[ben_w]

If this was a game of telephone, yours would be the mildest interpretation I can imagine of my conversation went with my coworker, but my main impression from them was the Iranian theocracy sees the US as the actual literal devil incarnated.

[jjgreen]

President Reagan's rather than mine (hence the quotes).

[ben_w]

Ah, ok, I thought you were suggesting what Iran thought of the US, I didn't realise it was an old quote from a famous person.

Looking up the quote, Regan was talking about the USSR? If so I think it may be stronger than that sentiment, but I'm not 100% sure owing (in addition to the previous point about games of telephone) to not having lived through the worst of the Cold War — and the small bit I did live through before the USSR collapsed was entirely in the UK and my experience as a child contained more fear of the IRA than the USSR as the IRA were in the news while the USSR were, (like the Klingons that were a thin analogy for them), only in films and on TV.