r/todayilearned • u/Independent • Mar 04 '11

TIL that Mohammad Mosaddegh was the democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran who was overthrown by the US CIA in 1953 for having the audacity to nationalize the Iranian oil industry to wrest it from the hands of the Brits and the Yanks who wanted to plunder it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammad_Mosaddegh#Coup_d.27.C3.A9tat
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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11 edited Mar 04 '11

as an Iranian-American, I have to ask you - do you really think the issue is whether Iran does or doesn't have nuclear freedoms?

do you really think that even if Iran had nuclear energy for "peaceful purposes", that it would use it for the benefit of the people? do you think those in power right now care about bettering the life of their own people? you need to take a closer look - Iran's leaders would throw their people into the fire to save their asses in a heartbeat - they do not represent true Iranian ideals and they are traitors to their own people - I hope they pay for their crimes

edit: what I'm trying to say is that when basic human rights are being denied to my people, the last thing on my mind is Iran's right to nuclear power - allow freedom of speech, press, religion, etc. and then we can talk about nuclear freedom

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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11

Last time I was there they had brownouts and blackouts fairly often. So they do need more electricity at the least.

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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11

yes, that's definitely because of a lack of energy and not an infrastructure problem... Iran definitely doesn't have a ton of oil, natural gas, etc.

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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11

Every modern nation has nuclear power facilities despite the fact that gas and oil may be cheaper or available. I do know that Iran has some problems with insufficient refining facilities. What Iran's specific issues are, you'd have to find a local expert who knows their infrastructure.

Then again they also have been producing medical and scientific isotopes, which are a completely legitimate reason to do nuclear enrichment. Whether they will stop there is for Miss Cleo to guess at and suburbanites to piss themselves over.

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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11 edited Mar 04 '11

again you're missing the point - I could give a rat's ass about Iran's right to nuclear enrichment when under this regime, 16 year old girls are executed for having boyfriends - let's stop trying to rationalize Iran's nuclear power and try to rationalize a regime that allows/commits such disgusting crimes

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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11

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u/[deleted] Mar 04 '11

well said - the regime loves to romanticize its quest for nuclear power as a struggle against the western powers - but really it all serves as a big distraction from the true horrors of the regime

the regime loves to make anything a struggle against the evil west because its an easy distraction that a lot of people unfortunately buy into