TIME Magazine Flacks for Iran

In an October 15 article entitled, “Four Good Reasons Why Iran Doesn’t Trust America,” TIME Magazine seems rather sympathetic to Iran’s point of view:

As Iran and Western negotiators sit down in Geneva today, it’s worth considering some of the reasons why Iran bears such animus toward America, and why cutting a deal with the U.S. won’t be easy for Tehran either. Many of those reasons have to do with the basic Islamic fundamentalist philosophy of Iran’s clerical leaders, to be sure. But as the nuclear talks move forward, it’s worth remembering that the U.S. bears some blame for the poisoned state of the relationship between the two countries.

Each one of TIME’s “good reasons” for Iran not to trust America is actually a reason America should not trust Iran. According to TIME, these include:

1. “The Coup and the Shah”

The Shah began his reign after a 1953 coup, which the CIA has recently acknowledged supporting. TIME reports:

“It it is easy to see now why many Iranians continue to resent this intervention by America in their internal affairs,” Secretary of State Madeleine Albright conceded in a 2000 address, which also acknowledged that the U.S. gave “sustained backing” to the Shah’s regime, which, she admitted, “brutally repressed political dissent.”

The Shah may have brutally repressed political dissent, but the current regime of the ayatollahs puts it to shame in the brutal repression department. Iran incarcerates political and religious dissenters, executes untold numbers in secret prisons and, after the rigged re-election of Ahmadinejad in 2009, sent thugs into the streets to beat and murder peaceful demonstrators. This repression goes back to the early days of the regime when thousands of political opponents were murdered.

2. “Iraq and Chemical Weapons”

TIME argues that during the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-1988, the U.S. supported Iraq, which used chemical weapons against Iran. Ironically, Iran supports the Assad regime in Syria which has repeatedly used chemical weapons against civilians, including women and children.

3. “Iran Air 655”

In July of 1988, American forces patrolling the Straits of Hormuz came under fire from Iranian patrol boats. At the same time, an Iranian passenger jet, Iran Air flight 655, flew nearby and was mistaken by a Navy vessel for a hostile fighter. It was shot down killing 274 Iranian passengers and 16 crew members. This was clearly an accident.

On the other hand, Iran is the world’s most active state-sponsor of terrorism. Thirty years ago today, Iran’s proxy Hezbollah set off a truck bomb in Beirut, killing 241 American marines, sailors and soldiers. A court found Iran responsible with a U.S. judge ordering Iran to pay more than $7 billion to the families of victims. As of yet, they have not been paid. Iran continues to support terrorism around the world, even planning to kill a Saudi ambassador by blowing up a Washington, D.C., restaurant.

4. “The ‘Axis of Evil’ and Regime Change”

TIME cites President George W. Bush’s 2002 State of the Union address, in which he described Iran as a member of the “axis of evil.” Furthermore, the magazine claims that Iran believes the U.S. wants regime change in Tehran.

Meanwhile, at virtually every regime-sponsored demonstration in Iran, speakers repeatedly call the U.S. “The Great Satan” and lead chants of “Death to America!”

If Iran has “good” reasons not to trust America, then America has great reasons not to trust Iran. And the four above don’t even scratch the surface. The Iranian regime has been hiding, lying about and violating international law regarding its nuclear program for decades. That sounds like a pretty darn good reason not to trust the regime as negotiations resume next month in Geneva.

As to why TIME Magazine would act as the public relations arm of the Iranian regime, there doesn’t seem to be any good reason for that.

Iranian protesters burn the American flag in Tehran.