re: #676 iceweasel

Arguably three days ago would have been too soon.

The regime has been doing everything it can to delegitimise the protesters and portray the opposition as some sort of US/UK/Israeli sponsored and trained coup attempt.

It’s reasonable to assume that a stronger statement by Obama made sooner would have been played on an endless loop by the state TV, along with claims that the protesters were all infiltrators trained by the US. (the State TV has already aired footage of captured protesters being forced to claim that).

Many in the army and police have been refusing to fire on the protesters because they don’t want to fire on their fellow citizens. That could have gone very differently if the regime had been able to convince them that the protesters were actually infiltrators acting on behalf of other countries to bring down Iran. A stronger statement by Obama made earlier surely would have been used in that way.

I think Obama has been walking a very careful line, and I like this new statement. I fear making it sooner would have done more harm than good.

I think he/us will get that response no matter what and although I agree that it would have been used to bad effect, now he doesn’t have to worry about that any more. The problem is, he wants nothing to interfere with his unconditional talks with this regime, not whatever might follow.