These days we don’t get a lot of entertainment from the Middle East. But, thank God for the Iranian so-called “president” Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. (for those of you wondering why the word president is in quotes, well, let’s just say Iran is not exactly a blossoming democratic utopia).
Today, the somewhat human-resembling Mr. President, dubbed the Iranian mullah regime as the world’s “number one” power (Agence France Presse, February 28, 2008). Didn’t I say he’s funny?
But, don’t laugh too much. Something tells me the “Professor” (another title he gives himself) has not missed the mark completely. After all, what really constitutes a ‘number one power’? A superpower basically has the highest levels of hard and soft power in the world.
Well, Isn’t Iran ‘number one’ in many ways? Of course, it is. It has hard power, but just not in the traditional sense of the term. It uses extraordinary hard power on the Iranian people to suppress and terrorize them, so that they will never think of opposing the brutal theocracy ruling them.
On Tuesday, authorities hanged a young man in a prison in central Iran for a crime allegedly committed when he was 16 years old, state media and human rights activists said.
A woman and a man were stoned to death in Iran in May 2006. Two sisters, Zohreh Kabiri and Azar Kabiri, allegedly found guilty of adultery, face death by stoning.
The Iranian regime also has soft power. But, again, not in the traditional sense of the term. For example, the state-run TV displays many of the public hangings (done by construction cranes) to instill fear in the population.
The Iranian regime is also the world’s number one power in the amount of hangings (per capita), stoning, suicides, brain drain, child executions (See Amnesty International report (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE13/059/2007), corruption, and a slew of other things.
It’s also, of course, the “number one state sponsor of terrorism.”
All these crimes have transformed the Iranian regime as the most ruthless enemy in the eyes of the Iranian people, who wish to overthrow it and establish a democratic order in its place.
So, yes, the Iranian regime is number one: The number one enemy of the Iranian people and the world at large.
Today, the somewhat human-resembling Mr. President, dubbed the Iranian mullah regime as the world’s “number one” power (Agence France Presse, February 28, 2008). Didn’t I say he’s funny?
But, don’t laugh too much. Something tells me the “Professor” (another title he gives himself) has not missed the mark completely. After all, what really constitutes a ‘number one power’? A superpower basically has the highest levels of hard and soft power in the world.
Well, Isn’t Iran ‘number one’ in many ways? Of course, it is. It has hard power, but just not in the traditional sense of the term. It uses extraordinary hard power on the Iranian people to suppress and terrorize them, so that they will never think of opposing the brutal theocracy ruling them.
On Tuesday, authorities hanged a young man in a prison in central Iran for a crime allegedly committed when he was 16 years old, state media and human rights activists said.
A woman and a man were stoned to death in Iran in May 2006. Two sisters, Zohreh Kabiri and Azar Kabiri, allegedly found guilty of adultery, face death by stoning.
The Iranian regime also has soft power. But, again, not in the traditional sense of the term. For example, the state-run TV displays many of the public hangings (done by construction cranes) to instill fear in the population.
The Iranian regime is also the world’s number one power in the amount of hangings (per capita), stoning, suicides, brain drain, child executions (See Amnesty International report (http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE13/059/2007), corruption, and a slew of other things.
It’s also, of course, the “number one state sponsor of terrorism.”
All these crimes have transformed the Iranian regime as the most ruthless enemy in the eyes of the Iranian people, who wish to overthrow it and establish a democratic order in its place.
So, yes, the Iranian regime is number one: The number one enemy of the Iranian people and the world at large.
8 comments:
"Brain drain" looks a little funny between "child executions" and "suicides".
I read the AFP article in which Ahmadinejad comes across as a bit incoherent.
Unfortunately, it does seem that Iran will soon have the capability to build a nuclear bomb, and it looks like Ahmadinejad is somewhat correct in that the world powers cannot or will not prevent it.
So who has a vested interest in the longevity of this regime? I hear of periodic student uprisings, are there any workings within the system to promote change (like in China after Tienanmen Square)?
Kevin, what about Israel? They must be concerned, it will be interesting to see what they do to stop this from happening.
Another good source of info on Human Rights in Iran is Human Rights watch: http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=mideast&c=iran
Reilly, good point -- I overlooked Israel which is the most at risk. Given time and suitable intel, they do seem likely to take action.
Thanks for the link.
I was also wondering what Russia had to say about having a nuclear power to their southern border. This must concern them. Here is another good link to Iran related info: http://www.economist.com/countries/Iran/
Kevin, There is an article there on the impact of the NYE report and the international communities inability to confront Iran. This, I think, expands on your earlier point. And then there is Stratfor's take on it: http://www.stratfor.com/theme/iranian_nuclear_game
"So who has a vested interest in the longevity of this regime? I hear of periodic student uprisings, are there any workings within the system to promote change (like in China after Tienanmen Square)?"
Reilly, of course, no one has vested interest in the longetivity of this regime, except the clique of the ruling mullahs and their cohorts in the form of Bassij and Revolutionary Guards. In addition to the students, there are women, workers, and other sectors of society that organize anti-government protests. In fact, 5,000 anti-government demonstrations were recorded by official counts, last year. But, freedom has a price. Obtaining freedom from a brutal theocracy is not as easy as a few protests.
As regards your second point, the idea that there might be some reformers within the ruling elite is a myth. THat is exactly what spawned the arguments of appeasers. They argued that since there may be some people in the regime who may want change, we need to nurture them by appeasing the regime. Of course, we all know where that 29-year-old effort has led to: Ahmadinejad.
The only solution is to support the Iranian people by recognizing that they have a right to oppose this terrorist regime. The West has to stop appeasement and decisively isolate this illegitimate regime.
Interesting. I came across this article concerning the upcoming election in Iran: http://www.cfr.org/publication/15395/divisions_simmer_behind_irans_public_face.html?breadcrumb=%2Fregion%2F404%2Firan
What do you mean by "support the Iranian people in opposing this regime?" Political or military support? And what do you mean by "isolate?" Are you talking sanctions?
Thanks for the article Reilly. I don't agree with the conclusions of CFR, however, because they seem to lobby tirelessly for dialogue with the Iranian regime, which I think is the wrong policy at this point.
Have any of you heard about speculation that Mahmoud intends to create the conditions in which a Muslim "savior" would arrive? I heard a man on the radio talking about educated research that suspects him of having that goal, but I can't seem to find sources on this.
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