Iran
The United States is intimating that it will launch or support an armed attack against Iran for its possession of nuclear technology, after which we can likely expect a “democratic” project similar to the one in Iraq. It is therefore worth remembering that the United States itself played a large role in making Iran what it is today, and as a result of an earlier intervention no less. Iran’s theocracy came to power through the revolution of 1979 against the dictator Reza Shah Pahlavi (the “Shah”), whose brutal policies and Savak secret police had sown deep resentment among the Iranian people. Forgotten is the fact that the United States guaranteed the Shah’s absolute rule by destroying the government of Mohammed Mossadegh back in 1953, which largely explains why the Iranian revolutionaries of 1979 directed their ire towards Americans in the United States embassy.
Mossadegh was Iran’s elected prime minister and had achieved such popularity for resisting foreign intrusions into his country’s affairs that Time Magazine made him Man of the Year for 1951. Yet his status as a renowned elected leader did nothing to protect him from Great Britain and the United States, whom he had angered by daring to nationalize the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, a British entity controlling Iranian oil for the benefit of the West for decades. The CIA hatched a plot to overthrow Mossadegh by bribing military officials and stirring up street protests. During the ensuing chaos the Shah scurried out of Iran to preserve his safety, but he returned once the coup d’état had proven successful. And it was none other than Kermit Roosevelt, Jr. -- grandson of Teddy Roosevelt, the "liberator" of Panama from Colombia -- who played an instrumental role for the CIA in pulling this off. Granddad surely would have been proud if he had lived long enough to see it.
For the next twenty-five years the United States unflinchingly supported the Shah and his repressive regime in exchange for the Shah’s cooperation with our foreign policy, a relationship motivating Iranians to hate both the Shah and the United States alike. When the 1979 revolution broke out, the Carter administration found itself powerless to stem the tide of Iranian rage, which spilled over onto the U.S. embassy and held its personnel hostage for the infamous 444 days.
Incredibly, today the United States scorns Iran for being “undemocratic” and warns that it faces yet another illegal intervention. Having already suffered the destruction of one elected government, Iranians have little reason to trust that the United States will respect Iran’s sovereignty if full and fair elections take place again. It’s an open secret that what the United States truly desires is a submissive regime, not necessarily a “democratic” one.
The United States is intimating that it will launch or support an armed attack against Iran for its possession of nuclear technology, after which we can likely expect a “democratic” project similar to the one in Iraq. It is therefore worth remembering that the United States itself played a large role in making Iran what it is today, and as a result of an earlier intervention no less. Iran’s theocracy came to power through the revolution of 1979 against the dictator Reza Shah Pahlavi (the “Shah”), whose brutal policies and Savak secret police had sown deep resentment among the Iranian people. Forgotten is the fact that the United States guaranteed the Shah’s absolute rule by destroying the government of Mohammed Mossadegh back in 1953, which largely explains why the Iranian revolutionaries of 1979 directed their ire towards Americans in the United States embassy.
Mossadegh was Iran’s elected prime minister and had achieved such popularity for resisting foreign intrusions into his country’s affairs that Time Magazine made him Man of the Year for 1951. Yet his status as a renowned elected leader did nothing to protect him from Great Britain and the United States, whom he had angered by daring to nationalize the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, a British entity controlling Iranian oil for the benefit of the West for decades. The CIA hatched a plot to overthrow Mossadegh by bribing military officials and stirring up street protests. During the ensuing chaos the Shah scurried out of Iran to preserve his safety, but he returned once the coup d’état had proven successful. And it was none other than Kermit Roosevelt, Jr. -- grandson of Teddy Roosevelt, the "liberator" of Panama from Colombia -- who played an instrumental role for the CIA in pulling this off. Granddad surely would have been proud if he had lived long enough to see it.
For the next twenty-five years the United States unflinchingly supported the Shah and his repressive regime in exchange for the Shah’s cooperation with our foreign policy, a relationship motivating Iranians to hate both the Shah and the United States alike. When the 1979 revolution broke out, the Carter administration found itself powerless to stem the tide of Iranian rage, which spilled over onto the U.S. embassy and held its personnel hostage for the infamous 444 days.
Incredibly, today the United States scorns Iran for being “undemocratic” and warns that it faces yet another illegal intervention. Having already suffered the destruction of one elected government, Iranians have little reason to trust that the United States will respect Iran’s sovereignty if full and fair elections take place again. It’s an open secret that what the United States truly desires is a submissive regime, not necessarily a “democratic” one.
No comments:
Post a Comment