I Guess "Never Again" Is As Arbitrary As The UN's Charter
A story that came from a Canadian news service states that Iran has introduced a new dress code. It's one that involves identifying who is a Jew and a Christian. This story has a serious point of contention as to whether or not it's true. If it is, I'd like all those that believe in the phrase "Never Again" to stand up, and condemn this move; possibly initiate sanctions against Iran. These are the same steps taken by Hitler when he became chancellor of Germany. The new news in this unfolding saga comes today. John Hinderacker points out that even though the story is not yet proven true, Amir Taheri penned a piece for the New York Post that virtually confirms the story, and adds a little extra. It breaks down the law itself:
(NOTE: All Emphasis Is Mine)
WHILE Iran's economy appears to be heading for recession, one sector may have some reason for optimism. That sector is the garment industry and the reason for its optimism is a law passed by the Islamic Majlis (parliament) on Monday.
The law mandates the government to make sure that all Iranians wear "standard Islamic garments" designed to remove ethnic and class distinctions reflected in clothing, and to eliminate "the influence of the infidel" on the way Iranians, especially the young, dress.
It also envisages separate dress codes for religious minorities, Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians, who will have to adopt distinct color schemes to make them identifiable in public. The new codes would enable Muslims to instantly recognize non-Muslims so that they can avoid shaking hands with them by mistake, and thus becoming najis" (unclean).
Have the frelling alarm bells gone off yet for anyone? Identifiable in public? "Unclean?" This sounds vaguely Naziesque to us, and it shares a great number of similarities. Not only in the identification of Jews, but other minorities in Iran. Can anyone imagine another country doing this?
The new law, drafted during the presidency of Muhammad Khatami in 2004, had been blocked within the Majlis. That blockage, however, has been removed under pressure from Khatami's successor, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The new law replaces the one passed in 1982 dealing with women's clothes. That law imposed the hijab and focused on the need to force women to cover their hair in public. The emphasis on hijab was based on the belief that women's hair emanates an "evil ray" that drives men "into lustful irrationality" and thus causes harm to Islam.
Memo to the Iranians: Men don't necessariyl react that way to hair, nor are their any "evil rays" that emanate from their hair. It's called human nature, and it isn't uncommon. It is the driving force behind over six billion people on the planet.
The new law cannot come into effect until consensus is reached on what constitutes "authentic Islamic attire."
The world's estimated 1.3 billion Muslims live in more than 180 different countries and dress in a bewilderingly large number of styles reflecting national, tribal, ethnic and folkloric traditions. The Ethnological Museum in Tehran shows that Iran itself is home to hundreds of different styles of clothing for men and women.
According to Ahmadinejad, the new Islamic uniforms will establish "visual equality" for Iranians as they prepare for the return of the Hidden Imam. A committee that consists of members from the Ministry of Islamic Orientation, the Ministry of Commerce and the Cultural Subcommittee of the Islamic Majlis is scheduled to propose the new uniforms by next autumn. These would then have to be approved by "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei before being imposed by law.
Danger Will Robinson! We're back to the wacky "hidden Imam" (12th Imam, for regular readers who missed that they're one in the same) theories again. The Left accuses the president of religious zealotry, and "ramming" his faith down the nation's throat, but not like Ahmadinejad. He's not only driving his people to continue following this blood-thirsty sect of Islam, but telling them that they will behold their "messiah" within a coulple of years. I'm a Christian, and if some wacky preacher told me I'd see Christ in two or three years, it may stick in my head, but I'm not taking him seriously. (Of course, this goes back to Matthew: 24:42 "Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.")
Although the final shape of the uniforms is yet to be established, there is consensus on a number of points. The idea of adopting an Arab-style robe (known as dishdash) for men has been rejected along with a proposal that men wear a form of turban.
"Iranians have always worn trousers," says Mostafa Pourhardani, minister of Islamic orientation. "Even when the ancient Greeks wore woman-style dresses with skirts, the Persians had trousers. We are not going to force Iranian men to do away with trousers, although they predate Islam." What men will wear on top is not clear yet.
Some Islamic experts want a kind of long, almost European-style jacket known as sardari and used in Iran for centuries. Others propose only a waistcoat.
On color schemes, however, there seems to be consensus. Islamic legislators are unanimous that Islam is incompatible with "gay, wild, provocative colors" such as red, yellow and light blue (which are supposed to be favored by Satan). The colors to be imposed by law are expected to be black, brown, dark blue and dark gray.
Or, possibly all four colors. Anyone remember the Nuremberg Laws which allowed for legal discrimination against the Jews in Germany under Hitler in 1935? The steps are so clear that it's sickening.
Some Majlis members have been trying to lift the ban on green - which is, after all, the color of the Bani Hashem, the family of the Prophet Muhammad, and thus regarded as the color of Islam. The majority view, however, is that green is not "serious enough" to underline the gravity of a Muslim man's position.
Notice that? The Iranians are willing to toss aside a point of pride for Mohammed in favor of what their religious leaders state? Tell me again that this is the majority of Islam; I know a few Islamic people and they are against this sort of postulating by Iran.
Religious minorities would have their own color schemes. They will also have to wear special insignia, known as zonnar, to indicate their non-Islamic faiths. Jews would be marked out with a yellow strip of cloth sewn in front of their clothes, while Christians will be assigned the color red. Zoroastrians end up with Persian blue as the color of their zonnar.
It is not clear what will happen to followers of other religions, including Hindus, Bahais and Buddhists - not to mention plain agnostics and atheists, whose very existence is denied by the Islamic Republic.
The new law imposes a total ban on wearing neckties and bow ties, which are regarded as "symbols of the Cross." Will Iranian Christians be allowed to wear them, nevertheless? No one knows.
The law also mandates the government to wage a campaign against "expensive attire" without defining it. Some mullahs, for example, wear robes made of pure hand-woven silk that cost several thousand dollars. Nor is it clear whether the kind of blouson that Ahmadinejad often wears would be deemed Islamic. (Shops in Tehran are selling the so-called "presidential" blouson for $3 apiece.)
One aim of the new law is to impose a total ban on imports of clothes and dress designs from the West. The Majlis hopes that all jeans will disappear form the Iranian scene within five years. The boutiques selling haute couture Western gear for men and women will also be closed over the next few years. A total ban on designer items, marked by logos, will come into force by the end of the year.
The economic attack on the West has begun. This was a point of contention a few weeks back on our open topic Sunday posts when the girls went at it over the Strait of Hormuz, and what might happen if it were closed by Iran, or what could be done to prevent it or reopen it. That was an economic attack on a grand scale, but for many retailers that enjoy their products being sold in Iran, this could be a precursor of what Iran is capable of.
There is no sense in a Muslim man or woman wearing something that is, in fact, an advertisement for an infidel designer or clothing merchant," says Pourhardani.
Another aim of the new law is to abolish the chador, the overall piece of cloth that Iranian women have tucked themselves in for centuries. The reason is that the chador existed before the Khomeinist revolution and thus cannot be regarded as "properly Islamic." Women must wear clothes that would, in fact, transform them into advertising billboards for the regime's ideology.
One remaining problem is to decide the age at which girls should wear the uniforms. At present, the hijab is mandatory from the age of 6. But some of Ahmadinejad's advisers want to reduce that to 4.
During the committee debates on the new law, some Majlis members tried to include articles determining the shape and size of men's beards and moustaches and impose an Islamic standard for male facial hair. But it was agreed that the issue be tackled in another bill to be presented to the Majlis next year.
By September, the Majlis is expected to approve an initial budget of $800 million to help "the poor and the needy" adopt the new uniforms. All public-sector workers, estimated to number 4.5 million, will be in uniform by 2009 at the latest.
What is already labeled "the Islamic clothes revolution" will not be limited to Iran. Tehran has already sent a team to Lebanon to inform the Hezbollah of the new law and train cadres to impose it on Lebanese Shiites.
"Our aim is to make sure that every Muslim, wherever he or she happens to be on this earth, is a living and walking symbol of Islam," says Pourhardani.
And us poor, slob infidels don't get to partake unless we convert. Please. This is anything but a revolution. It's a broadside to the West; a direct challenge for them to do something about it. This sort of dress code was used, to an extent during the reign of Hitler's Nazi Germany. Nazi party people knew one another on sight, and knew a jew on sight. If Iran tries to spin this other than what it is, they must really think the world is that stupid. (Of course, the UN hasn't weighed in yet, so hold off on that "the world is that stupid" comment. They could prove me wrong.)
What's even more disgusting about this new law, and the move in Iran to adopt it as quickly as possible is that it's in the open. Ahmadinejad didn't do anything to cover this law's passing, or even consideration. It's clear as the day is long. But what is even more unsettling are the people who aren't saying a thing. Namely, the world leaders in our coalition of the willing. (If the president's made a statement, I haven't found it yet.) We say that Islam is silent when a terrorist strikes, yet all I hear are crickets chirping in response to this. Well, except for Israel, who isn;t too happy, and draws the same conclusions that many on the center-right of the blogosphere have.
It's 1932 all over again, folks. Time to make sure history doesn't repeat itself this trime.
Publius II
A story that came from a Canadian news service states that Iran has introduced a new dress code. It's one that involves identifying who is a Jew and a Christian. This story has a serious point of contention as to whether or not it's true. If it is, I'd like all those that believe in the phrase "Never Again" to stand up, and condemn this move; possibly initiate sanctions against Iran. These are the same steps taken by Hitler when he became chancellor of Germany. The new news in this unfolding saga comes today. John Hinderacker points out that even though the story is not yet proven true, Amir Taheri penned a piece for the New York Post that virtually confirms the story, and adds a little extra. It breaks down the law itself:
(NOTE: All Emphasis Is Mine)
WHILE Iran's economy appears to be heading for recession, one sector may have some reason for optimism. That sector is the garment industry and the reason for its optimism is a law passed by the Islamic Majlis (parliament) on Monday.
The law mandates the government to make sure that all Iranians wear "standard Islamic garments" designed to remove ethnic and class distinctions reflected in clothing, and to eliminate "the influence of the infidel" on the way Iranians, especially the young, dress.
It also envisages separate dress codes for religious minorities, Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians, who will have to adopt distinct color schemes to make them identifiable in public. The new codes would enable Muslims to instantly recognize non-Muslims so that they can avoid shaking hands with them by mistake, and thus becoming najis" (unclean).
Have the frelling alarm bells gone off yet for anyone? Identifiable in public? "Unclean?" This sounds vaguely Naziesque to us, and it shares a great number of similarities. Not only in the identification of Jews, but other minorities in Iran. Can anyone imagine another country doing this?
The new law, drafted during the presidency of Muhammad Khatami in 2004, had been blocked within the Majlis. That blockage, however, has been removed under pressure from Khatami's successor, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The new law replaces the one passed in 1982 dealing with women's clothes. That law imposed the hijab and focused on the need to force women to cover their hair in public. The emphasis on hijab was based on the belief that women's hair emanates an "evil ray" that drives men "into lustful irrationality" and thus causes harm to Islam.
Memo to the Iranians: Men don't necessariyl react that way to hair, nor are their any "evil rays" that emanate from their hair. It's called human nature, and it isn't uncommon. It is the driving force behind over six billion people on the planet.
The new law cannot come into effect until consensus is reached on what constitutes "authentic Islamic attire."
The world's estimated 1.3 billion Muslims live in more than 180 different countries and dress in a bewilderingly large number of styles reflecting national, tribal, ethnic and folkloric traditions. The Ethnological Museum in Tehran shows that Iran itself is home to hundreds of different styles of clothing for men and women.
According to Ahmadinejad, the new Islamic uniforms will establish "visual equality" for Iranians as they prepare for the return of the Hidden Imam. A committee that consists of members from the Ministry of Islamic Orientation, the Ministry of Commerce and the Cultural Subcommittee of the Islamic Majlis is scheduled to propose the new uniforms by next autumn. These would then have to be approved by "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei before being imposed by law.
Danger Will Robinson! We're back to the wacky "hidden Imam" (12th Imam, for regular readers who missed that they're one in the same) theories again. The Left accuses the president of religious zealotry, and "ramming" his faith down the nation's throat, but not like Ahmadinejad. He's not only driving his people to continue following this blood-thirsty sect of Islam, but telling them that they will behold their "messiah" within a coulple of years. I'm a Christian, and if some wacky preacher told me I'd see Christ in two or three years, it may stick in my head, but I'm not taking him seriously. (Of course, this goes back to Matthew: 24:42 "Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.")
Although the final shape of the uniforms is yet to be established, there is consensus on a number of points. The idea of adopting an Arab-style robe (known as dishdash) for men has been rejected along with a proposal that men wear a form of turban.
"Iranians have always worn trousers," says Mostafa Pourhardani, minister of Islamic orientation. "Even when the ancient Greeks wore woman-style dresses with skirts, the Persians had trousers. We are not going to force Iranian men to do away with trousers, although they predate Islam." What men will wear on top is not clear yet.
Some Islamic experts want a kind of long, almost European-style jacket known as sardari and used in Iran for centuries. Others propose only a waistcoat.
On color schemes, however, there seems to be consensus. Islamic legislators are unanimous that Islam is incompatible with "gay, wild, provocative colors" such as red, yellow and light blue (which are supposed to be favored by Satan). The colors to be imposed by law are expected to be black, brown, dark blue and dark gray.
Or, possibly all four colors. Anyone remember the Nuremberg Laws which allowed for legal discrimination against the Jews in Germany under Hitler in 1935? The steps are so clear that it's sickening.
Some Majlis members have been trying to lift the ban on green - which is, after all, the color of the Bani Hashem, the family of the Prophet Muhammad, and thus regarded as the color of Islam. The majority view, however, is that green is not "serious enough" to underline the gravity of a Muslim man's position.
Notice that? The Iranians are willing to toss aside a point of pride for Mohammed in favor of what their religious leaders state? Tell me again that this is the majority of Islam; I know a few Islamic people and they are against this sort of postulating by Iran.
Religious minorities would have their own color schemes. They will also have to wear special insignia, known as zonnar, to indicate their non-Islamic faiths. Jews would be marked out with a yellow strip of cloth sewn in front of their clothes, while Christians will be assigned the color red. Zoroastrians end up with Persian blue as the color of their zonnar.
It is not clear what will happen to followers of other religions, including Hindus, Bahais and Buddhists - not to mention plain agnostics and atheists, whose very existence is denied by the Islamic Republic.
The new law imposes a total ban on wearing neckties and bow ties, which are regarded as "symbols of the Cross." Will Iranian Christians be allowed to wear them, nevertheless? No one knows.
The law also mandates the government to wage a campaign against "expensive attire" without defining it. Some mullahs, for example, wear robes made of pure hand-woven silk that cost several thousand dollars. Nor is it clear whether the kind of blouson that Ahmadinejad often wears would be deemed Islamic. (Shops in Tehran are selling the so-called "presidential" blouson for $3 apiece.)
One aim of the new law is to impose a total ban on imports of clothes and dress designs from the West. The Majlis hopes that all jeans will disappear form the Iranian scene within five years. The boutiques selling haute couture Western gear for men and women will also be closed over the next few years. A total ban on designer items, marked by logos, will come into force by the end of the year.
The economic attack on the West has begun. This was a point of contention a few weeks back on our open topic Sunday posts when the girls went at it over the Strait of Hormuz, and what might happen if it were closed by Iran, or what could be done to prevent it or reopen it. That was an economic attack on a grand scale, but for many retailers that enjoy their products being sold in Iran, this could be a precursor of what Iran is capable of.
There is no sense in a Muslim man or woman wearing something that is, in fact, an advertisement for an infidel designer or clothing merchant," says Pourhardani.
Another aim of the new law is to abolish the chador, the overall piece of cloth that Iranian women have tucked themselves in for centuries. The reason is that the chador existed before the Khomeinist revolution and thus cannot be regarded as "properly Islamic." Women must wear clothes that would, in fact, transform them into advertising billboards for the regime's ideology.
One remaining problem is to decide the age at which girls should wear the uniforms. At present, the hijab is mandatory from the age of 6. But some of Ahmadinejad's advisers want to reduce that to 4.
During the committee debates on the new law, some Majlis members tried to include articles determining the shape and size of men's beards and moustaches and impose an Islamic standard for male facial hair. But it was agreed that the issue be tackled in another bill to be presented to the Majlis next year.
By September, the Majlis is expected to approve an initial budget of $800 million to help "the poor and the needy" adopt the new uniforms. All public-sector workers, estimated to number 4.5 million, will be in uniform by 2009 at the latest.
What is already labeled "the Islamic clothes revolution" will not be limited to Iran. Tehran has already sent a team to Lebanon to inform the Hezbollah of the new law and train cadres to impose it on Lebanese Shiites.
"Our aim is to make sure that every Muslim, wherever he or she happens to be on this earth, is a living and walking symbol of Islam," says Pourhardani.
And us poor, slob infidels don't get to partake unless we convert. Please. This is anything but a revolution. It's a broadside to the West; a direct challenge for them to do something about it. This sort of dress code was used, to an extent during the reign of Hitler's Nazi Germany. Nazi party people knew one another on sight, and knew a jew on sight. If Iran tries to spin this other than what it is, they must really think the world is that stupid. (Of course, the UN hasn't weighed in yet, so hold off on that "the world is that stupid" comment. They could prove me wrong.)
What's even more disgusting about this new law, and the move in Iran to adopt it as quickly as possible is that it's in the open. Ahmadinejad didn't do anything to cover this law's passing, or even consideration. It's clear as the day is long. But what is even more unsettling are the people who aren't saying a thing. Namely, the world leaders in our coalition of the willing. (If the president's made a statement, I haven't found it yet.) We say that Islam is silent when a terrorist strikes, yet all I hear are crickets chirping in response to this. Well, except for Israel, who isn;t too happy, and draws the same conclusions that many on the center-right of the blogosphere have.
It's 1932 all over again, folks. Time to make sure history doesn't repeat itself this trime.
Publius II
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 8:29 PM
1 Comments:
Good blogs. I saw Iran's color plan. I immediately thought of the Hitler's Nazi regime. Is there any word on what Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is thinking. I understand the traditional dark female veils (Hijab) as oppose to the light shade is mandated. So Christians get Red? What shade? I notice Hamas is Green and the UN is light blue. I see a conflict between the Zoroastrians and the UN. Maybe they will have a catchall dhimmis color. It appears Iran leaders are serious about this move. I see it as isolation and at the same time imposing Islam on the world. We will have to wait and see it is spreads. Rawriter
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