America’s Founders saw press freedom as a key check on government dishonesty, but today’s media has become a powerful ally of official lies by funneling sophisticated propaganda especially in support of war, as Lawrence Davidson notes about the hysteria over Iran.
By Lawrence Davidson
Winston Churchill once said, “No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others that have been tried from time to time.” He was right.
Democracy in its various manifestations is a flawed system, flawed by virtue of its roots. By definition it is the system where power flows from the people (or at least a supposed majority of the people), and as there are no perfect people, then … Well, the logic speaks for itself.
Many of democracy’s problems are common to all forms of governance. For instance, (a) the tendency of a political leader to mistake his or her own interests or that of his party, for the nation’s or community’s interests and (b) the corruptive influence of powerful subgroups or lobbies usually coming through the manipulation of money and other resources.
Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels
The ubiquitous nature of these problems suggests that they are structural, that is they are built into the system no matter what form a government takes. That does not mean such flaws cannot be held in check or minimized. As James Madison, the father of the U.S. Constitution believed, they might be subject to control by a well-crafted constitution. However, it is unlikely that they can be eliminated.
Today, we are presented with a stark example of U.S. democracy’s systemic flaws. Again, these bring together the influence of small but powerful and wealthy subgroups with the tendency of national leaders to define interests in personal ways. The trigger for the present structural malfunction is a foreign policy issue, the issue of Iran (which, alas, is a reworking of the recent issue of Iraq).
As the ConsortiumNews website puts it “a torrent of war propaganda against Iran is flooding the American political scene as U.S. neocons and Israeli hardliners see an opening for another war in the Middle East.” This statement which, in my opinion, is quite accurate, suggests to us:
1. There are relatively small warmongering lobbies in the country which are ideologically driven and continuously active. Hence, the powerful subgroups.
2. Principal among them are neoconservatives and hard-line Zionists. Both of these groups are endowed with “deep pockets” and therefore can buy a lot of politicians and media access. Buying such influence, as long as it is done within very loose guidelines, is at once disastrous and perfectly legal. Hence, corruption through the manipulation of money.
3. Thus, despite their sizes, these subgroups have managed to flood the media with false allegations that Iran is about to become a dangerous nuclear power. This replicates recent history when the same subgroups flooded the media with false allegations of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.
The result is a major skewing of American policy. How so? Because the vast majority of elected leaders do not reckon interest in national terms, nor do they care about the truth or falsehood of their lobby supporters’ claims. They calculate interest in terms of their own personal and party political needs.
Those needs are (a) financial assets to run elections and (b) aligning themselves with the popular mood in ways that generate votes. The lobbies, or subgroups, have the money to manipulate both of those needs. They can help the politician finance his or her election, and they can run the advertisements that help shape public opinion and mood. Hence the policy formation follows the dictates of the lobbies.
4. The aim of the two subgroups in question is a new war in the Middle East with the target this time Iran. Iran’s danger, as put forth by the lobbies, goes largely unquestioned by both the politicians and a bulk of the media despite the fact that there is a recent, horrific precedent in simply accepting this warmongering. That precedent is the recent war in Iraq.
In that case, the crippling economic sanctions, followed by invasion, led to the death and maiming of millions. That this horror was carried forward on the basis of lies is now assiduously ignored. That the same fate may well await Iran is actually presented as desirous.
It is to be kept in mind that if those who spread lies that result in slaughter and massive destruction are citizens of or protected by a superpower, no punishment will accrue. None of the major liars that brought us the Iraq war have been punished. One can hardly think of a more corrupt political situation.
Learning from Herr Goebbels
The lies of the neoconservatives and hard-line Zionists are part of an “MO” or modus operandi that is not original to them. Whether they do so purposely or coincidently, they are following the observation of the Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, who claimed that the English understood that “when one lies, one should lie big” and noted “that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility” — lessons the Nazis applied themselves.
In the present case, the neoconservatives and hard-line Zionists first created false charges (Iran’s alleged desire for nuclear weapons and willingness to use them against the U.S. and Israel) and are now, with the cooperation of the mass media, repeating them over and over again as if they were true.
They ignore (and pressure the media to ignore) all the evidence that says their charges are false. Thus, the scant press coverage given to the two comprehensive U.S. National Intelligence Estimates, one in 2007 and a follow-up one in 2011, both of which concluded that Iran shut down its nuclear weapons program in 2003 and has not revived it since.
Simultaneously, they bring forward untrustworthy testimony of Iranian expatriates and known liars that support their claims (this does get media coverage). All the while urging greater and greater sanctions aimed at the systematic destruction of target country’s economy.
As suggested above, the structural flaws in the political system make the warmongering neocons and faceless Israeli agents in the guise of lobbyists one half of the equation. Our own politicians are the other half. In the American system, one of the legal factors that serves to connect the two halves of the equation is the Supreme Court’s 1976 decision (Buckley vs. Valeo) declaring one’s unfettered right to buy as much “free speech” as one has money.
Thus both the politicians and the media venues know where they are going when, as they say, they follow the money. In the last round, the money demanded war rhetoric focused on Iraq. This time, it demands war talk focused on Iran. And, sure enough, that is what we get.
In December 2011, both the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate passed bills seeking to destroy the Iranian economy by crippling its oil trade and destroying the functionality of the country’s central bank. It is a testimony to the strength of the neoconservatives and Zionists that the votes were 410-11 in the House and 100-0 in the Senate.
This is obviously an ongoing bipartisan fiasco. Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, declared his satisfaction with the congressional votes by effortlessly stating the conventional wisdom that now dominates Official Washington: “Iran’s actions pose a danger to the United States and the entire world.”
It makes no difference if the senator believes his own hyperbole. His actions lead to the increased suffering of ordinary Iranians. Out on the campaign trail, most of the Republican presidential candidates parrot the same line:
1. Mitt Romney supports “crippling sanctions” against Iran because, he declares, “the greatest threat that Israel faces, and frankly the greatest threat the world faces, is a nuclear Iran.” Again, it makes no difference if Romney really believes this or is just playing for Zionist lobby money. He adds to the building war mania and gets in line for his share of responsibility for the sanctions that are undercutting the livelihoods of innocent people.
2. Newt Gingrich has publicly committed himself to attacking Iran if such action can result in regime change. He is ready to “collaborate with the Israelis on a conventional campaign” against Iran.
3. Rick Santorum told the American public that if he were elected president “I would be saying to the Iranians, you either open those facilities, begin to dismantle them and make them available to inspectors or we will degrade those facilities through air strikes.” Poor Rick, he seems unaware that international inspectors regularly visit the Iranian facilities. Poor the rest of us, if Rick becomes president!
There is a famous child’s idiom that goes “sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me.” Its message, whispered into the ears of millions of children, is just not true. Words are potential weapons. They not only can make us feel bad (and that hurts), they can also be used to motivate us to pick up the sticks and stones that break other’s bones.
And, of course, we have long ago gone beyond sticks and stones. Therefore it is with bloody irresponsibility that neoconservatives, extreme Zionists and a large array of American politicians blithely incite their fellows to war.
Civilian life must mean very little to them, as little as truth itself. The former is readily reduced to splattered bits of flesh in the wake of attacks by drones, fighter jets, attack helicopters, cruise missiles, tanks, and machine guns, etc. and the latter is reduced to propagandistic incitement brought to you by a weaponized Fox News.
So we and our leaders are myopic and greedy, and our lobbyists savagely single-minded and this, in turn, finds license in a structurally flawed political system.
Actually, being aware of all this offers no excuse at all. We have known about our faults for a very long time. James Madison was thoroughly versed in these problems and his attempt, through the Constitution, to safeguard against them was sincere and noble.
But his results, despite later attempts to augment his work, have been mixed at best. And things will stay that way until we address our main need we need to find a constitutionally safe way to protect ourselves from our own lies.
Lawrence Davidson is a history professor at West Chester University in Pennsylvania. He is the author of Foreign Policy Inc.: Privatizing America’s National Interest; America’s Palestine: Popular and Offical Perceptions from Balfour to Israeli Statehood; and Islamic Fundamentalism.
A history professor resorting to propaganda? Not a chance. Take for instance, this article written by Davidson in Aug 2010:
http://uprootedpalestinians.blogspot.com/2010/08/dr-lawrence-davidson-netanyahu-abbas.html
Now if you muscle past the hysterical application of color and bold text, and you ignore the cartoon of world leaders performing sexual acts upon one another, you will agree with me that Davidson’s only intent it to share the facts with us, and not to create a particular impression.
The Intrigues of Persia
Humanitarian gestures and covert actions won’t stop Iran’s bomb..
As a supervisor at the uranium enrichment plant in Natanz, Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan was engaged in building a nuclear bomb in violation of four binding U.N. Security Council resolutions. On Wednesday he was assassinated after a bomb was attached to his car, making him the fifth senior Iranian nuclear scientist known to have been killed in recent years.
His death will serve a useful purpose if it convinces a critical mass of his colleagues to cease pursuing an atomic critical mass. That wouldn’t be a bad way to bring the confrontation over Iran’s nuclear program to a peaceful conclusion. But don’t count on it.
Opponents of Tehran’s nuclear ambitions have been attempting for years to use a combination of diplomacy, sanctions and covert action to persuade the mullahs that they have more to lose than gain from building a bomb. So far, none of it has worked: Diplomacy has mostly allowed the Iranians to play for time. Sanctions so far have been too narrowly targeted to have much effect, though that may change now that the U.S. and Europe are finally targeting Iran’s oil trade.
As for covert activity, we may someday learn the full story of who did what, how they did it, and what effect it all had. But to judge by last November’s report on Iran’s nuclear programs by the International Atomic Energy Agency, Tehran is closer than ever to a bomb. That’s despite the Stuxnet computer worm, the assassinations, and last year’s mysterious explosion at a missile factory.
What goes in the cloak-and-dagger world also goes for public diplomacy. Americans can take pride in last week’s dramatic rescue by the destroyer USS Kidd of 13 Iranian sailors who had spent 40 days as hostages of Somali pirates. But if the Administration thought that would break the tension following Iran’s threats over the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran had other ideas.
Days after the Kidd rescue, Iran imposed a death sentence on 28-year-old Amir Hekmati, an Arizona-born Iranian-American and former U.S. Marine. Mr. Hekmati was charged with spying for the CIA and convicted of being moharebe, or an enemy of God, the worst offense in the Iranian penal code. The U.S. government categorically denies that Mr. Hekmati worked as a spy. His family says he was in Iran on his first visit to see his grandmothers when he was arrested last August.
The Islamic Republic has a long history of detaining foreigners on dubious espionage charges and then trying to use them as diplomatic bargaining chips. But if Mr. Hekmati is simply their latest victim, the death sentence is unprecedented for an American citizen. It is also a reminder of how little U.S. gestures like Thursday’s rescue count in Tehran’s calculus. An evil regime will not be swayed by the conspicuous performance of good deeds.
Much of the world wants to believe that force won’t be necessary to stop Iran’s nuclear ambitions, but the explosions and killings show that a covert war involving deadly force is already underway. The Obama Administration says Iran plotted to kill a Saudi ambassador in a Washington, D.C. restaurant, and Iran is trying to kill U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan as it previously did in Iraq. Many more people will die if the world doesn’t get serious about stopping this rogue regime.
Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page 16
Why Anti-Semitism Is Moving Toward the Mainstream
by Alan M. Dershowitz
January 3, 2012 at 2:45 pm
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For the first time since the end of World War II, classic anti-Semitic tropes—”the Jews” control the world and are to blame for everything that goes wrong, including the financial crisis; “The Jews killed Christian children in order to use the blood to bake Matzo; the Holocaust never happened—are becoming acceptable and legitimate subjects for academic and political discussion. To understand why these absurd and reprehensible views, once reserved for the racist fringes of academia and politics, are now moving closer to the mainstream, consider the attitudes of two men, one an academic, the other a politician, toward those who express or endorse such bigotry. The academic is Professor Brian Leiter. The politician is Ron Paul.
You’ve probably never heard of Leiter. He’s a relatively obscure professor of jurisprudence, who is trying to elevate his profile by publishing a gossipy blog about law school professors. He is a colleague of John Mearsheimer, a prominent and world famous professor at the University of Chicago.
Several months ago Mearsheimer enthusiastically endorsed a book, really a pamphlet, that included all the classic anti-Semitic tropes. It was entitled “The Wandering Who” and written by Gilad Atzmon, a British version of David Duke, who plays the saxophone and has no academic connections. Atzmon writes that we must take “very seriously” the claim that “the Jewish people are trying to control the world.” He calls the recent credit crunch “the Zio punch.” He says “the Holocaust narrative” doesn’t make “historical sense” and expresses doubt that Auschwitz was a death camp. He invites students to accept the “accusations of Jews making Matzo out of young Goyim’s blood.”
Books and pamphlets of this sort are written every day by obscure anti-Semites and published by disreputable presses that specialize in this kind of garbage. No one ever takes notice, except for neo-Nazis around the world who welcome any additions to the literature of hate.
What is remarkable about the publication of this hateful piece of anti-Semitic trash, is that it was enthusiastically endorsed by two prominent American professors, John Mearsheimer and Richard Falk, who urged readers, including students, to read, “reflect upon” and “discuss widely” the themes of Atzmon’s book. Never before has any such book received the imprimatur of such established academics.
I was not shocked by these endorsements, because I knew that both of these academics had previously crossed “red lines,” separating legitimate criticism of Israel from subtle anti-Semitism. Mearsheimer has accused American Jews of dual loyalty, and Falk has repeatedly compared Israel to Nazi Germany. Both were so enthusiastic about Atzmon’s anti-Zionism—he has written that Israel is “worse” than the Nazis—that they were prepared to give him a pass on his classic “blood libel” anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial. No great surprise there.
What was surprising—indeed shocking—was the fact that Mearsheimer’s relatively apolitical colleague, Brian Leiter, rushed to Mearsheimer’s defense. Without bothering even to read Atzmon’s book, Leiter pronounced that Atzmon’s “positions [do not mark him] as an anti-Semite [but rather as] cosmopolitan.” Leiter also certified that Atzmon “does not deny the Holocaust or the gas chambers.” Had Leiter read the book, he could not have made either statement.
Atzmon himself credits “a man who…was an anti-Semite” for “many of [his] insights” and calls himself a “self-hating Jew” who has contempt for “the Jew in me.” If that’s not an admission of anti-Semitism, rather than “cosmopolitanism,” I don’t know what is. As far as the Holocaust is concerned, Atzmon asserts that it is not “an historical narrative.” And as to the gas chambers, he doubts that the “Nazis ran a death factory in Auschwitz-Berkanau.”
Leiter went so far as to condemn those who dared to criticize Mearsheimer for endorsing Atzmon’s book, calling their criticism “hysterical” and not “advance[ing] honest intellectual discourse.” And he defended Mearsheimer’s endorsement as “straight forward.”
The Brian Leiters of the world are an important part of the reason why anti-Semitic tropes are creeping back to legitimacy in academia. His knee-jerk defense of an admitted Jew hater—who, according to Leiter is not a despicable anti-Semite but an acceptable “cosmopolitan”—contributes to the legitimization of anti-Semitism.
The same can be said of Ron Paul, who everyone has heard of. Paul has, according to The New York Times, refused to “disavow” the “support” of “white supremacists, survivalists and anti-Zionists who have rallied behind his candidacy.” (These “anti-Zionists” believe that “Zionists”—Jews—control the world, were responsible for the bombing of the Oklahoma federal building, and caused the economic downturn, because “most of the leaders involved in the federal and international banking system are Jews.”) He allowed his “Ron Paul survival report” to espouse David Duke type racism and anti-Semitism for years during the 1990s, claiming he was unaware that they were being promoted under his name. Edward H. Crane, the founder of the libertarian CATO Institute, has said, “I wish Ron would condemn those fringe things that float around” his campaign, but he refuses to reject the support of these anti-Semites who form a significant part of his base. The New York Times has criticized Paul for his failure to “convincingly repudiate racist remarks that were published under his name for years—or the enthusiastic support he is getting from racist groups,” including those that espouse “anti-Semitism and far right paranoia.”
Even now, Paul continues to accept contributions from Holocaust deniers, from those who blame the Jews for everything and from other bigots, thus lending some degree of legitimacy to their hateful views.
When Nazi anti-Semitism began to achieve mainstream legitimacy in Germany and Austria in the 1930’s, it was not because Hitler, Goebbels and Goering were espousing it. Their repulsive views had been known for years. It was because non Nazis—especially prominent academics, politicians and artists—were refusing to condemn anti-Semitism and those who espoused it.
It has been said that “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Leiter and Paul may or may not be good men, but they are guilty of more than merely doing nothing. They are, by their actions, helping to legitimate the oldest of bigotries. Shame on them!
Shame on Zionist that they used and abused the notion ‘Anti-Semitism’ so much that it has lost it’s value as a valid concept.
Bible:
Bible Relates that the Khazar (Ashkenaz) Jews were/are the sons of Japheth not Shem:
“Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood. The sons of Japheth;…the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz…”
(Genesis 10:1-3)
Therefore, the Bible proves that the Ashkenaz Jews [Khazars] are not the descendants of Shem and cannot be Semite.
Academic American Encyclopedia, Deluxe Library Edition, Volume 12, page 66 states:
“The Khazars, a Turkic people, created a commercial and political empire that dominated substantial parts of South Russia during much of the 7th through 10th centuries. during the 8th century the Khazar aristocracy and the Kagan (King) were converted to Judaism.
Collier’ s Encyclopedia, Volume 14, page 65 states:
“Khazars [kaza’rz], a semi-nomadic tribe of Turkish or Tatar origin who first appeared north of the Caucasus in the early part of the third century…in the Eighth Century Khaghan Bulan decided in favor of the Jews and accepted Judaism for himself and for his people.
The Cadillac Modern Encyclopedia, page 822, states:
“Khazars (khah’-zahrz), a S Russian people of Turkic origin, who at the height of their power (during the 8th-10th cent., A.D.) controlled an empire which included Crimea, and extended along the lower Volga, as far E as the Caspian Sea. The Khazar Royal Family and aristocracy converted to Judaism during the reign of King Bulan (768-809 A.D.) and Judaism was thereafter regarded as the State Religion.
The Encyclopedia Judaica, Vol. 10, (1971) relates the following about the Khazars (Chazars):
“Khazars, a national group of general Turkic type, independent and sovereign in Eastern Europe between the seventh and tenth centuries A.D. During part of this time the leading Khazars professed Judaism.
What can you expect from an AshkeNAZI jews,propaganda,lies,deceit.
No wonder Jesus call them in Revelation 2:9,,3:9 ,,The Synagogue of satan.Those criminals jews are not Israel,they never been israel,and they never will.Those impostors are Edomites-Reds,comunist,children of satan.Read this important book for free on internet to understand the whole truth,how those fake,impostors,terrorist will be destroy forever.
Who is Esau-Edom.
“There may be no foolproof way of stopping Iran, but more can be done.”
I wish there were a way to stop your rantings and spreading of propaganda.
You are exactly the kind this article is talking about. Fanatically obsessed with your beliefs that are based on hatred.
you’re more naive than Neville Chamberlain
Wow, this guy really is handicapped. If he knew something of Iran’s recent history – let’s say from 1950 on – he might understand why and how Iran came to be the way it is and how democracy was stymied in that country from 1953 to 1980 and how in an indirect way the US was responsible for the present regime in Tehran. Then he might sympathise with Iran’s present concern at being surrounded by hostile states. Then again, he might not.
“I certainly do not see Iran as a threat.”
David Harris
January 8, 2012
These words are destined for the history books.
They were uttered by Ahmet Davutoglu, the Turkish foreign minister, during a recent visit to Tehran.
Other than such brilliant luminaries as Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez, and North Korea’s new strongman, Kim Jong Un, few world leaders today would echo Davutoglu’s views.
But then again, as chief architect of Turkey’s “zero problems with neighbors†foreign policy, he also got Syria wrong. With his encouragement, and as a 2010 Congressional Research Service report documented, the Turkish government moved closer to Assad, conducting joint military exercises, lifting visa requirements, and creating a bilateral strategic council, led by its prime ministers.
Only after Assad brutalized protesters, killing, imprisoning, and torturing with abandon, did Turkey reverse course. That the Syrian leader’s true nature should never have been in doubt obviously escaped Davutoglu.
Pace Davutoglu, Iran is a serious threat – and getting more so.
It has declared a readiness to close the Strait of Hormuz, which, in 2011, accounted for an estimated 35 percent of oil worldwide transported by tankers, demanding the U.S. naval fleet not reenter the waterway.
It openly defies the UN Security Council, not to mention the International Atomic Energy Agency, with its nuclear program.
It menaces neighboring Arab countries, some of which have bluntly called for an iron-fist response to Iran’s belligerence.
It has been accused by the Obama administration of collaborating with Mexican drug cartels to plan the assassination of the Saudi ambassador in Washington.
It calls for a world without Israel.
Its defense minister is wanted by Argentine authorities, and the subject of an Interpol “red notice,†for his complicity in terrorist attacks in Buenos Aires that killed 115 people and injured hundreds.
It supports Assad’s crackdown in Syria that has resulted in well over 5,000 deaths to date, and arms Hezbollah, which undermines Lebanese sovereignty by creating a state within a state.
And it stomps on the rights of its own people, as evidenced by the massive repression of those challenging the rigged June 2009 elections.
Now imagine this regime with nuclear-weapons capability. And remember that the power of the bomb comes not just from its use, but also from its mere possession.
The looming question is what to do about the Iranian threat.
Well, it would be nice to think that talks could dissuade Tehran from moving ahead, and, yes, the door should always be ajar, but, frankly, a serious deal is hardly in the offing.
For one thing, negotiations have been tried before by the major countries, to no avail, while Iran has bought precious time for its nuclear program.
And for another, Iran has doubtless learned something from two countries in particular.
The first is North Korea.
Having the bomb and keeping everyone guessing about what it’s capable of doing has gained Pyongyang negotiating room. Despite critical statements from Western capitals, the fact is that everyone is tiptoeing, at times kowtowing, for fear that the North Koreans might actually unleash havoc against Japan, South Korea, or U.S. troops stationed in the area.
The lesson for Tehran? Having the bomb offers unique leverage and power.
The second is Libya.
If Muammar Gaddafi had not yielded to the Bush administration in 2003 and abandoned its nuclear program, he might still be in control today. Would NATO forces have attacked Libya in 2011 were he in possession of a fearsome retaliatory capacity? Doubtful.
The lesson for Tehran? Give up your nuclear program and you may end up like Gaddafi.
So what to do?
First, keep all options on the table – and mean it.
Iran must be convinced that when the U.S. and others say it, they’re not bluffing. Indeed, it’s the very possibility of conflict that may be the most effective recipe for avoiding it.
Second, continue to ratchet up the sanctions against Iran, especially where it hurts most – banking and energy. And keep pressing major nations like China, India, and Russia to exercise global responsibility by not undercutting the measures adopted by the U.S., Europe, Australia, Canada, Japan, and others.
Yes, we may feel some economic pinch as sanctions increase and energy prices temporarily rise, but if we’re not prepared to pay any price for stopping the Iranian bomb, how serious are we?
(Apropos, if the Iranian threat to close the Strait of Hormuz is not a wake-up call to Americans to get really serious – and fast – about our own energy security, what is?)
Meanwhile, the impact of existing sanctions is already being felt by the Iranian economy, as the precipitous drop in the value of the Iranian rial suggests.
Third, whoever is engaged in the stealth campaign to slow down the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile programs, please don’t stop.
You have had some spectacular successes, and I’m sure we don’t know the half of it. Iran has had to deal with repeated mysterious industrial accidents, faulty equipment, disappearing scientists, and computer viruses. It has also had to shift more of its finite resources simply to protecting its assets, while some may be wondering if it’s worth the risk to life and limb to continue their nuclear work.
Fourth, let’s recall that the “Arab Spring†began in a non-Arab country, Iran, in 2009.
Though the regime may have suppressed popular protests, there remains widespread opposition to a government that has delivered little on the “promise†of the Iranian revolution.
Tapping into the regime’s lack of legitimacy should be an element in the effort to stop Iran in its tracks.
And fifth, turn Iran into a political pariah.
Its leaders shouldn’t have the luxury of traveling abroad so easily. Why aren’t more countries downgrading their diplomatic ties with Iran? Let’s shout from the rooftops those countries and companies continuing to conduct business as usual with Iran, exactly the kind of publicity they don’t want.
There may be no foolproof way of stopping Iran, but more can be done.
Surely history has taught us that when repressive regimes believe they have the tide of history, airtight ideology, and higher authority on their side, they shouldn’t be underestimated.
The Turkish foreign minister might, but the rest of us must not.
what a stupid mental retard comment
No Zimbo, flat5 makes some good points but your obvious hatred of Jews blinds you. Instead of responding in a personal way, try making some counterpoints but I doubt you would be able to think like that.
I’ve been scratching my head trying to figure out just what ‘pinch of spice’ is missing from this wonderful analysis. The founders devised a triumvirate (Executive, Legislative and Judicial), which analogy the game of ‘tic-tac-toe’ well serves: nobody can win all the time. But there is now a fourth (or fifth?) column whose undertow the founders never envisioned: our intelligence agencies and their massive budgets. There is that perhaps apocryphal story about Bill Clinton wanting to know what it is they have stashed at “Area 51”. The response was, “Mr. President, you have no need to know”. We taxpayers even pay a clandestine airline to shuttle emplyees from Las Vegas to Groom Lake on a daily basis, no doubt costing millions a year, and rumor has it that those airliners are not even registered with the FAA. Hey, don’t get me wrong–I doubt they have E.T. out there, but it’s a great example of the billions in fungible slush-money we are not permitted to supervise. The founders would shit proverbial bricks, and with great haste dismantle this entire murky network of shady business. I’m sure those agencies have done their best to insure that the “fawning corporate media” keep spoon-feeding us pablum. Who was that hanging judge during the Nazi era? They called him “Raving Roland”, or something like that. The likes of Bill O’Reilly, Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage seem to be filling his shoes nicely, minus the noose.
in a nut shell if i may sumarise my rambling rant originally intended to address the writer proposal for discussion, go ahead talk amongst yerselves,,,oo,msm as the topic alludes, deceives the trusting’s naivette, purposefully, with comercially comprimised motivations exsploited across the board, from employees to “end user without agreements” insidious as thaey are,,, maybe TV should have a surgeon generals warning,,,, could say what,,, anyone, much comic potential,,, the best medacine
herd mentality, so i guess according to the careerist specialist of the mandatorially vested mutual blackmail tax franchise id asset marriage or children bareing concern, ya pretty much got play as the romans insist, even if thare actually hebrew and mostly dwelling about the earth island on the maritime side, perfect spot (like the pennisula of Italy) to stand off & preach the fraud of a post industrial technologic tyranny continuim undemocratic yet claiming the validationto co-ercie again the herd mentality with subtle permissions sub-conscious, i submit as a note on the side, democracy as a notion indeed a method of appeasement, truly though most evolutions progressive seem as the throwing out that suit its passion & rages more accuratly than the actual occupying of the governmental seat, usually of a prefixed capitol city, an assumed the power or right consisting mostly of a sitting beaurocracy rather than a congressed cheif council quorum to pluralouscity, summoned by loyalty & duty electorially grounded when ungratiousy nomanated & certified as balloted, rather than the pervasive contemporary calling of what, career graft oppurtunities of moneyed interest, fully rotted & corrupted as even thare monopoly & lobby testify just by the lack of seperations worthy a class & caste lot “heirarchial” corpotzoe body politic sub-version purely of graft & undemocratic (shall the status be utterly stripped across the “board”) i submit demo/cracy in werd only, actually retired on issue of relavience or marketable value, fine, nice superficially trite motion of anemic attempt to pretend or is it con, the republics’ molecular integrity, sold out from within to nazi war pig technologies in enslaved perpetuation of peonidge & usuary, prostatuted & pimped to the highest bidder at the going war pig rate exsclusivly looted the bounty embezzeled & swindled by larcenary’s of the special interest entity parasitically in motus operendi of leech, cancerous epidemic or/& mutation zionistically grafted, to kill the host both the maggot & victim reflex grasp, madness, mutually assured contracts & agreements fit for underworld criminal pathologies of logics evasionary tactics, arts of concealment to perform from earth island 2, hostile marine exspeditionary adventure base of operations, looted from the worlds’ family of country’s to perpetuate post industrial techno/syko-logics absent , nearly void any notion of (slave free agriculture peculiar to the rebel south) agrairean grace, friend of utopia, relative self suffeince also free from mass production peonidges & usuaries devoid of valid or represenative taxations upon health & extortions of petro/chemo sindication, monopoly & systamatic rackateering (price fixing as commodity) on behalf of queer accountings more of roman numeral assine code of a dogs tongue word spoke or writ, than the clan of freedoms’ family pursuits & concerns of well being,,,etc, etc,,,, vearing back to tack,,,the herd mentality, not so fearful the dumbed down and numbed, sykoatrically abused the target crowds taming & servitude to codes bourgouissez fit the werks of bee, ants or houved animal creature or beast to build the werks the hatching of the monstrousity perfected, the maintainces required of a war pigs death machine, in control the fascist rule insane more imposed than inquisitioned, cowardly to isolate the threat to decency the moral imperitive, decency health even state farm collective, just no hemp poly styrene textile alternative surroghetted substatute, etc etc, why,the wind or fyre may ask, war & empire the answer yet mostly the order anti as in oppossitional, whats new about primative & archiac, roman numerals previous writ as script, today of the dog the language indoctranates, to stupify the assine tongue of a snake serves the propaganda of state, never to slyly listen only to saturate & innadate, to mimic not pablovs dog, its mengela’s monkey, missing darwins theory of adaptive “mutation” kissinger points to its glories interweb in marix clone synthesis of its godless nexus the antinet mind control messiah 9000, “it just fabricates”hasn’t actually gone suicidal even though at “its” core, a warhead is spawned, democracy born to die immediatly, search -n- destroy, freedom gone renagade/rebel, the peoples 1rst exercise in will & determinition, tortured arrested the articles of state, now merely policy of vermin & swine whims of criminalised swings of paranoid moods ill & sic, don’t blame democracy for the evils’ willfully promoted, like stolen loot or booty, yeah its mine i just operate the more advanced fidelities, the theif he kinda spoke,,, who does msm media cowardly promote mass murder merely for well the conning & deceit to appear in sync with script as writ thousands of years older than any actual living authority, all the lonely people, where do they all come from/belong,,,?,oo,,reflect on god not as a individual, a concept geo omega desik or domicile/domain not sure on the d word absolutly, the original possibly a german word,,, “VUG” you got stolen & plagerised to manipulate the working class by preist dead wrong like the msm almost unamiously not quit, just herd mentality, the big riddle is what is “zionism” besides a chemically process that resembles brainwashing or a dogma simalair the “dogma” of capitalism/capitolism,?,,,oo, cerrebaull (brain matter, the wrapped coils (specifically) actually assistive,,, precipativly in that what is beleived truly sincerely seeks to materalize of the subconsciouss, while the consciouss “mind” requires actual particapation, iether socially or individual application & persistaince, yet when subjected to saturation & bombardment of insinuation or innuendo the gaurding against best allie is ascertaining such an inane bizare purposes motivation,,, i don’t call it creep world for nothing, we’d have to ask such gamers their dalussional conspiracies and premedatations goal that rationalises such sinister & diabolic paths to logics /of/for/by instruments, devices of control or manipulation, aka weapons of states not normal, states as in moods & mentalities, not “nessaccerrily” ? country or nation,,,, a note to add,,, msm mostly output only, no feedback or comment section, as the comments are usually the most informative in my opinion,,, again FCC rule # 1, “things” (devices) must absorb as much interfearience as they cause or transmit,,, consider the logic behind that naturally based rule of electric radio code, concerning static & interfearience, probably about equipment liability mostly yet still simalair to natural guides & ways,,, prime, secondary & slave in telaphoney,oo,,, all wild guesses are aproximite,,, public figures are fair game for critique & disdains exspressions
Jack, please……
It’s a mix of militaristic propaganda and a Madison Avenue advertising campaign. They want to sell us another war like it’s a new brand of cigarettes. Try to convince us how a war is good for us, makes us safe. Then hammer us with the fear propaganda campaign about the grave imminent danger threatening us. It’s worked before.
I have never read an article accusing others of prppagandizing that was more propaganda in itself. Beware all who read this article- it is designed to mislead and nothing else.
I have never read a more stupid non-comment that this.
I agree Hassan, People who post such DUMP comments like “ric’s comment above, may as well live in North Korea, They have a great government run propaganda machine which has kept the N Koreans in the dark for more than 50 Years. Ric’s brainwashed just like the other Americans even more so than the North Koreans. At least the North koreans realize if they say anything negative against their leader, they will be killed, sadly it is now the same in America with the introduction to the NDAA signed on the 31st December 2011. I will use people like “Ric as an example of the majority of US citizens.
“I will use people like “Ric as an example of the majority of US citizens.”
Unfortunately, yes.
Must be difficult to live with your handicap.
If you’re going to rebut Professor Davidson’s article, please do so in some convincing detail – provide a link to your rebuttal if need be – and we will read it and judge for ourselves if Davidson is indeed a propaganda shill. Or perhaps we might come to the same conclusion about you?
Any truth theory about zionist,will be called as theory conspiracy by the zionist western run media.
I can say most of american people are too stupid to know the truth.Even they are glad to live in lies through out their whole life.
Professor Davidson’s integrated explanations of how systemic our headlong drives into serial wars of aggression have become are masterpieces of the salient current realities of our domestic and global politics.
Yet there are several aspects of the speeding train that are far more dangerous than those of Goebbels and the Nazi bid to control the world.
The ever escalating American global conquest has been terroristic in its use of thousands of nuclear weapons, matched bomb-for bomb, missile for missile by Russian and soon to be Chinese contributions to impending species-suicide Armageddon Day.
It is not just a few influential Zionists and multiple special interest groups, but rather many hundreds of thousands of “normal” U.S. citizens who have been intimidated and seduced (Hell and Heaven) into dutifully supporting and commending the totalistic supernatural sanctification of our “Christian Nation” every time it invades or obliterates a designated Evil-target nation. Preachers like Warmonger John Hagee abound in our nation.
Citics of this holy war cultural reality are often booed or shouted down by their audiences.
We have a ubiquitous militaristic, pugilistic culture as “God’s Chosen Nation.”
Our great “immortality project” is evangelical in its mission to convert the entire species to “our ways” of beliefs and actions. In this most important respect we are just like the Muslims were when they converted most of the peoples of South Asia.
for references to psycho-analytic diagnoses of such holy wars go to Psycho-Imperialism.com
RE: “we need to find a constitutionally safe way to protect ourselves from our own lies.” – – – I would submit that the general voting public needs to develop a healthy skepticism regarding the media and political statements. Nowadays it seems as if too much of the public not only watches the magician’s show, they WANT to BELIEVE that what he’s doing is literally magic, and they will vote for those who will portray themselves as literal magicians! As long as too much of the public is willing to blithely, capriciously believe anything that is presented on a video screen, it will be impossible to make any ethical/moral headway in this world and we will continue our lazy spiral into the ground. Too many people are investing way too much confidence in old beliefs that may have functionally worked (somewhat) in the past but are now not up to the task, notably religion, militarism, and unlimited-growth/free-market capitalism. Sadly, insanities like the Iraq ‘War’ (‘slaughter & invasion’ is more apt) now being played-out again in Iran will no doubt continue UNTIL the electorate starts politically punishing those who foment these things! If W had lost the 2004 election because of his phony war with Iraq, we almost certainly wouldn’t be rehearsing the same play with Iran. But too many of my fellow Americans want to just vote for the candidate who the mainstream media seems to be behind, or the candidate who’ll promise a tax reduction, with no more complicated analysis than that. Given that, about the only thing I can foresee pushing the US voters out of their complacency would be a hard-core economic setback, as recently happened. IF that continues to get worse, we MAY see some focus on reality…