“Throw Away Your Pen And Paper”
Over the last few days, something was visibly happening in Iran. The images of women and young people flocking to the streets in support of reformist candidate Mir Hussein Moussavi displayed the kind of hopeful unrest that promised a sea change. Many have conceded that Mr. Moussavi was a sort of political blank slate, making it hard to say what his Presidency would have meant to the country and the world. Nonetheless, the last few days reflected the intersection of emotional intensity and politics, reminiscent of what we saw here in the US in 2008. On Saturday, these supporters sat in anguish as current President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner in an apparent landslide. The results are suspect, and accordingly, blogs and twitter and facebook consist of speculation and reporting of what’s currently going on as Moussavi supporters take their cause to the streets.
Roger Cohen’s column in the Times today notes a women telling him:
“Throw away your pen and paper and come to our aid,” she said, pointing to my notebook. “There is no freedom here.”
Andrew Sullivan, The Tehran Bureau, and Nader Uskowi are all doing an incredible job of uncovering events as they unfold.
Today, my thoughts are with the Iranian people.