Cyrus Cylinder at Asian Art Museum in San Francisco

 

Cyrus Cylinder on display at Asian Art Museum  [Mark Pyruz, 9/1/13]

This writer took the opportunity afforded by the Labor Day holiday to visit the Asian Art Museum (free admission the first Sunday of every month) to view the celebrated Cyrus cylinder.

There was a long line to gain entrance to the exhibit room, where other artifacts from Achaemenid Persia were also on display. The wait gave me to time to actually read a translation of the cylinder, provided by a thoughtful  usher. I must admit, in all candidness, I did not find this cylinder text to render itself as a "human rights charter." Rather, it reads more like a high-minded justification for the use of military force and foreign occupation, the likes of which we're only too familiar with during the 20th and 21st centuries.

Still, the historical artifacts and cylinder provided a wonder to behold. I can truly state seeing the exhibit was a chance of a lifetime.

The Cyrus Cylinder and Ancient Persia exhibit at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco runs until September 22, 2013.

Iranian-American elected Sheriff of San Francisco

Sheriff-elect Ross Mirkarimi

According to the San Francisco Chronicle:

Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, the liberal lawmaker, police academy graduate, Naval Reserves veteran and a founding member of the California Green Party (who is now a Democratic), declared victory today in the race for sheriff.

And according to Wikipedia:

Ross Mirkarimi (pronounced Meehr-kah-reem-E) was born in Chicago in 1961 to an Iranian father, Hamid Mirkarimi, and a Jewish Russian-American mother, Nancy Kolman. He grew up in Jamestown, Rhode Island, where he graduated from the Catholic, all-male Bishop Hendricken High School in 1979. "I totally credit my childhood in Jamestown for my green views," Mirkarimi said. "I'll never forget living near Fort Getty and exploring the unspoiled island with my dog Oscar when I was a boy."

He has a Bachelor's degree in political science from St. Louis University, a Master's degree in international economics and affairs from Golden Gate University, and a Master of Science degree in environmental science from the University of San Francisco. He has lived in San Francisco since 1984.

Mirkarimi is a graduate of the San Francisco Police Academy, where he was the president of his class. Before his election to office, he served in the San Francisco District Attorney's Office investigating white collar crime.

On April 21, 2009, Ross Mirkarimi became a father, as Eliana Lopez, a Venezuelan telenovela star whom he met at an environmental conference in Brazil, gave birth to his son, Theo Aureliano Mirkarimi.

Congratulations to Ross Mirkarimi and the City & County of San Francisco!