It's turned from a mullah dictatorship protecting itself with the Guards to a Guards dictatorship hiding behind mullahs.
That's why news of dissent and division within the Guards is so interesting.
I think you nailed it. Yes, there have been killings of protesters, but not as many as you would think. The continued reliance on tear gas & the baton makes me think that maybe, just maybe, Ahmedinijad doesn't want this thing put to bed just yet. Maybe these riots serve to advantage the IRGC in some perverse way by proving to the Mullahs that the game is up?
If Khameni jumps a plane to Switzerland the morning before the crackdown (rifle fire), that will go a long way to proving this theory.
I’ve read the Guards have cut themselves into the graft in a very big way. They won’t want to give that up. ‘Course, if they’re like most corrupt dictatorships, the serious money is restrict to a few, so there could be many disgruntled folks inside the Guard. It’s gonna be interesting, alright.