Day: September 9, 2015

Why Does Iran Hate America So Much?

The day has arrived!  Congress is back from one of its endless month long vacations and they are ready to work (snark snark)……and high on the agenda is the Iran Deal that has been all the rage for about 4 months.

The prez has his veto proof but he still needs more senators to join him to keep the anti-deal bill from coming up for a vote.  The Israelis and their front man, AIPAC, will be working overtime and spending lots of cash to bribe the senators into opposing the deal in all its forms…..let the fun begin!

I have people I know that oppose the nuke deal with Iran…..one of their reasons is the placards they have seen at protests on TV that read….”Death To America”……they use this to illustrate Iran is not untrustworthy and their hatred for the US.  I point out that the people leading those protests are the same people that stormed in the embassy in 1979 or what could be called the “Old Guard”.  And like most people I know they do not want to hear the possibility that the ‘dislike’ could be well founded.  I also try to point out that Saddam had a massive following at rallies but that was short lived when people did not have to show up……the same in Iran.

Okay it is time for the history lesson you knew was coming, right?

Since WW1 Iran was occupied by foreign forces……at this time by Russia, British and Ottoman…….after the war came a wide range of governments most of whom were basically ineffective……in 1935 Persia officially changes its name to that of Iran….then in 1941 Iran became pro-Axis in World War II leads to the Anglo-Russian occupation of Iran and the deposition of the Shah in favor of his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi……..in 1950 a man named Ali Razmara becomes prime minister and is assassinated less than nine months later. He is succeeded by the nationalist, Mohammad Mossadeq and this is where the events really turn against the US….

In 1951, Parliament votes to nationalize the oil industry, which is dominated by the British-owned Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. Britain imposes an embargo and a blockade, halting oil exports and hitting the economy. A power struggle between the Shah and Mossadeq ensues and the Shah flees the country in August 1953.

Big oil took exception to the move to nationalization and in 1953 Mossadeq is overthrown in a coup engineered by the British and American intelligence services. General Fazlollah Zahedi is proclaimed as prime minister and the Shah returns. (strike one)

In 1963 was a major turning point in the rule of the shah……The Shah embarks on a campaign to modernize and westernize the country. He launches the ‘White Revolution’, a program of land reform and social and economic modernization. During the late 1960’s the Shah became increasingly dependent on the secret police (SAVAK) in controlling those opposition movements critical of his reforms.

The secret police became a unit of oppression of the Iranian people and the US was heavily invested in the group……with training and support….(strike two)

Iranian society continued to deteriorate and become more and more oppressive until 1978……The Shah’s policies alienate the clergy and his authoritarian rule leads to riots, strikes and mass demonstrations. Martial law is imposed.   America was viewed as the master of the shah and his oppressive ways. (Strike three)

Until finally in1979……..The Islamic fundamentalist, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, returns to Iran following 14 years of exile in Iraq and France for opposing the regime.  Islamic militants take 52 Americans hostage inside the US embassy in Tehran. They demand the extradition of the Shah, in the US at the time for medical treatment, to face trial in Iran.

And so the hatred begins in earnest.

I wish this was the end of the story ….but nope just about the middle of said tale……

Now enter Saddam and Iraq…….in 1980 the start of Iran-Iraq war which lasts for eight years. During the war years the US is a major benefactor of Saddam to the tune of billions of dollars for supplies and aid and after years of blood shed the war comes to an end……1988 – Iran accepts a ceasefire agreement with Iraq following negotiations in Geneva under the aegis of the UN.

This is where my history lesson of modern Iran ends (a simple and short history at that)…….it is fairly easy to see why from an Iranian point of view that the US has had its hand in trying to control the destiny of the country and its people…..keep in mind that there are relatively few middle aged Iranians, especially men, because so many had been sacrificed during the 8 years of war with Iraq…….about one million Iranians died fighting Iraq.

It is understandable that the Old Guard recalls the US involvement in their country and still resent us for that interference…..as Americans still resent Iranians for the taking of the hostages in 1979…..

I know this post will change few minds about Iran…..all I hoped to accomplish was to illustrate how the older Iranians see America………

The question was asked and now it has been answered……may not be the answer that some would have wanted…..but it does explain the dislike for the US…….probably will not change any minds but I did what I always do…..try to help people understand a complex issue.

Turn The Page!

 

Refugee crisis: Where are all these people coming from and why? – The Unz Review

Life is good for the media…..the raging debate for the last month has been one of immigration.

The blogosphere has exploded with posts and photos of the world’s newest humanitarian crisis…..the Middle East refugee.

First Trump with uncontrollable mouth and then the Middle East crisis…..the civil wars and the resulting refugees that are fleeing the violence and destruction.

Of course damn neat everybody has an opinion on this subject…….and every politician has to dash to the cameras and get his two cents in as worthless as most of it is…..but with all the hatred and anger and debate and compassion……few people are asking hard questions instead prefer simple accusations and lies…..

These refugees are coming….but why?

It is an era of violence in the Middle East and North Africa, with nine civil wars now going on in Islamic countries between Pakistan and Nigeria. This is why there are so many refugees fleeing for their lives. Half of the 23 million population of Syria have been forced from their homes, with four […]

Source: Refugee crisis: Where are all these people coming from and why? – The Unz Review

There is more opinion on just what started this whole refugee thing and the humanitarian crisis that is cycling out of control……

Al Jazeera correspondent Imran Khan looks at the conflicts that led to millions fleeing their homes in the Middle East.

Source: The Iraq war: The root of Europe’s refugee crisis – Al Jazeera English

The world is desperately searching for a solution to this crisis that will effect every country in one way or another……

The next question is …..when will this impact the 2016 election?  It is too big to ignore.

And to answer that question I predicted what will come back in January of 2015……

Source: Syrian Immigration: Where’s The Outrage? | In Saner Thought

Those people in the Right will pick apart this crisis and ask all the wrong questions….as they always ask the wrong questions…..they will paint it all in a broad brush of bigotry.

I ask my readers……would you be fleeing from conditions like this?

How about conditions like these?

Refugee camps in Jordan house more than 120,000 Syrian refugees

Your Turn!

Let The Debate Begin!

This week the Congress returns from its month off to raise more funds for their present and future campaigns……high on the agenda is the Iranian nuke deal and the debate should prove interesting…..if not damn right pathetic.

You see two high ranking Dems have come out in opposition to the deal……New Jersey’s Menendez and New York’s Schumer…,.and of course every Repub in Congress is behind the opposition….I mean what would you expect from the pack of neo cons?

In the beginning of the debate I expected Schumer to do his thing in opposition…I mean he owes a lot to the cash of Israel and besides he is a “liberal” neo con who pretends to be otherwise.  But his ideas on the Middle East have always been a bit whacky……(Read more)…..

Source: Schumer’s Troubling Mideast Record | Consortiumnews

All that said there is another toad that will do what it takes to try and defeat the deal…..that toad is the freshman Senator from Arkansas, Tom Cotton……the neo cons poster child for endless war……

Since the deal was announced he has been the loudest opponent which in turn has gotten him all sorts of notoriety that he would otherwise not have….and once the media gave him a free reign he has not shut up in his opposition…..(read more about his holy crusade against the deal)……

Source: Tom Cotton’s endless war: What his ongoing crusade against the Iran deal says about the GOP – Salon.com

All in all Israel and its paid agents in Congress will pull out no stops in opposition to the deal and will try every trick they have to assure its defeat……

But wait!  All their antics and tactics and rhetoric may be for naught…..

President Obama was “on the brink” of wrapping up the Iran nuclear deal after Democratic Sens. Bob Casey and Chris Coons threw their support his way, the Wall Street Journal reports. Now Maryland’s Barbara Mikulski has given her thumbs-up, giving the president the magic number of 34 senators he needs to block a Senate override of his expected veto if the GOP tries to push through a resolution disapproving of the deal next week. “No deal is perfect, especially one negotiated with the Iranian regime,” Mikulski said in a statement, per Roll Call. “[But] I have concluded that this Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is the best option available to block Iran from having a nuclear bomb. … However, Congress must also reaffirm our commitment to the safety and security of Israel.”

Two Democrats in the Senate have sided with their GOP counterparts against the deal, while 10 haven’t said where they stand yet, Bloomberg notes. To filibuster the Republican resolution and keep a veto completely out of the picture, a total of 41 senators is needed, and now supporters of Obama’s Iran deal are optimistic they can reach that number, too, the New York Times reports. Coons said yesterday it would be “a very close call” to acquire those 41 votes, adding that conversations he’s had with all of the undecideds gave him no clear picture on whether they’d vote yea or nay, per Bloomberg.

This saga may sound like a happy ending for Obama but do not count the influence of Israel out for a minute……and do not think for a minute that the neo cons will roll over and accept defeat.

While I was writing this post word about the deal came out……..

The Iran nuclear deal appears good to go following announcements of support from three Democratic senators today in what the Hill is calling an “impressive lobbying win” for President Obama and the White House. Those three senators bring the total votes for the deal to 41 in the Senate, meaning Republicans don’t have the numbers to pass a resolution against it. All 54 Senate Republicans were joined by four Democrats—including a West Virginia senator who officially sided with them today—in supporting a resolution to stop the deal, CNN reports. It would have likely been a moot point, anyway, as Obama already had the votes to veto any resolution passed against his deal. Floor debate on the deal begins today.

While today’s announcements were supportive, they weren’t necessarily ringing endorsements of Obama’s plan. “Despite my serious concerns with this agreement, I have unfortunately become convinced that we are faced with no viable alternative,” one of the three senators, Gary Peters of Michigan, tells the Hill. “While this is not the agreement I would have accepted at the negotiating table, it is better than no deal at all,” another of the senators, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, tells CNN. The three senators made their announcements on the same day Dick Cheney called the Iran nuclear deal “madness.” Ted Cruz and Donald Trump are expected to headline a rally against it tomorrow.

Let’s say the neocons lose their fight (which it appears they will)…..is there a plan B?  Of course there is!

Source: AIPAC’s Plan B? « LobeLog

It will be fascinating to watch this play out…….tactics and the rhetoric ought to be EPIC!

Let The Fun Begin!

As always—-TURN THE PAGE!

Dismantling ISIL’s propaganda machine

I do hope that everyone enjoyed their Labor Day, that is all the American visitors, but it is time to get back to work, at least for me….I wanna see how many people I can irritate…..welcome back.

For over a year since the prez announced the “degrade and destroy” plan for dealing with ISIS has done little to accomplish the end result that he promised.

Airstrikes and drones have killed many…..some were terrorists but most have been civilians…….the Iraqi Army is ineffective at times and inspiring at others…..the Kurds are a strong fighting force but have their problems with Turkey and supplies to continue the fight……Moderate Syrians are fighting each other and ISIS is running amok.

All in all the conflict is going badly for the US and the Coalition…..at best a draw is the end result of a year of wasting resources and weapons……the present plan is not going to win the war with ISIS…..something I have been saying for over a year…….without an overall total commitment of destruction ISIS will survive to continue to fight and kill.

ISIS strongest weapon is its propaganda machine….the videos, the recruitment are strong and some far uncontrolled…..if the West is ever going to end this conflict with a victory they must find a way to counter the propaganda machine that ISIS has put together……something I have been preaching for over a year.

Efforts to combat ISIL must also include a wider strategy to attack the group’s ownership of powerful symbols.

Source: Dismantling ISIL’s propaganda machine – Al Jazeera English

This is how ISIS can be defeated….the problem is that they have a head start on this and it will take commitment to neutralize the effects…..now the question is…..does the US have the stomach for the fight?  If we are not willing to fight fire with fire…..then this will be just another wasted effort and a failed endeavor.