IRANIAN ART
It's very easy these days to think of a country like Iran with negative impressions such as terrorism and war. It is indeed a bitter reality that the government of Iran is one the largest supporters of organized terrorism around the world. According to a recent report in the New Yorker, the Hezbollah alone receives as much as 100 million dollars annually from the Iranian government. Such acts of devience continue while the Iranian people strive to establish a secular democracy in their nation at the expence of being arrested, tortured, and murdered by the imposing Islamic regime. The voices of the Iranian people have been oppressed not only by the ruling clergy in Iran, but also by the Western media which sees the establishment of a democratic society in Iran in conflict with the financial interests of the West. Being strangers in their own land, the Iranian people are struggling to find means of expressing their frunstrations and anger. Some young Iranians have turned to drugs and prostitution. Many in Iran, however, have managed to find grace under pressure. Today Iran is home to many of the most talented artists in the world. Iranian cinema has been praised with respect by many directors and critics such as Quintin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, and the late master Akira Kurosawa.
