Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Do you not see what is happening?

Iranian police "questioning women and men [about] where they bought their clothes or had their hair done, then targeting the shops"

Iranian Fashion Police Update. "Iran police shut clothes shops, hairdressers," from the Associated Press, June 16:

Police closed 32 clothes shops and hairdressers and stopped cars and pedestrians in the street in an intensified crackdown on women who do not abide by Iran's strict Islamic dress code and on men who take up fashions seen as too Western, Iranian media reported Monday. Operation Hefty, Hefty, Hefty; Wimpy, Wimpy, Wimpy:

The sweep, which was launched Saturday in some neighborhoods of Teheran, is part of an annual campaign aimed at enforcing dress codes, which require women to wear long loose robes or coats and cover their hair in public. Many women, particularly in Teheran, push the boundaries of the code, wearing short, colorful coats that show the shape of the body and letting their headscarves slip to show much of their hair.

In past years, the government of hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has launched the sweeps at the start of summer, when warmer temperatures bring more people into the streets of the capital and women dress lighter. During the crackdown, police stop women in the streets, issuing them warnings or even arresting them if their garb is deemed unsuitable. Men are also targeted for having long hair and other styles deemed too Western.

But the shutting of shops appeared to be a new step, aimed at stopping the selling of shorter coats and lighter headscarves. The pro-reform daily Kargozaran reported Monday that police were questioning women and men where they bought their clothes or had their hair done, then targeting the shops.

Comment: This is not one an isolated incident-this is policy inside Iran-our enemy. The policy is based upon their belief structure and is then implemented into daily behavior. Thus, beliefs and values drive expected behavior and the social fabric of a nation is woven. This is what this country wants to expand across the West and they are using the West's desire for fairness against us-they have time on their side, they are not a "microwave" society or culture-they have resolve and are willing to act upon what they value. In the West, are we clear what we value, are we willing to stand in resistance when our values are attacked and do we have the resolve it will take to not be taken over by others contrary beliefs?

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