Imma Let You Finish Afghanistan, but Iran Had the Craziest Election of All Time

In what we can only imagine as a scene out of Michael Jackson's Bad, clashing rallies erupted in Iran.  Today, in Iran, is Quds Day which is a major day for the Iranian regime (not unlike ten cent wing day).  It is an occasion for people to show their support for the Palestinians and opposition to Israel.  This rally by the opposition is the first major one since July and there have been reports that former president Mohamad Khatami was attacked by the paramilitary group the Basij. 



This represents the biggest political crisis for Iran since the Iranian Revolution and when Baywatch got cancelled.  (Rumor has it that Mahmoud is a HUGE Hasselhoff fan.  Okay, so not really, but it was an excuse to show an awful video.)  The resentment over the elections is not going away even though Mr. Ahmadinejad has recently claimed on an NBC interview that his election was fair (see: any news source for evidence to the contrary).

This most recent protest just goes to show that legitimacy is immensely important for any government, especially one that claims to be democratic.  Even when a regime is an outright dictatorship, legitimacy is achieved from some other means.  ("Hey, that guy has a gun, let's follow him!")  But when a government claims to give the people a voice, and then arrests/beats/kills opposition members, there is a problem.  Unless something is done to change the game in Iran, the next Iranian Revolution may be brewing.