...If the propaganda has us believe that the regime in Tehran is living in fear of a Tahrir-like revolution erupting in Iran, Khamenei's words show no such traces of fear or timidity. On the other hand, Khamenei would have carefully weighed Obama's capacity (or the limits to it) to bulldoze the Israeli lobby and to initiate a genuine normalization process with Iran.
When Richard Nixon worked on China in the early 1970s, he had the benefit of a broad consensus of opinion within the US political establishment. On the contrary, when it comes to Iran, pride and prejudice influence still rule the roost for most consequential Americans.
Khamenei's message to Obama is to get serious and think through what he really wants instead of lobbing a vague offer through Biden with no strings attached and no commitments underlying it. The Iranian leader who has continuously dealt with successive US administrations through the past 22 years simply threw the ball into Obama's court and will now wait and see how the latter kicks it around when he is in Israel next month.
Quote from : Khamenei Plays Hardball With Obama" By M K Bhadrakumar "Asia Times" Feb. 13, 2013 via Information Clearing House
Bahrain "The Inconvenient Revolution"
And now a message from Bahrain's Center For Human Rights
Maryam Al-Khawaja on the Struggle for Human Rights in Bahrain
Published on 13 Feb 2013
Maryam Al-Khawaja speaks about Bahrain's revolution, and the struggle that her father, Abdulhadi and sister, Zainab have faced in the fight for democracy and human rights in Bahrain.
Today's Topics
* John Brenann as CIA head will be more of the same : torture, renditions, assassinations and drone attacks
* Iran willing to negotiate in good faith but not when Obama's stance is negotiate or else
* More massive anti-government protest in Bahrain while Obama supplies brutal despotic regime with arms to attack protesters
TYT's Cenk Uygur's Commentary on the John Brennan appointment to the CIA
The Truth About Brennan on Torture And Drones (Disturbing Video)
Published on 12 Feb 2013
**Disturbing video of child drone victims used in this story**
"CIA nominee John Brennan never expressed concerns to the CIA's top lawyer about interrogation techniques, including waterboarding and other forms of torture, according to John Rizzo, the agency's acting general counsel during the George W. Bush presidency."*
John Brennan apparently had reservations about waterboarding and torture, yet the CIA's top attorney says he never said a word about it; his voice could have allegedly changed the program. He also lied and said no civilians with drone strikes. Cenk Uygur breaks it down, with the help of Brave New Films.
*Read more from Megan Robertson and Ben GrimmHuffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02...
America's willingness to hold negotiations with Iran and Iran's acceptance was undermined by America's announcement of even more stringent sanctions to be imposed on Iran. So the Iranians have taken this as America not dealing in good faith with Iran but rather as an attempt at intimidating and threatening Iran to negotiate or else.
Giving in to the Obama administration the Iranians believe would be inappropriate and would show weakness on the part of Iran.
It is odd that Obama prides himself on his willingness to negotiate with both sides of an issue has taken such a strident posture in negotiating with Iran. The problem for President Obama is that after years of demonizing the Iranians and exaggerating the threat posed by Iran and that the Iranians are unreasonable it is difficult now for even handed negotiations to take place.
Khamenei Plays Hardball With Obama" By M K Bhadrakumar "Asia Times" Feb. 13, 2013 via Information Clearing House
...Suffice to say, what prompted the Islamist leader of the Syrian National Coalition, Moaz al-Khatib, last weekend to show willingness to take part in direct talks with representatives of the Syrian regime - and pushed him into meeting with Russian and Iranian foreign ministers - was as much the disarray within the Syrian opposition and his failure to form a credible "government-in-exile" as his acute awareness that the Western mood is now cautious about Syria.
To be sure, Iran played a signal role in the grim battle of nerves over Syria through the recent months. Strangely, it is Iran today, which is on the "right side of history", by urging dialogue and negotiations and democratic elections as holding the key to reform and change in Syria - or, for that matter, in Bahrain.
The shift in Syria has actually enabled Iran to cross over the Sunni-Shi'ite barriers that were tenaciously put up to isolate it. Thus, President Mahmud Ahmedinejad's historic visit to Egypt this week has a much bigger regional dimension to it than the restoration of the Iran-Egypt bilateral relationship. The trilateral meeting held between Ahmedinejad and his Egyptian and Turkish counterparts Mohammed Morsi and Abdullah Gul signified Iran's compelling relevance as an interlocutor rather than as an implacable adversary for the two major Sunni countries.
...Needless to say, Iranian diplomacy has been optimal with regard to the Muslim Brotherhood-led regime in Cairo - neither fawning nor patronizing, or pushing and pressuring, but leaving things to the Brothers to decide the pace. Basic to this approach is the confidence in Tehran that the surge of Islamism in the Middle East through democratic process, no matter "Sunni Islamism", will ultimately work in favor of Iran's interests.
...Thus, it was against a complex backdrop that US Vice President Joe Biden said in Munich last weekend that Washington is ready to hold direct talks with Iran over the country's nuclear energy program. Iran's immediate response was one of cautious optimism. Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi reacted: "I am optimistic. I feel this new [US] administration is really this time seeking to at least divert from its previous traditional approach vis-a-vis my country."
However, by the next day, he had begun tempering the enthusiasm: "We looked at it positively. I think this is a good overture... But we will have to wait a little bit longer to see if their gesture is this time a real gesture... so that we will be making our decisions likewise."
Salehi subsequently explained, "A look at the past shows that whenever we have had talks with the Americans, including efforts to bring stability to Afghanistan, unfortunately the other side has failed to fulfill its obligations. You cannot use a threatening tone and say all options are on the table, on the one hand, [because] this is an apparent contradiction... Exerting pressure and [invitation to] talks are not compatible. If you have honest intentions, we can place serious negotiations on the agenda."
Obviously, Salehi spoke in two voices, and his retraction finally proved to be the "authentic" voice of Tehran. When the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei broke his silence on Thursday, he rejected the possibility of direct talks with the US. He said, "You [Americans] are pointing the gun at Iran and say either negotiate or we will shoot. The Iranian nation will not be frightened by the threats... Some naive people like the idea of negotiating with America [but] negotiations will not solve the problems. If some people want American rule to be established again in Iran, the nation will rise up to them."
One way of looking at Khamenei's harsh statement on Thursday is to put it in the immediate context of the announcement of further sanctions against Iran by Washington the previous day, which the US administration has explained as "a significant turning of the screw" that will "significantly increase the economic pressure on Iran".
...If the propaganda has us believe that the regime in Tehran is living in fear of a Tahrir-like revolution erupting in Iran, Khamenei's words show no such traces of fear or timidity. On the other hand, Khamenei would have carefully weighed Obama's capacity (or the limits to it) to bulldoze the Israeli lobby and to initiate a genuine normalization process with Iran.
When Richard Nixon worked on China in the early 1970s, he had the benefit of a broad consensus of opinion within the US political establishment. On the contrary, when it comes to Iran, pride and prejudice influence still rule the roost for most consequential Americans.
Khamenei's message to Obama is to get serious and think through what he really wants instead of lobbing a vague offer through Biden with no strings attached and no commitments underlying it. The Iranian leader who has continuously dealt with successive US administrations through the past 22 years simply threw the ball into Obama's court and will now wait and see how the latter kicks it around when he is in Israel next month.
And now back to Bahrain as massive peaceful protests continue in advance of the 2nd anniversary of the Reform Movement on Feb. 14, 2013. Yes there has been some violence on the part of a small portion of pro-reform protesters but this must be kept in perspective for instance by comparing the violence on the part of the government opposition in Bahrain to the extremely violent anti-government uprisings in Syria and Libya .
It should be noted that from what we know that much of the violence aimed at government forces has been taking place in areas where the Bahraini and Saudi security forces have been especially heavy handed in dealing with pro-reform protesters . In a number of villages and towns there is a massive police presence and constant attacks on civilians in their own homes without provocations. The police roam through the streets like thugs beating civilians tossing tear gas into homes and setting homes on fire and terrorizing the populace in general while also bulldozing Shiite Mosques and instituting curfews and martial law and preventing Shiites from attending Friday services at Mosques or held in the open because their Mosques have been destroyed . So there is little hope in being able to have even handed talks between the two sides .
The Bahraini Regime is refusing to consider any real or substantive reform the opposition claims the government does not want to negotiate in good faith and is therefore skeptical about negotiating with the government. The government is continuing to take a hardline and if not pushed by Obama the situation will not improve.
US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain -USA and Obama and the UK support the al-Khalifa Royal Family
Published on 10 Feb 2013
The US Fifth Fleet is a major US naval base which is anchored off Bahrain. It provides protection to the Bahraini royal family and also ensures US dominance of the Persian Gulf, one of the world's major energy producing areas and transit routes.
What is the strategic importance of the US Fifth Fleet to the Americans and the Bahrainis? What effect does it have on neighboring countries?
We will also cover the weekly news events in this episode which will be determined by the news agenda, but it is likely that we will look ahead to the second anniversary of the Bahraini revolution on February 14.
'Bahrain revolt imperils US fifth fleet'
Published on 16 Oct 2012
www.youtube.com/LattestKhabrainThe US-supported al-Khalifa regime tends to delegitimize the Bahrainis' popular uprising by trying to link it to foreign countries such as Iran, a renowned journalist tells Press TV.
Press TV has conducted an interview with the former CNN correspondent and investigative Journalist Amber Lyon from Los Angeles to further discuss the issue of the Bahraini revolution.
Interview: Maryam Al-Khawaja, Feb 2013
Published on 11 Feb 2013
www.frontlinedefenders.org
www.bahrainhrd.org
Two weeks before the 2nd anniversary of the 14 February popular uprising in Bahrain, and just after her return to Bahrain in almost two years, Maryam Al-Khawaja sat down for an interview with Front Line Defenders.
To learn more about Front Line Defenders work for human rights defenders in Bahrain, visit: www.bahrainhrd.org
To support the work of Front Line Defenders, visit: www.frontlinedefenders.org/donate
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