I have a short hit at RTJ on Charles Kurzman's research and the current Iranian political crisis. Kurzman wrote by far the most interesting book on the 1979 Iranian Revolution, and his insights about the nature of revolutionary change deserve wide dissemination.
On the subject of Iran, I really recommend HG's post on Neda Agha-Soltan's death. I'd also add that Neda's tragedy--and the uprising as a whole--may play an important role in the diplomatic exchange to come with Iran. Afgha-Soltan is very different from the scowling, fanatical Iran that Americans are used to seeing on TV--and has humanized the Iranian people in the eyes of even the most parochial among us. If Flynt Leverett and Hilary Mann Leverett are right (a very big IF) about the potential for a "Nixon goes to China" movement in Tehran, then the humanization of the adversary in the eyes of the domestic public opens up more leeway for the policymaker that must make the difficult decision to engage.
However, analogies are often misleading. There are equally compelling reasons why whatever leadership that emerges from the power struggle may refuse such an entreaty. Many Iran experts also see the continuation of Iran's nuclear problem and proxy wars as a given even with a reformist leader. Additionally, Neda could just as easily will become a symbol of the regime's ruthlessness and inhumanity, a face that urges us to embrace further confrontation.
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