There are certain rights that people have that are universal in nature, and that are not subject to the whims and caprices of corrupt or ideological leaders.

People are quick to jump to certain beliefs, and I’m sure that some of Iran’s leaders believe in what they’re doing. There are all sorts of ways to rationalize what you happen to believe.

It may well be time to step back from what we happen to believe, in favor of what we can believe in even more, like peace, prosperity, and freedom.

Iran’s leadership is desperately trying to hold on to something whick will not stand, not with an educated and freedom loving people. They have in their minds some notions that do not square with the will and aspiration of the people. Sooner or later, the will of the people will overcome whatever is in the way. We are moving beyond the time when you can hope to keep people down for an extended period of time. In today’s media savvy world, a world of instant communication, everyone knows what everyone knows, and people have even more tools at their disposal to make their will known, and to organize themselves into a movement for change.

I think that much of this applies to Palestinians as well. They have it within their grasp to build a new state, with freedom, and with a vibrant economy. Israel will play its part in making that happen. But Palestinians will have to let go of some of the resentment, hard as that may be, in favor of a more hopeful vision for the future.

Democracy and human rights are not “the words of the west”. They are not the words of anywhere. They mean that we would have a goverment elected (fairly!) by the people that does not steal the peoples wealth, and a goverment that does not rape and torture its people. Dont you see how much stronger Iran would be if our goverment had these principals? The Iranian people would be free to build a great country rather than being attacked and killed by the leaders.

Whay all the hypocrite west is barking daily against Nuclear Iran while no dog barks against the atrocious occupying nuclear Israel???

Since the first days, Islamic Iran is fought against and Iraq was used to fight its Islamic neighbor for a long, exhausting and depleting war for both, and now Islam is fought against in Iran and everywhere in the name of “democracy” and “human rights” while the hypocrite West is enthusiastically supporting their feudal backward agent in Saudi Arabia and which doesn’t respect any of the “rights” and “morals” the west is trying to deceive us with !!!

It is not the “human rights” they are fighting for. They, the hypocrite West, doesnt even care about the muslems in Iran or any other place, nor they care about the simple people who are fighting for freedom everywhere…. they are using the people to keep ruling the region here and suppressing the muslem people in the name of “human rights” and “democracy” the two magic words used to fight Islam but they dont care of what is going on of violating their “human rights” in Iraq, Afganistan and Palestine !!!

The West is who supporting the colonial zionism and facilitating their nuclear power and no dirty dog of them is uttering a word against the nuclear zionists !!! The west are those who supported the racist South Africa to build a nuclear power but disarmed the democratic South Africa…. They are trying to monopolize the nuclear power for themselves and their racist regimes like the artocious zionist entity to keep suppressing the muslems and keep plundering their resources !!!

The west doesnt care about the Iranian people nor any muslem people but they do care about the zionists and want to disarm Iran for the zionists to keep occupying Palestine and threatening all the Arabs and muslems !!

The people who are repeating the words of the west of “democracy” and “Human rights” are not more than collaborators knowingly or unknowingly and only serving the zionists who use these words at the time depriving the natives of Palestine of any human rights !!!

Sami, the bedoun.

You wrote above about the need for a Vision of Hope and for cristalyzing the movements principles. Have you seen the manefesto at the “Democratic Nation of Iran” site here?

http://iran115.org/manifesto

It might be the right kind of statement.

Ehsan

Ehsan (Ghoul_Sabz on Twitter)

So… Mr. Big amd Mr. Nissim… shall I add the zionists?

I cannot speak on Big’s behalf, although I do agree with a lot of what he has to say, but yes, I am a Zionist, in that I believe in the right of the Jews to have a homeland of their own. That is what Zionism means. I do not believe in occupation. I do not believe in racism. But I do believe in a Jewish homeland for several reasons: 2000 years of persecution, the Holocaust, the historical connection of the Jews to this land for some 3000 years, the religious legacy of this land, etc.

By the way, as I mentioned to you before, Sami, the vast majority of Jews are Zionists in that they believe as I do, and as Herzl did, about the right of the Jews to a homeland of their own. You seem to draw a great divide between Jews and Zionists, and I believe that for most Jews, no such divide exists.

Where we differ is that I believe that Zionism is compatible with justice for Palestinians. In all your writings, I never once saw a solution proposed that could possibly lead to peace. I see a lot of anger and venting, but never a solution.

I believe in less talk, and more action when it comes to peace. And as far as I can tell, more Palestinians are coming around to this point of view. People like Prime Minister Fayyad are not sitting around philosophizing about who is right and who is wrong. They are busy creating jobs, and building institutions for a new, free, and economicaly vibrant Palestinian state. In my opionion, that’s what should occupy our time.

The same old sibilant symphony of the “only democratic oasis in the middle east”

I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that Israel is probably the only democracy in the Middle East. As Hamid makes clear, democracy is not something that has been cultivated in the Arab world, although there are strong pressures from the people to move in this direction.

I really wish you just spend 10% of the years I spent in jail and face just 1% of the torture I faced… and for what? only because I want my freedom !!!

I take you at your word that you spent a great many years in jail. I assume you were imprisoned for breaking the law. I don’t blame you for wanting your freedom. I just want you to be more open and creative about how to achieve that noble goal.

Are you living on the moon Nissim and Big?… I just wonder how a racist occupier speaks of democracy !!

I, for one, don’t think I’m living on the moon. I’m living in this world, with you in it, and am searching, therefore, for a way to get along with you. How is that?

As far as being a “racist occupier,” well, how about you and I figure out how to end the occupation, so that we can both live side by side, in peace, and work together to bring justice to all concerned? Any ideas, Sami?

…have you shot a Palestinian Nissam?

I have not shot anyone. My wife complains that I refuse to kill anything that moves, including bugs. I believe in life, not killing. I believe we were all created in God’s image, and therefore, we were put on this earth to live, not to kill, and not to die before our time.

-Hamid

The same old sibilant symphony of the “only democratic oasis in the middle east” !! the same attempts to dehumanize the Arabs as less “democratic” and not as enlightened as the “beloved sons of God” !!!

As I mentioned above, your conspiracy theories are the same hackneyed opinions used to demonize Jews and Israelis for centuries. I never said anything about the Arabs being less democratic. Stop putting words into my mouth for your own benefit. Last, I recall, the son of God is Jesus Christ according to Christianity. Judaism and Islam do not currently believe that anyone is the son of God. Also, don’t Muslims view themselves as chosen in some way? All religions believe themselves to be the most accurate otherwise they would not be separate from others.

I really wish you just spend 10% of the years I spent in jail and face just 1% of the torture I faced… and for what? only because I want my freedom !!!

Since you have a tendency to lie and over-embellish details on your threads, I have no incentive to believe this ever happened without corroborating evidence. So 10% and 1% of 0 then? (By the way: .1 * 0 = 0 and .01 * 0 = 0). If I am wrong and you were in jail, who did you kill or maim?

Are you living on the moon Nissim and Big?… Sure, you enjoy the “enlightened democracy” simply because you live in the only “democratic oasis” in the middle east !!

I am from America. Not everyone who disagrees with you is automatically an Israeli.

The same old sibilant symphony of the “only democratic oasis in the middle east” !! the same attempts to dehumanize the Arabs as less “democratic” and not as enlightened as the “beloved sons of God” !!!

So.. you both are in love with the “enlightened” zionists occupation and get furious when I speak up for my freedom? I hope, from my deep heart< that you live just one year under such a brutal occupation to see how "enlightened" it is !! How it is "democratic" to stay long hours everyday at the checkpoints to go to school or to work!! How in your waiting at the checkpoints you see the "human" settlers have their own highways without any deterrence, on the contrary, at the time the "enlightened" soldiers at the time curse you and snare at you face, they smile to their fellow settlers of the "chosen people" !!!

I really wish you just spend 10% of the years I spent in jail and face just 1% of the torture I faced… and for what? only because I want my freedom !!!

Where on earth the homes of the natives are demolished and the government is hectic to build homes for the racist settlers? Where on earth there are highways for the invading settlers and narrow pathes through hell of checkpoints for the "goyim" ????

Are you living on the moon Nissim and Big?… Sure, you enjoy the "enlightened democracy" simply because you live in the only "democratic oasis" in the middle east !!

I just wonder how a racist occupier speaks of democracy !! It isreallly frustrating to see the yesterday jailor comes to speaks you of democracy today… have you shot a Palestinian Nissam? Have you interrogated a goy Big?… you are not only racists… but also zionist propagandists that after serving in killing the civilian of Gaza, come to breach us of democracy !!!

Sami, the bedouin

The nuclear Islam means the end of the aggressive west occupation for our regions and the end of their plundering our resources… so simple, so clear !!!

It also means the end of freedom, and the complete submission to Sharia Law.