The Iranian political scene is an
extraordinarily diffuse beast. There are many power centers and many players,
all perpetually locked in intense competition. Western analysts often refer to
"reformists," "traditional conservatives,"
"technoconservatives," "radicals," and others. But, in all
my time in Iran I have never heard these terminologies used by Iranians
themselves. A continuum, akin to the leftist-Democrat-centrist-Republican-rightist
one in the United States, is not appropriate. For, in reality, the Iranian
political scene is highly fluid, with coalitions continuously forming and
reforming. Iranians' understanding of their political universe simply does not
accord with Westerners' understanding.