Free Iran:  Trying to persuade Brutus to join him in order to stop Julius Caesar from becoming a dictator of Rome, Cassius said to Brutus:  “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.” (William Shakespeare)   Truer words have never been spoken.  No matter where we live and irrespective of our socioeconomic background and educational level, too many Iranians have a fatalistic political outlook wrapped in projection and  conspiracy theories.  As such, seldom do we challenge our beliefs and  engage in self-criticism.  This problem is so pervasive that I have given up conversing in politics with most Iranians above 55.  They always claim: it’s the work of the British or the CIA – NEVER our own fault.  The implication of their outlook is that we are just bunch of sheep – incapable of changing our destiny. Fortunately, the younger generation seems to appreciate the meaning behind Cassius’ statement and that’s what gives Iran hope.  The following speech from the film Good Night And Good Luck makes this point beautifully about Senator McCarthy.

We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. We must remember always that accusation is not proof and that conviction depends upon evidence and due process of law. We will not walk in fear, one of another. We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason, if we dig deep in our history and our doctrine, and remember that we are not descended from fearful men — not from men who feared to write, to speak, to associate and to defend causes that were, for the moment, unpopular.

This is no time for men who oppose Senator McCarthy’s methods to keep silent, or for those who approve. We can deny our heritage and our history, but we cannot escape responsibility for the result. There is no way for a citizen of a republic to abdicate his responsibilities. As a nation we have come into our full inheritance at a tender age. We proclaim ourselves, as indeed we are, the defenders of freedom, wherever it continues to exist in the world, but we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.

The actions of the junior Senator from Wisconsin have caused alarm and dismay amongst our allies abroad, and given considerable comfort to our enemies. And whose fault is that? Not really his. He didn’t create this situation of fear; he merely exploited it — and rather successfully. Cassius was right. “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.”

Good night, and good luck.