Iran relies on Islam through their theocratic system of government. We in the Western world falsely believe that these demonstrations may lead Iran back to a secular society that it once was prior to the overthrow of the Shah in 1979. Best we can expect out these developments is replacing the power structure as I seriously believe Iran will remain a theocracy in the foreseeable future. It won't change the situation one bit in terms of our concerns about Iran.

THIS is the lesson that AMERICA needs to learn! Right now the United States has MORE prisoners than both Russia and China COMBINED, but with less than 1/6th of their total population! You have more than TEN TIMES the number of prisoners in ALL of Europe COMBINED. It is NOT because other countries execute more prisoners, either - in fact, the United States and China are the only two large nations that still have any death penalty (Russia hasn't executed anyone in nearly 20 years now). Why have the number of prisoners in America increased by nearly 900% in the last 25 years, while violent crime statistics per capita have not changed appreciably? Because you have criminalized SO MANY things. Nearly 70% of Americans in prison are there for "crimes" which would be only a fine in other countries, and in many cases, things that would not have even been prosecuted in the US if you go back 25 years or more. You are SLOWLY becoming a totalitarian regime, but it is happening one spoonful at a time, so Americans gradually accept this tyranny as something in their interest. YOUR ECONOMY IS MEETING THE SAME FATE!

MS -- Consider the following:

1) The working environment of many Chinese citizens resembles prison and/or slave labor. The number of people forced into the situation is ten times higher than our prison population.

2) Russians execute criminals and non-criminals in the street without trial or due process.

3) You are mistaken about the crime rate "... In 2008, all four of the violent crime offense categories declined nationwide compared with data from 2007. Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter declined 4.4 percent, aggravated assault was down 3.2 percent, forcible rape decreased 2.2 percent, and robbery decreased 1.1 percent." This continues the trend of recent years.

4) Our economy is hurting severly, but remains among the most vibrant in the world. People below the poverty level in the US have a higher standard of living than half the worlds population. Europes economy is in much worse shape than that of the US.

I think I'll stick around.