Page 43 - Shahrvand BC No.1244
P. 43
English Section
43 Jeff Witten’s weekly Column Ballot wars: The
Iranian public
BEWARE OF THE ICBC DIAL A D o you have the foggiest notion of strikes back
CLAIM TRAP what actually takes place when you
pick up the phone and call ICBC ‘s
Dial A Claim service to tell them
you’ve been injured in an accident ?
All right, I’ll save you the mystery.
The ICBC operator you’re talking
1392 دادرخ31 جمعه- 1244 شماره/ سال متسیب to asking you a series of questions. The Iranian people took the quill from
When and where did your accident Khamenei's hand and are now attempting to
happen ? What happened ?Where you write their own future.
injured ?
Seems like pretty simple,
straightforward stuff, huh ? Not really.
Understand What You’re Getting What happens if you get don’t describe Hamid Dabashi Now we have a far more urgent task
Into Before you call ICBC DIAL A some of the things that happened at hand: understanding one of the
CLAIM correctly ? What happens if you’re 17 Jun 2013 most dramatic political events in
off on the location and time of your Hassan Rouhani, seen by many as a Iran since the Green Movement of
OK, so you’ve been hurt in a car accident ? What if you don’t clearly reformer, won in the first round of 2009 - understanding it, that is, from
accident. What’s the first thing you describe your injuries ? the recent elections in Iran [EPA] the vantage point of a reasoned,
should do after the d ust settles? W here do I start ? Well, firstly, informed, and balanced perspective,
everything you say is being typed out On the same day that the United and not discredited partisan
Ask around. What do the boys at work as you say it ( ie there’s a permanent States announced it would be propaganda.
say ? How about your cousin Moe ? record). And if what you tell the ICBC sending arms to the opposition in
And Lou down at the bowling alley ? operator doesn’t precisely match up Syria, a massacre took place in To vote or not to vote
I’ll bet you a double sawbuck that they with what you tell your doctor or your Syria, Iraq was roiled by sectarian
all told you to phone ICBC and report physiotherapist or somebody else in violence, and Afghans were Millions of Iranians flocked to the
that you’ve been in an accident. the future you’ve just handed ICBC a struggling to survive the corruption polling stations on June 14, a fateful
bullet to shoot you with. of their government. day that followed months of gut-
Truth be told, I can’t blame any of S cary stuff. You bet it is. So remember wrenching debates between those
them. These poor schmucks, along this, unless you’ve been involved in a In the midst of all this carnage and who wanted to go back to the ballot
with the rest of BC’s unwashed Hit and Run a ccident you’re under no catastrophe, Iranians took time off boxes - no matter how undemocratic
masses, have been brainwashed into obligation to call ICBC Dial A Claim from their daily chores to go out and the vetting process - and those who
believing that the first thing you to report your accident right away. vote for their next president. were adamant that after the 2009
s hould do after getting into an accident You can choose to have your lawyer elections they would never again
is to phone ICBC. Why ?” Well, you do this for you ( last time I looked it This election began as all others - vote in this horrid Islamic Republic
have to report the accident to ICBC was still a free country). I do it for the ruling administration staging
don’t you?” people all the time.
Gong !! That’s where you’ve got
it wrong. Correction required. You
can CHOOSE to report an accident
yourself directly to ICBC.
In touch with Iranian diversity yet another spectacle to show its Of Iran's 50 million-plus eligible
legitimacy - but it got more than it voters, about 36 million participated,
bargained for. of whom more than 18 million voted
Already on Al Jazeera's website for the winner, Hassan Rouhani
Lawyers ICBC ﻭﻛﻼ you have read two accounts of this These numbers are important,
Claims ٦٠٤- ٩٨٢- ٤٠٥١ election, one by a group of entirely mainly due to the arguments that
604 - 982 - 4051 ٦٠٤- ٩٨٠ -٨٥٧١ discredited expatriate opposition those who didn't vote for him were
604 - 980 - 8571 members who call this election a probably going to vote in the polls
sign of a "phony democracy", and regardless of the contenders, as
Vol. 20 / No. 1244 - Friday, June 21, 2013 the other by an ex-CIA agent and opposed to those who did vote for
his ex-US State Department "Iran him, who were probably embroiled
expert" wife who think the Islamic in a heated and purposeful debate
Republic is the grandest thing that on whether or not to even bother
happened since the sliced bread they voting.
share on their frequent flights to
Tehran. What ultimately turned the table
ﺑﺮﺍی ﻣﺸﺎﻭﺭﻩ ﺣﻘﻮﻗﻰ ﻟﻄﻔﺎ ﺑﺎ One simple fact underlies both these towards voting was not any heated
patently opposite accounts: they discussion among the leading
ﺁﻗﺎی ﻛﺎﻣﻴﻞ ﻟﻄﻔﻌﻠﻰ are both, as a matter of academic intellectuals, or even the ordinary
education and scholarly credentials, people - though there were some
. ﺗﻤﺎﺱ ﺑﮕﻴﺮﻳﺪ،ﻭﻛﻴﻞ ﻓﺎﺭﺳﻰ ﺯﺑﺎﻥ given by persons illiterate in Iranian delusional Don Quixotes on
history and political culture. Facebook who thought their "status
updates" from the US or Canada
I have already attended (on more or Europe encouraging voting for
than one or two occasions) to the Rouhani was chiefly responsible for
discredited expat opposition and the heavy turnout.
Kamil Lotfali, lawyer their treacherous complicity in Instead, young and old Iranians,
calling for even more crippling men and women, went to campaign
ﺳﺎﻝ ﺗﺠﺮﺑﻪ ﺣﻘﻮﻗﻰ٣٠ ﻣﺆﺳﺴﻪﺣﻘﻮﻗﻰ "ﻧﻮﺭﺕﺷﻮﺭﻻ " ﺑﺎﺑﻴﺶﺍﺯ- sanctions or even a military strike stumps of their favourite candidates
ﺩﺳﺘﻤﺰﺩیﺩﺭﻳﺎﻓﺖﻧﺨﻮﺍﻫﻴﻢﻛﺮﺩ، ﺩﺭﻳﺎﻓﺖﻧﻨﻤﺎﺋﻴﻢICBC ﺗﺎﺧﺴﺎﺭﺕﺷﻤﺎﺭﺍ ﺍﺯ- against Iran, as I have exposed the and partook in what Hannah Arendt
moral and political bankruptcy of calls "public happiness".
ICBC ﺩﺭﻳﺎﻓﺖ ﻫﺮﮔﻮﻧﻪ ﺧﺴﺎﺭﺕ ﺟﺎﻧﻰ ﻭ ﻣﺎﻟﻰ ﺍﺯ- the PR machinery on a rampage to
discredit the Green Movement in While all candidates had their own
Iran. supporters and diehards, it was
43 NORTH SHORE LAW LLP For now, I refer you to the Hassan Rouhani who, before he
magnificent review of one of knew it, was flooded by cries of
6th Floor, 171 West Esplanade, North Vancouver, B.C. their nauseating atrocities by the "political prisoners must be freed!"
distinguished journalist Roger or "ya Hossein, Mir Hossein", an
klotfali@northshorelaw.com Cohen. ingenious fusion of a Shia invocation
43 Jeff Witten’s weekly Column Ballot wars: The
Iranian public
BEWARE OF THE ICBC DIAL A D o you have the foggiest notion of strikes back
CLAIM TRAP what actually takes place when you
pick up the phone and call ICBC ‘s
Dial A Claim service to tell them
you’ve been injured in an accident ?
All right, I’ll save you the mystery.
The ICBC operator you’re talking
1392 دادرخ31 جمعه- 1244 شماره/ سال متسیب to asking you a series of questions. The Iranian people took the quill from
When and where did your accident Khamenei's hand and are now attempting to
happen ? What happened ?Where you write their own future.
injured ?
Seems like pretty simple,
straightforward stuff, huh ? Not really.
Understand What You’re Getting What happens if you get don’t describe Hamid Dabashi Now we have a far more urgent task
Into Before you call ICBC DIAL A some of the things that happened at hand: understanding one of the
CLAIM correctly ? What happens if you’re 17 Jun 2013 most dramatic political events in
off on the location and time of your Hassan Rouhani, seen by many as a Iran since the Green Movement of
OK, so you’ve been hurt in a car accident ? What if you don’t clearly reformer, won in the first round of 2009 - understanding it, that is, from
accident. What’s the first thing you describe your injuries ? the recent elections in Iran [EPA] the vantage point of a reasoned,
should do after the d ust settles? W here do I start ? Well, firstly, informed, and balanced perspective,
everything you say is being typed out On the same day that the United and not discredited partisan
Ask around. What do the boys at work as you say it ( ie there’s a permanent States announced it would be propaganda.
say ? How about your cousin Moe ? record). And if what you tell the ICBC sending arms to the opposition in
And Lou down at the bowling alley ? operator doesn’t precisely match up Syria, a massacre took place in To vote or not to vote
I’ll bet you a double sawbuck that they with what you tell your doctor or your Syria, Iraq was roiled by sectarian
all told you to phone ICBC and report physiotherapist or somebody else in violence, and Afghans were Millions of Iranians flocked to the
that you’ve been in an accident. the future you’ve just handed ICBC a struggling to survive the corruption polling stations on June 14, a fateful
bullet to shoot you with. of their government. day that followed months of gut-
Truth be told, I can’t blame any of S cary stuff. You bet it is. So remember wrenching debates between those
them. These poor schmucks, along this, unless you’ve been involved in a In the midst of all this carnage and who wanted to go back to the ballot
with the rest of BC’s unwashed Hit and Run a ccident you’re under no catastrophe, Iranians took time off boxes - no matter how undemocratic
masses, have been brainwashed into obligation to call ICBC Dial A Claim from their daily chores to go out and the vetting process - and those who
believing that the first thing you to report your accident right away. vote for their next president. were adamant that after the 2009
s hould do after getting into an accident You can choose to have your lawyer elections they would never again
is to phone ICBC. Why ?” Well, you do this for you ( last time I looked it This election began as all others - vote in this horrid Islamic Republic
have to report the accident to ICBC was still a free country). I do it for the ruling administration staging
don’t you?” people all the time.
Gong !! That’s where you’ve got
it wrong. Correction required. You
can CHOOSE to report an accident
yourself directly to ICBC.
In touch with Iranian diversity yet another spectacle to show its Of Iran's 50 million-plus eligible
legitimacy - but it got more than it voters, about 36 million participated,
bargained for. of whom more than 18 million voted
Already on Al Jazeera's website for the winner, Hassan Rouhani
Lawyers ICBC ﻭﻛﻼ you have read two accounts of this These numbers are important,
Claims ٦٠٤- ٩٨٢- ٤٠٥١ election, one by a group of entirely mainly due to the arguments that
604 - 982 - 4051 ٦٠٤- ٩٨٠ -٨٥٧١ discredited expatriate opposition those who didn't vote for him were
604 - 980 - 8571 members who call this election a probably going to vote in the polls
sign of a "phony democracy", and regardless of the contenders, as
Vol. 20 / No. 1244 - Friday, June 21, 2013 the other by an ex-CIA agent and opposed to those who did vote for
his ex-US State Department "Iran him, who were probably embroiled
expert" wife who think the Islamic in a heated and purposeful debate
Republic is the grandest thing that on whether or not to even bother
happened since the sliced bread they voting.
share on their frequent flights to
Tehran. What ultimately turned the table
ﺑﺮﺍی ﻣﺸﺎﻭﺭﻩ ﺣﻘﻮﻗﻰ ﻟﻄﻔﺎ ﺑﺎ One simple fact underlies both these towards voting was not any heated
patently opposite accounts: they discussion among the leading
ﺁﻗﺎی ﻛﺎﻣﻴﻞ ﻟﻄﻔﻌﻠﻰ are both, as a matter of academic intellectuals, or even the ordinary
education and scholarly credentials, people - though there were some
. ﺗﻤﺎﺱ ﺑﮕﻴﺮﻳﺪ،ﻭﻛﻴﻞ ﻓﺎﺭﺳﻰ ﺯﺑﺎﻥ given by persons illiterate in Iranian delusional Don Quixotes on
history and political culture. Facebook who thought their "status
updates" from the US or Canada
I have already attended (on more or Europe encouraging voting for
than one or two occasions) to the Rouhani was chiefly responsible for
discredited expat opposition and the heavy turnout.
Kamil Lotfali, lawyer their treacherous complicity in Instead, young and old Iranians,
calling for even more crippling men and women, went to campaign
ﺳﺎﻝ ﺗﺠﺮﺑﻪ ﺣﻘﻮﻗﻰ٣٠ ﻣﺆﺳﺴﻪﺣﻘﻮﻗﻰ "ﻧﻮﺭﺕﺷﻮﺭﻻ " ﺑﺎﺑﻴﺶﺍﺯ- sanctions or even a military strike stumps of their favourite candidates
ﺩﺳﺘﻤﺰﺩیﺩﺭﻳﺎﻓﺖﻧﺨﻮﺍﻫﻴﻢﻛﺮﺩ، ﺩﺭﻳﺎﻓﺖﻧﻨﻤﺎﺋﻴﻢICBC ﺗﺎﺧﺴﺎﺭﺕﺷﻤﺎﺭﺍ ﺍﺯ- against Iran, as I have exposed the and partook in what Hannah Arendt
moral and political bankruptcy of calls "public happiness".
ICBC ﺩﺭﻳﺎﻓﺖ ﻫﺮﮔﻮﻧﻪ ﺧﺴﺎﺭﺕ ﺟﺎﻧﻰ ﻭ ﻣﺎﻟﻰ ﺍﺯ- the PR machinery on a rampage to
discredit the Green Movement in While all candidates had their own
Iran. supporters and diehards, it was
43 NORTH SHORE LAW LLP For now, I refer you to the Hassan Rouhani who, before he
magnificent review of one of knew it, was flooded by cries of
6th Floor, 171 West Esplanade, North Vancouver, B.C. their nauseating atrocities by the "political prisoners must be freed!"
distinguished journalist Roger or "ya Hossein, Mir Hossein", an
klotfali@northshorelaw.com Cohen. ingenious fusion of a Shia invocation
