Country on the east side of the
Arabian gulf. Iran is ethnically diverse with Persians, Azeris, Kurds and Lurs living there.
Iran used to be a monarcy run by the Shar, but he was corrupt, and liked to use his police a bit too much, many people were dirt poor also. The west backed the Shar but during 1978-1979 the Islamic Revolution occured, and Iran's religious elite (the clerics) siezed power.
Iran today is a kind of semi-democracy, and so is ironically much more legitimate than most of the US 'allies' in the region. However the ruling religious elite are a hot minded bunch who see themselves in the van of a gradiose world-historical movement in which their
interpretation of Islam will triumph over their enemies (and incidently give them alot of power).
The Iranians grand ambitions are now manifest in their quest to develop
nuclear weapons. They also like to sound off about Israel, the Holocaust, interpretations of Western history, The Crusades, anything which will give them some attention basically.
If the Iranians get close to full enrichment Israel will strike with or without US backing, this will throw the region into chaos. If the US strike the same thing will happan. If the US invades it will be insane and the end of superpower status, but the
alternative?
