June 18, 2005
His excellency's voting machine
So here it was. The robots of the supreme leader came in from behind and when nobody was expecting it, voted for Ahmadinejad, a populist conservative with a socialist economy.
Basij and Sepah forces, added to millions of the Guardian Council's representatives who were at the polling stations all five millions of them, voted for Ahamdinejad and made it possible for the supreme leader to actually run the country, directly, for the first time.
Even if Rafsanjani goes to the second round with Ahmadinejad, Khamanei's voting machine will act again and will make Ahmadinejad the new president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The pro-reform youth are so disappointed and depressed. Nobody knows what will happen next. But Khamenei is the biggest winner of this game. He now has both the big turn-out (plus a middle-finger to Bush), and a quasi-president who is only a cover for his excellency.
Is it possible the Iranian leader has learned this from Mr. Bush's win?
Posted by hoder at June 18, 2005 10:22 AMComments
Don't be despaired. Only about 18%(vote for Nejad) of the 68%(percentage of voters) of the Iranians had voted for this Iranian taliban.
And then if he came to power, I'll be very excited because soon we'll attack Iran!
- By: US imperialist on June 24, 2005
- By: US imperialist on June 24, 2005
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i believe 5 Million Basij/Sepha figure is Bull. Let's do the Math here :
China's 2.8 million-person army is the world's largest Military. And your saying little Iran, size of 1 province of China, has 5 Million Basij/sepah! what are u smoking?
- By: iliyas hran on June 21, 2005
- By: iliyas hran on June 21, 2005
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If you admit that the regime's numbers and stats showing high voter turnout and broad participation is true, then your arguments and passionate name-callings about the betrayal of those who boycutted the election is flat wrong! On the other hand, if you admit that there has been fraud in this election and they fudged the numbers (which you have to be brain dead not to admit) then what is your point of even talking about participating or not?!!! Either way they are going to produce the results they want to produce. Aren't you better off writing about pop-culture and Ms. Belluccistan? Stay away from political analysis because you are not very good at it! Please don't censor my post!
- By: Farhad on June 20, 2005
- By: Farhad on June 20, 2005
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Dariush, you are absolutly correct by saying, "Never, ever legitimize an illegitimate regime by participating in its rigged elections"...But when we Iranians will learn. We keep hoping that this time around things are different,we hope and neve act.
- By: Minoo on June 19, 2005
- By: Minoo on June 19, 2005
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A useful insight for the Moin supporters (who need all the insight they can get since they are clueless) of democracy Islamic style. "Initially, the Interior Ministry had Rafsanjani first, Karroubi second and Ahmedinejad third. Half an hour later the Guardian Council, which is not supposed to be involved in counting ballots, said Ahmadinejad was in first place." (Houston Chronicle, June 18)
- By: Akbar Husseni on June 19, 2005
- By: Akbar Husseni on June 19, 2005
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Make no mistake about it. Yesterdays voting in Iran is somewhat in discrepancy with external appearances. That is the vote for Ahmadinejad was in no way a rejection of a cleric as president nor was the vote for Rafsanjani by any means an endorsement for a cleric as president. In fact the ideologies of the two is in variance with the clothing they wear. That is one can safely say Ahmadinejad is more a cleric in laymans clothing and Rafsanjani is really a businessman in clerics clothing. And the voting constiuency of the two attested to this semi-fact.
- By: Lawrence Ershaghi on June 19, 2005
- By: Lawrence Ershaghi on June 19, 2005
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everybody can have his opinion but I don not think that it was only Basij and Sepahs forces who voted to ahmadinejad.
I saw a lot of ordinary people who voted to Ahmadinejad because they are really dissapointed and angry about corruptions in country and they think that at least Ahmadinejad will have a "clean" goverment.
- By: afshin on June 19, 2005
- By: afshin on June 19, 2005
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Why don't you people get it? Islam and the "Revolution" has alot of influence in Iran, still. While most reformists and some of the Pasdar's were busy making flashy websites and cute posters, Ahmadinejad worked the mosques and the military establishment. Rafsanjani's face is there because of his name and what's on top of his head.
Wake up and start actually courting people who work 10 hours a day and pray three times a day instead of pretending they don't exist in society. These people have no internet and no satillite dishes, and some can't even read.
If Rafsanjani is smart, he'll start talking about Islam and Jobs real soon.
If Khamenei stole this election, he stole it fair and square.
- By: contessa juju on June 18, 2005
- By: contessa juju on June 18, 2005
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Dude,
Don't you think we were duped one more time? Rafsanjani does not take part in the elections without the go-ahead from the leader. What he wanted was a huge turnout that makes up for his past humiliating defeats in the polls. With a little bit of tweaking of the results, they will make people to rush to the polling stations on Friday to stop a madness.
Rafsanjani will come out like a king with 99% of the vote and his chin up. That's my conspiracy theory.
- By: itchy_thoughts on June 18, 2005
- By: itchy_thoughts on June 18, 2005
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This election is positive in one sense only. It marks the end of the so called "Reform Movement." These people are now seen by Iranians as either naivee dupes who know nothing of politics in a theocratic dictatorship or in many cases are those same hostage taking radicals who succeeded in extending their political lives and their access to power. Iran has lost more than a decade in her quest for freedom because of those who looked to reform this dictatorship with half measures and compromises.
- By: Kourosh on June 18, 2005
- By: Kourosh on June 18, 2005
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Yes, abnormalities exist. It is too outlandish to think that a plurality of Persians could vote for some mayor of Tehran. Highly questionable.
Jack
- By: Jack on June 18, 2005
- By: Jack on June 18, 2005
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The news coming out of Iran is quite depressing. Do you think there is any chance at all that we will see mass demonstrations, disruptions, or some type of public involvement to change the course of what is to come?
- By: hanieh on June 18, 2005
- By: hanieh on June 18, 2005
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The regime, afraid of low turnouts, fooled people into believing that Moin had a chance. So they came out in droves and voted. The regime not only got a great public relations victory, but also the result they wanted. Whoever wins next Friday, the regime wins. Moin had as much chance as a snowball in hell. The lesson in all this? Never, ever legitimize an illegitimate regime by participating in its rigged elections.
- By: dariush on June 18, 2005
- By: dariush on June 18, 2005
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You are so wrong!!! This has nothing to do with Khameneie. it's people like you that were easly fooled. Why do you think Khamenie let Moin in the race in the first place?? He knew you guys will fall for it. He was right. and please don't bring Bush in this equation. Be responsible for your own actions. If Moin refused Khamenie's order, the whole election will have fall on its face.
- By: Minoo on June 18, 2005
- By: Minoo on June 18, 2005
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Please. Moin lost because his "reformist" allies have been such total failures at getting anything done. Maybe you and your friends still believed, but others felt that voting for Moin was like voting for four more years of Khatami. Lots of talk, little action. So they either voted for someone else or didn't vote at all.
And no, Ahmadinejad is not going to win the runoff. The majority will take a con man like Rafsanjani as a lesser evil any day over an extremist.
- By: Skyknight on June 18, 2005
- By: Skyknight on June 18, 2005
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Ahmadinejad's understanding of Islamic Democracy is crystal clear. Below is a comment on the subject from this "great" democrat.
"We did not have a revolution in order to have democracy".
(United International Press, May 24, 2005)
- By: Behnam Behrooz on June 18, 2005
- By: Behnam Behrooz on June 18, 2005
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The Moin, "Reformist" supporters must be feeling like a complete idiots. If instead they had opted to encourage a boycott then you would have served in the cause of Iran's ultimate freedom.
- By: Arash Afrasiab on June 18, 2005
- By: Arash Afrasiab on June 18, 2005
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Have you ever considered that the reason it has come to this is that you and the rest of them reformollahis actually feel a sugar cube melting in your khik with the image of the middle-finger to Bush and actually have contributed to this confederacy of hardline anti-Bushism, undermining any broad coalition for democracy with you consistent Ostracizing rhetoric against the exiled and the down-trodden, claiming divinity because you have been so long incahuts with the fascists, and get to go home whenever you want because you have no time to look at the thoroughly anti-democratic structure of your republic?
- By: Amir on June 18, 2005
- By: Amir on June 18, 2005
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