Arutz Sheva:
"Ahmadinejad may choose his words carefully, but underneath all of the rhetoric is an agenda that threatens all who seek a safer and freer world. We gather here today to highlight the Iranian dictator's intentions and to call for action to thwart him. He must be stopped.
"The world must awake to the threat this man poses to all of us. Ahmadinejad denies that the Holocaust ever took place. He dreams of being an agent in a 'Final Solution' - the elimination of the Jewish people. He has called Israel a 'stinking corpse' that is 'on its way to annihilation.' Such talk cannot be dismissed as the ravings of a madman - not when Iran just this summer tested long-range Shahab-3 missiles capable of striking Tel Aviv, not when the Iranian nuclear program is nearing completion, and not when Iran sponsors terrorists that threaten and kill innocent people around the world.
"....So, what should we do about this growing threat? First, we must succeed in Iraq. If we fail there, it will jeopardize the democracy the Iraqis have worked so hard to build, and empower the extremists in neighboring Iran. Iran has armed and trained terrorists who have killed our soldiers in Iraq, and it is Iran that would benefit from an American defeat in Iraq.
"If we retreat without leaving a stable Iraq, Iran's nuclear ambitions will be bolstered. If Iran acquires nuclear weapons they could share them tomorrow with the terrorists they finance, arm, and train today. Iranian nuclear weapons would set off a dangerous regional nuclear arms race that would make all of us less safe.
"But Iran is not only a regional threat; it threatens the entire world. It is the number one state sponsor of terrorism. It sponsors the world's most vicious terrorist groups, Hamas and Hizbullah. Together, Iran and its terrorists are responsible for the deaths of Americans in Lebanon in the 1980s, in Saudi Arabia in the 1990s, and in Iraq today. They have murdered Iraqis, Lebanese, Palestinians and other Muslims who have resisted Iran's desire to dominate the region. They have persecuted countless people simply because they are Jewish.
"Iran is responsible for attacks not only on Israelis, but on Jews living as far away as Argentina. Anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial are part of Iran's official ideology and murder is part of its official policy.
"Not even Iranian citizens are safe from their government's threat to those who want to live, work and worship in peace. Politically-motivated abductions, torture, death by stoning, flogging, and amputations are just some of its state-sanctioned punishments. ...[The] Iranian government is both oppressive and barbaric. Under Ahmadinejad's rule, Iranian women are some of the most vulnerable citizens.
"If an Iranian woman shows too much hair in public, she risks being beaten or killed. If she walks down a public street in clothing that violates the state dress code, she could be arrested. But in the face of this harsh regime, the Iranian women have shown courage. Despite threats to their lives and their families, Iranian women have sought better treatment through the One Million Signatures Campaign Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws. The authorities have reacted with predictable barbarism. Last year, women's rights activist Delaram Ali was sentenced to 20 lashes and 10 months in prison for committing the crime of 'propaganda against the system.'
"....Earlier this year, Senator Clinton said that 'Iran is seeking nuclear weapons, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is in the forefront of that' effort. Senator Clinton argued that part of our response must include stronger sanctions, including the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization. John McCain and I could not agree more.
"Senator Clinton understands the nature of this threat and what we must do to confront it. This is an issue that should unite all Americans. Iran should not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons. Period. And in a single voice, we must be loud enough for the whole world to hear: Stop Iran!" "This is an issue that should unite all Americans." - Gov. Palin
Gov. Palin went on to suggest concrete actions, such as pressing "for truly tough sanctions at the UN, or with our allies if Iran's allies continue to block action in the UN We must start with restrictions on Iran's refined petroleum imports. We must reduce our dependency on foreign oil to weaken Iran's economic influence. We must target the regime's assets abroad; bank accounts, investments, and trading partners. President Ahmadinejad should be held accountable for inciting genocide, a crime under international law. We must sanction Iran's Central Bank and the Revolutionary Guard Corps - which no one should doubt is a terrorist organization.
"Together, we can stop Iran's nuclear program." In her conclusion, Palin reiterated a mantra promoted before Jewish audiences by presidential candidate McCain:"Senator McCain has made a solemn commitment that I strongly endorse: Never again will we risk another Holocaust. And this is not a wish, a request, or a plea to Israel's enemies. This is a promise that the United States and Israel will honor, against any enemy who cares to test us. It is John McCain's promise and it is my promise."
For those of you unaware, Obama's operatives in New York threatened to have the 5013c non-profit status revoked from the organizations sponsoring the anti-Iran rally if they permitted Sarah Palin to speak. Meanwhile, Obama's chief campaign adviser is hosting Ahmedinijad at a special Ramadan unity dinner celebrating his visit to America.
-MZ
"Meanwhile, Obama's chief campaign adviser is hosting Ahmedinijad at a special Ramadan unity dinner celebrating his visit to America."
ReplyDeleteYou have proof of this?
Linked it for you, Gert.
ReplyDeleteI don't see the measures in Sarah Palin's speech as realistic in the realpolitik.
ReplyDeleteThe US can't disengage without Iran's help. Contrary to what McCain might have claimed, the US simply can't afford to stay in Iraq. It needs a quid pro quo with Iran. There has been meetings already with Iran, under Bush.
Speaking of realpolitik, Hillary doesn't want to give Palin a rub, by being on stage with her.
Campaigns shouldn't have been invited to start. If you allow a campaign to speak, you are giving it an endorsement.
The Anti-Iran rally is completely bi-partisan, therefore the candidates have every right to speak. While you may not be anti-Ahmedinijad, and that's your right, you are in a tiny and insignificant minority, so your views don't receive any representation.
ReplyDeleteAs far as whether or not the US stays in Iraq is not the issue of this rally. Condemning Ahmedinijad is no different than condemning Hitler, and I don't use that analogy lightly.
jeeeeez, gert - do you not have google capabilities?
ReplyDeleteget used to saying "POTUS IN WAITING PALIN"!
pssssssst, madze - there'll be a birthday party at my place after midnight central - that'd be one a.m. your time...
From that link:
ReplyDelete"A dinner hosted by Obama’s chairperson to atone for mistakes against the Iranian Government."
If "atoning for mistakes against the Iranian Government" means recognising the mistake of deposing Mossadeq in 1953 and replacing him with the exceedingly cruel and repressive pro-US Shah puppet regime, then yes: that would be the right thing to do (certainly morally) and a possibility to start the US/Iran relationship on an even keel. Much of Iran's current animosity towards Israel is in reality war on the US by proxy.
That 20 odd years of interference in Iran's internal affairs is something the Iranians have never forgotten and successive regimes have done their best to keep that memory alive as possible is something almost every American administration (Democrat or Republican) has consciously brushed under the carpet, instead concentrating on the hostage crisis which was the inadvertent but direct result of this kind of interference.
Last time I mentioned this, a gang of charged up Conservative bloggers swooped down on me like cloud of killer bees on steroids.
Many Americans look at US ME foreign policy as if things just arise out of a vacuum.
Other than that, Ren is entirely right...