"The One Thing Iran is Actually Afraid of"

Note: I really despise how people confuse the actions of a nation's government for its people. U.S. media are especially terrible at avoiding this (not insignificant) distinction. There's no fundamental difference in the people of the stretch of land between Tehran and Dhaka, or Kathmandu and Kandy, but if you listen to the choice of vocabulary on the part of the media it would seem as though we were all worlds apart. Anyway.

Applebaum attempts to argue that there are, in fact, two Irans, and the people who care about one "don't care about the other." Well that may be true, but the number is certainly higher than two if so, and Applebaum herself would definitely call into the category of someone who cares about only two of the three.

She goes on to argue that the worst fear of Iran is a sustained, well-orchestrated human rights campaign. I don't really believe her, or her conclusions regarding what we should do with that "information", but judge for yourself.