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Why I think Reza Shah was an idiot
12-Nov-2012
I had always read and heard great things about this individual and I became curious to know why he was considered to be so great. So I decided to study his life in detail. I will assume that the reader has some basic knowledge of contemporary Iranian history and is familiar with the personality of Reza Shah. In any case, here is my opinion.
During my research, contrary to common belief, I found that despite all his accomplishments he wasn’t that great after all. In fact my opinion about him pointed in the direction of stupidity. The reason was that he couldn’t understand the concept of a constitutional monarchy and destroyed a great opportunity to cultivate democracy in Iran. He was not trained in abstract thinking and his mind was stuck in the traditional realm where the monarch has the ultimate power.
His aggressive behavior was effective in producing a sense of order between the various factions in the country, albeit through fear, was acceptable and was probably the best method at the time, but he lacked the wisdom and the training to carry on to the next stage of implementing democracy. His inherent thirst for power, inadvertently, made him accomplish the first task of bringing everyone under a national umbrella. And for that an iron fist was needed which he definitely possessed. With that iron fist he did a lot of good things and not so good things.
However he failed at the next level where he should have remained as an effective Prime Minister whose position had been tremendously empowered by the parliament. But because his mind set was still buried in the pre-constitutional times he insisted that he should become a monarch and carry with him all the powers he had gained as a Prime Minister, essentially destroying all the efforts of the constitutionalists and blocking the path to democracy. And that was his biggest accomplishment; doing a U turn back to ruthless dictatorial rule and consequently digging his own grave.
This is precisely difference between modern leaders and traditional leaders. Modern leaders implement a system. Traditional leaders implement individuals, namely themselves. Understanding the concept of a system requires abstract thought and analytical thinking. That means a sophisticated mind that understands intangible concepts in the real world.
A primitive mind like that of Reza Shah’s could not possibly perceive intangible concepts such as a democratic system developed through a constitutional monarchy. His provincial mind only allowed him to perceive progress and modernism within tangible concepts like women without hejab or a train rolling by or cars on the roads.
He understood the concept of a physical monarch giving physical orders to physical people and receiving a physical re-action from physical people. His untrained mind could only detect superficial changes on the surface as signs of modernity whereas a sophisticated mind seeks fundamental changes deep inside a society’s psyche. It’s possible to have a modern system that looks traditional on the surface. It is also possible to have a traditional system that looks modern on the surface. The former was Mossadegh’s way and latter was Reza Shah’s.
Mossadegh was his sophisticated counterpart who had no desire for power and lived for the implementation of a democratic system. He understood that he fit perfectly for his position as a parliamentarian and Reza Khan, before becoming Reza Shah, was the perfect Prime Minister for Iran. They made an excellent team where Mossadegh was the thinker and Reza Khan was the executioner. They made a lot of advances together and that’s why Mossadegh was begging him, in the parliament, NOT to leave the position of premiership.
It is crucial decisions like this that make or break a nation. Had he not bribed the parliament to vote for him as the new monarch replacing Ahmad Shah of the Qajar dynasty, who was actually a well behaved king and didn’t interfere with the government’s affairs too much, Iran would have probably evolved into a pretty decent civil society. Unfortunately Reza Khan didn’t appreciate his position as a powerful Prime Minister nor the great partnership with Mossadegh and his team, nor the advances they had made through this partnership. He just didn’t understand constitutional monarchy. All this was because he lacked sophistication in thought. He completely screwed up Mossadegh’s plan of empowering the government and lessening the powers of the monarchy which drove him and lots of other progressive thinking individuals out of the parliament and the government. Reza Pahlavi basically killed a democratic system at its infancy, made a lot of enemies and ended up getting himself kicked out of his own country by a foreign government and no friends to support him. By not co-operating with the democratic forces and cultivating progressive leadership when he had the chance, one could even argue that he laid the path for the eventual weakening of the nation, providing more cause for foreign interventions leading to the 1953 coup d’etat and inadvertently instigating the 1979 revolution. Now, that was not very smart.
Reza Pahlavi’s behavior was and is the norm in countries like Iran, Mossadegh’s behavior is the exception. Iranians continuously miss great opportunities for advancement and end up sinking deeper and deeper into shit and are only too quick to blame everyone else for it. Unless such arrogance and stupidity is dealt with, a truly democratic society in Iran will continue to remain a dream.
| Recently by Mahin Bahrami | Comments | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Part 3: Why I think Reza Shah was an idiot | 82 | Nov 24, 2012 |
| Part 2: Why I think Reza Shah was an idiot | 88 | Nov 18, 2012 |
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Mahin Bahrami
by SiavashHeshmati on Tue Nov 13, 2012 06:46 AM PSTYou and seventy million others.
However, there are a few thousand leftovers from his wives and mistresses who don't agree with you.
What is this garbage?
by Shirzadegan on Tue Nov 13, 2012 06:34 AM PSTThis blog is an insult to our history and to our nation. Wish some people think before they open their mouth.
Sesame Street Research and Analysis!
by Faramarz on Tue Nov 13, 2012 06:16 AM PSTNot even good for Mr. Rogers' neighborhood!
Why I think Mahin Bahrami is an idiot
by Bahramerad on Tue Nov 13, 2012 06:38 AM PSTgarbage ,masquerading as an in-dept research into the life and history of one
of the greatest Iranians of the twentieth century .
Mahin:
by Raoul1955 on Tue Nov 13, 2012 05:57 AM PST1) Is your terminal degree in sociology? If not, what is your terminal degree [PhD] in?
2) Could you elaborate on the your 'research' methodology, and the length of it?
3) When you use the term 'idiot,' are you using that to imply a mental defect? If so, what are you basing your assertion on? List references to the clinical studies that support your claim.
4) How long [how many years that is] have you been involved in social, political, and historical studies?
I have additional questions once you have provided detailed and satisfactory responses to the above.
Hmmmm!
by areyo barzan on Tue Nov 13, 2012 04:44 AM PSTIt is always hearth warming to see realistic fair minded Iranians remembering their past leaders and those who did grate services to this country, being grateful for what they did for Iran and appreciating the difficult climate under which these achievements were accomplished.
I have also a reality check for the author of this article (if you could call it one).
If with all his achievements considering what he had on his disposal and the state of country he inherited from Ghajaar dynasty, Reza Shah is or was an “idiot”, Then what in the hell do you call those idiots who followed one Khomeini to the hell that is IRI without knowing who he was, what he stood for or even listening to what he was saying.
What do you call the morons whom in spite of having been educated in the schools and universities (build by Pahlavi Kings) and even being send abroad to Europe and US on government grant to get educated, still chose to follow a back warded theocrat Mullah, thinking he could bring them democracy while they themselves did not and still do not know the meaning of the word.
What do you call those assholes who in spite of calling themselves “educated” went to the roof of their houses to look for Khomeini’s image in the moon.
May be idiots like this deserved a murderer like Khomeini. After all as my old grand dad use to say:
Khallayegh har-che laayegh
...
by hirre on Tue Nov 13, 2012 02:24 AM PSTI'm not an monarchist and against it in any form, but that being said you have to admit that Reza Shah did more for Iran than most modern iranians... He created a central power, removed the noblemen and made sure Iran would not be divided. Without him we would most likely have an Iran 1/4 of the size we have today... He had no way to introduce democracy based on that period of time. Compare with western democracies, e.g. when they introduced equal voting, women rights and so on...
Also democracy is not the same as freedom and liberty or prosperity. There are many countries which have democracy but where the people are just too poor to have any prosperity.
Yet again ...
by Iran Paidar 1st on Tue Nov 13, 2012 12:35 AM PSTAnother idiot writes a blog.
Hot Air
by Mort Gilani on Mon Nov 12, 2012 11:13 PM PSTIt is moronic to blame Reza Shah for the failure of democracy in Iran. He built the foundation of modernity with absolutely nothing at his disposal.
What happened?!!!
by alborz on Mon Nov 12, 2012 10:37 PM PSTMs. Bahrami,
Just a few years ago when you were writing blogs on Jerusalem you counseled commentators to civility in this forum - a forum which you characterized as a place where "mature adults" could exchange views without derogatory statements. Yet you begin your blog with a title that includes the derogatory word "idiot"!
What happened to you during the past several years? It seems that your website has also expired!
Alborz
???
by tehran e Azad on Mon Nov 12, 2012 07:21 PM PSTThis is a pathetic observation because in the early 1900's barely any country in the world was a democracy , let alone a true democracy.....
we should ask our selves this question today in 2012 why isn't Iran a democracy , not why Iran wasn't a democracy almost 100 years ago.....
LOL!
by Rostam on Mon Nov 12, 2012 07:06 PM PSTOne of the most stupid articles I've read in a long long while. It makes your eyes bulge out and your hands scratch your head, asking yourself, where do people like the author of this article come from? Where and by whome were they raised? The author of this article must have "inside" connections with Iranian.com's personel to have gotten this disaster of article in the Home page.
Does she even know what state of disarray and disaster Iran was in in the 1920s? Her mentality is like your home is on fire, and you are more concerned about saving on your water bill rather than saving the lives of your children.
No wonder Iran is where it is today... No wonder.
This is one of the more
by nozarmahallati on Mon Nov 12, 2012 06:10 PM PSTMORONIC ARTICLES I HAVE READ IN A LONG WHILE.
I am not sure where the author did his/her research but it must have been somewhere void of facts.
Most Iranians now don't understand democracy. Iranians of 75 years go, well ......
you know what they say
by MRX on Mon Nov 12, 2012 05:37 PM PSTit takes one to know one! He was illiterate and simple soldier yet he did more for Iran in 16 years than many dynasties before it and after him! what have you done for Iran? my guess nothing! by the way if Reza shah did not come to rescue Iran, there wouldn't have been any Iran left for Mossadegh to nationalize it's oil! (Some thing to think about huh)
I like blogs like this though becuase it confirms time after time that both the Great Reza shah and his son were way too much for Iranian people. IRI is the perfect regime for our people. Apparently that the best we can muster in 2012 so have fun with it.
The next blog should be why cyrus the great was an idiot because he did not create a socialist republic swedish style!