Deep roots are not touched by the frost...: June 2009

(other than the fact that I'm still awake right now)

Any of you who follow me on Twitter, or read the Facebook status updates that are piped there from Twitter know I've been somewhat actively following the situation in Iran. For those of you not following as closely, here's a brief (not in any way guaranteed to be accurate) synopsis:

1. Friday, June 12: Iran holds their election to determine a new president, with 85% of the population turning out to vote (with some precincts reporting more bodies than registered voters). Less than 2 hours after the polls close, Supreme Leader Khamenei declares Ahmadinejad the winner 63% to 35% (roughly). This despite the fact that all of their ballots are paper. This despite the fact that previous elections have taken days to tally and have resulted in a runoff between the 2 candidates with the highest number of votes. This includes the fact that Mousavi apparently lost IN HIS HOME CITY. Strange, no?

2. Saturday, June 13: Mousavi and the other "reformist" candidates declare the election a fraud and demand not just a recount, but a new election. Protests begin in the streets of Tehran and other Iranian cities.

3. Sunday, June 14: Protests get larger and more violent, Basiji (plainclothes "police" loyal to the Supreme Leader) begin to exercise violence in attempting to quell the protests. The regime begins blocking Internet chat sites, email, Facebook, and other communication channels. Some reports say that the communication crackdown began BEFORE THEY ANNOUNCED THE ELECTION RESULTS. Late Sunday night, Basiji storm the dorms at a (maybe several?) Tehran university arresting many students, and killing some (I'm not CNN). Many (perhaps hundreds by now) of the students detained in these nightly raids ARE STILL MISSING.

4. Monday, June 15: Mousavi supporters take to the streets in previously unheard-of numbers in Tehran and other cities. Non-violent protests of nearly 2 million are estimated in Tehran alone. As the numbers swell, tension between Basiji and other government "security" forces rise. Government security goons riding motorcycles (one guy driving and one guy whacking people with a nightstick) are patrolling the street. Several are pulled from their motorcycles and set upon by protesters, then rescued by other protesters who remember that Mousavi has asked them to remain non-violent. By the end of the day it's estimated that security forces (with the Basiji being the most violent) have killed over 10 protesters and seriously wounded who knows how many others. Major news channels (CNN, Fox, MSNBC, etc) which have been mostly silent on the budding revolution begin to provide coverage. In particular, the Boston Globe posts a page full of pictures that have been squeaked out of the attempted communications crackdown. Worldwide attention has been fully captured (including mine) due to the paradigm-changing phenomenon that is twitter. Things are getting serious. People around the world (including yours truly) are displaying green in profile pictures, clothing, and virtually anything else imaginable as a show of support and sympathy for the Iranians. Obama (very wisely, even though I'm not his biggest fan) states that the government of Iran is for Iranians to determine, preventing the regime from having the US as a scapegoat. The world (including the US State Department) talks Twitter and their network provider from moving a scheduled downtime from 9:45PM Pacific time Monday (the middle of the day in Tehran) to 2:00PM Pacific Time (roughly 1AM in Tehran) Tuesday, since Twitter is a vital communication tool for the protesters. People from all over the world are setting up proxies for Iranians to connect to the Internet through, bypassing the government's blockade on web communication. A young protester is shot in the face by a Barsiji outside one of the headquarters buildings, and the protesters on that street storm and burn down the building.

5. Tuesday, June 16: More rallies, more violence. Rogue twitter accounts (opened by government or government-friendly individuals) begin attempting to spread misinformation amongst the resistance. This remains largely ineffective as by now most people who are taking anything like an active role (even in just observing) know who the reliable sources are. Higher-ranking reform "leaders" have been arrested, with no-one aware of their whereabouts. It is estimated that by now over 4M people have taken to the streets in Tehran alone. It appears that this has escalated beyond a simple recount or brand new election, and that most of the protesters want real change.

6. Wednesday, June 17: Nighttime raids by the Barsiji on university campuses continue. Government is attempting to tighten its grip on outgoing Internet communication, but people from all over the world continue to set up proxy servers, VPNs, and other anonymous means of communication on the web. Stats begin to show up concerning twitter traffic, with a report of a peak volume of over 200,000 tweets in one hour concerning the situation in Iran.

As most who know me are already aware, I'm a firm supporter of the ideas espoused and enshrined by the Founding Fathers of the United States. This includes the right (and responsibility) to protest against, and if necessary overthrow, oppressive government. I honestly can't say that it is a majority of the 70 million citizens of Iran who want change. What I can say is that enough want freedom that they deserve to be heard. The Constitution of the United States was not a complete, unanimous consensus but rather a carefully (and hotly) debated series of compromises between vastly differing interests. To be frank, I don't care what kind of government Iran has when this is all over, but I know 4 things:

1. In looking at the pictures coming out of Iran, it is startlingly clear that most of these people are not so different than me. They go to school like me. They go to work like me. They love their families. Some of them even look a little bit like me.

2. These people are human beings, and as such deserve at the very least a voice, and for that voice to be heard.

3. From what I can tell, the vast majority of these protesters have been non-violent, and in return hundreds have been met with brutality, kidnapping (it's not an arrest when you are not charged with anything and nobody knows where they're keeping you) and murder. Yup. That's what I said. When an armed man shoots into a crowd of unarmed people, I'm calling that murder.

4. These people are doing the exact same thing that I would be doing in their situation. They are doing very nearly the same thing that led to the birth of the United States. They believe, as do I, that all children of God have certain, unalienable rights. So, they say Allah o Akbar (God is Great). I say God bless them, and I'll be praying for their voice to be heard. As the updates flash by on my screen at work, I'll be hoping to see a peaceful, productive end to this uproar, and hoping that the voice of the Iranian people will continue to be heard.

For the last couple of years, whenever Nicole and I have gone on a trip, she's taken her camera and I've used our little point & shoot. Whenever I've tried to do something that was just plain beyond its capabilities, I would ask if I could borrow hers. The answer was usually the same: "Buy your own dang camera." She almost always actually let me use hers, but only under protest.

So I saved for a while, and with the aid of some birthday funds I bought a Nikon D60 and took up a new hobby. Then, just the other day Nicole and I were up taking pictures of the sunset at Rock Canyon and she pointed out that after 6 years we've finally found a common interest; something we both like to do. So I've collected my favorite pictures I've taken since April. You can see more at my picasa web album.

One of the cacti at H&I's house in Green Valley. (4-4-09)