We (No Heart) Iran

Iran is definitively clipping Cupid's wings and has banned the production and sale of Valentine's day gifts. The War on Terror was all the rage for the US, but it appears that Iran prefers the more popular War on Love- which will, undoubtedly, be more successful.

The Iranian government sees Valentine's Day as another example of Western excess and doesn't want to encourage the spread of Western influence within its country. While it may be encouraging for V-day haters to not have to see a constant sea of pink and red in February, there may be something to this ban.

Check out this alarming fact from a yahoo.ca story:
"Valentine's Day has become increasingly popular among the Iranian youth and is a money-maker for businesses in a country where 70 percent of people are under 30 and have no memory of the 1979 Islamic revolution which toppled the U.S.-backed Shah."

Well, that is troublesome. To think that a majority of the country doesn't remember what oppression feels like and has the actual gall to think that it can celebrate with reckless abandon and spend their own money on ridiculous heart-shaped nonsense, all in the name of romantic love. That is a true shame.

The article further states that:
"Printing and producing any products related to Valentine's Day, including posters, brochures, advertising cards, boxes with the symbols of hearts, half-hearts, red roses and any activities promoting this day are banned," read the instruction. "Authorities will take legal action against those who ignore the ban."

This means that the most subversive act that you can commit in Iran on February 14th this year will be to hang a red Cupid cardboard cut out or a heart from your living room window. And that you may be sued, fined, jailed or persecuted for that simple act. Which is funny to think from a Western perspective, where people see V-Day as another excuse to load up on chocolates.

There's this theory that St. Valentine actually doesn't exist and that Valentine's Day was created by evil Hallmark CEOs who are actually funded by the American Republican Party and that the intent of the celebration is to generate revenue for chocolate companies while distracting the population from foreign missiles launches. If that's the case, maybe there's something Iran knows that we don't...