Farewell. The Flying Pig Has Left The Building.

Steve Hynd, August 16, 2012

After four years on the Typepad site, eight years total blogging, Newshoggers is closing it's doors today. We've been coasting the last year or so, with many of us moving on to bigger projects (Hey, Eric!) or simply running out of blogging enthusiasm, and it's time to give the old flying pig a rest.

We've done okay over those eight years, although never being quite PC enough to gain wider acceptance from the partisan "party right or wrong" crowds. We like to think we moved political conversations a little, on the ever-present wish to rush to war with Iran, on the need for a real Left that isn't licking corporatist Dem boots every cycle, on America's foreign misadventures in Afghanistan and Iraq. We like to think we made a small difference while writing under that flying pig banner. We did pretty good for a bunch with no ties to big-party apparatuses or think tanks.

Those eight years of blogging will still exist. Because we're ending this typepad account, we've been archiving the typepad blog here. And the original blogger archive is still here. There will still be new content from the old 'hoggers crew too. Ron writes for The Moderate Voice, I post at The Agonist and Eric Martin's lucid foreign policy thoughts can be read at Democracy Arsenal.

I'd like to thank all our regular commenters, readers and the other bloggers who regularly linked to our posts over the years to agree or disagree. You all made writing for 'hoggers an amazingly fun and stimulating experience.

Thank you very much.

Note: This is an archive copy of Newshoggers. Most of the pictures are gone but the words are all here. There may be some occasional new content, John may do some posts and Ron will cross post some of his contributions to The Moderate Voice so check back.


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Saturday, December 26, 2009

Iran Simmers (One update)

1:15 PM  I'm adding new material at the top of the post to make it easier to locate for returning visitors.





H/T Blake Hounshell's tweet

'Mousavi nephew' among Iran dead



The nephew of Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi is reportedly among eight people killed in continuing clashes between police and protesters.



An aide to the leader said on Sunday that Seyyed Ali Mousavi died after being shot by the police, but the claim could not be independently verified as foreign news organisations are barred by the authorities from covering street unrest.

Iranian state television, however, confirmed that several people were killed in clashes.



Opposition websites said at least four protesters had been killed in the capital Tehran while another four died in a violent crackdown on opposition protests in the northwestern city of Tabriz.



"During clashes between security forces and protesters ... at least four protesters were killed in Tabriz and many others wounded," the Jaras website said.



It earlier said that four protesters had died in Tehran and protesters chanted angry slogans seeking revenge.




"We will kill those who killed our brothers," it quoted demonstrators as chanting.



Pictures linked on the Twitter microblogging site appeared to show a man with a wound to his head being carried away by opposition protesters.



[More at the link...]





Tom Watson raises a good question.



Am I the only one who thinks the 'keyboard brigade' trying to 'support' #iran street protests is lame, both left and right?

I can see that. The Left is a rich source of unbending doctrinaire principles carrying the weight of heavy-duty intellectuals. And the Right wakes up in the morning waving flags and rattling sabers for xenophobic causes. If you don't believe it take a look at American politics during 2009. Obama is a canary in the mine. The Left crucifies him for betraying their unyielding idealism and the Right cries out for blood because he's too far to the left and not macho enough. (No one ever is, you know.) Meantime, the guy soldiers on, seeking pragmatic solutions and eschewing impulses to act on emotion or intuition alone. 

?000?

Anyone who has ever tracked street politics on the Web knows how exciting it can be. I'm not going to attempt live blogging because when the dust settles most of the good stuff will find its way to the top anyway. I learned that much from the tsunami, Lebanon, the Balkans and Katrina.

Now with Twitter the pace is faster than ever. Hashtag #Iran is the go-to place. In just the last minute I found these links...


  • http://tehranlive.org/2009/12/27/war-in-tehran-streets-on-ashura-day/ (dramatic photos and videos. I haven't seen them yet but as soon as this is posted that will be the end for me.)

  • And someone else, posting partly in Chinese characters, said "If Chinese want 2help #iran, please hack IRNA, IRIB, Fars & PressTV websites"




?=============00000=============?



Original post begins here...
By John Ballard



I leave it to wiser analysts than I to interpret what's happening in Iran, but this video and link are too important to skip.
This much I know.
World Islam is divided into Sunni and Shiite followers.
The Shiite day of Ashura is as important a focal point to them as Christmas or Easter are to Christians.
Last week's passing of Grand Ayatollah Ali Montazeri last week comes at a time when politics and protests in Iran are forming what appears to be critical mass.



I am not informed well enough to connect all the dots, but if nothing else it seems clear to me that this is a fragile moment for the Iranian leadership.



Former reformist President Mohamad Khatami's speech on the eve of Ashura was disrupted yesterday when approximately 50 security forces attacked the former residence of Ayatollah Khomeini (where Khatami was speaking) and started chanting "Death to those who oppose the Supreme Leader.� After a tense fifteen minute standoff, Khatami was escorted away by his body guards before tear gas was fired to disperse the mourners he was addressing.



Clashes soon reportedly broke out in the surrounding streets, where the protesters who had gathered were beaten with chains and batons. The license plates of those cars that honked their horns in solidarity with the protesters were also said to have been removed.



The dramatic footage from inside sermon hall when Khatami's speech is interrupted is embedded below:





And here is a link to a blog in English I have now added to my aggregator.



H/T Abbas. But you already know that.

?000?

SUNDAY MORNING 5:50 AM





If anyone is killed on Ashura day; the regime will have signed its own death sentence ...



It seems three people have been killed in downtown Tehran--(Hafiz Bridge; in front of Amir Kabir University) ... things are escalating out of hand and I strongly think this escalation is "designed" by the IRGC/Basij ... they are trying to create an atmosphere of fear and are angry that people don't seem to be really scared! (4:30 AM Eastern time zone)



This film is from Taleghani-three way; not too far from Hafiz Bridge. In this video I like to draw your attention to the attendance of children. What the regime should be REALLY scared of is that in the pat 30 years they fed us so many movies and TV series about the bravery and the tactics employed by revolutionaries of 1979 to topple Shah. So, the IRI has been the best school for these kind of movements; no matter how much they want to blame it on BBC!!!!







Clashes are reported in the following cities:(4:54 AM; Estern)




  • Qom: Iran's vatican!

  • Isfahan: Iran's cradle of shiite art and culture

  • NajafAbad: a city in the province of Isfahan, where Ayatollah Montazeri was from

  • Shiraz: the capital of Perspolis.

  • Ardabil: In so many ways, the birthplace of Iran's Shiite State

  • Babol: The Northeren site of Mithraism

  • Tabriz: The front-line of Iran's revolutions and resistance.

  • Mashhad: The holy city. 


And, what are the OFFICIAL IRI news agencies reporting?




  • Tasou'a in Kuwait!

  • Ashura in Japan!!

  • And the glory of an IRI-approved attendance in a village!! (Damn they removed the link after I commented on it; and have now replaced it with some blabber about magnificent attendace in Ghazvin, Semnan, Mashhad, Yazd)


This is the moment that the noon prayer has ended in Iran; and that means things are going to get worse from here!

Latest death (martyr) toll 5 ... 5:37 AM, EST.






Five years ago today, the day after December 26, called Boxing Day in the Commonwealth, I was blogging in the early hours about the Indonesia tsunami. The word was not at that time part of most people's vocabulary, but now it is as familiar as avalanche. 
Something tells me the word Ashura is about to become another familiar word in English. 

?000?


Following Their Religious Leader (Imam Hussein), People At Imam Hussein Square Resist to Death



Iran News Agency � Ashoora � 11:00

People move towards Ferdowsi square after capturing Imam Hussein Square. Armed forces violently beat anyone they find on their way, especially those riding motorbikes with white helmets. Despite ruthless attacks on demonstrators, people are resisting.



People shout slogans:




  • Kamenei knows that he will soon be overthrown

  • Death to this Yazidi regime

  • Death to the dictator

  • This is a month of blood � Khamenei will be overthrown

  • Proud iranians � support us support us

  • Abolfazl the banner holder � Remove the dictator


Translation � Persian2English





?000?



Recent You Tube video links





Iran 27 Dec 09 Tehran Baharestan Ashura Protest 



***








***
Ashoura Uprising in Iran; People fight back, Dec. 27, 2009 WMV (Audio only. Not in English. Described in the sidebar as important.) "An Important Audio of Ashura Events in Iran. Tehran - Dec. 27, 2009"





BBC reports

Tehran police 'in fatal clashes with protesters'



Fierce clashes have erupted between Iranian security forces and opposition demonstrators trying to gather in the centre of the capital, Tehran.


Unconfirmed reports say at least one person has been shot dead.

Iranian opposition parties had called on people to take to the streets as the Shia Muslim festival of Ashura reached a climax.


People were chanting "Khamenei will be toppled", opposition sources said, a reference to Iran's Supreme Leader.




Initial reports said the security forces fired in the air as they moved to disperse demonstrators, but there are several different reports all saying that at least one, and possibly as many as four demonstrators, have been shot dead.




Foreign media are banned from reporting directly on opposition demonstrations and the reported deaths could not be independently verified.



Although there were deaths in the immediate aftermath of the disputed elections and protests in June, fatalities since then have been rare.

The security forces clearly have to tread a fine line between not appearing weak but also not provoking opposition protesters, says Siavash Ardalan of BBC Persian TV.



...On the ground, the security forces clashed with protesters trying to reach central Enghelab Square, witnesses said.

Protesters were chanting, "This is the month of blood", and calling for the downfall of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to opposition websites.



At the same time, crowds of pro-government demonstrators marched on Enghelab Stereet to voice support for Ayatollah Khamenei, witnesses said.




Protests were also reported in the cities of Isfahan and Najafabad.

Tensions have risen in Iran since influential dissident cleric Grand Ayatollah Hoseyn Ali Montazeri died a week ago aged 87.



Supporters of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi have sought to use Shia religious festivals this weekend to show continued defiance of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government.

Denied the right to protest, the opposition chose the highly significant festival of Ashura when millions of Iranians traditionally go onto the streets for ceremonies and parades, BBC Tehran correspondent Jon Leyne says.



The festival mourns the 7th Century death of Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad.



Mr Mousavi came second in the June election, and anger at the result saw mass protests in Tehran and other cities that led to thousands of arrests and some deaths.

Mr Mousavi has said the poll, that returned President Ahmadinejad to power, was fraudulent.





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1 comment:

  1. Russ WellenDecember 27, 2009 at 3:18 AM

    Thanks for keeping us up to date, John. Yes, hard to tell what this portends.

    ReplyDelete

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