[BRIEF NOTE] Ahmadinejad isn't insane
Dec. 14th, 2005 07:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rfmcdonaldI don't doubt that Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad means what he says.
I likewise don't doubt that Ahmadinejad doesn't care about the consequences of his actions.
Yes, one might suspect him of being some sort of agent provocateur. Far more likely is the probability that he really does means what he say, and that he doesn't care about the potential consequences simply because he sees himself as a man speaking the truth regardless the cost--to himself, to his country, to anyone else. People always like to feel brave.
If you [Europe] have committed this serious crime [the Holocaust]," he said, "why should the innocent Palestinian nation pay for this crime?" His remarks came in a speech carried live on national television from the southeastern city of Zahedan.
Ahmadinejad also said, "They [the West] have invented a myth that Jews were massacred and place this above God, religions, and the prophets." And he reiterated that Israel should be moved somewhere else.
"If you have committed such a crime, then it will be good if you give a piece of your own soil, a piece of soil in Europe, the United States, Canada, or Alaska to them [Jews] so that they can create a country for themselves," Ahmadinejad said.
I likewise don't doubt that Ahmadinejad doesn't care about the consequences of his actions.
Sadegh Zibakalam, a professor of political science at Tehran University, told RFE/RL that Ahmadinejad is giving countries such as Israel and the United States an excuse to increase their pressure on Iran to give up its nuclear program. He added that Ahmadinejad seems to enjoy being in the spotlight.
"The wise people, the scholars and other keep telling him that making such comments is damaging our national interests, especially at a time when the world is watching us because of the nuclear issue. There is enough campaigning by the Americans and Israelis against us, and what Mr. Ahmadinejad is saying goes exactly to their court; it is making the Israelis really happy. Apart from the fact that what Ahmadinejad is saying is historically not correct, the other issue is that he should pay attention because all these remarks are against Iran’s national interests. I think [Ahmadinejad] enjoys the attention he gets from making these comments and unfortunately it seems he doesn’t care much about the consequences of his comments and actions," Zibakalam said.
Mashaollah Shamsolvaezin, a prominent journalist in Tehran, told Radio Farda that by expressing his personal views on Israel, Ahmadinejad is creating an international crisis for the Islamic Republic. "Mr. Ahmadinejad does not differentiate between his position as a citizen -- who can express different views -- and his position as president," she said. "Such comments have never existed in the last 25 years in the media, political organizations, parties, or [political] personalities. Therefore, we can say that these comments are his personal views and practically it has no aim but to create crisis in [Iran’s] international relations."
Yes, one might suspect him of being some sort of agent provocateur. Far more likely is the probability that he really does means what he say, and that he doesn't care about the potential consequences simply because he sees himself as a man speaking the truth regardless the cost--to himself, to his country, to anyone else. People always like to feel brave.
