On Iran

I haven't posted much on the situation in Iran, because things have been relatively 'quiet' for a number of weeks now. This past week, though, I did see a few interesting articles and would like to share here.

The New York Times's Roger Cohen writes a very good editorial on the flip-flopping politics of Ayatollah Khamenei. He beautifully illustrates his diverging stances and statements on numerous issues since the elections, showing that, as he puts it, the Iran régime is becoming 'inwardly consumed.'

Meanwhile, a senior ayatollah and former contender for the position of the Supreme Leader, has called the current régime and its practices 'a dictatorship,' highlighting as evidence the violent crackdown on protesters, as well as the show trials, which he considers, 'ridiculed Islamic justice.'

Ahmadinejad secured a strong backing for his cabinet from the Iranian parliament, which approved 18 out of his 21 proposed cabinet members. The driving force was apparently the Supreme Leader, Khamenei, showing once again that the sham that is the Iranian government is one and the same, despite its many faces.

On the other side, Mousavi who purportedly lost the June presidential election to Ahmadinejad, has called for more civil disobedience, despite being faced with the chance of being labeled an 'enemy of the state.' He also requested once again that the government launch an independent investigation on election violations.

As this article shows us, civil disobedience is not taken lightly in Iran. University officials have begun repercussions on students who participated in the post-election uprisings. Retaliatory measures include suspensions, barring from dormitories, and extensive questioning. At the same time, a panel is investigating the curricula in the humanities for possible secular indoctrination, which they believe are, in part, to blame for the anti-government uprisings.