Proving that there’s more than one place where the far-right hardliners know how to rig an election, the handy victory supposedly scored by Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in his re-election bid looks decidedly fishy.
It’s not the result that bothers me, it’s the sound of millions of hopes being ruthlessly crushed by the ruling elite. I have issues with any kind of theocratic regime, but one whose grip on power is so tenuous that it cannot withstand honest competition and debate is just a pitiful sight.
There may yet be a re-count, but will that also be rigged? Time will tell.
In the meantime, props to Mousavi’s supporters for speaking out and for the millions of people flooding Twitter and Flickr with coverage that the Iranian state wouldn’t allow the international media to get directly.
That Other Blog, Way Over There 
The footage of the millions protesting tells all.
I’m-a-dinner-jacket and his Religous backers are holding the country hostage.
There is not a damn thing Obama can do. His hands were tied by the situations he inherited.
I have no doubts that a recount would be suspect. It’s the structure and the players involved that’s the problem, and I don’t how simply doing it all over again with no significant changes makes anything else possible.
The only good thing coming out of this is the depth of the protest. No one can look at this and think anything but the fact the election was rigged. My fear is many will die at the hands of this madman, though.
@sekanblogger
The trouble with Iran right now – and indeed with a great many countries in that neck of the woods – is the question of whether the other candidate would have been any better in the long run. It would still be a volatile theocracy with Khameini holding the real power, and a slightly more moderate figurehead wouldn’t change things all that much.
@f.B
Agreed – a re-vote or recount is worthless without some kind of external and independent control.
As far as the players… watch for Ali Larijani (speaker of the Iranian parliament). He’s about the only major player who hasn’t taken a side yet, and he does have a knack for picking winners.
@jammer5
Indeed, it seems that protesters are dying in droves. It’s an outrage, a tragedy and an affront to any kind of human decency.