Faster, Please!

October 28th, 2009 8:42 am

The Turks, the Supreme Leader, and the Iranian people

Turkish prime minister Erdogan flew back home Wednesday evening after a 2-day visit to Tehran.  It was a big deal in all senses of the term.  He went to Iran with a large delegation, including three ministers, many businessmen, leaders of Parliament, scads of reporters, and television crews.  He met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mottaki, “President” Ahmadinejad, and other ministers.  According to Iranians who were involved in the meetings, the two countries reached agreement on many issues, the upshot of which is a considerable tightening of the working alliance between them:

–The creation of a joint airline;

–The creation of a free trade zone along the border;

–Turkish investment (to the tune of some $4 billion) in the Pars field in southern Iran;

–Agreement that each would permit the other’s currency to circulate (a real winner for Iran, whose currency was previously not acceptable in Turkey);

–Favorable prices to the Turks for Iranian oil and natural gas (I am told that the Iranians promised a 50% reduction of market rates! Seems preposterous to me, but we shall see).  The Iranians are not known for strictly honoring such deals, but the Turks are entitled to be pleased at any significant reduction;

–A joint power plant of some six thousand kilowatts, to be constructed as soon as possible, powered by (Iranian) natural gas;

One of the most intriguing aspects of the Erdogan visit was the dog that did not bark, namely the failure of any early meeting with Supreme Leader Khamenei.  It was widely reported that such a meeting would take place; see here , here , here , and here, for example.  But as of early afternoon Wednesday, there was not even a quasi-official claim that Erdogan saw Khamenei, not even the sort of “virtual evidence” of Khamenei’s ability to rule that had been put out in recent weeks (a couple of days ago, the web site of the press service ISNA came up with an alleged speech to Hajj pilgrims, but when it turned out to be nearly a year old, it was quickly taken down, as was a reference to “archive photos” of meetings with Senegalese President Wade).  I therefore earlier concluded that Khamenei was not well enough for a meeting with Erdogan.

But Khamenei did indeed meet with Erdogan, at the very last minute.  The Turkish convoy diverted to the Supreme Leader’s residence en route to the airport, and there was a meeting there, down the hall from the doctors, involving the top members of the Turkish delegation, and both Foreign Minister Mottaki and Ali Larijani from the National Security Council of Iran, in addition to the two principals.  The meeting lasted 47 minutes, and Khamenei took the occasion to denounce America as the cause of all the region’s problems.  Interestingly, he also talked about the future of Iraq, calling on the Turks to join with Iran and Syria to drive Iraq toward an Islamic Republic.  There are photographs and films of the meeting, all genuine so far as I can tell.

Page 1 of 2  Next ->

Comment
Bookmark and Share
Digg Print Digg PJM Home

Pajamas Media appreciates your comments that abide by the following guidelines:

1. Avoid profanities or foul language unless it is contained in a necessary quote or is relevant to the comment.

2. Stay on topic.

3. Disagree, but avoid ad hominem attacks.

4. Threats are treated seriously and reported to law enforcement.

5. Spam and advertising are not permitted in the comments area.

The clause regarding "hate speech" has been deleted because readers criticized it as being too loosely defined. We agreed.

These guidelines are very general and cannot cover every possible situation. Please don't assume that Pajamas Media management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment. We reserve the right to filter or delete comments or to deny posting privileges entirely at our discretion. If you feel your comment was filtered inappropriately, please email us at story@pajamasmedia.com.

43 Comments

1. David W. Lincoln:

It is time to send Ankara a message: either cast your lot with the deformed souls that Orianna Fallaci called “the Sons of Allah”, or carry your weight in affirming the fusion of the cultures of Athens, Jerusalem & Rome, aka the West.

Oct 28, 2009 - 9:53 am 2. Amirahmadi:

Mr Ledeen, I believe you should take back your previous articles regarding Grand Ayatollah Khamenei being in a coma, he has has appeared in public many times since you wrote your first article, It’s just that you are insisting all the published photos and footages from his recent public appearances are from archive but you do not provide any evidence to back your claim.

Oct 28, 2009 - 11:05 am 3. David W. Lincoln:

Daniel Pipes also has this: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1256557977260&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Any agreement with Damascus has the imprimatur
of Teheran, and it extends to Teheran.

Oct 28, 2009 - 3:09 pm 4. Ran:

Amirahmadi, habibi… please read the “offending” article. You’ve made an error. ML made no such claim directly, rather quoted a recognized, unproven, though generally reliable source.

ML… Iraqi Kurds got a raw deal under Bush Pere and Powell… If we take our eye off the Iraqi ball, there could be genocide?

Oct 28, 2009 - 3:10 pm 5. Amirahmadi:

I wonder if this is from the archive or photoshoped :D

http://leader.ir/media/album/original/14538_577.jpg

yohahahahahahaha

Oct 28, 2009 - 3:24 pm 6. Amirahmadi:

Ran,

I have been reading Michael since 2000, it is the 2nd time he is making this claim according to his reliable sources in Iran (Grand Ayatollah Khamenei’s death). I am just telling him to change his sources as they prove to be unreliable, he has made mistakes in the past (if you call them mistakes, i mean unintentional) that has damaged his credit (such as the Iraqi yellow cake forgery case that Mr Ledeen is accused of being involved in).

Oct 28, 2009 - 4:59 pm 7. Michael Ledeen:

amirahmadi, you are one lie away from being banned here. I have no involvement in the iraqi story whatsoever, as anyone reading the serious literature on it must know. Take a look at the book by David Korn and Michael Isikof, for example. David would have been delighted to find some evidence, but there is none, and they said so. As for Khamenei, I once wrongly said I thought he was dead, three years ago. I am now saying that he is very sick and has been in a coma. You keep saying–lying–that I say he is dead. This blog is not an opportunity to spread lies about me, and if you do it again, you’re out.

Oct 28, 2009 - 6:21 pm 8. Jassem Othman:

Dear Michael, please do NOT worry about tails of tyrannized regimes. Every single day they kissing the hands and turbans their masters “the terror masters”, maybe they love that! They love to be tyrannized, and to be impoverished and massacred by tyrannized regimes. They are cowards dare not to tell the truth about their dictators.

Michael, of course they wrote and spoke lies and trumped-up charges about you. They love do focus on insignificant causes while they DISREGARDING the humanity sensitive causes.
Michael, your forum is always OPEN to everyone, even to those who criticizing you and to those fools who are good in throwing a lies and apathy. Please let them Bark, the barking dogs seldom bite. I would like to tell them: “freedom and democracy will prevail in the Middle East willy-nilly”, because there are MILLIONS in the Middle East wants peaceful future without fundamentalist Islam, and without tyrannical regimes!!!

Oct 28, 2009 - 7:45 pm 9. Amirahmadi:

Mr Ledeen,

I am sorry if there’s been a misunderstanding, my intention is solely academic and I am citing magazines such as Washington monthly regarding the yellow cake indictment: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0410.marshall.html or raw story: http://www.rawstory.com/news/2005/American_who_consulted_for_Pentagon_says_0117.html as you see this claim has been there and the fact that a book doesn’t conclude that you were involved doesn’t acquit you from such charges unless you are acquitted in a court of justice. The reason I bring up issues like this is to remind you to double check and even triple check sources before spreading news or handing documents to government officials. In this case, (rumors about Grand Ayatollah Khamenei’s death) of course no one was hurt, but in the case of Iraqi story, millions of civilians lost family members and had to leave their homes and more than 3000 American soldiers were killed. Anyone who has been involved in initiating this useless and evil war must be brought to justice. I am sure you will not publish this comment and you will block me after reading this, but still, I would repeat what I believe, that going to Iraq was evil and a huge mistake on be half of America and those who were involved in taking U.S to Iraq betrayed the nation’s trust. I hope President Obama can pull U.S out of Iraq successfully. God bless President Obama and God Bless American nation.

Oct 28, 2009 - 7:57 pm 10. Jassem Othman:

Dear Michael, please do NOT worry about tails of tyrannized regimes. Every single day they kissing the hands and turbans their masters “the terror masters”, maybe they love that! They love to be tyrannized, and to be impoverished and massacred by tyrannized regimes. They are cowards dare not to tell the truth about their dictators.

Michael, of course they wrote and spoke lies and trumped-up charges about you. They love do focus on insignificant causes while they DISREGARDING the humanity sensitive causes.
Michael, your forum is always OPEN for everyone, even to those who criticizing you and to those fools who are just good in throwing a lies and apathy. Please let them Bark, the barking dogs seldom bite. I would like to tell them: “freedom and democracy will prevail in the Middle East willy-nilly”, because there are MILLIONS in the Middle East wants peaceful future without fundamentalist Islam, and without tyrannical regimes!!!
Jassem Othman, Syrian, Poland.

Oct 28, 2009 - 8:11 pm 11. shiraz:

Dear Dr. Ledeen, please do not bother with kinds of Amirahmadi.
These people are sent by the Islamic Republic as parasites to spread lies, propaganda and vicious attacks. Paying attention to these people will do nothing but feeding their psyched up sick egos!

Oct 28, 2009 - 9:35 pm 12. Peace Like A River » Cables, dispatches and memoranda:

[...] Michael Ledeen – The Turks, the Supreme Leader, and the Iranian people [...]

Oct 28, 2009 - 10:32 pm 13. Pajamas Media » Where in the World Is Supreme Leader Khamenei?:

[...] Read the entire piece here. [...]

Oct 28, 2009 - 11:23 pm 14. Ruvy:

It is time to send Ankara a message: either cast your lot with the deformed souls that Orianna Fallaci called “the Sons of Allah”, or carry your weight in affirming the fusion of the cultures of Athens, Jerusalem & Rome, aka the West.

The time has long passed for this message, David. The Turks have moved over to the Dark Side – just a few feet away from Mr. Obama. The difference is that the Persians are peeing all over Obama – and having a good time of it. But they are slowly extending a renewed Persian Empire westwards by tying up with the Turks. Someone has managed to teach the Persians to win wars without firing a shot. And they’ve actually learned.

Oh, how the Americans will come to regret their own perfidy and cowardice in dealing with the Middle East! It’s proving to be their downfall!

Oct 28, 2009 - 11:46 pm 15. Delia:

Maybe the swine has the flu.

Oct 29, 2009 - 1:19 am 16. Geoff Weil:

“–A joint power plant of some six thousand kilowatts, to be constructed as soon as possible, powered by (Iranian) natural gas;”

I wonder if this is correct. Six thousand kilowatts = 6 megawatts, which is a trivial amount of power, enough to run a few dozen houses. You can buy generators in this power range off the shelf, as a quick google search will demonstrate. Six thousand megawatts (6 gigawatts) would be a respectable amount of power for a modern power installation.

Oct 29, 2009 - 2:40 am 17. Pedrosito:

Michael, Iran could have 100 nuclear armed missles aimed at us and the press would only be concerned about Obamacare.

Oct 29, 2009 - 3:12 am 18. Thomas_L.....:

Amirahmadi – “Death to the dictator!” Open your windows at night. Can you hear it? It’s coming.

Oct 29, 2009 - 7:02 am 19. David W. Lincoln:

Ruvy, good points. One website I keep track of is http://www.joelstrumpet.com and it does a good job as to what Ankara is up to.

You are right about the horse has long since galloped out of the barn, in regards to Ankara leaving the West, but one last warning doesn’t hurt. I’m thinking it is along the same lines as what Churchill did, in rhetorical flourish, in being polite at the end of the declaration of war upon Japan in December, 1941 (I think I have the year & date correct). He said it costs nothing to be
polite to someone you have to kill, or something to that effect.

Whether it is Ankara or Teheran behind the wheel of an expanded neo-Ottoman Empire, that is debatable. What the US track record has been is more reminscient of bottom-feeding, as
opposed to true enlightenment.

Therefore given the formation of a “Turkey-Syria High Level Strategic Cooperation Council.”, doesn’t this make sense: Israel to aid Georgia & Ukraine to get countries which view the Borjomi Declaration favourably to sign onto it, and then have a common foreign policy on the declaration to replace the US as the big player which is pro-Israeli in the Mid East. For, I am thinking that the Baltic countries, Poland, the Czech Republic, perhaps the Balkan countries, and others would sign onto it, especially when there is stuff to sweeten the pot.

What other option do you see Ruvy?

Oct 29, 2009 - 7:46 am 20. Now and Then:

American Jews could care less about Israel.

Oct 29, 2009 - 8:03 am 21. Jassem Othman:

Amirahmadi
Iraqi people today are free, and that U.S. has the right to defend its national security and its vital interests in the region. I believe that American people do not listen to your disgusting gossip! But really I wonder, how you are praying for American people and at the same time, YOU strongly support those who calling every single day to destruct America, and their terrible slogan “Death to America” since your mullahs had ruled Iran. Please just STOP lies.

Oct 29, 2009 - 8:14 am 22. bibio44:

7. Michael Ledeen: “amirahmadi, you are one lie away from being banned here.”

Jeez, Mike, with such a criterion, PJM would have to shut down.

Oct 29, 2009 - 9:38 am 23. Jackson:

There is no confirmed evidence of any public or private activity by the supreme leader from October 6th to today; the meeting with Erdogan is the first such event so far as I can tell.

There are two possibilities here: You are not being honest. Or you’re ability to tell, i.e., your intellectual and academic capacities are suspect.

This is UPI, a pretty credible source:
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2009/10/19/Khamenei-talks-unity-after-health-rumors/UPI-16101255976815/

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei described unity for the Islamic world as a priority for Iran, discrediting some of the rumors regarding his health.

Khamenei met during the weekend with Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade to discuss the economic relationship between the two countries.

The supreme leader referred to the Senegalese presidency over the Organization of the Islamic Conference as a sign of its responsibility to stand in solidarity on the Palestinian issue, he said in statements published on his Web site.

“The main goal of establishing such an organization was to follow up the Palestinian issue and therefore the OIC bears a heavy responsibility and enjoys high capacity for playing a role in this regard,” the ruling cleric said.

Wade, for his part, commended the leader and the “important status” that Iran enjoyed in the Islamic world.

His comments follow rumors circulated last week that suggested Khamenei had slipped into a coma or even died.

Rumors are abundant over the status of the health of the leader; most accounts suggest he might be suffering from some form of cancer.

Your ridiculous assertion that the photo is photoshopped, is another rumor that you can’t prove [I found it funny that the photo you claim has a different outfit is too small in your post to actually see the real difference. I’m quite surprised, considering your already tenuous reputation for having cocked up the Obama thesis, that you would gamble your credibility in this way.

Oct 29, 2009 - 10:15 am 24. logdon:

There are those over here, including our own Foreign Minister, David Milliband who rooted and rooted for Turkey’s acceptance into the EU.

Simultaneously Iran and it’s fruitcake in chief Ahmedinejad were castigated during the uprising for abuse against it’s own people. How that top lip trembled?

Now? How will a man posessing such insight and prescience deal with this? What a conundrum?

Turkey has been denied entry up to now by the sane pragmatists of Europe over it’s occupation of Northern Cyprus (how long was that tacitly glossed over?).

Maybe this is the classic revenge Islamists seem to spend their lives festering over.

You dare reject us, infidel? We’ll show you.

And off they go into the arms of one of the most tyranical regimes in the world.

This alliance hopefully will awaken Europe to the close shave. Turkey in the EU, then doing a deal with Tehran thus allowing Iran as an arms length member.

The mind reels!

At least Israel has the gonads to articulate its recognition of the problem. As soon as Ankara prevaricated over it’s participation in the military exercise, Anatolian Eagle the jig was up, they were well and truly rumbled.

Israel walked and diplomatic relations have now shed the phoney gloss.

Phew! Imagine Europe with an open door to 80 million, adding to the ones here already who hate and despise all the West offers? That is except the welfare which so many seem to enjoy as a right.

We’re in interesting times that’s for sure.

A two bit party with its roots in racism, the BNP, has just registered a 22% approval in a poll this week. Their premise is forced repatriation of all non resident Muslims.

Judging by public anger at the way our politicians have sold us out to this alien culture and swamped cities with the bearded and berobed, 50% occupancy in some cases there’s revolution in the air.

Meanwhile Barry Hussein Chamberlain dances to the tune of Islam as if all was well.

We are in a period of hugely transformational history. How it is dealt with will either result in a small conflagration (conflict is inevitable) or a huge catastrophe which would make WW2 look like a minor skirmish.

Oct 29, 2009 - 12:19 pm 25. Hans Moleman:

Michael, I wonder if all this focus on the Mullahs is really useful. It seems to me to dovetail with the “realist” thinking that Ahmadinejad’s saber-rattling is unimportant, since he is only a puppet. The real rulers, we are often assured, are not the kind of apocalyptic nuts that Mr. A. clearly is.

The “realists” tell us that we can live with a nuclear Iran, because deterrence will work with the actual leaders of Iran…the mullahs.

Isn’t this the same kind of wishful thinking that once centered around Hitler, the “tool of the Prussian militarists”, whom they would discard when he got out of hand?

Oct 29, 2009 - 12:29 pm 26. HEPT:

He’s got flies in his eyes and maggots in his nose and mouth, he’s deader than yesterdays fish sandwich.

Oct 29, 2009 - 1:30 pm 27. Michael Ledeen:

Good points all, many thanks. I hope I haven’t downplayed the significance of Ahmadinejad. I see the regime/government as pretty much an evil seamless web, of which Ahmadinejad is an important component. I mean, is there anyone else who has called for the overthrow of the regime longer or louder than I? Around here, I mean; certainly lots of Iranians have.

Oct 29, 2009 - 1:53 pm 28. J-Bone:

I hate feeding the trolls, but the silliness here cannot simply be ignored.

Amirahmadi, you make a baseless accusation, which Michael Ledeen flatly denies, and then you say he is presumed guilty unless a court exonerates him (”the fact that a book doesn’t conclude that you were involved doesn’t acquit you from such charges unless you are acquitted in a court of justice”)? Come on, man.

Now and Then and bibio44, you two spend a lot of time posting here, even though you do nothing more than lob accusations of PJM’s “lies,” or post sheer foolishness (”American Jews could care less about Israel”, for example). I should have the time to waste that you two apparently have.

Oct 29, 2009 - 2:35 pm 29. ConservativeWanderer:

I said it the last time this came up, and I’ll say it again.

The frothing-at-the-mouth denials just make me, personally, more convinced that Michael is onto something here. If the Supreme Leader was really in fine health, you Islamists would just sit back and wait for him to prove Michael wrong beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Of course, you realize, Khamenei has to die sooner or later, and given his age, probably sooner… unless you really want us to believe that he’s immortal. Why not just accept that reality and quit trying to outdo Baghdad Bob?

Oct 29, 2009 - 3:14 pm 30. The Turks, the Supreme Leader, and the Iranian people | Planet-Iran.com:

[...] Source: Pajamas Media [...]

Oct 29, 2009 - 3:28 pm 31. Ruvy:

What other option do you see Ruvy?

Frankly, David, I’ve mentioned this before. It is long past time for Israel to ditch the United States as a partner of any kind. The foreign ministry here is making tiny steps in that direction, but truth is, there are forces at work in this society that don’t get much play or attention in the States.

One of those forces is the fact tht one out of every six Israelis is a native Russian speaker, or child of a native Russian speaker. In a previous incarnation, Anatoly Shcharansky (aka Natan Sharansky) was part of a movement to trememdously increase the influence of the Russian Federation (then known as the Soviet Union) in Israel. Monsieur Lieberman, of the foreign ministry here, follows in those footsteps. It’s dicthing one demon for an even more vicious demon – but I do not think the Israeli leadership even understands that or where Lieberman is taking them.

Oct 29, 2009 - 3:34 pm 32. Hans Moleman:

Michael, you have indeed been a consistent voice for recognizing the Iranian regime’s brutality and threat to world peace. I and others owe you a great deal.

I simply caution that we all avoid slipping into the habits of the old “Sovietologists”, those esteemed analysts who treated the photos of the Moscow reviewing stand on May Day as if they were chicken entrails in ancient Rome. Their subtle study of the leadership intrigues blinded them to the underlying consistency of Soviet policy.

Here, the underlying reality is equally clear: a fanatical regime committed to reppression of its own people and aggression and genocide against a neighboring nation.

Oct 29, 2009 - 3:56 pm 33. Marie Claude:

to add some water into amirah’s mill, the Plame thing was all about yellow cake that the French would have sold to Saddam from their Niger mines, and even that Chirac was givin Uranium batons to him. All certified from an italian source, that passed through the Brits Renseignments ! One can trust Italians for opportunely selling anything ! :evil:

Oct 29, 2009 - 4:13 pm 34. Amirahmadi:

Mr Ledeen,

Thank you very much by publishing my previous comment. I think the common belief in the west that people of Iran want the regime to be gone is a result of the fact that the western media has been portraying north of Tehran (and a few other metro cities) where higher class lives as all of Iran. They form a big minority, but they are still a minority, maybe around 5 million at best.

Oct 29, 2009 - 5:47 pm 35. ER White:

So we got an Election here in the US with the governorships of Virginia and New Jersey up for grabs on 3 November (No offence Michael, but my bones tell me New Jersey may just give Iran a run for its money in the corruption department)followed up by “Hate America Day” in Iran on 4 November that stands a good chance of turning into “Kick the Mullahs Out Day”..

There is some kind of literary metaphor that can probably shed some kind of illuminating light on this convergence of events, but I too damn dumb to think of it…

I still say we should be slipping 9mm Pistols by the boatload into Iranian dissidents hands (4 November would certainly be more interesting, that’s for damn sure) but if the people of Iran can do it without guns, more power (and glory) to them…

The Real Tragedy in this is that the current US administration is TOTALLY out to lunch on this situation and when it eventually comes down (as it inevitably must), the USA will be like a guy walking out of the Bathroom after finding out Clemenza forgot to have the gun ready in place… (cryptic reference to a famous movie to suck up to Roger Simon – ask Mr.Simon what the guy will have in his hand if you don’t know)

I’m retired Navy..what do ya expect..Poetry?

Cheers
ER White

Oct 29, 2009 - 5:56 pm 36. David W. Lincoln:

Ruvy, we are agreed that where Great Britain was after the Suez Crisis wrapped up is where the US is today. Therefore, Israel needs another protector. So, given the good words that were said about the Borjomi Declaration, is it possible for Israel to aid in the formation of a “High Level Strategic Cooperation Council” comprised of: 1 – Those countries which sign onto the Borjomi Declaration & 2 – Agree to a common foreign policy.

I am willing to say that the countries which are friends with Israel also have good things to say about the Borjomi Declaration.

Are we agreed on this?

Oct 29, 2009 - 10:25 pm 37. shiraz:

Amirahmadi, 95% of Iranian people want the barbaric Islamic regime to be toppled. The regime itself had that number few years ago to the tune of 70%. Your audacity in protecting and supporting this barbaric brutal fascistic regime shows that you are an agent of the regime and thus spread lies, plays the words and do anything to mislead people. If I am not mistaking you may be that member of the ring belonging to Rafsanjani camp which has created a web of agents here in the US trying to influence the US administration and Obama and thus your strong feeling for the President. This is something that can be looked further into!
People such as you are are the parasites of our society and nobody, believes me nobody gives a damn as what you think or say.
Your regime will be toppled and you will be without a job!
It is time to pack up and go to Burma, Somalia or even Venezuela!!!

Oct 30, 2009 - 7:58 am 38. shiraz:

Amirahmadi, in June’s protest of 2+ million Iranians over hundreds of thousands had come out in small cities and even villages to the streets fighting the fascist regime. I guess those poor villagers to you count as upper class North Tehrani’s!!! Right?
Please stop lies and take your dishonest ranting elsewhere!!!
Freedom seeking people are much smarter than you think and merely laugh out at the rants that come out of your mouth!

Oct 30, 2009 - 8:05 am 39. Isaac:

Michael:

Are there rumblings in the Turkish army? Surely, they are not sleeping! Also, the Kurds may/will be in a very precarious situation.

Oct 31, 2009 - 7:32 pm 40. Michael Ledeen:

I am not an expert on Turkey, but friends who follow it are very pessimistic about the country’s “western” identity. Kemalism is over, at least for the moment. And yes, the Kurds are in a jam. Except that they are a huge percentage of the Turkish population. So they are stronger than they may appear. If the United States had a smart foreign policy, we would be working with the Kurds all over the place. But…

Nov 1, 2009 - 7:09 am 41. World Threats » Blog Archive » Update on the Status of Khamenei:

[...] then turned into rumors about him being dead due to follow-up reports from AntiMullah.com), now says that Khamenei is out of his coma. Some will laugh at Ledeen for sticking to the story he was given, [...]

Nov 1, 2009 - 11:05 am 42. Amirahmadi:

Shiraz,

2 million + hundreds of thousands < 24 million.

:)

Nov 1, 2009 - 3:43 pm 43. shiraz:

Amirahmadi,
That’s how all revolutions start. 2+ million of people on the streets of Tehran was a whole lot to be handled by this totalitarian fascistic regime which brutally kills its own defenseless citizens with no reservation and I am sure you still got shaken by that and worried! Didn’t you? It is only you and your stooges that are working for the Islamic regime who always shamelessly spread misconceptions and lies. By your regime’s OWN press estimate a few years ago more than 70% of people oppose the Islamic regime. The guy who got this out in the press was then jailed by the regime itself!!! Your regime is scared of its own people and do you know what this means? That is how all evil empires come down!!!
Intelligent people would never take your remarks seriously! Your regime will go down and as I said before you should seek profession elsewhere!!!

Nov 1, 2009 - 9:19 pm

Write a Comment

Name: (required, displayed)
Email: (required, not publicized)
URL: (optional, displayed)
Comments:
 

Michael Ledeen

Author Photo

Archives

Books

by Michael Ledeen

by Michael Ledeen

by Michael Ledeen

...transcend[s] mere descriptive narrative and seek[s] to fix a value—political, philosophical or strategic—on the events of 9/11…
—Tunku Varadarajan
Wall Street Journal

by Michael Ledeen

Michael Ledeen takes a fresh look at Tocqueville’s insights into our national psyche and asks whether Americans’ national character, which Tocqueville believed to be wholly admirable, has fallen into moral decay and religious indifference.

by Michael Ledeen

American Enterprise Institute resident scholar Ledeen offers an updated version of the rules for leadership laid down by Machiavelli. Its the nature of humans to do evil, and war is our natural state. Anyone who would wield power in such a setting, writes Ledeen, echoing Machiavelli, “must be prepared to fight at all times.” This is as true in business, sports, and politics as it is on the battlefield.
Kirkus Reviews

by Michael Ledeen

With the skill of a born storyteller, Michael Ledeen weaves together key moments in the fall of communism. His insider’s knowledge of the interplay of complex personalities and Byzantine strategies makes a compelling narrative, one enlivened by his wry wit and flair for the dramatic.

In this call to embrace the worldwide democratic revolution, the author argues that global democracy should be the centerpiece of U.S. strategy.