It’s not cynical nor exaggerated, but unfortunately the harsh reality of our society. We live in an era that the political correctness and the virtue of not offending anybody whatsoever, are pushing the limits to a level in which one can hardly suggest a topic, let alone speaking about it, without offending a social group and be labeled as male-chauvinist, racist, anti-Semite or even fascist. To a point that the only creature on this planet that can be safely criticized or making fun of, is a typical “white straight male”!
There’s no doubt about the fact that worthy achievements obtained by the feminism, anti-racism, anti-Semitism or all other humanistic movements, founded to bring justice to those discriminated against, should be guarded but do we have to go so far to suppress any controversial idea, that might opens up a whole new set of thinking but is somehow offensive to someone?! Isn’t it a new form of fascism to oblige people to a brutal self-censorship and label them if they think otherwise or moreover put them on trials just for expressing their rather anti-conformist views?!
What’s becoming of us? Freedom of speech, remember that?!
I can hardly name anybody who has more appreciation for women than I have, but I just want to throw up when I see Lawrence Summer, the president of Harvard university is being forced to resign, because he suggested that the difference in performance in math and science between male and female students might be due to their biological differences in their brain structure!
If an academician can not express an idea, however stupid, backward or controversial the idea might sound, in an academic environment, who can express it and where?
Now, don’t get me wrong. If someone in charge wants to use an unproven theory in order to discriminate against anyone of a particular race, gender or sexual orientation, I would be the first to scream against it, but shouldn’t people be allowed to suggest something, at least as a subject of discussion or scientific investigation? If an idea is not controversial, moving or shocking what is it good for?!
Considering the fact that, most of the values we cherished nowadays as undeniable rights of human beings, like the gender and race equality, someday not very long ago, were considered offensive or even blasphemous and those who dared to bring up those questions were forced to pay huge consequences which sometimes, like the case of Giordano Bruno , was as costly as being burned at the stake. So what makes us think that we have reached to the end of world, that everything we know is complete, unquestionable and undeniable and nobody has the right to even pose a new question anymore?
As much as I respect Jewish people and their culture, and as much as I genuinely believe that the Holocaust is a horrendous historical fact, I can not digest that in a modern European country, they actually put someone in jail, only because he has expressed his ideas or published his research, denying a historical fact! I really think that David Irving is wrong and there’re serious doubts about his references, but what happened to our old method of sitting down and talk about stuff? What happened to the tradition of presenting counter argument against a false or weak analogy? What about writing a critic about a book, a research paper or a movie instead of shouting and screaming and labeling? Since when we decided, discussion and reasoning are obsolete and we should return to the good old fashioned inquisition?
The circle of unspeakable is getting tighter by the days. They’re feminists in France, who’re fighting for introducing the word “La professeur” to the vocabulary (the word professor in French is only used as a masculine form, even for women.), or removing the word “Mademoiselle” from the vocabulary, cause they believe it‘s offensive and it degrades women. Give me a break! You know what degrades women?! A huge number of women around the world are illiterate or semi-literate! In twenty first century, they are still markets in which they sell women for prostitutions. In Africa, women are still in large numbers, being circumcised, sold to old men, being forced to sleep with men who’re HIV positive. Every 26 seconds, one woman is raped in South Africa and the rest of the continent doesn’t have a better record. Systematic rape is being used against women as a military tactic, the legal age of marriage in Muslim worlds is only nine years old and I can go forever! These are degrading, if you’re really serious!
Otherwise, I think calling a young beautiful women, Mademoiselle is charming, and a successful female professor at Princeton, wouldn’t mind if she’s being called Le professeur or La professeur!
Personally, I don’t see any difference between those activists who’re trying to suppress any idea they don’t appreciate and those who burned embassies because of a cartoon or are rioting in the streets, as we speak, because of a simple “NA MA NA!”. They are all backwards, extremist and fanatics and their only difference is their agenda. That’s all!
Dear folks, talking about differences between blacks and whites, men and women, straits and gays, Muslims and Jews, is not racism, sexism or chauvinism, acting in a way that deprives people from achieving their goals and their social rights, is. Believing that a group of people are naturally unable to get to certain points or surpass certain limits just because of their gender, race or sexual orientation, is.
The question is accepting or denying the necessity of the red lines. Once the red lines are successfully established, just by playing with them, those in power, or those with good lobbies, can easily suffocate thinkers, as well as brand new ideas, purely based on personal taste or benefits. That’s unfortunately what’s happening in our world.
By the way, if extreme-feminists are looking for a subject to fight for, I have a good one. Why the men’s and women’s chess competitions hold separately?!
Monday, May 29, 2006
One cocktail a day, keeps doctors away!
According to a recent research, published in British medical journal, men who are drinking alcohol everyday are less likely to develop heart disease than those who don’t.
According to this research, steady consumption of alcohol, will reduce the risk of heart disease by 40%.
To see the face of those who try their ass off to justify every religious rules, from fasting and circumcision to not eating pork, with medical facts, is priceless! :)
Cheers!
According to this research, steady consumption of alcohol, will reduce the risk of heart disease by 40%.
To see the face of those who try their ass off to justify every religious rules, from fasting and circumcision to not eating pork, with medical facts, is priceless! :)
Cheers!
Shomaal!
Today was hot, humid and beautiful. As I was doing my after-lunch-daily-promenade in the flower market, I had these weird feeling that I’m in “Shomal”, somewhere near “Khaane Daryaa” perhaps. I think the effect of biological clock was also worthy of mentioning. After all, years ago at this time, the exams were finished and we were ready to go there!
Dear Shomal! I’ve missed you so much.
Dear Shomal! I’ve missed you so much.
Sunday, May 28, 2006
This colleague of mine, who gave me and Sanam ride to Toronto, is a strange man. He drives aggressively and swears almost everybody in the road, yet very thoughtfully criticizes himself for being too aggressive and it goes on for the whole five hours from Montréal to Toronto and vice versa.
Once, when he was swearing the driver in front, for being too slow (and she was driving with the speed of almost 120 km/h!), he laughed at himself and said:
“Have you noticed that when you are in the road, those who’re driving slower than you are coward and stupid and those who’re driving faster, Maniacs? It seems that you are the only person who’s driving with the appropriate speed!
Once, when he was swearing the driver in front, for being too slow (and she was driving with the speed of almost 120 km/h!), he laughed at himself and said:
“Have you noticed that when you are in the road, those who’re driving slower than you are coward and stupid and those who’re driving faster, Maniacs? It seems that you are the only person who’s driving with the appropriate speed!
Bill Maher’s New rule
George Bush has to stop laughing at himself.
When your incompetence literally costs lives, giggling at it isn’t cute or funny.
When your incompetence literally costs lives, giggling at it isn’t cute or funny.
Revelations of the last remaining brain cell
Ladies,
We, men, have two organs in our body that consume hell a lot of blood. Our brain and our …well, you know. Unfortunately, there's always enough blood to run one at the time.
So, as long as we’re talking about eating and having fun and sex and how beautiful you are and stuff like that, you can consider the relationship as OK, but the moment we become philosophers, it simply means, we have all the blood we need in our brains, AKA, THERE’S ABSOLUTELY NO BLOOD THERE!
So next time you hear “I’m at the point in my life where…”, “ I think I need more time to get to know my self…”, “ I have to focus on my career…”, “I'm looking for a more profound perception of life”, or craps like that, you have only two options,
either to accept that it’s over and move on, or keep on fooling yourself.
Either way, good luck!
We, men, have two organs in our body that consume hell a lot of blood. Our brain and our …well, you know. Unfortunately, there's always enough blood to run one at the time.
So, as long as we’re talking about eating and having fun and sex and how beautiful you are and stuff like that, you can consider the relationship as OK, but the moment we become philosophers, it simply means, we have all the blood we need in our brains, AKA, THERE’S ABSOLUTELY NO BLOOD THERE!
So next time you hear “I’m at the point in my life where…”, “ I think I need more time to get to know my self…”, “ I have to focus on my career…”, “I'm looking for a more profound perception of life”, or craps like that, you have only two options,
either to accept that it’s over and move on, or keep on fooling yourself.
Either way, good luck!
Saturday, May 27, 2006
As stupid as American Dreams!
From the trailer, one could imagine, it’s either a smart, sarcastic comedy or simply flushing your valuable time down the drain! Guess what? It’s absolutely the second one!
A senseless, clueless stupid comedy that pathetically tries to be cute, political and socially critical, but in fact, it’s none of them.
The story is about a British man (played by Hugh Grant) who has a hit TV show called “American Dreamz” which is supposed to be a metaphor of Simon Cowell and his American Idol, but like other metaphors in the movie, it’s so closed to the reality that one wonders why the writer is not using the actual names and makes a documentary instead!
The Simon-like character, in attempt to attract even more audience, handpicks three rather bizarre character, a Jewish Hasidic, an Arab who’s living with his family in Orange county ( and has been put there by a terrorist organization) and a blond trash girl (played by Mandy Moore ). From the other side, the recently re-elected president of the united stated, a retarded character whom is constantly being manipulated by his vice-president ( Willem Dafoe ), accidentally has been attracted to the newspapers and is finding out that he has been deceived all the way, so he grounded himself in his office, reading newspapers. In response to public anxiety caused by the absence of the president from the public scene, vice-president talks Hugh Grant into putting the president in the panel of judges for the final round of the American Dreamz. Knowing that, terrorists try to convince and push the Arab guy, Omar, to reach to the final round so he can blow himself up and kill the president. That’s the story. Now details,
Hugh Grant is playing, as usual, one of the only two characters that he basically is able to play, either a handsome well dressed eloquent British naively-nice guy or a handsome well dressed eloquent British asshole! And this time, he’s doing the second one and honestly he’s good, but is it any wonder? He’s playing almost himself and he’s doing OK. Way to go!
The Iraqi guy, Omar (played by Sam Golzari), has a cousin who lives with his family in Orange County and they are clearly Iranian, although it wasn’t mentioned anywhere! I do not expect the writer and director of this movie, Paul Weitz , to know that, but couldn’t Shohre Aghdashlou (Nazanin) tell them that Dudes, Middle east is a region and not a country and not everybody in this region is somehow related to each other?!
And the the president's assassination plan, give me a break! You couldn’t possibly kill Miss piggy in The Muppet show with this plan! To chew plastic bombs like chewing gum and take them inside the theatre?! Are you kidding me?! Dear Paul, when you use metaphors so idiotically close to the reality, at least devise a plan which is closer to what’s happening around the world. Last time, the terrorists you are talking about, hijacked four passenger planes, destroyed twin towers and part of the Pentagon! Planning wise, Believe me, they need more credit!
and making fun of “American Idols”? Really? Isn’t it funny enough for anyone with the IQ level of, well, somewhere between carpet and door knob!? and does it have any benefit, explaining it to those who are clearly below that range?!
And finally, the political jokes in this movie are so superficial that they’re exactly like calling the fattest kid in the school, lardo! Seriously, how smart is that?!
Well, the only interesting point in the movie could be the fact that the naïve guy, Mandy Moore’s boyfriend and later a war veteran, is frequently being abused as a puppet! Not a bad idea but after the magnificent Jarhead , can anybody give any credit to this movie for portraying the same thing but in the most stupid way possible?!
Final word, the movie is absolutely rubbish and a huge waste of time to a point that even if you happen to encounter it while you're flying over seas, don’t even bother yourself, asking for a headphone. American Dreamz with a Z, is as bland and stupid as it can be, ironically, very similar to the actual one, with a S!
I’d seen another version of this, but the character was a naked woman and to be honest, unless you had necrophilia, it was not pleasant! This one though, is downright fun!
Friday, May 26, 2006
Museum of BAD art!
The world's only museum dedicated to the collection, preservation, exhibition and celebration of bad art in all its forms.
The plague of the pop culture!
Funny, hilarious Jon Stewart, remember him?
I remember how happy I got when he deservedly received the Emmy award for the second time in a row and became the host of the Academy awards. Well, maybe I shouldn’t have, if I’d known the popularity will reduce him from a bright intellectual with an exceptional sense of humor to a mediocre joker who does anything to keep the now-a- much-wider audience happy.
What happened to those deep, sarcastic, layered jokes and harsh critics and politically incorrect (sorry Bill!) comments?
For god’s sake! to become understandable for the main stream, I suppose, he’s even simplified the vocabulary he uses, compare to a year ago or so.
This Jon Stewart is way too different than the guy who kicked Tucker Carlson’s ass in that famous Crossfire’s episode. This Jon is shallow, ball less and much too politically correct, with the humor that is more suitable for Shaggy dog, than Daily show.
Now, with Woody Allen has quit being Woody Allen and preferred to become a second hand version of Hitchcock/Dostoyevsky, and with Bill Maher has taken his vacation till the end of August, does anybody know any comedian who has anything more to say than cheap sexual or gay jokes, making fun of blonds and nagging about women?!
I missed the old Jon Stewart!
I remember how happy I got when he deservedly received the Emmy award for the second time in a row and became the host of the Academy awards. Well, maybe I shouldn’t have, if I’d known the popularity will reduce him from a bright intellectual with an exceptional sense of humor to a mediocre joker who does anything to keep the now-a- much-wider audience happy.
What happened to those deep, sarcastic, layered jokes and harsh critics and politically incorrect (sorry Bill!) comments?
For god’s sake! to become understandable for the main stream, I suppose, he’s even simplified the vocabulary he uses, compare to a year ago or so.
This Jon Stewart is way too different than the guy who kicked Tucker Carlson’s ass in that famous Crossfire’s episode. This Jon is shallow, ball less and much too politically correct, with the humor that is more suitable for Shaggy dog, than Daily show.
Now, with Woody Allen has quit being Woody Allen and preferred to become a second hand version of Hitchcock/Dostoyevsky, and with Bill Maher has taken his vacation till the end of August, does anybody know any comedian who has anything more to say than cheap sexual or gay jokes, making fun of blonds and nagging about women?!
I missed the old Jon Stewart!
Just a reminder
Dear folks,
First, as you may have noticed so far, despite my dead-busy schedule, I’ve tried my best to update both my weblog and photoblog everyday (ironically, the one who convinced me to do so, updating hers, hardly once in a month!). to fulfill this dedication to myself, sometimes I have to go through some inhumane conditions such as writing during lunch time or late at night so in spite of my efforts not to have any typo, it’s quite natural that it happens and I’d cordially appreciate if you inform me in case you noticed any.
Second, I write about a variety of subjects from politics and history to art and science, but somehow I can’t figure out why the article about ass-washing got so much attention?!
I just wanted to mention that in a diverse society like the one in Canada, how some minor, insignificant details such as wiping or washing one’s ass, could be qualified as a cultural barrier but it turned out to be not quite trivial. Apparently for some, it’s more important than seal hunting and global warming! so, with a deep remorse, I’m afraid to conclude:
“To wash or not to wash, that’s the question!”
First, as you may have noticed so far, despite my dead-busy schedule, I’ve tried my best to update both my weblog and photoblog everyday (ironically, the one who convinced me to do so, updating hers, hardly once in a month!). to fulfill this dedication to myself, sometimes I have to go through some inhumane conditions such as writing during lunch time or late at night so in spite of my efforts not to have any typo, it’s quite natural that it happens and I’d cordially appreciate if you inform me in case you noticed any.
Second, I write about a variety of subjects from politics and history to art and science, but somehow I can’t figure out why the article about ass-washing got so much attention?!
I just wanted to mention that in a diverse society like the one in Canada, how some minor, insignificant details such as wiping or washing one’s ass, could be qualified as a cultural barrier but it turned out to be not quite trivial. Apparently for some, it’s more important than seal hunting and global warming! so, with a deep remorse, I’m afraid to conclude:
“To wash or not to wash, that’s the question!”
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Bill Maher’s New rules
If turning on my cell phone can bring down your commercial airliner, build a better plane! I mean…the number of people who carry hand held electronic devices these days equals the number of people who have hands…to give them all veto power over whether passengers live or die, seems like a flaw in the system.
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