How Good I Have It

Looking back on what little life I've lived so far, I realized how easy I have it. Now, I've always known that I've had it better off than many people, but I guess I focused on what other people had that I didn't. But with the recent activity in Iran, I'm starting to realize just how good I have it.

Now, our political system has it's flaws, but never do we have to worry about a regime taking over a hosting a fraudulent election. I'm not going to go into too many details about the election, because honestly there is too much going on just for one blog post. I'm going to add a few links so that if you want you can get a better idea. This first link was posted soon after the election results were revealed and before the riots started. It's author John Green of the vlogbrothers speaking on "5 Reasons to Doubt the Results."

Now, as John points out, the Iranian government is restricting foreign journalists and limiting the amount of media leaving the country. This makes it hard to get reliable information on what's going on. However the people of Iran are making an incredible, successful effort to get information out on what's going on through social networking sites, mainly Twitter. This is one of the many Iranian people getting information out.

If you do not have a Twitter account, I suggest you get one. Yes it's mainly a glorified facebook status but it's very helpful when following current events, or just updating your friends and family. It's easy to use and it's completely free. Alongside the Twitter campaign there have been several pictures that have come out of Iran depicting the riots, and videos depicting the protests.

But not all riots are violent; just today there was a large protest that was completely quiet. Some of the protesters even put tape over their mouths. The turnout to this election has been the biggest since the 1970s, which really says something about the people's will for an honest result.

The President spoke about the issue in Iran in a press conference on the 15th. In his speech he states that it is not up to the American people to decide the leaders of Iran, but the Iranian people. And I couldn't agree more with him. However, the Iranian people have tried to choose but their voice has not been heard. He mentions that the Iranian government is leading an investigation and that the decision will be conclusive. The problem is that if we can't trust the government to do a fair election, then how can we trust them to investigate a false one? For a President whose campaign relied on HOPE and CHANGE, he doesn't seem willing to give support to those who need it.

In the end, whoever is elected still will not have the final say for the country's decisions. Iran is an Islamic Republic, meaning the final say resides with a religious leader. However, the support and turnouts of the protests are an amazing testimony to the Iranian youth.

So looking back on what little life I've lived so far, I realized how easy I have it. I have a loving family and friends, a place to live, and food to eat. I also have a government which listens to its people and holds fair and free elections. Hopefully Iran will too have a government that can boast the same.

-Beast