[Oxymandias]

@SolarCross

Islam isn't an issue in Iran and many people who are Muslim don't just be Muslim because they're forced to. Have you actually had an in-depth discussion with the Iranians you saw in Iran? Those people you saw sitting in a cafe, the old man walking around the Bazaar early in the morning when not a whisper is to be heard, the young people dancing at that club, heck even the religious police walking place to place with a depressed and worn out look on their faces as if the world has failed them. Have you talked to these people? Have you talked about their lives, their ideology, their place in the world, the way they think, the way they feel, their problems, their hopes, their dreams, their futures. Have you even tried to make a conversation with them? Of course you haven't. You probably didn't understand farsi (you were reading the Iran Daily for Christ sake which no one even reads since it's a heavily conservative pro-government newspaper) and if you tried to understand it, you gave up eventually and relied on vague hand gestures and simply Farsi words to make due with Iran.

Islam as a religion isn't relevant to most matters. Sometimes it isn't even considered. Political decisions are based on personal ideology and culture rather than Islam. Many social policy decisions in Iran are based on a radical interpretation of Shia Islam and pretty much no one agrees with them. They simply tolerate them because Iranians simply cannot risk another revolution and would rather change their government progressively than simply destroy everything and start again. Reformism is becoming increasingly more popular. Things are getting better for Iran, and nothing you say can change that. You could say that Islam is the issue, that thousands of Muslims in Iran believe this or that thousands of Muslims in Iran believe that but then I'll point you to the thousands of Muslims who have voted for Reformist leaders and politicians and even a Reformist president. Believe what you will and ignore the truth if you wish.

The literal definition of carefree means "free from anxiety or responsibility". If you talked to any nightclub goer in Iran, that's exactly what their attitude is. The environment doesn't have to be carefree in order for it's people to be carefree.

I did see a largish crowd chasing a young lad, late teens I guess, shouting and throwing stones at him.

Where were you when you saw this? Since this doesn't sound like Iran.

I was told once about a girl who was stopped by religious police for wearing lipstick, they gave her a handkerchief to wipe it off with but it had razor blades wrapped in it.

However this does. Probably happened in Ahvaz.

[foxdemon]

This all goes back to the general problem with insurgent groups; they can easily melt away, and actually exterminating them is very hard. They're basically human cockroaches, only worse, and based on our "progress" in Afghanistan and Pakistan, they will probably be successful, especially if Syria continues to be lawless or Iraq destabilizes.

Insurgents are dependant on support of the communities they operate in. Given 15% to 25% of Muslims world support radicalism, then I’d say this insurgency will be going on for a long time to come. ISIS is just one franchise though. No doubt there will be new brands of Islamic radicalism after ISIS.

Still, every cloud has a silver lining. Terrorist attacks in the West undermine PC credibility, which can only be a good thing. Furthermore, terrorist attacks around the world provide a common cause for the major national governments to cooperate on, which will build the framework of the replacement for the currently collapsing post WWII world order.

So basically, the Islamic radicals are doing a good job of unifying the world against them.

True, they can terrorize people around the world, but the loss of their physical territory is also a loss of credibility for IS. IS sympathizers will now have no place to travel to to join them, like many did the last few years. They can also no longer offer sex slaves for new IS adherents to join.
Many of the IS cockroaches have been turned into fertiliser during the battles in Syria and Iraq. Which is a good thing Alhamdullila.

There will be terrorist attacks in the West, for sure, but in view of improved surveillance, those will be kept to a minimum.

I don't think IS will ever again conquer huge swathes of land like they did in Syria and Iraq.

There will be on going attacks in the West. I expect they will target those less prepared and that have allowed ISIS fighters to return. So places like Canada and West Europe will cop some nasty attacks in the coming years.

The Russians and Chinese are worried about Central Asia. Certainly there are a good number of Uyghurs fighting for ISIS. But the Russians and Chinese are working hard at shoring up security in that region. So it isn’t the easiest place for ISIS to make a come back.

SE Asia is looking increasingly vulnerable. Islamic radicalism is gaining support in Indonesia. ISIS is already active in the Philipines. Various other activities are going on. The rivalry between China and America might provide the political instability Islamic radicalism needs to emerge as a major regional force. The Christians in this part of the world aren’t like the pussys in Europe. They will fight right back. So things could get real ugly.

I think my own country really needs to increase defence spending as a matter of urgency.