2009 Revolution In Iran

It's been awhile since the planet has seen events like what's been happening in Iran ever since the recent presidential election.

It's also been awhile since the last Iranian Revolution, as in that was thirty years ago. 65% of Iranians have only known the repressive regime of the Ayatollahs and their Islamic extremism.

The Iranian youth have had a lot of exposure to Western and American culture, snuck in via satellite dishes and the Internet. I don't think today's crackdown is going to stop this latest Iranian revolution. It seems way too big to suppress.

This all seems very similar to the collapse of communism, something many thought would never happen, yet it did happen, and with stunning speed. And then there was the revolt in the Philippines that booted the Marcos.

The Iranian government has tried to suppress news coverage. But that is not working too well, due to a few American invented freedom of expression devices. As in, today, an Iranian managed to YouTube a video of a huge clash between protesters and security forces. Iranians are twittering like mad, getting out little bits of info about what is happening. Some of the Iranian twittering is to other Iranians. letting people know where to take the wounded, letting people know alternative routes around police blockades.

It was so bizarre watching CNN, during lunch, to see the news talking heads using YouTube and Twitter as news sources. We live in a very different world that no one foresaw coming. Instant news reporting, all over the world, by ordinary citizens using their cell phones, camcorders and computers. I'm thinking tyrants can't long survive when the people get the power to control the information flow.

I heard not a word explaining how it is that Iranians are managing to access the Internet during this crackdown. The government turned off cell phone transmissions. I assume TV is tightly controlled. I don't know by what means Iranians access the Internet. Dial-up? Unlikely for uploading a YouTube video. Do Iranians have broadband? Seems unlikely, but they must. Are the Ayatollahs clueless about the power of the Internet, so they don't realize they need to shut it off if they want to survive?

A couple years ago I had my vehicle worked on at a shop owned by an Iranian who was going to school somewhere in East Texas when the 1979 Iranian Revolution shook things up and made America a bit cranky at Iran. He told me it was not pleasant for him, here, at that time. He did a very funny mimicking of a redneck Texan, sounding so funny trying to sound Texan, while filtered through an Iranian accent.

Anyway, this Iranian told me that most of the Iranians were fed up with being ruled by the Ayatollahs. This conversation took place during the months before George W. began his unfortunate Iraq boondoggle. Well, this Iranian was all gungho for the takeover of Iraq. He thought with the U.S. in power, next door, that the Iranian people would feel strong enough to revolt.

Well, it didn't quite work out that way. Or maybe it did. Maybe it just took a few years and a catalyst to light the explosion of the Iranian Revolution of 2009. If the Ayatollahs and the current regime get toppled, I'm thinking this will bode well for America and the Middle East.

So, interesting day, today. It has been awhile since we have had one of those type days when events seem to be occurring that might bring a big change in the world. Then again, I remember thinking the same thing during huge protests in Tienanmen Square. That did not work out so good. I'm thinking if the Iranian government goes for a China type suppression it will spark an explosion, with a Full Blown Revolution in its wake, if we aren't already at the Full Blown Revolution point.