Are subject to the death penalty under Sharia. As is right that anyone who tries to topple the rightfully elected government of Iran should be subject to laws on sedition and treason. But the question you have to ask yourself, if you martyr yourself for the Jews, who's going to care?

Thank you for the reporting. The Iranian regime can crack down, but thanks to stories like yours the world will know how the election was stolen and how bravely the Iranian people have fought for democracy. Our prayers go with you.

It would be a mistake to think this popular uprising is akin to our legal protests here in the US. The only elected position in the Iranian govt, currently held by Ahmadinejad, has little influence on decisions effecting the people. That power is in the hands of Khameni, the Supreme Leader. Moussavi is anything but a reformer. He is a protege of Rafsanjani who is famously rich and corrupt, both of whom are vying to shift the power structure away from Khameni. Whichever faction wins, the religious dictatorship will remain in place.

A lot of this election is about family feuding at the top of the Iranian elite, rather than a willingness to change life for Iranians.

Check this BBC flowchart to give you a notion of their complicated political system:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8051750.stm

Thanks for reminding us that there are people such as yourself who basically feel that no matter what changes in Iran, we must still continue to see them as our enemy. Gotta have those enemies.

I'm still waiting to hear what's so great about Mousavi in this Iranian power-struggle. Bijan should be over here on a Saturday night when the police draw their batons on football hooligans full of testosterone and what-have-you. Salon is certainly doing its best for Agent Jesse Dumbledore now in "deep cover" in Orange County. Chrip, chirp or should that be twitter, twitter for the bird-brained.

You misinterpreted my comment. Iran as an "enemy" is your interpretation but is not anywhere, explicit or implicit, in my comment. I'd prefer to see the US and the west in general open up talks, trade and educational exchanges with Iran like we had in the 1960's and 70's. Facts about the political process in no way demonizes the Iranians but helps us understand who the power brokers are and where they are positioning themselves in this event. If you carefully read the info in my link to the BBC you would get a sense of context behind the Iranian governing process.

The impact of these protests has yet to be determined but will impact that country and the Middle East for another generation. Nothing like this has occurred in Iran since 1980, when the Shah was overthrown by the followers of Khomeinei.

Read this piece by Robt Baer for more on the power structure in Iran and the forces behind this struggle. Essentially the governing bodies will stay intact, it's who runs them that will change if the Rafsenjani and Moussavi factions prevail.

http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2009/06/16/khamenei-on-the-ropes.aspx

Pay no attention to these dreary people. None of them are putting their lives on the line, nor am I. You are. This is what living is -- protest against death and lies. We are watching and reading. Don't stop. Don't stop.

Actually i thought they were on Saturday. Rallies, a government under already under sanction or censure from a large part of the world, dubious election results. This just is not the type of thing that gets put back in the bottle. I am under no delusions that Ahmanijahd necessarily lost the election, or that the Moussavi is any kind of real reformer or that Iran's poor don't have a real allegiance to Ahmanijahd. But the election has overarching symbolic significance. With the eyes of the world watching, the demonstrations and the current regime somewhat delegitimizing itself by its response to the protests, I don't think the outcome can be foreseen but there's substantial reason to hope that the clerical hold on Iran's governance is going to be dramatically diminished.

If you look at the political movement that ousted U.S.neocons last year and what's going on in Iran now together, it can be argued that there is a popular consensus for sanity.

Also, as loathe as I am to say this: check out Andrew Sullivan's blog

You may be right about Sat as a tipping point. The people in the streets hijacked the mullahs plans for the appearance of an actual election. It doesn't appear that Khameni thought anything of this magnitude would materialize. Now,the regime cannot pretend that everything is great in Iran and if they ignore these people (or role out the big guns) they're not the "democratic" republic of Islam - instead they're no different than Egypt or Saudi Arabia. My question is who does the military support? The Republican Guard reports directly to the Supreme Leader but will they shoot their own townspeople? Some of the local Mullahs support Mousavi, making it murky for them, they can't dismiss them as goddless sinners (H/T to Mary Helen,thoughts from my political-history-crazed friend)

I read somewhere that Rafsanjani (who is extremely rich) and the interests behind him are interested in less hostility to the west. It would certainly be a better deal financially for them. The Iranians are the most highly educated population in the middle east, they've been rumbling for years about more freedom and opportunity. THe moderates have exploited those sensibilities successfully.Less Islamic law, more freedom for women. (Imagine if the insane neo-cons had bombed them!)

I read Andrew Sullivan as you suggested. I didn't factor in the Russians. They've been building oil pipelines & nukes with the Iranians for years. What will the Russians have to say & about a regime who's willing to cut the US in on the energy dough?

OMG. So many questions, so little time for me to figure this out!

The dark days of Savak

Seem to be creeping back...