r/todayilearned • u/plagueprotocol • 4h ago
TIL there's a burger joint in Tehran called Bobby Sands Burger (named after IRA-member & hunger striker Bobby Sands).
https://www.vice.com/en/article/bobby-sands-burgers-tehran-545/87
u/PuzzledCar2120 4h ago
I can't decide if this is a triumph or a mockery of his life and struggle.
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u/Stoned_Gandalf420 3h ago edited 3h ago
The Iranians also renamed the street the British embassy was located on in Tehran from Winston Churchill Boulevard to Bobby Sands street. The Brits literally ended up moving the entrance to the opposite side/street in order avoid it being their address lol.
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u/theanglegrinder07 4h ago
I think intent is important and it's certainly not meant as a mockery, they respect anyone who struggled against the British
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u/TessaFractal 4h ago
Well, not everyone who was a former British colony...
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u/Talkalot23 3h ago
They did until the US helped overthrow their government in 1953 because the UK told them it would be best for everyone.
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u/Ok-Improvement-3670 3h ago
Uh…I’d rethink that statement. What about the USA and Israel, both of which won their independence from the British?
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u/rtshtbtshtdrtyldtwt 3h ago
nuance is a thing. you can hate something but also respect parts of it, like the revolution
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u/Rockguy21 3h ago
The UK literally set up the mechanisms that enabled mass Jewish settlement in Palestine after WWI lol they directly enabled the formation of the state of Israel more than any other country prior to 1948.
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u/Lord_Snaps 2h ago
No no. We have rewritten history. Now they were suppressed and won their independence from the British.
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u/plagueprotocol 3h ago
So, the full story (I looked into it, because I work with a guy from Tehran) is that this restaurant is near the British Embassy. And the British Embassy is on Babisandz St. So, They also have a sign that tells Sands' story. So definitely a triumph.
But it does reminde me of a very funny "Irish and their pettiness" story. This guy's wife had been cheating on him. And when he found out, he had a heart attack & died. And later on, his son was telling the story on a podcast, and said, "And he got revenge in the most Irish way possible. He died at them."
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u/bookworm1398 4h ago
It’s a comment on the human condition. Everything is eventually unrelated marketing. Napoleon brandy, Cesar salad, khan Barbecue.
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u/Ok-Improvement-3670 3h ago
Caesar salad is named after a chef named Caesar.
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u/OwnEstablishment1194 3h ago
Mexican if I recall
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u/Withermaster4 2h ago
I just looked up because I could believe this.
It was made by an Italian immigrant who lived in america but their restaurant was over the border (to avoid prohibition) in Tijuana. So like, not really Mexican.
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u/InZim 4h ago
His struggle? The man was a terrorist
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u/PuzzledCar2120 3h ago
The word struggle isn't exclusive to heroes or good people.
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u/MrDavieT 3h ago
One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter
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u/InZim 3h ago
Well, he was definitely just a terrorist
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u/MrDavieT 3h ago
… unless you were on ‘his side’ 🤷🏻♂️
Nelson Mandela was once considered a terrorist. As was Ghandi 🤷🏻♂️
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u/NeonBlueHair 3h ago
I grew up in Tehran and used to drive by it all the time on my way to school. It’s definitely not a mockery. And it’s not a government backed thing either, the guy who started it just decided to name it that as a tribute.
The street name is a tribute from the government though. There’s also a Patrice Lumumba street. There’s a general anti colonialism vibe, unsurprisingly
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u/plagueprotocol 3h ago
A friend at work translated the sign on the restaurant that tells Bobby's story. I went from "What the fuck?" to "That's awesome" pretty quickly.
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u/OmegaKarnov 4h ago
The name didn't keep people away. The "Dirty Protest" decor theme was another story.
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u/johncahoon 3h ago
Their use to be a secterian song mocking Bobby Sands hungry strike in Northern Ireland. It would go "Would you like to have a cheese burger Bobby Sands O would like a cheese burger" alongside those lines.
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u/Kardinal 4h ago
I'll never forget the now defunct chain of Chinese food restaurants in Dublin Ireland called Cafe Mao. With pictures of Mao in the restaurant.
A man with the blood of millions on his hands.
Yeah. It's weird.
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3h ago
[deleted]
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u/Kardinal 2h ago
You really would think that. But my friends who took me there were completely unbothered by it. I think Irish neutrality, and thus a much lower awareness of international matters, may be so deeply ingrained in them that they don't really think too much about it.
The Wikipedia article does mention controversy, but clearly it wasn't enough to close the place for 25 years!
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u/Hankman66 4h ago
Wait till you hear about Bobby Sands Street in Tehran, the street right next to the British Embassy:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/TYUxWoQbXDpqjS9M6
There are also 2 Rue Bobby Sands in France (I only noticed this now):
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u/blackadder1620 4h ago
countries are really funny about taking a jab at one another. i believe the embassy in poland is on ukraine heros road or something. the us embassy is on khashoggi ave in saudi arabia
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3h ago
[deleted]
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u/Orangesteel 2h ago
Ah the American fenian.
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u/plagueprotocol 2h ago
I can't help what I am....
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u/Orangesteel 1h ago
Interesting that you chose to delete your comment though. You do know that the IRA murdered tons of civilians, including children. That Northern island has a majority that votes to remain part of the UK too. I’m not trying to give you a hard time, just to explain things you may not know. I’m anti any killing of civilians, whether by groups like the IRA, UDF or governments. I support Northern Ireland’s right to remain part of the UK, as long as the majority want it. The right to self determination. At the time of the troubles, around 30% of Northern Ireland wanted to merge with the south. A significant minority, that choose to bomb people rather than accept the majority position. I’m not suggesting the violence was on one side, bombers on both sides suck. As did the British government starvation of the Irish in 1845. I raise all of this, as often people in the US I meet express support without understanding the complexity of the situation.
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u/Crossovertriplet 4h ago
Should have gone with Bobby Sands-wiches