I think Ahmadinejad has just overplayed his hand. He has relied a lot on superficial sympathies from the poor worldwide who feel a need to blame and hate the USA. This crackdown will probably cost him a lot of support worldwide, with only the truly demented like Hugo Chavez still carrying his water. If Obama keeps above the fray, I think he has a real shot of letting Ahmadinejad continue to hang himself as the 40-day martyr mourning period passes. Obama is still very popular in the region and if he doesn’t alienate himself form those sympathies, this could get ugly for the Iranian Government quickly with the loss of regional support. Iran’s protesters now have Neda, their public martyr broadcast all over the world on You Tube, killed by the Mullah’s and Ahmadinejad’s thugs for all to see. The 1979 Revolution took a year to complete. I think Iranians could parade the Mullahs and Ahmadinejad’s ugly, evil heads on a stick within a year.