on a bus and went home.

Watch this video from this evening in Tehran, you will see at the beginning that the author of the video shows the day’s newspaper to verify the date. Its eery yet a powerful show that the Iranian people are not finished in their quest for freedom. The nightly cries from the rooftop out to god “Allahu Akbhar” are straight from the playbook of the 1979 Revolution. Let us not forget the Iranian people…they are a strong group that will continue this fight until they get the freedom they deserve.

U2 performs the song “Sunday Bloody Sunday” in solidarity with the Iranian people at a concert in Milan Italy. Pretty cool video..

Robert Kaplan explains the Obama strategy with Iran beautifully in his piece in the Atlantic today The entire article is a must read to fully grasp the issue of Iran. He may overstate slightly the “perfection” of the American response, I will not go that far, but definetely has been good and appropriate, even tempered and diplomatic…

President Barack Obama has come under withering criticism from neoconservatives and liberal internationalists for not speaking out more quickly and forcefully in support of the pro-democracy demonstrators in Iran. But now that the initial crisis is past, and Teheran has settled in for a behind-the-scenes struggle among the Shiite clergy, it is apparent that Obama’s instinct has been pitch-perfect.

The last time an American president was criticized for not coming out forcefully enough in support of pro-democracy demonstrators was twenty years ago, when George H. W. Bush took a publicly reticent stance as the Soviet Empire collapsed in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states. In A World Transformed, the 1998 memoir he coauthored with his national security advisor Brent Scowcroft, one of the finest and under-rated of political memoirs written in recent decades, Bush recalled that he felt it important to “step carefully in Poland and Hungary and … avoid aggravating the Soviets, whose military presence still loomed there.” If the U.S. had taken overt action to encourage democracy, he explained, “I understood that the pressure on Gorbachev from hard-liners to intervene would grow…there could be more Tiananmens.”

The story in Iran is far from over. While we have seen the horrors inflicted on the Iranian people for the past month, what we have now is happening behind the scenes. The Iranian people are going to play out the story, the American President has offerred his support in statements given, and all else must play out quietly in the shadows. As Kaplan points out, Bush 41’s strategy with Cold War Russia was vindicated by history, and I believe we will see the Iranian people succeed as well. That is at least the prayer of this blogger.

Today in Iran we might have seen some of the worst violence yet. The regime is reportedly arresting people in unbelievable numbers, parading them in front of camera’s with coerced confessions. The beatings at random have increased. The murders are occurring, and quickly being covered up. It seems the country has descended into hell. The Basij has been given carte blanche to run wild and regain control. The government has slowed or completely blocked internet access. When does the world rally together and strongly support the Iranian people? I am growing weary of the restraint shown by world leaders…but what are we to do other than feel helpless as we see and hear horrific news from Iran almost daily?

This is a difficult video to see. Its graphic, so be warned. Maybe this was what PersianKiwi was referring to in her posts.

Lastly, this is a clip from CNN today from a female Iranian woman calling into to Ivan Watson from CNN, telling of the horror at Baharastan Square. Its chilling and heartbreaking all at the same time.

Continue to pray for the people of Iran. This madness must stop. The brutality is growing out of control daily.

The UK Guardian is reporting that Iranian authorities have forced the family of Neda Soltani from their home in eastern Tehran.

The Iranian authorities have ordered the family of Neda Agha Soltan out of their Tehran home after shocking images of her death were circulated around the world.

Neighbours said that her family no longer lives in the four-floor apartment building on Meshkini Street, in eastern Tehran, having been forced to move since she was killed. The police did not hand the body back to her family, her funeral was cancelled, she was buried without letting her family know and the government banned mourning ceremonies at mosques, the neighbours said.

The regime is also in full blown damage control over the Neda murder, as she has now become the face of the revolution. The world has seen the horrific video of her death, and the movement was galvanized through it. They have gone as far as to blame British journalist Jon Leyne for the conspiracy to kill her. Insanity.

The government is also accusing protesters of killing Soltan, describing her as a martyr of the Basij militia. Javan, a pro-government newspaper, has gone so far as to blame the recently expelled BBC correspondent, Jon Leyne, of hiring “thugs” to shoot her so he could make a documentary film.

Try as they might, the regime will be unsuccessful in minimizing the death of Neda Soltani. It will not happen. The picture is seared into my mind. I certainly will not forget, and will not allow the readers of this blog to forget.

For many in this “twitter Revolution” a major source of information, rumor, conjecture and opinion has come from twitter  user persiankiwi. Whoever persiankiwi is, the tone took a remarkable turn today, possibly indicating there was trouble. Take a look at the tweets, as compiled by the Aric Meyer studios blog in chronological order.

just in from Baharestan Sq – situation today is terrible – they beat the ppls like animals -

I see many ppl with broken arms/legs/heads – blood everywhere – pepper gas like war -

they were waiting for us – they all have guns and riot uniforms – it was like a mouse trap – ppl being shot like animals

saw 7/8 militia beating one woman with baton on ground – she had no defense nothing – #Iranelection sure that she is dead

so many ppl arrested – young & old – they take ppl away -

ppl run into alleys and militia standing there waiting – from 2 sides they attack ppl in middle of alleys

all shops was closed – nowhere to go – they follow ppls with helicopters – smoke and fire is everywhere

phone line was cut and we lost internet – #Iranelection – getting more difficult to log into net -

rumour they are tracking high use of phone lines to find internet users – must move from here now – #Iranelection

reports of street fighting in Vanak Sq, Tajrish sq, Azadi Sq – now – #Iranelection – Sea of Green – Allah Akbar

in Baharestan we saw militia with axe choping ppl like meat – blood everywhere – like butcher – Allah Akbar -

they catch ppl with mobile – so many killed today – so many injured – Allah Akbar – they take one of us

they pull away the dead into trucks – like factory – no human can do this – we beg Allah for save us -

Everybody is under arrest & cant move – Mousavi – Karroubi even rumour Khatami is in house guard

we must go – dont know when we can get internet – they take 1 of us, they will torture and get names – now we must move fast -

thank you ppls 4 supporting Sea of Green – pls remember always our martyrs – Allah Akbar – Allah Akbar – Allah Akbar

Allah – you are the creator of all and all must return to you – Allah Akbar -

Having followed persiankiwi for the past week and a half, I must say the obvious shift in the tone worries me. He or she  has been consistently upbeat and on point. The tone turns toward fear and trepidation. Aric Meyer points out that the final tweet posted now more than 11 hrs ago, sounds much like a benediction. While we probably will never know who this person is, persiankiwi has turned into an international name. He/She has had a large role in spreading the Green Revolution across the globe.

Pray for persiankiwi tonight. You have spread the message of freedom. You are an Iranian hero. We are still with you!

Iranian government thugs Monday, randomly breaking things for what seems like no apparent reasoning. Ugh, just a little glimpse of what our Iranian friends are dealing with. This comes from persiankiwi via twitter.

The Guardian Council of Iran today announced that there were in fact irregularities, and in essence telling the world that they don’t matter. The state-run media even admitted that there were some districts where there was over 100% voter turn out. These are Hugo Chavez-type numbers!! Astounding that Ahmadinejad was able to collect 105% of the votes in some places.

While Tehran was largely silent today, there were still small skirmishes and clashes with police. Demonstrations have been much smaller recently, as it appears the green revolution is trying to regr0up after the weekend violence. The IRG has stated in no uncertain terms that it will punish those who try and march in the city. Government even blocked the families request for a public funeral for Neda Soltani, the girl who we witnessed in horror bleeding to death this past weekend. She has now become the face of the Revolution.

The turning point was in fact this past weekend. One wonders of the strength of the Iranian people, as they stare down the possibility of death at the hands of their own government. To this point they have shown us amazing courage.

Mir Hossein Mousavi has stayed at the forefront of the firestorm, speaking through his spokesmen based in London, and through the social networking of facebook and twitter. On some levels, it appears that they revolution has run past its leader and has taken a life of its own. Mohsen Mahkmalbaf, Mousavi’s spokesperson, had an article in the UK Guardian answering the critics of Mousavi, read it here.

The last paragraph struck me, so I will close with it.

Previously, he was revolutionary, because everyone inside the system was a revolutionary. But now he’s a reformer. Now he knows Gandhi – before he knew only Che Guevara. If we gain power through aggression we would have to keep it through aggression. That is why we’re having a green revolution, defined by peace and democracy

This video from yesterday was shot in an unknown location in Tehran. Watch it all the way till the end, you might find yourself hollering along with the Iranian folks!

Two days ago, I published a heart-wrenching letter from an Iranian student as she prepared herself to march forward into a historic day in the life of her country. She mentioned her willingness to die for her cause, as well as clearly stating her fears in doing so. Yesterday, on the same blog, this letter was found. Many of you, if not all have seen the pictures of the girl known as Neda, who was brutally murdered by the Iranian Basij as she innocently observed the chaos in her city. Read this letter here.

Yesterday I wrote a note, with the subject line “tomorrow is a great day perhaps tomorrow I’ll be killed.” I’m here to let you know I’m alive but my sister was killed…I’m here to tell you my sister died while in her father’s hands
I’m here to tell you my sister had big dreams…
I’m here to tell you my sister who died was a decent person… and like me yearned for a day when her hair would be swept by the wind… and like me read “Forough” [Forough Farrokhzad]… and longed to live free and equal… and she longed to hold her head up and announce, “I’m Iranian”… and she longed to one day fall in love to a man with a shaggy hair… and she longed for a daughter to braid her hair and sing lullaby by her crib…

my sister died from not having life… my sister died as injustice has no end… my sister died since she loved life too much… and my sister died since she lovingly cared for people…

This young woman Neda could become the rally point around which the revolt in Iran is now centered. The video of her death, caught by a man who tried to help her is heart-wrenching to say the least, and very disturbing to see. Please be warned that the video you are about to watch is not pleasant. However, it shows the reality of what has now become life in Tehran.

This video comes from an unknown location from inside of Tehran today. Notice the video pans up to the helicopters circling overhead. Reports have come in via twitter and other outlets that the helicopters were dumping some sort of chemical or acid on the heads of the protesters. Chemical warfare on your own people? Seems very un-Islamic to me.

Iran has descended into the hell we all hoped it would not.  In defiance of the warning issued yesterday by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Iranian people came out in force today to demonstrate in the streets. This has moved beyond complaints of the election, the people now seek freedom. They seek the end of an oppressive regime. The establishment will not accept, and will hold on to their power through brute force.

You can see a live stream of events happening in Tehran here.

Reports streaming in from twitter are reporting riots all across the country. Tabriz, Isfahan, Mashad, Ahwaz all have reports of rioting along with Tehran. Iranian government forces including IRG, the Basij and police forces are using brute force to attempt to crush the protests. The people are not rolling over.