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We have all seen the images, the result of the election of Iran's President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As we watch the violence unfold, many of us wonder if there is anything we can do to help the Iranian people and their struggle over the tyranny of the Iranian government. Although the President of Iran is elected by the people, the Iranian government is not democratic because the President of Iran is not the highest official in government. That title belongs to the Supreme Leader of Iran, a title that holds the key to power in Iran. The Supreme Leader of Iran is named by the previous supreme leader. It is the highest political and religious authority in Iran. The constitution of Iran does outline that the supreme leader posses certain qualities that include an expertise on Islamic law, along with political and managerial skills. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is the current Supreme Leader of Iran.

Unlike United States government, religion plays a very important role in the government of Iran. If the Iranian people can be helped, this point cannot be ignored. It's one thing to revolt against a member of government knowing that you might die by your actions, but its quite another if you believe that by challenging your leaders, you may be committing acts that could result in damnation by your religion. Whatever the Iranian people may think about the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and their own election process, it is highly unlikely that suggesting that the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is a tyrant would sit well with the Iranian people, including those protesting the elections.

It has been suggested that money may have been filtered into Iran from the United States in order to continue the protests and help the Iranian people. If such actions have been taken, it was ill advised and probably just served to get more people killed. When you are challenging a religious leader, education is the key to success and people can not be educated in the middle of an emotional response especially when the people in the most need of education are the members of the Iranian military starting with the concept that government works best when religion is not the main focus of rule. A Supreme Leader of Iran that would be willing to give up the power that the title now holds and choose to solely concentrate on matters of religion may never exist in Iran.

In the months leading up to the election, it was clear that members of the United States government supported the opposition reformist candidate, Mir-Hossein Mousavi Khameneh. This support may have more harm than good for his chances with the Supreme Leader of Iran who would have been the only one with the power to completely throw out the election results.

The people of Iran will have to make their own choices about what is right for Iran. As a nation whose religion is interwoven with its politics, Iran's best and only hope is it's people and their persistence. There is just not much we can do to help them unless we are willing to accept the concept that if the people of some other nation don't like our elections, they can just come over here and help us to overthrow our own tyrants.

Learn more about this author, Martha Rhodes.
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