"All signs point to a resounding victory for Mousavi, the pro-reform candidate for Iran President"

[Better Believe It]

Iran's Green Wave
by Robert Dreyfuss
June 8, 2009

There's electricity in the air in Tehran. Beneath the snow-capped peaks that tower over the city, crowds gather every night to argue in the streets. Campaign posters touting candidate in the June 12 vote cover the city. A year ago, when I visited Tehran in advance of the parliamentary elections, there was apathy. Voters then were convinced that their votes didn't matter, and that not voting was the best way to protest the current state of affairs. No longer. There's a wave building, and all signs point to a resounding victory for Mir Hossein Mousavi, the pro-reform candidate who is challenging President Ahmadinejad.

That wave is green. All over the capital, there are green signs and banners supporting Mousavi. Cars flying green flags speed through the city, honking horns for Mousavi. For years, the hardline clergy and their allies, including Ahmadinejad, have feared nothing more than an Iranian-style "color-revolution." Now, Mousavi--with solid establishment credentials, an Islamic revolutionary pedigree second to none, and an outspoken pro-reform message--finds himself at the head of a green parade.

Of course, the hardliners and Ahmadinejad have a lot of aces up their sleeve, including the security services, the judiciary, the Revolutionary Guard, and the interior ministry, which counts the votes.

On Saturday, my first day in Tehran, I traveled some 25 miles outside the capital to Karaj, a city of three million people, for a rally for Mousavi at a huge soccer stadium. The scene was frenzied with excitement. At least 20,000 people waving green flags and dressed in green scarves packed the place. They did the wave. The cheers were deafening, and Mousavi hadn't even arrived yet. In the VIP section, I ran into an Iranian Olympic wrestling champion, Ebrahim Javadi, who'd come to show his support. "I am sure Mr. Mousavi can help us survive this crisis," he said. And better relations with the United States. "One hundred percent!" he said. Nearby, a middle-aged mullah, dressed in brown robes and white turban, said he'd watched President Obama's speech. Akbar Hamidi, 48, is a specialist in Persian literature. "Please take our message of peace to America," he told me. "I hope we elect Mousavi so he can start negotiations with the United States."

When Mousavi entered, the frenzy hit new highs. A roar went up. People chanted: "If there is no election cheating, you are Number One!" and "Ahmadinejad, shame on you! Let's get rid of you!"

It's a long and difficult climb for Mousavi, of course. But everywhere, it seems, support for Ahmadinejad is lackluster, and the Mousavi green wave is growing. The campaign, including an unprecedented series of TV debates, is growing bitter. Today, I'm going to a rally for Ahmadinejad, the former mayor of Tehran, in the center of the city. Stay tuned.

Please read the complete article at:

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/dreyfuss/441959/iran_s_green_wave

[Captain Hilts]

1. Fingers and toes crossed. nt

[stray cat]

2. Pro-reform is relative since Ayatollah's choose candidates

but the most moderate conservative is better than the most radical

[Thrill]

3. That would be huge news

[flpoljunkie]

4. Intriguing. Did not know Mousavi's wife was an artist. Thanks for link.

Later that night, more than 300 Iranian artists--painters, sculptors and others--convened an extraordinary gathering in support of Mousavi, whose outspoken wife is also an artist and who, in a step unprecedented in Iran, campaigns side by side with him, even holding hands. Hundreds of people gathered at the Gallery Mellat, and in an auditorium they listened to a speech by former President Khatami, the reformist, who is supporting Mousavi. "The government," said Khatami, "has turned being anti-art into an art form." Mousavi, who was prime minister from 1981-1989, had garnered across-the-board support from Iran's intellectual community, including writers, artists, musicians, actors, and others. At the event I spoke to many world famous Iranian artists, each of whom said that each and every work they produce must be cleared by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. And there was enormous buzz about Obama's opening to Iran. "People hope we can find a new way with Obama," said Farah Ossouli, who helped to organize the artists' exhibition. "But if Ahmadinejad stays, we are not sure he wants relations with the United States."

[flpoljunkie]

5. PHOTOS: I think Dreyfuss may be on to something...

Young supporters of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi speed up and down Valiasr street on motorcycles in celebratory mood in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 8, 2009. At a massive pro-Mousavi street rally in Tehran, supporters decked out in green ribbons, bandanas, and headscarfs lined one of the main streets in Tehran, creating a human chain in some parts by holding hands and tying green ribbons together. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)


Supporters of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi , wearing green wristbands, rally in downtown Tehran, Sunday, June 7, 2009. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's main reformist challenger said Sunday that the Iranian president has made false accusations against his supporters to try to sabotage his campaign with just days to go before Friday's presidential election. Former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi wrote a letter to Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, accusing Ahmadinejad and his supporters of taking unethical steps against his campaign. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)


A supporter of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi cheers during a presidential campaign rally in Karaj, 24 miles (40 kms) west of Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)


A supporter of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi cheers during a presidential campaign rally in Karaj, 24 miles (40 kms) west of Tehran, Saturday, June 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)


Leading reformist candidate in upcoming Iranian presidential elections, Mir Hossein Mousavi, center, and his wife Zahra Rahnavard, left, greet their supporters during a election campaign in Tehran Sunday May 31, 2009. Mousavi, is a former Prime Minister, and a main challenger of the hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for June 12 presidential elections. (AP photo/Hasan Sarbakh


Leading reformist candidate in upcoming Iranian presidential elections, Mir Hossein Mousavi,left, greets his supporters as his wife Zahra Rahnavard, rear right, speaks during a election campaign in Tehran Sunday May 31, 2009. Mousavi, is a former Prime Minister, and a main challenger of the hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for June 12 presidential elections. (AP photo/Hasan Sarbakhs

[Sebastian Doyle]

6. Please tell me they vote on real ballots there and not electro-fraud machines.

Because if they use machines, the fix would already be in. NuttyYahoo needs an excuse to start a war. Let's hope he doesn't have Ahmadinnerjacket as a boogeyman anymore after this election.

[sixmile]

7. Amazing, all NuttyYahoo's enemies are falling around him without firing a shot

What will the next expensive boogeyman be? I'm looking at you, North Korea...

[Sebastian Doyle]

8. NuttyYahoo wants to start a war with North Korea?

Why? They aren't Muslims.

[sixmile]

9. But their missiles could reach

And we can't have that.

[DCBob]

10. Wow. This could be a very big development.

The warmongers will be so disappointed.

[LeftishBrit]

11. I hope so!

And I hope if he does win, he's allowed to take office.

[jefferson_dem]

12. Please.

Let it be so.

[Douglas Carpenter]

13. I most certainly hope and pray so. But Iran does not have reliable polling and their electoral

system is very complex. And Ahmadinejad and his faction are positioned as the campaign "for God and Country" much like conservative parties everywhere like the Republican party in the U.S.

The signs look positive. But it is far, far from certain.