Question

I have one question about this whole Iran election/protest controversy: Does protesting make your cause right, or more to the point, democratic?

Now, before you accuse me of being a Ahmadinejad-sympathizer or a fascist, let me just explain a little. Suppose that Ahmadinejad actually did win the popular vote. I know that the Supreme Council in Iran has admitted that they did find some voting irregularities, but let's just all admit that no election is without "irregularities"--we have them in every election in the United States as well. So, supposing that Ahmadinejad did win the popular vote and the election, wouldn't this supposed "digital revolution" that's led to all of these protests simply be a "digital coup?"

It seems as though the US media has concluded that the protestors are right and that their cause is the democratic one when, in fact, it might not be. It seems to me that just because the protestors are organized doesn't necessarily mean that they are right. As an extension of this, then, I would argue that the Obama administration is doing exactly the right thing: calling for more transparency in the election results, expressing their concern over the possibility of infringement of democratic rights, and supporting peoples' right to protest. Beyond this, though, it seems as though we may be taking sides without actually knowing any of the facts.

I would love to see Ahmadinejad out of office. I think he's an extremist, who at the very worst refuses to work with the international community on any number of issues. But, at the same time, I think that if he won the election, he won the election. You can't simply overlook a democratic vote simply because you don't like the leader who the people chose. This reminds me of the situation we had several years ago when Palestinians elected Hamas as their representative government in Gaza. The world called for free and fair elections and it appeared as though they had them. Yet, because they weren't the people that we wanted we've refused to work with them toward any productive solutions.

I'll be the first to admit that I don't know everything about this situation, so my first question is really a question to all of you. Do you think that we've jumped the gun at all in assuming that these protestors' claims are the right ones? Isn't there a possibility that although the goal--getting Ahmadinejad out of office--is something desirable, it may in the end not be truly democratic?