I am shedding "lyte" on the electoral process today. In case you haven't noticed, Iran held it's elections. And it didn't go so well. I mean, someone got re-elected, but something smells about the whole deal.
The opposition candidate, Mir Hossein Mousavi, held a substantial lead in the polls. But current President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won by an almost 2 to 1 margin. Could there have been a "Bradley effect" at work in Iran? Or are we talking a good, old-fashioned theft of an election? Methinks it is the latter, as Ahmadinejad carried areas, like Mousavi's hometown, and groups, like young adults under 30, that defy the imagination. And it didn't help that they announced the results before the votes were counted.
The first rule of election rigging is don't get caught, but equally important is to make the results believable. And the election results in Iran are freakin' unbelievable. So unbelievable that Iranians are taking to streets to protest, with deadly results. Eight people have already lost their lives, and that is the death toll that the Iranian government will admit to.
The government has banned foreign press from Iran's streets and ordered reporters to stay in their hotels. They have cracked down on electronic media as well. Most of the information is coming out via Twitter. This revolution will not be televised, but it will be brought to you in 160 characters or less.
Even Iran's true leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called for a partial recount. But it may be too little, too late. He has hitched his wagon to Ahmajinejad's star, and his position may be challenged as a result of this less than stellar display of democracy/theocracy at work.
I have no idea how this going to end. Mousavi is calling for a new election. Ahmajinejad is calling Iran the "most stable country in the world". The rest of us can only wait and hope. Hope that this revolt echoes those in Berlin rather than those in Beijing. But only time, and Twitter, will tell.
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