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REZA ASLAN OUT OF TOUCH

WHAT REFORM?

Seems people have forgotten what was the reason so called revolution of 1979 happened. Did people asked for fascism or people asked for political freedom and yet people didn't know what the difference is between selected or elected corrupt politician are. It is funny today some people ask for reform and what would be that reform, is there a logic in that word of reform. We had every freedom before 1979 and only thing we didn't have political freedom for some who were looking for power and money, take a look at politician worldwide, especially in America and you wonder are they working for people or for themselves and corporation.Reza Aslan doesn't get it AHAMADI JEGAD is a thug who is trying to get the full power in his own circle; he has no attention of reforming or anything close to that. Reza Aslan since last comment made in CNN, he proves to be another Islamist, who was making such a comment that Muslims have all the rights in America and if any one talks about Islam is islamaphobia, this man needs help and frankly he has deeply involved in religion crap.

ari, i totally agree with

ari, i totally agree with the last sentence of your comment (partly!).  the reality is that within this confusion that i previously described, the number of executions in iran has spiked dramatically.  it is one thing for aslan to compare a lively discussion of the power brokers of islamic republic as one would describe discussions in the british parliament, or treat ahmadi's words as his true feelings and not the same old politics of mahdi-ist thugs running the country, and it is another thing to frame the current political situation in iran within the context of reason and deductive logic of mathematics. 

Mamooti is an a## in heart,

not a reformist. For sure!

Crazy

as it sounds I take this lunetic Ahmadinejad any time over that opium fested mousavi ,karoubi and even khatami.In a normal society all these guys were be locked up behind  bars but we live in a sick society and what we see is the reflection of it.

No Fear:

Don't get so overzealous! Do you see any pro-reformists among the folks here on this thread? I, certainly don't. Ari is only speaking hypothetically. Did you happen to notice the word, "hope" in his comment?

....

لا لِحُب الْعلی  بَل لِبُغض الْمُعاویه!

Let me ask the reformists here.

What have you seen from your leaders which led you to believe they are reformers? ( Mousavi and Karoubi ) Please provide examples.

Are you happy with the reform pace during Khatami's 8 years term? Do you believe Khatami accomplished more than Ahmadinejad? How so? Please explain.

Why does a person like Mousavi , suddenly becomes a reformist just before an election? How can you trust the promises made by opportunistic politicians just before an election?

HG, regarding Aslan

Of course reality and the numbers are different than this example, but it illustrates the calculus.

Outlandish!

In a world where E. Yazdi is deemed a democrat, Ahmadinejad must be a reformist. Is Aslan dying for attention or is he, in fact, benefiting from IR's existence?

Nice try Reza Aslan!

Here is exactly what Mahmoud said about Israel

"و امام عزيزمان فرمودند که اين رژيم اشغالگر قدس بايد از صفحه روزگار محو شود"

Thanks Shifteh jan. Also Aslan sucks to Canada

I say the same thing about Aslan as I said about Hooman Majd. Aslan has positions that ensure that he will make some money out of what is happening in Iran. The only good thing about Aslan and Majd is that they are handsome. Besides that, as Esfand would say:"they suck to Canada".

aslan treats ahmadinejad

aslan treats ahmadinejad and majles (including the "left" and "right" within it) and other political factions as if they are legitimate counterparts to political institutions of democratic world.  he misses the boat on analyzing the rift between sepah and clergy, the weakening of clergy (partly due to khamenei's health and uncertainty on his replacement), ahmadi's powerplay in wake of clergy's weakness (e.g., replacement of khamenei's choice for foreign minister), lip service of previous reformers, cyclic loosening/tightening of liberties (e.g. women's clothes/hair, media, khatami), and previous cheap talk delivered by different government power brokers (e.g., "sanctions have no effect on us), ....  what aslan mainly forgets to analyze is the gist of his article in that who holds the power behind the scenes?  as they say in the south of u.s.: "thar's no tellin'"  as they say in iran today: "wait till khamenei kicks the bucket."

the article seems to be a hodge podge promotional brochure of ahmadi's attempt to 'liberalize, secularize, and even "Persianize" Iran.'  even his hint at ahmadi's attempt of warming up to the opposition without mentioning 'khas o khaashaak,' to put it mildly, is questionable.

nonetheless, i firmly believe that ahmadi is a true reformer.  in my book, a true reformer in iran, as a pre-condition, must believe in the sanctity of velayat faghih.  the reformer is only concerned with tweaking the system.  in the undemocratic islamic republic, the current reforms of the administration is seen in my view as smoke and mirrors to grap power for a certain group of khavaas.

All I can say, Wikileak has been enlightening in many respect

We have learned things that hardly any one without access to those info could have imagined and this might, just might be one of those.

But I hardly think this will have much of an impact of the reality of life in Iran. So far, whether under a reformist government or a hardliner, life has proven to be a misery for most Iranian people with little to no freedom.

What I like to see in one of those wikileak report is that the life of IRI as we know it is coming to an end and a new and brighter era is ahead for Iran and Iranians.

Mehrdad

Too much, too early

Secondly, those in the opposition who favor upgrading Ahmadinejad would have their work cut out for them convincing everyone else. However if both conditions occur, it could lead to positive change.  

You are so wrong, Mr. Aslan!

"But if you oppose the Mullahs' rule, yearn for greater social and political freedoms for the Iranian people, and envision an Iran that draws inspiration from the glories of its Persian past, then, believe it or not, you have more in common with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad than you might have thought."
Your closing statement shows that you are not really in touch with who Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is and how he came to fill the seat he is occupying.

Go ahead, romanticize Mahmoud Ahmadinejad all you want--you may have company among some other misled analysts in the west, providing western audiences a continuous stream of misinformation and mis-analysis about Iran. Whoever romanticizes Ahmadinejad and his misguided policies on one extreme, is no different that those who demonize and dehumanize Iranians based on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's actions on another extreme. What the Iranian people think and feel and need is so far from what you "experts" prescribe, it is plain sad.