An Iranian Dissident Blogger For Obama

He gets the quantum leap in soft power that an Obama presidency would give the U.S.. The Obama candidacy is potentially the most powerful weapon against Islamism this country now has:

Many Iranians are obsessed with Barack Obama. If he goes to Iran, I'm sure he could fill Tehran's Azadi Stadium, which has a capacity of 100,000. To a large extent this is because of the nature of Obama's message about change and hope. Iranian people truly want to change their situation, get rid of decades of marginalization and restore their reputation in the world. They feel connected to his message of change. They are tired of living under the threat of economic sanctions and military attacks. Obama's remark about initiating a dialogue with Iran translated for many Iranians into hopes of normalizing the relationship between the countries and Iran rejoining the international community. For many Iranian women struggling for women's rights, Hillary is incredibly inspiring. Senator McCain, on the other hand, they see as just as a third term of President Bush, and I see no reason for them to connect to him.

Obama remains a game-changer. Hence the resistance from the neocon right, whose interest is in keeping the game as it is. But the interests of the neoconservatives are not necessarily the best interests of the United States. As we have ruefully discovered.