A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Monday, June 22, 2009

The Basij vs. a Group of Women

Basijis (I assume, they have batons) apparently getting the worse of it. Thanks to Gary Sick, who captions it "Don't Mess with Iran's Women." Original is here.

Hell hath no fury, or as my wife put it when I showed her the picture, "when the women are mad, watch out."

2 comments:

David B Roberts said...

Is castigating the UK as a mini-Satan, or whatever it is, the first step in the long-term plan for detente with America?

Obviously, here and now, the conservatives need someone to blame. Britain, historical baggage and all, fits the bill perfectly.

However, are Ali Khamenei et al thinking a few moves ahead? Say that no substantive concessions are made and the protests die-down in a week or so. Could an Obama led push for a New Year detente receive a fairly favorable response by Tehran? Could this be the conservative’s concession to the Mousavi-led liberals on the streets of Iran?

Such a prognostication is not without its flaws: notably Obama being able to offer such a move in the first place without John Bolton etc hopping with anger or indeed, Ahmadinajad etc compromising their intrinsic anti-US conservatism.

I confess, I am far from an Iran expert, but was just curious as to what people thought.

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Michael Collins Dunn said...

A good point, and like you I'm not an Iran expert, though Iran has long had a tendency to specially demonize the UK. Maybe not as much as the Iraqis: I've known Iraqis who pretty much see the US as merely the current tool of the British Empire, and are thoroughly convinced that Maggie Thatcher was responsible for the elder Bush's standing up to Saddam over Kuwait. Still, if by any chance the regime is looking for an opening to ther US, which is far from obvious, demonizing the UK might be a way to do it.