Folks seemed to like his daddy, and apparently…i wudnt alive then..but they wasnt tryin to kill everyone. I’ve listened to him speak on the news and he seems to be a decent enough fella
The Shah wasn't a very good leader either. He had a pretty brutal Secret Service called the SAVAK. Torture, killings, the whole nine yards... All the while living a lavish lifestyle. There's a reason the people revolted, and it wasn't for religious reasons.
That said he was way more western friendly than other Mideastern countries (Israel being the exception), and a staunch opponent of the Soviet Union, which is all the USA cared about at that time.
We have supported a shit ton of brutal dictators just because they were opposed to the Soviet Union and Communism. It is a sad legacy of our country, but our leadership thought it was necessary at the time to preserve freedom and democracy.
Taking a country and a people that have only known authoritarian governments and turning them into a western style democracy is a difficult thing. Japan and Germany are success stories, but it took the total devastation and unconditional surrender of those countries for us to achieve it.
"When I say ever thing I mean ever thing." - Frankie
