What is happening in Iran right now is unprecedented.
If you're an average American, you probably have no clue what's been going on, because it isn't being covered on the news.
Iranians have been protesting their government since before New Year's Day. These are nationwide protests that sprung from the small cities rather than the capital city of Tehran or from a CIA-sponsored group. This is the grassroots, the average Joes and Janes (Yusefs and Yasmines), the ones who were largely absent in the uprisings of 1999 and 2009. These are not policy-oriented protests; they are protesting the Islamic Republic itself. They want an end to mullah rule. They want a real democracy.
What else is different? They are not afraid anymore.
I wish to god we had a president who could be counted on to make the right decisions regarding Iran, one that was knowledgeable about foreign affairs, one that hadn't completely gutted the State Department so that it is not prepared to respond to changing circumstances in Iran, one whose stupidity and temperament couldn't interfere in any progress made by the protesters with some ill-timed words and insults. I wish to god we had a Congress whose ruling party wasn't full of religious nutjobs, government-hating ideologues, and power-hungry assholes. I wish to god we had a media that reported on events in Iran and other important happenings instead of dwelling on every tweet the Idiot-in-Chief posts.
This is big, and it's either going to end in massacres of civilians or the fall of the Islamic Republic of Iran. I love the Iranian people and I wish them luck and blessings and hope for brighter days ahead. One day I hope to visit this beautiful and historic country. Until then, I will root for the people to succeed in throwing off their shackles.
