Psychic Octopus in trouble again

[gingerjedi]

Feck, don't call 'im an Arab, he's a Persian.

It really winds them up.

Ok ok...

Allah on a bike them Arab/Persion/European/Asian/American/African Muslims are an odd bunch.

[eliquant]

He's just mad because he put an accumulator bet on Germany winning the World Cup 2010.

[Mich the Tester]

All the Iranians I've ever met are thoroughly rational types who are rather ashamed of Mr Ahmadinejihad and the gang of criminal scum ruling Iran. Mind you, I only know three of them and they're all scientists working in Holland who wouldn't dare go back to Iran for fear that their lack of demonstrable religious faith would get them killed. According to them, Ahmadinejihad and his chums are regarded as backward inbreds by many people in Tehran, possibly by most. Apparently the worshippers at the big tent mosques in Tehran, who turn up and listen to some loony ranting on about loose women causing earthquakes, are mainly rural people, bussed in for the day, often on the promise of some free food. You won't come across many young urban students at those rallies. They'd probably be shot if they opened their mouths, rather like that girl at the protests last year who was shot.

[Gonzo]

Bomb the f**ker off the face of the planet!

The statistics are that something like 70% of the population are under the age of 30.

As I understand it, the youngsters don't like their rulers very much.

With those sorts of numbers the rulers are not going to last for much longer. There is no need for anyone else to interfere.

[SupremeSpod]

The statistics are that something like 70% of the population are under the age of 30.

As I understand it, the youngsters don't like their rulers very much.

With those sorts of numbers the rulers are not going to last for much longer. There is no need for anyone else to interfere.

You're being rather optimistic. Any regime change in Iran is going to need a little help...

[Gonzo]

You're being rather optimistic. Any regime change in Iran is going to need a little help...

We'll see.

[xoggoth]

As I understand it, many in Iran would love a more relaxed regime and mixed parties of young people are not unknown, they have to bribe police.

Just shows that what ordinary people want has little to do with anything, it is the activists and fanatics who drive our societies, the rest of us who just want to get on with our own lives and not spend our time protesting and lobbying, have it all imposed on us.

A few hugely bloody uprisings by the populace every few years would work wonders.

PS It is a pity Dinnerjacket is such a loony, he has a perfect stand up comic face.

[Mich the Tester]

A few hugely bloody uprisings by the populace every few years would work wonders.

They tried an uprising last year. Unfortunately, the people who rose up were educated, rather pacifist middle class people with a lot to lose, and the people they stood up to were conscripted inbreds with guns and a salary they wouldn´t get outside of the army.

I certainly think Iranians would be justified in using violence against their rulers, but often in violent revolutions the people who lead the anti-regime violence turn out to be despots when they gain power.

It's probably a bit of a conundrum for many thinking people in Iran; how to oppose the regime effectively enough to contribute to overthrowing it without lowering themselves to the same standards as their rulers.

[Mich the Tester]

FTFY(Fixed That For You)

Yep, it's just about what I meant.