The Empire’s Plan

For a new “democratic” Middle East

Balatarin
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The Empire’s Plan
by Behzad Majdian
23-Mar-2011
 

If you have an uneasy feeling that there is something suspicious about the overthrow of Mubarak in Egypt, you are not alone. The dictator has been ousted; yet the dictatorship structure remains intact. And presumably, it is in the process of preparing the ground for bringing “democracy” to Egypt. What adds to this suspicion is that the U.S. government and its Western allies, including the Western media, have not gone on a ranting rampage against what has taken place. There could only be one explanation for this: the U.S. and its allies seem to be quite content with the course events have followed in Egypt thus far, even though they are extremely apprehensive about what could happen next.

What has taken place so far can be explained by a bit of out-of- the-box thinking. The following analogy could help. If conditions are right for a devastating wildfire, and in your judgment the danger is almost certain, you have a better chance of surviving the inferno, or minimizing the potential damage, if you become pro-active. You get ahead of the game by starting a controlled burning. This would allow you to set the tempo for the fire. It will also give you some control: you can direct the path of the fire; you can even lower the intensity and temperature of the fire around the areas you want to protect.

Controlled Uprising

The view that some form of controlled uprising was at work in the overthrow of Mubarak merits consideration. Mubarak was a widely resented figure in Egypt, and the fire of mass revolts against him and his U.S.-Israeli backed regime had been smoldering beneath the surface for a long time. Moreover, there was a high likelihood that the fire could start on its own at any moment, and develop into uncontrollable and devastating flames. Knowing this, the Empire’s fire marshals have been preparing for a controlled burning since 2007, if not much earlier.

The Empire made the decision to get ahead of the game and write its rules rather than sticking with Mubarak at all costs. By appearing to be on the side of the people when it could no longer keep Mubarak in power, the Empire also put itself in an excellent position to launch its new strategic plan for the Middle East.

There are reasons to believe that the youth uprising on January 25 and the ensuing few days were prepared and organized by individuals some of whom had received “democracy training” by the “democracy industry” in the U.S., in particular by Freedom House. This uprising started the mass revolt that led to Mubarak’s downfall. Its demands, slogans, and tempo in the first few days framed the scope and defined the parameters of the uprising. What was quite strange about the demonstrations was the absence of anti-Israeli, anti-U.S., and pro-Palestinian slogans and sentiments.

To suggest that the recent mass revolt in Egypt involved some form of uprising engineering is not to say that the Empire wanted to overthrow Mubarak. Rather, if it could no longer keep him in power, it wanted to ensure that the leadership of the uprising that would end up overthrowing him would not fall into the hands of groups or individuals with agendas inimical to the Empire’s interests. And if this could be managed successfully, the structures of dictatorship that protect the Empire’s interests (transnational economic elites and the military-commercial complex of the army) would not be threatened or smashed.

Moreover, this suggestion does not deny that Mubarak was overthrown by a mass uprising. Nor does it minimize the importance of the Egyptian people’s monumental achievement. It only makes the point that, by the time the workers and masses of ordinary Egyptians joined the uprising and thronged Tahrir Square, the scope, intensity, and parameters of the uprising had already been set in the first few days: the goal of uprising had been narrowed down to the overthrow of Mubarak; voices calling for a genuine revolution had been lost or sidelined; and the army had emerged as the savior of the country. The upshot was that the structures of dictatorship survived. This kept the Empire’s base of power intact, hence enabling it to launch its new strategic plan (plan B, if you will).

The New Imperial Plan for the Middle East

In the age of the Internet and satellite TV, it is becoming increasingly hard for the Empire to rely on old-style dictatorship systems in developing countries to protect its interests.

The Westernized, modern, and educated middle-classes around the world—especially the youth and those fluent in English—dominate blogs and the social media. In developing countries with old-style dictatorships (especially in the Middle East), these classes are particularly vociferous and have a constant presence on the social media and blogs. They constantly rant against old-style dictators in their respective countries, and cry out for freedom, democracy, and economic opportunities.

Thanks to the new media, modern middle-classes in developing countries have acquired a taste and envy for the consumer life styles of their counterparts in the West (especially in the U.S.). Moreover, they have attained consciousness of their class interests as a global class, which by and large, serves the interests of the transnational capitalist class. Through the social media, these classes are transforming themselves into a transnational class of their own.

In many respects, the present generation of the educated modern middle-classes in the developing countries is very different from earlier generations of the 1950s-1980s. Generally speaking, unlike their predecessors in previous decades who had a sense of affinity and solidarity with their indigenous working classes and the poor, the new generation seems to be apathetic, even hostile, to the plight and interests of the downtrodden in their countries.

The left-leaning middle-class intellectuals of the previous decades who sided with the poor, worked to preserve their indigenous cultures, and advocated anti-colonialism/anti-imperialism, have been replaced by a new breed of middle-class intellectuals who, in general, are decidedly right-wing and show no shame in flaunting their pro-imperialist views. Some of them despise the poor openly. The only thing that infuriates this new breed about dictatorships in their countries is the absence of individual freedoms and Western consumer life-styles, which they regard as their entitlements.

Advocacy of social justice and independence by the modern middle-class intellectuals in the developing countries is by and large a thing of past. The new generation, in general, lacks a revolutionary or progressive conscience, and eagerly longs to serve the transnational capitalist class in the hope of attaining Western consumer life-styles as compensation for their services.

Moreover, the new generation, especially the youth and those fluent in English, have mostly bought into the ideology of the American Dream, and more often than not, see the world through the prism of American interests. Not Lumumba or Che Guevara, nor Sartre, but Obama, Clinton, and Donald Trump are their idols. They love to live, study, or work in the West, especially in the U.S., and would use any opportunity to make it happen. Quite aware of the situation, the American “democracy industry” NGOs recruit the most vociferous and media-savvy among them to do the Empire’s bidding. Often, they are recruited as “civil society activists”, “human rights advocates”, “democracy activists”, and sometimes as “reporters without borders”.

A good example here is Freedom House’s “New Generation of Advocates” program which seeks “young civil society activists who are working for democracy, human rights and peaceful political change in the Middle East and North Africa”, and brings them to the U.S. for “professional training”. The recruits are brought to the U.S., or sometimes sent to Western Europe, through exchange programs that are either funded directly by the U.S. government (e.g., U.S. State Department, USAID, and USIA), or are offered by the globalist “democracy industry” NGOs, which in effect are front organizations for the Empire (e.g., the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), Freedom House, the International Republican Institute, and George Soros’ Open Society Institute.)

The new imperial plan for the Middle East capitalizes on the willingness of the modern middle-classes of the region to enthusiastically serve the international class of super-rich. They would gladly cooperate if they get some semblance of political power and some of what they think they are entitled to: individual rights and freedoms, and some opportunities in the neo-liberal economic environment to fulfill their consumerist dreams.

The plan seems to work in three stages. First, it fans the grievances of these classes and gives them moral support. It also recruits some of the most vociferous and media-savvy elements in these classes, and provides material resources and training to help them propagate their views. (This is the primary stage of the plan for countries with “rogue” or “unfriendly” regimes: Iran and Syria. This stage also applies to China, Venezuela, Belarus, and North Korea.) Second, it goads the recruits to use their training and propaganda power to narrow down the scope of the opposition’s democratic demands to a few simple points that are in-sync with the Empire’s global strategy: human rights, “free” elections, and a reformed (i.e., privatized) economy. The intention here is to drown out or marginalize the voices of those forces in the opposition which promote genuinely democratic and anti-globalist agendas. (This is the main focus of the plan in countries with dictators “friendly” to the Empire who are facing popular revolts: Egypt, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, etc.) Third, once the dictator is toppled, the plan utilizes the services of these classes to produce “friendly” regimes, and to cast an aura of democracy and legitimacy on them.

Now that Mubarak is gone, the plan in Egypt has entered its third stage. It is now focused on manipulating the current social-political milieu and engineering the upcoming elections, in order to ensure that pro-Western middle-class technocrats rise to positions of power. Integral to the plan are some insidious strategies and tactics that are designed to fragment, sideline, confound, co-opt, and corrupt organizations and individuals which/who represent the interests of working people. Stirring up inner-fighting, sectarian divisions, and religious tensions are also in the plan. This “peaceful transfer of power” would leave the real power in the hands of the Egyptian army and the transnational super-rich who control the wealth, while giving a piece of the pie and a stake in the system to the modern middle-classes.

If the plan ends up working as the Empire wishes, the lower middle-classes, the poor, and working people (constituting up to 90% of the population) would be left voiceless. They would become politically disheartened and disillusioned, and their lives would be reduced to constant struggles to get by—a scenario that would be very similar to the post-Soviet Eastern European countries, including Russia.

Will the Empire Succeed?

The Empire faces two problems in the way of executing its plan in Egypt: political Islam and labor unions with class-conscious rank and file members. Both of these obstacles were absent in “revolutions” of Eastern Europe, and this is why the plan succeeded there.

Whether the labor unions will manage to transform themselves into a strong political force and their platforms take up the interests of the working people, or be bought off and corrupted in the service of the Empire’s plan, remains to be seen. What is generally not known is that the Empire has already positioned itself to control Egyptian labor unions. The U.S. “democracy industry” NGOs such as the National Endowment for Democracy , AFL-CIO’s American Center for International Labor Solidarity, and the Center for International Private Enterprise are busy training and co-opting the Egyptian labor activists.

As far as political Islam is concerned, the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) is presenting itself as the Islamic state par excellence. Even though Egyptian middle-class intellectuals and some in the Muslim Brotherhood have repeatedly stated that they are not interested in the Iranian model, the largest majority of the Egyptian masses seem to think otherwise. The IRI does not take orders from Washington, and is vehemently anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian, both of which resonate with the overwhelming majority of the Egyptian people.

Moreover, notwithstanding its serious shortcomings in areas of social freedoms and individual rights, the IRI has managed to develop the country somewhat successfully, and has built a social-economic welfare system that provides assistance and services to the working people and the poor. And it has done all of this despite the Empire’s military encirclement, economic sanctions, and constant military threats. These successes make the IRI look even more attractive to the Egyptian masses. The propaganda machine of the Empire and its super-rich and middle-class allies are hard at work to sway Egyptians away from the Iranian option.

Much rides on whether the Empire will succeed in its continuing efforts to topple IRI or severely debilitate it. The Iranian modern middle-classes, though have legitimate grievances against the regime, in their efforts to call international attention to their grievances, in effect, are doing the Empire’s bidding. In this respect, they are no different than their counterparts in Egypt.

The chances of success for the Empire’s plan do not look very good. If all goes well for the Empire, Egypt and other Arab countries currently facing revolts might end up looking like caricatures of Turkey: pseudo-democracies embellished with some Islamic features, and islands of small prosperous middle classes floating in the ocean of impoverished populations. However, even if the plan works, these societies would end up having unstable regimes. Under the pressure from their populations, they might refuse to take orders from Washington now and then, and could gravitate toward the IRI, hence denying the Empire and Israel the reliable puppets they badly need.

If the plan fails, we can expect one or both of the following outcomes. In some countries, people might get hold of political power, and produce governments with popular agendas that would break free from the American-Israeli Bloc in the region, and go the way of Iran, even though not necessarily becoming Islamic republics. In others, we might see countries looking more like Iraq and Pakistan, even like Afghanistan. Both of these outcomes would have disastrous consequences for the Empire. In the first case, the so-called “Resistance Bloc” would grow beyond Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas. In the second case, the Empire might deem it necessary to intervene with its NATO partners, and end up facing armed resistance, worldwide condemnation, and a massive drain on its resources. (There are indications that Libya is currently being set up for a possible military intervention.)

In the case of Iran, if the Empire succeeds in overthrowing or destabilizing the IRI—which seems unlikely at this point— we might witness a civil war between Westernized middle-classes and their pro-Empire supporters, on the one side, and the surviving IRI structures and elements united mostly with the working-class and the poor, on the other side. The greater danger for Iran would be the territorial disintegration of the country along its ethnic-regional lines. This could turn into a humanitarian tragedy far more devastating than the one the world witnessed in Yugoslavia in the1990s. Though the Empire has long dreamed of destroying the IRI, the coming true of its dream at this particular conjuncture could turn into a nightmare. The resulting instability in Iran could spread to Pakistan, Iraq, Turkey, the Republic of Azerbaijan, and the central Asian countries.

Lastly, if the IRI survives, the chances of success for the Empire’s plan would diminish considerably. The IRI is already positioning itself strategically to take advantage of the falling and failing regimes in the U.S.-Israeli Bloc. If the IRI survives, this would strengthen the Empire’s resolve to bomb it, an undertaking which would most likely backfire. The future in the Middle East looks grim for the Empire and Israel, and dangerous for the peoples of the region.

This article first appeared at www.intifada-palestine.com on March 18, 2001. See, also, Behzad Majdian, “A Glorified Military Coup in Egypt: An Aborted Revolution or the Genesis of a Genuine Revolution?” (MRZine, 14 February 2011) and “Obama, Iran, and Israel“ (MRZine, 2 March 2009). Behzad Majdian may be contacted at behzamaj@gmail.com.

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G. Rahmanian

Has There Been A Change Of Heart?

by G. Rahmanian on Sun Mar 27, 2011 08:31 PM PDT

Has Mr. Dabbashi had a change of heart vis-a-vis Iran's politics or is he still after reforming the regime? I detect some sort of ambiguity here, "... to be taught the dignity of a graceful exit, an ennobling silence." Not so compatible with the rhetoric preceding it.


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Mash Ghasem

A New Geography of Liberation.

by Mash Ghasem on Sun Mar 27, 2011 06:28 PM PDT

Hamid Dabashi

The delusion of "the end of history" has been replaced by a new geography of liberation.

The discourse of postcoloniality as we have known it over the last two
hundred years has come to an end—not with a bang but with a whimper.
After that speech we need a new language—the language of
postcoloniality, having had a false dawn when the European colonial
powers packed and left, has just started.

The eloquent discourses of defiance against the corrupting condition of
European coloniality reached their poetic crescendo last century with
Léopold Sédar Senghor, Aimé Césaire, and Albert Memmi, and came to a
conclusion with the theoretical passion and precision of Frantz Fanon,
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Gaddafi—the decadent and defiant relic of domestic tyranny picking up
from European colonial domination—the colonial discourse has finally
degenerated into mere Tourette syndrome.

Muammar
Gaddafi, after forty-two years of unsurpassed banality and cruelty, is among
the last vestiges of a European colonial destruction of not just world
material resources but far more crucial of a liberated moral
imagination. There are a number of these relics still around. Two of
them have been deposed. But still the criminal cruelty and the identical
gibberish of many more—from Morocco to Iran, from Syria to Yemen—are to
be taught the dignity of a graceful exit, an ennobling silence.

 

//english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/...


  •  
Joe L.

the author should not stop publishing the truth

by Joe L. on Sun Mar 27, 2011 05:36 PM PDT

there are many impolite readers. they dont know democracy and freedom if it hits them in the head. there are 1210 reads on this page with only 19 comments, obviously there are many readers who do read and have analytical minds to comprehend more complex articles like this one.


  •  
G. Rahmanian

I Wonder!

by G. Rahmanian on Sun Mar 27, 2011 03:54 PM PDT

I wonder which regime the coalition forces are going after, when they're done with Libya!


  •  
Mash Ghasem

All Hell Breaks Loose in the M.E.: says Prof. Juan Cole

by Mash Ghasem on Sun Mar 27, 2011 03:44 PM PDT

Friday saw major protests in Syria, Jordan and Yemen, along with
continued fighting in Libya. The Arab Spring has not breathed its last
gasp, but rather seems to be getting a second wind. Protesters are
crossing red lines set by governments and risking being shot. They know
that movements are watered with the blood of martyrs. One of the major
protests, in Deraa, Syria, on Friday was actually a funeral procession.
But the Baathist regime created dozens more martyrs in response to
being challenged. Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh seems to have
admitted he is outgoing, though he is bargaining with the crowds about
the timing and circumstances

//www.juancole.com/2011/03/all-hell-breaks-lo...


  •  
AMIR1973

Profound "analysis", indeed!

by AMIR1973 on Sun Mar 27, 2011 03:28 PM PDT

I literally do not have enough time to take apart this article piece by piece, so I will restrict myself to just a couple observations. The author states:

Moreover, notwithstanding its serious shortcomings in areas of social freedoms and individual rights, the IRI has managed to develop the country somewhat successfully, and has built a social-economic welfare system that provides assistance and services to the working people and the poor. 

With respect to "achievements" in the realm of socioeconomic welfare, it's worth noting that the IRI is ranked somewhere between 103rd and 132nd in life expectancy by country, i.e. lower than Egypt, Morocco, and Syria (all of which lack the IRI's huge reserves of oil and natural gas -- 3rd and 2nd largest in the world, respectively). With respect to infant mortality, the IRI is either 119th or 155th -- again, lower than Egypt. In view of Iran's huge mineral wealth and relatively urbanized population, these are quite pathetic rankings for such basic measures of its population's wellbeing.

It's also worth noting that within the past week, demonstrations have taken place in Syria, the IRI's closest "friend", which have far exceeded in the number of dead those of the IRI's "enemies" in Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, etc. 

 


  •  
Immortal Guard

Good Article!

by Immortal Guard on Sun Mar 27, 2011 07:54 AM PDT

Thanks for this article.

Thoughtful and perspicacious!


  •  
Sahar Naaz

Very good article indeed.

by Sahar Naaz on Sat Mar 26, 2011 09:42 PM PDT

Very good article indeed. It took a lot of courage to post it on a site with readers who generally lack depth in understanding the big picture, and are too quick to resort to name calling and attacking anything that they do not like or understand. I also checked the comments on the same article of yours posted at the dissidentvoice.org site. What a world of difference! If I may suggest, do not post anything here anymore. Do it where people would appreciate quality work, and behave in a civil manner in responding to what they disagree with.  


  •  
vildemose

Dear IRI-funded author: You

by vildemose on Sat Mar 26, 2011 05:09 PM PDT

Dear IRI-funded author: You are clueless about the Empire's plan. The plan is to make the entire region the Islamists hell where Shia and Sunni will kill each other mercilessly and the great rescuer will save the day once the entire region is devestated by war, famine and destruction.

Repeating the same old tired Bolshevik stuff is nothing original or insightful. Tell your paymasters that the soviet era propaganda no longer applies. The empire has a different plan....


  •  
Afshin Ehx

Dear. G. Rahmanian

by Afshin Ehx on Fri Mar 25, 2011 12:32 PM PDT

By calling the author “an ill-informed person”, you presume that you are “a well-informed person”. Could you please tell us the truth about the current situation with your well-informed analysis?

I read your compilations of dull and insipid phrases that you pass as poetry, and could not find any insight or depth in them. Here is your chance to shine, and to enlighten us. I dare you. 


  •  
G. Rahmanian

Wild Speculations!

by G. Rahmanian on Thu Mar 24, 2011 10:12 PM PDT

A patchwork of wild speculations and anachronistic conjectures by an ill-informed person.


  •  
Afshin Ehx

Well done Mr. Majdian! Thank you for the Article!

by Afshin Ehx on Fri Mar 25, 2011 01:25 PM PDT

 You were right on the money. All those people in this site who dis the article or you are either profoundly ignorant about what is going on in the world , especially in the middle east, or are among those sellouts that you have mentioned: westoxified Iranians who have sold their souls and have no sense of national dignity or genuine patriotism. They are also full of hate toward anyone who does not see the world the way they do.

I completely agree with you that in the age of globalism, all of the capitalist classes of the world have united, and been transformed into a transnational capitalist class with a common set of interests. The exceptions are the capitalist class of Iran, and to some extent those in Syria and China. I also agree that the modern middle-classes of the world are transforming themselves into a global class of their own, whose purpose in life is to serve the transnational capitalist class, leaving the rest of populations in each country (anywhere from 70% to 95% of the people) out in the cold. The U.S., Western Europe, Japan, and South Korea are not quite there yet, but if the transnational capitalist class under the leadership of the U.S. has its way, they will get there too. The neo-liberal reconstruction of the world economy—and its own form of politics and culture [the example of the Tea Party in the U.S.]—which began with the rise of Reagan is on the march. ….God have mercy on the world. 


  •  
FG

Ho-Hum! Another simplistic, conspiracy-minded ideologist

by FG on Thu Mar 24, 2011 08:10 PM PDT

Ideologists--whether religious or secular in nature--are similar in so many respects and always promote totalitarianism.  

Is there a single one that has not promoted grand conspiracy theories. talked of the ignorance of the massers and suggested the need for a "vanguard of the better informed?" 

Of course someone needs to guide the ignorant masses in the right direction and show them what's good for them. Obviously the author of the above post feels he has vanguard potential, given his superior if intuitive insights.  He can see things which we can't and for which there is not a jot of evidence.

Finger-wagging dogmatists are always dangerous...and boring. As for conspiracy theories, they appeal to the intellectually crippled.  Anyone can invent a conspiracy theory to taint others. 

Conspiracy theories always say "You can't disprove my conspiracy theory" and they are correct.  You can't prove the negative.  That's why the burden of proof must be on the one who offers us such a theory.  Where's the evidence kid?  Until you demonstrate otherwise, I find it hard to believe that that capitalists, masons, Jews, aliens in human guise or (whoever you chose) secretly controls the world and guides all events.  Such theories have circulated for hundreds among second-rate minds.  

The next step, exploiting a bad analogy, is to justify any bloodshed required to save us by the argument, "You can't make an omelet, without breaking eggs." To ideologists people become nothing more than eggs rather than creatures of flesh and bone capable of suffering in gulags and re-education camps.

Maybe Pol Pot with his Year Zero concept  and Khmer Rouge had the ideal way of "purifying" a country whose thinking had been tainted by western modernism.  Kill anyone who was contaminated or appeared to be.

PS--You forgot to mention Hegelian dialectics, "scientific socialism" and all that other much beloved claptrap.

I hate ideology and conspiracy theories as much as some people need them.  The psychological question is why people would find such theories appealing.


  •  
Sirius

Extraordinary article... I

by Sirius on Thu Mar 24, 2011 05:15 PM PDT

Extraordinary article... I think it summarize a lot of relevant ideas regarding the current relationship between the Third World and the First World (not only the USA).

In these times in which the USA has problems to control its own economical and social problems (e.g. its budgetary deficit, deindustrialization vs. Asia, etc.) , it would seem as far-fetched to think that the USA could have for itself such control of vast regions of the Third World.

However, he does not need to control directly... since the corrupt elites of those countries do it on its behaft. And as the article say, even the middle classes on those countries identify more with US interests than with their own countries, and represent an incredible leverage for imperialist purposes that could be used readily in case of need.

Was that the design of the USA?

I believe that many developing countries struggled to create their middle classes as a factor of growth and modernity... however, they never took the effort (I could not think right now on an example) to educate them politically or infuse them with a sound patriotic sentiment. Therefore they grew with a "globalization" Weltanschauung... that was little more, than USA adoration.

However - going specifically to the case of Iran - those Iranian middle classes and the million of students that currently populate Iranian Universities... are they really usefulll or necessary in the long term, in the designs of imperialist countries? I doubt it... and if they (those middle classes) succeed and go their own way...they may very well ending destroying themselves at the end.

It happened and continuous to happen in Latin America.

 Best Regards.


  •  
Mash Ghasem

It's the Popular Sovereignity, Stupid: Said Prof. Juan Cole

by Mash Ghasem on Thu Mar 24, 2011 12:00 AM PDT

The logic of the Arab spring is about popular sovereignty. The
people power being displayed in the streets, on twitter and Facebook, is
intended to sweep away impediments to the expression of the will of the
people, mainly presidents for life. The Arab crowds are investing
their hopes in a new era of parliamentarism, in elections and
constitutions, in term limits and referendums, in the rule of law and
the principle that governmental authority must derive from the people.
It is not that they are John Stuart Mill liberals. The crowds have a
communitarian aspect, and demands jobs and for free formation of labor
unions and the right to bargain collectively form a key part of the
protest movements. But such labor organizing is also seen by movement
participants and part of the expression of the popular will.

That the movements have been so powerfully informed by this
Rousseauan impulse helps explain their key demands and why they keep
spreading. The progression is that they begin with a demand that the
strong man step down. If they get that, they want a dissolution of old
corrupt ruling parties and elites. They want parliamentary elections.
They want term limits for the president and reduction of presidential
powers. They want new constitutions, newly hammered out, and subject to
national referendums. They want an end to corruption and croneyism.
They aim for future governments to be rooted in the national will.

//www.juancole.com/2011/03/its-the-popular-so... =================================================================  Top of all this, not to mention what rafigh tariq (it  rhyems) had to say: Tariq Ali-This Is An Arab 1848.


The
refusal of the people to kiss or ignore the rod that has chastised them
for so many decades has opened a new chapter in the history of the Arab
nation. The absurd, if much vaunted, neocon notion that Arabs or
Muslims were hostile to democracy has disappeared like parchment in
fire.

//www.zcommunications.org/this-is-an-arab-184...


  •  
Joe L.

dearest mr, robert

by Joe L. on Wed Mar 23, 2011 10:25 PM PDT

iran is influencing the region. iran has a lot of possibilities unknown to many iranians. i find most iranians out of iran not nationalistic, meaning that they dont care if iran is in a good position or bad but their issue is political alone, not national interest. to them iran politidally needs to change "no matter what". US wants whats best for US and iranians want what US wants, what does that mean? there are three parts to this (finally it comes down to this):

1- iranians who want iran to lose the battle to US and other powers

2-iranians who want iran to win

3- iranians who dont care

take your pick


  •  
robertborden54

The crap people learn in their polisci courses

by robertborden54 on Wed Mar 23, 2011 09:21 PM PDT

This is the same old crap they used to teach us in college years ago.  It has the aura of uncovering a great secret.  The type of machinations that ordinary folks wouldn't be able to figure out without peoper ideological (re)education.  COuntries act in their own interests it is as simple as that.  All this empire garbage is meant to portray one side as evil and the other (presumably the toiling masses) as morally superior.  The US has every right to make sure things turn out in a way that doesn't damage US standing in the world.  And the toiling masses can sometimes turn out to be just a mindless murderous mob.


  •  
Soosan Khanoom

IRI foreign policy may have

by Soosan Khanoom on Wed Mar 23, 2011 06:53 PM PDT

IRI foreign policy may have been a pain in the butt for the U.S and as you mentioned: "if the IRI survives, the chances of success for the Empire’s plan would diminish considerably "

But IRI domestic policy will not going to give IRI any chance to survive. The destruction of IRI from inside is something that could not have been in the Empire's plan no matter how badly the empire wanted that. The destruction from within and the domestic policies have always been in the mullahs hands. Well ..... they are doing a great job which means they are indirecting helping the Empire's plan .........

You also mentioned the middle class as the IRI opponents. Can I ask which middle class ?......  not much left ....... There are poor vs. rich ........ and any society with this lay out can not survive for long ......... 

 

 

 


  •  
afshinazad

how come they didn't finish the IRI

by afshinazad on Wed Mar 23, 2011 02:13 PM PDT

New order in the our region is nothing new and as long as I remember in our country been some movements and the only change was accrued was 1979 and that was absolutely disaster for our nation and the region, and the lefts were supported by Russian and rights were supported by American and center ISLAMIST was supported by British and Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq, Cuba, Lebanon, and Persian gulf islands, Muslim brotherhoods in Egypt.Today in our country our people are not supported with anyone but Iranian and that is why you don't find IRI looking for escape shuttle, they are so confident that even they are expanding their attacks and harsh punishments and if our region wants to be free of tyrants there is three countries must see 100% over hall and starts with Iran and Saudi Arabia, Syria, rest of the countries will follow with no bloodshed.If you referring super powers have everything to do with all these changes, there is no doubt that all these 7 countries share same goal and they have been using and taking anything they want to, look at china relationship with Iran, Iran have more contracts with china than anyone in world, Iranian oil fields and roads and dams and bridges and food and clotting and appliances and toys and many more and etc etc are imported from china and all these oil and gas field contracts are Billions of dollars contract and latest contract of south pars fields over 37 year with 60% to china only for 15 billion dollar over 37 year and that gives you only around 40 million dollar a year and yet Iranian rulers have transferred only over 4 billion dollar to china bank for their personal account just from last few month, hundreds of millions of dollar have been given to Hezbollah and Hamas and others and if there are occupiers like IRI are ruling our country these super powers milk more than ever and they don’t need to reform or change the governments like 60s or 70s or now to make money. Today thanks to Iranian living in western countries have been making a lot of impact on our society in Iran from last 10 to 15 years and specially Interment has been great library of knowledge for our young Iranian and I don’t see mass movement soon but next few month will be serious movement because of political factors are getting cleared and specially these reformist have lost the base and trust and people have better view and they are awake now 32 year of bullshit is slowly but surely disappearing among the public and I think this year would be bloody year but my crystal bull is cloudy now.

 


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Joe L.

Americans are very clever

by Joe L. on Wed Mar 23, 2011 10:06 AM PDT

we have a way of controlling governments around the globe. the third world is pretty much owned by us. you didn't know that? do you know how many governments work for us? it's not always direct influence, things fall in place when you have a large number of sellout politicians, military generals trained by our troops, large ngo's trained to promote our policies, etc. etc. willing and able to work with you, we got that. if nothing works then we'll bring in our military.


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waldo

This article is laughable

by waldo on Wed Mar 23, 2011 09:59 AM PDT

Neoleftist drivel. One could only wish that Americans are so clever that they are able to control things the way this author suggests. It is amazing the level of stupidity that some of these articles exhibit.


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Fred

Dream on!

by Fred on Wed Mar 23, 2011 06:16 AM PDT

The author of this write up says:

“we might witness a civil war between Westernized middle-classes and their pro-Empire supporters, on the one side, and the surviving IRI structures and elements united mostly with the working-class and the poor, on the other side.”

Sorry to burst your anti-Imperialist bubble, but the hungry “working-class” including the factory workers who don’t get paid months at a time, are among the most anti-Islamist Rapist Republic.

Now back to dreaming of fighting the western Imperialist/Capitalist to the last Iranian men, woman and children. Dream on!


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