|
Jewish World Review Feb. 14, 2002 / 3 Adar, 5762
Michael Ledeen
The Great Iranian Hoax
http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com --
The
New
York Times carried an amazing account of rallies in
celebration of the 23rd anniversary of the Iranian Revolution. The account,
which runs along the same lines as an earlier piece by the BBC, is so
full of revolutionary zeal and enthusiasm that one wonders Really!
what possesses these people. The journalists, that is, not the
demonstrators. We know what possesses them, all too well.
The largest estimate
I can find of the crowd in Tehran is about 300,000, and while that may
seem like a huge number to a Western journalist, it is appallingly small
by historical standards. Over the years, the regime could generally count
on a million or so enthusiasts, but the last time a million people demonstrated
in Tehran it was to demand an end to the regime, just a few months ago.
Yesterday's mob was an insult to the regime, a further demonstration of
its weakening grip on the Iranian people.
The story is even
clearer when you realize that the regime knew in advance that it would
have to work hard to fill the available space, and it pulled out all the
stops to get bodies in place. The secret police, the Basiji, went around
threatening students and teachers, warning of dire consequences if they
didn't show up. All government employees, and all members of the armed
forces were ordered to participate. The poor were told that if they didn't
celebrate, their welfare would be cut off. Thousands of buses dragged
people from the countryside to the city.
And still the best
they could come up with was about a third of the usual turnout. That should
have been the headline, and that is a big story.
But the Times
and the BBC played it as a triumph for the regime, and a humiliation for
the United States, as if the people of Iran had spontaneously rallied
to their ayatollahs and mullahs in the face of George W. Bush's dreadful
definition of the Islamic Republic as a country ruled by an unelected
elite that represses the desire for freedom of the Iranian people. But
Bush's definition is perfect, and yesterday's events verified it.
If the Times
and the BBC wanted some really interesting aspect of the rally, all they
had to do was listen to Radio France Internationale, which found a grim
spectacle: a signup table for would-be martyrs. I suppose there was a
big banner over it, "anyone who wants to blow himself up, sign here."
But not even the
French could tell us how many volunteers they
got.
JWR contributor Michael Ledeen is a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and author of Tocqueville on American Character
. Comment by clicking here.
02/12/02: Unnoticed Bombshell: Key information in a new book
01/31/02: The truth behind the Powell play
01/29/02: My past with "Johnny Jihad's" lawyer
01/21/02: It's Munich, all over again
01/08/02: What's the Holdup?: It's time for the next battles in the war against terrorism
12/11/01: We must be imperious, ruthless, and relentless
12/06/01: Remembering my family friend, Walt Disney
11/28/01: The Barbara Olson Bomb: Understanding the war
11/13/01: How We're Doing: The Angleton Files, IV
11/06/01: A great revolutionary war is coming
10/25/01: How to talk to a terrorist
10/23/01: Creative Reporting: Learning to appreciate press briefings
10/19/01: Not the Emmys: A Beltway award presentation
10/15/01: Rediscovering American character
10/11/01: Somehow, I've missed Arafat's praise of the first stage of our war on terrorism
10/04/01: What do we not know?
09/28/01: Machiavelli On Our War: Some advice for our leaders
09/25/01: No Room for the U.N.: Keeping Annan & co. out of the picture
09/21/01: Creative destruction
09/14/01: Who Killed Barbara Olson?
08/22/01: How Israel will win this war
08/15/01: Bracing for war
08/09/01: More Dithering Democrats
08/02/01: Delirious Dems
07/31/01: Consulting a legendary counterspy about Chandra and Condit, cont'd
07/19/01: Be careful what you wish for
07/17/01: Consulting a legendary counterspy about Chandra and Condit
07/05/01: Let Slobo Go
05/30/01: Anybody out there afraid of the Republicans?
05/09/01: The bad guys to the rescue
05/07/01: Bye-bye, Blumenthal
04/20/01: Handling China
04/11/01: EXAM TIME!
04/05/01: Chinese over-water torture
03/27/01: Fighting AIDS in Africa is a losing proposition
03/14/01: Big Bird, Oscar, and other threats
03/09/01: Time for a good, old-fashioned purge
03/06/01: Powell’s great (mis)adventure
02/26/01: The Clinton Sopranos
02/20/01: Unity Schmoonity: Sharon is defying the will of the people
01/30/01: The Rest of the Rich Story
01/22/01: Ashcroft the Jew
01/11/01: A fitting close to the Clinton years
12/26/00: Continuing Clinton's shameful legacy
12/21/00: Clinton’s gift for Bush
© 2001, Michael Ledeen
|