Khomeinism vs. Trumpism: Dr. Mansour Farhang Response to Javad Zarif
Iran’s theocracy and Trumpism have irresolvable power oriented conflicts, but they match each other’s nihilism when it comes to human rights issues. Mohammad Javad Zarif, the spokesman for Iran’s theocrats, correctly informs English speaking audiences that economic sanctions hurt the Iranian people without influencing the country’s position on JCPOA. At the same time, he shamelessly claims that there are no political prisoners in Iran or that Bashar Assad is a democratically elected leader of Syria. He correctly notes that preventing him to visit Iran’s hospitalized U. N. ambassador is unfair, but he finds it fair to whip and imprison Iranian women who oppose mandatory veiling. Trump exonerates Mohammad bin Salman in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and Zarif exonerates Ayatollah Khamenei in the chain murders of Iranian intellectuals and artists. In short, Zarif’s job is to defend the theocracy’s sociopathic human rights records while questioning the fairness or legality of Trump’s treatment of Iran. When Trump claimed that he is the “chosen one,” Friday prayer mullahs made fun of him. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic describes the Supreme Leader as the “chosen representative” of hidden Imam on earth. Any Iranian who dares to question this claim openly is bound to find himself or herself in the theocracy’s torture chamber. The self appointed “chosen ones” in Washington and Tehran regard themselves infallible and recognize no limit in the practice of ends justifying the means.
Mansour Farhang
Posted on G2000 Columbia University Weblog
