Thanks Prof. Guess that is a positive statement on the benefits of getting over a bad cold/flu I had most of last week. 
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BTW, I would add that I sometimes shift to using the term Persian people (as opposed to Iranian people) when I talk about the cultural/societal nation of peoples mainly in Iran. I do this mainly because of the artificial nature of some of the national entities that surround Iran. Iraq as a national entity, for example, is a purely western created Frankenstien put together in 1922. And how that intersects with current Iranian borders underscores some of the problems undergirding conflicts (even outright wars) in the region.
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You really canât make Pre-Revolution comparisons to what Iran is today. That was the stone ages. Iran is a much younger country now ( its about 65 % under 45 years of age ) in an era of the internet and VPNâs to get around the Ayatollahâs censors. Itâs just not the same Iran. And the hostage takers are all dead or oldâŚ
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I wasnât. I was attempting to point out that where Iran is today didnât come about in the vacuum, and to underscore that I have more than a media-derived experience with Iran and its people. While I donât claim to be an expert on either Iranian internal politics or anything even approaching a level of knowledge to be a sociologist on Iran, I do try and keep myself informed and not just from reading the news media. A friend of mine Bill Beeman, author of The Great Satan vs. the Mad Mullahs: How the United States and Iran Demonize Each Other is but one conduit through which I try to glean insights and form opinions on such matters.
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I know this is a joke, but I strongly believe Pres. Obamaâs policies, the nuclear negotiations in particular played a huge part in the ability for this to take place.
I said a year ago that the main thing that was left out of the debate over the deal was the fact that it was an enormous benefit to the Iranian people. Maybe the clerics and theocracy didnât like it, but the people wanted change, and the very young population of Iran is interested in moving forward into the 21st century. Itâs the leaders that want to hold them back.
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Iâm no mid-east expert, but it always seemed that Iran would make a good ally if we could just push our collective hard-liners aside.
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Yes, I think Iranâs leaders were forced to make promises to their people after years of sanctions and isolation.
And this was 60% where many people stayed home because their preferred candidates were unjustly disqualified; imagine what it would be like in a truly fair election. Still that many people turned out to vote for what was truly the lesser of (more than two) evils, and it still makes a differences. A lesson for people here.
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I like the quality and tone of the conversation in this thread.
Itâs a vast improvement over some of the nasty, and un-useful comments in so many other threads that mostly reflect commentersâ ignorance about whatâs already been said in response to the lead article, as well as their inability to offer comments that are constructive to the discourse.
Thank you all.
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this is a definite positive. the supreme ayatollah, as part of the ruling structure, is the elephant in the room that nobody is discussing. vetting allowable reform candidates? baby steps, but at least headed away from the cliff.
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Moderates also won a 59 percent majority in the Assembly of Experts, an 88-member body which will choose the successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,
This could potentially be as big for Iran as Scaliaâs passing here. Could be a game changer in terms of policy changes.
This is awesome - thank you President Obama and John Kerry.
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