From: hernlem@chess.ncsu.EDU (Brad Hernlem)
Subject: Re: real discussion...
Reply-To: hernlem@chess.ncsu.EDU (Brad Hernlem)
Organization: North Carolina State University
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 1992 16:26:46 GMT

In article <1992Sep30.152224.17622@sei.cmu.edu>, psc@sei.cmu.edu (Peter
Capell) writes:
> 
> 29-Sep-92 (Farshid Moussavi) some REAL discussions, please
> >August 1988. There were some alarming revelations in this report.
> >Has anyone heard anything new about this?  I was quite surprised that
> >such a shocking report would receive  virtually no attention on TV or the
> >other media.  Probably the most significant fact coming out of this 
> 
> They say there is no censorship here, but that is obviously not really the
> case.  There doesn't have to be a outright conspiracy to assure that certain
> things will never be given adequate air time on major networks.  The story of
> the Vincennes and that violation of Iranian waters will *never* be given
> a great deal of coverage, especially because the message is so unpopular.
> Politicians have to convince all of the mothers and fathers with sons and
> daughters in the military that they are dying for good reasons.  If it
appears
> that the whole exercise is a big shame, you risk the "Vietnam" syndrome all
> over again.  
> 
> The only recent report on the incident happened on Ted Koppel's "Nightline"
> (which I saved on tape).  Of course the show airs at midnight, and it's
> audience consists mostly of people who care about this issues (in
other words,
> a marginal, inconsequential group).
> 
> >2) Remember Betty Mahmoudy, the now famous author of "Not without My..."
> 
> Yeah I remember.  I think the movie was in general a terrible disservice to
> Iran.  It heightened all the usual American prejudices, and was written
> based on a formula, much like the story of Ross Perot's "daring" rescue of
> the EDS employees in "On Wings of Eagles."  Even the title makes me cringe.
> In that story we had the "cute" foreigner, and Iranian named "Rashid" who
> helped the rescuers through a maze of obstacles.  The "cute" foreigner--in
> case you needed a definition--appears in the second one of the
"Indiana Jones"
> trilogy ("Temple of Doom"), when in that case he is an Asian boy.  Hollywood
> and fiction writers love this kind of BS.  
> 
> This is not to say that I am sympathetic to hostage taking.  I just think
> there is no honesty in any of this.  I deplore that lack of recognition of
> this fact by anyone.
> 
> So, with respect to Betty Mahmoudy, I sympathized with her, but I can't help
> but wonder if the movie was simply someone's dig at Iranian culture.  We are
> never shown counterexamples.  All we see of Iran in the popular media are
> women clutching at their black chadors, men shouting "Marg bar Emrika!", and
> patronizing statements by our news announcers.
> 
> I have a beautiful picture book of Iran that I enjoy showing to American
> friends because it stands at variance to these (to my way of thinking) ugly
> images.  It shows the Qashqai, Lors, Baluchis, Kurds and other wonderful and
> proud peoples of Iran.  It shows the diversity of Iranian architecture
and the
> marvelous intelligence exposed there.  It shows the Alborz, and the marvelous
> natural beauty of the Iranian countryside, and it shows Iranian memorials to 
> their poets.
> 
> In the United States, you would be hard put to find a large monument to a
> poet.  Generally poets are derided as "fags."  We are a stupid "culture" by
> comparison I feel, and yet since our own farts smell good, we feel at ease
> publicizing and deriding the bad smells of others.  This is what "Not Without
> My Daughter" meant to me.
> 
> Oddly enough, given what jerks the current government are, even my wife was
> relieved when little Betty comes upon the American flag at the American
> Consultate in Turkey.
> 
> What I really wish is that your (Iranian) government would do, is to start
> playing their "America card" more wisely.  I mean, whether we are
hated or not
> is not relevant.  We need one another, and it would also seem a positive
> development if Americans were made sympathetic to the Iranian people.  Of
> course maybe this is of no concern to Iranians, but I can't help but think it
> would be of benefit to Iran to have good economic relations (at least) with 
> the U.S.  

Here is another good example of media influence (perhaps fed by the
likes of Saied* and our other MKO friends). We are not allowed to see
what positive steps Rafsanjani's government has taken to bring in
foreign investment and to comply with the wishes of the "West". Consider
the elimination of limits on foreign ownership of Iranian businesses,
for example. Not even the Shah allowed this. Consider Rafsanjani's
domestically risky decision to eliminate government subsidies and work
toward a freely converible Rial. We hear very little of this in the U.S.
and when we do it is usually presented in a slanted way. Instead of
recognizing that Rafsanjani is taking a risk to immediately benefit
foreign investors and eventually benefit Iran, we are told that the
ensuing riots are in support of the downfall of Rafsanjani's government
or the MKO. Given this situation there is really nothing that Rafsanjani
can do to convince the U.S. that good economic relations are in order.
If he makes positive moves they are ignored by the U.S. If he makes
negative moves they are pointed out as examples of Iranian isolationism. 

No, Peter, the U.S. media will not allow us to recognize wise playing of
the "American card". Whatever the hand is it will be portrayed in a
negative way.
  
> It has always made me laugh that our media has painted the Afghanis in such a
> favorable light as the "freedom fighters" while at the same time disparaging
> Iran.  They don't realize that in many many respects we are talking about the
> same people, and too they don't realize that those people would also turn
> their guns on us if we were interferring in their internal affairs as we have
> in so many other instances.  They don't even know that for the most part the
> Afghanis speak the same language as Iranians and claim the same historical
> heros, and were a part of Iran in ancient times.
> 
> Amazing isn't it?
> 
> 

Brad Hernlem (hernlem@chess.ncsu.EDU)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.iranian