Nearly two weeks ago, I posted a short question asking if Israel and/or its current leadership would have a favorite in Iran’s elections. While one poster accused me of being a “student of Goebells” for asking such a question, several commenters realized that Israeli and neocon hawks have been quite grateful to the “gift” that Ahmadinejad has presented for them.
Three leading subsequent examples:
From Soli Shahvar, head of the University of Haifa’s Center for Iran and Persian Gulf Studies, writing in Israeli’s largest circulation paper:
[I]n light of the structure of Iran’s regime it could very well be that an Ahmadinejad win – and as result continued popular bitterness within Iran and the harsh approach to Iran on the international stage – is better for Israel.
Elliot Abrahms in the New York Times:
“a victory by Mr. Ahmadinejad’s main challenger, Mir Hussein Moussavi, is more likely to change Western policy toward Iran than to change Iran’s own conduct. If the delusion that a new president would surely mean new opportunities to negotiate away Iran’s nuclear program strikes Western leaders, solidarity might give way to pre-emptive concessions.”
“I’m sometimes asked who I would vote for if I were enfranchised in this election, and I think that, with due hesitance, I would vote for Ahmadinejad….” {The reason, Pipes went on, is that he would} “prefer to have an enemy who’s forthright and obvious, who wakes people up with his outlandish statements.”
Just hours ago, Pipes went further on his own blog:
When Mohammed Khatami was president, his sweet words lulled many people into complacency, even as the nuclear weapons program developed on his watch. If the patterns remain unchanged, better to have a bellicose, apocalyptic, in-your-face Ahmadinejad who scares the world than a sweet-talking Mousavi who again lulls it to sleep, even as thousands of centrifuges whir away.
And so, despite myself, I am rooting for Ahmadinejad.
They may get their wish. As I write, Iran’s elections tabulations are reportedly more than half-way complete — with a commanding lead for Ahmadinejad.
Of course, Pipes’ logic applies to Israel as well. Having Avigdor Lieberman in Netanyahu’s coalition serves much the same purpose as having Ahmadinejad in Iran — he’s not really that different from Netanyahu (or, for that matter, Peres or Livni), but he’s more honest and obvious about advocating what any Israeli government would do regardless of who was running it.
Jim Lobe has an excellent comment on Israeli machinations. Basically, they’re preparing hasbara to insist that the Iranian election doesn’t matter.
http://www.ips.org/blog/jimlobe/?p=258#more-258
Basically, they want to pre-write history, so that their anti-Iranian agenda can remain in place, thereby preempting any good that might come from a change of leadership in Iran.
It will work only if Obama lets it work.
If the delusion that a new president would surely mean new opportunities to negotiate away Iran’s nuclear program strikes Western leaders, solidarity might give way to pre-emptive concessions.
I don’t think that Elliot “Iran-Contra” Abrams has any more to worry about concerning delusions of change in Iran under Moussavi than he had with delusions of of change under Barak Obama in the US.
The election of either signals the unwillingness of either Iranians or Americans to do what is necessary to effect real change, the willingness of each to delude themselves that change can be accomplished without changing.
thanks johnh for posting that link to an essay on Jim Lobe’s blog — though actually it’s written by Marsha Cohen – has excellent detail and comment.
Not so much a Prague Spring as a Tehran Winter.
Moral of the story, always put your money on the Mullahs.
Yes president Ahmadinejad has won, and that means a lot for palestine, and relations with Venezuela and latin america…Would the other candidate have maintainaed relations with the latin left? or would the ‘reformist’ have bent to the will of the US? Remember that other ‘reformist’ Polands Walesa….a right wing capitalist…
Meanwhile Pipes Bull is amazing in what it reveakls about this hardline zionist:
‘If the patterns remain unchanged, better to have a bellicose, apocalyptic, in-your-face Ahmadinejad who scares the world’
No, he doesnt scare the world…thats the work of the media and antidemocracy ranters like Pipes.
With apologies to the shade of Percy Bysshe Shelley and his immortal poem “Ozymandias,” I offer here a brief meditation on only the most current depredations of the Apartheid Zionist Entity upon those captive Palestinian Arabs who had absolutely nothing to do with the German/Christian persecution of Jews in Europe before and during World War II. For want of a better title indicting the “American” “government” for its incestuous collusion with epic A.Z.E. injustice, I call this sonnet:
“Cozy Scandalous”
I met a refugee from Gaza Strip,
Who spoke to me with empty, staring eyes
Dumb words whose depth of pain I could not grip
With all the helping hands the world denies
While lapping up the lurid lies that slip
And roll so greasy off the practiced tongue
Of Zionists whose caged and wounded prey
Are told to flee and leave their dying young
To weep beside the corpses of their old
In darkened shattered former homes where they
Cannot refute the garbage we’ve been told
By glib Israeli liars trained to spread
A veil of darkness over crimes they’ve sold
As “Peaceful Co-Existence” — with the dead.
Michael Murry, “The Misfortune Teller,” Copyright © 2009
Israeli and neocon hawks have been quite grateful to the “gift” that Ahmadinejad has presented for them.
Is a “gift”?
Saddam was good example of “cakewalk” gift for both US /Israel Scott.
But let not forgot US limited support for Saddam during Iraq/ Iran eight years war, remember April Glaspy met Saddam just days before he went to Kuwait.
Looks that US/ Israel are very skilled to make and brings their enemies to the traps, those stupid, naive personalties who are far from real sense of their nations who don’t care about their people needs.
They are selfish, personal power seekers and ignorant, who are easy to trained and brought to the traps by themselves.
say bb, I share the shock…. Yet one of the tea leaves that had caught my attention from recent weeks was that so many prominent senior Iran clerics had appeared to cast their lot, not with A/N, but with Mousavi….
as such, if you had cast yr lot with those “mullahs” — you’d have lost.
It seems most of the writers seem to miss the point..
1.No Iranian leader is going to abandon Nuclear issue even if Ahmedinejad -demonised by the west- loses!
2. Iranian thinking is inward i.e they want to be strong so as to protect themselves from any attack or regime change..
3. Iran dare not attack Israel they know the capability of Israel..
So this drum beating by od war et..towards Iran is just for the domestic issues so as to create a bogeyman..so common by the West anyway..
The solution is for West to accept Iran and sit on the table as equals and you will see the difference…
America has to realize this…
According to Foreign Policy (passport) website Mr. Netanyahu has leaked conditions on his concept of what a Palestenian State must be:-
• A Palestinian state must allow Israeli civilian and military aircraft unfettered access to Palestinian airspace, allow Israel to retain control of the airwaves and to station Israeli troops on a future state’s eastern and southern borders.
• Palestinians must accept Israel as a Jewish state, a nod to the hawkish side of Mr. Netanyahu’s governing coalition that has raised concerns that the Palestinian Authority, which nominally governs the West Bank, does not recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
Since Mr. Ahmedinejad has already won re-election in Iran rumors in the Middle East intimate that some of his advisors have already suggested the partitioning of Israel into two states. One that allows non-jews as citizens and one that does not. And that Iran will recognise the one state that will allow Iran’s air force unfettered access. The suggestion was also made that Mr. Ahmedinejad may be considering inviting Mr. Ross, Mr. Abrams, Mr. Pipes and Mr. Netanyahu to a get-to-know you meet.
(How about the above made -up paragraph as a stimulating in a “back at ya” from Mr. Bellicose).
The good student is deleting my posts. Shame. So much for the power of your ideas when you have to systematically silence people.
Kathryn Jean Lopez
She is a constituent of Hillary Rodham Clinton. Both Lopez and Rodham Clinton wish otherwise.
Does she had a heart or some sort of humanity? doubtly with her type of these war monger typo .
“Moral of the story, always put your money on the Mullahs.”
Always put your money on BB’s cluelessness.
According to reports I am seeing a committee of what you call “The Mullahs” are asking that the election be invalidated.
I see Am Footprints is cycling reports that the coup was a military one and Khamenei initially accepted the results. Must say I find it quite unlikely that the Iranian military would act against the instructions of the supreme leader? But if it is true, then this story is far from done yet.
btw Shirin – what reports are you seeing. Some links please?
btw Shirin – what reports are you seeing. Some links please?
Er no links I guess. Always bet on Shirin shooting from the hip, then slinking away when pressed for evidence.
bb, I know this might come as a shock, but every report one sees, and every piece of information one receives does not come from the web. Some of it comes from other sources such as personal contacts, e-mails, phone calls, text messages, and even – gasp! – books! However, the report I received yesterday about the Ayatullahs’ protest did appear on the web this morning, so here is your link.
“The Association of Combatant Clerics, which consists of moderate and leftist clerics and includes such important figures as former president Mohammad Khatami, Ayatollah Mohammad Mousavi Khoiniha, and Grand Ayatollah Abdolkarim Mousavi Ardabili, issued a strongly-worded statement, calling the results of the election invalid.
“Grand Ayatollah Saafi Golpaygaani, an important cleric with a large number of followers, warned about the election results and the importance that elections in Iran retain their integrity.
“Grand Ayatollah Yousef Saanei, a progressive cleric and a confidante of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, has declared that Mr. Ahmadinejad is not the legitimate president and cooperation with him, as well as working for him, are haraam (against Islam and a great sin). He has also declared that any changes in the votes by unlawful means are also haraam. Several credible reports indicate that he has traveled to Tehran in order to participate in nationwide protests scheduled for Monday (June 18). It is said that he has planned a sit-in in some public place, in order to further protest election fraud. His website has been blocked.”
Vadim, I know this might come as a shock, but every report one sees, and every piece of information one receives does not come from the web. Some of it comes from other sources such as personal contacts, e-mails, phone calls, text messages, and even – gasp! – books!
The report I mentioned has reached the web this morning, 24 hours or so after I received it from another source. Please see my comment just above for the longed-for link.
PS Sorry, I forgot to mention two important non-web sources, radio and TV, especially satellite TV, which affords access to all kinds of fascinating stuff from all over the world.
Shirin – great. Thank you. Of course in saying “always put your money on the mullahs” I was referring to the hardliners led by the supreme leader, me being skeptical of reports that SL had been subjected to a military coup.
Shirin if you are in Syria, it would be good to know how the locals are reacting to the Iran election?
Grand Ayatollah Yousef Saanei, a progressive cleric and a confidante of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, has declared that Mr. Ahmadinejad is not the legitimate president and cooperation with him, as well as working for him, are haraam (against Islam and a great sin).
My understanding (and this comes via Zvi Yehezkieli of Channel 10 News) is that a single, but influential mullah has issued a fatwa negating the election of Ahmedinejad.
However, finding a cleric to issue a fatwa on something is not really difficult (just like finding a rabbi to issue a psaq halakha on something is not difficult). I don’t imagine that this will have much effect.