June 15, 2009

Best comment on Iran's elections so far

I'm with TBogg:

thousands of political bloggers who have never lived outside of the city in which they were born and who have absolutely no experience in Middle East affairs will now tell you what this all means, how this will impact the region, and what to expect by drawing upon their extensive background in World of Warcraft and a hardly used MCSE certification.

The guy's got a way with words, doesn't he? I'd never have thought of the MCSE cert.

All the bandwagon-jumpers might bear in mind that even should Ahmadinejad be removed by a popular uprising or by the clerics who really run the country, Moussavi is not exactly a Jeffersonian Democrat. Remember how hard Bush and Rice pushed for popular elections in the Palestinian territories and how appalled they were when Hamas won in Gaza? Be careful what you wish for.

Posted by Linkmeister at June 15, 2009 10:17 AM | TrackBack
Comments

My understanding is that part of the issue here is that the notion that "the clerics who really run the country" is a way of thinking about Iran that doesn't quite hold up as much as it used to. I'm assuming that what's being waged here is not so much a war between two Iranian parties so much as it is a generational series of changes coupled with a bit of a war among the various branches of the Iranian gummit.

AND I DON'T EVEN HAVE AN MSCE CERT!

Posted by: Scott at June 15, 2009 07:54 PM

Yeah, but you've got a doctorate. As long as we don't tell anyone what it's actually in you should be good to go for punditry.

Posted by: Linkmeister at June 15, 2009 08:36 PM

Can I be a pundit if I only have a Master's??

The MCSE cert was a brilliant touch, I agree.

I think the Iranians are working on the early stages of an Islamic Reformation. Remember how bad that was when the Christians did it? Be afraid.

Posted by: hedera at June 21, 2009 05:02 PM

Degrees aren't required, but they do lend an aura of authenticity (as long as no one knows what they're in; I think Scott's is in English Lit., which is the point of my response to his comment).

Posted by: Linkmeister at June 21, 2009 08:09 PM