Blog Archives

The Quagmire; How We Got There

Earlier this year I was privileged to hear a lecture by Dr. Murray Gell-Mann, Nobel laureate in physics,  who spoke about his experience as a member of several science & technology commissions that advised our presidents from Nixon to Clinton.  After the lecture a member of the audience asked him how the conservatives in the current administration compared with conservatives from Nixon and Reagan eras.  Dr. Gell-Mann’s answer could have been heard without benefit of a microphone.  “These people are not conservatives. They are in dyed-in-the-wool ‘foaming-at-the-mouth’ radicals.” 

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Possible War with Iran

Iran: déjà vu all over again?    Wherever we went in the Middle East we left footprints and some of those were missteps that produced drastic and undesired political changes.  The Pahlavi dynasty ruled Iran, once called Persia, since 1925 with a major interruption in 1951 when Mohammad Mossadegh an ultra nationalist was elected Prime Minister by its Parliament.  Believing Iranian oil belonged to Iranians he proceeded to nationalize the British-owned oil company.  The British, unable to resolve this situation themselves, misled Eisenhower into believing Iran was trending toward communism.  Churchill and Eisenhower decided Mossadegh had to be replaced.  Our CIA and the British M16 fomented serious civil unrest between pro- and anti-monarchy supporters.  The well-funded CIA supported pro-monarchy forces prevailed; Mossadegh was driven from office and the Shah (Muhammed Reza Pahlavi) returned.

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