Understanding Iran

If you read the news carefully, you will find a notable story about Iran every morning. Nine times out of ten it is hilarious.

Not long ago, Iran released a photograph of a missile launch that initially caused great consternation in the West. It showed four missiles being launched, more or less simultaneously, with wonderful contrails behind them. Upon examination, that photograph turned out to be a double phony. First, there was only one missile, and the Iranians replicated it to make it seem as if there were four. Second, the missile was two years old and was not an intermediate range missile at all. This airplane turned out to be a plastic toy made by Mattel with Iranian markings on it.

So the first thing to understand about Iran is that it is a country where lies and deception are a way of life.

We are dealing with a regime that came to power in 1979 and Iran declared war against the United States, branding us "The great Satan". Prior to 9/11 the Iranian regime was directly or indirectly responsible for murder of more Americans than any country or organization in the world.

Khomeini installed a regime in Iran which is best described as Islamofascist. It has followed, in every major detail, the model laid down by Hitler and Mussolini. To the question "Why don't we just sit down and talk with the Iranians?" we can answer with a scene from the movie Goldfinger, when asked "What is this, Goldfinger? Do you expect me to talk?" Goldfinger replies, "No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die." That is exactly the Iranian attitude.

In fact, we have been talking to the Iranians, almost non-stop, for 30 years. There isn't an American president from Jimmy Carter to the present who has not authorized negotiations with Iran. There is a striking tendency among people in modern Western governments not to recognize the existence of evil in the world.

If you want to know how a country will behave internationally, look at the way it treats its own people. The Iranian regime treats its people with total contempt. Consider its treatment of women. Although you will never hear the American women's rights movement complain about it, women in Iran are officially worth half a man.

The bottom line is that Iran is our principal enemy in the Middle East, and perhaps in the entire world. It is also a vulnerable regime, and it knows that - which is why it makes up stories about airplanes and missiles that it doesn't have. They want us dead or dominated. You can't make deals with a regime like that.


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