Re: [Marxism] Iranian academic criticizes government policies

[Walter Lippmann <walterlx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

There is no question but that the Iranian government carries
out acts of repression. Name any capitalist government, or,
indeed, any government ANYWHERE, which doesn't carry out any
acts of repression? So why does one citizen of the country 
targetting Iran relentlessly go on and on and on and on and
on about that ONE country of the nearly two hundred on earth?

Why the drumbeat of selective criticism? There is a battle of
ideas going on in the ruling circles of the United States,
and between Washington and the European governments on what
to do about Iran, and how to prevent Iran from developing its
capacity to generate nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. It
is OK for Israel, India, China and others to do that, but no
howling against it can be heard here. As yet, I've not seen 
Iranian soldiers overthrowing other governments around the 
world. Some people have a selective, inconsistent approach. 

If one discounts the blockade, it's not possible to understand
the situation which is occurring in Iran. But it IS possible, 
by discounting the blockade, to be part of the steady process 
of manufacturing consent. Condoleezza Rice is today touring
the Middle East, giving out BILLIONS of dollars of money for
the purpose of surrounding Iran. And here we receive steady
propaganda against Iran as well. Rice is also engaged in the
process of manufacturing consent.


Walter Lippmann
Los Angeles, California
====================================================================
Rice unveils arms deals to counter Iran
By Daniel Dombey in London and agencies
Published: July 30 2007 19:55

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/a0b12724-3ec8-11dc-bfcf-0000779fd2ac.html

Condoleezza Rice, US secretary of state, on Monday unveiled a series
of multi-billion-dollar military agreements that Washington hopes
will help stabilise the Middle East and counteract the rise of Iran.

Among the deals â which will need to be approved by Congress â are a
10-year, $30bn (â22bn, Â15bn) military assistance agreement with
Israel and a similar $13bn pact with Egypt.

Speaking before travelling to the region with Robert Gates, US
defence secretary, Ms Rice also confirmed that she would discuss an
arms package with Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf states.

She gave no figure for how much the Gulf arms deal would be worth.
But officials have said it could total $20bn over 10 years and would
upgrade Saudi Arabiaâs missile defences and air force while
increasing its naval capabilities.

âThis effort will help bolster forces of moderation and support a
broader strategy to counter the negative influences of al-Qaeda,
Hizbollah, Syria and Iran,â Ms Rice said.

But some members of the US Congress are likely to oppose the deal
with Saudi Arabia because of the countryâs perceived reluctance to
support the government of Nouri al-Maliki, Iraqâs prime minister, and
congressional concern that Saudi officials have been complicit in the
cross-border movement of Sunni extremists into Iraq.

The Bush administration hopes the prospective arms deals will
encourage some of the Sunni governments in the region to overcome
their suspicion of Mr Maliki, a Shia. âIt is very important that the
Sunni Arab neighbours do not read into Iraq an endless?.?.?.
Arab-Persian struggle,â a senior state department official said last
week, referring to the propensity of some Sunni Arab officials to
bracket Iraqâs Shia majority with Iran.

But Iran accused the US of seeking to create fear and cause divisions
in the Middle East by announcing the military deals.

âAmerica has always considered one policy in this region and that is
creating fear and concerns in the countries of the region and trying
to harm the good relations between these countries,â said Iranâs
foreign ministry.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007

====================================================================

WALTER LIPPMANN stated:
The lenghty and detailed assessment the author provides appears to be
objective. I'm see no reason to dispute it because it does appear to
be factually correct, and there's not a lot of high-blown rhetoric
against "Radical Islam" or whatever in the commentary.

Nevertheless, one wonders if the author gives ANY WEIGHT AT ALL to the
international blockade organized by Washington against his country,
or the campaign of political subversion directed against his country?
The author makes no mention of this factor, which must play a role.


================================
WALTER LIPPMANN
Editor-in-Chief, CubaNews
writer - photographer - activist
http://www.walterlippmann.com
================================

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