Protests in Iran...

What do you guys think of whats going on in Iran...

Do you think this would change things drastically in terms of government shift and relations with U.S.?

I think it has a chance to be just that...

Also are there any Iranian Dreamers here...I am curious to know what your opinions on this...

I don't know the exact politics going on behind it, but I fully support a grassroots democracy in any country. So if the majority of the people think that the elections were not fair, it would be only correct for a new election to be held. The mainstream media seems to tell us that there are massive protests going on, and judging from the sources such as the BBC and the NYTIMES, the current government seems to be censoring the media, the only way to find out what really going on is through online sources.

Does anyone here follow an Iranian blog or twitter?

What I love about the revolt in Iran is that the movement is largely supported by young people, people our age. It's very inspiring that they are able to see corruption and stand up to it. Whatever happens, I hope Mousavi wins over that little jerk Ahmadinehjad or however you spell it.

The New York Times gets owned by authentic journalism:
http://narcosphere.narconews.com/the...new-york-times

HAHA!

Ugh, It’s so infuriating to see the government barring the international press from filming the massive protests and from providing accurate reports of the situation on the ground. So far, more than 30 dissenters have been killed.

The Iranian people can’t even text each other at this point, and the only “news” coverage they’re getting is coming from the state-run TV stations that are, of course, pro-Ahmadinejad.

Thank the Spaghetti Monster for Twitter which is the only alternative means of communication for the opposition. I heard that the US State Department has asked Twitter to hold off on running scheduled maintenance so that the few Iranians who’ve gotten around the Internet proxies can keep communicating with one another.

Now, I know this is going to sound horrible, but this unprecedented uprising in Iran is great news for the US. Whether Ahmadinejad gets to keep his job, or gets ousted by the opposition, he will no longer pose a threat to the US as far as his nuclear proliferation program is concerned. Pair that to this month’s democratic defeat of Hezbollah in Lebanon and you have a clear momentum building up in the Middle East for a new type of relationship with the West — a more peaceful one, at that.

In any case, I found this video quite inspiring. I’m not sure that in the face of such flagrant oppression, I’d be able to protest so peacefully.



*tear, tear, sniffle

Yeah, it's incredible how big a role the internet and technology has played in this situation.

It also shows the rest of the world how savvy the Iranian people really are, and hopefully they won't get stereotyped as backwards, "Death to America" people anymore.

Is anyone seeing what the Republicans want Obama to do about this.

They want him to speak out and condemn the Iranian government and voice strong support for the protesters.

They fail to see that if he does that, then the U.S. would be seen as meddling and the Iranian government would use that as another excuse to condemn America and then say that the protesters are being encouraged by the U.S. thus voiding their cause.

Obama is doing the right thing by making smart, thoughtful, careful comments about the situation, and keeping it calm, instead of trying to turn this into a "political football" like the Republicans are. Which is sad because these are peoples lives and democratic freedom in jeopardy.

Republican Foreign Policy=Make Erratic Decisions

Diplobamacy>>>>>>>>>Republican Foreign Policy

So much for small government...

Did Republicans skip their history courses altogether?

During the cold war in the fifties, the US orchestrated a coup d’etat against the democratically-elected government in Iran, and instead set up a tyrannical monarchy that allowed America and the UK to exploit the oil-rich region. In fact, this was the key component of the beginning of anti-Americanism in the Middle East.

President Obama would have to be out of his mind to get involved now, not to mention that, like Rachel said, nothing good would come out of it for the Iranian people.

Has anyone seen the video about Neda? She was a young woman standing on the side watching the protests when she was shot from a roof by a sniper. The people around her filmed as she collapsed (she was shot in the heart), began bleeding from her nose and mouth and ultimately died (on camera). It's quite tragic and very disturbing, but she is becoming a symbol for the unnecessary violence going on in Iran right now. If you find the video, I suggest you watch it (unless you don't like blood/are squeamish).

Yeah I saw it...quite unfortunate and tragic...