Iran’s Dubya?

Juan Cole’s commentary on Middle Eastern issues over at Informed Comment remains essential reading. I was particularly amused by his response to Ayatollah Khamenei’s suggestion that the Iranian public had, by voting for the hardline candidate, “humiliated” Bush: that in some ways Presidents Bush and Ahmadinejad are soul mates.

For those of us who have been hoping for a gradual opening up of Iranian society, the election result is rather a blow and, despite the similarities Professor Cole points out, is only likely to increase aggression between Iran and the West in the short-term.

The election outcome is a clear demonstration that the goals of the 1979 revolution — which was driven largely by the increasing economic, social, and political divide between the general populace and the ruling elite — have not been met, and that future candidates need to both appeal to the liberal middle class and the impoverished millions.

Tags: Iran | Juan Cole | Ahmadinejad