Pictory

PPS Holly

This video conveniently deleted the IRI's sponsorship of international terrorism in its entirety. How does that qualify as "historical"? It's a lie. Flat out.

PS Holly

I would have ignored this post as I ignore most obviously pro-IRI posts on this website if it hadn't been for JJ's comment. Does he support the Green Movement, or not? If so, which Green Movement is it that is pro-IRI? Because, I don't want to have anything to do with that one and I'm becoming very confused. People who say they are with the opposition but praise the regime's propaganda? I'm losing brain cells trying to process that.

XPC

It is a historical narrative and the US is NOT the only one being 'pointed at'! Besides, as awful as the IRI may be, not EVERY SINGLE WORD it utters is a lie. Some are just historical facts that it uses to its benefit and yes some of those do include the actions of other countries. You may not like it, and trust me Iranians don't either and we wish it wasn't so, but it is what it is.

Craig, it's OK, you don't get it and likely never will

you continue to use the racist meme that Hezbollah = Iran, mainly perpetuated by Israel to take away any pride from Arab resistance movements.

Hezbollah is a legitimate, and elected representative of the Lebanese shiite population. I asked you before, Israel (and many other countries, like Apartheid South Africa) received real military assistance from the US, does that mean "America" was doing all their crimes?

Once again your selectivity is beyond laughable.

In this very episode America was the primary supporter of a bunch of International terrorists (Contras), who fielded brutal death squads, with absolutely no support in the population. US was found guilty of supporting terrorism even.

Don't make us laugh with your ideological bias and one-sided notion of history. The video is accurate and highlights all the relevant points.

I know you view these things as "fights". You said so yourself the other thread. But you really have to grow up sometimes. This is not about blame, but objective facts.

Holly

Chill out. This is a very rare, unique and excellent piece.  You're looking at it with a bias view (in more than one way perhaps).

Holly, I can't find one thing in that video that blames the Islamic Republic for anything. All fingers are pointed at the US. And I can't believe anyone would take a video seriously that claims to be about US-Iran relations and doesn't even mention the elephant in the room - Lebanese Hezbollah.

Me? Bias? This video is tilted 100% to IRI. Who could possibly watch it and think it is "balanced", as JJ said in the first comment here. Associating this video with the Green Movement  is afreaking disaster because this is the IRI narrative, verbatim. And I'm sorry, Holly, but the IRI narrative is not "rare" or "unique". I've been hearing this exact stuff from IRI apologists forever.

JJ, what the hell do you have to say about it? I'm sure you must have noticed this video never talks about Hezbollah and Lebanon, right? Or were you so eager to believe the US was totally at fault for everything that it never even occurred to you that those... minor... bits should be included?

XPC

Chill out. This is a very rare, unique and excellent piece.  You're looking at it with a bias view (in more than one way perhaps).

YouTube

I'm trying to find a way to get YouTube to delete this person's account. I think it's vile for this individual to be posting propaganda for the IRI under the name "NedaSoltan" when it was the IRI that murdered Neda Soltan.

Worst part...

Is that the perosn distributing this pro-IRI garbage is using the name "NedaSoltan". Very clever way to to discredit the Green Movement in the eyes of Americans.

JJ, if the IRI had directly sponsored the making of this video, would they have done anything differently? Is it not their EXACT narrative? Without deviation?

And you call it a balanced piece...what have you been smoking tonight?

And one more thing...

Which is the part where she talks about how the hostage takers were extradited to the US to stand trial for kidnapping and terrorism? Surely that must be in there, right?

PS JJ

Does it ease your conscience about being a pro-revolutionary during those years? Is that what's going on?

JJ

Description of the video on YouTube:

America will probably go to war with Iran and here is the history.. 

JJ, this is a despicable video for you to be praising, on this of all days. And if you want to delete my account for saying that, go right ahead.

"Student's" demands?

lol. JJ, I can understand why creatures like Q praise this, but what's your deal?

And balanced? This is pure one sided propaganda. Since when is a one-sided presentation "balanced", JJ?

Q... I couldn't stomach watching the whole thing because it's disgusting, but I skimmed it and was unable to find any mention of Hezbollah at all... can you give me the timestamp so I can seek it to the proper point? I'm sure you've watched it 5 or 6 times by now, right?

Q

Iran should never have broken the sanctions law that US congress had placed on it, even if US President itself was offering to break that law! guilty!!!

IRI should never have started kidnapping westerners in Lebanon in order to extort agreements out of the US such as this one. Did the video cover that as well? I haven't watched it yet, but judging by the way you are creaming your jeans over it, Q, I'm guessing not :o

Mr. Kadivar

Thanks for your post. Very informative. By the way, I can't stand Berzsnski and now I realize why I cant stand this Pro IRI Trita Parsi character. It explains a lot of things. This Berzsnski character was instrumental in Carter's failed Iran policy and why Bakhtiar failed.

A Balanced tale

حالا گور بابای خدا و دین و مذهب و محمد و عیسی و موسی، وجدان تاریخ را از نظر دور نکنید : شاه دیکتاتور نبود بلکه یک پادشاه مطلق العنان بود دیگه چه سفسطه از آخوندی بد تریه ؟

In your face; you know who...

Most fair; most balanced; Pure Iranian or, Persian or, whatever and not ...

Thanks GS; to me you are MP which stands for Mozaffar Polo.

Friends don't hesitate to flag me.

The Pahlavis and all mullas must disclose the source and the amount of their wealth.

Agreed, one of the more balanced view that I have seen in a long

time.

American Dream, you are correct and I agree with you. Iranians played a big role in all of this and for sure they are responsible, at least partially. Perhaps, now they are trying to prevent what has happened to them for the last few hundred years, controlled, manipulated and oppressed by foreign powers.

Mehrdad

ahmad_ In Your Worst Nightmares I hope ..

Just Behind You:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Db40S82sqic

Just In Time to Run Your Through ... FOR KING AND COUNTRY:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=rA8MeJFRh04

LOL

None of You Noticed Two Slight Errors .in her Comments ? ;0)..

1) She Claims Hauser as an Instigator of a Coup that failed

WHEN IN FACT :

General Hauser ( She doesn't name him but mentions Carters Nato General Sent to IRan) was actually sent to IRan during Shapour Bakhtiar's tenure as Prime Minister to make sure the Army Won't try to over throw the government and install a Military dictatorship.

Anxiety was increased by the arrival in Tehran of the commander of the American land forces in Europe, General Hauser. The ostensible purpose of his visit to Tehran was to discuss the problems of arms supply in the aftermath of the disturbance and uprising in Iran, but also to dissuade the Iranian military from attempting a coup d 'etat.

This visit was very badly interpreted both by the ARMY and BAKHTIAR as an attempt to paralyse any initiative that could have indeed led to pulling the country together which would have certainly led to a VERY different Outcome than the DISASTER that Followed with the Triumph of the Revolution. 

The Carter administration's Trilateral Commission foreign policy further ensured that any European effort from Germany and France to develop more cooperative trade, economic and diplomatic relations with their Soviet neighbor, under the umbrella of détente and various Soviet-west European energy agreements, was also thrown into disarray.

Carter's security adviser, Zbigniew Brzezinski ( Former Teacher of NIAC's Trita Parsi) , and secretary of state, Cyrus Vance, implemented their 'Arc of Crisis' policy, spreading the instability of the Iranian revolution throughout the perimeter around the Soviet Union. Throughout the Islamic perimeter from Pakistan to Iran, U.S. initiatives created instability or worse."

2) A QUESTION OF SEMANTICS: A SHAH is NOT a  "DICTATOR" BUT AN "ABSOLUTE KING" ! ...

This is Not a Moral issue on whether a Dictator is Better than an Absolute King or Vice Versa or Even Good or Bad ... 

It is obvious that in both cases public opinion has no say and power is not shared.

However understanding the difference between the two FORMS of governance and the arguments upon which they justify their role is important, be it to comprehend why culturally and psychologically  some countries chose an absolute monarchy as opposed to a dictatorship which has often been a Republic or a Totalitarian State.

For instance history offers no example of a Monarchy in History which was a Totalitarian State.

Indeed the latter is a modern concept of a dictatorship which basically was defined by the regimes in Nazi Germany or Stalinist Soviet Union in the first half of the 20th century. They were then copied by many other thrid world nations be it under Right Wing or Left Wing color. 

In a Totalitarian State Power is often actually shared in the hands of a minor few at the head of a Party with a figurehead on top.

A Totalitarian System depends on a given Ideology aimed and changing and shaping Man according to a certain 'idealized" image defined by the State, even presented as equals so as to create a uniformized society. In otherwords they interfere in people's private lives and all aspects of their social life.

As Such this is not always the case in all dictatorships.

In otherwords ...

ALL TOTALITARIAN SYSTEMS ARE INDEED DICTATORSHIPS !

But

NOT ALL DICTATORSHIPS ARE TOTALITARIAN SYSTEMS !

Many Dictatorships simply aim at keeping a person or system in power but do not necessarily interfere in the pattern of life of the people they rule upon. But they do discourage by force if necessary any type of dissent or activities deemed subversive.

The Use of the Term "Dictator" is innaccurate mainly because it usually is applied to anyone be it a military or not with no particular Legitimacy or heriditary role within a country's Constitution but who takes upon himself or herself to take power in his or her own hands by force: Example Eva Peron or her husband in Argentina, General Pinochet in Chili, Idi Amin Dada in Uganda, Franco in Spain  to name a few ...

Therefore

A DICTATORSHIP CAN BECOME AN ABSOLUTE MONARCHY:

example BOKASA in Africa who was a trained officer in the French Army and who later Crowned Himself King of Central Africa.

BUT A MONARCHY IS NOT NECESSARILY A DICTATORSHIP !

The Shah Reigned as a Purely Constitutional Monarch nearly like in any modern European Monarchy prior to the so called "Coup". It is Only AFTER the events of 53 that he indeed became an Absolute Monarch.

In addition given the Constitution The King in Iran was Head of State and Could name the Prime Minister and distitute him as he pleased. So when a Prime Minister decided to kick out his own Boss on claims that the "people" are on his side, he is basically trying to destitute the State and establish his own regime. That has a name in Any country dictatorship or not, it's called : Treason.

So Where does the Term Coup Apply in this context ? The Shah who as Head of State takes back his due ? Or the Prime Minister who takes upon himself to Topple the head of State and dissolves the Parliament ?

I explained in another thread on another blog here:

//iranian.com/main/blog/irandokht/parliamentary-monarchy

That Despite having a Constitution, Iran was never truly a Constitutional Monarchy since no one was above the King and certainly not the Parliament despite elected representatives. And this did not date from the Pahlavis but already prior to them under the last Qajar Kings.

So in such a context How can One claim that Mossadegh Was an entirely Democratically Elected Prime Minister ?

This is a typical interpretation that suits people who are unaware or pretend to overlook the Political Realities of IRan in the last 100 years.  It may be enough to satisfy an American Novice Student in History at University or someone like Stephan Kinzer author of All the Shah's Men who never Set Foot in IRan and sees things only through the spectrum of a Western Scholar out of touch with the realities of the country that fascinates him from an academic point of view.

History is NOT Absolute Science !

La Preuve:

parviz-radji-former-pahlavi-era-ambassador-uk-gives-his-insights-events-1953:

//iranian.com/main/news/2009/11/01/parviz-radji-former-pahlavi-era-ambassador-uk-gives-his-insights-events-1953

So the minimum is to compare testimonies before quickly jumping to conclusions or making false or innacurate comparisons.

LASTLY DON'T CLAIM TO UNDERSTAND THE SHAHNAMEH  OR TO BE PROUD OF IT IF YOU STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND THE VERY CONCEPT OF KINGSHIP IN YOUR COUNTRY !

Rostam Strikes Back! By Darius Kadivar

Rostam Super Hero: Popularizing A Persian Myth...  by Darius KADIVAR

EPIC MOVIE: The Timeless Legend of Rostam and Sohrab by Darius KADIVAR

Otherwise ...

Welcome to the DARK AGES OF ZAHAK ALI !

Rostam: The DARK AGES By DK

KHEJALAT HAM KHOUB CHEEZEYEH  !

Best,

DK

Hey DK where are YOU?

waiting to see a comment from dariush Kadivar.

A Very Well-Put-Together Documentary

We Iranians Have To Understand That No-One Is Going To Be Concerned Abour Our Welfare, But Us

In My Book, Dr. Mohammad Mossadeq Was A Great Patriot .. His Judgement On Certain Issues  May Not Have Been 100% Where It Should Have Been, However, His Heart Was Indeed In The Right Place

I Found This Clip On The Internet Regarding A Short Speech By This Great Man:

Looking Forward To The Day When We Can Establish A Secular Democracy In Our Beloved Iran

Tks For The Clip :)

American Dream, you're right!

Iran is also guilty of buying arms from the United States of America

Iran should never have broken the sanctions law that US congress had placed on it, even if US President itself was offering to break that law! guilty!!!

LOL!

The History of Iran 1953, 1979 and today

The 1953 Coup would not be possible with out Iranians playing a vital role in Operation Ajax.  In 1979 Iranians played a vital role in the Iranian Revolution.  During the Iran Contra Affair Iran is also guilty of buying arms from the United States of America.  The video clip does tell Iranian history but, it is easy to blame others for one's own short comings.  Iran has over 1001 problems. 

It's a good answer to those who want to rewrite history

of which, you don't have a shortage of on your website, JJ, by the way.

Also a good lesson to Islamophobes who have seemingly learned nothing from history.

The only complaint I would have is that in (correct) pursuit to show the US as an imperialist seeking to maintain the balance of power, she implied that Iran received a comparable amount of aid during Iran Iraq war. The truth is that the Iran-contra shipment mounted to almost nothing compared to what Iraq got. So although she did not lie, a short clarification was warranted.

Thanks for posting.

Hits every point

I don't remember reading or watching something where I agreed with almost every point. Usually they are too far in this or that direction. But to me, this video said it all perfectly. It seems like it was made a couple of years ago in the Bush era, but its fundamental truths still apply.