Cuba comes to mind, as does Nicaragua.
Cuba I'll give ya, don't know how I missed it. Although they really are in a different league then Iran. Nicaragua, no, don't buy that. Recent elections haven't always gone the way we would have liked, but they do have elections with a variety of candidates and no bars to candidacy. They have plenty of US and other foreign investment, a growing population of US ex pats, no anti American protests in the streets, or frequent references to the former US meddling. All they have done is elect a few former protagonists from the old days. That is just nostalgia.
You're painting with a pretty broad brush here. Whatever the number of sympathetic Iranians, we're not dealing with them - we're dealing with the authoritarian regime that, in one way or another, represents them.
That is the problem, we aren't dealing with the people that are for a more free and fair Iran. We are ignoring them so that our president can make good on a campaign promise and deal directly with the thuggish government in place. BTW, it isn't such a broad brush at all. There are numerous reports of friendly, even pro American sympothies in Iran.
Regardless of exactly who in Iran perpetuates the hatred (populace or government), it does persist for any number of reasons.
It is a pretty closed society. The state controls text books, universities, news media, entertainment. The government perpetuates and orchestrates anti US views. You are naive to think otherwise. The majority of the population knows only what their government tells them about the Shah and any US involvement in their history. It is amazing how pro US Iran is under those circumstance.
As you know, many cultures hold grudges for generations, so it's not terribly useful to apply American standards to the legitimacy of their beef with us.
Some do, but most have found that on the world stage it is not conducive to advancement. The Turks still have serious issues with the Greeks. But they served together in NATO and have maintained peace for many years. They don't have their government leaders talking smack at the UN. Iran is pretty darn unique. As to the Iran, they don't seem to hold the same grudges against the others that have done them harm over the years. Our problem isn't with the grass roots in Iran. It is with the government. That is a fact most Iranians know, which is why they actually like Americans. They can divorce the bickering of the two governments from the people.
No doubt that Iran has done everything it can to make life difficult for the US - agreed. None of that, however, absolves us of the responsibility for our own part in creating the situation. People want to put the blinders on and blame Iran as the sole malevolent force at work. We have to acknowledge our own deeds - not to assign blame, but to learn from our own mistakes.
I don't have blinders on.
Iran IS the sole malevolent force in this crisis and has been for nearly 30 years. In 30 years what has the US done to make the typical Iranian's life so miserable? What horrible legacy of the Shah causes gasoline shortages in Tehran and super high unemployment? What horrible thing did the US do to cause the right thinking governments of the world to denounce the Iranian government's actions in the streets these last several days. As a citizen of the US and even a member of the military at the time we supported the Shah, I accept responsibility for what our government did during the Cold War as a necessity of war. It furthered the interests of our country in a struggle with a more deadly foe. I do not accept the fact that the legacy of those actions should naturally still cause the level of official hate we witness in Iran. I do not accept that women are third class citizens in Iran because of our actions from the 50 and 60s. Iran is where it is because the mullahs and their stooges have orchestrated it. And if you want to argue the mullahs are in charge because of the US support of the Shah, I'll argue that we got mullahs in charge because an inept President Carter handled the Shah wrongly and when his end was near handled the transition even more poorly. We didn't come down on the side of freedom when we had a chance to control the transition and now we turn our backs on freedom for Iran once again. How's that a reason for holding a grudge?
... they pretty much 'love us' (if that's your criteria for feelin' good about yourself) ... and like most of the rest of the world -- they REALLY like those Yankee Greenbacks!!!!
