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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 10, 2013 16:45:30 GMT -5
The day I came back to the city last week, I went to Tehranpars which is a neighborhood east of Tehran. As I was walking down the street, a Mercedes Benz police car pulled over followed by a "Morality police" minivan. A tall muscular police-commando wearing a beret stepped out of the Mercedes and stopped a young girl who was walking alone. The girl wasn't dressed inappropriately in the least IMO, she was wearing a knee-length coat, jeans, and her light-brown/reddish hair was showing a little bit under her head-scarf.
Anyway, the morality police must have found her objectionable somehow, so the police-brute says like two words to her before two old women wearing the traditional black chador step out of the minivan, grab her by the arm and basically abduct her like you'd see in movies.
Before they take the girls to the police station, the women in the minivan make sure to treat her like a whore. Usually, when they reach the station the girl has been sufficiently threatened and intimidated that she's crying. They call her parents, and force the girl to sign a legal document promising never to dress inappropriately in public again, and that if she does the police have the right to charge her.
Now, the morality police aren't even that bad compared to the Baseej. To give you an idea of what the Baseej is like, imagine the Hells Angels in a position of ultimate power. The Baseej is a militia. Its members _always_ ride large motorcycles that the public aren't allowed to own. They are armed, and backed by the Revolutionary Guard.
Imagine you're walking in the street (or driving in your car) with your girlfriend, and she happens to be attractive. Now imagine a bunch of guys with long beards, armed with guns, batons, pepper-spray, etc. riding 1000cc bikes _force_ you to pull over. First, they ask you very politely "what is your relation with this lady?" Unless you can show ID that proves she is your wife, the politeness ends right then and there. Now, these guys aren't cops, and they don't give a rat's ass about the law. They are the law.
I used to know this girl that always kept her hair short, like a boy, and she'd come out in public wearing nothing but jeans and a t-shirt. Nine out of ten people thought she was a young boy. We got pulled over by a band of Baseej shitheads once. I swear, they practically molested her right there on the street, 'cause I told them she was a boy. A few of them kept touching her chest and her ass. They thought we were gay, and she was my feminine-looking boyfriend.
That night they took us to their lair. They forced her to ride with them on a Yamaha DT 400cc. She sat inbetween two guys on the bike. I can't even imagine what she must have gone through during that ride. The only thing we had going for us was the fact that they thought she was a boy. You need to understand that the Baseejis are famous for homosexuality, because they believe it's wrong to have sexual relations with a woman who is not their spouse, but there's nothing wrong with fucking boys according to them.
If they'd found out she was a girl, we would have been totally done for. A girl in public without hijab is like the biggest crime/sin according to the Baseejis. In such a case, they will interpret that the girl is a whore that is begging to be fucked, and so gang-rape isn't off the table. On the other hand, they all kept touching/poking her 'cause they thought "whoa...what a good looking little boy!" I have no idea how we got off the hook that night...sheer luck perhaps. At their base I started shouting and accusing them of being a bunch of fags, in front of their superior who was a 50-something man. In hindsight, they could have beat the shit out of me, and stripped her down to clear any confusion.
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Post by karlsie on Mar 11, 2013 5:42:11 GMT -5
ADP, you paint a picture of a country that is both beautiful and brutal. I know that biases exist everywhere, but it doesn't mean I understand them. What purpose does it serve to hate someone who has done you no harm, who has deprived you of nothing, who has not even committed a perceived wrong? I'm referring to the villagers, who become more and more puzzling to me. It sounds like a power play. In fact your description of the morality police and the Baseezis sound like power playing, too. Bullying just because they can get away with it. It makes me feel very glad I live in a country where women are empowered, can choose their life styles and speak openly. Suppression is evil and kills the human spirit.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 11, 2013 12:43:12 GMT -5
You know, karlsie, in my experience Iran has what might be the most incomprehensibly fucked up social-structure in the world. You'd have to live here to know what I mean.
For example, the people in Europe and the west in general are "brought up" to be law-abiding citizens, ie. they are taught how to fit in with the system and to work/live according to predefined "social structures" for lack of a better word. But in Iran, the forces of society push people to learn how to bypass the system altogether. Iranians are cheaters, they _always_ cheat because that's what comes naturally to them. Whenever Iranians go to western Europe, they always find that the people there are "simpletons" and I'm quoting pretty much everyone Iranian I know who has been abroad. I believe the modern influx of Iranians was a large factor in messing up German culture and the German economy.
The system is so disorderly and lawless in Iran it's the closest thing to chaos on earth today, IMO. And Iranians that were born after the revolution grew up in the age of chaos, and they never knew any other way. What's amazing to me is that somehow, shit always works itself out in Iran. And although the Baseej is what it is, I don't believe I've ever heard of them sexually assaulting any women, but that doesn't mean they won't harrass the shit out of young people and even beat up young men who stand up to them. They exist as a kind of counter-force, the negative to the modern youths' positive.
A lot of the guys in my neighborhood would love to find themselves in a situation where they could gang up on a bunch of Baseejis and cut them to pieces with swords, knives, etc. (the "street weapons" in Iran don't include guns)
I think suppression forces people to either fight against it or find ways to bypass its effects. Freedom, IMO, makes people docile.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 11, 2013 14:23:11 GMT -5
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 12, 2013 9:12:13 GMT -5
And regarding the village people, I'm gonna tell you what the popular opinion is in the region, as it's the only working theory I've got. Many people in the area believe that our town is cursed. Considering the statistics, this isn't too farfetched. For example, our village has the highest opium/heroin addiction percentage in all of western Iran. Two out of three men are addicts where I live.
My ancestors built the first school in our village, 50 years ago. They also built the first public hamam (bath-house) and the first (and only) medical clinic in town. Our town had these three public services at a time when no other village in Iran had them. My ancestor was married to the daughter of Iran's minister of state during the reign of Reza Shah, so he was able to pull some strings. Just to be clear, he not only built the buildings out of charity, but he had the government assign doctors and teachers to them.
My family had three qanats constructed and three valleys prepared for cultivation, so the villagers would have work. I could go on and on, really, but you get the idea.
My family were educated noblemen whose lineage stretched back half a millenium. The villagers on the other hand were illiterate peasants. They would have had nothing without my ancestors' kindness and generosity.
So, how did they repay this kindness? They claimed all the land as their own, and told my grandfather and his brothers to take a hike, after the revolution.
Today, these people no longer have any need for the land that they took from us, because as I've said before, the government helped them to develop like 30 new projects with practically unlimited water. Yet, they are a miserable bunch. They're the most uncivilized people I've ever come across anywhere on earth. I'm gonna have to think of some specific instances to give you a clear idea of what I mean by "cursed."
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 13, 2013 7:30:44 GMT -5
I started running again four nights ago, after a month-long break. I didn't choose to take a break, it just happened...Anyway, I want to say that IMHO a man who doesn't run relatively long distances every day is a sick man. Let me tell you, I wake up feeling awesome in the morning and I have plenty of energy during the day, when I'm in the habit of running every night. The difference is undeniable.
I got a buddy of mine into the habit recently. He's been running every day for 12 days now, and he says it's like a drug that gets him high; he says he stuck to it cause he's addicted to feeling awesome all the time now.
But really, the first four days are the most difficult in terms of will and strain on the body. On the fifth day, something happens IMO, some chemical change in the body that makes running pleasurable and an all-around interesting activity. I have experienced the opium high, and I think whoever put forward the endorphin idea definitely hit the spot.
You see, I've always wondered, why does the human body contain such a thing as cannabinoid receptors? or ì-opioid receptors? Why do we have receptors that trigger ineffable "psychedelic" experiences when influenced by a molecule such as DMT? What is the purpose of all this, considering the fact that the only way we can consciously and volitionally affect these receptors is via ingesting plant material?
Then I thought, adrenaline is definitely in the same class as the chemicals implied above. I think everyone knows adrenaline. It's the endogenous chemical that causes the change of mood and perception that people undergo when confronted with certain 'natural' situations like a pack of wolves, rock-climbing or a sword-wielding man running toward you, etc. So, imagine a man living in an environment where no such situations ever occur. Such a man would, logically, never know what an adrenaline rush is.
Is it possible that under 'natural' conditions, we would be confronted with situations that result in endogenous DMT-type chemicals being created and released in our brain? If not, then what does it mean that we have cannabinoid receptors? Have we evolved together symbiotically with the cannabis plant?
I'm convinced that endurance running every day (not once a week, not every other day, EVERY DAY) floods the body with endogenous-morphine. It is IMO, exactly the same "high."
Let me remind you again, that people living in a natural environment would normally run ten times as much as I run, every day.
I think the implications of all this are very troubling. By this logic, people should be experiencing the DMT-rush, naturally, every day. If only we could recreate the natural circumstances that harbor such a shift...
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 13, 2013 7:45:41 GMT -5
To me this implies that the SSRI-addiction that is gripping society by the balls isn't a matter of chemical (5ht) deficiency, the crux of the matter is a behavioral issue. Certain behavioral patterns, that creatures living in the earth's natural environment exhibit regularly, are lacking from our lifestyle, hence we suffer depression.
We've evolved over billions of years so that our bodies are perfectly tuned to living on the earth, and not the super-structure called society, mind you. Every aspect of our physical/chemical body is influenced by the world at large.
The world we live in and the behavior that we exhibit on a day-to-day basis, are IMO completely fucked up and inappropriate. If we are meant to evolve according to the evolutionary forces that exist naturally, we're doing a piss-poor job. Because the evolutionary forces that act on us come from society, and not from the earth, we are essentially evolving according to an artificial structure that was created in very ancient antiquity by unknown people for unknown purposes.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 14, 2013 12:38:54 GMT -5
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 14, 2013 15:17:11 GMT -5
I just realized something profound. This is the only forum on the web where only 2-3 people are conversing regularly. All the rest have at least 4 people or they're dead forums. This is incredible. We're special! Reminds me of a night last winter, a friend and I walked into Toopkhuneh subway station (by far the most crowded station in Tehran) at 8PM on a weeknight. Just so there's no confusion, my friend was a girl who has never done a drug in her life, and although I was taking a lot of ayahuasca in those days, I was completely sober that night. So, we walk down the stairs and we're standing on the platform waiting for the train, when suddenly we realize, there isn't a single person in sight. We looked all around us and there was no one. For like five minutes, it felt like we were in a movie that was paused...then suddenly, people appeared from every direction all at once, like someone had hit play. I swear that was one of the creepiest experiences I've ever had. A couple days ago we were reminiscing on that night, and we reached the conclusion that if we were to go to Toopkhuneh station every night at 8 'o clock for the rest of our lives, we would never again find the place _absolutely_ empty, entirely deserted, totally void of presence, like that night. In fact, it was pretty clear that even if we were to spend every day from 5AM to 11PM (the subway closes at 11) from now to the end of our lives in that station, we would never again find it deserted like that for five seconds, let alone five minutes. I forgot how this is supposed to be like this forum here, 'cept you know, subversify is strange, incomprehensible, special...and yet there is no understandable purpose to it. I'm just really sorry that Mitch is pissed at me...If you're reading this, I really meant no offense bro. Don't take my BS too seriously, I say loads of meaningless crap all the time...I'm a moron. And I'm sorry I said your semen isn't sexy, that was just totally uncalled for...I said it 'cause I was jealous.  |
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Post by grainnerhuad on Mar 14, 2013 20:06:34 GMT -5
OKay, I just really have to know because I can't imagine Mitch being pissed about comments about his semen....What the hell? I must have totally missed that whole thing. But still, Mitch if you are pissed that your semen isn't sexy please weigh in.
Also, yes this place is alive because it exists. Sometimes there is an influx and sometimes it is dead quiet. It really doesn't matter. The problem I think is, people in general really aren't interested in developed discourse. Especially on a wide range of ideas and subjects. Sure, it's easy to talk about one subject. There are thousands of boards for Comic Book heroes that are active and keep people's attention. But a board that will discuss literally anything? Also one that very often mixes that anything...even seemingly unrelated subjects, that is something different.
And, we really don't care if anyone answers back. Very often we just write our crazy thoughts for ourselves. You are right, it is a different and special place.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 15, 2013 5:46:33 GMT -5
"Iranian human rights official describes homosexuality as an illness"
This is a headline from today. I'm not gonna generalize, but if I ever started wanting cock up my ass, I'm probably fuckin out of my mind with illness. It's just not gonna happen otherwise.
"UN brain-dead zombie rights official describes drug use as an illness"
Ok, I made this one up...but not really. So, you know, anything I don't understand or empathize with is henceforth an illness.
"Israeli human rights official describes Palestinians as an illness"
I just don't get it...wtf is with this fuss about gay people's rights? Who gives a shit? Are gay people really any worse off than other people? Are they especially persecuted because of their sexuality? Aren't poor people also persecuted for their lack of money?
Everything in the news is just simple misdirection and subterfuge, as far as I'm concerned. None of the crap that "they" are making a big deal out of is worth anything.
Gay people can go fuck themselves, for all I care. So can straight people.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 15, 2013 14:08:16 GMT -5
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 16, 2013 6:31:17 GMT -5
www.religionnews.com/2013/03/15/critics-say-state-department-is-awol-on-irans-religious-freedom/Islamic Sharia, from which Iran's "law" is derived, states that any Muslim who converts to another religion is a douchebag, and the punishment is death. I'm not concerned with judging which laws are appropriate and which aren't, but with the fact that every place on earth, the people holding power/sway over society define the laws. How fucking stupid of this Christian minister, to come to Iran and make it publicly known that he's turned away from Islam. What did he expect was going to happen? This is either an intelligence/CIA type thing, or this guy is just a poor fuck who wants to be a martyr. Either way, I know that US law wouldn't take kindly of my choice of religion, and I could lose my freedom if I'm caught with my choice of religious sacrament so...I gotta be careful not to take my sack of peyote buttons to the police station, you know? What this lunatic minister did is, IMO, equivalent to smoking DMT out of a glass bong while sitting in the office of the director of the DEA. Did he expect they were going to understand and respect his choice as a free man? IMO, people don't die because of "unfair" laws, they die because of their own stupidity. And if this Mr. Abedini is US intelligence, which he probably is, I'll be there to cheer as they hang him.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 16, 2013 8:18:59 GMT -5
arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1204/1204.4616.pdf"There are no particles, there are only fields." Edit: I am aware of all the pseudo-mystical nonsense that surrounds quantum physics, and yet there is one truth that is undeniable IMO, and it is the fact that matter would not exist if no one perceived it. We don't know what would exist if there was no awareness to perceive it, but I believe we (modern science) now know that "matter" is a property of perception, and not a concrete thing that exists on its own. Hence, instead of science being the study of matter, it should be the study of perception/awareness, as all things arise from awareness. I have no doubt that this was the science of our ancestors, say ten thousand years ago; in short, the science of understanding/knowing the self.
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Post by asiaticdarkperson on Mar 16, 2013 12:33:00 GMT -5
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