Iran's Political and Social Landscape
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-09-20/irans-political-and-social-landscape
As Iran's president prepares to attend the United Nations General Assembly, the U.S. and its European allies are urging the U.N. to move quickly on a sanctions panel. Diane and guests explore the political and social landscape in Iran today as it faces international pressure.
Guests
Scott Peterson
Istanbul Bureau Chief for The Christian Science Monitor. Author of "Let the Swords Encircle Me: Iran - A Journey Behind the Headlines" and "Me Against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan and Rwanda."
Hooman Madj
author of "The Ayatollah Begs to Differ" and "The Ayatollahs' Democracy: An Iranian Challenge," advised and interpreted for two Iranian presidents, Mohammad Khatami and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, on their trips to the United States.
Comments
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Here in Finland the second-highest ranking diplomat at the Iranian Embassy recently resigned and asked for political asylum. Some months earlier, a colleague in Oslo did the same, and most recently, an Iranian diplomat in Brussels also quit.
They are all throwing their support to the opposition, and the Iranian regime seems to be worried.
How much of a challenge do your guests feel that the so-called "green diplomats" pose to the Teheran government?
Would the rest of world help if the youth/young Iran rise up? There is no one to help them inside. Your thoughts?
please explain how your guest can say that iran's military is not a threat when the united states is gearing up to supply saudi arabia with arms to protect itself from iran!!!!!
A caller calls Ahmadinejad an "Arab Hitler".
People with such strong opinions should get their facts straight.
Iran is not an Arab country!
Well, Hooman just mentioned it, but that first caller said he was an "Arab Hitler"...
Under the prevailing circumstances that the discussants describe, it is difficult to believe that mature adults can be hiking on the border of a country at war, with neighbors deeply invested in its internal conflicts, without expecting serious trouble ahead. The three lightheartedly and deliberately put themselves into harms way.
Alas, let us hope the two remaining detainees will be released soon and return home safe and sound.
That said, considering the fallout of the two detained journalists' release from North Korea earlier this year, we may expect proceeds from public appearances and book deals. This income should be applied toward repaying the cost for the effort to bring the detainees back home.
I'm all for freedom of speech, but the current guest is a blatant apologist for Iran, and he's expressed several anti-Israel comments that make him sound misinformed. How about some balance in opinions on this show???
Not misinformed - simply disagreeing with you!
No, it has nothing to do with his disagreeing with me or not. It has to do with certain facts. You're making an assumption about where I stand on the issue.
I think he's more a Persian HAMAN than an "Arab Hitler."
Anyhow, I do think that Khameini and Ahmadinejad want a Persian Shia Muslim empire, but that they believe the road to Mecca goes through Jerusalem. By confronting and surrounding Israel with missiles, they want to show the Muslim world that Shiism and Persia are the true face of Islamic power, and that the Muslim world should coalesce around the new Muslim superpower they are seeking to forge, which will be able to stand up against, and eventually defeat the West - and the East - and carry the banner of Islam to victory.
Having served several years with Peace Corps in Iran several decades ago (possibly the best years of my life), I spoke enough Farsi to live, travel and work without English. Returning on-tour several years ago, I was welcomed constantly as an Amrekie-person, by many random people on the street.
Iran is NOT at all as the demonizing pre-war US propaganda portrays it. Iranians are naturally polite, hospitable, diverse, tolerant and educated people -- forced into a defensive mode by their geo-ecconomic location.
I believe that the extreme fundamentalist Islamic government fell by default into a power-vacuum after the abdication of the Shah (he had cancer). It is an aberration that will eventually be modified by the more moderate Irani-people. Unfortunately under attack on all sides by the US, they have no choice but to band together defending their ancient homeland sovereignty -- any way they can.
Ironically, the economic embargo served primarily to strengthened Iran's home industries -- few Chinese or European products are seen in the bazaars. Despite gross mis-management of the economy by the theocracy, Iran remains a strong healthy, generally-pro-western, modern 2nd-World society.
My point today is that it always distresses me to hear so-called Iran Experts and PBS Reporters commonly mispronounce Iran'i names -- despite their relatively easy-to-check Arabic-script spelling. PBS should know better.
There is NO "k" or "kh" in "MAHmood AHmad-E`NEjad" -- Both names definitely have a breathy "AH" character. And I believe the compound family name, means "Ahmad-i (family)` tribe" -- with a full-pause before the "n." (And the "j" is like the French "zj").
Ignorant or conscious mispronunciation reminds me of HW-Bush's put-down of "Say-damn Who-SAY'n."
--jim