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[substitute]

1) http://www.freemikehawash.org/ is now accepting online donations. I gave, you should too.

2) http://www.latimes.com/news/local/orange/la-me-iranian4apr04,1,572774.story?coll=la%2Deditions%2Dorange (requires registration). Long story short, an Iranian man is in jail forever for an immigration problem and even the immigration people want him out, but the judge won't let an Iranian go. All resulted from a day trip to Canada while on vacation in 1993.

For shame. For shame. What country is this, anyway?

Comments

[autodidactic.livejournal.com]

Christ on crutches. This country has always been something I've been uncomfortable to call my place of birth; in recent times, I've become downright ashamed to be American. Now that I see this, I think this has kicked me over into not wanting to acknowledge that I'm an American at all.

I will see what I can do, though.

A.

[flipzagging.livejournal.com]

I've chatted a couple of times with an Iranian guy* who does the night shift at a creperie.

He fled Iran a long time back, but nowadays can't believe what's going on in the States. Although he feels he's crazy to think it, he catches himself wondering if soon there won't be much difference between here and there. He's seen how fast things can change.

He says he knows what repressive regimes look like and this registration thing is, quote, "the action of a dictator".

* Aside: he's a computer geek, but of the Windows ilk. Manages networks by day and does this job at night -- his wife works the day shifts. He's got the whole place elaborately tricked out with the video cameras and multiple computers and laptops all running VNC, so he can check on his wife during the day.