PICS!!! New Photo Series - Iran : The Journey Inside

[novon]

Available now at novonic.com

WHAT I LEARNED

A tough shedding of culture is occurring in modern Iran. The over-protected youth try to extract and assimilate western culture from underground music, movies, video games and the Internet. College students and left-wing media riot for their rights, and easily get murdered for it. The old are trying to preserve Iran's 2500 year old culture of family values and conventionality. Women keep up with the latest european fashions, put on more and more makeup, and pull their scarfs backs a little more each day, while living under a patriarchic society. The educated want reform and revolution, but are stuck in the 9-5 grind, while the uneducated give life to the government's power hold. The extreme regime is preserving its oil cartel with religious mind control, censorship, and fear, while the businesses are trying to rapidly keep up with globalization, industrialization, technology, and embargos. The casualties include the economy, law, courtesy, and sometimes sanity. As the country becomes increasingly technology dependent, Iranians are noticing that some truth that their poets and prophets have filtered out over 2500 years is being lost to cell phones, microwave ovens, capitalism and corruption.

 

[rbhawcroft]

i traveled to iran a few years ago as part of my degree
was a pretty cool place, and i will definitely go back.
orpage

 

[dribgnikcom]

Well maybe u missed that huge nuclear reactor that the Russians are helping them build which they'll eventually use to nuke us.

 

[novon]

rbhawcroft - interesting

 

[Linflas]

Originally posted by: dribgnikcom
Well maybe u missed that huge nuclear reactor that the Russians are helping them build which they'll eventually use to nuke us.

Perhaps but there is a lot of speculation that Iran today is as ripe as it was in the last days of the Shah for an overthrow of the theocracy.

 

[novon]

About 70% want reform, the people are being opressed by the regime.

 

[rickn]

Originally posted by: novon
About 70% want reform, the people are being opressed by the regime.

and that regime is scared too. BTW, Great pictures Novon.

 

[UNCjigga]

I will never understand how Iran works. My basic understanding is as follows:

During the Shah's time, Iran actively embraced Western culture, ideals etc. and this was reflected in business, economy, commerce, arts & recreation and most importantly education (lots of good universities etc. were built.) Unfortunately not everyone could go to school, especially out in the small villages. Then comes the Ayatollah who calls for fundamentalist reform and the government is toppled, with the shah and his family fleeing for his life. In order to garner support, the Ayatollah recruits the poor, hungry, disenfranchised (UNEDUCATED) masses. So they're all happy and excited and they think they'll get a piece of the pie...but they didn't. Under both administrations, those in power kept a vast majority of the oil-generated wealth to themselves.

So fast forward 20 years and now you have a poor, disenfranchised urban population that wants things the way they were with the shah. All they have is their education (which has been limited of course since the Ayatollahs know that education leads to open thinking and open thinking leads to reforms.) They are sick of the fundamentalism and the harsh restrictions imposed on their lifestyle. In addition, some of the rural population is angry since their situation hasn't improved. But rather than spark a revolution, they are doing things very slowly. Why???

 

[novon]

So fast forward 20 years and now you have a poor, disenfranchised urban population that wants things the way they were with the shah...

I agree with your first paragraph, let me give you my opinion on the second. As far as I know, the urban population does not want to go back to the Shah's time. The Shah, for all his work towards westernization, was corrupt, robbed the people of the oil income, and also was against human rights. At the time of the revolution, there were two major groups who were trying to lead the nation, the free thinking liberal educated commies, and the orthodox Islamic regime, both promising to bring back the moral fiber of the Iranian culture.

Well, the Islamic regime gained power (some say with the aid of the US, who would rather have them in power then commies), executed all the free thinkers of Iran, then got into a war with Iraq so to keep the people from realizing what had just happened.

Now, 20 years later, most people don't trust the government, and are ready for reform. They can't easily spark a revolution because the government is basically a big mafia that uses fear and force to control the people. They easily kill anyone who speaks out publicly. On top of this, the culture of Iran is stuck between two worlds.

However, the protests are getting bigger every year, I predict Iran?s current government will be overthrown by the people, sooner or later!

 

[Kerouactivist]

I am not close minded nor am I an unexperienced traveler but, I think I would be worried traveling around in Iran.

 

[prontospyder]

Nice pics! Thanks. I hope the people there gets a new government soon.

Edit: Those pics of ancient Persepolis are pretty neat.

 

[SaltBoy]

Great looking pics, Novon. You have quite an eye (and quite a camera!).

 

[rbhawcroft]

Originally posted by: bthorny
I am not close minded nor am I an unexperienced traveler but, I think I would be worried traveling around in Iran.

its not a problem except in qom and mashad which are basically religous towns only.

 

[Kojak]

Nice photos which opened my eyes to how modern some of the country appears. Maybe one day the people will get what they wish.

 

[rickn]

Originally posted by: Kojak
Nice photos which opened my eyes to how modern some of the country appears. Maybe one day the people will get what they wish.

Defintely. The world is a big place. Part of the problem is a lack of understanding.

Another problem Iran faces is the college educated workforce. They all practically leave the country once they are graduated. Khatami is a reformist, but he is stonewalled by the radical clerics that really run the country. It is ironic that western culture is supposedly corrupting, yet they seem to do a good job of that all by themselves. I think theocracy is corrupting. Religion will always be a tremedous part of a muslims life. Giving them the right to choose doesn't change that. It just makes for happier people

Iranians are noticing that some truth that their poets and prophets have filtered out over 2500 years is being lost to cell phones, microwave ovens, capitalism and corruption

the world has evolved quite a bit over the last 2500 years

 

[novon]

the world has evolved quite a bit over the last 2500 years

True... but when technology evolves faster than our souls, some lose sight of the big picture.

 

[boi]

"The Tunnel - a hip clothing shop in Shiraz. $30 for a pair of jeans!"

Is that supposed to be expensive?

 

[falias]

"The Tunnel - a hip clothing shop in Shiraz. $30 for a pair of jeans!"

Is that supposed to be expensive?

It is for them, the dollar goes pretty good there.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: boi
"The Tunnel - a hip clothing shop in Shiraz. $30 for a pair of jeans!"

Is that supposed to be expensive?

In a country with a per capita GDP of $6,300 (vs the US' $36,200) and 56% of the people living below the poverty line, $30 is a LOT of money.

 

[UNCjigga]

Originally posted by: bthorny
I am not close minded nor am I an unexperienced traveler but, I think I would be worried traveling around in Iran.

It helps if you're brown!!!

 

[Miramonti]

I'm very impressed. Iran looks very clean and very beautiful.

Great pics and site too. I'd swear it was something from national geographic or something.

 

[Martin]

Good stuff.


I wish I could have gone to Bulgaria this summer. Haven't been there in many years and its probably changed A LOT since I was last there...<insert nostalgic face here>

 

[Martin]

Originally posted by: dribgnikcom
Well maybe u missed that huge nuclear reactor that the Russians are helping them build which they'll eventually use to nuke us.

i'mn glad this guy got banned

(see the Dr. Tom thread)

 

[UglyCasanova]

Originally posted by: uncJIGGA
I will never understand how Iran works. My basic understanding is as follows:

During the Shah's time, Iran actively embraced Western culture, ideals etc. and this was reflected in business, economy, commerce, arts & recreation and most importantly education (lots of good universities etc. were built.) Unfortunately not everyone could go to school, especially out in the small villages. Then comes the Ayatollah who calls for fundamentalist reform and the government is toppled, with the shah and his family fleeing for his life. In order to garner support, the Ayatollah recruits the poor, hungry, disenfranchised (UNEDUCATED) masses. So they're all happy and excited and they think they'll get a piece of the pie...but they didn't. Under both administrations, those in power kept a vast majority of the oil-generated wealth to themselves.

So fast forward 20 years and now you have a poor, disenfranchised urban population that wants things the way they were with the shah. All they have is their education (which has been limited of course since the Ayatollahs know that education leads to open thinking and open thinking leads to reforms.) They are sick of the fundamentalism and the harsh restrictions imposed on their lifestyle. In addition, some of the rural population is angry since their situation hasn't improved. But rather than spark a revolution, they are doing things very slowly. Why???

Sounds like 1984 :Q!

 

[Cyberian]

novon -

Excellent job! - Do you have friends/relatives from Iran?