:O Er, I don't see this panning out very well in the near future. One can only hope this doesn't get even worse. On a side note - it's amusing what Iran will try to deny/claim to cover up the atrocities they are committing :/.
Well I'll just give a little update. Also interesting, my aunts and cousin went to Iran a few days before the election (got there June 9th) and just got back today. They traveled around Iran; Tehran, Shiraz, Esfahan, and Orumiyeh (don't know the english spelling of this), and a few other towns. My aunt told me that things were surprisingly calm for the most part. She said most of the protests and demonstrations took place between 5-9pm which caused a lot of congestion / traffic in the streets.
She also told me how she actually felt very safe walking around the streets and stuff, and she also noted how at least for women, things were quite a bit better than they had been the last time she had been there (5 years ago). For example, she was able to walk around on the streets wearing makeup without being stopped by the "Morality Police", which would not have happened 5 years ago. Another interesting thing she told me was that being in Iran no longer feels like you are in a 3rd world country. Most people now have really fast internet, cell phones, etc etc. She said in general people are a lot better off than they have been before.
So here are some interesting things to note:
a) She was in Iran for nearly a month, and spent a lot of time in Tehran and was out and about so to speak, and her life wasn't hindered by all the protests going on; this means to me at least that a lot of it is not as bad as it has been portrayed by the Western media. I'm not saying they're making all the stuff up obviously, but again I think the magnitude that was being shown was disproportionate to reality. If my aunt could spend a month in Iran and the worst thing that happened was being 2 hours late to my grandma's house because of traffic, then it seems like the media was doing a fair bit of sensationalism.
b) My aunt is like ultra liberal, to the point where it annoys me, and she admitted today that "its no wonder the people elected Ahmadinejad, a lot of people have much better living conditions than they have had in the past".
c) Women have a lot more rights and freedoms than they have had in the last decade in Iran, so clearly the regime has made slow, but noticeable progress
d) She said there is a lot of Russia/Chinese influence that can be seen in the country, and she said it seemed as if Iran was selling itself to Russia and China (economically speaking) - which seems fairly accurate considering the shitty state of the economy in Iran and all the sanctions and shit the West has placed against it.
*isclaimer: someone might say "omg you just said people were doing better and now you say the economy sucks! you're full of shit". An increase in the standard of living doesn't mean the economy can't be doing badly as well, just a head sup. There is high speed internet, appliances are modern, people are walking around the streets in fashionable clothes, women are wearing makeup... these things are really widespread in the cities; 10 years ago this was not the case (ya I know there wasn't high speed internet 10 years ago, but I'm talking about comparative luxuries here). People have much more of these things, but at the same time the country as a whole is doing poorly, high unemployment, inflation, etc.
Overall... as I've said before, and what is clearly well established at this point; Khamenei now is the main focus of the protesters. Moussavi and Karrubi are still arguing that there should be a re-vote... however the chances of that happening are slim to none. Ahmadinejad is likely going to serve out his Presidency. What can be expected to happen in the coming year is a lot of intense negotiations which will likely result in the reduction of Khamenei's powers, at this point I don't forsee him being removed from office despite what some may claim. He'll have a reduced role in the government, and I think in 2013 (next election) is when you will really see a HUGE push for major reforms, especially because by that time Khamenei will have a lot less power, Ahmadinejad won't be able to run for office again, etc.
I doubt the protests are going to escalate any further, it seems as if they're dying down and life is returning to normal. However, even though things on the surface might seem more calm, the real tumult has been internalized... and really I think that change this time (unlike 1979) will come from within the government as opposed to being mandated by a mass movement. There isn't a Khomeini type figure to really serve as a focal point for the people, AND the protest movement hasn't captured the absolutely critical portions of the Iranian people (the merchant class and the oil workers) to make the needed changes. If those two groups don't join the protest movement, the government won't really be pressed to make changes. Moussavi isn't really a hugely charismatic focal leader like Khomeini was. He's more of a "well, he's pretty liberal and not as bad as Ahmadinejad, so I'm gonna vote for him" type guy rather than being some sort of Obama type "change is coming!" guy.
PS.
Actually my grandma voted for Moussavi and it was literally the first time she had voted since the Revolution. It was a big affair.
Leading Clerics Defy Ayatollah on Disputed Iran Election By MICHAEL SLACKMAN and NAZILA FATHI New York Times Published Online: July 4, 2009 Published In Print: July 5, 2009
The most important group of religious leaders in Iran called for the results to be thrown out, the most public sign of a major split in the clerical establishment.
CAIRO -- The most important group of religious leaders in Iran called the disputed presidential election and the new government illegitimate on Saturday, an act of defiance against the country's supreme leader and the most public sign of a major split in the country's clerical establishment.
A statement by the group, the Association of Researchers and Teachers of Qum, represents a significant, if so far symbolic, setback for the government and especially the authority of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose word is supposed to be final. The government has tried to paint the opposition and its top presidential candidate, Mir Hussein Moussavi, as criminals and traitors, a strategy that now becomes more difficult -- if not impossible.
"This crack in the clerical establishment, and the fact they are siding with the people and Moussavi, in my view is the most historic crack in the 30 years of the Islamic republic," said Abbas Milani, director of the Iranian Studies Program at Stanford University. "Remember, they are going against an election verified and sanctified by Khamenei."
On July 07 2009 01:52 Unforgiven_ve wrote: i cmae here just to see some opinions about that StealthBlue, but i think Iran is so last year, its all about Honduras now! weepee
i'd appreciate it if you didn't brush off the suffering of the iranian people because of the dictatorship government as a fad that needs to be forgotten/replaced.
On July 07 2009 01:52 Unforgiven_ve wrote: i cmae here just to see some opinions about that StealthBlue, but i think Iran is so last year, its all about Honduras now! weepee
i'd appreciate it if you didn't brush off the suffering of the iranian people because of the dictatorship government as a fad that needs to be forgotten/replaced.
Yes but there isn't a dictatorship. And iranian people's problem isn't the government but the supreme leaders, the clerics.
On July 07 2009 01:52 Unforgiven_ve wrote: i cmae here just to see some opinions about that StealthBlue, but i think Iran is so last year, its all about Honduras now! weepee
i'd appreciate it if you didn't brush off the suffering of the iranian people because of the dictatorship government as a fad that needs to be forgotten/replaced.
Yes but there isn't a dictatorship. And iranian people's problem isn't the government but the supreme leaders, the clerics.
.... that is very wrong my friend. my father has been a supporter of the anti-iranian government group (the mojahedin) for a good 30 years now, and i think i'm a little more experienced in this matter then most if not all members of this board. the clerics control the government. it's all the same shit. who cares if people's rights are slightly being increased? most of the population still lives in poverty and people are killed mercilessly every day. not to mention that the iranian government supports terrorists groups operating in several countries (such as Iraq). Even the States acknowledges this, yet still they do nothing.
On July 07 2009 01:52 Unforgiven_ve wrote: i cmae here just to see some opinions about that StealthBlue, but i think Iran is so last year, its all about Honduras now! weepee
i'd appreciate it if you didn't brush off the suffering of the iranian people because of the dictatorship government as a fad that needs to be forgotten/replaced.
On July 07 2009 01:52 Unforgiven_ve wrote: i cmae here just to see some opinions about that StealthBlue, but i think Iran is so last year, its all about Honduras now! weepee
i'd appreciate it if you didn't brush off the suffering of the iranian people because of the dictatorship government as a fad that needs to be forgotten/replaced.
Yes but there isn't a dictatorship. And iranian people's problem isn't the government but the supreme leaders, the clerics.
In case you forgot, but the Clerics are the government. The Ayatollah is the supreme leader of Iran who is not elected. If you wish to not call it a dictatorship, which technically it's a theocracy, it is nevertheless in all forms of the word a tyranny.
My only hope was that Barry would have been like Reagan and supported those seeking (Poland, Czech's behind the Iron Curtain) freedom and liberty. Of course, Barry didn't support them, rather he took notes so as to build a foundation on the next American upheavel.
An interesting thought. The Poles and Czech's so revere Reagan that he is a national icon to those people for what he did to bring them out from under the Iron Curtain. You see, when you base your politics on moral alignments and philosophy and actually follow through on those people come to respect you. No people come to respect power or government. In all it's iterations government serves to deprive people of their rights, as such that is why America was founded on the ideal of limited government with many checks and balances.
I only hope that despite the President's best effort to undermine those seeking Freedom and Liberty that the people of Iran rise up, much as my forefathers who founded America did and hold out until the day we have a President who supports those seeking ideals cherished here in America.
I am with the people wherever they choose liberty and freedom in whatever name they wish to call themselves and will oppose tyranny and oppression in all corners of the world. Domestic and Foreign oppressors, beware.
Let's all hope the people of Iran obtain their unalieable rights.
I did shoot at people myself. I am a military man I have to obey my orders. The crowd was attacking us like crazy people; throwing stones and Molotov cocktails. We had to protect ourselves; to show we were serious, and we did warn them, shouting several times, before opening fire. But they continued to attack. I don't remember who I shot, I just tried to shoot at the people's feet.
eyewitness: many who got arrested were not among protesters, but got beaten & taken away by force and violently #iranelection
witness says he saw 2 killed by gunfire. "we were in the red zone and it was nothing less than war.pray for us"#iranelection
Plainclothes Basijis stood in front of a line of riot police and pumped canisters of tear gas, which young protesters with green bandanas over their faces kicked away across the pavement, away from the crowds. Some set a bonfire in the street and waved their hands in the air in victory signs.
TEHRAN, Iran – Hard-liners attacked senior pro-reform leaders in the streets as tens of thousands marched in competing mass demonstrations by the opposition and government supporters. Opposition protesters, chanting "death to the dictator," hurled stones and bricks in clashes with security forces firing tear gas.
dictator! dictator! this is the last warning! the green people are Iran are ready to rise! http://tiny.cc/xlljI #iranelection
videos of Fri Sep 18th Protests. People still don't consider Ahmadinejad as the elected president http://tiny.cc/DaCAJ #iranelection
Also:
Larijani secretly meets with Ayatollah Makarem
Tabnak | Sept. 18, 2009
Majlis speaker Ali Larijani has secretly met with Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem-Shirazi at his residence in Qom.
According to the Rasa news agency report, while details of last night’s meeting were not disclosed, it is believed that the country’s current state of affairs were discussed.
It should be noted that in recent days the number of private meetings held between the Sources of Emulation in Qom, Ayatollahs Makarem-Shirazi, Safi-Golpayegani and Nouri-Hamadani and Iranian political figures and other clerics has been on the increase.
Bumping due to blogs, tweets, and even news sources confirming that there are rumors/worries of the impending arrest of Mir-Hossein Mousavi. Nothing on the cable news outlets, or BBC as far as I know.
At least 4 protesters were killed during recent fighting, including the nephew of of Mousavi (the presidential candidate who was 'defeated' by Ahmadinejad). This is pretty controversial since these our holy days during which violence/killing is especially looked down upon. Also the main spiritual leader of the opposition movement (a really high-ranking 'priest') recently passed away. Also, Iranian courts recently charged a bunch of prison guards with torturing/beating to death protesters.
Freedom in Iran!!!!!... hopefully without violence
Iran's government makes me sick. What kind of backward ass state is ruled by a fucking theocracy. Seriously, their government is fucked because the Ayatollah has all of the real power. The elected "president" doesn't have shit for power so the election doesn't even matter to begin with.
Oh, and by the way Iran... your Ayatollah is a pedophile. He sanctions grown men raping 9 year old girls. Are 9 year old girls too old for you? Well if you're a pedophile, pack you bags and move to Iran because you can still perform "sexual acts such as foreplay, rubbing, kissing, and sodomy" to girls younger than 9.
Also, he allows something called "thighing" to toddlers. Basically "thighing" is sticking your penis between the thighs, so a man could simulate sex. Theoretically, someone could do this to a 2 day old infant and even then the Ayatollah wouldn't even consider it morally offensive. WTF
More about "thighing":
No progress is going to be made even if fair elections are held. The Ayatollah holds the real power and he's not elected. Additionally, if the Ayatollah disagrees on anything with the president of Iran, then he has the power to overrule him. So basically any elected president is either going to be a puppet of the Ayatollah or become a non-factor in the government.
On December 28 2009 16:32 Mooga wrote: Oh, and by the way Iran... your Ayatollah is a pedophile. He sanctions grown men raping 9 year old girls. Are 9 year old girls too old for you? Well if you're a pedophile, pack you bags and move to Iran because you can still perform "sexual acts such as foreplay, rubbing, kissing, and sodomy" to girls younger than 9.
Also, he allows something called "thighing" to toddlers. Basically "thighing" is sticking your penis between the thighs, so a man could simulate sex. Theoretically, someone could do this to a 2 day old infant and even then the Ayatollah wouldn't even consider it morally offensive. WTF