2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumI thought Bernie had his best debate in regards to foreign policy, he has a much broader
grasp of unintended consequences than Hillary or maybe she just doesn't care.
Bernie brought up how for at least the past half century the United States has been involved in overthrowing governments and not just dictators but democratically elected leaders as in Iran 1953 when we overthrew the democratically elected prime minister Mossadegh.
Of course the Shah came to power and his regime was so brutal committing murder and torture of political opponents not mention creating vast income disparity among his people to such an extent they were driven into fundamentalist religion as an escape which eventually resulted in the Iranian Revolution and the current state of affairs.
I believe if Hillary was in power in 1953 she would've supported that overthrow of Mossadegh just to further U.S. and British oil interests and to hell with democracy.
SamKnause
(13,108 posts)present day problems, instead of ignoring the mistakes that were made.
To ignore history and facts is a dangerous thing.
The history of Iran is especially important in today's politics.
The Republicans, The Tea Party, and some Democratic politicians can not wait
to attack Iran.
If they succeed, it will lead to WW lll.
Uncle Joe
(58,378 posts)like labeling an entire nation of peoples as your enemy, this is particularly troubling coming from our nation's former top head of state, not very diplomatic to say the least.
I imagine there are some Iranian Americans that didn't feel warm and fuzzy about that declaration either as no doubt they may have family living over there.
You know after I typed that last sentence I decided to google for confirmation and here it is, the ironic thing was listening to Hillary criticize Trump's anti-Muslim language as being dangerous.
Janet Tavakoli
President, Tavakoli Structured Finance
My last name is Iranian. I was born and raised Catholic in the USA to parents of northern European heritage. After I divorced my Iranian (now ex) husband, I kept my last name. Because I was married to an Iranian, I became an automatic citizen of Iran, formerly known as Persia, and for a time, I held dual passports. I lived in Tehran for a year during the period before, during, and after the Islamic Revolution in the late 1970s. If you are going to have dangerous adventures, I highly recommend you do it in your twenties, when you can run six minute miles.
I fled Iran after Khomeini returned and stripped citizens of their civil liberties in the name of the Islamic Revolution. He instituted a form of sharia law and executed former high ranking officials, businessmen, people of the "wrong" religion, homosexuals, intellectuals, and people who owned property coveted by greedy mullahs.
My ex-husband was more optimistic than I that the mullahs would soon step aside and Iran would have a democratic election. He stayed for a time. I returned to the USA and divorced him. He eventually came back to the USA--he is a U.S citizen--remarried, raised a family, and created hundreds of jobs for other U.S. citizens. He is a non-practicing secular Muslim (no one in his family ever prays, their main focus is entrepreneurship), and earned his Ph.D. in engineering (I met him at university) in the USA.
So I was more than a little surprised when Hillary Clinton, after being asked which enemy she was most proud of, declared: "Well, in addition to the NRA, the health insurance companies, the drug companies...the Iranians...probably the Republicans." Iranians. Not say, the so-called Supreme Leader. Iranian Americans are asking Hillary Clinton to clarify, if not apologize for, her comment.
I am no fan of the so-called Iran Deal, and I have written here, at the Huffington Post, that I believe our national narrative foolishly underplays the dark side of fundamentalist Islam. Yet now I find myself in the position of having to push back against the imbalance of Hillary Clinton's statement. Especially because Shayan Mazroei, an innocent Iranian student, was recently falsely accused of being a terrorist and slain in a hate-crime in California. Prosecutors called the perpetrator a "white supremacist gang member." Apparently he not only did not know that Iranians are Aryans--Hollywood doesn't know this either, or at least the makers of the 300 didn't seem to know it--he also believed Iranians seeking advanced education are his enemies.
Janet Tavakoli is the author of Unveiled Threat: A Personal Experience of Fundamentalist Islam and the Roots of Terrorism
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/janet-tavakoli/iranian-americans-ask-hil_b_8302886.html
And to think the corporate media conglomerates are touting Hillary's foreign policy as a plus?
SamKnause
(13,108 posts)Hillary either has poor judgment, or intentionally backs the disastrous policies of MIC
for personal reasons.
tk2kewl
(18,133 posts)Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)erlewyne
(1,115 posts)Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)Because with regard to unintended consequences US intelligence operations have been an utter failure for decades.
Consider the lives and treasure spent in Vietnam. Vietnam being nothing other than an expanded intelligence operation. And for what? How would the world have been better if the USA would have "won" in Vietnam?
See? This is a twisted foreign policy. Steady as she goes and "stay the course" is downright fucking stupid.
Foreign policy and intelligence is being driven by the quest for ever greater profits at the expense of the American people and the people of the world.
Name something good that has come from this Greatest Country in the World's fucking foreign policy since WWII.
Mbrow
(1,090 posts)livetohike
(22,154 posts)Donkees
(31,435 posts)Cheese Sandwich
(9,086 posts)You can see it it alot of his older videos from when he was mayor.
JonLP24
(29,322 posts)He just seemed to give safe answers but not much in-depth talk on the problems or the parties involved and on Syria both seemed to gloss over the topic.
I understand though the strategy is fine, don't want to take a position too controversial but am hopeful he applies his integrity and economic compassion for a humanitarian first foreign policy.
Uncle Joe
(58,378 posts)to Iran (although not overnight) wasn't a safe answer nor was calling for an end to the trade embargo with Cuba.
He also attacked the Republicans for not living up to our humanitarian legacy in turning away refugees, men, women and children living in desperate straits.
I have no doubt that a President Bernie Sanders would first and foremost advocate our national strength foreign policies abroad in lifting up, while promoting compassionate constructive actions vs using destructive and intimidative techniques.
With Hillary I don't believe that will be the case.