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Watching a Sea of Green, June 23, 2009

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If you’ve kept abreast of what has been going on in Iran, then you’ll have noticed perhaps that things seem somewhat calmer in Iran. That’s all relative of course; compared to Saturday, anything even slightly tamer is bound to appear calm. Beyond that, however, the government has increased its efforts to curtail communication between the protesters and the rest of the world.

To a point, they’ve succeeded. But, information is still seeping out via twitter and other routes of internet communication.

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The Green Resistance

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Unless you’re apathetic about news and/or foreign policy (if you are, why are you reading this blog?) then you’ll have heard by now about the protests in Iran.

I won’t rehash the whole events of the past week,–they can be seen
here –but it is important to note just how monumental the events of the past week have been in Iran.

For the past 30 years, the Islamic Republic of Iran has not been much in the way of democratic towards its people. Every time it has taken one tentative step towards political reforms, as it did during the presidency of Mohammed Khatami from 1997-2005, mild protests have ensued. It would be as if after having a taste of water, you’d suddenly become thirsty for more.

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‘Enough Fear’ Campaign Connects C.U. Students to Peers in Iran

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Dozens of Cornell students had the opportunity to speak directly with Iranian citizens via long-distance phone calls yesterday afternoon. The students of Prof. John Weiss’s seminar, History 2161: Iran and the World, together with the assistance of volunteer translators (an assortment of Cornell students and professors fluent in Farsi), worked to bring the “Enough Fear” campaign’s phone event to Ho Plaza, where Cornellians waited in line for the opportunity to speak with volunteers in Iran over the single landline connected outside of Willard Straight.

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Charm Offensive

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On Friday President Obama released a video message aimed directly at the Iranian government and people on the occasion of Nowruz, the Iranian New Year. In the message, Obama offers Iran a new beginning, and a new opportunity for dialogue. Such a message puts Iran’s hardliners in an awkward position. In the past, they could blame the US and the Bush administration for preventing a rapprochement, while now they look like the obstructionists if they do not show a willingness to engage.

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On the Brink

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Much has been made of Iran’s nuclear program and the perceived threat it poses, but the general public is only slowly beginning to understand that danger posed by already nuclear-armed and occasional US ally, Pakistan. The danger is not posed by the Pakistani government, but instead originates in the prospect of state collapse. The prospect of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal falling into the hands of terrorists is enough to send chills up any policymaker’s spine.

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History Class Builds Connection to Iran

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Rarely does the scope of a class extend beyond its required reading or the duration of a semester. For students in Prof. John Weiss’s, history, class, however, th curicullum serves as a springboard for more far-reaching global aims.
The goal of History 2161: Iran and the World is to foster relations between Cornell students and Iranians through dialogue at a time when relations between the U.S. and Iran are volatile and fears of a nuclear-armed Iran are growing.
Class periods often include speakerphone interviews with leading Middle East policy experts and students are assigned to establish contact with Iranians. Furthermore, many students who have taken the class remain committed to working on the project even after the semester has ended.

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To Bomb or Not to Bomb

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In this post, potential courses of action in relations between the United States and Iran will be discussed. But first, a disclosure: I would rather the U.S. not bomb Iran. Partially because I feel that military aggression hasn’t really gotten us anywhere in dealing with opposition forces (see: Iraq, Afghanistan). But also because—and this is perhaps a more pressing reason—I am Iranian and I have family in Iran. And I’d rather they not be bombed.

On to the post:

In what has turned out to be a particularly volatile election year, there have been a number of issues two opinionated people could argue about and still get basically nowhere on: abortion, gay rights, death penalty and many more.