The fall of the Bastille was not due to a conspiracy.

Submitted by William Kinney (United States), Jul 5, 2004 at 23:15

When President Carter showed solicitude towards an ailing Shah, and was going to let him into this country, our embassy in Iran was overrun. Iranians had been imprisioned and tortured by the Shah's secret police and had finally united to get rid of him. If our concern about Soviet control over Iran's oil led to our overthrow of democratically elected Mossadegh and continuing support of the Shah, we thus helped initiate modern day Islamism.

Your point about Reagan's toughness getting the hostages out is sound.

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