Repression of free speech likely to promote improved relationship between US/Iran government

Mathloom · Oct 28, 2013

TEHRAN — Supporters of hard-line conservative policies faced a rare public rebuke this week as authorities ordered that anti-American billboards be removed just days after they went up, sparking a fresh round of debate over relations between Tehran and Washington.

Since the relatively moderate cleric Hassan Rouhani took office as president in August, he and his foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, have made several unprecedented gestures toward the United States, including a phone call between Rouhani and President Obama. It was the first direct contact between presidents of the two countries since Iran’s 1979 revolution ousted the shah.

Such diplomatic outreach and the new government’s apparent attempts to quiet anti-U.S. rhetoric have confused and angered supporters of hard-line conservatives who call the United States the “Great Satan” and see any overture to Washington as a betrayal of the principles of the revolution.
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/world...015cc2-3f15-11e3-ad86-5120269ae35b_story.html

Amazing how that works, and how it's represented in the press.

Most hilarious part:

There’s nothing particularly unusual about the messages, considering that U.S. flags and effigies of American presidents have been regularly burned in the streets of Tehran during the past 34 years.
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Nevermind that regular Iranian citizens are far too busy trying to scrape together some money thanks to US sanctions, I fail to see how the theatrically regular behavior of a subgroup of Iranians equates to the above sentence.

Incredible journalism on display here. I specifically love how they refer to Rouhani as moderate, despite knowing that he is as extreme as any other ex Iranian President in his submission to supreme leader.

Do_Not_Be_Alarm · Oct 28, 2013

Is this a targeted troll job? Sunni, ****e, The Kingdom, Iran?

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Repression of free speech likely to promote improved relationship between US/Iran government

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