When I’m not blogging (when I’m not breathing) I read blogs, and when I’m not doing that, I’m rushing somewhere, late.
But sometimes, when I’m not doing that, I read books, and I was recently given “We Are Iran” by Monique. The book has turned out to be way more interesting that I thought it would be.
Because, let’s face it, I’m not really an “modern Iranian politics” kind of guy. Or so I thought. But I started reading these extracts of daily life there, and it turns out, it’s pretty darn interesting.
The book is a series of extracts and commentary from some of the 64,000 blogs that have flourished despite the oppressive, regressive and at times aggressive repression of the Iranian government. Did I forget suppressive?
There’s the writings of a 50 year-old woman whose son just moved back in with her. He ribs her about being a blogger, and they argue about who gets the computer. She talks about how it feels to have your child return.
There’s a post by a female student talking about the changes she’s seen in the town where her new college was placed, how to locals have gone from suspicious to supportive of the kids.
Here’s another quote:
“On the one hand the French say women should discard their veils and on the other hand, in Iran, they believe in forcing the veil on women throughout the world. They both batter us on the head with the stick of Islam. Do women ever tell you men what you can and cannot wear?”
(It’s from saba.eparizi.com which appears to now be defunct.) The whole book’s like that. Individual voices, speaking about issues that are at once remote and yet universal.
The whole book is well explained; it’s like sitting down to watch a television drama that you’ve never seen before, but your friend is there explaining all that’s going on to you. Nasrin Alavi is the collator, and is a great tour guide to modern Iran.
Anyway, the disclaimer part is that yes, Monique works for Raincoast and yes, I got the book for free. But if you are interested in learning why personal blogs are so darn important, this is the book to pick up.
“We were addicted to the intensity of our hunger—the almost limitless depths of it—and to the certitude that we were needed, that we were vital. Such a feeling is not as wonderful as the condition of being loved, but it is similar, with its dependencies, and far more reliable.”
“From the backstabbing co-worker to the meddling sister-in-law, you are in charge of how you react to the people and events in your life. You can either give negativity power over your life or you can choose happiness instead. Take control and choose to focus on what is important in your life. Those who cannot live fully often become destroyers of life.”
: “If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; succeed anyway. If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; be honest and frank anyway. What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; build anyway.”
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