I must say I am very heartened by the images coming out of Tehran. It apears there is a real, grassroots uprising going on. Dependent on how hard the government cracks down, it amy be very difficult to put this genie back in the bottle. The link below is to pictures from the Huffington Post. Note the ages of the protestors, and some of the clothes they are wearing. These people appear very much to want to be a part of the world. The Link
They lack any real way to fight back, no weapons. Gov't thugs with guns will win that battle. But it is a start. Should the world intervene? Maybe the UN?
Democracy will happen everywhere in time. Some places may be a hundred years away but it's inevitable. Of countries with very backward governments, Iran has one of the most sophisticated populations. So they are a good candidate to get the next "promotion".
This might (emphasis on "might") go the way of the pro-democracy movements in eastern Europe of the late 80's. We can only hope. These things can take on a life of their own when the genie gets out of the bottle. Of course, not always....see Tienanmen Square. I think our best course of action right now is.... 1. Say nothing (or very little). I disagree with those who have been taking jabs at the US' lack of a response. 2. Keep an eye out for the hard liners to create a provocation with us (skirmish in the northern gulf, etc) in order change the internal debate. I would like to see the nature of our relationship change with them....I'd love to travel there sometime.
I agree that we should stay out of it. Anything we say, I think will be counter productive. I wasn't too fond of Hillary Clinton's comments, though. She said something like I hopes the election result reflects the genuine will and desire of the Iranian people. I would have wanted something a little more direct like, the election needs to reflect the will and desire of the Iraqi people. She seemed to insinuate that everything was on the up and up whereas I feel she needed to insinuate that it doesn't appear as if the election was on the up and up. Just a little too passive for my taste. Of course, the previous administration would have probably gone too far in the opposite direction, which I said previously would be counter-productive.
I think the message is if age old enemies ( cats and dogs) can peacefully share a bed then peace is possible everywhere.