-Caveat Lector- Euphorian spotted this on the Guardian Unlimited Observer site and thought you should see it.
To see this story with its related links on the Guardian Unlimited Observer site, go to http://www.observer.co.uk The men in black spark a double conspiracy theory Tim Judah Saturday August 31 2002 The Guardian There has been much grumbling in Tehran over the summer about the men in black. Shiny black Toyota Land Cruisers that is. As if from nowhere and in brand new cars a new unit of the morality police, who check that girls and boys out together are brothers and sisters, or married - or beat them up - have become the bane of city life. Iranians love a good conspiracy theory and there are several doing the rounds. The first is that their Land Cruisers are, in fact, vehicles the UN gave Iran to help it fight drug trafficking. The second, almost universally believed, is that in every car there are four men, of which only the driver is an Iranian. The other three are believed to be Lebanese or Palestinians. The theory goes that Iranian hardliners, keen to crush any hint of liberalism or libido, but failing to find enough local enforcers, are now calling in debts from the various radical groups they have funded over the years. Like a virgin ... well almost Iranian surgeons have always been dab hands at plastic surgery, and uptown girls are not ashamed to flaunt the fact they have just been fixed up. Hence the remarkable number of young women on the streets with bandaged noses. Satellite television is, of course, illegal, and hence an absolute must-have here. One regular show features an Iranian plastic surgeon broadcasting on an exile station from the US, in which he fields live questions phoned in from Iran about 'Tomi Toks' also known as Tummy Tucks. Of course, some of the surgeons' art must, by necessity, be of the more discreet variety. No longer a virgin? For a mere $50 (£30) ladies can be restored to their pristine state, technically speaking, at least. Let's drink to the booze ban One day they'll make films about the prohibition years here. Alcohol was banned in the wake of the 1979 Islamic revolution, but the mullahs have never succeeded in drying this country out. However, Tehranis note with wry interest that over the past year the amount of alcohol available on the black market has risen dramatically. Like Dutch boys at their dykes the ayatollahs are vainly trying to plug gushing streams of Russian vodka, Belgian beer, Mexican tequila and Scotch. In fact, so much of the hard stuff is now available that many are convinced that, far from trying to prevent the import of alcohol, the mullahs are, in fact, the biggest smugglers of all. They also note that, since last year, previously banned medicinal alcohol has gone back on sale in pharmacies. People have been buying so much, however, that it is usually out of stock. It is popular, says one source, because 'being government approved you know the quality is OK and you have less of a hangover'. In the name of God, magic Any foreigner who overstays his Iranian visa has to go through the Kafkaesque labyrinth of the immigration police bureaucracy. This includes jostling for space in the courtroom benches with handcuffed prisoners. Still, apart from getting the exit visa, nothing matches the satisfaction of securing the permission, which allows you to begin the process. Like winning the Get Out of Jail Free card in Monopoly, the equivalent here is having a top bureaucrat scrawling an instruction to minions on your letter of supplication. You know you are halfway home when you see those magic words: 'In the name of God - do it!' Copyright Guardian Newspapers Limited <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
