Iran Election Campaign Takes On Raucous Tone As Voting Nears

nytimes.com:

TEHRAN -- The leading candidates are accusing each other of corruption, bribery and torture. The wife of the strongest challenger to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has threatened to sue him for defaming her. And every night, parts of the capital become a screaming, honking bacchanal, with thousands of young men dancing and brawling in the streets until dawn.

Read the whole story: nytimes.com

Comments

[Gregor53]

I see Rove is working a new Election spear.

[unity08]

I hate to feel this way, but I think the far right wingers in the USA would prefer Ahmadinejad win the election and remain President. They will claim Obama's Cairo speech had no effect in the middle east and deem it a failure.
For them, politically, Ahmadinejad represents a reason to keep up the hardline rhetoric.
What will they do if a more moderate leader of Iran emerges?
Hezbollah already lost in Lebanon, what if peace were to break out?
I know its a long road to get there but it seems to me, people all over the region are tired of the extreme leaders.

[roshni]

I completely agree. I also see some of the tactics being employed by Ahmadijenad and it sounds just like the rethugs during the election. He is attacking his opponent's wife, which is deeply disrespectful especially in Islamic culture.

[DavidET]

In his Sunday presidential debate with the other moderate candidate Mousavi, his rival Karoobi said that after his failure in the last presidential election, he decided to form a political party with the goal of running for the office of the presidency again. He added that he did this because of the danger that he saw in the rule of Ahmadinejad and his group. All the polls at this time show that Karoobi is in distant third and the election will be won by either Ahmadinejad or Mousavi or will be extended to the run-off election between the two if neither obtains the required 50% vote.

Despite his previous insistence that he would continue his campaign, if after the scheduled debates Karoobi in a press conference states that in order to save the country from "the danger" that it is facing he will be pulling out of the race and extending his support to Mousavi, not only this will substantially increases the chance of Mousavi's win in the elections but by presenting the winning card, it will give Karoobi a chance to earn much respect among moderates and Iranians as well as guarantees him a key position in Mousavi's government. However if he does continue and Mousavi loses, Karoobi will go down in history as a spoiler and that would be the end of his political career as an elected official.

[frappe]

The Iranians must be watching Faux Noise via satellite or something. Why else would they be mimicking GOP campaign tactics?

[TJCole]

You see we have so much in common with Iran, we should be able to get along...

[judiNJ]

Wow! I read this in the New York Times this morning. They are really out there fighting the good fight. I wonder if President Obama's Cairo speech inspired them, as well. And this in light of the droopy, apathetic Europeans. Go, Iranians!

[lobear00]

Can you believe that' the government of Iran is a reflection of our own. Corrupt, full of Bribery, and of course ladened with Torture, but then we the people of the United States went one step further ! We finally elected a real "President" . Iran still has a "Dictator", We on the other hand finally got rid of "Ours ". And the whole world "Rejoiced" along with "We the citizens" of the United States of America.

[Durango]

say what you will, Ahmedinijad is by no definition a dictator.

He couldn't evne get his people appointed to his cabinet.

There are plenty of things wrong in Iran and its politics. One doesn't need to resort to propaganda.

[Mollabaji]

Sh-t!

[Durango]

What next? Ahmedinijads opponent is a secret Christian? His middle name is Smith?

He wasn't born in Iran and therefor the Iranian Constitution says he can't be President. Lets see his birth certificate.

Ahmedijinjad is the George W. Bush of Iranian politics. A clever fool who somehow reached the top.

And like Bush he is going own hard. And will be symbol for the modernization forces to rally against for years, decade to come.

[lompe]

LOL

Right-wingers of the world: Unite!

[yappnmutt]

outspoken educated women in iran? who could have known? people criticizing .gov? outrageous accusations? liberals and conservatives? where are the soldiers enforcing compliance? these people are acting like they live in a democracy. everyone knows there is only one democracy in the region.

[lompe]

Ahmadinejad is the kind of guy the Republicans are looking for to lead their party.

[take10]

You beat me to it! I was about to crown him as an extremist right wing republican!

[Durango]

Palin/Ahmedinijad on 2012?

[judiNJ]

LOL!

[Ozarks]

Rush Limbaugh/Ahmedinijad would be unbeatable in Disney Land of Repub party

[swan1]

When the youth and young adults rise up and see they have been duped by their leaders, things will go great for them.

[roshni]

It's about time they did it in Iran. I think they are ready. We did it here. Yes we did!
Obama/Biden 2012.

[MIKEinNYC]

Iran's election is a joke.

This election is staged to give the Iranian people the ILLUSION of having a choice. In fact the choice is close to nil. All candidates who run for office are invariable lackeys and cronies of the ayatola.

The ayatola and his moolas are totally in charge of the country. All so-called elected officials serve at their sufferance.

Plain and simple, Iran is a theocratic dictatorship which is run by thugs who violently seized power.

[Agent420]

You are like Faux Nues. All the news that is not fit to print.

[MIKEinNYC]

Any dispute with my facts or does the truth hurt? Are you in the Iranian government?

[confidance government]

Wow, sounds like the US, lackeys and shills of special interests.

They violently seized power from the dictorial Shah that preceeded them, the system is better than what preceeded it. Although it is for all intents and purposes a theocracy with democratic window dressing.

[MIKEinNYC]

The Shah was bad. This crew is worse.

Two wrongs still do not make a right.

[shastacola]

Do you ever post anything that isn't spewing venomous hatred toward the stereotypes you've made up in your head?

[shastacola]

Sorry, this was posted in wrong place.

[take10]

It works well here too!

[MajorKong]

This sounds familiar. Has anyone seen Karl Rove lately?