I keep reading and thinking about what the U.S. could do if we unequivocally took the side of the reformers in the streets. Dan Senor and Christopher Whiton had a good list earlier in the week. Item #5 on their list:

Fifth, the administration should take steps to give Iranian reformers and dissidents a level playing field with the regime in the battle of ideas. Just as providing photocopiers and fax machines helped Solidarity dissidents in communist Poland in the 1980s, today’s reformers need access to the Web and other means of communication. Grants should be given to private groups to develop and field firewall-busting technology.
Money should be appropriated for an NGO-run “open window” platform that enables a wide variety of indigenous voices to be carried on radio, blogs, video clips and other media. This can take the form of satellite and terrestrial broadcasting and other information tools to provide Iranians with anonymous communications and access to Internet, television and radio content that their government attempts to deny them. The president should also call a White House meeting of the CEOs of Facebook, Twitter, Google and other video-sharing and social-networking companies. Entrepreneurially minded high-tech companies can manage this project better than the government. Many of these CEOs are strong supporters of Mr. Obama; they should be brought on board to help make his foreign policy succeed. In the meantime, the president should order the military to make some of its EC-130 “Commando Solo” aircraft, which serve as flying television and radio stations, available to enable reformers and protest leaders to speak directly to the Iranian people.

I just heard on the radio that Facebook and Google are creating Farsi editions. That sounds great. But I also read somewhere this morning that the internet is mostly gone in Iran and it takes 20 minites to download the Yahoo homepage in Tehran. That’s bad.

So here’s a question: Is it possible to force-open internet access from the outside when the government closes it down? Can you create “outside lines” using satellites? Would you have to smuggle in satellite phones or some similar technology? What could be done along these lines if the US or, say, the UK decided to align with the forces of freedom?

Update: See above.