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An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

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Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#41

Post by DoreenMichele »

bronzeage wrote: post #14

Iranians need to realize that if they don't anything now about their oppressive regime, they might never be able to. look at China, with their social score, Mass face recognition tech and surveillance. If there were no sanctions, you would be heading the same way. even with santions, it's just a matter of time until every authoritarian Regime in the world is impossible to overthrow. China will export its 1984 tech to…

My general impression, that I don't know how to back up, is that the last Shah of Iran was overthrown, fled the country and died in exile in part because Iranians viewed him as a puppet of the US. Sanctions against Iran in some form or another go back decades, likely rooted in those events.

I think Iran perceives itself to be fighting for its right to self determination. I don't think this is likely to be resolved without that being understood and addressed.

I never hear anyone addressing that, which may explain why this is such an intractable situation.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#42

Post by qubex »

espeed wrote: post #28
catmanjan wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is straight up racism.

Regardless what you think of the tactics, the sanctions are an economic vise -- a negotiating tactic to leverage a position -- it has nothing to do with race.

The reasons for the power asymmetry do not affect the severity of the asymmetry.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#43

Post by bronzeage »

rado wrote: post #27
bronzeage wrote: post #14

Iranians need to realize that if they don't anything now about their oppressive regime, they might never be able to. look at China, with their social score, Mass face recognition tech and surveillance. If there were no sanctions, you would be heading the same way. even with santions, it's just a matter of time until every authoritarian Regime in the world is impossible to overthrow. China will export its 1984 tech to…

Sanctions only strengthen the regime, while economic prosperity strengthens the progressive people and weakens the regime. Both regimes desperately need an enemy to survive.

huge misconception. used to be true, until surveillance tech came along. overthrows never came from progressive people, who believe in peaceful ways, it came from the lowest people in society who no longer have anything to lose. overthrowing is an act of desperation, the last thing people will do, only when the situation is no longer bearable.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#44

Post by jasonzemos »

These sanctions are designed to foster resentment in Iranians toward their government. The seeds of this resentment are already blossoming in the post-Iran/Iraq war generation developing these apps. This generation is simply not capable of conforming to the religious zeal required of them by the ayatollahs, sanctions or not. The days are numbered for the velāyat.

The funds received by an Iranian civilian entrepreneur are still open to subjugation by the government. Without these funds, it will be more difficult for this government to destabilize neighboring states, blackmail the Sunnis across the gulf, and energize Hezbollah in their explicitly stated goals to genocide the Jews.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#46

Post by throwaway8879 »

sersi wrote: post #19

Trade sanction seem counterproductive to me, they breed resentment in a generation of young people, they breed poverty and that ultimately is what breeds extremism and fundamentalism. Shouldn't trade sanctions be more fine grained? Having part of the population be part of the global economy seems like the best way to eventually push for change in those countries...

The goal was never to end extremism or fundamentalism. Conflict is very very profitable to all sides except the common person. I guarantee that a lot of elite Iranians prefer war and conflict over peace, just like the US.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#47

Post by alehul »

bsaul wrote: post #29
mcherm wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> This is straight up racism >> No it's not, [banks are scared if the US] Yes, banks are scared of the US. And perhaps the racism stems from the Italian bank, perhaps it stems from the US government, perhaps it stems from the Iranian definition of citizenship, perhaps all share a part of the blame. But regardless of who gets the blame, it most definitely IS straight up racism.

So, racism now doesn't mean race ? Or does race includes nationality in your definition ?

In the top-level comment, the issue was presumably Iranian citizenship (not descent), or, in other words, nationality.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#48

Post by geff82 »

The 80 million Iranians are currently held hostage by two entities. First, it is their own government (which is by far not the worst in the world, being in Iran feels more free than one would expect). Second, it is the USA. The US imposed sanctions put real stress on everyday life in Iran, they make transactions complicated to impossible, healthcare unsafe, flights totally unsafe (we had 2 emergencies in the last 12 flights between Iran and Germany) and they currently provoke a big brain drain and probably a new wave of refugees. From what I see the US sanctions are catastrophic for those 80 million people while the government is more or less untouched. For the sake of the family I married into and the genetic relatives of my children: stop that nonsense.

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#49

Post by alehul »

qubex wrote: post #42
espeed wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Regardless what you think of the tactics, the sanctions are an economic vise -- a negotiating tactic to leverage a position -- it has nothing to do with race.

The reasons for the power asymmetry do not affect the severity of the asymmetry.

I’m trying to understand and make this analogous to what you were replying to:

The reasons for the act (racist or not) does not affect it being racism?

Re: An Open Letter to Google and Apple: Stop Hindering Iranian Entrepreneurs

#50

Post by jankotek »

rbrtdrmpc- wrote: post #13

Please to all the posters, stick your head out of your butt for a sec, this Iran thing is not something related to just some poor dev unable to publish on their store, it is a world wide dumb reaction all started from the USA foreign agenda. I'll give you an example to highlight how f'd up is the situation, in Italy, country with a quite respectful relation with Iran, banks started kicking out clients (with a one mon…

It is targeting everyone.

As an European I would love to visit Iran. Amazing country, some friends there, direct flights... But I would lose ESTA and would need to apply for a visa before visiting US.

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