Protests in Iran
17 June 2009 by StardustIn the aftermath of the recent Iranian “election”, young people and women are rising up in protest. This is amazing to see happen in a country where anti-government sentiment is not looked upon kindly by the “supreme leader” and those in power. In the following video which was taken with a cell phone, street protesters and riot police engaged in running battles, throwing stones, setting of fires in garbage cans and people shouting “death to the dictatorship!” These are some of the biggest protests Iran has seen in more than 30 years.
The Iranian theocracy is now doing the typical thing of blaming the U.S. and the west for the uprisings. Story from Associated Press:
TEHRAN, Iran – Iran accused the United States on Wednesday of “intolerable” meddling in its internal affairs, alleging for the first time that Washington has fueled a bitter postelection dispute. Opposition supporters marched in Tehran’s streets for a third straight day to protest the outcome of the balloting.
The Iranian government summoned the Swiss ambassador, who represents U.S. interests in Iran, to complain about American interference, state-run Press TV reported.
The English-language channel quoted the government as calling Western interference “intolerable.”
The theocratic rulers find it “intolerable” that their young people dare protest and demand a fair election?
This leaves Obama with a policy dilemma:
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is in a box over Iran, caught between affinity for emboldened reformists and caution about further alienating a hard-line Islamic regime he wants to dissuade from seeking nuclear weapons.
The president’s dilemma showed clearly on Tuesday, when he said he shared the world’s “deep concerns about the election” but asserted that it was “not productive, given the history of U.S.-Iranian relations, to be seen as meddling.”
But here is an excerpt from Tehran Bureau website asking the world for our help:
The international community must refuse to recognize the legitimacy of Mr. Ahmadinejad’s re-election, demand cancellation of the elections, and holding new fair and democratic elections that can be monitored by international monitors.
17 June 2009, on 10:35 pm
It is just and right that they hold another election. Look no farther than Ukraine. The November 23, 2006 election was overturned by their supreme court on December 3, 2004 and a new election was held on December 26, 2004. And the loser became the winner.
If only we had done the same thing in 2000…
18 June 2009, on 12:00 am
Of course…no surprise…
as long as you have Iran’s Supreme Leader (fucktard?) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and council of 12 making the ultimate, final, decisions based, of course, on Islamic, totally delusional, Religious bullshit, there’s really no hope for there being anything approximating a truly “Secular” style Democracy. It’s just another Theocratic and tyrannical “Voting charade”.
Which highlights, I think, why it’s so important for us atheists to be increasingly active in resisting our very own homegrown Xtian theocracy hungry fucktards; and all their various terrorist tactics.
Yeah…”Council of 12″, my ass!…or…
“Oh NO!…not ANOTHER numerologically designated bunch of idiots; obviously modeled after that other last Supper, and (non-existent) “Sun mythology” gang!”
In all the typical mythologically based religions, their “Scriptures” are ALWAYS loaded with those special fucking numerologically significant 3s, 7s, 9s, and 12s!
Anyway…
On that “Ayatollah-you!” note, here’s a recent, and very relevant, Yahoo article regarding the REAL fuckhead power in Iran:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090615/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_supreme_leader
A ’snipped taste’ from it:
“CAIRO – Iran’s violence-tinged election dispute has pushed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the state’s most powerful figure, into the high-profile role of political referee.
The 70-year-old cleric reigns over Iran’s Islamic system as part pope, part commander in chief and one-man supreme court. While the world’s attention has focused in recent years on the hard-line president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, much of the real power rests with the country’s UNELECTED supreme leader.”
[my cap. emphasis]
18 June 2009, on 12:37 am
Iran’s fucktard theocrats are blaming the U.S. for the protests? Is anyone really surprised? These are the same folks that would carryout “vote counting” with a bald-faced lack of impartial oversight, while having the world believe they supposedly hand-counted all those votes in a couple of hours. There is no shame here, and nothing resembling veracity, (or for that matter, democracy.)
18 June 2009, on 7:43 pm
Power to the people if Iran, but I think this will not end well. I wasn’t for the Iraq invasion, but part of me thinks that someone should go in there and take out the Mullahs. These guys are a dangerous bunch.
A lot has changed since we invaded Iraq…
18 June 2009, on 7:58 pm
BTW, tomorrow is a big day because the head fascist will address Iran for Friday “prayers”. If you’re willing, it would be a good time to email news services and tell them they need to fully explore the theocratic nature of Iran’s political structure, and how it’s the main reason why their election was fixed.
Think Rachel and Olbermann.
Maher will also be on, and you can write questions for him to ask to his panel for HBO’s online “overtime” segment.
Maher also has a blog and he responds to it once in a while.
Spread the word…
19 June 2009, on 5:31 am
Well, it’s not like there isn’t some history there. Who assassinated Iran’s first democratically elected leader and installed the Shah? Who backed Saddam in the Iran-Iraq war? Who’s got substantial military forces stationed in Iran’s nearest neighbours? Given all that, you can hardly blame them for being a bit paranoid about US interference.
Oh, I’m sure that would turn out just dandy. What could possibly go wrong?
Also, lets not forget that the “reformist” candidate, Mousavi, was the Iranian Prime Minister under President Rafsanjani between 1981 and 1989 (the period of the Iran-Iraq war), and is still backed by him. And Rafsanjani is currently the Chairman of both the Assembly of Experts and the Expediency Discernment Council.
This is not a simple matter of Good Guys versus Bad Guys. Lets not get carried away with projecting our own desires and ideals onto a much more complex and difficult situation, which I doubt any of us fully understands.
19 June 2009, on 9:43 am
Given all that, you can hardly blame them for being a bit paranoid about US interference.
But it’s the theocrats who are paranoid, the people protesting are “asking” for international assistance.
19 June 2009, on 10:06 am
RE the Iranian election; after hearing last night, again, about the voices in the darkness ‘chanting’ “God is Great”, it (finally)clearly dawned on me why Hitchens titled his book: “God is NOT Great”. IOW, a directed assault, PARTICULARLY on Islam’s insidious strangle hold on Iran’s, Iraq’s, and all the other Middle Eastern governments’ religious Theocracies.
A REAL sign that people actually “get it” would be voices chanting something like:
“There (probably?) is no God…wake the fuck up, idiots!”
Yeah, I know…that’d go over great (lots of shitting in “Worldwide Pants”.).
And, would really shake up the Xtian assholes in this country, no doubt!
[Sheeple Murmors like]:
“WHAT!…What’s that they’re chanting? HUH? WTF!!!
WHOA! Now wait just a fucking Scriptural minute!”
Here’s today’s sign in the (Yahoo) News that nothing has really changed in Iran’s government. And, of course, most probably WON’T! The delusional so-called “Supreme Leader-fuck” and other clerical assholes at the top simply can’t and won’t wake up to the fact that they’re all total numbskulls regarding any understanding of the Universal, let alone Earthly existence!…
In essence, billions of people in the world, led by completely privileged, egotistical, delusional morons!
The following excerpt points up what’s REALLY needed, I think, as a meaningful change in public perception.
[Yeah...but probably no chance of that happening; as long as the majority of protesters continue to chant their duped, sheeple-like, belief! In this case, I would LOVE to be wrong, of course.]
’snip’
“So far, protesters have focused on the results of the balloting rather than challenging the Islamic system of government. But a shift in anger toward Iran’s non-elected theocracy could result in a showdown over the foundation of Iran’s system of rule.”
Here’s the Yahoo article, for anyone who’s possibly missed it:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090619/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_election
19 June 2009, on 10:52 am
I have to give the Iranians credit for doing what we should have done in 2000. I hope that they get a re-do on their election. Elsewhere, I read that their is discord in the ruling mullahs. It seems that the Grand Poobah was second choice of Khomeini to succeed him; his education, and his inferior ranking in the ayatollah-league, have left discontent in his “purity council”. It is conceivable that they could approve a new election, to spite him.
We can hope, can’t we? Remember the Orange Revolution in Ukraine…
I watched a Daily Show clip of Jason Jones in Iran from last week. It’s a pity that I despise his bits just BECAUSE he is the prototypical Ugly American. The clips of his encounters with various Teheranis made me cringe — they were very gracious, well-educated and expressed goodwill for Americans, all the while he was his usual AmericanImperialist blowhard. I can barely watch him — he has never made me laugh. Not once.
The Iranians are more brave than us. Or more desperate. Or our desperation is insufficient — or we’re too complacent. I don’t know. But I wish them well. Lest we forget, the Leader is not always representative of the people he governs. Bush 101.
19 June 2009, on 11:02 am
The people protesting are also largely theocrats, they’re just different theocrats. Theocracy is not necessarily any more monolithic than any other system of government (arguably it’s less so, given the propensity for schisms). What we’re seeing is, as far as I understand it, a dispute within the theocracy, rather than a dispute about theocracy.
19 June 2009, on 11:24 am
I think the dispute is more about wanting a legitimate election.
19 June 2009, on 11:42 am
Yes, but a legitimate election within the framework of the Islamic Republic. Nobody is talking about overthrowing the mullahs, the Supreme Leader, the Council of Guardians, the Assembly of Experts, etc… It’s a dispute over which theocrat gets to occupy one specific (and arguably cosmetic) post within the theocracy.
All the candidates in the election were fully signed-on theocrats. You simply don’t get to run without the approval of the Supreme Leader, and I don’t see anybody trying to change that.
My principle point was that your dichotomy between “the theocrats” and “the people” is a false one. The vast majority of the protesters still fully believe in the Islamic Revolution, as far as I can tell.
19 June 2009, on 1:04 pm
Dunc, I see your points. Legitimate election or not, the Supreme Leader is still in charge no matter who is “elected”. They will choose which “puppet” they like best. It’s purely cosmetic. As for us, it makes no difference who the puppet is. For the Mullah’s it is about who can deliver a hate speech against the West better.
19 June 2009, on 4:40 pm
Fine, they’re all Shias. But after today, I would think that a kernel of doubt was placed in the minds of the millions of Iranians who just got screwed by Allah’s representative.
“How can you fix an election?” You don’t count the votes!
And now, there will be blood. And the Shia sect of Islam may just die out due to a lack of legitimacy.
It may not be what i think should happen, but it’s a step in the right direction.
21 June 2009, on 11:53 am
Pardon a little expression of frustration regarding this topic…
It’s getting more and more evident to me by the moment…(OK, by the day)…watching what religions…particularly the Abrahamic variety…have done, and continue to do in reeking havoc on human affairs, that this World, “as we know it”, doesn’t stand a snowballs chance, in the “Global Warming”, of surviving; at least with any realistic semblance of existential sanity, through even the rest of this Century.
Given the ultra-dangerous, fucking insane Armageddon agendas, particularly of Islam, combined with the stubborn, and outright childishly addicted, Nuclear weapons insanity; I can’t see much hope.
Of course, maybe it’s just my old age?
It’s absolutely highlighted, IMO, by the all too recent evidence that…no matter what…the Iranian demonstrators, of all things, keep chanting “God (Allah) is Great” in a country that’s totally fucked by an insane Theocratic system of government. The Abrahamic concept of the obviously Tyrannical “God” is, to any truly rational mind… totally fucking insane!
The chant SHOULD be something like:
“There IS no God…you fucking dummies…and “He”, the Everyone fucker, certainly ISN’T great! And IF, by some insane chance, He DOES exist…”He’s” obviously a total fucking, non-caring asshole Prick!”
Your right…a little too complicated for chanting.
There’d probably be counter chanted replies, like…
“SAY WHAT???” “HUH???” and of course…”WTF???”
I guess one could amend the chant to something more simple, like:
“Fuck your imaginary god!”
I’d still have a hard time leaving off words like: “you ‘assholes’, ‘bastards’, ‘morons’, ‘dickheads’…lame pussies…yada, yada.
Countered, no doubt, by something like…
“We don’t want to fuck Him…He’s too damned ugly!”…?
So…what brought this on, you may ask?…
Something as ridiculous as watching a bit of an early morning History Channel program about “Sloth”…just one part of a series of documentaries about “The Seven Deadly Sins”…which pointed up just how fucking insane the history of man’s bullshit made-up, Sado-Masochistic, garbage has been about so-called “Sinfulness”.
If interested, you can find the series on Veoh here:
[You need to register (Free) & install their viewer for the full length vids...of course!]
http://www.veoh.com/search/videos/q/The+Seven+Deadly+Sins#watch%3Dv17084967nzBgZXfF
“…and have a nice day!”
Oh yeah…I just remembered…
“Happy Summer Solstice”, my fellow (Lusty?) heathens!
21 June 2009, on 7:56 pm
I wonder how many of these people in the privacy of their own minds have begun to realize that religion itself, far from being virtuous, is ultimately responsible for the mess they’re in. This fact, laid bare by the last 30 years of theocratic rule, is an elephant in the room of sorts, but I wonder how much of the Iranian public gets it.
Sadly, people all too easily dismiss the failings of religion as merely the failings of inherently fallible human leaders, and then compound those failures by refusing to look deep enough to realize the fraud of religion itself. It will probably take many more steps and many more years for this realization to begin to gain traction over there.
I also find myself wondering whether these protests will give rise to similar uprisings in other islamic theocracies in the region. A people cannot be repressed indefinitely before their anger and frustration boil over. It’s probably a conservative estimate that on any given day at least 15-20% of the population of muslim theocracies is fed up with the arbitrary limitations to which they are continually subjected, and probably another 15-20% are frustrated but not quite at the breaking point. If there are a billion+ muslims in the world, perhaps 1/2 of that popluation resides under such theocratic, authoritarian rule. If 15% of that are at the breaking point and another 15% are not far behind, you have potentially 30% of half a billion people, or 150 million people (perhaps considerably more) throughout the region for whom this could be a catalyst to revolt – if you will, the 800 pound gorilla riding on the elephant in the room.
This situation may well be diffused in a few days but it could as easily erupt into a much larger event.
22 June 2009, on 1:44 am
I don’t know about all of Islam, but the Shiite variety may end up in the crapper with the rest of the feces.
Shiite? Feces? Hello!
Anyway, the Shia version is much more hierarchal and monarchist. I seem to remember that in Iran, you have to prove you are related to the goat fucking pedophile founder in some way just to run for office. The rift in Islam between Shiite and Sunni has everything to do with the inheritence of power. The shiites think power should reside in the hands of Mohommed’s family, while Sunnis do not.
And then the killing between muslims started…
26 June 2009, on 10:35 pm
More, unsurprising, outrageous fuckhead clerical bullshit from Iran:
’snip’
“…In his sermon, Khatami asked the judiciary to “confront the leaders of the protests, leaders of the violations, and those who are supported by the United States and Israel strongly, and without mercy to provide a lesson for all.”
He reminded worshippers that Khamenei, the supreme leader, rules by God’s design and must not be defied…”
From Friday’s (6/26/09) Yahoo News:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090626/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_election
“Everyone fucking”, ignorant, moronic and viciously insane Islamic religion…AGAIN!
When will people all over the World totally wake up and stop pussy footing around, giving ANY respect for such utter, mindless, Bronze Age, totally made-up bullshit. This applies, of course to all the, essentially vicious, totally contrived, Abrahamic idiocies.
In this case, these fucking privileged idiot clerics need, at the very least, to be kicked off their worthless pedestalled perches and given the proper “respect”…which is absolutely NONE…for their incredibly arrogant and totally unjust lifestyles.
As we atheists all know…Until the Iranian people TOTALLY wake up and shed their belief in the obviously Tyrannical and stupid bullshit belief in the absolutely non-existent “Allah”; there’s no hope for anything like a truly “Just”…SECULAR…Democracy.
While people, here, focus their longtime addicted attention on totally hyped up and amplified “Pop Star adulation”…even the dead ones…the “Poison” of religion just keeps seeping further into the nooks and crannies of the World’s population. Stories, which should wake people up, like the gay kid being abused by religious idiots and their fucking outrageous exorcism, instantly fade into the background because some, IMO, totally overblown, privileged “Pop Star” dies. Forget the fact that…daily…millions of people die on this fucking “Loony Bin” planet, totally unnoticed. And religious bullshit even pops up in the idiotic comments about the deceased; like…”God-given” talent…blah, blah, blah…!
Yeah…one person gets the privileged “God-given” everything whilst some poor shlub got “God-given” nothin’…like half a brain, or some terrible lifetime debilitating handicap. WTF!
And then there’s the daily bombings in Iraq…and the astounding religious references; like those from the endlessly blabbing mouth of the totally hypocritical Repiglican governor Sanford (and “Sin”) asshole!
[cue "Sanford and Son" theme?]
Yada, yada…zama, zama.
OK…enough ranting…
(at least for today!).
28 June 2009, on 11:35 am
Here’s some “It’s Sunday…fuck all religions…enjoy staying home?” YouTube links…
Pat Condell; recently reminding us (and so well, as per usual!) of some things which are quite obvious, I’d say, at least to us atheists regarding brainwashed believers…
1)
“Children of a stupid god”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEtfdzNAE74&feature=channel_page
2) most recently…and more appropriate to this particular Islamic related Post…
“Ban the burka”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlkxlzTZc48&feature=channel_page
He certainly has a way with words!