Meanwhile every single one of the 9/11 hijackers would be allowed by Trump to enter the USA.

Decent people in the world are simply more likely to boycott the US as a result of xenophobic "America First" actions like this[1]. As you said, it's the USA's loss; the world is a big place.

[1] On top of the already established bullshit, described in threads like this:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13453189

Thanks for those links. I never knew the person behind Fuzzy Sets, a topic highly relevant to the HN crowd. Lotfi Zadeh is one of the giants we stand on.

The character of the Iranian people is not based on politics du jour, or even religion for that matter. Our civilization has been around for a few thousands years and it speaks for itself.

[p.s.]

Here are the words of one of our noted poets. He was a ("scary") Muslim, living in 13th century. This is what he had to say and this is our creed:

    Adam's sons are the members of the same body
    Their creation from the same clay
    Should one organ be troubled by pain
    Others would suffer severe strain
    You who are careless of people's suffering
    Deserve not the name, "human being"!

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadi_Shirazi

You wish to tell me that the character of people is not based on religion in a theocracy, where the ruler is literally called "Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution"?

Iran executes over 1000 people every year using very barbaric methods every year: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/07/irans-stagger...

It does speak for itself that after thousands of years you ended up in one of the most backwards forms of government possible, though I'm not sure you realize the implications of what it speaks of.

There are various ways, my sweet little keyboard 'warrior' [1], to guage the character of a people.

You could visit the country and get a feel for the people. Or if are averse to it -- which in your valiant case can not possibly be due to a deficit of courage -- you can google for travelogues of people who have and see what they say. [2]

Or, you can take off your battle headdress and put on a scholarly cap, and reflect on whether cultural, intellectual, and spiritual values and artifacts passed faithfuly from one generation to another are in any way significant in determining the character of a people.

Or, you can pause a bit and wonder why the regime in Iran is called "authoritarian". If a regime reflects the true character of the governed, would it be called "authoritarian" or "representative"? As our president likes to remind the nation, "torture works". It sure does.

But I have to hand it to Iranians back in the old country, they haven't just rolled over and certainly don't need people like you to be prompted into protesting against the regime's outrages. But you know, Iran has its neanderthal subclasses just like we do here in good old USA.

(How do you like it, my little warrior, getting groped by TSA agents? You enjoy that? Do you feel filled with the spirit of "the free and the brave" when you censor yourself on social media so you won't get harrassed at the border? Yes?)

> It does speak for itself that after thousands of years you ended up in one of the most backwards forms of government possible, though I'm not sure you realize the implications of what it speaks of.

There is some truth to that! I was a kid myself then but people who should have known better made some critical and catastrophic errors in judgment back in '78. Propaganda works wonders.

But you know what my sweet little warrior, it also doesn't speak well of the nominal allies of the prior regime that worked hand-in-hand behind the scene with the elements that are now ruling over the Iranian people.

And there is this thing about civilizational ebb and flow but get back to me in a thousand years or so and we'll compare notes!

[1]: per your profile: "As battle approaches, decorum departs."

[2]: here, let me google it for you: https://encrypted.google.com/search?hl=en&q=visit%20to%20Ira...

> (How do you like it, my little warrior, getting groped by TSA agents? You enjoy that? Do you feel filled with the spirit of "the free and the brave" when you censor yourself on social media so you won't get harrassed at the border? Yes?)

Sorry to disappoint, I have never been groped by the TSA agents. Probably has something to do with the fact that I'm Russian and my travels to the US were strictly business, sponsored by a respected company.

That is also why I know a thing or two about authoritarianism and people that allow it, all the while suffering it's oppression.

> And there is this thing about civilizational ebb and flow but get back to me in a thousand years or so and we'll compare notes!

I'm back to you and we can start now since my country's been around for more than a thousand years. We both mainly export oil, we both live in countries under sanctions by the United States.

Mine is an authoritarian shithole, yours is even worse, and it shows right here - you resorting to ad hominems like "little keyboard warrior".

That about sums it up.