[Samurai_Jack]

"Despite losing Athens, the Greeks eventually prevailed at the Battle of Salamis."

An excellent point.
The battle of Thermopylae emboldened the greek armies for the subsequent march to persia and the spread of their democratic culture.

The Spartans and their Greek Allies who gave their lives in this suicide mission delayed the advance of the Persian armies. This allowed the armada of Themistocles to evacuate the city of athens before the Persians burned it to the ground.

And Oh By The Way...
The iranian mullahs are NOT HAPPY about how they were portrayed:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1799652/posts

And that makes me... very happy.

[metesky]

The battle of Thermopylae emboldened the greek armies for the subsequent march to persia and the spread of their democratic culture.

Alexander marched into Persia 150 years later and he certainly did not bring democracy with him nor in his wake.