"The economic situation is very bad. My father went to the war and was wounded in action, he was ready to sacrifice his life, and he loved Imam (Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini)," said Kimia Zakeri, a 20-year-old student. "Even now, when we talk, he doesn't want to accept the reality and the bad situation," Zakeri said. "My parents are very unhappy. They think that the economic situation should have been much better. People's beliefs are a bit less firm than before."
Filum, the other student, disagreed. "Japan could have cut its ties with America forever after Hiroshima and could have kept saying, 'Death to America' until now, but it kept its ties, enjoyed the benefits, and this greatly helped its progress," she said. "But Iran is not like that. It still insists that America is bad, it's our enemy. Britain is bad, it's our enemy."
But they also watched as the 2011 Arab Spring protests sputtered out into wars and repression, a warning for them amid increased U.S. pressure targeting Iran's government.
They also remember the chaos and crackdown that followed Iran's disputed 2009 presidential election.
Farahani said he believes that, in general, revolutions are not a good thing. "I think reforms are better than revolution and making radical changes that destroy good things too," he said.
"Yes, America is ahead of us, because it started to work 300 years ago, but our revolution started only 40 years ago," Ahadi added. "If the revolution hadn't happened, we would have now been in a position like Saudi Arabia. ... Our entire lives — even our breathing — would depend on America.