Students Denounce "Dictator" President In Rare Iran Protests

AP:

About 100 students staged a rare protest Monday against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, calling him a "dictator" as he gave a speech at Tehran University marking the beginning of the academic year.

While the demonstrators and hard-line students loyal to Ahmadinejad scuffled in the auditorium, the president ignored chants of "Death to the dictator" and gave his speech on the merits of science and the pitfalls of Western-style democracy, witnesses said.

Read the whole story: AP

Comments

[EspressoAtNoon]

This should be all over the news, but it isn't. It's hard to demonize a country if Americans can see democratic protests against their "nut job" of a leader. So it just doesn't get on the news. Most Americans will NEVER know about it.

[squareyellowpaper]

The Bush strategy of using prolonged threats against the Iranians is working. Yound Iranians are caving to American scare tactics. They are frightened beyond belief of a possible nuclear attack. Bush has won the minds of the Iranians.

See, George? Real strategies work! To bad you didn't have one in Iraq!

[Ramirez]

Here's some recent historical content:

July 1999:
"On 9 July, police and right-wing vigilantes stormed a Tehran University dormitory which students were occupying.

The move sparked off days of street riots across the country, in which students were beaten and detained by police and hardliners. At least five were reportedly killed."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3879535.stm

June2003:
"Public opposition to Iran's ruling clerical establishment is deepening, a student leader said Saturday, as officials reported that more than 4,000 people were arrested during this month's pro-reform protests."
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/06/12/world/main558295.shtml

[frost]

.

rare Iran protests..

were these protestors kept a mile away and inside a cage..

oh wait that was fucking AMERICA...
.

[ajax2]

When will protests be allowed here?

[Ramirez]

Today, if you like.

[Gumby123]

Ahmadinejad is the darling of the liberal left and of Huffington post as long as he spouts anti-Bush rhetoric. Those pesky students are making the left look bad!

[MagisterLudi]

Just off the presses: The Islamic revolution in Iran was a CIA/MOSSAD Psych-op. Just as current devious student protest in Iran organized by Zionist!

Yes!!! CIA was also behind Iranian student uprising in 1979!
Ayatollah Khomeini was actually a Mossad plant His real name is Baruch Haimovitz!!!

Then Zionists cleverly orchestrated the American hostage taking by AhmadinJihad and his fellow CIA operatives to make USA hate Iran.

Wow these guys make Dr. Fu Manchu a boy scout.

P.S. next issue the truth the moon landing and Sputnik: a Zionist take over of Russian and American space programs to make Muslims feel more inferior about their flying carpet project.

[fact finder]

MagisterLudi; Please prove your statement. Alink would be helpful.

[Ramirez]

fact finder, please turn off your sarc blocker.

[janmarie]

Iranian students protested the Shah way back when and would get arrested and thrown in jail and tortured by secret police called Savak with the approval and possibly help of the USA. Sounds like things have improved in Iran since then!

[MaryMullins]

What a stupid headline.

Ahmadjinehad is NOT a dictator.

[MagisterLudi]

Technically Assmadjihad is not a dictator because he has no power.
But if you care to read the article...
It is not a headline. It's what IRANIANS IN IRAN where shouting as a form of protest.

Would you feel better if they were shouting "Kufr" or "Moron?"

[speckiegrrl]

It's twits like you that give democracy a bad name. How about this: marymullins is not a real human being....makes about as much sense as ~your ridiculous pronouncement.

How about a little wager? Ready? I bet you, marymullins, that within the month, at least ten of those protesters end up a)expelled from university; b)arrested; c)dead.

[Kalima]

Mary Mullins is Dutch.
Please be advised it is Vietvet,JoetheBartender,
Europa2,Snuffy the Sneerer,Dolores,Ghostinthe
Machine,LindaSmart50 and who knows how
many more.Please don't engage as he will start
with the c-word.
He understands German so please remember
the German word for a@@hole; Arschloch.
It's the only reply he deserves.

[MaryMullins]

I bet those American foaming at the mouth at killing more Iranians and Iraqis are a bit saddened.

Students protesting? Yes they will love us if we bomb them. (sarcasm).

[Kalima]

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/world/meast/10/9/iran.
protest.ap/index.html

[Kalima]

Sorry.
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/world/meast/10/9/iran.protest.ap/index.html

[gpr-2007]

Does history repeat itself? Strangely, when the headline is students protesting in a Islamic country, you have to wonder if the CIA isn't behind the uprising. They have been behind uprising of students in the past.

[BuyRubles]

true

[Kalima]

Oh,by the way MarySnuffy,my husband read
your comment above to me.
I think the word EUROTRASH was invented
just for you.He will be in Europe at the
end of this month and wanted to thank you
personally.
However I told him it would be difficult to
find a good exorcist at such short notice.

[nefertiti]

who says there is no free speech in iran then ? :) the students wont have the courage to say this King Abdullah of Jordan of saudi Arabia . not in a million years . they know they have ended their future and student life.

[researcher]

no one gets it. it is not about bombing iran. american imperialism now rules the world as those in europe sit by and watch helpless.

might makes right always has. the only thing that will bring america down is a finanial crisis.

no one wants that we are too big of consumer to the world their economies depend on us buying their products.

imperialism forever baby we are the king of the world.

quit bitching and buy stock in the industrial military complex as hillary is going to win and bring on the wars she wants to prove she has the balls just like george jr to do it.

one terrorist attack in america and americans will open their checkbooks so we can invade iran and install another puppet government like iraq. oil baby oil. we can own the world's oil resources if we play our cards right.

americans are imperialists at heart. have been since end of world war II. look how easy it was to talk them into the iraq war?

while europe sits buy and watchs. someday they will buy their oil from us then we will own the world's wealth.

[researcher]

whoops forgot to mention we now own 90% of the poppy production in the world. oil and poppys what a country. god I love america.

you think there is money in oil well control the world market in poppys. like diamonds baby and they keep on giving not just on holidays but everyday.

I am so glad I live in a christian nation and not a heathen and evil nation like iraq or iran.

god bless america and israel. so glad hillary voted to call that iran military terrorists. good for her she is a true american.

now iraqi's hurry up and get the oil pipeline built to israel so they can get their free oil.
signed
proud evangel american

[loki]

You have to respect the Iranians. They have more courage than most Americans. They are looking at death, and still they try to create a change.

On the other hand, we wont do jack. Were afraid of losing a tax break.

[vinny]

I don't get it, in the pic I don't see a guard kicking anyone. The guard appears to be jabbing a protester with a truncheon.

Here in the US, police will taze your ass, club you in the back of the head, shoot a rubber bullet between your eyes, lock you jail until you fork over video that they think you took, pin you in a cage 12 miles away from an event, take you away to a detention warehouse without cause, manhandle you and throw you out of a public hearing for wearing the wrong clothes... etc. etc. etc.

Talk about a government crackdown on dissent.

[Ramirez]

The music video:
"Can't Tase This!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzkd_m4ivmc

[Kalima]

You and the poster below make me laugh.
You have spent your lives in a country full
of freedoms that many people in many
countries all over the world can only dream
about.How can you even begin to compare
yourselves with these countries that have
no freedom?
It's pathetic!Just because you have a president
you Hate,does not put you on par with the
rest of the world who really know suffering.
I find that you are spoiled and your problems
with your government are nothing compared
to the problems that face the others outside
your borders.On the whole,apart from a few,
enlightened posters,you are just selfish and
self absorbed.I am very disappointed in what
I have learned so far about the American
people.
Go ahead and tell me I'm an idiot.
Better still call me a troll.
Better still a Trollope.
I am still disappointed at many of the selfish
comments here.
I really expected much more.
Gute Nacht.

[MagisterLudi]

Hear, hear... it's typical reaction of spoiled Americans who never known what adversity is really like and just sit on their fat asses in front of their cheap Asian computers made with sweat and toil of Asian workers and bitch about how hard their lives are and how oppressed they feel..
How pathetic and short sighted.

[bil]

Hey ,lets start a war with Iran & see if we can allienate more forward thinking muslims like we did in Iraq.These countrys actually have universitiess & women actually wore real clothes & became doctors , lawyers ect.. Universities, educated people? maybe that was the weapons of M.D. That scared the Bushs, Right wingers & neocons so much.Its the same here. They think universities are dangerous because they give students the ability to think & not just accept the B.S.

[1differentdrummer]

You're right about the alienate part, but ORU isn't too much about thinking, is it?

[Raster]

Middle East about to come unglued?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2186530,00.html