I’ve had several Iranian colleagues throughout my faculty career. Unsurprisingly, none were anti-American. Here’s an interview with Juan Cole and Mojtaba Mahdavi, two Middle East experts, on the current events in Iran. They discuss the politics in Iran and among the Iranian diaspora. Both Cole and Mahdavi point to the Netanyahu ambition of hegemony in […]
AB: In the past attacks in the Middle East did result in oil and gasoline shortages., I expect the same to happen. Also expect higher oil prices even if no damage is done to wells or refining. Increases will occur in the oil market. Discussing Iran and diplomacy in the SOTU before he orders bombing […]
There’s absolutely no evidence that Iran has, or has ever possessed, nuclear weapons. Indeed, the Obama Administration negotiated an agreement whereby Iran agreed not to develop nuclear weapons or even enrich uranium to the purity necessary to create a fission bomb. Trump tore up that agreement, but there’s no evidence that Iran made any progress […]
The overclocked 8th grader in the White House has decided that the path to the Nobel Peace Prize lies through war. “The strikes opened a stunning new chapter in U.S. intervention in Iran and marked the second time in eight months that the Trump administration has used military force against the Islamic Republic. They came […]
“The Current Iran War will Likely end soon, but the Arms Race will Heat Up” Juan Cole, Ann Arbor (Informed Comment). The Al Jazeera bureau chief in Tehran, Abdul Qader Fayez, reports from “informed sources” in Tehran that Iran’s clerical Leader, Ali Khamenei, and his National Security Council have still not decided how to respond to the […]
Juan Cole is Richard P. Mitchell Collegiate Professor of History at the University of Michigan. He is fluent in Arabic, Persian and Urdu, and Turkish as well as several European languages. Since he allows reposts of his blog content on social media, I’m going to exceed the fair use limit in quoting him here. To […]
In its latest attack on Iran, Israel has resorted to bombing and assassination to convince Iran to capitulate on its nuclear program*. What’s the track record of success for bombing and assassination campaigns? Bombing “Unless an enemy army takes Tehran, as the US military took Baghdad in 2003, this four-branch government cannot be gotten rid […]
So Much For The Iran Nuclear Deal – by Barkley Rosser @ Econospeak Sorry you have not seen me here for a while. My laptop on which I am able to post here was out of commission, but now has been fixed. Well, it was not the US beating Iran in the World Cup. It […]
Iranian Demonstrations Spread to Oil Workers by Barkey Rosser The death of a Kuidish-Iranian woman not wearing a hijab to cover her hair has led to weeks of demonstrations led by mostly young women especially in the Kurdish parts of Iran. However, they have gained the support of young men as well, despite a severe […]
“Will The Iran Nuclear Deal Ever Get Reestablished?,” Econospeak It (Iran Nuclear Deal) keeps looking like it might, but then no obstacles have appeared yet. President Biden promised to undo what I have long argued was the worst foreign policy mistake made by Donald Trump. He should have just done it right after he took […]