Blood on the streets

Blood stained streets of Iran. The election didn’t go too well. Cries of manipulation and dishonesty have brought street protests. The victory and thus re-election of hard-line president Ahmedinejad is an unwelcome thought for the region and many parts of the world. A hardliner with a nuclear dream and a desire to wipe Israel of the world’s map is a worrying thought.

But there is a spark of hope as the so called Guardian Council of Iran said it will partly recount the disputed elections. And this 12-member, conservative Council is powerful. It has religious leaders and legal minds. But it has heard the voices of the street and now announced to be open to a recount. Meanwhile several Iranians have lost their lives during the growing protests. Death on the altar of democracy. Martyrs for a fairer, open society. And as in many countries in the world in the past, the spark of protest was lit at the university where the youth rebels and rejects the conservative status-quo.

The West, the US and the region are watching developments closely. A destabilised Iran is an explosive powder keg. It’s a tough one. But democracy needs to be free, fair, transparent and honest because otherwise the outcome remains under a cloud of doubt and thus the seeds of rejection, rebellion, civil war and militarisation of the democratic process are planted. And that is a bloody path.

Not too far from the events in Iran the newly elected Israeli president, also a hardliner, decided to try to follow in Obama’s footsteps and held a speech about his new policy and vision towards the occupied Palestinian territories. Obama made a great gesture and reached out during his recent speech in Egypt. Israel had to follow with something. It had to come up with an answer. A gesture. A public relations offensive. And yes there was some reaching out but the conditions to the handshake make the gesture very shaky, and thus on life-support from the start. Israel would accept a Palestinian state but not with its own army, police and airspace. That sounds very much like a prison camp to me. A State means freedom and your own policies and organisational structures. Israel’s reaching out had a smell of supremacy. Of arrogance. Unequal. Unfair. Reaching out not to shake hands and reach a common purpose but a reaching out to control. You can’t make peace under these conditions. The fact that Hamas doesn’t recognises Israel is of course a major stumbling block and unacceptable. But you can’t say on the one hand that you want a Palestinian State but right away condition it and downgrade it to a colony. That just creates more anger and fuels the fires of hatred instead of the filling the seats around the negotiating table. Sad.

Human behaviour is always an interesting element to watch. Too often followed by disappointment. New York’s hardcore band Sick Of It All (what’s in a name) had this great line in one of the tracks of their last album. “Never underestimate stupidity of man”. It’s true. Humans have this amazing ability to think they are king of the planet and the so called clever ones that came out of the animal kingdom, while proving every day that it’s just a bunch of failed brain cells. Or something resembling brain cells. Maybe just a jelly mass. What happened at the birth of human kind to make us so stupid and bent on self destruction? Filled with hate, arrogance, narrow-mindedness, short-sightedness. We have corrupted our own souls and minds. We have let us down. Darwin’s survival of the fittest is not based on brains. Just power and power hunger that makes humans turn nasty and dumb. Very dumb. Our own evolution has this amazing dilemma that we progress every day to make life better through improved discoveries in health, to improved access to schools, to improved knowledge about urbanisation and the environment. But at the same time, in a more personal and powerful parallel world, we do not act upon our greater knowledge. It’s like our knowledge and emotions can’t cope with each other and the emotional side wins nearly all the time. Especially our short-term emotions. Those that want instant gratification with a twist of revenge.

Stopping here because it is drifting me towards sadness. And thus after that spark of hope that Iran’s conservative governing body announced it is willing to recount certain districts. That is really good news and positive democratic behaviour.

Before I forget, what made me think of human behaviour was that earlier today I saw a teacher and the young guy at the wheel learning to drive, both without wearing their seatbelts. Stupidity of man.

Anyway.

Throw out. Listening to a leaked version of Kickback’s new album “Never surrender”. Hard-hitting metalcore from France with in your face lyrics about this fake world we live in.

C-Ya

collateral – passed the half way mark of June 2009