--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, turquoiseb <no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, turquoiseb <no_reply@> wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, iranitea <no_reply@> wrote:
> > >
> > > Now, try to judge for yourself:
> > > http://www.al-islam.org/al-tawhid/default.asp?url=kashkul.htm
> > > (Robin describes his meeting of Khomeini)
> > > 
> > > "Indeed I would say that the explosion of ecstasy and power 
> > > that greeted the Imam was itself not so much a simple reflex 
> > > based upon a fixed idea of the Imam; it was rather the natural 
> > > and exuberant hymn of praise, of celebration that was demanded 
> > > by the very majesty and overpowering charisma of this man. For 
> > > once the door opened for him I experienced a hurricane of energy 
> > > surge through the door, and in his brown robes, his black-turbaned 
> > > head, his white beard he stirred every molecule in the building 
> > > and riveted the attention in a way that made everything else 
> > > disappear. He was a flowing mass of light that penetrated into 
> > > the consciousness of each person in the hall. He destroyed all 
> > > images that one tried to hold before one in sizing him up. He 
> > > was so dominant in his presence that I found myself organized in 
> > > my sensations by that which took me far beyond my own concepts, 
> > > my own way of processing experience. I had expected-no matter 
> > > what the apparent stature of the man to find myself scrutinizing 
> > > his face, exploring his motivation, wondering about his real 
> > > nature. Khomeini's power, grace, and absolute domination destroyed 
> > > all my modes of evaluation and I was left to simply experience 
> > > the energy and feeling that radiated from his presence on the 
> > > stage. A hurricane he was, yet immediately one could see there 
> > > was a point of absolute stillness inside that hurricane; while 
> > > fierce and commanding, he was yet serene and receptive. Something 
> > > was immovable inside him, yet that immovability moved the whole 
> > > country of Iran This was no ordinary human being; in fact even 
> > > of all the so called saints I had met-the Dalai Lama, Buddhist 
> > > monks, Hindu sages-none possessed quite the electrifying presence 
> > > of Khomeini. For those who could see (and feel) there could be no 
> > > question about his integrity, nor about the claim, however muted 
> > > by people like Yazdi, by his people that he had gone beyond the 
> > > normal (or abnormal) selfhood of the human being and had taken 
> > > residence in something absolute. This absoluteness was declared 
> > > in the air, it was declared in the movement of his body, it was 
> > > declared in the motion of his hands, it was declared in the fire 
> > > of his personality, it was declared in the stillness of his 
> > > consciousness. There was no mystery about why he was so loved by 
> > > millions of Iranians and Muslims throughout the world and he 
> > > demonstrated, to this observer at least, the empirical foundation 
> > > for the notion of higher states of consciousness. Yes, the 
> > > severity, the humourlessness, the absolutist judgement was 
> > > apparent; yet given the circumstances within which he was placed, 
> > > there was the affirmation of appropriateness in his every gesture 
> > > and aspect. This was the most extraordinary person I had seen."
> 
> To further springboard off of this quote, being as it is
> an indicator of the validity of Robin's assessments of
> people, one should point out that the "most extraordinary
> person I [Robin] had seen" is judged by history to be the 
> cause of an estimated 30,000 people executed in Iran during 
> his regime, for the crimes of heresy or other perceived 
> affronts to the glory of Islam. Most are also familiar with 
> the fatwa (death sentence) he pronounced against writer 
> Salman Rushdie, which has forced him to live most of his 
> life in hiding.
> 
> But then again, these things might not affect Robin's judg-
> ment of the man. He might, in fact, be comfortable with them.
> 
> After all, when the subject of the Inquisition came up on
> FFL, he said, "Jesus, it feels good to align myself with 
> Torquemada: I just love the psychology of the Inquisition."
> One of his other quotes on the subject was, "I have read the 
> major books on the Inquisition: there is a case to be made 
> for this institution." He tried to "balance" this statement
> by saying that "Hell is worse than the Inquisition" and
> suggesting that the Inquisition might not be appropriate
> in today's age, but he went out of his way to defend both
> the institution in its day and his "main man" Aquinas for 
> supporting it.

Unbelievable, disgusting, but I just looked one quote up, and it is true! And 
Judy thought I was disgusting in my judgment about him. The truth is I was even 
too timid in just naming him borderline. But I think what really upset her was, 
that I agreed with YOU. That is the one thing she upsets most about, and well I 
do agree with! 

Robin, being smart enough, caught her by his unique gift of flattery, and by 
judging you just the same way she does. (She even felt that he was expressing 
things about you in a way, she couldn't herself quite put into words, as if he 
could anticipate her thoughts. And here she gets into a dangerous zone herself.)

> I suspect there is much to be learned not only by how 
> clinically manic one is when describing the people (and
> institutions) one admires and defends, but in the choice 
> of the people (and institutions) themselves. I further
> suspect that one can learn as much from which controversial
> fellow posters on Fairfield Life one admires and defends.

I know exactly what you are trying to say here. Let me put it this way: There 
is an area in her life, where she lives in a world of her own, and she has lost 
ground to reality. This you can see, when she discusses here and believes she 
has won another battle, and you could see it, when she behaves like a groupie 
with Ravi or Robin. 


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