Posted on 11/05/2004 9:04:05 PM PST by DoctorZIn
The US media still largely ignores news regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran. As Tony Snow of the Fox News Network has put it, “this is probably the most under-reported news story of the year.” As a result, most American’s are unaware that the Islamic Republic of Iran is NOT supported by the masses of Iranians today. Modern Iranians are among the most pro-American in the Middle East. In fact they were one of the first countries to have spontaneous candlelight vigils after the 911 tragedy (see photo).
There is a popular revolt against the Iranian regime brewing in Iran today. I began these daily threads June 10th 2003. On that date Iranians once again began taking to the streets to express their desire for a regime change. Today in Iran, most want to replace the regime with a secular democracy.
The regime is working hard to keep the news about the protest movement in Iran from being reported. Unfortunately, the regime has successfully prohibited western news reporters from covering the demonstrations. The voices of discontent within Iran are sometime murdered, more often imprisoned. Still the people continue to take to the streets to demonstrate against the regime.
In support of this revolt, Iranians in America have been broadcasting news stories by satellite into Iran. This 21st century news link has greatly encouraged these protests. The regime has been attempting to jam the signals, and locate the satellite dishes. Still the people violate the law and listen to these broadcasts. Iranians also use the Internet and the regime attempts to block their access to news against the regime. In spite of this, many Iranians inside of Iran read these posts daily to keep informed of the events in their own country.
This daily thread contains nearly all of the English news reports on Iran. It is thorough. If you follow this thread you will witness, I believe, the transformation of a nation. This daily thread provides a central place where those interested in the events in Iran can find the best news and commentary. The news stories and commentary will from time to time include material from the regime itself. But if you read the post you will discover for yourself, the real story of what is occurring in Iran and its effects on the war on terror.
I am not of Iranian heritage. I am an American committed to supporting the efforts of those in Iran seeking to replace their government with a secular democracy. I am in contact with leaders of the Iranian community here in the United States and in Iran itself.
If you read the daily posts you will gain a better understanding of the US war on terrorism, the Middle East and why we need to support a change of regime in Iran. Feel free to ask your questions and post news stories you discover in the weeks to come.
If all goes well Iran will be free soon and I am convinced become a major ally in the war on terrorism. The regime will fall. Iran will be free. It is just a matter of time.
DoctorZin
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Sat Nov 6,11:17 AM ET
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TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - In a first reaction to the re-election of the U.S. president, Iran called on George W. Bush to change his approach toward Iran in his second term so relations can improve between the long-time foes.
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Bush considers Iran part of his "axis of evil," accuses it of sheltering al-Qaida terrorists and leads the charge that Tehran seeks nuclear weapons. But U.S. and Iranian interests have coincided in the past four years, too, and Bush has destroyed two of Iran's enemies: the Taliban in Afghanistan (news - web sites) and Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) in Iraq (news - web sites).
Who leads America "is an internal matter of the U.S. and the American people," Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi told reporters Saturday.
"What is important to us is a change of behaviour. We hope there will be positive developments in this respect in Mr. Bush's second term," Kharrazi said at a joint press conference with his Chinese counterpart Li Zhaoxing.
The United States broke diplomatic relations with Iran after militant students seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in November 1979. They took its occupants hostage to protest America's refusal to hand over the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who had been toppled in an Islamic revolution, to Iran to stand trial.
By a quirk of thecalendar, President George W. Bush was delivering his victory speech and speaking of the "war on terror" just hours after demonstrators in Iran finished burning the American flag to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the seizure of the US embassy in Tehran.
Mr Bush alluded briefly in his address to the "good allies at our side". European diplomats were quick to point out that an early test of any renewed US willingness to heal the wounded partnership with Europe could emerge in their hitherto disjointed efforts to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions.
This weekend's talks in Paris between the EU3 - France, Germany and the UK - and Iran over Tehran's uranium enrichment programme are seen by some as the last chance to reach an agreement that would stop the issue from reaching the United Nations Security Council.
However, the Bush administration, which refuses to talk directly to an Iranian administration it accuses of supporting terrorists and developing weapons of mass destruction, has pointedly refused to endorse the EU3 initiative.
The US disagrees with EU3 proposals that Iran be offered assistance with a civilian nuclear programme as part of a deal to persuade Iran to suspend uranium enrichment. Washington is instead pressing its allies to start working on a Security Council resolution of condemnation that would pave the way towards sanctions.
"This is going to be the first test. It goes beyond Iran," said a European diplomat in Washington. "We have to figure out how a new Bush administration will behave and look at the first signals."
Equally, the diplomat said, the EU is not going to allow Iran to "hijack" its relationship with the Bush administration over the next four years. "The ball is in Iran's court," he said.
Iran and North Korea, fellow members with Iraq of Mr Bush's "axis of evil", had been stalling in their respective nuclear negotiations before the US election, apparently in the hope of securing better terms from a possible Democratic administration.
But, however ritualised the "death to America" chants may have been in this week's rally in the Iranian capital, Washington policymakers remain haunted by the bad memories of the 444 days that 52 Americans spent in captivity in Iran a quarter century ago.
Zbigniew Brzezinski, then national security adviser to president Jimmy Carter, argues it is time to start closing that chapter of "humiliation" that Americans felt so strongly.
But, in an interview with the Financial Times, Mr Brzezinski also says he fears a second Bush administration will "be very much inclined to use force" to deal with what it sees as the threat posed by a nuclear- armed Iran that backs terrorists hostile to the US and Israel.
"Force will unify the mullahs with the democratic opposition and derail political change in Iran," Mr Brzezinski says. "[It] may not stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and will have adverse consequences in Iraq and Afghanistan."
There must eventually be "some accommodation" in the Middle East, he says. He believes that the west may even have to learn to live with a nuclear-armed Iran as it did with China, and later with India and Pakistan.
Influential conservative advisers in Washington appear divided over the merits of taking military or covert action to derail Iran's nuclear programme, specifically the uranium enrichment which Tehran insists is open to UN inspection and is only for peaceful use.
"There are people in this administration who would like us to attack Iran," says Mr Brzezinski. "The neo-cons fall into this category."
Colin Powell, secretary of state, has repeatedly said that military action was not under consideration. But, since the election, attention in Washington is focused on who might replace Mr Powell if, as widely expected in the state department, he is not part of the next administration.
John Bolton, undersecretary for arms control and international security, is a Bush loyalist and a hawk on Iran and North Korea who is tipped for promotion, possibly to the number two post in the State Department.
But Mr Brzezinski says moderate Republicans do not expect a significant policy shift in the president's second term, and adds: "I prefer to think the Bush administration is not determined to make a habit of shooting itself in the foot.
"Hopefully it learned from the miscalculations of its Iraq policy."
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November 05, 2004, 10:20 a.m.
According to the exit polls, George W. Bush owes his victory to the priority attached by millions of voters to "moral values." This somewhat nebulous term is said to have trumped terrorism, Iraq, and the economy as a driving force behind the turnout — and the outcome.
Inevitably, some of President Bush's critics (possibly on the right, and certainly on the left, once they recover from the electoral-shock trauma) will interpret this finding insidiously: They will assert that the president's conduct of the war on terror and, in particular, his efforts to consolidate the liberation of Iraq do not enjoy the popular mandate accorded to his social conservative agenda. We will be told, at the very least, that W. won despite his handling of the war, thanks to the help of the evangelical Christians and like-minded folks who turned out for other reasons.
Inevitably, some of President Bush's critics (possibly on the right, and certainly on the left, once they recover from the electoral-shock trauma) will interpret this finding insidiously: They will assert that the president's conduct of the war on terror and, in particular, his efforts to consolidate the liberation of Iraq do not enjoy the popular mandate accorded to his social conservative agenda. We will be told, at the very least, that W. won despite his handling of the war, thanks to the help of the evangelical Christians and like-minded folks who turned out for other reasons.
Don't believe it for a minute. Such contentions would miss the point of this election almost as much as John Kerry did.
The reality is that the same moral principles that underpinned the Bush appeal on "values" issues like gay marriage, stem-cell research, and the right to life were central to his vision of U.S. war aims and foreign policy. Indeed, the president laid claim squarely to the ultimate moral value — freedom — as the cornerstone of his strategy for defeating our Islamofascist enemies and their state sponsors, for whom that concept is utterly anathema.
It follows, then, that among those who deserve credit for shaping this stunning triumph of American virtues and values are the much-maligned "neoconservatives" and their friends, who have been responsible for helping Bush design and execute his wartime agenda. Special recognition and thanks are thus accorded, for example, to: Vice President Dick Cheney and key members of his staff (including Lewis "Scooter" Libby, John Hannah, and David Wurmser); the National Security Council's Condoleezza Rice, Robert Joseph, and Elliott Abrams; the Defense Department's Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Douglas Feith, and William Luti; and the State Department's John Bolton, Paula Dobriansky, and Paula DeSutter. These people — and too many others — have helped the president imprint moral values on American security policy in a way and to an extent not seen since Ronald Reagan's first term.
The important thing now, of course, is not simply to acknowledge past achievements, but to build upon them. This will require, among other things:
The reduction in detail of Fallujah and other safe havens utilized by freedom's enemies in Iraq — a necessary precondition not only to holding elections there next year, but to the establishment of institutions essential to a functioning and stable democracy;
Regime change — one way or another — in Iran and North Korea, the only hope for preventing these remaining "Axis of Evil" states from fully realizing their terrorist and nuclear ambitions;
Providing the substantially increased resources needed to re-equip a transforming military and rebuild human-intelligence capabilities (minus, if at all possible, the sorts of intelligence "reforms" contemplated pre-election that would make matters worse on this and other scores) while we fight World War IV;
Providing, to the fullest extent possible, for the protection of our homeland — including the adoption of sensible policies on securing our borders and contending with illegal aliens, and by deploying effective missile defenses at sea and in space, as well as ashore;
Keeping faith with Israel, whose destruction remains a priority for the same people who want to destroy us (and for the same reasons — i.e., our shared, "moral values") — especially in the face of Yasser Arafat's demise and the inevitable, post-election pressure to "solve" the Mideast problem by forcing the Israelis to abandon defensible boundaries;
Contending with the underlying dynamic that made France and Germany so problematic in the first term: namely, their willingness to make common cause with our enemies for profit, and their desire to employ a united Europe and its new constitution — as well as other international institutions and mechanisms — to thwart the expansion and application of American power where deemed necessary by Washington;
Adapting appropriate strategies for contending with China's increasingly fascistic trade and military policies, Vladimir Putin's accelerating authoritarianism at home and aggressiveness toward the former Soviet republics, the worldwide spread of Islamofascism, and the emergence of a number of aggressively anti-American regimes in Latin America.
These items do not represent some sort of neocon "imperialist" game plan. Rather, they constitute a checklist of the work the world will demand of this president and his subordinates in a second term.
None of these priorities will be easy or painless. All will require of President Bush a readiness to incur political costs and to assume risks far in excess of those his handlers were comfortable running before the election.
Yet President Bush has amply demonstrated his willingness to take such risks. More to the point, he appears to fully appreciate that his values, America's long-term strategic interests, and his electoral mandate allow him to do no less.
By redoubling his administration's efforts along these lines, President George W. Bush will not only be making the world less dangerous for America and her vital interests. He will also be doing so in a way that is consistent with our country's moral values, the stuff of which history — not just consequential elections and presidencies — is made.
— Frank J. Gaffney Jr. is an NRO contributor and president of the Center for Security Policy in Washington.
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November 05, 2004, 12:51 p.m.
I have believed all along that this election was enormously important, perhaps as important as in 1980, when I thought that a Carter reelection might well tip the world balance of power against us. This time I feared that a Bush defeat might have two disastrous consequences:
The world at large would view it as a rejection of the war against the terror masters, thereby strengthening the forces of appeasement in allied countries, especially in Europe;
The Middle East in particular would view it, as Putin rightly said, as a victory for the terrorists — thereby producing a surge of support for the terror network, including money from mugwump rulers in places like Morocco and Jordan, and a groundswell of new volunteers to inflate the terrorists' ranks.
I did not believe that "policy would be more or less the same" with the Democrats in charge. I believed they would rush toward reconciliation with our European critics, U.N.-ify our Middle East policy, stand by while Iran acquired and tested atomic bombs, and then appease the mullahs — setting the war back by at least two years.
Thank heavens we will not know all that now. And as the election returns rolled in from Ohio, I was struck by one of the basic patterns in the history of American foreign policy: how often we are saved by our enemies. Over and over again, our enemies have forced us to do things we wouldn't have done if we had been left to our own devices. We were torpedoed into the First World War by German U-boats. We were bombed into World War II, just in time, by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor. We were dragged unwillingly into the Cold War by Stalin's impatient power grabs. We were forced into the Gulf War by Saddam's hasty invasion of Kuwait (if he had waited a year or two, we would have dismantled a considerable portion of our military). And we were terrorized into the current unpleasantness by the attacks of September 11th.
Left to our own devices we'd have stayed home in every case, because most Americans don't like foreign adventures and are happy to be at home. Something usually has to happen to get us to act.
Metaphorically, something similar happened in Ohio. You may recall that the Guardian, the leftist British newspaper, convinced its readers to participate in a letter-writing campaign to the residents of Clark County, asking them to vote for Kerry to save the world from Dubya. It seems this brilliant idea sprung at least in part from the pale white forehead of Sidney Blumenthal: the loyal manservant of Hillary Clinton in the White House; the creator of the short-lived doctrine of the "Third Way" that was to have united "progressive" leaders in America and Europe; a regular contributor to the Guardian; and, along with Michael Moore, a pundit on the BBC's election-night coverage.
To say this scheme backfired is to fail to give it proper credit. It ranks right up there with the worst political schemes, ever. It so disgruntled the Buckeyes that the Guardian called it off after a few weeks. And its impact on American political history seems to have been considerable. As the excellent Peter Roff of UPI tells us, "Turnout in Clark County, according to unofficial data from the office of Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, was almost twice what it was in the 2000 election when Gore defeated Bush by 324 votes out of 35,644 cast. Tuesday, Bush carried Clark County by 1,620 votes, winning almost as many votes — 34,444 — as were cast for both Bush and Gore four years before."
Obviously, the Guardian didn't deliver Ohio to the Republicans, but it certainly helped. And it's quite possible that, as news of the scheme spread around the state, there was a ripple effect.
So, as we quite properly commend the electorate for its good judgment, we should be grateful to our outspoken enemies at the Guardian for having done what they could to guarantee our victory.
Maybe we should organize a mass letter-writing campaign.
The world at large would view it as a rejection of the war against the terror masters, thereby strengthening the forces of appeasement in allied countries, especially in Europe;
The Middle East in particular would view it, as Putin rightly said, as a victory for the terrorists — thereby producing a surge of support for the terror network, including money from mugwump rulers in places like Morocco and Jordan, and a groundswell of new volunteers to inflate the terrorists' ranks.
I did not believe that "policy would be more or less the same" with the Democrats in charge. I believed they would rush toward reconciliation with our European critics, U.N.-ify our Middle East policy, stand by while Iran acquired and tested atomic bombs, and then appease the mullahs — setting the war back by at least two years.
Thank heavens we will not know all that now. And as the election returns rolled in from Ohio, I was struck by one of the basic patterns in the history of American foreign policy: how often we are saved by our enemies. Over and over again, our enemies have forced us to do things we wouldn't have done if we had been left to our own devices. We were torpedoed into the First World War by German U-boats. We were bombed into World War II, just in time, by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor. We were dragged unwillingly into the Cold War by Stalin's impatient power grabs. We were forced into the Gulf War by Saddam's hasty invasion of Kuwait (if he had waited a year or two, we would have dismantled a considerable portion of our military). And we were terrorized into the current unpleasantness by the attacks of September 11th.
Left to our own devices we'd have stayed home in every case, because most Americans don't like foreign adventures and are happy to be at home. Something usually has to happen to get us to act.
Metaphorically, something similar happened in Ohio. You may recall that the Guardian, the leftist British newspaper, convinced its readers to participate in a letter-writing campaign to the residents of Clark County, asking them to vote for Kerry to save the world from Dubya. It seems this brilliant idea sprung at least in part from the pale white forehead of Sidney Blumenthal: the loyal manservant of Hillary Clinton in the White House; the creator of the short-lived doctrine of the "Third Way" that was to have united "progressive" leaders in America and Europe; a regular contributor to the Guardian; and, along with Michael Moore, a pundit on the BBC's election-night coverage.
To say this scheme backfired is to fail to give it proper credit. It ranks right up there with the worst political schemes, ever. It so disgruntled the Buckeyes that the Guardian called it off after a few weeks. And its impact on American political history seems to have been considerable. As the excellent Peter Roff of UPI tells us, "Turnout in Clark County, according to unofficial data from the office of Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, was almost twice what it was in the 2000 election when Gore defeated Bush by 324 votes out of 35,644 cast. Tuesday, Bush carried Clark County by 1,620 votes, winning almost as many votes — 34,444 — as were cast for both Bush and Gore four years before."
Obviously, the Guardian didn't deliver Ohio to the Republicans, but it certainly helped. And it's quite possible that, as news of the scheme spread around the state, there was a ripple effect.
So, as we quite properly commend the electorate for its good judgment, we should be grateful to our outspoken enemies at the Guardian for having done what they could to guarantee our victory.
Maybe we should organize a mass letter-writing campaign.
— Michael Ledeen, an NRO contributing editor, is most recently the author of The War Against the Terror Masters. Ledeen is Resident Scholar in the Freedom Chair at the American Enterprise Institute.
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