Dr. Davood Rahni is a New York resident and Iranian-American scholar and university professor. Attorney and Iranologist Johanna Sturbin interviewed Prof. Rahni for the popular web site Iranian.com on November 21, 2007. With his permission, that interview is printed here in its entirety, in two parts.
Today's Diary includes five of the twelve questions Sturbin posed to Dr. Rahni, and encompass Rahni's personal background and life in Iran, then in the US; a sketch of Iran's history and its people, their Zoroastrian and other religious traditions and their long and generally favorable history with Jews and Israel. Next, Ms. Sturbin guides Rahni to relate that cultural heritage to Iran's more recent quest for independence and nationhood, and its encounters with the West in that quest.
To close this first part, Rahni reflects on how Iranians incorporate their experiences of American and British involvement in Iran with their current, generally positive attitude toward Americans.
Step below for Part I, East-West bridge