News

Yes

The West had a great deal to do with Mollahs. The British in particular to beging with. Then in more recent times Feanch housed Khomeini. BBC publicized him and Carter gavie him support.

I know well how Jimmy Carter forced the Iranian Military to side turn to Khomeini. Just to be murdered. That shameless SOB is the absolute worst. However I am not sure Obama is following the same path.

Not all US Presidents were pro Islamist. Nixon was a good friend of Shah and of Iran. He was honorable enough to attend Shah's burial. If he was President at that time there would be no Khomeini. Obama is showing some brains as well. 

Obama or a Future USA needs to fix Mistakes of the past

So Far the God of Money and Military Power the USA has followed has created an unprincipalled approach which is slowly turning the world against it.

As a Result at some point it will no longer be the world leader, because it needs the world to solve it's fundamental problems, which can not always be solved with money or winning wars.

To Ignore the Support Khomeini received from the worlds FREE Democracies would be totally Dishonest.

To The USA/UK/France/Germany without who's neo-colonialist activities
Khomeini would be an impossibility as would maintaining the IRI.

It is this type of Islam that the West wants for Iran, the entire middle
east and north Africa. The Green movement, while supported by secular
elements, was more the Wests attempts at bringing into power their own
group of Muslims to run the show than those in power they can not
control.

A fair comment would be to Curse All the so called Free Democracies for their Domination of Iran at the expense of a more principalled approach including Human Rights.

MEK Like the IRI, is obsolete

The MEK flickered for a brief moment during the post revolutionary fervor that allowed the spark of true debate and the options that were available to be considered by a newly freed Iran and Iranians.

Then the arguments that the MEK posed, were soon tossed out, and countered by the FEK, and several other similarly ideological groups that fizzled as well, under the far more popular and trickster Islamic direction that Iran fell for at the time, and pretty much that is when the MEK switched to a more militant anti-IRI strategy and the rest of the Rajavi dynasty and foibles in Iraq with Saddam and the US has played out as we have seen.

The MEK has proven for 30 years that it's plan and strategy is a failed one. The MEK needs to admit this, and switch policies. But it can't. Either it is the pride of the Rajavis or the ingrained system that the MEK has in place that won't allow it to shift to something more pragmatic, allowing the MEK out of Iraq, and into the ongoing debate.

The IRI too, has proven beyond any shadow of any doubt, that it's system as well, has failed. Albeit on a far grander scale than the 3,000 misguided and error prone MEK members stranded in a shit hole like Iraq.

Both sides need to reform their policies and ideologies if they are to survive. Both sides appear to be driven by powerful personalities who act in direct conflict with what is best for their followers, and what makes sense to do now that it has been proven, that both are complete and utter failures.

I don't care if the MEK are communists, actually we could use some healthy leftist communist fodder in the mix! I do however welcome the MEK to give up this ridiculous strategy of dumb stranded-ness, and shift to something a bit more practical and logical for the current day.

Sitting yourself on a deserted island for 30 years hoping and waiting for someone to finally pay attention to you, is about the dumbest thing anyone can do. In the current day.

The only thing dumber is trying to con an entire country and the world they live in, into thinking that you can actually govern them using a 900 year old book of quaintly useful poetry. And when that doesn't work, go back to good old tried and true, oppressive tyranny.

Well the balloon

The MKO trial balloon popped :-) Regularly MKO sends out these "trial balloons" to see if they could get support. Regularly they are shot down by Iranian people. We know better than to trust MKO. 

They are never going to get to power in Iran. Not even as a minority in the Parliament. The day they chose to side with Saddam was it. No *** way would Iranian people stand for it. They should disband and give up. Their supporters may as well throw their money down the toilet. Or better give it to me! If you want an opposition work with Reza Pahlavi. Or find someone with at least half decent credentials. Reza Pahlavi volunteered to fight for Iran. MKO fought against Iran with Saddam. 

Wow, I hope this isn't true...

"...People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), Iran’s largest opposition group...".

Dingo

You said it better than I did. All you say is absolutely true. Israel is making a giant mistake as they did with Hamas. They created Hamas and now are stuck with it. They want to bankroll MKO; fine! 

The price will be they everlasting hatred of all Iranian people. Is is really wise for Israel to do this? They are already hated by all their neighbors. Their only one hope for an ally is Iran. By bankrolling MKO that hope will be lost.

Then they will be surrounded by not just Arab enemies. But also all Iranians as well as Kurds outside of Iran. Boy what a brilliant idea. Worthy of Bolton an Co. The only people stupid enough to do this are the NeoCon.

Simorgh, there is nothing to admire about MEK

a violent brainwashed cult of thugs are not the future of Iran. We don't need them. Only they need us for support.

The MEK is in the pocket of Israel as the highest bidder. They are sellouts. Everybody knows. Just google it and read some of the evidence. //www.google.com.au/#hl=en&source=hp&q=mek+is...

Israel bankrolls MEK, after Saddam was gone. Yes, even the European lobbying was paid for by pro Israel groups. Saddam used to have them do his dirty work. That's why even the anti Iran kurds in Iraq hate them. How do you think they get all their money now? There is only so much stealing and fraud can bring in. Don't you remember how they defrauded thousands of Iranians in the guise of raising money for Bam earthquake? That's the kind of pastfetrat people they are.

Only the MEK says that 1000s of youth are joining with them, I don't believe it.

In conclusion, the MEK is bad news and immoral people. They brainwash their cultist followers into doing anything for the corrupt leaders who are now on Israeli payroll.

Almost all Iranians hate the MEK so much, they can't trust them. We know their soldiers are brainwashed kids. Sure they will kill themselves to try to attack IRI. It would unethical to use those poor kids for this purpose. I advise you that you give up this silly idea and join the rest of civilized Iranians.

MKO is a cult as bad (if

MKO is a cult as bad (if not worse) as the IRI.

It is worse! Islam is a cult but has been around for 1400 years. It has developed some rules. There are multiple Ayatollahs and so on. MKO has one single power: Rajavis. That's it. Therefore it is much more centrally controlled. It is modeled after the worst of Stalin's ideas. For example they force divorces. They separate children from parents for brainwashing. IR does none of these. IR is bad but MKO is ten times as bad.

Simorgh

The general consensus among IC is that rank and file should get pardons. That would include people like my cousins. In fact my cousin was "pardoned" by the Mollahs after  "Goh Khordam Nameh"; paying a hefty fine.

Most of the suffering was due to MKO brainwashing. Not due to Savak or IR. I am very strongly against IR. But I have to be fair. They went easy on my cousin. Shah was even more so: he did nothing! It was my cousins "friends" that led him to his demise.

No one is saying we should go after the low level ones. In fact Both Mehrdad and I want them released. We believe that MKO leadership is not letting them go. They must be allowed to leave Ashraf and go where they want. Where they go must be "their choice". Not imposed by USA or MKO.

از چاله در آمده، توی چاه افتادن اینه

MKO is a cult as bad (if not worse) as the IRI.  Mehrdad and VPK are right on this issue.

Mehrdad jan

Thank you and I welcome your criticism. Firstly, I admit that I have made incendiary remarks about the MEK out of pure desperation because I feel no other opposition movement is doing anything practical to combat the regime. Don't you wish you picked up a gun and could shoot just one of those butchers in the Regime who kill half a dozen Iranians by the hour? However, if you read my comments as the beginning of this thread I make it clear that if the MKE comes to power history will take a turn for the worse. 

I think admiring certain qualities about someone or something is not necessarily tantamount to supporting them. I oppose all organised religions; in particular I am deeply hostile to Islam but I find the Shah Abbas mosque in Esfahan beautiful and an important historical and cultural landmark of Iran. Am I being hypocritical? 

Likewise, for any student studying film in University they are expected to watch D W Griffith's Birth of a Nation which is a blatantly racist film which shows the KKK as honourable men. Nevertheless, it is a brilliant and pioneering piece of cinema. 

Is it possible  to  admire the efficiency and internal organisation of the MEK without subscribing to their beliefs? Is it possible to be opposed to the MEK's belief but admire their extraordinary resiliance and capacity to survive despite being driven off and  many of its members being imprisoned, tortured and executed for over three decades? Its like me saying that Hitler was a murderer but brilliant politician and opportunist or Mao Tse Tung who managed to come into power after the Long March and form the Red Army. I can't be both a Marxist and a Fascist at the same time. Gangus Khan ravaged the entire Eastern Hemisphere including Iran but he was an utterly brilliant general and fearless warrior. The same with Alexander the so-called Great. People are muti-faceted complete bastards can be brilliant.  For this reason it would be silly dimsiss the MEK's quality outright. 

Khomeini? Pure Evil. Brilliant politician.  

Can I condmen the MEK if it hypothetically were to assassinate Ahmadinejad? To be honest, I can't. Not only that but neither can millions of Iranains even if they do not admit it to your face.

 I want an open an honest discussion about this. 

Furthermore, I couldn't care less about the fate of the Rajavis. They can go to hell but is the cousin which VPK described or the distant relative of mine who was tricked into joining the MEK 'terrorists'? Maybe. However, are they the same as Baijis? Are all 'terrorists' to be treated the same way? 

You only have to speak to some of these MEK demonstrators at demos and you will find how utterly brainwashed and naive they are. The only thing which makes them different from the Basij scumbag is their deep sense of patriotism which is maliciously exploited by the MEK.

Do I make sense? I look forward to your reply.  

Simorgh

Thank you for your kind words. I will reply in detail in a bit. However I want to share a personal thing. My favorite cousin joined the MKO during the Shah's times. He used to be a really good friend as well as my cousin.

He did not do much but got scared that Savak may come after him. They did not. But he ran and hid away because his comrades scared him. His flight results in his tragic death. I blame the MKO for this. If it was not for them my cousin would be alive now.

I do admit that I have a personal score with them. Of course I have all the reasons I have given. But the rage goes beyond that. I do not blame the Shah. Savak did nothing. It was the MKO that sent him into hiding and death. Another one of my cousins joined them during the revolution. But he got off easy. A few months in Evin and the Mollahs let him go. It did cost our family a few bucks but it was worth it. He now lives a peaceful life and I thank God for his life.

Simorgh jaan:

I have been reading some of your exchange here and really don't want to get in it as I believe it is little use.

Regarding MEK, I will take your word as face value that you are not supporting MEK but the number of posts and praises I have seen from you regarding MEK, does give an impression of support and admiration to say the least.

Likewise, I don't believe I have ever seen a post from you condemning MEK terrorist behavior or betraying Iran and Iranians, only when pressed and confronted during conversation as here you may concede such action which begs the question…

Given their past and present coupled with their ideology which goes counter to any thing democratic why any one wish to give this group any power or recognize them as an opposition group that we wish to foster?

As far as I am concerned, Iran has had its share of cancerous regime such as IRI, we ought not promote another cancerous group that is far worse then the current cancer we got.

Lastly about Camp Ashraf, vast majority of people have already condemned the attack on camp Ashraf while recognizing the nature of this group and most suggested as VPK has asked here:

- Why these people are not free to leave

- If they are free to leave, then why not repent this undemocratic system and request asylum at other Western world.

Mehrdad

VPK

Thank you for your post. Its not personal but I thought you change in mood was out of character.You are a gentleman.  I am just another Iranian on the Net and I wish I could have an answer to the plethora of questions you raised. 

The MEK leadership has not changed as we both know. They are the same repulsive Islamic-Marxists who manipulated and indirectly led a generation of young people to their death at the had of the evil regime which they were co-architects of. These include distant relatives of mine who were executed by the regime for having distributed the Mojahedeen Qalg newspapers. Many of the young recruits in the MEK are impressionable and idealists like most youths? These include some of the defenceless women aged 20-25 who were shot dead in Camp Ashraf. As much as I hate the MEK I cannot bring myself to condone the killings of young Iranians because of the cowardly exploitation of Rajavi. I believe these youuths should be given a second chance and prosecuting them and directing hatred towards them unless they have committed a crime is plain wrong. 

You raised an excellent point about how real a military threat the MEK is. Nobody knows but many of them have undergone military training and instead of dismantling the camp and its residence it can be the headquarters of a new Iranian National Army. I'll even bet that some of them are clueless about Rajavi and would be glad to see the back of the MEK leadership. If the ties to the MEK leadership in Europe can be cut off and take over the Camp under the auspices of a new decmocratic secular army then where is the harm in that? the possibilities and benefit to Iran will be endless. If you have a computer hacker who breaks into Nasa do you send him to prison or exploit his talents? Every MEK member in Camp Ashraf has to be reviewed on a case by case basis and give them a choice: A chance to reform or send them to Camp X-Ray in Guantanamo for all I care. 

 I have remained consistent in my beliefs that this regime will only go by virtue of an Iranian ground force and surgical airstrikes. A dsiciplined and sophisticated army and not the Mujahedeen can do the trick. The Mujahedeen has been reviled because of its indiscriminate and random acts of violence against ordinary Iranians making them no different from other Islamic Terrorists. 

OK FIne Simorgh

Let us drop the personal part and get right to the point. Simogh I did not say you are an MKO supporter. I said your arguments sounded like it. I have heard a lot of people who support them make the
same arguments. I would like to reestablish our friendship. But I have a hard time with legitimizing the MKO.

If you would please just go point by point. If you like you may post your questions to me and I will go point by point and address them. For the first question: I did not have a bad day yesterday. It was not great but it was not that bad. I mistrust them like no other organization; more than Mollahs.

My points: 

• How does supporting MKO benefit either Iran or USA. Or help create an alliance between Iran and Israel something I want to see.
• I want to see Iran and Israel as allies do you?
• Does MKO pose any kind of real military threat to IR? If not then what use are they except for cannon fodder?
• How has MKO changed when it still has the same leadership?
• Why should I trust an organization with that kind of past?
• Do you trust them?
• Why does the MKO leadership sit in comfort while their rank and file suffer?
• Why does Rajavi encourage her supporters to practice the vile act of khodsoozie?
• Does MKO allow its members in Ashraf to leave on their own free will. Not to IR for possible execution. But say to the West maybe EU or some place to live in peace?
• Where do you think MKO gets its funding? I don't know for sure but I have my guesses. Here are some as I said before: Initially Soviets; later Saddam and other anti Iranian Arab states; now NeoCon

VPK

Please read the comments and despite our friendship you accused me of being an MKO supporter and dismissed my arguments in a most disrespectful and discourteous manner by telling me outright you did not want to speak to me. Your opinions about the MEK are not radically differeny from mine and even if threy were you acted completely out of charactet and no way did you intend to enter a civilised conversation even if you disagreed with what I am saying. You were noy challenging but being aggressive despite your spin of the events.
Infact you are making the same charges against me which others routinely make against you about prowling and ad your own stubborness when you cannot get your own point across. Just look at your conversations with Souri and Fesenjoon as examples.
This was my thread and my news article and my opinions. if you had a bad day at work then don't bring it here please.

I had

said I was not going to directly engage Simorgh anymore. But he/she won't leave me alone. Therefore I will respond again for general consumption:

• We used to agree on many things. Now that I challenge some of his statements I am called "fool" and other insults. When people use insults is because they run out of arguments.
• MKO is good at one thing: Propaganda and fooling the naive and idealist. Oops that was two. Among MKO's many talents are such diverse elements as: selling out the nations; fooling the naive; taking orders from the highest bidder; taking money from Saudi who also fund AQ.; brainwashing their members; getting members to burn themselves; keeping members in Ashraf by force away from their loved ones; blowing up and killing Iranian and Iraqi people and having their leaders live high on the hog in France while their rank and file suffer in the Ashraf Prison.
• Aa a military force MKO is pitiful. With about 3000 aging members in Ashraf they pose nothing no real threat. They are a thorn but nothing more. It will take full Western power to forcibly remove the IR from power.
• The NeoCons are in bed with MKO. No they did not originally fund MKO. It was initially Soviets; then Saddam and other anti Iranian Arabs. Rajavi has conned the NeoCon in funding him only recently. That is one reason they are still viewed as terrorists. Another is NeoCon influence is much less on Obama than on Bush. Therefore they are rightly listed as terrorists by USA despite attempt by NeoCon to change it.
• I have repeatedly advocated alliance between Israel and Iran. The support of MKO by some Israeli poses a danger to this. I will generate hatred in Iran that is unhelpful. I do not want to see the potential for this alliance destroyed by a bunch of conned NeoCon. Most Israeli I know do not support MKO nor do they even know much about them. When I tell them about the Saudi and Saddam connection they agree with me.
• MKO takes credit for any success others gain. They go around with their big mouths infesting anti IR demonstrations. Then try to get credit for them. They are not fooling any Iranian. Just the uninformed EU types.

VPK

Rubbish consiracy theories which are unsubstantiated. Really I expected more intelligence from you. There is absolutely no evidence that the MEK has received money from neo-con politicians which account for its thirty years successful propaganda and recruitment campaign. American politicians have recently taken an interest in the MEK togethrt wiith traditional propro-Israeli newspapers but it has built its success on it own merits, spin and lies decades before any American politocian had taken interest.

If the neo-con movement has been behind the MEK for the last thrity years then how comes it is still on the State Department list of terrorists? Why could it not help its 'asset' in Camp Ashraf when the Iraqi security forces broke in killing men, women and children? That must be an exrtraoridnary waste of money for them. Even now they are under threat of deportation to the Terror Regime in Iran.  

To deny it is an effective opposition movement is nonsense. Rajavi's group is a threat and we should not.under estimate her potential even though many Iranians we speak to hate her. The MEK new recruits dont even care about her past so therefore she has become irrelevant in some ways. Give me another name of an oppisition movement which is just as effective as them? It doesn't exist because We (the Monarchists) are mismanaged with a leader who is unwilling to make hard decisions. 

Whatever reason you give: brainwashing, neo-con support or parents influence the MEK has a huge following which even you agree so why the animosity towards me for a simple observation.

You are being silly and trying to pick a fight for no reason. Fool.  

My responses

are no longer directed at "Simorgh". I was just responding for the general audience.

• Regarding the insults I am able to take them.
• As for MKO: a traitor group they are financed by misguided NeoCons. Yes they have a great propaganda machine. It does well amongst the naive EU "useful idiots". But it does very poorly among Iranians who know better.
• The few thousand aging MKO in Ashraf are nothing. They are like fire crackers against the hundreds of thousands of Iranians. Their children are victims of Rajavi cult and their parents stupidity. I pity but not hate them.

 No matter what happens Rajavi is toast. He will take his wish of running Iran to hell with him. Where he will rot along Khomeini. May they both be chained together in hell and spit at one another for all time. It will take more than MKO to overthrow IR. If West wants to over throw IR it will take Western power. Not a rag tag bunch of clowns in Ashraf. They are lucky to make it past the slightly less rag tag Iraqi army. Pitiful with no place to go but throw themselves at the mercy of Iran.

Meanwhile their leaders sip drinks in Paris funded by NeoCons. How dumb could one get to join them? Mollah or MKO they are just the same. If we want real change we must try something different not the same old ***.

VPK

Are you an obssessive compulsive? I thought your last post was your final post on the matter and even morr bizarre is that you agree with me to large part when you say that their members are fake. What have I been saying all along? Those under 30 in thr MEK are brainwashed and some of those who are in Camp Ashraf as you say are being hed there involuntarily. So by your own rational many of thr MEK are not terrorists but victims themselves. Threy are no.different from the scores of young men and women who were duped by Rajavi at the time of thr revolution to distribute flyers and were killed by the regime. To say that these poor souls are comparable to Rajavi is a stupid charge. They are your fellow compatriots and they need to be shown the right path.
Also your assessmnet of Camp Ashrag was wrong. The.videos of the slain victims of thr Iraqi massacre were young women and men if you bothered to read the reoorts and the video link I posted earlier.
You are actually suggesting the George Bush approach when he disbanded the Baath Party police force and army in Iraq and then regretted his decision because they were needee to keep the peace.
The MEK propaganda machine must be doing something right because it has been quite successful as an opposition group compared to others. People don't become addicts for no reason.

Like it or not the MEK's recruitment and propaganda machine is doing something wriyr

Responses

• I could care less who insults NIAC.
• I consider MKO and their supporters the worst enemies of Iran.
• I do not consider "dude" and insult. It is commonly used phrase in America. In no way is it insulting.
• I am a supporter of a strong alliance between Iran and Israel. Unfortunately some NeoCon groups have got in bed with MKO. This is going to result in a hatred between the two nations. It will last for generations and ruin things.
• MKO does not have many supporters. It has a lot of money by prostituting itself to the highest bidder. The so called supporters are mostly fake.
• Camp Ashraf is an armed gang of aging prisoners. Most of them want to go home. But they are stuck in a mistake with no way out.  

Simorgh

This is my last reply to you. I will not be "dispassionate" about it. The MKO is a cult of murdering traitors. And you sure sound like you support them. I have had it with half truths and BS. Good bye dude.

VPK

You need to look at the situation dispassionately. I am not an MKO supporter infact I am warning you of what is to come unless you have a reality check. We are on the same side so please take a chill pill. 

As unpallatable as it is the MEK does enjoy support from Iranians in the same way as the regime also has its supporters. Do you honestly believe that all of the people who attend the Namaz Jomye listening to Khamenei are all bought off? Of course, they are brain washed but accepting this awful reality is not saying I support it. 

I live in Europe and my observation about the composition of its members is based on my own eyewtiness account following several years of active demonstrations outside the IR embassy and consulate. You admit yourself that most people you talk to do not support the MEK. I would agree because we pick and chose who to associate with and who are acquiantances are. My mouth dropped to see how many young, sophisticated memebrs it has amongst them. I am in full agreement with you that Rajavi is a surreptitious and cowardly politician who has blood on her hands but most of the young there I talked to think its a patriotic national movement. You know they are being misled. I know they are being misled but they are by no means terrorists. 

There are no specific records of MEK membership or supporters  but there were officially nearly four thousand in Camp Ashraf and using the numbers of people who were executed for being a Mojahedeen by the Terrorist regime over three decades such as the notorious prison purge of 1988 then we are talking of anything between 10,000 to 20,000 people. Remember that the NIAC claims to have over 20,000 members but in reality it has only 1,300 paid- up registered members since 2006 according to the minutes of the NIAC whcih claims it represents the mahority of Iranian-American population. So support for the MKO is comparatively much larger than any opposition group if you take in account both fully fledged members alone and their sympathisesrs. The fact that for 30 years they have managed to hold mass ralies, run a TV station and radio, own their own newspapers and media outlets is sufficient proof that they are a force to be reckoned with. It has a sophisiticated propaganda machine comparable to a state. I don't like it but that is the reality. 

According to this anti-MEK blogger: " Since 2003 the MEK has been responsible for curbing the number of insurgents entering Iraq from Iran and has been in active cooperation with the United states and it’s allies in negotiating peace treaties between the Iraqi People’s Congress and Iran. They are now actively involved in the political progress within Iraq. Since the Invasion of Iraq the membership numbers of MEK have soared to over 3,000" 

One more

The MKO keep putting up "trial balloons" to see how it goes. This one was a total flop as it normally is. But their supporters pump money to them and they will try again. We are going to be there to respond.

Obama will decide MKO has no support and give up. They will do better putting their support behind Reza Pahlavi. If they want a "pro" USA regime then go for Pahlavi. It was a mistake removing them. Now they have to fix their *** up.

Responses

• Mehrdad: USA will be well advised that supporting a religious Marxist ideology with well documented terrorist past will come back to hunt them far greater then Ben Laden ever did. You are absolutely right. USA created OBL then had to fact the results. The USA foreign policy is made by people not loyal to America. Carter's adviser was more loyal to Poland. Many are directly in the pay of Likud. When is America going to wakr up?
• Pendar: MKO is stuck in the past, and is totally incapable of becoming a national movement. It failed to move the masses in Shah and Khomeini times, and there is no evidence, not an iota of it, that it has any support in Iran now. I agree; MKO is a part of history and best forgotten. Put the bastards in a history book and onf the shelf to rot.
• Simorgh I: MEK has successfully reinvented itself from a militant islamic Terrorist organization to an Iranian national movement. BS! The MKO or whatever new name is will come up with is an Islamist Marxist terrorist traitor Rajavi cult. The one thing they know is how to fool idealist idiots. The young people they recruit are just as stupid as the ones who marched for Khomeini and just as bad for not just Iran but the world.
• Simorgh II: What is it the MEK is promising which the other Iranian groups cannot? It is promising hell on earth worse than IR. A dictatorship ran by Rajavi duo which will make the Mollahs looks good. That is it.
• Simorgh III: The MEK membership is growing amonsgt young people (under 30). Show me proof! I live in the USA and know plenty of Iranians. Not one is an MKO supporter. Or if they are they dare not admit it.
• Dingo: MEK sold out Iran THREE times already. Right! How dumb do we need to be to fall for this. Fool me ones shame on you; fool me twice shame on me; fool me more; I got to be put away in an institution!

Summary: The MKO is a "useful" tool for America to harass IR. If they play the game right they may be able to milk them for some time. But they are playing with fire. It may backfire on them and make them regret their actions.

Regarding their youth: The members of MKO are mostly young idealist idiots. Many of us have said they should be given amnesty. Only the ones with real blood on their hands and the leadership deserve punishment.

In conclusion I suggest next Charshanbeh Soori we make a big fire. Then the MKO leadership could do a mass "khodsoozi" as they make their rank and file do. It will be a fine sight for their victims. The Kurds could do a traditional dance around it!

Bingley - Here Are 10 Myths You Must Dispel

Here's The Link

//iranian.com/main/blog/ayatoilet1/10-myths-about-mko-pmoi-mek

Dingo Jan

You missed the point completely.

 I have and always will condemn Rajavi. The problem is is that their sphere of influence is growing among young Iranian people. If you have ever read my earlier posts I have even said it was a mistake for Mohammed Reza Pahlavi for not treating them more harshly. 

There is no equivalence between the Islamic Republic loving Basiji who beat and club Iranians to death  and the young Iranain holding the Shir o Khorshid flag who does not know better.  The later do not rape, mutilate or kill Iranians. They are misguided to say the least but almost all of them love Iran. They are not terrorists by any stretch of the imagination simply because they have never picked up a gun before. 

 The MEK has adopted the old Iranian flag. They sing Ay Iran. These things were anethema to the MEK who were Marxist -Islamists. The MEK are claculative and manipulative but to put their increased support down to Israel is absurd. It was not Israel who lobbied to get them off the Terrorist list in Europe it was there own effort. It was years of steady transformation and shrewd campaign of reinvention which has paid off. The idea of some fat Jew coming along and putting down a bag of money making them mainstream overnight is ludicrous. 

Let me tell you the MEK will occupy the seat of power and it will be catastropic for Iran. Only once it takes power will its Islamic-Marxist nature rear its ugly head. It will win however because it has accepted that the use of violence against the regime is the only way to beat them. It is starting to receive money and logistical support from the USA.

Why has it come to that? Why are so many young Iranians joining them in droves.

We have to Shape Up or Ship Out!  

very sorry simorgh jan,

Iranian integrity is not for sale. MEK are terrorist traitors and this is not negotiable with me or any real Iranian.

You say they are brainwashed, but Islamists can say the same thing. Some of the same "brainwashed" cultists had enough brains to leave MEK, so this is not an excuse. Besides, it is their leadership that most people have a problem with. Their policy and their anti-Iran backers in the West are the problems. They are the ones DOING the brainwashing.

MEK sold out Iran THREE times already. Once they betrayed the Shah, killed civilians including americans. Then they betrayed Iran by killing Iranian lads defending their land. Sorry, it was not just "shaking hands" with Saddam, it was taking his money and tanks and shooting at us! Third, they sold out to Israel for power and influence, in the hope that Israeli media can portray them as "normal opposition". It is not working. That's one time too many sell outs.

We will not get anywhere with defending MEK. We all hate the Mullahs, but we are not stupid.

VPK and Bavafa Jan. Please read.

My news thread was not intended to be an endorsement of the MEK.

 The MEK are equivalent of the PLO in Lebanon. Part of the deal of any terrorist organisation who sought refuge in exile is to do dirty work at the behest of their host country. Do you remember Shatila massacre in Lebanon in 1982 when Chrisitan Lebanese entered and killed Palestinian men, women and children with Sharon's help? This is the same with the MEK who acted as petty enforcers for Saddam. 

I have taken part in demosntrations against the Terror Regime where Iranian oppositions across the political divide had participated. I am merely giving an account of what I have observed. The MEK membership is growing amonsgt young people (under 30) partly because it has been given renwed legitimacy by the European Union. Many of its members must have been born after the revolution or were too young to remember the Iran-Iraq war in the nineteen eighties. Most of these were sporting farvahar medallions commonly seen with most Iranian young and waving the shir o khorshid flad and singing the Ay Iran anthem. 

 Before I saw these young people in the crowd I honestly thought most MEK members were pipe smoking boring Lefty intellectual types but I couldn't be more wrong. I was standing alongside the usual Shah -an-Shah crowd who admittedly were a gathering of oldies and there wasn't a single person under 30. 

Are these young people also terrorists? Would you also have them put on trial and sent to prison? They have been brainwashed. The MEK hioerarchy are the scumbags they are but these young people were genuinely passionate about Iran because the MEK has successfully transofrmed itself.  These young did not remember Mssoud and Maryam Rajavi praising Khomeini and supporting his Islamic cause and fondly embracing Saddam. If the knew the truth half of them would not be there. Somethign is wrong because we are not reaching out to the same people. You would think that with all the hostility directed to the MEK it would not have any supporters at all but the reality is beyong anything you could imagine. They are a massive group.This is a reality and we need those young energetic people which they have successfully recruited. 

Finally, in relation to acts of terror and to answer Hamid Javanbackt's point let me illustrate what terror is. Throwing a bomb or planting a bomb in a crowded place or market killing innocent people indiscrimitaley is Terror. That is what some of the MEK did and they deserve the condemnsation for it.

Target assassinating of, lets say Ahmadinejad, or Ahamd Khatami is not an act of terror but an act of supreme patriotism even if this is done in a public place or if there are occasion innocent casualties. This is a war but there is a difference between recklessly killing innocents and trying your best to avoid this from happening. If the MEK does assassinate Ahmadinejad is this terror? They should be given a golden medal! This is what drives support for the MEK not the analysis paralysis 'violence would not achieve anything' nonsense. Hell, even Mandella and the ANC would therefore be Terrorists in your book because that is exactly what they did with guns and killing of innocents whites who were in the wrong place and in the wrong time.

Finally, as I have said in my previous post, if you think the MEK are traitors (and righly so) for having ties with Saddam Hussein twenty years ago then the same needs to be applied to Trita Parsi who wined, dined, greeted the Ubber Terrorist of them all the Islamic Republic. You just have to see all of Trita Parsi's emails, the NIAC meetings (they are all available on the Internet)  to see that normalisation with the IR was more important than human right which a single word was never spoken of at all.

Shaking Saddam's hand is no excuse for people to reach out and shake the hands of the biggest MOTHER '@@@@@ of them all: The Islamic Republic.  

VPK's words here are of a passionate Iranian person

Which resonate with much greater Iranians both inside and outside of Iran.

MKO has betrayed Iranians in such grand way that no amount of window dressing will ever change their true color and intention.

USA will be well advised that supporting a religious Marxist ideology with well documented terrorist past will come back to hunt them far greater then Ben Laden ever did.

And the surest way to garner support for IRI, is to play this group (MKO) as the opposition to IRI. Iranians have only one feeling for them and that is hate and distrust. No sensible Iranian will ever fall for this group nor will ever follow them.

Mehrdad