America's Imperial Moment

[Lord Jim]

it also provided what became the most ironic photo op of our generation:

Oh, I don't know about that....

For pure irony in a photo op, its tough to beat this one:



Rosalyn Carter meets John Wayne Gacy....

[loCAtek]

The Islamic Republic, for all its many (many many many) faults, has a better claim to being a democratically-responsive representiative government than Saddam Hussein's Iraq could ever pretend to.

After the Ayatollah Khomein died.

In December 1979, a new Iranian constitution was approved, naming Khomeini as Iran's political and religious leader for life. Under his rule, Iranian women were denied equal rights and required to wear a veil, Western culture was banned, and traditional Islamic law and its often-brutal punishments were reinstated. In suppressing opposition, Khomeini proved as ruthless as the shah, and thousands of political dissidents were executed during his decade of rule.

In 1980, Iraq invaded Iran's oil-producing province of Khuzestan. After initial advances, the Iraqi offense was repulsed. In 1982, Iraq voluntarily withdrew and sought a peace agreement, but Khomeini renewed fighting. Stalemates and the deaths of thousands of young Iranian conscripts in Iraq followed. In 1988, Khomeini finally agreed to a U.N.-brokered cease-fire.

After the Ayatollah Khomeini died on June 3, 1989, more than two million anguished mourners attended his funeral. Gradual democratization began in Iran in early the 1990s, culminating in a free election in 1997 in which the moderate reformist Mohammed Khatami was elected president.

History.com

Understandably, this doesn't excuse Saddam's atrocities, but initially at least he was willing to speak with the West, while Khomeini was not.