On 7/21/2015 6:30 PM, gtr wrote:
> On 2015-07-21 22:44:28 +0000, sf said:
>
>> On Tue, 21 Jul 2015 08:04:04 -0700, gtr > wrote:
>>
>>> I went to school in Oklahoma in the late 60's and there were many
>>> Iranians students there, mostly studying petrol engineering. They
>>> *always* referred to themselves as Persians. They spoke with great
>>> loathing of the Shah, and great disgust with the USA for propping him
>>> up. 10 years later they spoke with disgust about how we supported
>>> Iraq's border war with them--but still called themselves Persians. Now
>>> they have about 80 years of complaints--all of them predicated on
>>> America's love for Saudi oil and deference to Saudi paranoia--but still
>>> call themselves Persians.
>>
>> Do you blame them?
>
> Not in the least; I pity them, and though I don't condone terrorist
> activity, state run or individual lone-wolf, I can frequently find a
> viable rationale.

Oh that's jolly of you.

So here we have it - a terrorist apologist!

>> They've been trying to crawl out from under
>> shariia law since 1928, but the West keeps pulling the rug out from
>> under them. We ousted a democratically elected government and
>> installed the Shah back in 1941 - and they have been unstable ever
>> since.
>
> The US has always been a big fan of the "stability" that comes with
> having one highly corrupt strongman to deal with. Sadly we usually have
> some significant pushback in a generation or two.

The US is oft times faced with the choice of two or more local *******s.

The fact we make any choice at all is a Hobson's dilemma.

Damn you for making US the bad guys in a corrupt equation NOT of our own
construct!

>> They are the most educated people of all that middle eastern mess and
>> even better, they don't treat their female population the way Saudis
>> treat theirs. Given a fighting chance, they will move into the 21st
>> century while the rest of them move backward to the 800's. I'm
>> praying for Afghanistan, but they are in the grip of ISIS and I don't
>> have much hope.
>
> That would be keen.

You have a snotty attitude.