Inside Iran

This article is a glimpse of life in Tehran. The author has walked through miles of streets, alleys and bazaars, talking with local merchants. They aren’t happy.

The merchants who run the bazaar, together with the banking industry, are a powerful force in Iran. They helped finance Khomeini’s takeover in 1979. As the author says, they “can make or break a government. Right now they are not a particularly happy bunch.”

Like all business people, these merchants want stability and certainty, and this isn't being provided by Ahmadinejad. One merchant says “My sales are down by 50 to 60 percent. I’m very worried about sanctions. Things are going to get much worse than they already are.”

Referring to Bush and Ahmadinejad, another merchant says “Why don’t they just talk? This shouting does nobody any good.”

Ahmadinejad got elected by promising to improve the lives of ordinary Iranians and to distribute the country’s oil wealth more widely. It hasn’t happened. Inflation is officially 13% but everyone says it’s actually twice that high.

This article is a reminder (for those of us who need reminding) that Iran isn't just a spot on the map for us to invade. It’s not a one-dimensional demon that we need to exorcise. It’s a country with millions of real people, just like us; people who are living their lives, taking care of their families and trying to make ends meet.

Since Bush and Ahmadinejad are both belligerent assholes, maybe they could just step into the ring and beat the shit out of each other and leave the rest of us out of it. Or like the man said, “why don’t they just talk?”

Blithering Boy-King Needs Another Trophy

Our spoiled tantrum-throwing trustfund baby seems determined to attack Iran no matter what, and he isn’t about to let any facts get in his way. (Has he ever?)

It doesn’t matter that Iranian forces captured two al Qaeda leaders who were traveling through Iran on their way to Iraq. And so what if Iran tried to open up diplomatic communication between the U.S. and Iran in 2003 (before Ahmadinejad took over)? Their overture was ignored (and never publicized) by the Bush Administration. Fuck a bunch of wussy diplomacy — we've got sabers to rattle.

Our cerebrally-challenged manchild has to have his way and that’s all there is to it. If he can't invade Iran, he's gonna stamp his foot, thrust out his lower lip and hold his breath until he turns blue.

You know things are bad when Russia — not exactly a beacon of human rights — criticizes America’s foreign policy for its “almost uncontained” use of force. At a security forum in Germany, Putin said “we are witnessing an almost uncontained hyper use of force in international relations. One state, the United States, has overstepped its national borders in every way. This is very dangerous, nobody feels secure anymore because nobody can hide behind international law.”

Yes, it’s the pot calling the kettle black, but that statement needed to be made. It isn’t any less valid just because it was made by the Russian president.

Well, so much for that celebrated friendship and empathy between Bush and Putin. Nobody but NOBODY criticizes George W. Bush and gets away with it. Putin is out of the clubhouse. Off the island! Never again will Bush gaze deeply into Putin’s eyes and look into his soul.