I whished he could have known that | 2 Years ago...

I tried to make a scene by cussing the world when my cell phone dropped to pieces on the street right after I stepped out of the taxi, pretending to not even notice a dozen pair of puzzled eyes staring at me - an unusual looking guy who definitely didn’t belong the place, specially not with a big camera, souped-up backpack and Christ not a CIA badge!

- “Excuse me, where is College St., any ideas?”

I used my signature trick, to ask for their help before they decide whether or not to pick on me and possibly hurt me.

- “No…”

The fifty something years old shook his head with a hesitation of the embarrassment of not belonging to the big city; yet not trying to hide the village accent. Of course we were right inside the College street after all. Keeping up with the I-am-lost face and asked more random five of them, I got the same results, but different accents.

These days – late June 2009 – it’s a bit too hard not to notice loads of different types of anti-riot forces in every inch of Tehran. From big official police anti-riot squad who are easily distinguishable with their Chinese made not-so-impressive RoboCop wannabe black suits, to those militia forces that some of them seemed to turn up too late in woodland camouflage uniform sale and made it to the frontline with their plain cloth. As a matter of fact, these plain-cloth ones are much scarier. As long as they could be ‘anyone’, they’re capable of ‘anything’.

If you haven’t already noticed, I’m talking about the stuff happened [before] and after Iran’s Presidential Election 2009, when Ahmadinejad knocked out his major opponent – Mousavi – in the first rounds in a little bit too suspicious fight. Thanks to the 2009’s technology, there are billions of online materials about that event and of course lots of different interpretations from all sides. Although I’m mostly known as a tech kind of guy, I’m not gonna give a lecture here about influences of new technology in today’s social-political events. No. I’m gonna step back to where we all have been lost: Human communication. My entire 200 Facebook friends belong to the same party. Every time I went to watch the debates, I saw ‘the entire’ crowd applauding one candidate and cussing the other, and all of them always strongly believed that their favorite candidate completely washed off the other one and won the match. Not to mention that I tried to switch between different crowds every time. Also every time, I tried to shake off a fear of the days I had seen they’d come - days that people are basically separated into two [major] groups (I’m not giving a percentage; so please!) and each group completely believes that they’re right, and not only right but sometimes ‘too right’! Enough to give them the legitimacy of killing the other ones belonging to the other side; sometimes upon duty, sometimes upon anger, and sometimes pleasure.

each group completely believes that they’re right, and not only right but sometimes ‘too right’! Enough to give them the legitimacy of killing the other ones

But unfortunately those days came. It had occurred to me, that none of the Presidential publicity moved even a single person from a group to another, instead it helped them to stay right where they are, but with stronger beliefs each time. I could see people are divided farther and farther away from each other. Mostly because each candidate was playing his own game, giving no damn how to play his opponents game. They helped to grow hate between the groups, it got worse when each group doesn’t believe the existence of any other group. That’s why when the name of Mr. Ahmadinejad turned out of the box, somehow, the other group, Mousavi greens, couldn’t believe what they were hearing. I exactly know how it feels, because I was one of them. Just like 4 years ago, we didn’t see that coming ‘cause we never have known that Ahmadinejad might have had that many supporters, not even a quarter of that. Of course that’s not my point, and I don’t blame us for it. I’m okay with Election fraud, even if it means that I have to tolerate the president – that I haven’t chosen – of the country that I accidentally born in. I’m okay with apologizing over and over for every time my president flips off the rest of the world. I’m even okay with saying goodbye to the country that revoked my exit permission and deported my girlfriend only because one belongs to the Islamic Republic and the other one to [supposedly] the Great Satan.

What bothers me is growing a massive ‘hate’ between my people. It doesn’t just bother me, it hurts me and it breaks my heart; when I saw that [probably] farmer from a far village, as old as my father, who came to a totally strange city (land) to beat up a boy or girl as old as his own child.

When I asked the direction from that man, maybe my sports shade made him believe that I didn’t even think he deserved my eye contact, but it actually helped me to hide my tears. He could have been my father and I could have been his son. I wished he could have known that.

So many times I tried to write or say anything, but I was speechless. Today, I realized that this might be the only thing that I’m certain about.

SEMPER FI,
Reza ‘TheStyx’ Mohammady

P.S. Lots of subjects are intentionally excluded from this article, because I believe that they are discussed enough everywhere.

P.S. Everything you just read only reflects my own experiences. I respect the opinion of the others who concluded things differently perhaps upon different experiences.

P.S. I salute the ones who died in the whole thing. But at the same time, I wish their blood grow flowers of humanity, not the thirst of blind revenge.

P.S. The above picture is in Azadi [freedom] Square in Tehran, I took at the same time and about 200 feet away from the first one who shot dead in the peaceful demonstration. But it’s not a picture of a grave, it’s a hole dug to plant flowers.

One Possible Happy Ending | 3 Years ago...

People who kinda know me, probably found out already about my rather weird political viewpoint, specifically about the recent US election campaign. Although the results of the election completely disappointed me on my sense of prediction, (despite costing me losing several bets!) I'm not gonna talk about more serious stuff while there's absolutely no point to it. So, as my note and official comment on the US election as a [unqualified] Republican, I want to share a small part of the email I recently wrote to my American friend from South Carolina:


"…About the Obama thing, I need to explain a little bit. I think America really needed a healthy election, with no hassle and side effects. Fair and square. I'm sure if McCain was elected, even if for real, nobody would believe that he actually won the election, because at the moment, no one trusts Republicans.

sometimes, it's not so much about the abilities of a leader, but what people see in him/her

When I listened to McCain's post election speech in Phoenix AZ, and people booing him because of saying: "Obama's a good man, and I'll be happy to work with him for her [America]" , with tears in my eyes, I said to myself that it was just the best way for this story to end. It doesn't matter if I think Republicans were better or worse, while no one trusts them or likes them, they won't do any good neither for their country nor the world. I'm very happy that Republicans collected the last pieces of their dignity and handed over the power to the Democrats with humility. I personally think (as I've always been thinking) that Obama is a very good and honest man. But more than that, much much more than that, he gives people hope. People trust and like him. Because sometimes, it's not so much about the abilities of a leader, but what people see in him/her…"


With the warmest hugs to congratulate all of the people who voted for hope, trust and will.

SEMPER FI
Reza 'TheStyx' Mohammady

HUMAN WRITES | 4 Years ago...

A. These people are going to hell:
1- One who knows how to design but doesn't know Photoshop
2- A programmer who knows where the bug is, but just doesn't give a shit just because thinks it unlikely would cause a problem

B. These people are now in hell:
1- One who expect programmers to give shit about all the bugs

C. These poeple are not in hell:
1- Poeple who are already aware that they're in hell

Now if you just found a bug in this article, which is if nobody's aware what a hell is, so who gives a damn whether one's in hell or what, you're in hell too. You just don't know it.

And now if you don't find a bug in this article nor having any idea what the hell I'm saying, don't worry, you're not in hell, cause you don't even exist.

Me? Well, I'm in hell big time, I'm comfortable with it. But according to the part "C" everytime I realize that I'm in hell, I'm not in hell anymore and then after some fucked up stories I get back to hell. Kind of Hell/Not-Hell cycle. I'm comfortable with it too.