Iran's Carpets, Jews, and collateral damage

A thanksgiving missive that reminds us that Iran is more than Ayatollahs:

A fervent prayer for a peaceful Thanksgiving

November 20, 2011 2:00 AM

In the shop of an Iranian Jew, David Somekh, deep in the shadows of Tehran's bazaars, I bought my first Persian carpet. It was stunningly beautiful, an early tribal Afshar. I forget what I paid for it but I'm sure it was a lot.

I was seduced by its radiance, its asymmetry, the Persian date woven into its pattern; by the hospitality, the cups of tea and coffee, pistachios and idle chatter. Today, each time I step on the rug I revisit those memories with pleasure.

1969. My first visit to Iran. I returned to my home in Beirut with the carpet, its reds so hot they seem to burst through its wrapping, a one kilo tin of black-market caviar, a newly acquired taste for crusty Persian rice and chilled yoghurt-cucumber soup, heavy with garlic, and fond memories of all the Iranians I met.

1979. I sadly realized, after Ayatollah Khomeini returned from exile and the dark days of Iran began, that I was no longer welcome.

This week, as I listen and read of a possible preemptive strike on Iran, I think of David Somekh and wonder where he is and will he and his family be safe. I wonder who is worrying about the 25,000 Jews who continue to live in Iran. I wonder who will protect them from the days of rage that will surely follow if Israel or the United States attacks Iran. Mobs are not rational and often strike out blindly. Are they just considered potential "collateral damage?"

From http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20111120-OPINION-111200316