Yes, Amos, Iran is thought to be the center of Persian culture. However, Iraq and Afghanistan also have Persian majorities.

The Arabs do not want to see the development of an alliance between Persian people. The Arabs have dominated the region and created divisions. From a Persian point of view, Arab/U.S. interests are at the root of the problem.

Its really not Muslims against Christians or even Muslims against Jews. Its about control of the resources. Arabs (with U.S. help) have controlled the resources at the expense of the people for a very long time.

An oversimplification might be Sunnis=Arabs and Shiite=Persians.

The moderate Shiites will probably win the election. They will try to put on the face of democracy for awhile but many Persians believe that it will only be a matter of time before the Shiites return to their fundamentalist roots and then a theocracy.

The Arabs and U.S. fear the formation of the 'crescent' (Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan).

Its really not my area expertise but this is what I have figured out so far. I may be wrong.

If I'm right, Bush is playing right into the hands of Iran's effort to form a theocracy of Persian speaking people. They want Arabia and the U.S. out. Once the theocracy is established and the Persians united, it may be that a true democratic 'crescent' can emerge. No amount of U.S. interference will establish a democracy in Iraq. The Persians trust the religious leaders more than they trust the U.S. or Saudi Arabia. At this point they have a choice between the Devil and the the deep blue sea.