DEMOCRACY

Democratic goal took time to evolve to, even for Rome

Human Rights, Freedom from lies, deceit and corruption, progress and modernity are all realistic aims and should not be up for negotiation.

These all existed in Iran, before a group of self serving liars who wanted to access power to impose their fundamentalist non-iranian ideals on everyone.  They succeeded on impossing their will, on attaining power and becoming rich while excluding opportunities to people who were not within their militia.

However while the IRI seems to have crushed if not killed the Iranian spirit, we all know from the history of not just our own, but that of every other country in the world, the Iranian spirit will come back to life from the same mysterious places and people it came from.

As Iranian spiritual and non spiritual traditions are reflected on and people start to remember what truly matters to them an Iranian Monarchy will be reborn.  After 50 years of civil wars in Rome Augustus came to power as absolute monarch.  He is the most important and famous of a series of kings which lead to a more democratic Rome.

Ask a democrat how to improve human rights in the world and in their ignorance they will almost always say by making the world more democratic.  Forgetting the declaration of human rights in major civilizations were brought by kings, as we see at the UN, who cared for their countrymens freedom.  like uk, persia, greece etc (not saying that all monarchies accomplished this, just they were the majority and the first because freedom is more in harmony with their nature).

How many democracies in the world of hundreds of countries do you think enjoy the freedom we did during the 60's and 70's of the shah we betrayed?

I visited the democratic republic of Haiti before the earth quake, Dominican republic and can tell you Freedom is not even 10% what it used to be in Iran.  I am certain India, South Africa, South America (minus chile which is very free thanks to pinochets patriotism which many misunderstood due to it's reportedly cruel barbarity) etc are not bastions of Freedom like Iran used to be.

When will a Shah come back to Iran?

Cyrus the great it is written spoke about it like this...

When my countrymen are prepared to on the one hand use the freedom the monarchy gives them to fight for the character of the noble, the honest, the good, the true and the beautiful and on the other hand to smite the decitful, the coercive, the self serving and other liars then they will always have a great king step up and serve them to create a life that they will love.

So until we are willing to use our Freedom with responsibility, unlike how we treated the late Mahammed Reza Pahlavi, we can't expect to have the kind of king we want like his son for example, to step up for us.

So considering what Cyrus the Great believed that it is first the people then from which will come the right kind of King... for now Ahmadinejads, Rafsanjani's Khomeinis, Khameneiis, Mousavi's, Khatamis are all we will get based on our response to the pressures of life and betrayal of so called friends.  We can change or else we will be stuck for a very very long time.

Democracy? Or Human Rights?

I think you're right that Iranian culture veers towards the authoritarian - both politically and at home. We've had 2500 years of strongman rule.

But for me the goal isn't necessarily democracy. There are too many shades of democracy to simply call for a democratic Iran. Besides, as others have pointed out, Iran already is a democracy of sorts. A democracy that just so happens to be on the terms of the Guardian Council.

The real goal to me is civil and human rights for all. For example, it's simply not acceptable to be arrested/tortured/abused in any way for marching peacefully. Or for political activism. Or for holding hands in public with a member of the opposite (or same) sex.

I don't think any Iranian - or any person - needs to be told what their civil and human rights are. Everyone knows that they want to be able to live their lives as they wish - so long as it doesn't hurt another. By whatever means those rights are maintained in Iran - whether by an Islamic government or a secular one - is fine by me. And I imagine fine by anyone in the Green Movement.

~ Alborz 

www.peopleyouthinkyouknow.com
www.youtube.com/user/PeopleUThinkUKnow

Points well taken

It sounds more like Italy, Turkey, Greece, etc.

We are not alone. For now, I'll be happy with having political parties established. If you want Iranians to act and behave similar to Germans, that will never happen. Italy is more like it.

Mr. Abarmard

I am writing from Iran and am in daily contact with all classes of Iranians, and have been for the past ten years. I know judges, lawyers, members of Sepah, ordinary workers, engineers, government authorities, and many young men and women that could be considered part of the Green Movement. Not one of them knows what democracy is or how it works. In my work environment I attempted to implement democratic methods to reach decisions and nobody cooperated. They all wanted a top down decision making process.

As a culture we have very far to go and for change to take place it has to start with knowing how democracy works otherwise we will never get there.

Mr. Mohammad Alireza

I disagree with you. If you ask most people around the globe what democracy is, you might become very disappointed. However, if you are talking about a specific class, educated class, more urbanize, then their answer would put you on your seat!

I believe if Iranians inside wrote your article, it would have been much more thought provoking. Take a trip around villages in different countries and compare them to Iranians, you'll be surprised.

Democracy is a political terminology that people use to pretend their ideologies are pro-society. Even backward warmongers such as Sara Palin speaks of democracy. Leaders as such and idiots who follow them are not exclusive to one region or country. 

Gee.........Mehdee

You actually said something that makes sense. Actually, your comment is pro-common sense which I have not seen from you before. 

Having 2nd thoughts about your allegiances?

____________

IRAN FIRST

____________

You must be a regime supporter

Or maybe you are a passivist! That's what I usually get anytime I bring up the idea that it is not ALL about a regime or a few people, it is about a whole culture and everybody in it. You cannot create positive change in Iran by just replacing a few people with some other people. People must also work on improving themselves and their own culture. 

آمیرزا سرگرد پیروز،

آمیرزا سرگرد پیروز،
شما به کسی رأی دادی که از طرف شوربای نگهبان و ولایت وقیه رأیش را قبلآ گرفته بود.

Last year, I voted for Khamenei to be Leader for 21 years more

Dear Mark Pirooz (aka "Sargord") 

The Leader of the country is not and cannot be elected by popular vote. He must be a mojtahed (i.e. "mollah") who is chosen by other "mollahs" to serve as the representative of the Twelfth Imam until the Twelfth Imam returns from his state of "occultation". 

Mohammad Alireza, een sargord aslan Farsi balad neest. Negaranesh nabash. 

Both start with the letter "D"

Sargord,

Here is a link for Dictatorship in case you want to compare it with a democracy.

//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dictatorship

Do you still think Iran is a democracy?

And do you still think because you "voted" for Ahmadinejad that it is proof that Iran is a democracy?

Time to wake up and take that silly hat off your head because it's obvious somebody "kolah gozashte ro saret".

Sargord, you are a erfect example....

Sargord,

If you consider Iran's election process democratic then you are a perfect example of those that are clueless as to how the democratic process works.

Given that you seem to have a reasonable command of the English language you may want to read the content of the link below so that your next post is not further confirmation of your brainwashed state of mind.

//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy

your right Saragord ....

you were not as sneaky as George W with CIA Computer Hackers to mess with Florida's and Ohio Computer networks....

you and your Basij  cohorts just stuffed the ballot boxes with forged ballots  ... weras George W was able to enlist the multi billion dollar corporation DIEBOLD to manufacture phony votes...

note my sarcastic smirk on my face... 

Well, last June, I voted for

Well, last June, I voted for the president of Iran. Millions like me did the same. Isn't that an element of democracy? Ever year, there are elections held throughout Iran for multitude levels of governance. Aren't these elements of democracy?

Who are you to lecture Iranians on the fundamentals of democracy? And when-if ever- have you ever voted in an Iranian election? 

any path will take you there...

Good observation. Except that -and it's a good thing- this is observed by almost everyone.I remember before the election there was an interview with a student girl saying that

we are trying so hard not to repeat the mistakes of our parents and rally around something we don't know what it is and what brings us but it seems that this is what actually is happening despite our all efforts.

Now if we don't know what we want and we can't find the path, how about finding a path instead, which will help us to find what we want?