What is Middle East Worst Case? Best Case?

[mlfun]

Originally Posted by Jayhawk

You sure those aren't domino's?

Dominos are all Asians.

[Teutone]

Originally Posted by mcbear

I don't know, what was the main issue between Iran and the United States between 1993 and 2001?

Iran has already proven that it will be the power that assumes the vacuum as we leave. It has already started. And so far, it is fully above board and legal - Just not to OUR liking. We created the vacuum. We failed to insure that it would be filled by a friendly.

What few people seem to realize, from the point of view of Iran's leadership, the window of opportunity for Iran's zealots to spread their brand of Islam (Shia), against the opposition of most Sunni's throughout the Middle East is now.
They cannot wait until their oil reserves are depleted.
IMO, Iran will step into any vacuum left when America, and Britain reduce their troops in Iraq.
Macabre and ironic, American lives lost, and astronomical amounts of US money spent, has set the stage Iran will profit from.
Afterward, we might well see actions to help ferment unrest / try to remove corrupt and unpopular leaderships in the region. Saudi Arabia would be a prime candidate here.
The US would hardly be in a position to help.
The resulting crash of the markets might make the recent decline look like a joy ride.
On the other hand, Iran leadership had problems running the economy with $ 147 a barrel oils.
The many subsidies necessary to keep the general population in check cannot be paid with $ 63 oil.

[Teutone]

The Sassanid / Persian Empire Map
The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty (Persian: ساسانیان [sɒsɒnijɒn]) is the name used for the third Iranian dynasty and the second[1] Persian empire. The Sassanid dynasty was founded by Ardashir I after defeating the last Parthian (Arsacid) king, Artabanus IV (Persian: اردوان Ardavan) and ended when the last Sassanid Shahanshah (King of Kings), Yazdegerd III (632–651), lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the early Arab Caliphate, the first of the Islamic empires. The Sassanid Empire's traditional territory encompassed all of today's Iran, Iraq, Armenia, western Afghanistan, eastern parts of Turkey, and parts of India, Syria, Pakistan, Caucasia, Central Asia and Arabia. The Sassanids called their empire Eranshahr "Empire of the Aryans (Persians)"[2].

The Sassanid era, encompassing the length of the Late Antiquity period, is considered to be one of Iran's most important and influential historical periods. In many ways the Sassanid period witnessed the highest achievement of Persian civilization, and constituted the last great Iranian Empire before the Muslim conquest and adoption of Islam.[citation needed] Persia influenced Roman civilization considerably during the Sassanids' times,[3] and the Romans reserved for the Sassanid Persians alone the status of equals, exemplified in the letters written by the Roman Emperor to the Persian Shahanshah, which were addressed to "my brother."[citation needed] Their cultural influence extended far beyond the empire's territorial borders, reaching as far as Western Europe,[4] Africa,[5] China and India[6] and played a prominent role in the formation of both European and Asiatic medieval art.[7]

This influence carried forward to the early Islamic world with the Muslim conquest of Iran, especially the dynasty's unique, aristocratic culture.[8] Zarinkoob even goes to the extent of claiming that much of what later became known as Islamic culture, architecture, writing and other skills was borrowed mainly from the Sassanid Persians and propagated throughout the broader Muslim world, although this assertion has not been corroborated by other scholars

[Jakarta Expat]

Originally Posted by mcbear

I don't know, what was the main issue between Iran and the United States between 1993 and 2001?

Iran has already proven that it will be the power that assumes the vacuum as we leave. It has already started. And so far, it is fully above board and legal - Just not to OUR liking. We created the vacuum. We failed to insure that it would be filled by a friendly.

Or a tyrant, the likes of that which was taken out...........

[Jakarta Expat]

Originally Posted by mlfun

Dominos are all Asians.

Oil wise I assume...........

[mlfun]

Originally Posted by Jakarta Expat

Or a tyrant, the likes of that which was taken out...........

Yup.
That's the ignorance part of the administration.

[drewprof]

Originally Posted by Teutone

The Sassanid / Persian Empire Map
The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty (Persian: ساسانیان [sɒsɒnijɒn]) is the name used for the third Iranian dynasty and the second[1] Persian empire. The Sassanid dynasty was founded by Ardashir I after defeating the last Parthian (Arsacid) king, Artabanus IV (Persian: اردوان Ardavan) and ended when the last Sassanid Shahanshah (King of Kings), Yazdegerd III (632–651), lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the early Arab Caliphate, the first of the Islamic empires. The Sassanid Empire's traditional territory encompassed all of today's Iran, Iraq, Armenia, western Afghanistan, eastern parts of Turkey, and parts of India, Syria, Pakistan, Caucasia, Central Asia and Arabia. The Sassanids called their empire Eranshahr "Empire of the Aryans (Persians)"[2].

The Sassanid era, encompassing the length of the Late Antiquity period, is considered to be one of Iran's most important and influential historical periods. In many ways the Sassanid period witnessed the highest achievement of Persian civilization, and constituted the last great Iranian Empire before the Muslim conquest and adoption of Islam.[citation needed] Persia influenced Roman civilization considerably during the Sassanids' times,[3] and the Romans reserved for the Sassanid Persians alone the status of equals, exemplified in the letters written by the Roman Emperor to the Persian Shahanshah, which were addressed to "my brother."[citation needed] Their cultural influence extended far beyond the empire's territorial borders, reaching as far as Western Europe,[4] Africa,[5] China and India[6] and played a prominent role in the formation of both European and Asiatic medieval art.[7]

This influence carried forward to the early Islamic world with the Muslim conquest of Iran, especially the dynasty's unique, aristocratic culture.[8] Zarinkoob even goes to the extent of claiming that much of what later became known as Islamic culture, architecture, writing and other skills was borrowed mainly from the Sassanid Persians and propagated throughout the broader Muslim world, although this assertion has not been corroborated by other scholars

Soon to be fulfilled

[drewprof]

With the help of

[Teutone]

Originally Posted by drewprof

Soon to be fulfilled

I thought it interesting that at the time the coast around the Persian Gulf, including the Southern Coast, where we now have Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, all the way to what is now Oman, was part of the Persian Empire.
We can only hope, its not enough to give the more megalomaniac mullahs designs on 'the old neighborhood.'

[maine_coon]

Originally Posted by Teutone

The Sassanid / Persian Empire Map
The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty (Persian: ساسانیان [sɒsɒnijɒn]) is the name used for the third Iranian dynasty and the second[1] Persian empire. The Sassanid dynasty was founded by Ardashir I after defeating the last Parthian (Arsacid) king, Artabanus IV (Persian: اردوان Ardavan) and ended when the last Sassanid Shahanshah (King of Kings), Yazdegerd III (632–651), lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the early Arab Caliphate, the first of the Islamic empires. The Sassanid Empire's traditional territory encompassed all of today's Iran, Iraq, Armenia, western Afghanistan, eastern parts of Turkey, and parts of India, Syria, Pakistan, Caucasia, Central Asia and Arabia. The Sassanids called their empire Eranshahr "Empire of the Aryans (Persians)"[2].

The Sassanid era, encompassing the length of the Late Antiquity period, is considered to be one of Iran's most important and influential historical periods. In many ways the Sassanid period witnessed the highest achievement of Persian civilization, and constituted the last great Iranian Empire before the Muslim conquest and adoption of Islam.[citation needed] Persia influenced Roman civilization considerably during the Sassanids' times,[3] and the Romans reserved for the Sassanid Persians alone the status of equals, exemplified in the letters written by the Roman Emperor to the Persian Shahanshah, which were addressed to "my brother."[citation needed] Their cultural influence extended far beyond the empire's territorial borders, reaching as far as Western Europe,[4] Africa,[5] China and India[6] and played a prominent role in the formation of both European and Asiatic medieval art.[7]

This influence carried forward to the early Islamic world with the Muslim conquest of Iran, especially the dynasty's unique, aristocratic culture.[8] Zarinkoob even goes to the extent of claiming that much of what later became known as Islamic culture, architecture, writing and other skills was borrowed mainly from the Sassanid Persians and propagated throughout the broader Muslim world, although this assertion has not been corroborated by other scholars

Very interesting, thanks Teutone.

I once red a book by Gore Vidal, "Creation". It was quite hard to comprehend Greeks as culturally inferior to Persians. Although Vidal made his case in this book.