What U.S. Really Did to Us Iranians.
medium.com
medium.com
Well. The CIA overthrew their democratically elected leader in 1953 (Mosaddegh), because he dared think that the Iranian people had a right to Iranian oil revenues, and then backed a nice chap called Pahlavī (or "the Shah") to be dictator, so long as he toed the line. This wasn't just about the US getting the oil revenues, but also about preventing Iran from becoming a stabilising hegemonistic influence in the area, as a strong middle east with sound governance is against the US's interests. Juntas and corruption = cheap resources.
His bloody regime lead to the '79 coup, which lead to the ongoing political mess we see today, which is kept destabilised by trade sanctions and constant belligerence by the west, for the same old reasons. Iran could be great. Iran could be another "pole" of the world.
But as long as we perpetuate their current setup, through sanctions and close-mindedness through propaganda, the Iranian people will continue to suffer and their government will continue to benefit.
Israel believes that if the Iranians get the bomb, it will be used against Israel. Given the small size of Israel, this would be another genocide. They will therefore do _anything_ to prevent Iran getting the bomb.
Iran believes that if they _don't_ have the bomb, then they are forever at the mercy of US politics, potentially including an invasion in which millions of Iranians will die, just like the war with Iraq. If they do get it, then they can also hold Saudi Arabia hostage until their demands are met.
This isn't going anywhere until someone either takes their finger off the trigger or pulls it.
As you say, the US has no interest in a stable, free, democratic Iran unless it can be bullied into giving up on certain interests.
So thats why Iran - in stating it has no intentions of pursuing the bomb - is so infuriating to the fascist Israeli government. Because everyone knows, the most instable people in the world to have the bomb, already have it.
But, it seems that none of this is relevant to the powers that be. Its a darn shame that we have such people in the world, who think their culture is 'better' than anothers, and I yearn for the day when all people abandon their cultural stigma and Just .. Learn .. To .. Share.
No culture is any better than any other, indeed - merely different. We should revel in those differences while we still have them, rather than revile them, for, if we don't wipe ourselves out first, we will end up, most likely, for the most part, one people. I like qualifiers.
Oh, and if you really want to understand what the hell is going on in and around Iran right now, read all about a charming little hell-hole called Ashraf.
I really wonder about the case of coursera which is basically no trade and it is just to prevent some nationals to access knowledge supposed to be "accessible to all people". To me it's some sort of racism.
And the Iranians don't have enough money to make it worthwhile for US companies to take up their cause politically.
Personally, I don't live in Iran and during christmas I was traveling there to visit my family. I basically didn't have the guts to even go near my bank website or use my credit card without making sure I'm using a VPN.
Edit: Hm, anti-money laundering laws maybe?
Make sure you stay watching past 50 seconds.