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Rafsanjani ahead of conservative rival in Iran vote
AFP via translation ^
| December 16, 2006
Posted on 12/16/2006 11:18:21 AM PST by HAL9000
Excerpt -
TEHRAN (AFP) - Centrist cleric Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was running well ahead of his ultra-conservative rival Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi in elections for Iran's Assembly of Experts, with half the votes counted, state television said. Both clerics were standing to be one of the 16 men who will represent Tehran province in the Assembly of Experts, the body which chooses and supervises the supreme leader.
~ snip ~
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: ahmadinejad; iran; rafsanjani; yazdi
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1
posted on
12/16/2006 11:18:23 AM PST
by
HAL9000
To: HAL9000
I find it a little odd that Rafsanjani is being portrayed as the moderate here.
Most everything I've read about Rafsanjani over the years spoke of anything but moderation.
Guess something like this speaks volumes about messed up Iran is right now.
2
posted on
12/16/2006 11:22:05 AM PST
by
MplsSteve
To: MplsSteve
Our media call Clinton a moderate.
To: HAL9000
They're Khomeinist extremists. Iran's voters have no real choice in selecting a leader. The elections are rigged to make sure whoever comes out on top is devoted to the existence of the Islamic Republic. And if anything the younger generation is even far more radical than the generation that founded the regime.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
4
posted on
12/16/2006 11:25:29 AM PST
by
goldstategop
(In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives On In My Heart Forever)
To: goldstategop; All; RaceBannon; Pan_Yans Wife; freedom44; jmc1969; FreeReign; odds; Cronos; decal; ..
The Assembly of Experts is not a one man win situation - as for President. The Assembly majority itself - I forget the number of people - is the key as they then appoint the Supreme Ruler, which is what Mesbah Yazdi wants to become.
Whoever gets more followers onto the Assembly is the real winner. Somewhat like the Dems winning and choosing all the Committee heads from amongst themselves.
Thus putting the looney Hojatieh sect of Islam, even Khomeini could not stomach, formally in power and in charge instead of being the power behind the throne as it is today through accolyte Ahjmadi-Nejad being President.
5
posted on
12/16/2006 11:40:01 AM PST
by
FARS
To: pieceofthepuzzle
6
posted on
12/16/2006 11:42:31 AM PST
by
MplsSteve
To: MplsSteve
Rafsanjani is an opportunist -- he used to be an ultraconservative, but now he's making himself into more and more of a reformer as the public reacts against Khamanei and Ahmadinejad. Clearly Rafsanjani wants to replace Khamenei, either himself or with one of his cronies. That would, imho, be a good thing. But I'm not sure if this is possible.
Rafsanjani is committed in the long run only to Rafsanjani. That means he'll hardly be a friend of the US, but at least he isn't interested in suicide either.
7
posted on
12/16/2006 11:49:58 AM PST
by
Alter Kaker
("Whatever tears one sheds, in the end one always blows one's nose." - Heine)
To: HAL9000
Yet more proof that for the media, "conservative" = bad, and "ultraconservative" = Very Bad. In reality, none of these nuts is conservative in any sense - they're radical fanatics who want to destroy civilization, not conserve anything.
8
posted on
12/16/2006 11:53:47 AM PST
by
Argus
To: HAL9000
These elections are a lose-lose scenario - Rafsanjani was the key driver for Iran seeking nuclear weapons in the 80s. He wants to destroy Israel and the West just as much.
9
posted on
12/16/2006 11:58:43 AM PST
by
rjp2005
(Lord have mercy on us)
To: Alter Kaker
I'm with you on this one. I remember when the Ayatollah rose to power, Rafsanjani was one of the voices of sanity in that open-air asylum. He and Shaipur Bakhtiar led the call for restraint, although certainly Bakhtiar more than Rafsanjani. That explains why raghead extremists assassinated Bakhtiar in Paris a few years after he fled the Ayatollah's regime.
Rafsanjani, however, survived, presumably by going chameleon. I suspect that's what's afoot here. But he's still better than Khameini or Ahmadinejad.
10
posted on
12/16/2006 12:12:24 PM PST
by
IronJack
(=)
To: rjp2005
He wants to destroy Israel and the West just as much.Rafsanjani doesn't give a damn about Israel beyond being able to use it for domestic political purposes. He does not think of himself in Messianic terms, unlike Ahmadinejad, nor is he a religious fanatic. He's power hungry, and in Iran power comes from railing against Israel and (to a much lesser degree) the United States. But he isn't stupid and he isn't suicidal. I'll take a pragmatist any day over a madman.
11
posted on
12/16/2006 12:14:58 PM PST
by
Alter Kaker
("Whatever tears one sheds, in the end one always blows one's nose." - Heine)
To: Alter Kaker
Disagree - read this. He in fact was the very first a nuclear threat to Israel. He was the first to meet with Pakistan's Khan after the mullahs decided to revive the nuclear program following the ban during Khomeini's tenure.
No, he's not suicidal, but he does want Nukes as "insurance" against Israel. And that's dangerous.
http://www.iran-press-service.com/articles_2001/dec_2001/rafsanjani_nuke_threats_141201.htm
12
posted on
12/16/2006 12:27:13 PM PST
by
rjp2005
(Lord have mercy on us)
To: goldstategop
"And if anything the younger generation is even far more radical than the generation that founded the regime."
Then why are people posting the pro-Americanism of students, on this website?
Why are we being informed that Iranians detest the mullah government, and that they boycott elections, to protest the lack of real choices?
Why are we being told they have frequent protests and demonstrations at universities?
Which portrayal of the "younger generation" is correct?
To: HAL9000
There is no difference between him and the rest. They are all evil
14
posted on
12/16/2006 1:04:18 PM PST
by
Biscuit85
(I hate CNN!)
To: FARS
15
posted on
12/16/2006 1:07:11 PM PST
by
nw_arizona_granny
(Time for the world to wake up and face the fact that there is a war going on, it is world wide!)
To: FARS
16
posted on
12/16/2006 1:16:53 PM PST
by
Quix
(LET GOD ARISE AND HIS ENEMIES BE SCATTERED. LET ISRAEL CALL ON GOD AS THEIRS! & ISLAM FLUSH ITSELF)
To: rjp2005
Here's a hint -- everybody in Iran wants nuclear weapons, and there really isn't anything, short of an outright invasion (politically, economically and militarily unfeasible) that can stop them from getting them. Just because a country has nukes, however, doesn't mean they're going to use them. I don't see Rafsanjani ever using his nukes -- he'd just use them as a geopolitical bargaining piece.
17
posted on
12/16/2006 1:20:50 PM PST
by
Alter Kaker
("Whatever tears one sheds, in the end one always blows one's nose." - Heine)
To: Argus; rjp2005; Berosus; Cincinatus' Wife; Convert from ECUSA; dervish; Ernest_at_the_Beach; ...
18
posted on
12/16/2006 1:34:27 PM PST
by
SunkenCiv
(Don't bother, I haven't updated my profile since 11/16/06. https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
To: Alter Kaker
Yes - I agree. The nuke threats towards Israel is bluster, because everyone knows Iran would be blasted to smithereens by Israel's immediate response of 20 or so nukes to their 1 or 2.
But they have no qualms about using proxy groups to attack Israel or us. That remains a real threat.
19
posted on
12/16/2006 2:00:23 PM PST
by
rjp2005
(Lord have mercy on us)
To: rjp2005
It isn't bluster if you have a Messianic figure ruling Iran who doesn't care about suicide. They definitely exist in Iran (I'm not sure if Ahmadinejad is one, probably not) but Rafsanjani is definitely not. He is deferrable.
20
posted on
12/16/2006 2:04:06 PM PST
by
Alter Kaker
("Whatever tears one sheds, in the end one always blows one's nose." - Heine)
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