The Bottom Line, II

Afshin Ellian writes to Khamenei and speaks truth to power.  Tells him it’s time to step down, that he should play De Klerk to Mousavi’s Mandela.  Asks him to avoid the massive bloodshed that will come if he decides to fight for his power.

The money graph:

Excellency Khamenei, you and I know that no tyranny has ever succeeded in creating a political system that lasts. Your advisors have been misinforming you these past years. They have made you deaf and blind to what is really happening. The truth is that the ruling elite is despised by the people. Your puppet Ahmadinejad, who likes to appeal to Iranians in populist terms, is reviled. If you continue to use violence against your people, then you have obviously learned nothing from the tragic fate of the last shah of Persia.

It’s great.  That first line should be memorized by poli sci students (it’s even more important than those graphs you’re studying), along with Machiavelli’s dictum that tyranny is the most unstable form of government.

Thanks to my wonderful friends at Telos for publishing it.