The Leverett's respond to critics, including the Dish:
Others, including Andrew Sullivan and Scott Lucas, criticized our comparison of the December 27 and December 30 crowds by discounting the larger numbers who turned out to support the Islamic Republic on December 30 on the grounds that some of the participants in the pro-Islamic Republic rallies were reportedly ordered to take part and received free transport, cake, and tea. From a strategic perspective, the most important point here is the comparison between Iran today and in 1978-1979: when protests started against the Shah, there was no level of state coercion or any amount of tea, cake, or free transportation that could bring significant numbers of people into the street to rally for the Pahlavi regime. By contrast, the Islamic Republic retains an obvious and demonstrable capacity to elicit such manifestations of support—and that reinforces our argument that the Islamic Republic is not imploding.
Juan Cole thinks the Leveretts underestimate the opposition but agrees "that Iran gives no evidence of being on the verge of revolution." Goldblog charts Hillary Mann Leverett's evolution over the years. But here, for visuals, is evidence of the alleged strength of support for the Khamenei junta. It's a pro-Khamenei demonstration in Karaj, a city of a million and a half. Look at the numbers who showed up:
The Dish 