Thursday, August 23, 2012

Brain Drain

By Paul Iddon

Its latest move to marginalize Persia's women once again shows the essential hollowness and chauvinism of this regime.    

Iranian women.
The regime currently presiding in Tehran has once again shown petty contempt for the Iranian people, this time to the female half of the population who are amongst the most intelligent in the world. Iranian women are now -- as you know -- being blatantly discriminated against in the country's education system. They are going to be excluded from courses such as literature, languages, archaeology, nuclear physics, computer science, engineering, business management and several other occupations that they excel at. This move shows the regimes disdain for the independence of women. It is also most likely going to further weaken the economy and furthermore see to the further brain draining of the country. It is another reason to lament reader and to reflect upon the fact that Iran with such an educated population and such magnificent potential is once again being undermined by these clerical kleptocrats.   

Sadly its hard to say that one wasn't surprised upon hearing this news, which makes one even more cynical and paranoid about the future of the country and its inhabitants, many more patriots – the Iranians who are currently holding the country and their lives together, not the ones making threats to other countries and running the economy into the ground – within the country may be forced to leave as a result of these heinously stupid regime-implemented policies. The contempt these patriots are shown, the marginalization they have to put up with are very discouraging and disheartening factors, yet they continue to press for the most basic of civil rights and show themselves time and again to be very civilized and upstanding people in the face of the most uncivilized and thuggish of miscreants, miscreants who have proven they will work in earnest to degrade these patriots, torture them and strive to interfere in every conceivable aspect of their lives.

This development also represents an apt moment to once again show our contempt to the cretinous people who make the lame excuse that these fascistic regime policies are a necessary compromise for the country's independence. One wonders what independence these people are talking about, Iran is a country on the verge of bankruptcy, whose currency has barely any trading power, whose – as is blatantly evident from this latest escapade – intellectuals and professionals in many fields are forced out of work and denied employment opportunities in their own country by these dictatorial thugs.   

In Iran, conservatives and ultra-conservatives prevail in the theatrical parliament there. The kleptocrats who run the show have plundered the country's vast wealth and are doing their utmost to undermine its future potential by actively seeking to suppress the Iranian peoples profound potential for a better future and life. This, a country with a nearly unparalleled heritage of ancient civilization and culture is being degraded to the extent that, instead of being a profound example for the rest of the world is being run into the ground by obscurantist gangsters. These gangsters strive to prevent the bringing into being of a system and society worthy of mass emulation and aspiration on a worldwide scale. They strive to tarnish the country's image and reputation by propagating half-baked conspiratorial piffle to the world in that country's name.

If one ever wants to diminish and trample upon ones spirit all one has to do is to look around and see that the common perception of Iran is one formed mostly by the regressive traits of this regime, rather than one of an upstanding proud people with a heritage worth being proud of, one that is the Persian peoples gift to the world, the world that has – to a very large extent unknowingly – derived several of the main pillars that represent its civilization directly from Persia. The civility that the international community proclaims to practice has apparently convinced them that they have license to proclaim themselves to be on the moral high ground, due to their stated goal of promulgating concepts such as human rights to 'benighted' societies and peoples, concepts that are not only thousands of years old, but were invented in Persia in the first place. With this perception of themselves the 'civilized' countries of the world accordingly patronize Iran on simple moral issues as if the Iranian people don't see the regimes various practices and outlooks on matters to do with morality as reprehensible. It is disheartening to realize this when one looks at the supposedly "enlightened" west and the manner in which it perceives Persia and has for a large part taken the regime and its outlook on the world to be that of the Iranian people.

The regimes latest move to marginalize and discriminate the country's women represents a perfect time for the feminist and human rights groups of the world to offer their support and solidarity. However this author is palpably disheartened by commonly held western perceptions of Iran. Such petty misconceptions need to be debunked and discouraged by more in-depth and sophisticated views of Iran and her people. Hence a good education is an essential commodity to move forward and to build a better world for the mutual benefit of all. A prospect this regime has proven it fears and will actively do all it can to prevent.


Anonymous said...

Paul,this has been your most passionate article thus far.
There is no denying it,that this fascist theocracy is the most backward type in existence.The closest to this regime would be a combination of the Spanish inquisition and the Salem witch hunts.
As an Iranian man,I could not but be saddened that once our woman were free to choose their own destiny.That is until these liars came into power.
Out of all the subjects for them to ban literature,languages is idiotic beyond belief,because those are the subjects that women excel at far more than men.
But remember,Iran isn't Saudi Arabia and a bird can't fly with one wing.
This act will only strengthen those people that want to see the demise of this insane regime.

Anonymous said...

"a bird can't fly with one wing"

Most cultural anthropologists, from all ethnic groups accept that fact. The cleric gang that has usurped Iranian destiny, hastens their demise through quest for nuclear weapons status. World leadership has a moral obligation to prevent further nuclear weapon proliferation. If we fail in this endeavor, we will have earned the final results.

Anonymous said...

They cause their own down fall when they deny their own sisters, mothers, and daughters be part of the system. Stupid, but usually mistakes as such causes regimes to collapse rather than outside groups...

Anonymous said...

This article contains nonsenes and demagoguery...with mixture of propaganda.

It states in one place that "Iran, with such an educated population..." and at another place states that "..regime has proven it fears (a good education..."

An educated person with a logic would ask:
- who let to happen and to educate an educated population in Iran, during last 32 years?
- who and why they subsidized costs of that education?
- was the regime not afraid to tolerate that education of iranian population?

In the US there has been an affirmative action, where peoples of different race or gender and military veterans get preferential treatment, even when their scores are lower than those of other groups.
Reasoning for that action is that it is meant to give a chance to "disadventageous minority groups" by implementing quotas or adjasting test scores for those groups.

At some universities in Iran percentage of women exceeds 60% and recent action was meant to correct basically those types of situations.

Iranian men need to be educated and equal in that matter too.

Anonymous said...

Anon 12:24 PM

Nonsense.If the woman are doing better than the men,why stop the access to 77 subjects to woman?
The way I read it,you're an apologist of the regime.

Steve said...

Don't fall for that hypcrisy propelled by Paul Iddon.
Ironically the West himself did everything to demonize President Ahmedinejad, who and his wife and daughters tried whatever they could to further women and their education in Iran.
Now, as Ahmedinejad is considerably weakened politically, the West bitterly complains about the misogynous politics of those conservative theocratic elements, who continuously have been emboldened by completely irrational western attack threats and sanctions against Iran.

Paul Iddon said...

@ Anon 12:24 PM

It is an editorial, so it is essentially geared towards my views and perceptions. If you take issue with them, fair enough, I know I have quite unorthodox opinions on a lot of issues.


The "benevolent" owners of the country, who have stolen most of the country's wealth for themselves are the people who 'let' the Iranians get an education, albeit a very conformist education based on what they allow them to study and learn (granted and taken, most education systems are conformist in nature and don't encourage scrutinization and the formulation of ones ability to soberly critique the conduct of the state).

- who and why they subsidized costs of that education?

Where did the money to subsidize education come from? If the Iranian people are giving their money to the state the least they can expect is that their children will have some semblance of an education.


From what I've heard from those who have seen and went through universities and school is that the education system is geared towards conformity to the state. That's not tolerating the fragile development of a free mind that can question power, and formulate thoughts beyond a limited framework based on the world view of those owners of the country. This would be invaluable for a country like Persia to constantly improve life and society.

I hold to my views, Iran is a very well educated country, this is -- in my humble opinion -- a result of its great culture, family tradition which sees to parents passing down thousands of years of knowledge and practice in religious morality, philosophy and civilization generation-to-generation. A culture I never tire of praising and spreading awareness of.

I think it is just wrong to discriminate with regard to sex, if the men aren't doing as well as women then they should study more and compete more in their respective fields of profession, such a climate would promote better understanding and would make for a more healthy society. What the regime is doing by not allowing women in these courses is just plain old backward gender discrimination. I don't think you shouldn't be making excuses for that kind of nonsense.

@ Steve

When did I ever advocate demonizing Ahmadinejad?
I'm against the silly western perceptions of Iran that are predominantly shaped by the ramblings of that man when he propagates his conspiracy theories at the United Nations...

Anonymous said...

Anon 12:24PM

In the US some women were courageous and had sued for a discrimination, because they were not admitted despite that they had better scored than those prefered by the US system's actions.

Many other students with better scores, who were not admitted, had no courage and patience fight that situation.

I myself was discriminated in different fields.... so I know pains of those situations....

Iranian men deserve a relief because they are who defended and will primarily defend their country...

Anonymous said...

Steve said...



Mahmooud never called the shots in Iran.....but i agree that he did do everything he could to aid the demonization of himself.

the fictive, obnoxious and idiotic things that the little twerp has mouthed may have been said on orders from the larger, more powerful demons, but it was his mouth

Anonymous said...

Anon 7:03 PM

Stop being another regime apologist.

It's not the Iranian men that need the relief but the Iranian woman. Because they are the most oppressed in a Islamic imposed society.