Monday, August 28, 2006

Iran's memory of convenience

The opening to this New York Times article is worth reflecting upon:

A former high-ranking Iranian official wants Americans to see his cracked thumbnails. They were torn out, he said, after Washington’s friend, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, put him in prison in the 1970’s.

His point is instantly clear: look at what happened when we had close ties to the United States.

I'd buy that if the guys who had their thumbnails cracked then weren't the same guys torturing and killing people that don't agree with them today. The only thing that has changed in Iran is who gets to do the torturing. Blaming it on the U.S. is folly.

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