Amir Taheri calls the election of the extreme Islamist, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, nothing less than an earthquake. Reform is dead, it seems. In some ways, this might be clarifying. It may mean that the Europeans give up on the attempt to engage Iran to give up its nuclear ambitions; it may embolden the domestic opposition still further and make some kind of popular revolution more likely. But it also seems that Ahmadinejad has been able to use economic and populist issues to build some kind of base (in an election that was still, of course, a phony one). My own view is that developments in Iran make our success in Iraq all the more essential – if only to act as a democratic pressure point on the theocracy next door.
FREE SPEECH IN BRITAIN: The repulsively illiberal bill designed “to prevent hatred being stirred up against people targeted because of their religious beliefs” is slowly making its way through Parliament. Here’s a detailed account of why it’s misguided.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “let me put this delicately. some in my circles view your blog as giving aid and comfort to terrorists, which, if treasonous, is not protected under the first amendment… at the very least, you could be shut down, and, in the US at least, I trust you know the consequences of treason if determined by a court of law (other countries have no such compunction… in your travels, I suggest you watch your back). you call yourself a patriot. don’t you know we are at war?” – an emailer at Greg Djerejian’s blog, Belgravia Despatch. Greg’s sin is to be pro-war and anti-torture, making him a member of the fledgling “conscience caucus” of pro-war, right-of-center writers who oppose the Bush administration policy of allowing abuse of prisoners if “military necessity” demands it. Greg asks if I get similar emails. Every day, many times a day, usually accompanied by charming references to my sexual orientation. Hey, it’s hot in the kitchen. I’m not complaining. But the ugliness of some of this – egged on by Rove et al, in a desperate attempt to shore up public support for a war they have badly mismanaged – is saddening. By the way, here’s his first stab at a roster of the conscience caucus: Nat Hentoff, John Cole, Greg Djerejian, John Henke, Tacitus, and Jeff Jacoby. Who else?
The Dish 