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An Iranian Actress Isn't Going to Get Publicly Flogged for a Kiss
Straight from the desk of "things that sound like something Iran would do, but we're not sure because we don't know anything about Iran," the Telegraph, Daily Mail, and Daily Beast, among others, have reported that the Iranian actress from A Separation has been condemned to a flogging for kissing the Cannes festival president on the cheek, something that's apparently a big no-no over there. And it's not just a regular flogging: It's gonna be a public one, too.
telegraph.co.uk
thedailybeast.com
"Kids get in free!"
Note that the headlines say she "faces flogging" and is "to be flogged," as opposed to "definitely won't be flogged just because someone said she should be" ... which is what's actually happening here. The call for flogging came from a small group of conservative students protesting the kiss -- to put it in perspective, this is like running an article titled "CANADA TO EXECUTE MEMBERS OF NICKELBACK" because someone saw the comments they get on YouTube.
It's true that Iranian political figures condemned the kiss, but that's mostly for show: They know women kiss men on the cheek every day, and they don't give a shit. When the kiss is on TV, though, they have to say something or risk losing the crazy-pants sector of their constituents.
telegraph.co.uk
Kissing Willem Dafoe, on the other hand, really is a punishable offense in most of the world.
Hell, we doubt the students themselves have any real hope of this happening. In other words, this was an empty threat by a gaggle of nut jobs that no one would possibly take seriously.
Um, except for all of the media, of course.
