That Melika 🇮🇷🎗️

The growing embrace of Pahlavi today signals a maturation of Iranian civil society. Decades of lived experience under the Islamic Republic—economic collapse, brain drain, environmental degradation, and brutal repression—have discredited the regime’s narratives. Young Iranians, connected via smuggled internet and satellite, increasingly reject both the clerical dictatorship and the false binaries it promotes. The Lion and Sun is re-emerging not as nostalgia for monarchy per se, but as a symbol of national sovereignty, pre-Islamic Persian heritage, and rejection of imposed theocracy. Read more on thatmelika.substack.com/p/th… #KingRezaPahlavi‌ForIran @PahlaviReza

The Islamic Republic was not created solely by politicians. It required a broad revolutionary coalition, intellectual fashions that romanticized “resistance”. Western politics today shows milder versions of the same pattern. tr.ee/4ncA2k

The other side has developed a selective moral vision that can look the other way when the victims are Iranian women, dissidents, or Jews, as long as the perpetrators claim the right anti-Western credentials. Read more: tr.ee/4ncA2k

For those of us who have already seen what happens when a society chooses the wrong absolute, the frustration is not theoretical. It is the knowledge that both sides, in their own way, keep underestimating how easily freedom can be lost. Read more: tr.ee/4ncA2k

The Marxist-Islamist fusion that has gained ground in some progressive spaces is grotesque. It manages to combine the worst of both sides: the authoritarianism & historical body count of revolutionary socialism with political Islam. Read more: tr.ee/4ncA2k

Pro-Palestine activism slides into tolerance or admiration for Hamas, Hezbollah, or the Iranian regime itself: an alignment with forces that are openly hostile to liberalism, women’s rights, religious minorities, and basic human freedom. Read more: tr.ee/4ncA2k

Significant portions of the progressive left have absorbed a worldview that treats “anti-imperialism” as higher values than opposition to actual theocratic dictatorships and jihadist movements. Read more: tr.ee/4ncA2k

He made an anti-Pahlavi / pro IRGC account using the lion and sun flag to spread hate about Iranians. He also named his business “Patriot” to lure in American patriots and manipulate them for their money. Meet the two-faced IRGC supporters in USA

a progressive media space that tolerates or amplifies extremism when it aligns with anti-imperialist framing, even when that framing collides with solidarity for victims of theocratic or terrorist violence. thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

In a 2024 stream discussing elite colleges and class, he said that it would be “a little bit better” if rich college men only committed date rape against other rich women (rather than poorer ones), because wealthy victims can better afford therapy. thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League, members of Congress, and various media outlets have accused him of trafficking in antisemitic tropes, minimizing Jewish suffering, and platforming or defending Islamist terrorist groups. thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

stated he would “vote for Hamas over Israel every single time.” He has also expressed having “no issue” with Hezbollah and spoken favorably of other Iran-backed groups such as the Houthis, legitimizing designated terrorist organizations. thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

Following the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, Piker has been heavily criticized for statements that downplayed the atrocities. He has said variations of “it doesn’t matter if rapes happened on October 7. It doesn’t change the dynamic for me" thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

Piker’s rhetoric has repeatedly drawn accusations of extremism from across the political spectrum. Among the most cited controversies: In 2019, while still associated with TYT’s orbit, he stated on stream that “America deserved 9/11.” thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

The Young Turks has long served as a launchpad and platform for progressive and left-wing commentators. One of the most prominent—and most polarizing—figures to emerge from the network is Hasan Piker (HasanAbi), the nephew of founder Cenk Uygur. thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…

Uygur wished the protesters “success” while fighting backs against a murderous regime with empty hands (!) rejecting military action as the solution. Read more: thatmelika.substack.com/p/th…