We are either witnessing the end of the Islamic-Republic in Iran or the crushing of another generation or reformists. The ruling party was caught so off guard with how badly their election (rigged as it was) was going for them they've shut down communications throughout the country and announced the saddest, most transparently fraudulent election results ever put forward by a tinpot dictatorial regime. They are so at odds with reality, it makes me wonder if the idea is to claim power and provoke riots by to opposition (working) in order to generate an excuse to arrest, beat, ad kill them.
Andrew Sullivan has devoted his blog to covering this story which is helpful because the mainstream media in this country appears to still be unaware that there is a story to cover here.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
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7 comments:
Of course the bizarre additional detail is that the Iranian President has almost no power anyway, being just a figurehead in front of the Ayatollah. Which makes interfering in the election doubly strange.
But the Ayatollah made an announcement -- congratulating the president on his victory -- before the results were out. Is the Ayatollah in on it, or is he so weak that the president was able to USE him?
DC: I suspect the latter. Iran's government's veil of religious law has been torn off revealing just a sad and brutal little fascist dictatorship.
Ummm, that's the point DC. The Ayatollahs and and religious councils control all politics in Iran. Of course, he's in on it, he's the one who hand-selected who was allowed to run, and he's the one who decides what the country actually does. Why is it surprising that he supported the President that he installed in the previous election?
The only mildly surprising thing is that he is now pretending to pay attention to the protests, by announcing that he will "investigate fraud".
Even with a reformer in as President its unlikely to have an effect on Iran, as proven by Khatami years ago, under this same Ayatollah. So I wonder why he would bother to interfere so obviously in the election. But its possible this time that there is enough public support that he wants to put down any thoughts of reform before they can get started.
I don't know, SW. I don't think Amadinajad has any more power than the council gives him. The Basij out in the streets breaking protests don't serve him, they serve the Ayatollah. Certainly its never been much more than a fascist dictatorship, but it's a dictatorship of the Ayatollah, not the President. If Amadinejad stopped serving the interests of the Ayatollah (and the council at large), we wouldn't hear from him anymore.
At least, that's been my reading.
Here's Dan Drezner on that very point (though since he works under the Slate group there's probably some hidden liberal agenda).
http://drezner.foreignpolicy.com/node/28310
The right wingers appear to be almost glad that the reform movement is failing. Not sure what their footing is without their enemies.
I may be criticizing the left, but I don't see any reason to pay attention to the right at present.
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