Iran and North Korea are two wild and crazy states

Via Memeorandum

Mona Charen seems a bit less than impressed with the latest efforts of the Obama administration to solve the world problems through warm and fuzzy euphamisms. Iran and North Korea are no longer "rogue states," by wave of the magic dictionary they are now "outliers." I think calling them those "wild and crazy states" might have been a bit more fun and likely just as appropriate as "outliers:"

"Outlier has no negative connotations at all. The American Heritage Dictionary defines it as "One whose domicile is distant from his or her place of business." The Macintosh computer dictionary adds a secondary connotation of exclusion from a group. So to employ the label "outliers" for nations that are, by any civilized measure, criminal is pusillanimous. No doubt the leadership in Iran has also noticed that an administration that softens its words has also modified its proposed sanctions. Whereas once Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke of "crippling" sanctions, she has now climbed down to "sanctions that bite." Can annoying sanctions be far behind?"


Mona Charen seems perplexed why the administration found "rogue" inappropriate.  It must have been in deference to Sarah Palin because we all know how respectful this administration is of her.  Perhaps they were afraid Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would think he was being mocked the way Palin is by the administration.  Who knows what they're thinking or if they're even thinking at all.  One thing is clear, you get special treatment from this group if you are an enemy, friends and private citizens - not so much:

The administration does not like to use hurtful words to our enemies. Our friends are another matter. Compare the treatment Great Britain, Honduras, and Israel have received with the walking on eggshells approach to our foes. Early on, the administration jettisoned the term "Global War on Terror" in favor of a catch phrase only a bureaucrat could have coined -- "overseas contingency operations." The word "terrorism" was similarly airbrushed from official language. Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano prefers the term "man-caused disasters" because "it demonstrates that we want to move away from the politics of fear ..." A more anodyne term has now surfaced from a number of officials -- "countering violent extremism."

 Charen is just getting wound up.  From there out it is a fisking extraordinaire so read the rest.  Keep in mind this administration has absolutely no problem referring to citizens as "teabaggers."  Don't we get a warm and fuzzy name too?

Iran at the Tipping Point?

Times Online speculated yesterday a revolution may be nearing the tipping point in Iran. I pray for those courageous enough to stand against this brutal regime. The latest effort to squash the protesters comes in this form of vile persecution; they mow down their citizens with a plow:



Via Breitbart TV

Also: Hopeful reports the regime is readying a plane should the Ayatollah need to escape to Russia:

Reports from Iran indicate that the Supreme National Security Council has ordered a complete check-up of the jet which is on standby to fly Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei and his family to Russia should the situation in Iran spiral out of control. The order, to the Pasdaran Revolutionary Guard Corps, was dated on Sunday, 27 December. A fax containing the order was sent to Dutch-based Shahrzad News.

Allahpundit is not as hopeful:

HuffPo notes that January 16 is the anniversary of the shah’s abdication, a date that’ll no doubt be targeted by organizers for a surge in direct action. But still: If Khamenei was going to show weakness this provocative — essentially an admission that he’s no longer sure he can hold the country together — wouldn’t he have tasked the plane check-up to only his most devoutly loyal underlings? The last thing he’d want is to risk a leak that might spook the security forces, who would suddenly fear that the balance of power was about to turn and would side with the protesters so that they didn’t end up hanging from lampposts. Seems much more likely that this is pro-protester propaganda than a genuine scoop, alas.

The world can only wait and watch

Iranian Protests - Brutal Suppression of Protests on Shia Mourning Day of Ashura

Gateway Pundit posted this shocking video of a group of Iranian protesters rescuing several men as they were being hung by the brutal Iranian regime. Doug Ross posted the graphic still photographs that capture the sheer brutality of a regime desperate to contain a rebellion that refuses to be contained:



Iran News Now has a lengthy live blog post filled with videos and still shots from the streets of Iran as the Iranian people protested on the Shia mourning day of Ashura. At the conclusion of the blog post, there is a summary of events leading up to the events in Iran on December 27, 2009. Could this be the tipping point:

This year’s Ashura proves to be a very potent one in Iran, with anticipation built-up over six months of protests since the rigged Iran election in which Ahmadinejad was declared the winner by the regime, with the blessing of the so-called Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei.

Protests for Ashura were already planned by the opposition in multiple cities, when last week, the dissendent cleric, Grand Ayatollah Montazeri passed away. Montazeri was positioned by the founder of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini, to succeed Khomeini as Supreme Leader, but he had a falling out with Khomeini over the mass execution of dissidents in the late 80s. Khamenei (not the same as Khomeini!) became the Supreme Leader instead. But Khamenei lacked the religious credentials of Montazeri, so in an attempt to silence him, Khamenei had Montazeri placed under house arrest, and severely limited Montazeri’s ability to continue his religious teachings (though he managed to do so anyway). After the rigged elections, Montazeri was very vocal against the excesses of Khamenei and Ahmadinejad, stating that the government of Ahmadinejad was illegitimate.

When Montazeri passed away last week, millions of people took to the streets in mourning, mixing chants of mourning with anti-governmnt slogans. The government was virtually helpless in stopping the processions. Khamenei made the mistake of issuing a half-assed statement of condolence over the passing of Montazeri, in which he said that Montazeri had paid for “failing an important test”, a reference to his moderate views and vocal dissent. This caused tremendous anger in Iran, where most people view Montazeri as a stalwart supporter of the opposition seeking more freedoms for the people, and as a staunch dissident against Khamenei.

The brutal government-sanctioned crackdowns since the elections in June, in which we saw Neda Agha Soltan shot to death by a Basiji, along with thousands savagely attacked by the regime, combined with atrocities such as beatings, rape, torture and murder of protesters was cause enough for people to unleash their angst against the regime during Ashura. Add to that the fact that it is the seventh day after Montazeri’s passing and you have an extremely potent mix. This could be the tipping point.

Aljazeera is reporting that the nephew of Mir Hussein Mousavi is among those killed in the protests. While the final count of those who died in protest of the Iranian regime widely believed to have been elected through fraudulent means. It is clear from the widespread coverage of the insurgency on the internet that Iranian police have lost control of the streets in at least some sections of Iran.

The Obama administration appears to have learned some lessons from the days of silence that followed the insurgency immediately following the election in June. Shortly after 3PM Eastern, the administration condemned the brutal repression of the protests by the Iranian thugs Obama had hoped to negotiate with:

"We strongly condemn the violent and unjust suppression of civilians in Iran seeking to exercise their universal rights," National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said in a statement.

"Hope and history are on the side of those who peacefully seek their universal rights, and so is the United States.

"Governing through fear and violence is never just, and as President Obama said in Oslo -- it is telling when governments fear the aspirations of their own people more than the power of any other nation."

In the same report from AFP:

On June 15, Obama, who came to office vowing to engage the Islamic Republic, said he was "deeply troubled" by violence in Iran, but warned he did not want the United States to become a "political football" in the post-election crisis.

In subsequent days, Obama hardened the US line as violence escalated and critics accused him of giving insufficient backing to anti-government demonstrators.

Obama has given Iran until the end of this year to respond to an international offer to defuse the nuclear showdown or face tough new sanctions.

Will update with news as it develops. Follow developments at Memeorandum

Sarkozy Thinks Obama Incredibly Naive and Grossly Egotistical

Jack Kelly has an article in Real Clear Politics that reiterates his insights on French President Sarkozy's opinions on Obama made on Greta Van Sustern last night:



Kelly bases his assessment of Sarkozy's views of Obama on two sources but it was quite plain from Sarkozy's statements at the G20 in Pittsburgh last week, Sarkozy is quite dubious of Obama's ability to lead on Iran. Conservative critics of Obama have witnessed both Obama's naivete and massive ego in play through the seemingly endless health care debate. Despite falling poll numbers and serious lack of support for health care reform, Obama persists as though the fate of the free world depends on his signature issue is passed in Congress.

While Obama has devoted the bulk of his attention to health care, he has merely played at dealing with Iran:

News reports indicated Mr. Obama had been briefed on the site before his inauguration. But he's been conducting his foreign policy as if the mullahs could be trusted.

"Iran has been put on notice," President Obama said in Pittsburgh.

Iran responded to being "put on notice" by testing Monday two ballistic missiles that could carry a nuclear warhead 1,200 miles.

Kelly reports Obama's deadlines are far from firm noting his deadline of Sept 10 to Iran issued at the G8 was quietly extended to December when Iran largely blew him off.

Rep. Howard Berman (D-Cal), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee warned December could be too late according to Kelly:

"Tehran soon could have humankind's most frightening weapon if substantial diplomatic progress is not made in the coming days," Rep. Howard Berman (D-Cal), the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee said Saturday (9/26).

Obama has not called for sanctions, instead he presses for more negotiations and heads to Copenhagen to secure the Olympics for his friends in Chicago in 2016. Not that 24 hours in Copenhagen will make any great difference one way or the other, we all know Obama is not going to be putting that relentless effort he puts in healthcare to work on Iran. Sarkozy has him figured out as well.

H/T: Memeorandum