Free Dating Site    

Sounds like the people should not know what utter idiots the Democrats have as candidates.

On February 28, 2008, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk (IL - 10th district) introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives condemning the persecution of the Baha’is in Iran. H. RES. 1008 is the tenth congressional resolution since 1982 on the Baha’is in Iran.

It has also been sponsored by Reps. Robert Andrews (NJ - 1st district), Joe Wilson (SC - 2nd district), Robert Wexler (FL - 19th district), Frank Wolf (VA - 10th district), Eric Cantor (VA - 7th district) and Michael McNulty (NY - 21st district).

The congressional resolution (download PDF version) condemns the Government of Iran for its state-sponsored persecution of Baha’is; calls on the Government of Iran to immediately cease activities aimed at the repression of the Iranian Baha’i community; and continues to hold the Government of Iran responsible for upholding all the rights of its nationals, including members of the Baha’i community.

The resolution also condemns the Government of Iran’s continued imprisonment of individuals without due process and a fair trial; calls on the Government of Iran to immediately release 3 Baha’is: Ms. Raha Sabet, Mr. Sasan Taqva, and Ms. Haleh Roohi; and calls on the Government of Iran and the Iranian Parliament to reject a draft Islamic penal code, which violates Iran’s commitments under the International Covenants on Human Rights.

Carter was actually the LAST honest president the US had.

That's right, my friend who is from Iran will tell you that religious minorities have protected status, and that NORMAL Iranians respect religious diversity.

how do you explain the protected status of the jews, christians and other religious minorities in Iran and their gauranteed seats in the Iranian parliment?

Overnight, the 1979 Islamic Revolution overturned all the societal gains made by the Jewish community under the Shah. In the first few years after the Revolution, dozens of Jews were executed. [27] Habib Elghanian was the wealthiest Jewish philanthropist in Iran where he funded Hebrew schools across the country. Elghanian, who had introduced plastic to Iran, was accused of being a Zionist traitor, or to be more specific, he was charged with “friendship with the enemies of God, warring with God and His emissaries, and economic imperialism.” [28] He was hanged in 1979. Although Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa ordering that all Jews be treated well, [29] and that Iranian Jews should be distinguished from Zionist agents, the record shows otherwise.
The supposed equality of Jews and Muslims and the rhetorical dis-tinction between Jew and Zionist soon became a political joke. Jews reverted to the status of dhimmi. Khomeini reinstituted the jizya and declared that if Muslims had obeyed the divine ordinances, “a handful of Jews would not have dared to occupy our land.” [30] During the year of the Revolution alone, numerous Jews were killed for “causing economic corruption in Iran.” [31] Any person who had a connection with the Shah or had “too much wealth,” was handed a death sentence. [32] Most of those who fled left their wealth behind to be appropriated by the Islamic regime.
These discriminatory practices all continue to this day. All workers in public sectors have to be screened for Islamic credentials. [33] “Blood money,” the payment given by the family of a murderer to the family of the victim, once again became customary in Iran after the Revolution, and the amount of financial compensation a Jew can receive from a Muslim in the case of a relative’s murder or death is equal to one-eighth the amount that is paid if the victim is a Muslim. [34] Further-more, Jews face obstacles in bringing civil suits to trial, are barred from high-level government posts, and are faced with insuperable delays in service delivery. Iranian courts refuse to accept testimony from Jews and, unsurprisingly, murderers of Jews have never been brought to justice. [35]
Parallels have been drawn between the state of Iranian Jewry and the state of German Jewry in the 1930s. [36] The Jewish population’s decline in Iran strongly reflects the new anti-Semitic fervor stirred up by the Revolution. [37] The Jewish population is estimated to have declined from 150,000 at mid-century to 30,000 in the decades following the Revolution. Current estimates range from as low as 10,000 to as high as 35-40,000. Both the U.S. and Israel have recognized the dangerous state of Jewish life in Iran. Immediately following the Revolution, the Iranian government confiscated all Jewish passports and would not allow more than one member of a Jewish family to travel abroad. [38] Although these laws no longer exist, the regime keeps a close watch on the Jewish community, their travels, and their ex-tended family, especially in the U.S. and Israel.
After the Revolution, Iran severed all relations with Israel and de-clared Israel an enemy of Islam. Iranian Jews learned the hard way to renounce any connection to Israel or Zionism in public. [39] “You can be Jewish and not associate yourself with Israel,” says Sarah Hay, a 21-year old computer engineer student from Tehran. [40] Jews are unable to telephone or send mail to relatives in Israel, let alone visit. Jews who have corresponded with family in Israel have been executed or jailed for “spying for Israel.” [41] In 1999, 11 Jews were convicted on this charge. One boy was only thirteen years old. “Virtually every Iranian Jew has relatives in Israel. To regard normal family connections of Jews with Israel a crime makes a mockery of pledges in the Islamic Republic constitution that Jews will be accorded full rights as a recognized religious minority,” another Iranian woman says. [42] In March 2006, fifteen Iranian Jewish folk dancers visited Russia. When the Russian Jewish community brought out a cake decorated with the Israeli flag to celebrate the occasion, the Iranian Jews would only eat from the section of the cake that did not bear the Israeli flag. [43] Even abroad, they feared the possible repression of their government. As Haroon Yashaie states, “supporting Israel is absolutely out of the question.” [44]
The Jewish community, once the most affluent in Iran, now consists mostly of people who are too old or too poor to leave. [45] Given the potential repercussions of speaking out against the Islamic regime, the substance of interviews with Iranian Jews must be viewed skeptically.

Iranian Jews

Judaism is one of the oldest religions practiced in Iran and dates back to the late biblical times. The biblical books of Isaiah, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Chronicles, and Esther contain references to the life and experiences of Jews in Iran.

Today, the largest groups of Jews from Persia are found in Israel, which in 1993 was home to 75,000 people, including second-generation Israelis. and the United States, which is home to a community of some 45,000 people, of first-generation only - especially in the Los Angeles area and Great Neck, New York.

By various estimates, 10,800 Jews remain in Iran, mostly in Tehran, Isfahan, and Shiraz. BBC reported Yazd is home to ten Jewish families, six of them related by marriage, however some estimate the number is much higher. Historically, Jews maintained a presence in many more Iranian cities.

Iran supports by far the largest Jewish population of any Muslim country.

There are also smaller communities in Western Europe, Australia, and Canada. A number of groups of Jews of Iran have split off since ancient times. They are now recognized as separate communities, such as the Bukharan Jews and Mountain Jews.

In the midst of tensions between the U.S and Iran and between Iran and Israel, Jewish-Iranian Americans and Israelis offered money to the remaining Jews in Iran in order to help them relocate to California and/or Israel. In August 2007, the Iranian Jews in Iran responded by saying they "resent such transparent political enticements."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranians_(citizens_of_Iran)

U.S. State Department

The Government promoted and condoned anti-Semitism in state-media and hosted a Holocaust denial conference during the reporting period. However, with some exceptions, there was little government restriction of, or interference with, Jewish religious practice. Nevertheless, education of Jewish children has become more difficult in recent years. The Government reportedly allowed Hebrew instruction, recognizing that it was necessary for Jewish religious practice. However, it limited the distribution of Hebrew texts, in practice making it difficult to teach the language. Moreover, the Government required that in conformity with the schedule of other schools, several Jewish schools must remain open on Saturdays, which violates Jewish law.

Jewish citizens are permitted to obtain passports and travel outside the country. In contrast with past reporting years, Jewish groups reported that Iranian Jews are now issued the multiple-exit permits issued to other citizens, and other travel restrictions have eased. Jewish groups outside the country reported unsuccessful government attempts to interfere in the elections of the Jewish Central Committee (JCC), which appoints the head of the Jewish community in the country. The groups also reported that the Jewish community's newspaper, Ofogh-e-Bina, stopped publication, reportedly due largely to government pressure on the previous chair of the JCC.

http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90210.htm

However, with some exceptions, there was little government restriction of, or interference with, Jewish religious practice.

Jewish citizens are permitted to obtain passports and travel outside the country. In contrast with past reporting years, Jewish groups reported that Iranian Jews are now issued the multiple-exit permits issued to other citizens, and other travel restrictions have eased.

Although the Constitution gives Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians the status of "protected" religious minorities, in practice non-Shi'a Muslims face substantial societal discrimination, and government actions continued to support elements of society who create a threatening atmosphere for some religious minorities.

- Ibid

Non-Shi'a religious leaders reported abuse, including detentions and torture of Sunni clerics, as well as other widespread restrictions on their ability to practice their faith. They also reported bans on Sunni teachings in public schools and Sunni religious literature. Residents of provinces with large Sunni populations, including Kurdistan, Khuzestan, and Sistan-va-Baluchestan, reported discrimination and lack of resources, but it was difficult to determine what was ethnic-based discrimination and what was religious-based.

- Ibid

Proselytizing by non-Muslims, including the distribution of non-Muslim religious materials such as Bibles, is illegal. Muslims or non-Muslims wearing religious symbols of any kind in public risk confrontation with the Mutawwa'in. Under the auspices of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, approximately 50 so-called "Call and Guidance" centers employing approximately 500 persons work to convert foreigners to Islam. Some non-Muslim foreigners convert to Islam during their stay in the country. According to official reports, 942 foreign workers converted to Islam in the past year. The press often carries articles about such conversions, including testimonials. The press as well as government officials publicized the conversion of the Italian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia in late 2001.

The Government requires noncitizen residents to carry a Saudi residence permit (Iqama) for identification in place of their passports.[7] Among other information, these contain a religious designation for "Muslim" or "non-Muslim."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_of_religious_freedom_in_Saudi_Arabia

Al-Queda wants a nuclear weapon

Iran wants a nuclear weapon