Iranian Regime Faces Worst Enemy Yet: Itself

The Iranian people reminded the world on Friday that they will not let themselves be ignored or forgotten. Despite the orders and warnings of the regime against any opposition protests, defiant Iranians poured into the streets in the thousands.

The occasion was Quds Day, the annual day on which Iran shows its support for and solidarity with the Palestinian people. Iranians can empathize with Palestinians today more than ever, but not in the way that Iran's self-proclaimed President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, wants them to.

Since the likely fraudulent presidential election in June and the ensuing murders, arrests, torture and show trials, the so-called Islamic Republic of Iran has lost pretty much any credibility it had left among its own people. In the process, the regime has become both oppressor and occupier, and as such, today's young Iranians are having a great deal of difficulty telling the difference between the tactics of the Israeli Defense Forces and those of the Revolutionary Guard.

By proclaiming their support for the Palestinian people while continuing to falsely imprison, torture and abuse their own citizens, the leaders of the allegedly Islamic Republic have achieved an entirely new level hypocrisy, and this has not been lost on the Iranian people.

For far too long, Iranians have witnessed their leaders chide Israel for being a Jewish state while avidly supporting a theocracy at home. Now, these same misguided leaders have the nerve to reproach Israel for killing and maiming Palestinian civilians, while aiming tear gas, water hoses, bullets and batons at Iranian civilians.

Today, the purportedly Islamic Republic of Iran has become just as contemptible as the state of Israel among the many young Iranians who comprise the great majority of the population and the opposition movement.

Unlike the regime, the Iranian public (which boasts the largest Jewish minority population in the Middle East outside of Israel) does not generally oppose the existence of Israel so much as it opposes the oppression of the Palestinian people and the illegal occupation of their lands.

Likewise, the Iranian people do not oppose the existence of a strong Iranian state, free from foreign control, but they do oppose the oppression of their own people by a brutal, discriminatory and illegitimate rule.

In effect, the current administration in Iran represents an oppressive occupying force, and so long as it continues to tyrannize its own people, it is in no position to scold Israel for violating the rights of Palestinians. But as the regime persists in championing the Palestinian cause, it draws even more attention to its own hypocrisy and vicious treatment of Iranian citizens. In doing so, moreover, the government is only fanning the flames of the opposition and ultimately, contributing to its own demise.

Iranians are used to a hypocritical government, but what they are not used to and what they are now refusing to put up with is the injustice, fraud and violence that comes with it.
Before this past June, Iranians tolerated the regime's hypocrisy. They even made jokes about it. But that annoyed tolerance immediately transformed into implacable rage the second the first innocent civilian was murdered in the streets of Tehran at the hands of government forces.

The Iranian people have reached a breaking point. They are no longer willing to simply endure this regime. The very same restrictions that were once merely irritating, such as dress codes and government censorship, have now become absolutely suffocating. Compounded by the murders, arrests, false confessions, unlawful detentions, and kangaroo courts of the past three months, even the slightest limitations on basic liberties have become excruciatingly intolerable.

Young Iranians are beginning to realize the power of being in the majority, and they are growing up fast. As part of this young generation, I am downright giddy at the prospect of a secular democracy in Iran. Like many other Iranians who have no memory of the Islamic Revolution, I am far more optimistic than my parents, not only because I have faith in the relentless determination of Iran's youth, but also because I have faith in the regime's extraordinary capacity for self-destruction.

 

 

Follow Melody Moezzi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/MelodyMoezzi

Comments

[cmgirgis]

It is very interesting to know what the political climate is among the young in Iran, thank you for bringing this to light!

[TinfoilLatte]

I've seen and heard the "wolf" motif be used by hardliners in Iran, by the Taliban, and by Hezbollah when describing the U.S.

All three of these figures are perfectly capable of creating their own phantom wolves at the gate. Question is, when are they going to leave the rest of the world out of it?

[wereeverywhere]

Thank you Melody Moezzi for a well written summation description of how this Quds Day was transformed from a hate fest to a day of liberation for the Iranian people. Long live a liberated Palestine and long live a free Iran.

[Wozzeck]

The author claims that : ".. the so-called Islamic Republic of Iran has lost pretty much any credibility it had left among its own people".

This assertion is false, as Jim Lobe's article explains :
"New Poll Finds Strong Domestic Support for Iran Regime"
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=48510

"Four out of five of the 1,003 Iranian respondents interviewed in the survey released by WorldPublicOpinion.org (WPO), a project of the highly respected Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) of the University of Maryland, said they considered Ahmadinejad to be the legitimate president of Iran."

[wereeverywhere]

Way to cheerlead for terror. From your own link above:

Some Iran specialists here suggested that the high approval and confidence in the government and the elections expressed in the survey could be explained by fear of retaliation, particularly in light of the regime's harsh crackdown against the opposition throughout the summer.

"If I were in Iran and someone called me to ask those direct questions, I would be leery of answering them honestly or directly," said Farideh Farhi, an Iran scholar at the University of Hawaii. "I have to ask whether fear may have been a factor in the results."

Indeed, as noted by PIPA's director, Stephen Kull, the refusal of one out of four respondents to say whom they voted for in the election was an "extremely high number" and "...sugges­ts that people have some discomfort with this topic". Given that discomfort, he said, "the findings on voting preference are not a solid basis for estimating the actual vote".

[Mollabaji]

the "professors" and "scholars" you refer to are in the marketplace to sell their views to their institutions in order to get promotions and salary raises therefor expressing what is popular right now in U.S. academia. Believe me, I know. I was a professor and did speak and write exactly what the market at the time was looking for because otherwise one's writing would not be published in "professional" journals and one would not get rank promotions. Oh boy, glad I am retired and out of that sesspool of the academia propaganda.

[artemishal]

Wow,, how to respond,, should one even respond to such absurd manipulations, which could only be created by sociopaths,,but given that so many of the sociopaths are running around our world and (Madoff-esc) getting away with absurd lies and manipulations for far too long,, unfortunately I am compelled to respond. I personally don’t know who WorldPubli­cOpinion is, however question how they could be ‘highly respected’, given that they publish such absurd results, which any statistical body would laugh at; however let’s examine what they/you are saying. They say 803 people out of 1,003 polled considered Ahmadinejad as legitimate- that’s 80% . OK. Now, we won’t even bother looking into who may have been the source population of this whopping 1,003 people, or that significant statistical bias would exist in polling a population that has seen such violence for speaking out, and countless other major issues that could exist with this poll. Iran’s official 2006 census claimed over 70 million citizens. Let’s assume 65% eligible voters –over 18- in Iran’s case. That would be approx. (70x0.65) 45,500,000 eligible voters. So your study polled 1003/45.5m­m = 00.002% of which you claim 803/45.5mm = 00.0018% backed A’jad .. statistically irrelevant and therefore absurd to even present this as an opinion poll.

[wereeverywhere]

You've abandoned reason, principles, and accuracy. What ideology has blinded you so thoroughly on the Iranian issue?

[Propaganda-Killer]

Don't give them facts and statistics, they can't handle it

They don't care what the majority of Iranians think. That's why the poll of their opinions is not considered important here

[artemishal]

-this poll, supposed ‘facts and statistics’ mean NOTHING, and hence why it’s absurd to present them as results, since ONLY 1003 people were polled; even IF there wasn’t the possibility of significant statistical bias. Anyone can present some idiotic poll.. here goes,, if I randomly polled multiple thousands in this crowd (not just 1003!) (view at this link http://bit.ly/FOxp5 & http://bit.ly/4kMBna) marching at the Ahmadinejad sponsored Qods day march (a few days ago September 18th) (and bear in mind all these people were threatened with serious repercussions if they showed themselves as being anti-Ahmadinejad ) computer modeling can show the exact number in this single video being in the thousands (there are many more videos; I believe, I would get 90-100% responding that Ahmadinejad stole the election and it was completely fraudulent (notwithstanding that I can show you statistical analysis of the state presented election results which show that the figures A’jad announced after hand counting just under 39million votes in less than 12 hours make no statistical sense and look like they were randomly ‘made up’.( I propose humanly impossible (counting the votes in that time frame that is) ( think about how long it takes in the US- and that’s before even getting in a tizzy over hanging chads) Bottom line THIS POLL would NOT be accepted by any intelligent person or statistician as providing any real information. It is biased, mathematically idiotic, probably created for the sake of propaganda.

[wereeverywhere]

Since I care about the Iranians, I'm in solidarity with those who're trying to extricate themselves from an authoritarian nightmare where there's no free speech, thought, assembly, and press. An opinion poll in such circumstances is highly unlikely to reflect reality.

[kontinent]

Hmm. Calling the assertion "false" might be a stretch. The IPS article Wozzeck cites suggests that respondents might have had something to fear by participating honestly in the survey:

"...the high approval and confidence in the government and the elections expressed in the survey could be explained by fear of retaliation, particularly in light of the regime's harsh crackdown against the opposition throughout the summer."

An Iran scholar from the University of Hawaii goes on to say that "if I were in Iran and someone called me to ask those direct questions, I would be leery of answering them honestly or directly..­. I have to ask whether fear may have been a factor in the results." Respected Iran expert Gary Sick of Columbia agreed with this sentiment. Finally, the survey's own director conceded that a surprisingly high number of respondents did not admit their candidate of choice.

This poll adds value to the debate about Ahmadinejad's degree of support within Iran. Yet drawing strong conclusions from the results, given the serious questions raised by those presumably more knowledgeable about the topic than Wozzeck, is intellectually dishonest.

[Propaganda-Killer]

Well
If you don't believe in polls, and you don't believe in elections.
Then there is really no way to measure their opinion is there?

If protest is all that matters than maybe we should recall Obama's victory. After all I've seen many a teabagger say how Obama isn't legitimate. Surely they are correct and ACORN along with the government of Kenya has installed a manchurian candidate

[wethepeople3884]

I dont understand the comment of oppressive, illegitimate rule over the palestinian people when they have their own government completely separate from that of Israel. And of course, palestinians vote in the most extreme, radical government of any possible choices when the pick a leader and its backed by the current apparently corrupt government of Iran. The iranians cannot be that concerned with the election as it seems the same handful of religious extremists have been ruling over the government for decades and will for decades and it seems like they make all the major decisions while the president only serves as a figurehead with limited power to give off the appearance that the country as a whole is free to chose. If Hamas stopped constantly antagonizing Israel with rockets and bombs and terrorist attacks perhaps there could be better negotiations and certainly less restrictions but Hamas cannot do that because their sole purpose is the destruction of Israel and to a lesser extent they are dedicated to the virulent spread of antisemitism.

[Chazmania]

Israel is far from innocent when it comes to its own crimes against Palestinians! but the denial of this is so blatant as to further render there justifications unbelievable.

[wethepeople3884]

I understand but to decry the Israeli acts without even mentioning the provocation of Hamas is to distort the reality of the situation. Fact is, Hamas is exremist in their intent and their actions. Jews have been persecuted enough throughout history to respect the rights of others but when 600 rockets and mortars are launched by a government whos goal it is to destroy a nation is most certainly always met with force. The palestinians had a choice and they chose the radical over all others. The blockade was only put up after a terrorist organization was placed at the head of governance. Any other country would do the same.

If the US elected a politician who ran on a destruction of Mexico ballot, I think a similar threat would be felt by Mexico. If the US elected him and then preceded to launch bombs into Mexico, I would most certainly expect Mexico to retaliate and that is more of a realty than the faulty assumptions above. I know iranians feel strongly for the palestinians as does most of the world but to pretend they are innocent and Israel is just persecuting is pure propaganda.

[mcmchugh99]

I am under no illusions about the true nature of the regime in Iran, and have said many times that I hope its own people overthrow it. No need to keep repeating myself on that subject.

The US is a superpower in decline, with grave social and economic problems at home that must be dealt with. We are no longer the global hegemon of 1945 and do not have the strength to play that role any more. We are no good at "nation building" and should not even try to do any more of that--even if we had the willingness and the resources, which we do not.

Our future will be just one power among many in a multi-polar world, and we are going to have to adjust to that reality of teh limits of our power. That's good. In any event, I hope that the Iranians can change the regime that and that our relations will improve in the future. That is probably the only way there ever will be any improvement.

[khepri]

"Our future will be just one power among many in a multi-polar world, and we are going to have t adjust to that reality of the limits of our power."

Welcome to the wisdom of Gilgamesh: the walls of Uruk are good, well-made, and they are a sufficient accomplishment for a people and a King. No sense trying to rewrite the laws of the universe. The Greeks called it ataraxia. By whatever name: it is the way forward.

[Wozzeck]

"For far too long, Iranians have witnessed their leaders chide Israel for being a Jewish state while avidly supporting a theocracy at home."

Nice straw man argument. Please provide any accurately translated quotes proving that Iranian leaders have "chided" Israel for being a Jewish state? For being a Zionist regime: yes, no doubt about it. For being a Jewish state: An allegation.

[CatTheGadfly]

In 1942, a the Bilmore Conference, the aims of the Zionist movement were clearly defined as the development of "a Jewish state". Although Zionist objectives have since been redefined, why is it such a stretch that Ahmadinejad would say "Jewish state", even if he did not mean "theocracy" but "Zionist regime" -- especially if in pursuit of his own agenda?

[Wozzeck]

The author's implication is that Iran's leaders rail against Israel simply because it is Jewish, not because of its treatment of Palestinians and Lebanese. If that were true, would the leaders not also harass Iranian Jews? If Iranian Jews were so despised by the government, why have they refused Israel's monetary incentives to relocate there?

[wereeverywhere]

Yet Ahmadinejad says the most outrageous anti-Jewish slanders. These help neither the Iranians nor the Palestinians.

[JerryLevy]

Best banner at yesterday's demonstration: "WE WILL DIE FOR IRAN, NOT PALESTINE.­"

[khepri]

Downright "giddy" at the prospect of secular democracy, are you? Well, for openers: our USA is a secular democracy, and it has created more destruction, mayhem and death for other peoples throughout the world than all the nations and terrorists in the middle east combined. True, Americans currently have more personal liberty than Iranians do under mullahs; but for those in far flung regions across the globe who bear the burden of American concern and military protection of its "interests," this much vaunted "freedom" doesn't look all that beneficial. Who, for example, in America, has been asked to vote on whether the 4-5 billion dollar per month ramp up in Afghanistan is to go forward? No one. We have our own mullahs, dear; they just don't dress like Iranian mullahs.

[khepri]

Meaning, as a footnote, that the creation of a secular democracy is not an inoculation against geopolitical meddling, maneuvering and violence. Whatever govt. Iran ends up with, continue to expect that its peoples will align themselves with policies that are designed to increase Iranian hegemony in the region. All peoples do that; and it is foolish to posit that the creation of this or that form of government represents a significant turning point in a country's future behaviors. If a secular democracy is established in Iran, they will readily adapt in order to share our American dilemma: citizens who are relatively free in their daily lives, but who nevertheless inhabit and tacitly support a state that behaves despicably toward others. Theocracies and secular states seem to be the same in this regard: both narcotize their citizens into believing that the political structures themselves are worthy of self-congratulatory applause, regardless of what the overwhelming power of the states themselves may do. Our new secularly democratic Iranians, therefore, will therefore be none the wiser...an­d neither are we.

[Snowball]

This is an excellent, perceptive, and necessary post Melody. Ahmadinejad is busy at work marginalizing and discrediting himself with the Iranian people. The US must not stand in the way of that, bolstering him by adopting a threatening posture and returning to the failed policy of non-engagement of the Bush era. We must prove to the Iranian people that it is not America that is the threat to their peace, independence, and stability, but their leadership. If the US comes out and belligerently attacks the Iranian state in words and actions, it will marginalize and discredit the growing democratic opposition within the country.

[thrdr]

Agreed. Ahmadinejacket and his crowd are running out their credit, even if he did actually squeek by in the election. The Iranian people are not so ignorant and stupid that they'll swallow Holocaust denial as support for the Palestinian people.

[Liberterna]

Great Article well written and to the point. You have new fan my dear melody.

[MARNIE2]

AHMADINEJAD'S COUNTERFEIT GOVT. - in a elaborate effort to decive the Iranian People to the
elecion did back fire ! now his [ govt. ] orchestrates mock trials .....sayin­g they are ...U.S.-ba­cked
up-rise-ing ! the Islamic regime is clearly out of control .... ! I hope it is in GOD'S will that they gain their FREEDOM & JUSTICE !

[CatTheGadfly]

That is a brilliant post. Excellent illustration of how the behaviors of people and institutions needs to be taken in the context of their motivations and other actions. Ordinarily, what could be wrong with objecting to persecution of anyone, one might think... Well, if you're persecuting your own people under the same pretext but a different belief system, your protest of others becomes hypocrisy.

I hope people keep speaking up, keep making these connections, keep talking about it.

Off on a tangent here --I don't know if I speak for anyone else, but even though I obviously had nothing to do with it, I am rather embarrassed that our media decided that Michael Jackson's death should supersede the political struggles of the people of Iran at such a critical moment during the elections. Since journalists were being ejected from the country, it may not have made much of a difference, but peoples' attention was clearly diverted. While I would have strongly objected to actual American interference as imperialistic and completely inappropriate for numerous reasons, peoples' awareness of Ahmadinejad's hypocrisy, awareness of the passion of the Iranian people for change, and awareness of the possibility of change was increasing in the U.S., and it seemed that when attention was redirected to a celebrity death, we lost some of the sense of solidarity with the people in the streets of Tehran and elsewhere. I hope we can get it back.

[donklinestiver]

Expect the independent minded Lebonese are worrying that Hezbollah may rule no better than their masters.

[joabear]

Terrific. The Iranian
by vildemose on Sat Sep 19, 2009 12:57 PM PDT


Terrific.
The Iranian anti-regime protesters ripped down a Hezbollah sign yesterday as the crowd cheered them on:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzt4zOYatvY&feature=player_embedded

[joabear]

The facist Islamic Republic’s days are numbered. It cant reform itself from within so as long as the people lose their fear it will fall apart. The only way the Islamic Republic can continue now is with massive open suppresion of the Iranian people.