The so-called “Iran experts” like Abbas Milani or Hamid Dabshai feel so hurt these days! That is because the only people who got the Iranian election and its aftermath correctly, and are thus the ones who are taken seriously by the political establishment, are the American-Iran-experts: The Leveretts.
Here is Leverett’s original article:
http://iranian.com/main/news/2010/01/06/another-iranain-revolution-not-likely
And, here’s Milani’s quick response to them with his subtle rage:
http://iranian.com/main/2010/jan/state-opposition-strongpage1
Dabashi and Milani feel so bad for being irrelevant these days that they write with anger about Everett’s important observation, and Dabashi goes on to attack Milani and Nafisi (yet again), just to distance himself from the other-Iran-experts-who-got-it-wrong, in order to re-claim himself among the “left” with his typical holier-than-thou-attitude. He almost looks like a clown trying to portray Milani as going left-and right in order to cover his very own going left and right!
Here’s Dabashi’s more-foam-at-the-mouth rage at the Leveretts, and his attempt to back paddle his own “delusions” about The Great Green Movement: (Thank you DK for a change!)
http://iranian.com/main/news/2010/01/31/white-moderates-and-greens
“If there are folks inside the Beltway who think the Islamic Republic will fall any day now, Abbas Milani will become the American ambassador to Iran, or the Iranian ambassador to the US, depending on the season of his migrations to the left or right, and Lolita will soon become required reading in Iranian high schools, well that’s their problem, and yet another sign of their dangerously delusional politics.”
He even gets funnier when he started to call Green movement a civil rights movement soon after his high hopes of it being a “revolution” died, which is OK. But then, trying to address the PERSONAL importance he has given to the Green Movement, he now water downs few of Iran’s most important uprisings, including the Constitutional Revolution AND Islamic Revolution of 1979 as part of a “Civil Rights Movement”:
“This is a civil rights movement some two hundred years in the making, whose course and contours will be determined inside Iran and by Iranians.”
No kidding Mr. Dabashi, but we thought YOU were the big fan and defender of Mr. Makhmalbaaf who represented himself as the speaker of the “Green Movement” and went to European Parliament and BEGGED them to interfere in Iran’s affair and sanction Iran. Did you forget that little detail?! Now, to separate himself from those who supported sanctions, he blames Abbas Milani:
“There are two sorts of harm: economic sanctions, covert operations and military strikes, advocated by the likes of Milani; or else engaging with the illegitimate and fraudulent government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as the Leveretts advocate.”
Wait a minute now!!! You just talked about that “civil rights movement” whose course must be determined in Iran and by Iranians. But now, you seem to be wanting other countries interfere with Iran’s internal affairs, not only by supporting Makhmalbaaf, but here by criticizing others in US who advocate non-interference in Iran? YOU want the Americans approve who is the RIGHTFUL president of Iran, not the system in Iran like the Everetts advocate? Make up your mind and represent yourself without contradiction at least in one short paragraph, mister!
To cover he himself for being caught by surprize by the huge number of pro-government people who poured in the streets after Ashura, he blames the Everetts of palying a “silly number game”:
“The entire argument of the Leveretts dwells on a silly number game, like belligerent teenagers comparing the size of their vanities, all set in a prep school adolescent debating club mentality, questioning the numbers of antigovernment and pro-government rallies.
Mr Dabashi didn’t get this “silly number game” the same way that he didn’t underdstand that 25 million who voted for Ahmadinejad is a much greater number than 13 million who voted for someone else! It is not a “silly number game” mister, it is called “the will of majority!”
Another funny thing Dabashi writes on the FAILED Western propaganda and intervention in Iranian election is that he copies Dr. Sahimi’s crazy “coup propaganda” by the government, which puts the actual events on its head! That is, they call the western failed AJAX2 attempt to overthrow a massively elected Ahmadinejad via the so-called Green Revolution” which the west thought would be a successful replica of a Ukraine’s Orange Revolution, illegitimately crossed with a 1953 Ajax1-type-project, as a coup by the government! No wonder to cover himself here, he now calls the Leveretts who had nothing to do with Iran’s election as “Kermit Roosvelts” :
“Mr and Mrs Leverett ought to know they will be remembered in Iranian history as the 21st century equivalent of Kermit Roosevelt if they persist, as they have since the commencement of the Green Movement in June 2009, in actively siding with what in Iran is called “the coup government of Ahmadinejad“.
Sorry Mr. Dabashi, you better listen to the Leveretts correct early call when they said: “Ahmadinejad got elected, get over it!” The ACTUAL leaders of the Green Movements, Karroubi and Mousavi finally did; the expat leader-wanna-bes should have no problem doing so. Else, the Leveretts will be remembered for their wisdom, not for being Kermnit Roosvelt, whileYou and Mr. Makhmalbaaf (who are lucky that the AJAX2 project FAILED), would be remembered as just another “Shaban bi mokh“ cheer leaders. Shaban bi mokh for collaborating with the west to prevent Iran’s national aspirations in its oil industry, the modern ones for being the cheer leaders for those who wish to prevent Iran’s aspirations on its nuclear technology.
