What if we were the Iranians? I think it would pretty much be hopeless.

[bushmeister0]

Iranians getting the hose.


They are hardcore . . . They take the water, pepper spray, live ammunition and keep on ticking. There's a reason why their culture has survived since, oh about, 559 B.C.E.

And the world media is transfixed.

Entire world watching back on September 1, 2008 in St. Paul? Not so much:



One man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist.

All the media outlets like the BBC and CNN -- you name it -- are bitching about the Iranian government's media blackout, but who gave a crap about any of that sort of thing when Amy Goodman got busted?



Oh, the irony!

I think the Iranians could teach us a thing or two about real democracy.

[Dogmudgeon]

1. We're comfortable. They aren't.

We're also indulging ourselves in a lot of vicarious revolutionism, from nostalgic admirers of the 1960s to the black helicopter crowd.

For Iran, this is deadly serious stuff.

--d!

[bushmeister0]

2. Well said!

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Two things

Muricans are way too comfortable

Muricans will not do this until they have no choice.

And I am not sure if they will do it even then...

[spin]

4. One big difference...we have firearms...

never underestimate the intelligence of the founding fathers or the value of the Second Amendment.

[jgraz]

6. The Iraqis have firearms. Look where that got them.

The magical Rambo fairy dust of the second half of the Second Amendment has never stopped the US from doing anything once they decide to do it.

See Davidians, Branch.

[spin]

11. True, but people were not in the streets...

supporting the Branch Davidians.

[jgraz]

13. And if the US govt ever comes after any of us...

Everybody else will be home watching it on teevee.

[canetoad]

8. Isn't the Basij

the Iranian version of a well armed militia?

[spin]

12. True, but a well armed militia has to worry about...

well armed potential victims.

I've seen pictures of two guys on motorcycles riding through a crowd with the passenger asshole beating people with a club. That's a lot of fun when you don't face some well trained individual with a .45 auto.

A .45 cal round to your body or your head can ruin your entire day.

And if a few of your buddies get shot while they are enjoying beating the shit out of someone, you might just reconsider your actions.

It takes a lot more guts to face someone who can kill you than it does some poor bastard who is unarmed. Bullies normally don't have a lot of courage. You definitely don't want to try home invasions merely because someone is yelling "Allah is great" on the roof.

So of course, you escalate. You start shooting people. They shoot back. Videos make it to the internet. You and your government supporters look like shit. More of your bullies die. You're desperate.

So you bring in the army. They really don't want to kill other citizens, after all at least half agree with the protesters.

You lose.

Of course, this all depends on the popularity of the resistance movement. If 50% support your ideas and 50% don't, you may win.

[jgraz]

5. Unless the US govt made the colossal mistake of shutting down the internet

Deprive us of porn and Facebook and there will be blood running in the streets.

[me b zola]

7. Everyday that I watch this unfold on tv, I think about the same thing

I didn't begin reading and watching the news on the internet until Nov '04. I had no idea about the massive protests of the gop convention in New York.

There was little to no coverage of St Paul, and when they did cover it it sounded like a law and order story (cops had to keep the peace, blah, blah).

I was outraged at the lack of real media coverage of the Sept '05 massive march on DC. I was there and am still pissed off that 100 freepers counter demonstrators received the same amount and type of coverage that 500,000 of us got.

[nashville_brook]

9. amen. remember the record-setting world-wide protest prior to the Iraq invasion?

barely made a ripple.

[Brigid]

10. Zero options and nothing to lose.

Best recipe for violence I ever heard of.

[JI7]

14. that happened to people during the civil rights movements