There is a persistent theme played out by some liberals who think the Iranian regime is not as bad as we make it out to be that the mullahs are capable of reforming on their own.This view was especially prevelant during the Presidency of Mohammad Khatami who served from 1997-2003. Khatami was the "experimental" president for the ruling mullahs. A genuine reformer, he sought to increase freedom of the press and assembly as well as rid the country of some of the more draconian cultural strictures relating to dress and women's rights. Khamatimi was wildly popular with younger Iranians as well as intellectuals and more democratically minded technocrats. But he was not very popular with those who counted; the ultra conservative members of the Guardian Council and other religious authorities who saw his reforms as a threat to their hold on power.It must be recalled the context with which Khatami came to power. The nation had just endured 8 years of the corrupt, self aggrandizing...(Read Full Post)