[Jblx2]

Don't overlook the "the people of this foreign land are yearning to be free of their current rulers, and just need a little help from their neighborly U.S. armed forces" trope. I think there are plenty of people who actually believe it.

[WarmWash]

People seem to forget that Iranians were rioting in the streets in the weeks leading up to the US attacking. The Iranian government was shooting protestors and pulled the plug on the internet.

The US (well Israel) saw this as the stars aligning. Trump even called on Iranians early in the engagement to seize the opportunity.

But the ground swell didn't happen, and the US got played. Trump rolled a critical fail.

[cheney_2004]

From the videos and analysis I have seen, it was Kurdish militia that was formenting the riots. The US and Israel have even admitted to arming them. They were burning and destroying infrastructure, fighting and killing legitimate protesters, and fighting governement forces. So it was a 2 way fight between the militia and government forces with innocient protesters in the middle. Not trying to cast blame or defend any side, but these protesters are not fighters or soldiers, they are kind of like gen-Z TikTokers. So to plan an entire war around this "event" is kind of crazy. But the US government doesn't care, they just needed to sell the justification and everyone bought it.

[marcosdumay]

The one surest way to stop a starting revolution is for a foreigner to start murdering civilians all around.

[ponector]

Yes, Trump said American help is on the way and did nothing for a month, waiting regime to kill protesters.

How it could be a surprise more riots didn't happen?

[graemep]

Are you sure the claim is false?

[swat535]

> Are you sure the claim is false?

No one in Iran wants their children bombed for US to "free them". US and Israel don't care about Iran.

They just want to destroy our country and take our wealth. Like they have been doing all over the world.

Source: Iranian who doesn't support the Islamic Republic, but have some family members who do.

We can resolve our internal issues with discourse (and sometimes violence if it comes to it).

[Jblx2]

I guess it doesn't matter if the Iranian people want regime change in their country. Lots of people want lots of different things (plus a pony). It only matters what they do. And it doesn't appear that they want regime change enough to take the risks of making it happen. I suppose this is the hubris of polling.

A.) Would you be happy if the government changed? (85% approval)

B.) Are you willing to potentially sacrifice your life and the lives of your sons to change the government? (3% approval)

[Loughla]

Like almost everything, it's almost certainly false for some people. And almost certainly true for others.

It's almost like you can't paint an entire country with one brush?