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Just read a good article. Thought to share with you. US directs Iran to act like a ‘normal’ country. What is a normal country? After reimposing crippling sanctions on Iran this week, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threatened that Iran should “act like a normal country, or see its economy crumble.” But, how exactly does a ‘normal’ country act? Since the dictat was issued from Washington DC, it seems only fair to start there. Is the United States itself a ‘normal’ country? What makes a ‘normal’ country as opposed to an ‘abnormal’ one? Foreign Policy If the US is indeed a 'normal' country, there is a lot we can glean from that, including that a militaristic and bullying foreign policy, which regularly features bombings, invasions and the sponsorship of regime change operations around the world, is normal behavior. If this is normal, is Mike Pompeo suggesting that Iran should start invading its neighbors and engineering foreign coups? The ideology of ‘American exceptionalism’, the belief that the US is inherently good and unique among nations, is so pervasive in American society and media, that any politician who does not strictly adhere to it will find themselves labeled as un-American or unpatriotic. American exceptionalism also makes it ‘normal’, celebrated even, for the US government to spend more than $650 billion on the military every year - more than the next seven countries combined. Pompeo himself is a strict adherent to this ideology, recently discussing the “essential rightness” of the US in global affairs. But hey, one man’s normal is another man’s imperialist militarism. Crime The US regularly issues travel advisories to citizens traveling to other countries, warning them about crime rates, instances of political violence etc., but what ratings the US get if other countries were dishing them out as frequently? There have been over 300 mass shootings in the US in 2018 alone. That’s nearly one mass shooting every day so far this year (we’re on day 311). These shootings have become so ‘normal’ that there’s a website which does nothing but track them as they happen. There were 11,000 gun-related deaths in 2016 and statistics show that Americans are twice as likely to die from gun violence than they are to die while riding inside a car, truck, or van, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Police brutality Police in the US shot dead 987 people last year. By contrast, German police shot dead 14 people in the same year. Germany’s population is four times smaller, but if it matched that of the US, only 56 people would have been killed at this rate. In the US, statistics also show that black men are shot at disproportionately high rates compared to the rest of the population. In fact, black men (armed and unarmed) made up 22 percent of the total number of people killed by police in 2017 - but they make up just six percent of the population. Harrowing videos have shown police shoot unarmed black men in the back as they attempted to run away or choking them to death for selling untaxed cigarettes. Yet, rarely do police face trial for these shootings - and fewer still are convicted. Maybe that’s what Pompeo means by ‘normal’? Healthcare Americans spent roughly $3.4 trillion on health care in 2017, which would work out at about $10,350 per person if you divided it equally. That number is twice what any other developed country spends - and yet, the system is so inefficient and broken that there are still about 30 million Americans without health insurance. Some of them are forced to choose between buying food or buying medication because the costs of prescription drugs are so high. It’s estimated that 45,000 Americans die every year simply because they can’t afford health cover. Is that how things work in a ‘normal’ country? It is also the only developed country that does not provide maternity leave. Education Receiving a good college education in the US can be an expensive affair. So expensive in fact, that students often end up saddled with debt for decades. Americans currently owe $1.5 trillion in student loan debt. Meanwhile, public education is so underfunded in the US that some schools are falling apart. One study found that 94 percent of US public school teachers use their own paychecks to buy essential supplies for their classrooms due to underfunding. In April, Oklahoma teachers went on a nine-day strike complaining that their low wages won’t allow them to make ends meet. During the walkout, pictures of falling-apart textbooks were posted online, prompting one student to admit she “didn’t realize that people had textbooks with covers on them.” Anything can become normal when you get used to it. USA DIRECTS IRAN TO ACT LIKE A "NORMAL" COUNTRY

Salem, imagine, I have oil from my bike'a chain on my finger. Than I touch an impure place. After that I touch another place with the same finger. Does this place become impure? Mustn't it be something watery? Oil does not contain water, right? thank you very much w Salam

BBC Reports say that Russia has won the Syrian war, the article describes it at link given below: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-42082615 The article also raises the concern over the peace process in Syria. Comments from members are welcome.

Interesting reading. http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/specialseries/2016/10/taliban-oil-afghanistan-161004085739050.html

The truth of wars in the world.

S.a. I was wondering if we have a shia community based in Aberdeen, UK?

Dear brother Hope you all saw these article. We need to comment on all these. Fortunately I have a old copy( Grand Father's) of Allama Yusuf Ali's Translation The Saudi is pouring oil money to distort the Islamic books. They are making new edition of all the books deleting what ever they do not like under the name "abridged ". And freely distributing among mislims and giving to libraries. Sometimes they encourages to "destroy" old copies. Plz read http://www.al-islam.org/tahrif/yusufali/index.htm

http://memebase.com/2012/03/23/internet-memes-scumbag-government/ a good counter-comment from one of the more intelleigent meme-followers: ''You DO realize that Iran is not some deserted, third-world country, right? And that the world’s oil supply isn’t going to last forever, and that alternate power sources need to be developed and put into operation? And that the research performed at their universities requires access to research reactors, just like every other country? I once worked with a post-doc from Iran in the field of theoretical physical chemistry. This was the time that the PS2 was banned for export to Iran, because the U.S. was afraid they would link the Cell chips in them together to create research servers. IMO, if there’s one thing that a theocratic country needs more than anything in the world, is knowledge. And the U.S. oppression of the pursuit of that knowledge isn’t doing the world any favors.'' also note the attackes after he posted that..

India Trade Delegation Bucks US Sanctions on Iran Posted on 03/18/2012 by Juan A major Indian trade delegation to Iran has pronounced the trip a success. The development underscores how difficult it will be for the Obama administration and the European Union to impose ‘crippling’ sanctions on Iran. India imports $11 billion a year in petroleum from Iran, its second-largest supplier. The Indian economy is growing rapidly and the number of cars and trucks in the country is expanding along with it. 70% of petroleum in the world is used to fuel vehicles. The unilateral US and EU financial sanctions on Iran have crippled its international banking access. As a result, Iran is seeking barter arrangements. Instead of important things from Europe, Tehran instead will buy Indian-made goods, essentially bartering them for petroleum. Iran will also buy Indian goods with gold bullion. At the moment, Iran imports less than $3 billion in goods annually from India, but this trade imbalance is likely to be redressed soon. India has also just exempted rupee payments made by Indian firms for Iranian petroleum from steep taxes, encouraging the trade. Here are the reasons India is resisting US, European and Israeli pressure to cut Iran off: 1. It is not clear how India would replace the bulk of petroleum products it buys from Iran; international oil markets are relatively tight. India’s monthly imports from Iran are down slightly over the two previous years, but it is hard to see how they could go much lower unless Indian over-all petroleum demand feel (unlikely) or unless the world suddenly produced 2 million barrels a day more than the world demand, also at the moment unlikely. 2. The Indian manufacturing lobby sees an enormous opportunity for India in stepping into the vacuum left in Iranian imports by the US and EU sanctions. 3. Muslim voters are something like 12% of the Indian electorate, and the ruling Congress Party in particular is beholden to the Muslim vote. Indian Muslims generally do not approve of the US and Israeli attempt to isolate Iran. 4. India’s rivalry with Pakistan impels it to seek regional allies to offset Pakistan’s soft power in the Muslim world. 5. India’s economy is sufficiently big and diverse that it can probably arrange for some firms to deal with the US and other firms to deal with Iran, avoiding the worst impact of possible US Treasury Department sanctions. Moreover, Washington may be reluctant to follow through on its threats against India in this regard, since the US has wanted to play India off against China and would be deprived of that chip in global politics if relations soured with New Delhi. http://www.juancole.com/2012/03/india-trade-delegation-bucks-us-sanctions-on-iran.html

Iran: Special comment. The evidence continues to pour in that the US banking sanctions are imposing large penalties on Iranian consumers. Iran can still sell its oil, but cannot get paid and cannot pay for imports of rice, palm oil, tea and other imported foodstuffs and commodities. Iranian companies are in default. Today, Indian authorities reported Iran defaulted on a 90-day note to pay for the import of 200,000 tons of rice from India that was ordered last October and November.Iran also defaulted on payments for shipments of Indian tea and for 400,000 tons of Ukrainian wheat, some of which is aboard ships in Iranian ports. Ship owners refuse to allow the wheat to be offloaded. Iran also has defaulted in paying for imports of Indian tea. Ten ships are in Iranian ports but refuse to permit offloading because the Iranian rial is not negotiable as a medium of international exchange. In the past week, Iran has offered to barter gold bullion in overseas vaults and filled oil tankers for basic commodities. Comment: The collapse of the Iranian rial plus the refusal of banks and companies to deal with Iran are having serious impact. The price of everything in Iran is rising. The sanctions against Iranian banks that rely on the US dollar for international trade are proving to be devastating for everyday Iranians. In order to meet domestic demand, Iran must import more than 1 million tons of rice, of which some 70% is purchased from India. Iran produces more than 2 million tons of rice, but still must import a million tons or so from India and other states to satisfy domestic demand. I Iran has defaulted on payments because the Iranian rial is almost no longer convertible into internationally acceptable hard currency. Indian and UAE middle-man companies are going out of business because the Iranian currency is worthless, nonnegotiable. Iran's customary trade partners are experimenting with barter swaps and trades paid in local currencies, such as Indian Rupees, Malaysian Ringgit and Indonesian Rupiah. Iran relies on India for 45% of its rice imports, but on Indonesia and Malaysia for all of it palm oil imports, meaning cooking oil, margarine and other industrial uses. Iran can export but must now accept payment in currencies not traded on international markets or payment in kind. There is no predictability in the profit for traders; barter strikes at the heart of an integrated global economy, which the advanced western countries seek. The impact on the Iranian micro-economy is serious. Imported basic commodities are becoming out of reach in price and rare. If the banking sanctions continue, the Iranian standard of living must decline. Western clothes and electronics, for example, will only be available to the wealthy elite. Their possession eventually will brand the owners as non-revolutionary and not devout Shiites. The ayatollahs are not impervious to the plight of the people who must pay their salaries, but they have shown no movement on nuclear talks… yet. Resort to barter is a sign of growing national concern. Banking sanctions are proving to work far more effectively than any others. Readers should expect Iran to make overtures for new talks without making promises. Iranians are not hurting enough yet. Nevertheless, urban dwelling Iranians are likely to engage in civil disobedience if prices for staple commodities continue to rise and imported goods become unavailable at any price. KFGS Private Intelligence ========================================================================= TOUGH WORDS With the West trying to tighten the noose with sanctions, Tehran vowed to fight back and denied that the sanctions are hurting the Iranian economy. Iran's Majlis (parliament) is ready to approve a bill aimed at stopping oil exports to member states of the EU in response to their bid to embargo Iran's oil exports, local TV reported Tuesday. Also on Tuesday Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said the sanctions are old news and have been going on for 30 years. "The practical outcome of such measures (of sanctioning Iran) is the determination of the Iranian nation in implementing their outstanding goals in the framework of national interests and rights," he said. But his tough words cannot hide the fact that the sanctions are indeed taking their toll on the country's economy. Food and living costs have soared in Iran, and imported goods, such as electronic devices, have more than doubled in price from a year before. With the depreciation of the rial and its limited reserve of hard currencies, Tehran is forced to barter, trading gold and oil with international traders, to maintain a steady food supply in the country. Iran is also seeking new buyers for its oil to replace the EU, South Korea and Japan, all of which have moved to embargo Iranian oil exports. China Daily ============================================================================ By Niluksi Koswanage and Cho Mee-young Malaysia has halted palm oil exports to Iran because of payments problems and Asian oil buyers have cut crude purchases as Western sanctions tighten a financial noose around Iran. Traders in China said they would cut iron ore purchases from Iran, which are worth over $2 billion a year, because of sanctions that have forced payment defaults on Indian rice imports and prompted Ukrainian and European sellers to stop booking shipments of Ukrainian grain to the Middle East country. The problems are the most visible evidence to date that Western sanctions are squeezing Iran’s trade. Iran’s crude oil buyers, including China and Japan, are cutting purchases, reducing the OPEC producer’s earnings from its major source of the foreign exchange it needs to pay for critical imports, such as food staples. The problems have come to light after U.S. sanctions this year targeted Iran’s central bank and the European Union decided to ban Iran crude imports in an effort to force Tehran to abandon a suspected nuclear weapons programme. Iran’s rial (IRR-) has plunged as the West increased sanctions, raising the price of imports for the economy and making it difficult to find Dubai-based middlemen who can process payments to keep the country’s trade flowing. Bread and rice dominate the diet of most Iranians, many of whom can no longer afford to buy meat, now selling for about $30 a kilogram in Tehran. Bread prices have tripled since December, while rice costs about $5 per kg (2.2 lbs). Iranians earn about $350 a month on average, while officials put the poverty line at $800. Grain ships are docked outside Iranian ports, many traders have said they are not booking fresh cargoes and exports of staples to Iran such as maize are falling as collecting payment from buyers gets harder. Iran imported 62 percent of its maize, 45 percent of its rice and 59 percent of its sugar in 2010-11, but only 3 percent of its wheat, data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture show. In the latest sign of Iran’s stress, trading sources in Malaysia said exporters of palm oil, used in cooking oil, confectionary and bio-diesel, had stopped supplying most of the 30,000 tonnes of the commodity Iran used to buy each month from the end of 2011. Malaysia meets half of Iran’s palm oil demand. The sanctions have made it difficult for Iranian palm oil buyers to use letters of credit and make payments via middlemen in the United Arab Emirates, they said. “Payments are not coming through and no palm oil shipper wants to risk sending the cargoes to Iran with such a tense political situation,” said a trader with direct knowledge of the deals, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue. Metals traders in China said they would reduce iron ore purchases from Iran from March because they are worried that the sanctions will disrupt business. Iran was China’s fifth-biggest supplier of the commodity in 2011. “There’s a huge risk ahead, and many just haven’t realized it yet,” said a senior executive at a Shanghai-based trading firm that has a long-term partnership with an Iranian supplier. “It’s easy for the United States to freeze our business,” he said. “It’s not worth taking the risk.” Some Chinese traders said they would keep buying the ore from Iran as long as they were able to get paid because it was cheaper than other sources of the commodity. “Many Chinese traders, and miners, want to take the opportunity to buy the ore to make more money,” a Shanghai-based trader said. “Though I’m still making bookings from Iran, I’m extremely cautious.” Indian exporters and rice millers said on Tuesday that Iranian buyers had defaulted on $144 million in payments for rice imports from its biggest supplier. Vijay Setia, the president of the All India Rice Exporters’ Association, called on members to cease exports to Iran on credit terms. Iran’s foreign exchange earnings are also being pinched as the sanctions put major buyers, including China, Japan and India, under pressure to reduce crude imports from OPEC’s second-biggest producer. Asia purchases more than half of Iran’s 2.6 million barrels per day of crude exports and some buyers are already cutting. Media reports on Wednesday said Japan’s biggest refiner JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp will cut 10,000 bpd of Iranian crude imports, matching reductions Cosmo Oil has made since January. In another possible indication of cuts, the United Arab Emirates’ main crude oil exporter will supply Asia with full contractual crude volumes in March for the first time in almost a year, industry sources said on Wednesday. China has drawn heavily on Saudi Arabia, OEC’s biggest producer by far, after cutting back on Iran supplies this year. Industry sources said the world’s second-biggest oil consumer is importing more cargoes from West Africa, Russia and Australia but has bought the bulk from Saudi Arabia. However, China’s decision to halve its Iranian imports is seen by industry experts as a way to negotiate lower prices from Iran, rather than as a response to Western sanctions. The sanctions lockdown has left some payments for Iran’s oil stranded. South Korea pays for its oil in its won currency, but Iran has hit a wall trying to transfer the money back to Tehran, leaving the equivalent of $5 billion sitting in South Korea banks. ==================================================== Iran is turning to barter - offering gold bullion in overseas vaults or tankerloads of oil - in return for food as new financial sanctions have hurt its ability to import basic staples for its 74 million people, commodities traders said on Thursday. Difficulty paying for urgent import needs has contributed to sharp rises in the prices of basic foodstuffs, causing hardship for Iranians with just weeks to go before an election seen as a referendum on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's economic policies. New sanctions imposed by the United States and European Union to punish Iran for its nuclear program do not bar firms from selling Iran food but they make it difficult to carry out the international financial transactions needed to pay for it. Reuters surveys of commodities traders around the globe show that since the start of the year, Iran has had trouble securing imports of basic staples like rice, cooking oil, animal feed and tea. Grain ships have been held at its ports, refusing to unload until payment can be received for cargo. With Iran's rial currency tumbling, the prices of rice, bread and meat in Iranian bazaars have doubled or more in dollar terms in recent months. Iranian grain importers have in the past side-stepped sanctions by booking business through the United Arab Emirates, traders said, but this option was cut off by the UAE government in response to sanctions. Iran has been trading oil in currencies like Japanese yen, South Korean won and Indian rupees, but such deals make it difficult to repatriate profits. Deals revealed Thursday appear to be among the first in which Iran has had to result to offering cashless barter to avoid sanctions, a sign of new urgency as it seeks to buy food and get around the financial restrictions. Asian Age ====

Taxation or closure of Strait of Hormuz? The West, including the US are using the logic of war, terrorism and force/sanctions on Iran. Iran could either impose a good amount of taxes on all goods including oil passing through the Strait of Hormuz or simply block it. The West had already declared a war on Iran. Sanctions are part of a cold war, and Strait of Hormuz is part of Iran's strategy to respond to any acts of war; no sweet is distributed during any war. _______________________________________ Iran to 'block' Gulf oil if sanctions proceed Vice-president threatens to cut off shipments at Strait of Hormuz if West sanctions Iran's vital oil exports. No oil will be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz if the West applies sanctions on Iran's oil exports, Iranian Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi has warned. The threat was reported on Tuesday by the state news agency IRNA as Iran conducted its fourth day of naval drills near the Strait of Hormuz, at the entrance to the oil-rich Gulf. "If sanctions are adopted against Iranian oil, not a drop of oil will pass through the Strait of Hormuz," Rahimi was quoted as saying. "We have no desire for hostilities or violence ... but the West doesn't want to go back on its plan" to impose sanctions, he said. "The enemies will only drop their plots when we put them back in their place." The threat underlined Iran's readiness to target the narrow stretch of water along its Gulf coast if it is attacked or economically strangled by Western sanctions. War games Iranian ships and aircraft dropped mines in the sea on Tuesday as part of the drill, according to a navy spokesman. Although Iranian war games occur periodically, the timing of these is seen as a show of strength as the US and Europe prepare to impose further sanctions on Iran's oil and financial sectors. The last round of sanctions, announced in November, triggered a pro-government protest in front of the British embassy in Tehran during which Basij militia members overran the mission and ransacked it. London closed the embassy as a result and ordered Iran's mission in Britain shut as well. An Iranian legislator's comments last week that the navy exercises would block the Strait of Hormuz briefly sent oil prices soaring before that was denied by the government. While the foreign ministry said such drastic action was "not on the agenda", it reiterated Iran's threat of "reactions" if the current tensions with the West spilled over into open confrontation. Saudi steps in Industry sources said on Tuesday that top oil exporter Saudi Arabia and other Gulf OPEC states were ready to replace Iranian oil if further sanctions halt Iranian crude exports to Europe. Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi had said that Saudi Arabia had promised not to replace Iranian crude if sanctions were imposed. "No promise was made to Iran, its very unlikely that Saudi Arabia would not fill a demand gap if sanctions are placed," an industry source familiar with the matter told the Reuters news agency. "If the sanctions take place, the price of oil in Europe would increase and Saudi and other Gulf countries would start selling there to fill the gap and also benefit from the higher price," said a second industry source. Brent crude oil futures jumped nearly a dollar to over $109 a barrel after the Iranian threat, but a Gulf OPEC delegate said the effect could be temporary. Aljazeera