Iran, meaning the land of Arians, is the 18th largest country in the world, with nearly 80 million populations, with impressive advancements in science and technology since the 1979 Revolution and establishment of the Islamic Republic. It ranks 8th in arms production in the world, with 11 million trained paramilitary on reserve.

It is a country of special geostrategic significance due to its central location in the Middle East and between Europe and Asia. Iran is bordered on the east by Afghanistan and Pakistan, on the south by the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by Iraq, northwest by Turkey, on the north by Russia and Kazakhstan, Iran also holds an important position in international energy security and world economy because of its huge reserves of oil and natural gas. Thus, it is utmost important particularly to governments in Europe and United States to understand the Iranian mind and system of government if they desire to have good relations with it. One of the essential problems toward understanding the nature of the Revolutionary Islamic Republic of Iran is the lack of knowledge of the concept “Islamic Republic.” The result has been a serious misunderstanding of governing principles, political structure, decision making process, the system of operation, and the bases for foreign relations. For proper understanding of this concept, one has to pay attention first to the structure of Islamic religion and then within this context consider the meaning of the republic and ensuing form of government. Islamic Society the Islamic religion, unlike Christianity, is devoid of hierarchical structure. For example, under the catholic sect of Christianity, there is a strict hierarchical structure. It starts at its summit with the Pope and goes downward to cardinals, archbishops, bishops and ends with the parish priests. The total operation of the system is governed quite strictly from the top. The higher we go within the administrative structure of Christianity, the offices become more luxurious and the officeholder’s outfits more expensive, more symbolic, more impressive, vary for different occasions, and the number of servants increases. Everything excels to its summit when it reaches the Vatican and the highest officeholder, the Pope. There is no such religious hierarchy in Islam. Islam is an individualized socialistic oriented religion. Everyone is the master of his own faith and individually follows the teachings of Islam to the degree that he desires. Millions of Iranians, as in the rest of the Muslim world, do not pray five times a day, do not fast, don’t believe in full covering of body for women, and do not attend the Friday sermon. Yet, they confidently consider themselves Muslim. Often, it is forgotten that to be a Muslim, you need only to believe in Allah (God) and Mohammed as his prophet. What extras you believe and follow is totally up to you and between you and your creator. In studying the Islamic Principles and Laws developed at the time of Prophet Mohammad and later, it is obvious that many may have problems in proper understanding of them and need to refer to a man of knowledge in Islam to solve them. These are a few who have devoted many years of their life and their time in studying Islam and its corresponding societal norms, Each online casino large community, depending on its size, has one or more of these men of knowledge. They are classified based on the level of their knowledge, extensiveness of their studies, and scholarly contributions At the lowest official level of knowledge are those known online casino as “mullah” followed by “hojjatol-Islam” and the “ayatollah” which is the highest scholarly degree bestowed upon an expert on Islamic religion, its principles, laws, history and tradition. To reach this title requires many years of hard studies, several levels of examinations, scholarly writings and a final oral Web Hosting Services examination before a panel of ayatollahs that are recognized as proven experts. The title of ayatollah in Islamic world is comparable to a Ph.D. degree in the other institutions of higher education, but much more difficult to attain. The student is well into his 40s and Pokies 50s when he finally becomes qualified for the title. Among some 80 millions Iranians, the number of ayatollahs may be around a hundred. They are residents in large communities except the City of Gum play roulette online which is the centre of Islamic education and many resident Ayatollahs are full time teachers like professors at the universities. Each ayatollah is free to choose his place of residence. Individuals in their area of residence are free to refer to one of them if WOW Gold they encounter certain religious problems, but the majority of Iranians never refer to an ayatollah or follow them. This is a good evidence of the individual nature of the Islamic religion. Islam is the religion that each individual believe in it on his own and not what the ayatollahs prescribe. Millions of Iranians do not follow the principle of official daily prayer or fasting in the month of Ramadan yet they consider themselves a devote Muslim. Mullahs and other lesser scholars Truth About Abs select one or more ayatollah to refer to them in resolving their religious questions. They are free in their choice and can change them at will or may refer to more than one. Ayatollahs pursue, usually, how to get rid of man boobs a modest way of life and easily accessible. In general, they are supported by religious donations or by income from properties donated to the local mosques. They are totally independent from one another though some may be considered by others as more knowledgeable. Scholarly reputation of some may extend far beyond their caravans for sale area of residence even into other countries. These are very few and are called grand ayatollah, such as Grand Ayatollah Sistine in Iraq and Shariatmadari and Monteverdi in Iran.

Now, if we transfer this social and religious structure to a republican political system, we get a particular and unique form of government which is socialistic and democratic 3gp converter in its own merit. This fundamental democratic nature of the Iranian Islamic society is the main reason that Ayatollah Khomeini when drafting the new Iranian constitution created a supreme leader with absolute political power controlling all powers of the government including the military and judicial. At the political level we iso 9001 have the system ruled by so-called experts in Islamic religion who are loyal to the supreme leader who also sustain their previous modest way of life while holding high political positions. The weekly Friday prayer all over the nation is one traditional way of Islamic government keeping mobile gambling in contact with the people. In Tehran, for example, the Friday prayer is held at the University of Tehran grounds where several hundred thousands of people participate and nearly all important government officials, top officials in particular, are present. A top leader, designated by the Supreme Leader, leads the prayer. Historically speaking, Friday backlinks prayer has been the foundation of the Islamic governmental structure. It was one of the early steps in the formation of the Islamic state, somehow similar to town meetings in the United States. It consist of two sermons which must be delivered, The first is religious, glorifying and praising the Lord Allah; the second is political, presenting social, economic and political issues affecting people and daily life. Thus, at least once a week, people have direct debt collection contact with their leaders and are made aware of governmental policies and have opportunity to question and communicate with the leadership. Excluding the office the Supreme Leader, Iran has already developed a two-party system generally known as Moderates and Radicals. Though they are not called political parties, both groups are well organized bedroom vanity and quite effective in the electoral process. Iran has a parliamentary legislative body with a total of 290 seats. A positive aspect of this democratic process is that, unlike the U.S. Congress where incumbents have a good chance of getting re-elected, in Iran, only around a half of the incumbents running for office tv stands for flat screens are re-elected. Democratic process is well alive in the Iranian parliament. Debates are quite open and often very lively. It is not infrequent for some members of one group to vote with another on certain issues of concern. This tendency has eliminated a single majority rule such as England. There have been online gambling times that only one-third of the bills proposed by the government have passed through the Males (parliament). It has also rejected a higher percentage of nominees for public positions than the United States Senate. These are just some aspects of democracy under the Islamic Republic. The Concept of bunk beds for kids Government and the Extent of Limitations on Its Powers What separates the radicals from the moderates is a deeply rooted dispute concerning the role of government in the Islamic society. According to Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, the government is an institution ordained by the gokkasten Almighty and founded with absolute authority entrusted to the Prophet. It is an entity supplanting secondary statutes of the canonical law in Islam. “The government is a primary rule in Islam taking precedence over praying, fasting, and performing the hajj pilgrimage.” “However, it was wrong to assume that ppi claims nobody should protest whatever we say or do. Instead, criticism and finding faults are among divine gifts for the promotion of human beings,” But he stopped short of giving an exact definition to Islamic government stating that “under the present sensitive situation,” referring to Iran-Iraq war, “he preferred to remain silent.” Since spread betting then, the role of government in Islamic society has been the subject of hot debates between the two major groups of moderates and radicals. Radicals favour a highly socialistic agenda of large-scale public investment projects, raising taxes, controlling prices, state control over commerce and reforming online casino land ownership. Moderates are against all of these, some claiming that these measures go beyond the strict limits on government action prescribed in the Koran. Presently, the two major groups are far apart from the make money online theoretical viewpoint, the only area of agreement relates to foreign affairs where government policies are supported by both groups. They agree that Islamic governments should be promoted throughout the Islamic world; that Iran should remain free casino from the foreign ideological influence. Some moderates and most of the radicals consider Western Ideas as more seductive and therefore more dangerous than communist style ideology. Social and Economic Developments and General Welfare Programs Unlike the late Shah’s period, though Iran has many wealthy individuals, it does not slots have an economic elite controlling the wealth, resources, and production. So far, the Islamic Republic has been quite socialistic oriented, as the Islamic religion itself, and the major resources and means production have been under public control. Accordingly, the direction of the operation of the government has been not only casino en ligne for political democracy but also for socio-economic democracy and well being of the society as a whole. Despite some important negative factors such as eight-year Iran-Iraq war, oil price fluctuations, economic embargo against Iran and more importantly the population growth, the socio-economic and pharmacy technician technological developments since the revolution have been quite impressive. Transformation of educational and cultural systems can be considered as the most important developments. Textbooks as well as subjects at all educational levels are changed or modified. Outdated materials were substituted by new materials relating to betting the latest scientific achievements as well as the Islamic culture.

All foreign professors were replaced with Iranians.

The educational budget was substantially increased particularly, by fifteen fold, in the area of vocational education, Over 140 million elementary and secondary level textbooks are published and distributed each year. Presently, there are some fourteen million students at pre-university level educational institutions, and around 500 thousand at the universities and other institutions of higher education. There pokies are an impressive number of foreign students at the Iranian universities. And all these, except for a few dollars registration fee, are free. Demand for qualified teachers to feed this enormous educational program has caused the online casinos creation of many teacher education centres all over the country For the purpose of self sufficiency, immediately after the end of Iran-Iraq war, 1987-1988, seven new colleges of medicine, dentistry, and pharmacology were established and the number has been increasing since. Because of demand created by the national health care program, the number structured settlement of students at these institutions has increased by eight fold. According to projections, by 2020, the goal is to reach the level of one physician for every 300 of the total population. In the areas of general welfare and social development programs, despite the economic consequences of eight years war, fluctuations in oil prices and economic sanctions, there has been impressive progress. Today, all aged Iranians who do not have adequate means of subsistence, are paid a monthly relief benefit. In addition to national health care program, a national insurance program covers all natural and otherwise damages sustained by every Iranian including unpredictable natural disasters affecting agricultural crops. online casino It also covers those widows who are not able to sustain themselves. Family of prisoners are extensively protected by the law. Those who cannot earn enough to sustain themselves are provided with adequate means of subsistence during the whole prison term of the head of online casinos the family. In the area of transportation, since the revolution, about 180,000 kilometres of roads have been constructed amounting to 128 percent of all reads constructed previous to the Revolution. Special attention has been given to rural areas by online casinos constructing over 55,000 kilometres of rural roads by the Reconstruction Crusade organizations. A pisciculture project was carried out to meet protein requirements of the country and increase the peasant’s income. The project started in 1982 in the villages and cities with emphasis on fishery through creating artificial ponds. It produces tens mobile broadband of millions of fish each year. In the area of communication, there has been substantial expansion of telephone network. From about 70 cities at the time of Revolution, it has expanded to all large and middle size cities and some 89 percent of villages. Presently, cell casino phones are also widely used. A few words need to be said about Iran’s military and military policies. During Iran-Iraq war the Iranian military strength at its peak was estimated at two million nearly all volunteers. Presently, there are two distinct military forces: the regular armed forces and the Revolutionary Guard forces. ppi Together, they total 545,000 active troops and 350,000 reserves. In addition, Iran has well trained volunteer militia force called Basin including some 90,000 full time, active duty uniformed members. About eleven million men and women are members bingo of the Basin who could be called for service at any time if needed. It is estimated that Iran can mobilize up to one million men at the time of emergency which is considered among the largest troop mobilization in the world. Iran has a sustained military policy historically spilleautomater proven. It has not invaded any country for over two centuries. Its military policy is based on deterrence. If it seeks atomic weapons, based on this long standing policy will also be for deterrence against countries which possess such weapons in the region. Considering strong nationalistic feelings of Iranians in the case of invasion online casinos by foreign forces, beside Basin members, millions of well trained Iranians will volunteer to join the military. This was evident during Iran-Iraq war where many volunteers were well over 60 years old. They volunteered to run over mine fields installed by Iraqi forces to clear the online slots way for the advancing Iranian forces. As all the facts presented here about the economic and social developments show the continuous efforts of the Islamic Republic from the date of its inception to advance the well being of its people and advancing the nation to stand on its own feet despite all adversities the government faced from the outside. It compels a great majority of Iranians to support the system. People are satisfied the way the system operates for their benefits and are not sure the situation will be the same if the system changes. There is also satisfaction with the term of Islamic Republic since some over 90 percent of Iranians are Muslim. However, this support of the system does not mean that they are happy with the leadership. Definitely, the majority are not satisfied. Historically, for thousands of years Iranians have lived with democratic values in their local communities. They have never sustained a dictatorial regime in power for long, The story of late Shah is a good example, After American government overthrow the democratic regime of Prime Minister Dr. Musaddegh and brought the Shah back, it took near 18 years of opposition that finally people got rid of him. But they again were betrayed by Ayatollah Khomeini who methodically eliminated the democratic minded leaders, including the first elected president Bakhtaran, and formulized a theocratic dictatorship, through drafting a constitution and forcing its approval upon the people that Iran suffers again under such a regime. Majority of Iranians want to get rid of these dictatorial elements at the top. These include the abolition of the office the Supreme Leader who has absolute power over every action of government: political, economic or social; abolition of the Council of Guardians which has veto power over the acts of parliament and has to approve candidates running for political offices. But the problem is not so easy. The constitution must be modified. Iranians want to keep the Islamic Republic but don’t want to be ruled by the clergy with absolute dictatorial powers. If we know Iranians and history of Iran we can assume that they will succeed this time as well regardless how much time it may take. One more point. No government Iranians detest more than the American while they like American people and many aspects of American life and ideals. Iran with its very important strategic position in the Middle East, 80 million educated and conscious population, scientifically, technologically and industrially far advanced than any other country in the region, except perhaps Israel, commanding position in the Persian Gulf, a source of aspiration for many Muslim nations in the region and beyond, and close association with Russia and China, is of vital importance to the Western powers all of which desire stability in the region and free flow of its petroleum and its derivatives to their countries. Iran is the most valuable geostrategic country in the region. Whoever becomes ally with Iran would have first call on its vast oil and gas resources and a strong voice in the future of the Middle East, The United States may in the long run establish normal relationship with Iran, but it will not be easy to turn it into a friendly relationship. Anti-Americanism has become a part of national feeling which will live on for quite a long period of time. It goes back for four generations, starting with the overthrow of a democratic government which Iranians had achieved after a long struggle, bringing back Mohammad Reza Shah, helping him to impose a brutal dictatorship during which thousands last their lives, many under torture in prisons until they were able to organize a general strike in 1978 which forced him to flee. The new government was formed by democratic minded leaders from 1950s but soon taken over by the clergy under command of Ayatollah Khomeini which established also a harsh dictatorship. When it was invaded by Iraq in 1980, the United States sided with Iraq, by which 500,000 Iranians lost their lives and twice as much were wounded and maimed, and because of the U. S. economic embargo Iran could not get vital supplies needed for continuation of war. Iranians cannot easily forget such devastation of human life and destruction of their cities and thousands of civilian casualties all aided by the United States. They also consider their present dictatorial regime the consequence of the previous U. S. mistaken and selfish policies. Academic education is valued highly in our Iranian culture. The notion of being someone with university degrees is a yearning that involves many factors such as status, position, opportunities, labels, and power. The education systems that we Iranians come from is strictly competition and ranked based while there are no focus on the applicability of that knowledge in the real world. As a clinical counsellor, I see number of young Iranians who have gone through all the steps of getting to the top mountain of education, while they have forgotten the self. In some cases, choice of education has been equal to survival of parental nagging about future, comparisons to other’s children, and the risk for losing family status. In many cases, my young clients are telling me how much they have lost motivation even though they have tried to satisfy family’s expectations of them. Usually, this is the message most Iranian parents give their youth; you study and we pay. In this common scenario, individual’s sense of identity, feelings, perceptions, and choice are out of question. Number of of these young clients tells me how much their families did everything in their power to provide for their secondary and post secondary educations. Now these individuals being in their 30′s they have reached the point where they realize their life has been sacrificed for a dream. The question is whose dream? To be fair, let’s admit, we know that, most parents in our communities are willing to do anything to get their children become Doctor, Mohandas, or lawyers.

Most Iranian families struggle for the sake of educating their children. Families in Iran, they are willing to sell their homes and use their life time savings to send their children to best universities in Europe or here in North America. Families force their children badly to enter programs that are not really on the list of these young fellows. I used the word “badly” because it is visible that families do not consider the effect of this push and pull game they are in. These families work hard to get their youth to attend universities and colleges, while they forget to teach their youth self-dependence and social skills. Education has become a discourse that impacts people life in a multifaceted way.

Sadly, most of the times we Iranian parents direct our children.

to fulfil a lost dream that is basically ours and not necessary theirs. Families who come to report that their young child wants to become a “doctor”, I always wonder about the emotional health in that family. Families who come to tell me how many doctors they have in their extended group and how much they fear failure to procure another Doctor now that they are here in Canada. There is no doubt that our Iranian life has turned upside down during past 30 years, obviously no one lives in their own skin. Now maybe you ask what is wrong with being ambitious. What is wrong with educating our children? Clearly, there is nothing wrong with helping our children to attend post secondary education. There is nothing wrong with being an ambitious parent. Indeed pursuing academic education is valued highly in all communities and we should continue using all means to empower ourselves. However what happens to the need for knowledge and wisdom before any academic work? What happens to the social skills that involves basic relationship and interaction in the world? What about teaching our children to have a dream first and then encourage them to pursue their dreams? Most of us are unaware of how much we negatively impact our children’s health and how much we cause emotional distress in a young body, when we forced them to follow a certain pattern. How do we know what is right and wrong for our children? How much do we differ between rising happy, independent, and healthy children compare to raising educated, discouraged, and spoiled children? These are all the questions that have to be answered before talking to our young children about what they should and should not do. Honesty comes first. It is certainly my belief that healthy communication is the main step toward rebuilding what has been destroyed over decades. I believe that we Iranian need to challenge our beliefs by analyzing our own culture, the ways in which we find our strength and also how it hinders us from self-development. Our next generations could adjust better in their walks of life, if we can offer them a thorough and honest analysis of what has made us to be where we are now. I would like to encourage healthy communication, positive participation, and cooperation in hope for building healthy families within our Iranian community. Mental health issues are my main area of interest where I hope to offer a multicultural sensitive counselling. As the leader of the Iranian Regime continues to defy the International Community and makes nuclear weapons, the world as we know it is about to change. Iran believes it can defend its nuclear weapons facilities, yet that is not exactly true. As the United States controls the Afghanistan Territories, Iraq Region and has two carriers in the Persian Gulf, actually the Iranian Republican Guard is about to suffer up to a million man loss in a 3 day non-stop airstrike. God rest their young soles. Amidst reports of fall in popularity for the Bush Administration, both at home and around the globe, the growing tension between Iran and US assumes significance. In this context, the controversial visit by the President of IRAN, Mr. Ahmadinejad to speak at the Columbia University, is noteworthy. Before going into the genesis of his visit, the type of reception he got, and the actual address he made to the University students, it is worthwhile to refer briefly, to the biography of Mr Ahmadinejad. It may be recalled that Mr. Ahmadinejad had defeated his rival, in the run off to the President in 2005, when he had obtained almost double the number of votes secured by his opponent, Mr Ali Akbar Rafsanjani, Head of the Expediency Council. This was contrary to the perception, that the fight was very close. Thus, he assumed office as the first ‘non-cleric’ President of IRAN, in its history of the last 24 years. In the Islamic Republic of IRAN, the political power is vested with a religious head, called the ‘Spiritual Guide’, selected by an Assembly of Experts. Next to him comes the President, holding the power to head the state and also the executive branch. The constitution of IRAN, as amended in 1989, vests the power to the President, to select the Council of Ministers, Ambassadors and Governors for the provinces but the Spiritual Guide ‘ retains the control of foreign policy, armed forces, nuclear policy and main economic policies. Mr Ahmadinejad represents the younger generation. The invasion of Iran and the subsequent war, triggered by a three- front surprise attack by IRAQ, and had lasted for nearly 8 years, resulting in a casualty of about 30,000, in a population of about 60 Million. These were his experiences in the formative period of his taking over as President. A cease fire was ordered by an UN Resolution in 1988, but it failed to address the outstanding issues. Ayatollah Khomeini took over as the ‘ Spiritual Guide’ in June, 1989. Reports of American involvement with Iraq during the war fuelled the anger of Iranians towards United States. Mr Ahmadinejad was seen as a simple man, but his populist measures after taking over, brought him esteem and affection from the common folk, compared to Mr Rafsanjani, who had amassed huge wealth during this period. In tracing the background of the President’s visit, we observe, that he was an official guest speaker, invited by the President of the Columbia University, to speak at ‘A QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION’, from the Faculty and Students, as part of the ‘WORLD Leaders Forum ‘ . He was scheduled to address the United Nations Assembly later, at New York. In spite of wide spread protests and pressure from media to prevent Mr.Ahmadinejad from expressing his views, which were labelled as,’a hate mongering by vitriol in the world stage’, the session continued as scheduled. The decision to schedule and conduct such a session was justified , in the words of Mr Bollinger , the President of the Columbia University, as ‘part of a long standing tradition of this University to serve as a MAJOR STADIUM for ROBUST DEBATE.’ However, the events which happened subsequently reflected a scene, quite contrary to these expectations. The session had started with an introductory welcome address, from the President of the Columbia University, requesting Ahmadinejad to speak. However, the welcome address hardly met even the minimum level of decent behaviour, as seen by the reports appearing in the press. The brief introduction, called the IRANIAN President, ‘ as resembling a petty and cruel dictator’. This remark was widely condemned by Iranians at all levels and was seen as “shameful”. They treated his sardonic comments, made in a scholarly atmosphere, as an insult to a President of a country, with a recorded history of 7000 years civilization and culture. The rudeness exhibited, was seen as fuelling their anger, and bringing down the image of United States, as a bully. Unmoved by the offending opening remarks from Mr Bollinger, Mr Ahmadinejad initially smiled .However, he pointed out the uncivil behaviour and sat through the whole session .He answered most of the questions raised, in his own manner. But it will be conclude, that all his replies were straight and fully answered the specific points raised. This was mainly due to, difference in perception of the questioner and the person answering it. For example, the range of questions covered, starting from the crackdown of scholars and academics by Iran’s military, the execution of innocent people, his views on Holocaust, (referring to his state television speech in 2005 denying the events), the support and funding of catalogued terrorist organizations who were responsible for disruption of the restoration of peace and tranquillity in Middle East.,. Etc etc. In all these matters, he held an entirely different viewpoint. He was also heckled, for his divergent views about the people responsible for 9/11 attack on US. He was pressed to clarify his rhetoric, that Israel will be destroyed and ‘removed from the map’. When pressed to answer about Iran’s plan to make nuclear weapons, the President denied that IRAN had any hand in doing things secretly and quoted the Bylaws of the INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY. This specifically declares the right by all member countries to carry on the nuclear fuel program. He justified, that all pursuits being carried out in this field by IRAN, were for peaceful purposes only, like energy. He also an added that IRAN was fully cooperating with the International agency. Potential Targets such as Adrian are not out of reach for Super Hornets with exterior drop tanks, improving their range significantly. Stealth Aircraft coming from Iraq or Afghanistan could easily penetrate the airspace. Isfahan is a sitting duck and could be hit from literally any direction and there is no way to defend it for this reason. Even secondary targets such as Faso, Blusher, Derzhavin, Sag hand, which are far South of Tehran, have no prayer in being defended and they are so vulnerable that they may as well be hit on the first wave for “Practice Sake” or to make a statement of the raw force of strength and agility of the US forces. Other primary targets such as: Nathans could not survive the first 10 hours of a US Strike. Likewise once the game starts many military folks we talked to say the life expectancy of an Iranian ship would be 10 minutes max and they were talking “direct” hits from cruise missiles and airborne launched torpedo weapons. Speaking of which Nathans is completely vulnerable from Tomahawk strike, forget the availability of Stealth Bombers or fighter bomber attack. The secondary targets such as Tabriz and Bo nab can be hit on the way back or too other targets or used for decoy diversions. If the air-strike is going to last for 72 brutal hours of annihilating force then these areas cannot be defended or saved by any Iranian forces. They Iranian air force would be history within the first 5-hours, anything that is launched is an immediate target, thus such secondary targets could be taken out with ATVs, special teams or fast moving tank groups. Get in, destroy get out and wait for round two, if anything is left. Underground facilities like Chalks are too vulnerable once air-defences collapse and an MOAB or smart munitions with butter-cutting tips in sequence could never survive and that would take all of about a few minutes once the game was in full swing.

Morale Klatch and Nuka seem to be a slight problem from a first glance.

but indeed, they rely on terrain and air-defence, which are already completely known and for stealth and cruise missiles there is no better friend than mountainous terrain, it is a pleasure doing business with you they say and they drop in for a visit that would shake the world. Karaj is another interesting topic that I am not at liberty to discuss other than to say it is on the “A” list to demolish, “completely” as one gentleman told me. If you know anyone who works there have them fined a new job. Sharif University and Tehran University has plenty of anti-regime folks ready to unite as soon as the current regime is eliminated and the command and control and current political human flesh running the nation will be theirs to deal with, if these Iranian leaders are lucky enough to survive first strike. I sincerely hope you have enjoyed this commentary and I hope you realize that without a complete about face and change in political direction by the Iranian Regime, it is pretty much too late and even that might not save the regime, because they have already back-tracked so many times on promises to the International Community. After the Earthquake, sometime soon after that there is planned a full strike to make good on the UN Resolutions, but everyone is keeping very quiet while last ditch efforts are being made to try to prevent what has been foretold. Some would say that we are living in interesting times, particularly as another US-Iraq confrontation at this stage seems almost inevitable. Such is the present power of the United States that only a few voices in the rest of the world suggest that the United Nations should be the only party to be involved in any future decisions about the coming conflict. Nobody in the West is brave enough any longer to take a moral stance against the imposed economic sanctions, which by now have killed more than 1.6 million Iraqis, mostly children, according to the UN’s own statistics. On the eve of the Enid-Al-Fitter (the most widely observed Islamic festival marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan), the well-respected Qatar-based Arabic news network Aljazeera reported that in the past three months (from September to November 2001), more than 31 thousand Iraqis (including 21 thousand children under the age of 5) died due to the UN-imposed economic sanctions against Iraq, a figure even higher than the 1999 UNICEF estimate of an average 5200 Iraqi child deaths per month. This comes at the same time as warnings from Iraqi physicians about an escalating crisis of increased cancer cases in the southern part of the country. The report adds that the fear of having babies with birth defects is so great that many pregnant women choose to have abortions. I myself must accept some blame for not reporting this, having recently turning down an opportunity to visit the suffering patients in the hospitals in Baghdad in the interests of personal safety. So what brought us to the point of the precipice, this point where two belligerent nations want to draw swords against each other in the region once known as the cradle of civilisation? This was the land of the Sumerians, the Assyrians, and the Babylonians where advanced civilizations flourished long before that of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. This Garden of Eden, this land of Abraham, where the Hanging Gardens on the River Euphrates were once considered amongst the Seven Wonders of the World and where the origins of our medicine once flourished. There is little doubt that any historian would say that the Mongol invasion of Mesopotamia was one of the turning points in the history of this region. Its long shadow and memory has left formidable imprints that are still discernible in thought formation of Iraqi political leader’s right into this century. The destruction of many centuries of learning, being ruled for a period by barbarians, Ottoman Turks and later the British has left a lasting stamp on these proud people who want to protect their recently found freedom. I would like to take time for a moment to consider life in this part of the world before the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols. I would like to identify the influence of the Baghdad School of Medicine on the medicine we practise today in the Western world. This influence has been neglected and unjustifiably overpasses by scholars in the West and this article is written to allow us for a while to acknowledge that fact and try and restore this missing part of our history. We must remember that medicine, as we know it today did not develop overnight and this knowledge over the centuries has been handed from one country to the other. Between the ancient civilizations of Egyptians, Greek, Roman, and the Renaissance era in Europe, there was a gap, commonly called “the dark ages”, during which the flames of the knowledge of medicine was hosted, not by the West, but by the Arabs or Moslems. The nomenclature, “the dark ages” reflects the civilization in Europe between the 7th and 13th centuries, but by no means has it expressed the state of affairs in the Arab world or the Islamic Empire at that time. By the ninth century, Islamic medical practice began to advance beyond the talisman and the people of Mesopotamia became avid for the wisdom of Galen, Hippocrates, and Paul of Aegina. By the tenth century, their zeal and enthusiasm for learning resulted in all essential Greek medical writings being translated into Arabic in Baghdad. The Islamic Empire continued to grow and extended its influence from the Atlantic Ocean on the West to the borders of China on the East. Arabic became the International Language of learning and diplomacy and the centre of medical knowledge and activity shifted eastward as Baghdad emerged as the capital of the scientific world. This era also saw the introduction of hospitals with wards, the introduction of medical terminology and the regulation of medical students who by now had to pass rigorous examinations. Baghdad General Hospital soon became the envy of the Islamic world and incorporated innovations, many of which still sound modern by today’s standards. The hospital used fountains to cool the air near the wards of those afflicted with fever; it was the first hospital to have a ward exclusively devoted to the mentally ill. The Baghdad School brought a refreshing spirit of dispassionate clarity into psychiatry, which was free from the demonological theories that swept over the Christian world. It is known that Nana us din Muhammad, a contemporary of Raze, carefully compiled observation on actual patients made up the most complete classification of mental diseases theretofore known. He described agitated depression, obsession neurosis, Nafkhae Malikholia (combined pianism and sexual impotence). Kutras (a form of persecutory psychosis), Dual-Kolb (a form of mania). At night, the pain of the restless in Baghdad General Hospital was soothed by soft music and storytelling. I still remember the open courtyard of the Bin ‘al Biter still being used in this fashion, just before the Gulf War, by the patient’s relatives at night as I strolled back from my night rounds. There were also social policies introduced by the governing regime to Baghdad General Hospital, which assured that the prince and pauper received identical attention and the destitute received five gold pieces upon discharge to sustain them during convalescence. We must remember that this was at a time when the streets of Paris and London were still paved with mud and open sewers. Baghdad General Hospital was amongst the first to introduce separate wards for male and female patients and these were staffed by attendants of both sexes. This medical centre of excellence contained both a library and a pharmacy and it is known that medical staff attended outreach clinics to attend to the disabled or the disadvantaged who lived in remote areas. Baghdad also introduced regulations to maintain quality control on drugs, they advocated that pharmacists became licensed, and legal measures were taken to prevent doctors from owning or holding stock in a pharmacy. Methods of extracting and preparing medicines were brought to a high art in Mesopotamia and techniques of distillation, crystallization, solution, sublimation, reduction and calcinations became essential processes of pharmacy and chemistry. With the help of these techniques, the Saydalanis (pharmacists) introduced new drugs such as camphor, sienna, sandalwood, rhubarb, musk, myrrh, cassia, tamarind, nutmeg, alum, aloes, cloves, coconut, nuxvomica, cubebs, aconite, ambergris, and mercury to the world. The important role of the Baghdad School and others in developing modern pharmacy is memorialized in the significant number of current pharmaceutical and chemical terms derived from Arabic: drug, alkali, alcohol, aldehydes, alembic, and elixir among others, not to mention syrups and juleps. In 636 A.D., the Muslims conquered the Persian City of Jundi-Shapur, and after this period, Islamic medical schools mostly developed on the Jundi-Shapur pattern. In the late seventh century, only Baghdad and Jundi-Shapur had separate schools for studying basic sciences. In Baghdad Medical School, doctors learned anatomy by dissecting apes, skeletal studies and didactics while other schools only taught anatomy through illustrations and lectures. During the eight century, the study of medicinal herbs and pharmacognosy was added to the basic training and a number of hospitals in Baghdad maintained barbell gardens as a source of drugs for the patients and a means of instruction for the students. Surgery was also included in the Baghdad curriculum many surgical procedures such as amputation, excision of varicose veins and haemorrhoids were required knowledge. Orthopaedics was also widely taught in Baghdad and doctors routinely used plaster of Paris for casts in the reduction of fractures. Interestingly, this method of treating fractures was only rediscovered in the West in 1852. Ophthalmology was practiced in Baghdad, but it was not taught as part of the curriculum in medical schools, rather an apprenticeship to an eye doctor was the preferred way of specialisation.

The ophthalmologists of Baghdad exhibited a high degree.

of proficiency and it should be remembered that medical words such as retina and cataract are of Arabic origin. lab al Hay ham (965-1039 A.D.) wrote the Optical Thesaurus from which such worthies as Roger Bacon, Leonardo ad Vinci and Johannes Keller drew theories for their own writings. In his Thesaurus he showed that light falls on the retina in the same manner as it falls on a surface in a darkened room through a small aperture, thus conclusively proving that vision happens when light rays pass from objects towards the eye and not from the eye towards the objects as thought by the Greeks. He presents experiments for testing the angles of incidence and reflection, and a theoretical proposal for magnifying lens (made in Italy three centuries later).

He also taught that the image made on the retina is conveyed along the optic nerve to the brain.

Raze was the first to recognize the reaction of the pupil to light and Bin Sine was the first to describe the exact number of extrinsic muscles of the eyeball, namely six. The greatest contribution of Islamic medicine in practical ophthalmology was in the matter of cataract. The most significant development in the extraction of cataract was developed by Amman bin Ali of Mosul, who introduced a hollow metallic needle through the sclerotic and extracted the lens by suction. Europe rediscovered this in the nineteenth century. During this period, Al-Raze moved to Baghdad where he became the Chief Physician of the Baghdad Hospital and the Court-Physician of the Caliph. He published several medical books, which were translated into Latin, French, Italian, Hebrew, and Greek including the differentiating between smallpox and measles, two diseases that were hitherto thought to be one single disease. It is also written that when he was asked to choose a site for a new hospital in Baghdad, he deduced which was the most hygienic area by observing where the fresh pieces of meat he had hung in various parts of the city decomposed least quickly. He also published a book called “Al-Mushin, in which he described the different types of fever including continuous, relapsing, and hectic. He stated that fever can be a symptom of a disease or a disease in itself. He introduced mercury as a therapeutic drug for the first time in history, which was later adopted in Europe. Al-Raze are attributed to be the first to use animal gut for sutures. He is credited with many contributions, which include being the first to describe true distillation, corrosive sublimate, arsenic, copper sulphate, iron sulphate, saltpetre, and borax in the treatment of disease. He introduced mercury compounds as purgatives (after testing them on monkeys); mercurial ointments and lead ointment.” His interest in urology focused on problems involving urination, venereal disease, renal abscess, and renal and vesicle calculi. He described hay fever or allergic rhinitis. He stressed the continued medical education of the physician advising him to record his own observations and encouraging him to meet with other physicians to discuss medical problems. The new Al-Audi hospital in Baghdad was built in 981 A.D. and had interns, residents, and 24 consultants. An Abbasid minister, Ali bin Isa, requested the court physician, Sinn bin Habit, to organise regular visiting of prisons by medical officers. Many other Islamic physicians and surgeons of the period influenced the Baghdad School. In 930 A.D., Al-Sahrawi was born in Al-Zahra, a suburb of Cordova and later attended the University of Cordova, which had a long tradition of excellence. At that time, Cordova had a population of one million. Al-Sahrawi became an eminent surgeon being appointed as the Court-Physician of King Abdel-Raman III. He was to influence the Baghdad School of Medicine through his four books, one of which “Al-Testify Lyman Ajiz’an Al-Tailfin’ is still considered the best medieval surgical encyclopaedia and was used in medical schools in Europe until the 17th century. Al-Sahrawi described the ligature of arteries long before Ambrose Pare and he also used cattery to control bleeding. Interestingly, he also used wax and alcohol to stop bleeding from the skull during cranial surgery long before Sir Victor Horsley used it to effect in the late eighteen hundreds. His preparation made up of seven parts beeswax and one part almond oil is still known today as Horsley’s Wax. Al-Sahrawi was also the first to in history to use cotton (Arabic word) in surgical dressings in the control of haemorrhage, as padding in the splinting of fractures, teach the lithotomic position for vaginal operations, to describe and use alcohol as a surgical preparation. He distinguished between goitre and cancer of the thyroid and explained his invention of a cauterizing iron, which he also used to control bleeding. His description of varicose veins stripping, even after ten centuries, is almost like modern surgery.

In orthopaedic surgery he introduced what is called today Kocher’s method of reduction of shoulder dislocation and patelectomy, 1,000 years before Brooke reintroduced it in 1937.

He described tracheotomy, orthodontia and described the different types of fracture before the introduction of x Rays. In the rest of the Islamic world, the Iranian Bin Sine (Avicenna 980-1037 A.D) suggested the communicable nature of tuberculosis long before the infectious nature of the pathogen was discovered. He was also the first to describe the use silk sutures for haemostasis and the first to use alcohol as an antiseptic. Bin Sine originated the idea of the use of oral anaesthetics and he recognised opium as the most powerful mohair (an intoxicant or drug). He also used less powerful anaesthetics such as mandragora, poppy, hemlock, hyoscyamus, deadly nightshade (belladonna), lettuce seed, and snow or ice cold water. He introduced the soporific sponge, soaked with aromatics and narcotics, which was the precursor of modem anaesthesia. In his masterpiece Al-Quantum (Canon), he described complete studies of physiology, pathology, and hygiene.