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[Ampersand]

http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=360933

While definitely not my favorite website, this is definitely the best compilation of videos I've yet to find of the Riots in Iran.

So, what exact has been happening? I'll assume you live under a rock. Despite a certain element in America referring to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran as a dictator, he is not. That would be the Grand Ayatollah Khamenei. Iran is a Theocracy, governed by the Islamic council established by the Islamic Revolution against the Shah back in 1979. In name, though, they are a republic.

So what happened? Elections happened, between Conservative Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Reformist, Mir-Hossein Mousavi. Mousavi started to gain a lot of traction toward the end of the campaign after televised debates in which he really confronted Ahmadinejad's explosive and insane rhetoric. A whole lot of traction, in fact. Young people, and women mostly were the cause of this. Record numbers of voters turned out and... Ahmadinejad won, by a humongous margin. An absolutely unbelieveable margin. Even his supporters were expecting it to be much closer. If true, all the polling was off... But then, well the videos in the link above explains what happened next.

Down with the dictatorship, they cry. Reformist politicians are being rounded up and arrested. The people will not stand for this, obviously. As we speak, the riots continue, with no intention of dying down. Recounts have been announced, but... Well,

http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/06/recount-in-iran-coming.html

Plenty of reasons why that doesn't even begin to matter.

For myself, I stand with the people in the streets, and I hope that everyone looking at those videos takes care to notice how they are dressed. Not the crude stereotype of the middle east, the white smock and cap, but almost universally dressed in ways that would make them fit in perfectly well in Chicago, or New York, or LA, or Austin, or anywhere else in America. Some of the women aren't even wearing scarves over their hair.

Iran is far from being a liberal democracy of the sort we know in North America, and Europe. There is a facade that is erected by the government there, by the Islamic council. The glorious Islamic revolution, they call it. A republic, they call it. Half truths perpetuated by the maintainers of the Revolution. But these people on the streets are not inner party members. Or outer party members.

If there is hope, it lies in the proles.

[Ampersand]

Oh, but it gets worse. The other day there was a massive rally for Mousavi, right outside a paramilitary militia complex. The paramilitary militia men opened fire on the crowd with AK-47s.

http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=361463

[inaluct]

Bush would've loved this.

[Sowelu]

Oh, but it gets worse. The other day there was a massive rally for Mousavi, right outside a paramilitary militia complex. The paramilitary militia men opened fire on the crowd with AK-47s.

http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=361463

Jesus.  I'll be paying attention to how this turns out...

[Neonivek]

the white smock and cap, but almost universally dressed in ways that would make them fit in perfectly well in Chicago, or New York, or LA, or Austin, or anywhere else in America. Some of the women aren't even wearing scarves over their hair.

Am I the only one who doesn't actually mind the white Smocks with caps as well as scarves over hair? I figured the real reason they wore those (appart from the scarves) was because it is HOT in Iran as well as sunny.

Though to my knowledge Iran does take quite a bit from the United States anyhow so this doesn't surprise me.

I cannot remember. is Iran Persia? I believe it is

[Ampersand]

I don't think anyone 'minds' the white smock and cap. It's a matter of stereotyping. In any case, yes, Iran was Persia.

[Karlito]

Its interesting in the fact that the major news networks took days to pick up on the story, and all the real news is coming though Twitter, although BBC is getting fairly good coverage.  It represents a pretty big shift in the way we access media.

Here's a relevant TED talk.

[Neonivek]

I don't think anyone 'minds' the white smock and cap. It's a matter of stereotyping. In any case, yes, Iran was Persia.

From what I understand it isn't called Persia now because it is hard for the main population to say the word. Though anyone who can say Persia pretty much considers it to be.

[Strife26]

Viva la revolution.

Makes problems for them. Proves that authoritarianism loses.

[Nilocy]

For one i congratulate them. The result were very shifty indeed, winning by a huge majority? doubt it, some cheating must have happened.

[Aqizzar]

I was wondering if someone would start a thread on this.  I would have, but I didn't have the useful links.

I've actually been watching the election with interest for several months, since I remembered the election was this year.  Mousavi is an upstanding guy, with even more popular support than those holy-crap-hueg rallies make it appear.  This was unmistakeably a tin pot bag job.

My prediction is, he will be named President, probably within a couple weeks.  Mousavi is hardly a revolutionary, but Iran doesn't really need one.  He's a wizened and open minded manager of internal affairs, which is what Iran needs.  The Ayatollah and his Guardian Council are not going anywhere.  There's a big split between clerics who like Ahmadinijad's caustic but pointless public face, and clerics who don't want Iran bombed into the Stone Age, and remember Mousavi for his nation saving rule as Prime Minister in the '80s.  What this will accomplish is teach the cleric class that times have changed, and that they're hanging on by pretty thin thread.

[Strife26]

The times, they're a changing. It's a positive development. I'd hope that Iran becomes less evil, as long as their material stays under central control.

[Aqizzar]

For the record, most of Iran's population wasn't even alive in the 1980's.  The country is run by a cabal of conceited, greedy old men.  The people at large are still quite pious in a modern sense, so you won't see the old clerics cast down any time soon, despite the giant gulf of political differences with most of the people.  But if nothing else, time will do them in before too long.

[omgdandelions]

Iran isn't evil, just not very well understood by the many in the west. The current 'revolution' they are having is a very positive change though.

[Karlito]

I hope the end result will be positive.  I can't really see the masses being pacified without significant change, but this looks like it could go on for a long time.  I guess we'll have to find ways to support them however we can.  Oh look!  My avatar already has a green armband.