Iranians' love affair with America

Christian Science Monitor ^ | 1/19/07 | Ali G. Scotten

[Dead Dog]

Jimmy Carter's hostages

[TChris]

Let's all pause for a moment and reflect on what Jimmy Carter did by helping the Ayatollahs to come to power.

What an absolute disaster of a president...

[fr_freak]

Someone more knowledgeable may correct me, but what I've gathered about Iran reveals some interesting items:

1) The Iran-Iraq war 1980-1988 was devestating to Iran. An entire generation (of men) was nearly eliminated. As a result, the demographics of Iran were such that about 70% of the population is under 35, and these younger people are much more amenable to the West than they are to the mullahs.

2) There is a huge ex-pat Iranian community, especially in the US, due to the revolution in 1979. Many of the best and brightest Iranians had to flee the country, and a lot of them are just waiting for the day when the US will go in and kick the mullahs out. The situation has a lot of similarity to Cuba.

[SMARTY]

It's patently obvious that if they WANTED TO they would have 'removed' their leadership by now and replaced it with something better.

Like that man said "everyone wants a clean toilet but no one wants to clean the toilet."

They need to get off their duffs and consolidate their opposition to the clowns who are leading them.... then ask the US for help... and believe me the US will positively with 'help'...

[Tarantulas]

Paralleling Iranians' favorable opinions of Americans as a people, however, is their unified opposition to any US government intervention in their country. This directly contradicts what Vice President Cheney and others believe – that if the US were to attack, the population would rise up to help the Americans fight the Iranian regime.

Okay, I may be completely mistaken here, but don't we have daily "Iran regime change" threads here, where Iranians are begging the US to rescue them?

At a private party in a trendy suburb of Tehran, I sat down with a group of young professionals as they relaxed after a busy workweek. Iran is not like a concentration camp, they assured me. Yes, they're repressed by government restrictions, but they find ways to get around them. And the situation is certainly not to the point of rising up against the regime.

In the same Iran regime change threads, don't we read stories about street demonstrations, cars driving around honking their horns in support of a revolution, and other indications that this story is bogus? Who are we supposed to believe, the Iranians or this American student? /sarcasm

[iopscusa]

Well with the crappy leadership, traitorous media, crappy State Dept & crappy Intelligence, we have been snookered! Now we have minimal options in dealing with IRAN. They have been attacking since at least 1979...and still what options do we have, Nuclear War or capitulation? If the expat IRANIANS want to return to their countries, give them some assistance and turn 'em loose. I want a refund on the Trillion$$ of wasted $$ we have paid for our failed national security, the single most primary job for any central gov't!!.

[freedom44]

Yeah okay and the trillions we owe Iran for Jimmy Carter ordering the Shah to step down - it was a direct order by the Carter administration so don't screw around with this owe this or owe that.

[Antoninus]

Almost all the Iranians I've ever met were fine people. As with most rogue countries, its their leaders that are the problem.