In the spring, as winter turns its corner, it will be a new year. Iranian New Year, Nowruz -- meaning "New Day" -- takes place tonight, on the vernal equinox, and it is the most important holiday of the year for those who celebrate it. But this year, some are trying to overshadow Nowruz with the ugly sounds of war.
And it is different this time than all those other years of threats and sashaying political attacks. This year, the talk of war walks tall amongst the rhetoric of Washington. It has become acceptable to warn the Iranian people of their demise.
The curses of war are bellowing from the mouths of politicians in the United States and elsewhere. Their appearance in election campaigns has become a de facto proof of statesmanship in a time of many enemies. Their bellicose threads have woven a fabric of inhumanity toward a people who, like all people, are innocent of their government's whims.
The people of Iran are usually cheerful this time of year. They get several weeks of vacation for this secular holiday in an Islamic Republic. Nowruz has been their spring awakening for thousands of years -- a holiday based on nature and not on man's imagination.
If you understood Nowruz, you would understand the people of Iran. And you would understand what the economic sanctions, covert operations, and the words -- yes, the words -- of war are doing to a people on the brink of renewal.
No country is riding the crest of prosperity these days -- even the richest country in the world is battling the waves of unemployment, homelessness and poverty. Imagine what the other countries' people are suffering through. Then imagine the people of Iran who have to deal with the added damages of economic sanctions and the increased government control that comes with them.
In a time of warring words, tensions are written in a language of oppression.
Last year, President Obama sent a Nowruz message to the Iranian people. He smiled and admired them and their ancient holiday, then warned their government to follow its people's wishes. He knows Iranians are not his country's enemy. But Obama -- even as he knows that war destroys people, not governments -- has a job to do.
And so do the American people. In the days of increasing awareness and occupations of the American street, the people of America have tasked themselves with the job of learning more about their world and taking action to speak up for the betterment of human relations. Americans live and work with Iranians who have settled in the land of the free. They know them as Obama does.
The untrue words hurt them, too.
Besides, the war has already started -- it began long ago and behind the scenes. We hear snippets of its different battlefields across the globe, but far more damaging are the words -- the demonization of a whole people, the lax disregard for human life, the mainstreaming of incivility. The talk is the war -- it is the violence that we see every day in the media and the election campaign against the Iranian people.
As Nowruz makes its way through March -- the celebrations continue for 13 days after the New Year -- the words of war are due to become louder and more ubiquitous. According to top US government officials, April's showers will bring superpowers to Iranian shores. The war has been penciled in, they tell us.
But Nowruz is in ink. And as is its habit, it is a reminder that the darkness is fleeting: the day will soon be longer than the night.
Follow Shirin Sadeghi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ShirinSadeghi
I too am concerned about my native land and tens of millions of innocent Iranians including my own family.
concerned about another destructive "war of choice" in the region
At this stage of our existence in the Unites States we are unique in human history in terms of our material wealth and military power.
We also have the potential and the knowledge to be the spiritual leader of the world instead of an instrument of fear and aggression but alas we fall far short of having learned the simple lesson common to all major legitimate faiths and philosophies for thousands of years: Treat others as you would like to be treated or stated differently, do not treat others in ways that you would not want to be treated.
In this lesson lies our true National Security as well as the answer to the so called “terrorism” and the resulting fear and anxiety that has become so paramount in our lives especially since 9/11.
Nice take, wish you all a happy and prosperous new year!
Israel doesn't know when to stop, and it could pay dearly as a result.
By Gideon Levy, Haaretz Daily Newspaper, Israel
Their threats to close the Stait of Hormuz has also caused many countries to support these sanctions. This government's actions have made the situation much worse for Iran.
Hopefully war can be avoided, but I wouldn't count on it.
What you are is the 210 lb 16 year old bully that seeks out 7 year old boys to pick on. You shove them, knock them to the pavement. Then if they so much as protest, you say you were attacked, and smash them bloody. Walk away exhilarated.
You seem to believe Iran is some poor defenseless peaceful country. They have been fighting a war with Israel, by proxy, for over a decade. They support Hamas and Hezbollah with weapons, training, and money. Those 2 ter.rorist organizations have only 1 goal. The destruction of Israel.
Most 7 year old boys don't try to get nukes after threatening to destroy another country. Nor do they support ter.rorism around the world.
Maybe you should know what you are talking about before you run your mouth.
It would be best to accept the Iranian demand/offer to make the Middle East a nuclear free zone.
Happy Nowruz everyone.
Happy Nowruz to all humans!
happy new year
That job is to feed the MIC to the detriment of those whose lives it destroys, as well as untold opportunities lost to all those wasted resources. It is only possible because the American people refuse to stand up with one voice and DEMAND that our government stop killing in our name. A nuclear arsenal is the only defense from American aggression, and that's tragic for all involved.
You will always remain a cowboy, cowboy!