the jewish vote in iran's elections

[bud]

saw this earlier today and thought i'd share this piece which counters the picture that some people try to paint in regards to iran and its over 25000 jews:

[olpfan1]

I think I speak for much of the world when I say I'm sick of hearing about the Jews, the Persians, the Palestinians

Anyway, I think the Iranian election is going to be fixed..I'm very interested in the Russian one Sunday

but that too will be fixed

[bud]

I think I speak for much of the world when I say I'm sick of hearing about the Jews, the Persians, the Palestinians

it's the focal point of the conflict between the west and the middle east. you cannot escape it.

Anyway, I think the Iranian election is going to be fixed..I'm very interested in the Russian one Sunday

but that too will be fixed

the elections do not need to be fixed. the reformers have either boycotted the elections or are on house arrest. from what i've read there is a power struggle between ahmadinejad and khamenei.

[Guest Peeves]

http://www.dailypaul.com/142558/25000-jews-live-in-iran

Propaganda can come from any source and any opinion can be slanted. There well may be Jews voting in small numbers a few thousand or so of the remaining Iranian Jews. However the results of any Iranian election will be a farce in any case as the riots after the last election proved.

Now if a Jew is given the right to vote for the limited choices just as other Iranians are, it's small comfort if the Iranians are deprived of freedoms and human rights as well.

No free press, no free sexual orientation, no free rights to proselytise, no conversion, no equal rights for women...etc. Your accolades for a restrictive regime that murdered those condemning the last election is pretty weak endorsement...and yes I know,you hate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the Iranian regime...but if Arabs and Jews want freedom to vote or gay parades, they need go to Israel.

[GostHacked]

No free press, no free sexual orientation, no free rights to proselytise, no conversion, no equal rights for women...etc. Your accolades for a restrictive regime that murdered those condemning the last election is pretty weak endorsement...and yes I know,you hate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the Iranian regime...but if Arabs and Jews want freedom to vote or gay parades, they need go to Israel.

Women in Iran are more free than let's say .. Saudi Arabia.

[Guest Peeves]

Women in Iran are more free than let's say .. Saudi Arabia.

While true, that's a great example of damning with faint praise.

http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/damn+with+faint+praise

[bud]

Your accolades for a restrictive regime that murdered those condemning the last election is pretty weak endorsement...and yes I know,you hate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the Iranian regime...but if Arabs and Jews want freedom to vote or gay parades, they need go to Israel.

as i have repeated many times, i know that the iranian government's internal politics against its own people is quite despicable. however, this post was made to counter a few posters' continuous effort to paint iranians as jew haters who want to eliminate all jews like the nazis had planned. this includes you who advocates an attack on iran because iran wants to 'exterminate jews'.

[August1991]

saw this earlier today and thought i'd share this piece which counters the picture that some people try to paint in regards to iran and its over 25000 jews...

Iran has a large Armenian community too. But Iran since 1979 is an Islamic Republic, with a Shiite flavour. (Sorry for the bad Christian comparison but Shiite Iran today is like a puritan Lutheran Sweden in the 17th century.)

Bud, there used to be Jewish and Christian communities throughout the Middle East. Alexandria in Egypt was arguably the first multiculticutural society: people spoke Greek and Arabic and lived side by side.

Nowadays, Alexandria is unilingual. The Jews and Christians left Alexandria; they emigrated. The Jews left Damascus years ago and the Christians (understandably) are now leaving.

Bud: Iran, Egypt and Syria used to be multicultural societies but they are not multicultural now.

Edited March 3, 2012 by August1991

[TheNewTeddy]

Fun Fact

Iran has more than double the number of citizens as Canada

Fun Fact

There are more people in Charlottetown PEI, Orillia ON, Thompson MB, Lloydminster AB/SK, and Mission BC, indivudally, than there are Jews in Iran.

[jbg]

I think I speak for much of the world when I say I'm sick of hearing about the Jews, the Persians, the Palestinians

it's the focal point of the conflict between the west and the middle east. you cannot escape it.

What's been the focal point of the history of the world is the love-hate, or occasionally hate-hate relationship other religious majorities have with the Jews. And it extends to international relations. They cannot live with the idea of a territorially viable Jewish state.

[jbg]

Women in Iran are more free than let's say .. Saudi Arabia.

Or Pakistan (link).

[August1991]

Fun Fact

Iran has more than double the number of citizens as Canada

Fun Fact

There are more people in Charlottetown PEI, Orillia ON, Thompson MB, Lloydminster AB/SK, and Mission BC, indivudally, than there are Jews in Iran.

What's your point? A game of statistics?

Finland is a large territory with very few people without its own money that is joined to a confederation. Yet, Finns still speak the Finnish language, and they're still Finns.

(To their credit, the Finns defended themselves against Stalinist Russia in 1939, and then against Westerners... )

Sad to say, Quebec today is no Finland. But then, Finland was not Finland in 1936.

Edited March 3, 2012 by August1991

[TheNewTeddy]

What I'm trying to say is rather simple: There are so few Jews in Iran, what they do and why is utterly meaningless.

[Guest Manny]

Yet their rights are protected by Iranian law, they have representatives in government and they have freedom to worship in their own synagogues. Or so I have read.

[DogOnPorch]

Yet their rights are protected by Iranian law, they have representatives in government and they have freedom to worship in their own synagogues. Or so I have read.

The first thing the Mullahs did re: the Persian Jews was execute the Jewish community leader, Habib Elghanian. Most Persian Jews now live in either Israel or America. But, yeah...what's left tries to discreetly thrive in less than ideal conditions...like Jews always have since 70 AD or so.

[Guest Peeves]

The first thing the Mullahs did re: the Persian Jews was execute the Jewish community leader, Habib Elghanian. Most Persian Jews now live in either Israel or America. But, yeah...what's left tries to discreetly thrive in less than ideal conditions...like Jews always have since 70 AD or so.

You're point well taken.

Anyone suggesting to me that other minority religions, gays, news media or dissenters are free in Iran are quite simply enablers and apologists for the violence and political submission of citizens of any creed or orientation.

Jews in Iran have likely become submissive subjugated and resolved to their restrictions. The average Iranian is not free and Jews or B'hai (largest minority religion in Iran) or others are persecuted for anything anytime as are Muslim Iranians.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bah%C3%A1%27%C3%AD_Faith

Persecution of Bahá'ís

Bahá'ís continue to be persecuted in Islamic countries, as Islamic leaders do not recognize the Bahá'í Faith as an independent religion, but rather as apostasy from Islam. The most severe persecutions have occurred in Iran, where over 200 Bahá'ís were executed between 1978 and 1998,[69] and in Egypt.

The marginalization of the Iranian Bahá'ís by current governments is rooted in historical efforts by Muslim clergy to persecute the religious minority. When the Báb started attracting a large following, the clergy hoped to stop the movement from spreading by stating that its followers were enemies of God. These clerical directives led to mob attacks and public executions.[44] Starting in the twentieth century, in addition to repression that impacted individual Bahá'ís, centrally directed campaigns that targeted the entire Bahá'í community and institutions were initiated.[102] In one case in Yazd in 1903 more than 100 Bahá'ís were killed.[103] Bahá'í schools, such as the Tarbiyat boys' and girl's schools in Tehran, were closed in the 1930s and 40s, Bahá'í marriages were not recognized and Bahá'í texts were censored.[102][104]

[Guest Manny]

Anyone suggesting to me that other minority religions, gays, news media or dissenters are free in Iran are quite simply enablers and apologists for the violence and political submission of citizens of any creed or orientation.

Today, the three largest concentrations of Persian Jews are found in Israel, the United States, and Iran respectively.

Current status in Iran

Iran's Jewish community is officially recognized as a religious minority group by the government, and, like the Zoroastrians, they are allocated one seat in the Iranian Parliament. Ciamak Moresadegh is the current Jewish member of the parliament, replacing Maurice Motamed in the 2008 election. In 2000, former Jewish MP Manuchehr Eliasi estimated that at that time there were still 30,000–35,000 Jews in Iran, most other sources put the figure at 25,000. The United States State Department estimated the number of Jews in Iran at 20,000–25,000 as of 2009.

Today Tehran has 11 functioning synagogues, many of them with Hebrew schools. It has two kosher restaurants, an old-age home and a cemetery. There is a Jewish library with 20,000 titles. Iranian Jews have their own newspaper (called "Ofogh-e-Bina") with Jewish scholars performing Judaic research at Tehran's "Central Library of Jewish Association". The "Dr. Sapir Jewish Hospital" is Iran's largest charity hospital of any religious minority community in the country; however, most of its patients and staff are Muslim.

Chief Rabbi Yousef Hamadani Cohen is the present spiritual leader for the Jewish community of Iran. In August 2000, Chief Rabbi Cohen met with Iranian President Mohammad Khatami for the first time. In 2003, Chief Rabbi Cohen and Maurice Motamed met with President Khatami at Yusef Abad Synagogue.

Conditions

The Constitution of Iran says that Jews are equal to Muslims. Imam Khomeini visited with members of the Jewish community and issued a decree ordering the adherents of Judaism and other revealed religions to be protected. Jews are entitled to self-administration and one member of the 290-seat Majlis is elected by only Jews. Jewish burial rites and divorce laws are accepted by Islamic courts. Tehran has over 20 synagogues. Iran has one of only four Jewish charity hospitals in the world. The hospital has received donations from top Iranian officials, including President Ahmadinejad. Kosher butcher shops are available in Iran. There are Hebrew schools and coeducation is allowed.

Jews are conscripted into the Army like all Iranian citizens. Many Iranian Jews fought during the Iran-Iraq war (1980–1988) as drafted soldiers. About 15 were killed. It has been reported that Jews in Iran are proud of their heritage.

The Association of Tehrani Jews said in a statement, "We Iranian Jews condemn claims of the US State Department on Iranian religious minorities, announced that we are fully free to perform our religious duties and we feel no restriction on performing our religious rituals."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Jews

Seems to me that you are full of hot air. Hot stinky air. In fact your sig line was more apt when it used to say that you "reek havoc".

[Guest Peeves]

Today, the three largest concentrations of Persian Jews are found in Israel, the United States, and Iran respectively.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Jews

Seems to me that you are full of hot air. Hot stinky air. In fact your sig line was more apt when it used to say that you "reek havoc".

The B/S about any Iranians having freedom is simply farcical and attacking me personally with names and pejoratives makes you look pretty foolish.

Do you realize how dumb and contrary your argument is when it obviously indicates that most of Iranian Jews left for Israel, the USA and only a few thousand stayed behind?

Edited March 3, 2012 by Peeves

[Guest Manny]

The B/S about any Iranians having freedom is simply farcical and attacking me personally with names and pejoratives makes you look pretty foolish.

Do you realize how dumb and contrary your argument is when it obviously indicates that most of Iranian Jews left for Israel, the USA and only a few thousand stayed behind?

Really? How about this comment of yours:

Anyone suggesting to me that other minority religions, gays, news media or dissenters are free in Iran are quite simply enablers and apologists for the violence and political submission of citizens of any creed or orientation.

Jews in Iran have likely become submissive subjugated and resolved to their restrictions. The average Iranian is not free and Jews or B'hai (largest minority religion in Iran) or others are persecuted for anything anytime as are Muslim Iranians.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bah%C3%A1%27%C3%AD_Faith

You attempted to paint me as an "enabler and apologist" for violence and political submission, simply because I showed you are wrong in your assessment of the conditions of Jews in Persia. And I did it with facts. You struck first blood. Compared to what you said, my comments directed at you are quite mild.

In doing so you prove that your thread is hyperbole, inflammatory and merely intended to provoke. Anyone showing contrary information to your views gets insulted. But it doesn't matter to me, the truth is shining there loud and clear. Wish it away all you want...

[dre]

The B/S about any Iranians having freedom is simply farcical and attacking me personally with names and pejoratives makes you look pretty foolish.

Do you realize how dumb and contrary your argument is when it obviously indicates that most of Iranian Jews left for Israel, the USA and only a few thousand stayed behind?

Of course Iran doesnt have free or truly representitive government. But you have to compare them with their peers, not with Canada or the US or europe. When you do this their record on human rights is pretty unremarkable. Not great, but not particularly bad either.

In terms of how Irans jews are treated... same thing.

[bush_cheney2004]

It's not just Iranian Jews voting with their feet:

According to extrapolated U.S. Census data and other independent surveys done by Iranian-Americans themselves in 2009, there are an estimated 1–1.5 million Iranian-Americans living in the U.S.,[6] with the largest concentration—about 720,000 people—living around Los Angeles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_American#Demography

[Guest Peeves]

Of course Iran doesnt have free or truly representitive government. But you have to compare them with their peers, not with Canada or the US or europe. When you do this their record on human rights is pretty unremarkable. Not great, but not particularly bad either.

In terms of how Irans jews are treated... same thing.

? Jews treated as in what other Arab or Islamic countries?

Jews, Bahá'í or any religion but Islam are not treated as equals, nor are they free to live with equal human rights.

A million (almost)Jews left other Arab countries. Arabs and Persians historically have not gotten along. Perhaps that's why a few thousand remained in Iran. The get treated a bit better than they would in Syria perhaps?

I can't explain why any Jew would willingly stay in Iran when many Iranians have left.

[kactus]

It's not just Iranian Jews voting with their feet:

According to extrapolated U.S. Census data and other independent surveys done by Iranian-Americans themselves in 2009, there are an estimated 1–1.5 million Iranian-Americans living in the U.S.,[6] with the largest concentration—about 720,000 people—living around Los Angeles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_American#Demography

Yep... Perhaps you should also read the part in the same article where it talks in length on anti-iranian sentiments in the US:

According to the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA), nearly half of Iranian Americans surveyed in 2008 by Zogby International have themselves experienced or personally know another Iranian American who has experienced discrimination because of their ethnicity or country of origin. The most common types of discrimination reported are airport security, social discrimination, employment or business discrimination, racial profiling and discrimination at the hands of immigration officials.[1]

The Iranian hostage crisis of the U.S. embassy in Tehran in November 1979 precipitated a wave of anti-Iranian sentiment in the United States, directed both against the new Islamic regime and Iranian nationals and immigrants. Even though such sentiments gradually declined after the release of the hostages at the start of 1981, they sometimes flare up.[citation needed] In response, some Iranian immigrants to the U.S. have distanced themselves from their nationality and instead identify primarily on the basis of their ethnic or religious affiliations.[2]

[edit] Individual legal casesIn 2009 Merrill Lynch & Co. agreed to pay $1.55 million to resolve a U.S. government lawsuit accusing the securities firm of discriminating against an Iranian employee. The government accused the firm of refusing to promote Dr. Majid Borumand and later firing him on the basis of his national origin and religion.[3]

[edit] Anti-Iranian sentiments in the media, think tanks or government

In Batman #429, the Joker, a DC Comics super-villain is garbed in Arabian[4] clothing, is shown allied with the IraniansAnn Coulter has referred to Iranians as "ragheads"[5] and Brent Scowcroft has called the Iranian people "rug merchants." Additionally, the Columbus Dispatch recently ran a cartoon that portrayed Iran as a sewer with cockroaches crawling out of it.[6]

In May 2005, the Fox News network broadcast a special program called Iran: The Nuclear Threat, hosted by Chris Wallace. Kaveh Afrasiab, an analyst and expert on Iran who once worked with Wallace at ABC, noted that the program "lacked the minutest evidence of objectivity, displaying instead piles of prejudice on top of prejudice reminding one of the Iraq weapons of mass destruction threat played up by the right-wing, sensationalist network during 2002 and early 2003, duping millions of American viewers about the authenticity of the Bush administration's allegations against the regime of Saddam Hussein."[5] Other examples of stereotyping Iranians as terrorists and anti-West is found in Comic books. Dennis O'Neil, a comic book writer and editor notes in the postscript of Batman: A Death in the Family:

“ "...these sagas (comic books) are more than just entertainments, at least to many readers; they are the post-industrial equivalent of folk tales and as such, they have gone pretty deeply into a lot of psyches."

People here are often quick enough to criticize the actions of the Iranian government whilst neglecting the very fact that these kinds of discriminations exists in the so called "free society" against Iranian/ Americans! This is blatant hypocrisy and discrimination against a race.

[bush_cheney2004]

...People here are often quick enough to criticize the actions of the Iranian government whilst neglecting the very fact that these kinds of discriminations exists in the so called "free society" against Iranian/ Americans! This is blatant hypocrisy and discrimination against a race.

Discrimination is part of the American experience, particularly for landed immigrants (just as in Canada). I would say these Iranians are getting exactly the same as those who came before them.

Welcome to America (nobody forced them to emigrate).

Edited March 5, 2012 by bush_cheney2004

[kactus]

What load of crap! America is built by immigrants....

By your logic or lack of it if the same discrimination applied to jews then nobody should scream oh that's anti semitism.