Every American President all the way back to Jimmy Carter conducted talks with Iran, begging it to end hostilities, write Peter Ferrara in the American Spectator (17/6)
He continues “But we never got anything out of it. Carter begged for release of the American hostages, but the Iranians held them until the very moment Reagan was sworn in. How fascinating that during his administration Carter the fool publicly pressured the Shah of Iran endlessly over human rights, until the Shah fell to the Ayatollah Khomeini and the Islamic revolution."
" But now we hear not a word from Carter about human rights under the far more repressive Islamic theocracy, though Carter is still running his damn fool mouth, even recently approving of Ahmadinejad's 'reelection.' This is explained by Carter's anti-Americanism, as the Shah was a loyal ally of America, while Iran's Islamic tyrants today are bitterly anti-American.”
It may pain the republican royal watchers among our readers, but this column unashamedly supports constitutional (and not absolute) monarchy across the world. As a knowledge of history and a glance at the UN HDI figures will demonstrate, constitutional monarchy, the crowned republican model, is the most sophisticated, successful and readily adaptable form of governance the world has ever seen.
…a world problem….
The current situation in Iran should not be of concern only to Iranians. It is a serious and dangerous problem for all of us. As Mr. Ferrara warns, on present indications, the Middle East is headed for nuclear war. And what was unleashed in Iran today is the direct, and dare I say inevitable , result of the overthrow of the monarchy and the installation of the theocratic dictatorship. This was the direct result of American weakness and a serious miscalculation by the Élysée and presumably the Quai d’Orsay.
“Like Adolf Hitler, the theocrats who run Iran have told us exactly what they plan to do," Mr Ferrara says. “They plan to build nuclear weapons, and use them to ‘wipe Israel off the map.’ They have said this plan is rooted in their fundamental religious beliefs and doctrines regarding the return of their God to Earth. They have said they will not abandon this plan for anything, not trade concessions, financial aid from the West, or security guarantees. Their conduct is consistent with carrying out this plan.”
…the Shah was not perfect….
For those who even today attack the Shah, and condone President Carter’s weakness, nobody is saying the Shah was a constitutional monarchist. The point is he was moving in that direction. He ran an authoritarian government, but it paled in comparison with what followed. The Shah once justified his firmness with these words “When my people are as nice as the Swedes, I will reign like the King of Sweden.”
Lowell Ponte, writing in FrontPageMagazine.com on 8 August 2006, said that while the Shah was “heavy-handed… his government was establishing equal rights for women, modernity, and a friendly open door between America’s culture and the Muslim world”.
The Shah, he said, provided the oil that kept Israel afloat during Arab oil embargoes of the 1970s. Iran was America’s ‘pillar of strength’ in the Gulf region during the Cold War and thus a prime target for Soviet subversion. So the Shah came down very hard on the up to 3,000 Soviet agents in Iran. When the Shah most needed US government understanding and support, experienced people Henry Kissinger and David Rockefeller warned that the US must stand behind their old ally.
But at the vital moment President Carter prevaricated, ultimately failing the Shah, the Iranian people and the interests of peace and stability in the region.
Grand Ayatollah Khomeini had in the meantime established himself at Neauphle-le-Château in France where he hid from his allies his plans for a theocratic dictatorship. From there he was allowed to fly back to Iran a chartered Air France jet. If the French government thought the Grand Ayatollah would be forever grateful to him, they were to be as disappointed as the Germans were to be about the work of their High Command in delivering Lenin in a sealed train to Russia in 1917.
Churchill said, “They transported Lenin in a sealed train like a plague bacillus from Switzerland to Russia.” Similarly the French transported someone far more dangerous then they understood, and certainly someone beyond their control. The monarchy was overthrown in Russia and replaced by a regime of unspeakable evil responsible for the deaths of millions of people.
Among the Ayatollah Khomeini’s first acts was to execute more than 20,000 people, including ironically, most of the 3,000 communists President Carter wanted to protect from the Shah’s police.
…a secular crowned republic under Reza Shah Pahlavi II ?….
While a focal point for opponents of the usurping president, the opposition leader Hossein Mousavi, comes from the same camp and is committed to the nuclear programme. What is needed is an end to the theocratic regime of ule of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his like, just as there was a need to end the Bolshevik regime in Russia.
Fortunately there is a force for sense and reason in Iran. Born on 31October 1960, he is the elder son of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and Shahbanu (the Empress) Farah Diba Pahlavi. His supporters refer to him as ‘His Imperial Majesty Reza Shah Pahlavi II,’ but he says it is not this title which is in issue-what is an issue is the governance of Iran.
To the West of course and to the nations of the Middle East, what is also in issue is the nuclear policy and the foreign policy of the present government. A modern democrat, he wishes to unite monarchists and republicans in bringing democracy to Iran, and in liberating her women and her minorities.
The impression is of a great communicator who is sophisticated and caring – the ideal person to be at the head of his country.
In the following videos he speaks on the recent election. [The most recent postdates the first edition of this column ] A full video of the Press Club speech is available on NewsMax TV. There is also an interview on 21 June with SBS.
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