Stalin
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Iran’s Persian identity contributes to its self-preservation and security perspective. Persia is a geographic territory that has withstood multiple attempts by foreign conquerors since it was established in the middle of the 6th Century BC. The Alexandrian Greeks briefly held Persia, but the land has never been conquered.
No one has ever conquered Iran. Even at its zenith, Rome failed. The Mongols failed. The Turks failed. The Russians and the British briefly succeeded in the 1940s but still failed to hold the newly named “Iran” – the origins of the name having derived from the word “Aryan” or more accurately, “Land of the Aryans.” That last point is not lost on the modern Jewish state of Israel.
Coupled with this Persian identity is that of a Shi’ite Islamic identity. The history of the Shi’a is far too broad a topic to send in a single article, but it is important to understand their origins if you want to understand Iran. The Shi’atu Ali (Followers of Ali), or Shi’a, are followers of Ali ibn Abi Talib, a cousin and son-in-law of the prophet Mohammed. By most accounts, Ali was the hand-picked successor of Mohammed.
..
The totality of this blended ethno-religious persecution complex led to a structural design that has guided Persian and later Iranian leadership for centuries. Iran is purposely designed to never fail. Despite reports of a despotic regime, there is no such thing as a hierarchical leadership structure that ends with either a Shah or a Grand Ayatollah. Centralized leadership, be it religious or secular, is hyper-dependent on a unique system of interwoven local religious, financial, and insular tribal connections. Iran’s leadership infrastructure is more like a beehive than a pyramid. Whereas the country is led by a Supreme Council of Islamic leaders – for Americans, think of a religious version of the Supreme Court as the top of power – and it has a very functional parliament, the real power is disaggregated.
Iran’s localities enjoy an intersecting web of clerical leadership, Bonyads (financial “charities” that act as religiously guided businesses), and Basij (a religiously inspired quasi-militia/national guard). If you break one group down, you have to fight thousands of small units disconnected from a centralized leadership, but capable of running their own affairs. In effect, imagine a swarm of bees coming at an invader from every angle to protect the hive, but no single unit dependent on the other. Even if you destroy the central “hive,” an invader would have to deal with the fact that “the bees” have multiple hives – potentially thousands of religiously inspired independent militant units who have the full support of the locality, to include both faith and finances. Kill the Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and you have to prepare for a thousand Khameneis.
Like a trap intentionally designed to suck a predator into a compromised position, the Marines may take Tehran, and yet never penetrate the suburbs that surround it before they are systematically destroyed. Unlike Iraq, the populace is generally united in its shared ethno-religious identity. Unlike Afghanistan, there is no segmentation of twelve different linguistic tribes with their own needs. Unlike Vietnam, the geography is not conducive for sustained supply chain support. Unlike NSDAP Germany, the Iranians would not be weakened by some kind of global alliance and two front war. In other words, the American have never met an enemy like Iran.
...
Of course, none of this is reported on Fox News or CNN. The focus there is on the supposed organic protests and the capital of Tehran’s response. Watching the 2026 Tehran protestors is much like watching the 2020 George Floyd riots in Minneapolis or Portland. It would be easy to assume that the riots of 2020 were an indication that the United States wanted Trump deposed. Obviously, that was not the case. The real divide was between radical leftwing rioters – likely led by an internal color revolution – and your average American citizen who simply wants the country he once enjoyed in the 1980s or 90s. The difference between downtown Seattle and the suburbs of Salt Lake City, Knoxville, or Cincinnati may have been lost on outsider observers, but ordinary Americans know the difference. The same can be said for Iran. The protests of radicals in Tehran are not the generally shared views of the rest of Iran. The rest of “God & Country” Iran have ideals formed by the theological and ethnic constructs I described earlier. The world may see protests against a repressive theocracy. Your average Iranian sees protests led by external forces who seek to attack protectors of their very existence. They have never lost to such forces, even when the odds were against them.
www.theoccidentalobserver.net
comrade stalin
moscow
No one has ever conquered Iran. Even at its zenith, Rome failed. The Mongols failed. The Turks failed. The Russians and the British briefly succeeded in the 1940s but still failed to hold the newly named “Iran” – the origins of the name having derived from the word “Aryan” or more accurately, “Land of the Aryans.” That last point is not lost on the modern Jewish state of Israel.
Coupled with this Persian identity is that of a Shi’ite Islamic identity. The history of the Shi’a is far too broad a topic to send in a single article, but it is important to understand their origins if you want to understand Iran. The Shi’atu Ali (Followers of Ali), or Shi’a, are followers of Ali ibn Abi Talib, a cousin and son-in-law of the prophet Mohammed. By most accounts, Ali was the hand-picked successor of Mohammed.
..
The totality of this blended ethno-religious persecution complex led to a structural design that has guided Persian and later Iranian leadership for centuries. Iran is purposely designed to never fail. Despite reports of a despotic regime, there is no such thing as a hierarchical leadership structure that ends with either a Shah or a Grand Ayatollah. Centralized leadership, be it religious or secular, is hyper-dependent on a unique system of interwoven local religious, financial, and insular tribal connections. Iran’s leadership infrastructure is more like a beehive than a pyramid. Whereas the country is led by a Supreme Council of Islamic leaders – for Americans, think of a religious version of the Supreme Court as the top of power – and it has a very functional parliament, the real power is disaggregated.
Iran’s localities enjoy an intersecting web of clerical leadership, Bonyads (financial “charities” that act as religiously guided businesses), and Basij (a religiously inspired quasi-militia/national guard). If you break one group down, you have to fight thousands of small units disconnected from a centralized leadership, but capable of running their own affairs. In effect, imagine a swarm of bees coming at an invader from every angle to protect the hive, but no single unit dependent on the other. Even if you destroy the central “hive,” an invader would have to deal with the fact that “the bees” have multiple hives – potentially thousands of religiously inspired independent militant units who have the full support of the locality, to include both faith and finances. Kill the Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and you have to prepare for a thousand Khameneis.
Like a trap intentionally designed to suck a predator into a compromised position, the Marines may take Tehran, and yet never penetrate the suburbs that surround it before they are systematically destroyed. Unlike Iraq, the populace is generally united in its shared ethno-religious identity. Unlike Afghanistan, there is no segmentation of twelve different linguistic tribes with their own needs. Unlike Vietnam, the geography is not conducive for sustained supply chain support. Unlike NSDAP Germany, the Iranians would not be weakened by some kind of global alliance and two front war. In other words, the American have never met an enemy like Iran.
...
Of course, none of this is reported on Fox News or CNN. The focus there is on the supposed organic protests and the capital of Tehran’s response. Watching the 2026 Tehran protestors is much like watching the 2020 George Floyd riots in Minneapolis or Portland. It would be easy to assume that the riots of 2020 were an indication that the United States wanted Trump deposed. Obviously, that was not the case. The real divide was between radical leftwing rioters – likely led by an internal color revolution – and your average American citizen who simply wants the country he once enjoyed in the 1980s or 90s. The difference between downtown Seattle and the suburbs of Salt Lake City, Knoxville, or Cincinnati may have been lost on outsider observers, but ordinary Americans know the difference. The same can be said for Iran. The protests of radicals in Tehran are not the generally shared views of the rest of Iran. The rest of “God & Country” Iran have ideals formed by the theological and ethnic constructs I described earlier. The world may see protests against a repressive theocracy. Your average Iranian sees protests led by external forces who seek to attack protectors of their very existence. They have never lost to such forces, even when the odds were against them.
Understanding Iran – The Occidental Observer
www.theoccidentalobserver.net
comrade stalin
moscow
![preacherSm[1].webp](https://www.houseofpolitics.com/data/attachments/27/27913-091f530c34ccdfa1f2070828d1d98e5a.jpg?hash=ZxDh_u9TSp "preacherSm[1].webp")
