Anyone who knows me, knows my past arguments about politics and terrorism. Well now i have something that just occured to discuss with you all. It has left me somewhat in a state of flux on my beliefs regarding Iran and its government and people.

My father recently traveled back to Iran after having left 32 years ago and moving to America. He was supposed to come back a week ago, but one night we lost all contact with him. The family we have in Iran would not answer the phone, so of course we freaked out over here.

Well finally 3 days after he was supposed to be home already, we got a call from his mother, who had traveled their with him. She told us that he had been Arrested and spent 2 nights in jail, and then later released. When i finally spoke with him, i found out the following.

He was video recording in a "No Filming Zone" of sorts. Near a Revolutionary guard outpost of some sort. He was arrested, then interrogated daily for 3 days by the Iranian version of the CIA. His family's homes were all searched and the cab driver whom he was with was also arrested.

My father who always spoke so highly of his country was accused of being an American Spy, and was treated like shit for 3 days. Finally on the last day before they were going to send him to be tortured, a phone call came in from a superior, and they released him.

He did say that when he wasnt being interogated, the CIA type organization was very friendly with him, allowing him to get cigs and roam near them without handcuffs on. However the prison guards and cops were particularly nasty.

I picked him up from the airport today, and words cant express how happy he was to be home. The funny thing is, his first words were. I will never go back to that piece of shit country every again, F*** that shithole.

That kinda hit me hard having known him to always be the one talking about how wonderfull his country was and how much he missed it there.

Though this doesnt change my mind in things regarding bombing Iran and such, it did open my eyes more to what we really have here in America that sometimes we take for granted.

Your father's experience is not unheard of for returning males. My former boss's brother had a similar experience.

The nearest 'Revolutionary Guard outpost' was probably 10 miles away, though that was probably obvious.

Glad he made it back unharmed...

Good thing he got home. It's important to remember what separates democracies from states we need to educate into this century, and what kind of behavior in ourselves we should be very leary of adopting.

Your father is fortunate -- the state is coming down hard on Iranian-Americans who return home. Any ties to the West are cause for suspicion. Glad he's returned safely.

In the Revolutionary Guard's defence, was your father wearing a tuxedo and called 00Jed?

In the Revolutionary Guard's defence, was your father wearing a tuxedo and called 00Jed?

lol... Yea, he also was controlling his car with his cell phone while running and jumping from rooftop to rooftop...

It feels appropriate to remind of the presence of Gitmo.

My father holds duel citizenship however, and was born in Iran. I doubt he would have been thrown into gitmo without vast amounts of suspision and evidence leading them to believe it was neccesary since he holds citizenship here.

Jedd, I don't think Kivorn meant to bring that up in reference to your father directly (and I am glad he got home safely), but rather, as a point to those of us who would cluck and wag our heads that such atrocities could happen to innocent expatriates in 'draconian' regimes such as Iran, because, of course, it's happening here too, and people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, as it were :).

Regards,
Nydia

I understood that actually, i was simply saying they would do it to their own citizens over there, where as here though it happens, it would be alot harder for it to happen to someone like my father for example, since he is a citizen.

I am truly glad to hear your father was released and allowed to return to you.
Situations like this put the entire family in the position of being held prisoner, not knowing what will happen an hour from now, or a day from now.

And yes, I agree with the analogy to Gitmo; it can be just as dangerous for some in this country these days.

It also seems appropriate to mention that some of the prisoners in GITMO don't want to go home....

Fearing militants or even their own governments, some prisoners at Guantanamo Bay from China, Saudi Arabia and other nations do not want to go home, according to transcripts of hearings at the U.S. prison in Cuba.

Uzbekistan, Yemen, Algeria and Syria are also among the countries to which detainees do not want to return. The inmates have told military tribunals that they or their families could be tortured or killed if they are sent back.


http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8G6CJV03&show_article=1

I have a friend who married a girl from iran. when she and he mom goes to visit he and his father in law are not allowed to go home. Her dad is a dr and her husband has a phd in genetics. Before all the turmoil in iraq he went 1 time and it took 50k to get him out of the country because they were detaining him. Now he and his father in law save and save so they have enough money to bribe people to get their wives back. Iran is a scary place.

Strange Iran stories...my cousin took a motorcycle trip across Iran last summer including getting all the way up to with in a couple hundred yards from a nuclear reactor with out even being questioned. I posted the article a while back and am sure some of the frequent posters remember reading it. Here is the article:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/salife/travel/stories/MYSA031807.1Q.iran.2658612.html

My point was simply that at present the US does have every capacity (including legal) to perform similar atrocities towards its' own citizens. Attention Slap anyone?
Misunderstand me correctly, so to speak, my intent is not to shine a disfavorable light on the US. It is rather to enforce your original views in that such oppression should never be deemed necessary nor ok.

The only problem I have about your comparison, is that the people being held in GITMO were picked up in Afghanastan. While they were all not affiliated with the Taliban, I'm fairly certain none of them were picked up in the United States.
The original poster's father was picked up in Iran, for no other reason than he was an American.
The two situations have nothing in common, save that people were detained.

I think Kivorn's comments are more apt in the case of someone like Jose Padilla, who was an American citizen detained for years without counsel, outside contact, and so on before the end result of the administration's legal chicanery brought him to trial and conviction.

I'm glad your father is home safe and sound Jedd. Perhaps things will improve in Iran someday so that it more closely resembles the home your father remembered prior to this trip.

No place is wholly evil or wholly good. We should be thankful for the good and strive to change the evil.

I think Kivorn's comments are more apt in the case of someone like Jose Padilla, who was an American citizen detained for years without counsel, outside contact, and so on before the end result of the administration's legal chicanery brought him to trial and conviction.

But never held in GITMO.