NavyDave Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 http://www.iranian.com/main/news/2010/02/10/february-11-1979-day-modern-iran-was-hurled-dark-ages February 11, 1979: The day modern Iran was hurled into the Dark Ages Worldtribune 10-Feb-2010 (one comment) For centuries, Iran has been a center of struggle between opposing ideologies and ways of life. Now, in the twenty-first century, it will be a decisive battleground for progress versus calamity. Thirty years of Islamic theocracy presents not only Iranians but the international community with a historical turning point and the opportunity shadowed by responsibility to make the right decision or be held accountable for its ramifications. In the 1970s, the Shah and a secular, wealthy Iran were the balancing tools in the volatile Middle East. The Shah's regime was not without its faults and far from perfect. But his progressive vision and invaluable geopolitical knowledge were sought by foreign policymakers, who had realized Iran was following the path of its ancestors credited with championing tolerance, diplomacy, and the first known bill of rights. Examples abound: during a meeting on July 27, 1973, Henry Kissinger and other diplomats asked for the Shah's advice on the role of oil and international affairs, the Egyptian-Israel problem, the Pakistan-Indian conflict, the Kurds and the Baath Party in Iraq as well as his views on the newly-designed F-14 jets. [Memorandum of Conversation, transcribed by H. H. Saunders, The White House, Washington, DC, July 27, 1973, 5:00 p.m., 14 pages.] In hindsight, the late Shah was a 20th century renaissance man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 May Egypt learn from other;s error. The next ruler may not leave w/o a fight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fullnelson9999 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 I really don't see the point... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyDave Posted February 11, 2011 Author Share Posted February 11, 2011 May Egypt learn from other;s error.The next ruler may not leave w/o a fight. I really hope so but so much is similar to that day 32 years ago. Well except most Americans got the heck out of Dodge this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsHokieFan Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 I really hope so but so much is similar to that day 32 years ago. Well except most Americans got the heck out of Dodge this time. That and there is no Sunni equivalent of an "Ayotollah" nobody is out there that the Egyptian population thinks might be the 12th imam and we didn't disrupt Egyptian democracy a generation ago via a coup. Other then that, its very similar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 In hindsight, the late Shah was a 20th century renaissance man. Yeah, the folks who he kidnapped and tortured always said that "he knew how to get medieval". ---------- But Dave's got a point, here. There are parallels. A brutal dictator who's been torturing his own people for decades, with US support, has been overthrown by his pissed-off people. And American "conservatives" are a) Trying to turn the guy into a hero. And Trying to get the US to do the same thing we did, before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyDave Posted February 12, 2011 Author Share Posted February 12, 2011 Yeah, the folks who he kidnapped and tortured always said that "he knew how to get medieval".---------- But Dave's got a point, here. There are parallels. A brutal dictator who's been torturing his own people for decades, with US support, has been overthrown by his pissed-off people. His ideas were called progressive. And American "conservatives" are a) Trying to turn the guy into a hero. Not true at best he was viewed as the lesser of two evils by dems and gop over the years And Trying to get the US to do the same thing we did, before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebluefood Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 May Egypt learn from other;s error. Agreed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyDave Posted February 12, 2011 Author Share Posted February 12, 2011 That and there is no Sunni equivalent of an "Ayotollah" nobody is out there that the Egyptian population thinks might be the 12th imam and we didn't disrupt Egyptian democracy a generation ago via a coup.Other then that, its very similar There is Yussuf al-Qaradawi of the muslim brotherhood (Sunni) which I really hope does not happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visionary Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 And American "conservatives" are a) Trying to turn the guy into a hero. To be fair, the Bush administration was extremely critical of him, much more so than the Obama administration up until last week. McCain was also one of the earliest to call for him to step down. (before any democrat for that matter) And they were the two last Republican presidential front runners. On the other hand: -I'm not sure either of them is considered a conservative by the base. -I have been fairly disappointed by the responses from most Republicans on this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 To be fair, the Bush administration was extremely critical of him, much more so than the Obama administration up until last week.McCain was also one of the earliest to call for him to step down. (before any democrat for that matter) And they were the two last Republican presidential front runners. On the other hand: -I'm not sure either of them is considered a conservative by the base. -I have been fairly disappointed by the responses from most Republicans on this situation. Valid point. I was referring to (some of) the people on ES. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Predicto Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 I'd say the one big lesson the US should take from the Iranian Revolution is this: when the people of a country finally rise up to overthrow a brutal dictator, it's a really big mistake to be seen as backing the bad guy. The people will hate you, and they will not forget, and even if the dictator is replaced by a different, even worse regime, the people will still hate you and will easy to unite against you for a long, long time. I don't think that is the lesson that NavyDave is taking from this, however. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visionary Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 I'd say the one big lesson the US should take from the Iranian Revolution is this: when the people of a country finally rise up to overthrow a brutal dictator, it's a really big mistake to be seen as backing the bad guy. The people will hate you, and they will not forget, and even if the dictator is replaced by a different, even worse regime, the people will still hate you and will easy to unite against you for a long, long time.I don't think that is the lesson that NavyDave is taking from this, however. Well it also didn't help that the brutal dictator was put there by the US and UK in place of a democratic government that we didn't like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebluefood Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Well it also didn't help that the brutal dictator was put there by the US and UK in place of a democratic government that we didn't like. "If you people just listened to me in the first place, none of it would've happened to begin with!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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