The visual filibustering is easier to view than the written form I find your views on Iran interesting (although I disagree with you fairly regularly) but I can’t get past more than a little part of the any post when it is a wall of text. Confusion and shorter paragraphs will get your view across to more people.
While I don't have the luxury to make my point relying on existing narratives, as I like to challenge them and that inevitably requires a lot more words than otherwise, I realize that long posts aren't popular. Nor do people necessarily read them. For now, I will be using the 'visual arts' more often, at least to make points that can be made through impressions. Although, frankly, I don't even think even pictures that are meant to challenge orthodoxy will find a receptive audience.
Unlike the script from the pro Israel lobby on Iran, which doesn't require any updating to adjust itself based on reality or facts, my pictures need to be updated from time to time. See if you can figure out why these videos couldn't be posted even 2-3 years ago?
You have moved from State spokesperson to head of the Travel and Tourism board? Congrats on the move upward! As a white, Catholic American, how safe would it be for me to come ride the roller coasters?
This guy “Sunny” is a famous YouTuber and food blogger from Texas who visited just a couple of months ago. He answers your question at the 4:30 mark of the first video: Another famous food blogger “Food Ranger” who also visited around the same time:
But I'm not famous and won't have a TV crew following me. I would bet it would end up more like this https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/american-hikers-held-hostage-iran-story-article-1.1715514
We have several family friends who have visited Iran (two are agnostic, I think the other two are Methodist) and all of them said they had a great time and that it was incredibly interesting. Apologies in advance if you weren't looking for an actual answer and just engaging in snark.
I will give the Iranian regime their due, I would rather travel in Iran than I would travel in North Korea.
Gotta counter the propaganda somehow. I have no doubt Iran is a beautiful place and the people are wonderful. But I also see the reports of the oppressive crackdowns on protesters, the incidents described in the article I cited and the repeated and numerous human rights violations. Don't think I'll be packing up the fam for a vaca there anytime soon.
Honestly, you both (stanger and The Islamic Republic of the Chambers of Commerce of Greater Persia) sound ridiculous in your own special ways. stanger, specifically to you, dropping old stereotypes just a tad is costless and may actually win you a bit of good will from time to time. Things are rarely as they seem - in either direction.
It was awhile ago, but one of my favorite threads on bigsoccer came about because Ireland was matched against Iran in a playoff for a berth in World Cup 2002*. Irish fans were like, "how are we going to get to that match" and Iranians chimed in with a lot of pointers not only on how to get to the match, but how to find beer in Tehran and how to get your wives and girlfriends into the stadium (just show up and don't make a big show of it). It was one of the best uses of the internet I've ever seen. Not saying you should start making reservations and lining up tickets for the Tehran derby in Azadi* stadium because it's always a great time when Persepolis* and and Esteghlal* get together. *totally had to look that up.
There is a time limit for ignoring all negativity going on around you and there is a level of tolerance for corruption, mismanagement and oppression. When that limit is passed and you see the majority of people are suffering then you realise what is going on or the masses will awake you with a slap of reality like what happened in Day 1396 (Jan 2017) and Aban 1398 (Nov 2019). Otherwise, I was promoting beauty of Iran not far long ago. https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/a-window-to-iran.2031737/
If you are American you better forget it now, but if you are from Africa, Asia or South America you are ok as long as you hold yourself from consuming alcohol or sex industry for entire trip. Just last week a tourist was whipped 80 lashes for drinking alcohol.
Let me balance the actual image, something I knew but was ignoring for a long time about Iran. Iranian poor class has been growing very fast since President Ahmadi Nejad took over in 2004 and brought misery upon misery with exceptions of some minor construction improvements. Now more than half of Iranians are under poverty line. Poor Iranians who sleep in grave and cardboard boxes in winter.
There is no secret that after recent events and maximum sanction upon Iranian oil industry, Iran lost income. Iranian tourism ministery invited some European (I remember few french names being mentioned) and Asian famous vloggers to Iran to witness Iranian tourist attractions and everything was paid already. If you see any video in past 1 year about tourist attractions of Iran it is most likely promoted by Iranian tourism ministry. Videos prior this time frame are more likely to be genuine. https://www.google.com/amp/s/ifpnew...gs-top-travel-bloggers-to-iran-on-famtrip/amp
He posts a link about some NGO run by some Iranian lady with private sponsors, doing a trip for other bloggers with her own money, and then goes on to claim, just out of his ass, that the Iranian Tourism Ministry paid for it somehow. This is so typical of these MEK/Monarchist trolls... just half-truths and lies put together to create a synopsis that fits their delusional narrative, with no regard for actual facts. Another favourite hobby of theirs on twitter or elsewhere is posting random pictures of dead Syrians from 2011-2012 claiming it’s Iran in 2020, or finding random pictures of the drug addicts and homeless folks as if there are no homeless people anywhere in the world but in Iran. Ironically, Homelessness is less visible and common in Tehran than most European capitals. These idiots and their exaggerated lies and the fake news they spread about anything to do with Iran, have basically sensationalized and polluted the political atmosphere so much, that it’s actually become more difficult for the real genuine political activists to criticize the Iranian regime on the many issues it needs to be criticized on...
Even when that is the case, they seem to like the experience https://www.1843magazine.com/features/trapped-in-iran NICOLAS PELHAM | FEBRUARY/MARCH 2020
Now the disillusion campaign begins. If there is propaganda, there should be a disillusion as well to balance the reality. This project was from late 70s during late king era. City planning, land purchase, and tower design was done during 70s but 1978 revolution halted the project. Islamic regime during President Khatami era (a relatively level headed and wise man of regime) started the old king project in 1997 and took them 10 years to complete it. The actual image is more like this with dangerous air pollution of Tehran which I talk about it later. This causeway and tunnel were under construction for as long as I remember I grew up, left Iran and went back and it was still under construction. This was also another relic project of the past which took maybe 30 or more years to complete it. Fun fact, it is usually congested and sometimes make it worse to navigate through Tehran passing through this. This one helped to control traffic in West of capital and was a useful project but the uniform tall buildings on both side of highway were to mask the outside boundary from visiting tourists, guests and visitors without watching dirty old neighborhoods, pollution, poor people and crowded streets. It works as a blanket for a bigger problem. These area were developed by IRGC using public funds and only for real state business they were involved. They wanted to jack up the prices and cash in. IRGC had gained the lands in vicinity of these area by bribery and force. Mayor of Tehran, Ghalibaf was a former IRGC commander who left city hall with billions of dollars debt and scandalous money embezzlements. Here is former mayor and IRGC commander Ghalibaf. Iran mall or formerly known as Tat Mall was owned by Iranian bank Tat. The person who created Tat bank was Ali Ansari a man well connected to IRGC and supreme leader. The guy avoided the draft during Iran-Iraq war. He had a furniture making shop south of Tehran. When Ahmadi nejad took power, Ali Ansari became a multi billion dollar businessman through IRGC and massive corruption. His scandalous money embezzlement was covered up when Tat bank went bankrupt and thousands of people lost their savings. His sister is wife of former IRGC commander-in-cheaf Sardar Jaffari. Iran mall in owned by IRGC through Ali Ansari and Commander Mohamad Ali Jaffari. Ali Alinsari is under investigation by Iranian Parliament for land grab and corruption.