What’s the leader of a tyrannical authoritarian regime to do if they’ve been “elected” on a pledge to aide the nation’s poor, stir economic growth and create jobs? The answer to that question is quite simple; you follow the model of Hugo Chavez, well known for his skill in pulling a Mussolini. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has taken this message to heart, knowing full well he is unable and perhaps unwilling to take steps to promote opportunity for his people. After all to create opportunities for individual achievement lessens a person’s dependence upon the state, in this case a radical authoritarian theocratic state. Ahmadinejad is no less aware, however, that his people expect results and here is where the art of pulling a Mussolini is honed into a science.

President Ahmadinejad must distract his people from the realities of his own failed promises and do so in such a way as it unites his people behind a common vision or goal. For the radicals in Iran, that distraction is readily apparent: anti-Semitism. Hatred of Israel and calls for its eventual destruction have been a hallmark of Iranian foreign policy since 1979. Given this reality it should come as no surprise that President Ahmadinejad has repeated his much maligned supposition that stories of the Holocaust are a “myth.” Ahmadinejad, who made similar claims last week, and has already called for Israel to be wiped off the map, argued that the Holocaust was invented by Europeans as justification for the creation of a Jewish state in the heart of the Middle East. The land, therefore, should be returned and if the Europeans persist in making the claim of Nazi extermination of Jews, then Europeans are to blame and should set aside land in their territory for a Jewish state.

With this new statement, it can be argued with a large degree of certainty, that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is perhaps one of the most ignorant world leaders in the annals of human history (or perhaps the most cunning), putting poor Hugo Chavez to shame. We at the Phalanx won’t bother to argument the merits of Ahmadinejad’s claim that the holocaust is a myth. To do so would make as much sense as to argue that the sun doesn’t exist or the Vietnam war never happened or the internet doesn’t exist. The claim is devoid of merit, reason or historical validity. By making the statement, however, Ahmadinejad accomplishes two goals: he ruffles the feathers of his hated enemy and distracts his people from his own personal failures as the caretaker for a tyrannical “revolution.”

The reality is there has been a sizeable Jewish presence in modern day Israel for over 30 centuries. It is the birthplace of Judaism and Israelis have lived and died in the region since before Mohammad or Islam were even blips on the radar. Perhaps Ahmadinejad would consider returning the lands stolen by Muslims as they expanding (through conquest) across the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa. These lands were controlled by Christians, Jews and indigenous groups for centuries, yet Ahmadinejad is conveniently silent on the legitimacy of these holdings. Perhaps once these land adjustments are made then Ahmadinejad can call Israel to task for any perceived injustice he feels have been inflicted.

And what of these injustices? For all Ahmadinejad’s talk about supporting the Palestinian cause, what has he or Iran done for the Palestinian cause, other than train suicide bombers? Not much. Have they provided financial aide? Have they offered educational opportunities for Palestinian youth? Have they sought to create opportunities for growth and development in Gaza or the West Bank? No all they have done is to foment terror and violence, which is the principle reason why that region of the world is one of the poorest on Earth. Ahmadinejad, like his predecessors and his contemporaries, is all talk and that we can depend upon.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4527142.stm