Posted on 06/21/2009 2:01:18 AM PDT by Chet 99
TEHRAN (June 19, 2009)-- Iran’s supreme leader took issue Friday with U.S. claims about human rights violations in his country in the wake of a bitterly contested presidential election, and cited the 1993 raid on the Branch Davidian compound outside of Waco as he questioned whether U.S. officials even “know what human rights are.”
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned protestors of a crackdown on massive street demonstrations.
He said protesters would be "held responsible for chaos if they didn't end" days of massive demonstrations.
He blamed Great Britain and Iran's external enemies for trying to foment unrest, and said “the worst thing to me in all of this are comments made in the name of human rights and freedom and liberty by American officials,” according to translations of his remarks posted online Friday.
“During the time of the Democrats...time of Clinton…80 people were burned alive in Waco,” he said.
“Now you are talking about human rights?”
His reference was to the fiery end to the 51-day standoff between federal agents and Branch Davidians in 1993 at the group’s compound outside of Waco.
Plans for the federal raid on the compound were actually set in motion while George H. W. Bush was president.
International human rights organizations say Iran's crackdown in response to protests over a disputed election has swept up dozens of activists and politicians.
The director of the New York-based International Campaign for Human Rights, Hadi Ghaemi, says he's been told at least 200 had been arrested or disappeared.
The Iranian government has said that it has arrested a relatively small number of people responsible for violence and other crimes.
Amnesty International and the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran say they've heard similar reports.
Meanwhile, in the strongest message yet from the U.S. government, the House has voted to condemn Tehran's crackdown on demonstrators and the government's interference with Internet and cell phone communications.
Republicans initiated the resolution as a veiled criticism of President Barack Obama.
The president has mostly spoken in quite measured terms, reluctant to speak too strongly about the disputed elections that left hard-liner President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in charge of the Muslim nation.
Democrats, who are quick to voice their support for Israel, easily agreed with the GOP on pushing through the mildly worded resolution.
Congress frequently weighs in on foreign policy matters, when a similar message from the State Department or the White House would be considered confrontational.
Sorry nothing.
The mullahs will use any justification they can to do what they are doing. Pointing out our hypocrisy, and the hypocrisy of any other nation who would criticize them, enables them to feel that what they are doing is okay, because everyone else does it somewhere along the line.
I never said it was right. I only said he had a point. And in that, it leaves our criticisim of their actions, that is, our government’s criticism, less than what it could be.
nice rant...
of course my personal interpretation of scripture is only my opinion, but i believe He choseeverything for me, or else i was given a single yes/no question back before the foundation and *that* answer set my path...
pretty deep, i know, and i do reserve the right to be completely wrong if He wants me to be...8^}...
keep up the good postings sir...
It's an argument that is the essence of evil. First - the only "perfect" person who lived here could walk on water. The rest of us can't walk on water and we're NOT perfect. That DOES NOT mean that the rest of us have to accept Larry Flynt the pornographer. Or the Mullahs. Or any other liberal evil.
We don't have to be perfect to see what's wrong and call it as wrong.
And Mullahs, shooting your own citizens in the street after stealing an election is WRONG. And I can say that and I'm not perfect. We can all say that: YOU Mullahs are WRONG!
How about the North Korean ship? Any bet's that Obama will have the guts to do anything about it? Now this one has legs because he PRed the UN resolution he wouldnt be enforcing which would show the fraud he is.
Obama needs to define our belief in honest elections ( I know that's not easy for a democrat but he needs to say it). Then he has to tell the Iranian people that he understands their yearning to be free because all people want to be free. Then he needs to give examples of all the countries 50 years ago that were not free that ARE free today. And he has to say the path is hard and long but he believes they will make it.
It's not all he could do - but it's the minimum he must do...
As far a what the dems look like or don't - it's hopeless. All of us who can see them for what they are, wouldn't care. And all the people who can't see the dems for what they are wouldn't believe it. Best just to concentrate on helping the Iranians.
You're in interesting person sickoflibs - I - like you - have no idea what's going to happen with North Korea. That could be a nightmare for us.
Liberty will come to those who love it. All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: the United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you."- President George W. Bush, 1/20/2005
Something like this....
The quaint “indigenous” little old man in Tehran is finally going to make Branch Davidians cool!
That can be traced back in a long string of errors, to federal courts reading the 1937 Miller case for the OPPOSITE of what it says, and thereby upholding the 1934 NFA. Koresh was wanted for violation of a law that the United States District Court found unconstitutional, and the Supreme Court held that ruling to be correct if the gun in question was one in that had a use in an organized militia, or for common defense.
Then there is the initiation of the raid on the compound, rather than asking Koresh to surrender, or detaining him away from the compound.
I'm not sure an unqualified condemnation of violence is appropriate either. See Declaration of Independence. It sets out principles that were good enough for the US, and those principles are good enough for free people elsewhere.
That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. ... when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government
The alternative is to tell them to quit belly aching and get back to work. They had an election, and now they must follow their elected leaders.
RE :”Obama needs to define our belief in honest elections “
I do wonder voting Iraq is what is stirring the youth in Iran, never mentioned in MSM. I seriously think it may be.
RE :”You’re in interesting person sickoflibs “
Thanks, I am certainly beyond looking for someone to tell me what I have to think.
RE :”That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, “
??? Our constitution says that?
No. That's in our Declaration of Independence.
That can be traced back in a long string of errors, to federal courts . . .-- which begs the question of whose fault it was. But of course we weren't to ask that question. --
Then there is the initiation of the raid on the compound, rather than asking Koresh to surrender, or detaining him away from the compound.
The entire lash up, of course, was due to the lack of an Attorney General who knew the law and the Constitution and was determined to follow it. On her best day Janet Reno was not that.But Janet Reno wasn't even on board at the start of the mess, because she wasn't the first woman named for the job - nor, IIRC, even the second. Hillary's(!) first picks were, like Hillary herself, not people you would want the vindication of your rights to depend on, either.
But by the time that Reno actually took office, the train was starting down the track and bad decisions had already been made. Had she been a mench, of course, that wouldn't have mattered so much. But she was there as window dressing, the first female Attorney General - and proved, like Sandra Day O'Connor sadly, that the pool of first-rate woman lawyers at the time of her nomination just wasn't that deep.
I think that's an important part of what's going on.
I am reminded of Putin warning Obama to be careful about his economic policies. I suppose someone could point to Russia’s past, but it didn’t tarnish the truth in what he said for me.
The people with common sense, will understand messages of merit.
Iran’s government hasn’t got a leg to stand on here.
I’m sure you agree with that.
While I do believe He cleared the path for us as it relates to salvation, I believe we have choices to make all along the way. Just as he allowed Adam and Eve to select their own path, He still allows us to select ours.
I appreciate your reasoned disagreement, and good nature about it.
You keep up the good posting too Gilbo_3. Thank you.
Good strategy. He knocked that one out of the ball park.
It’s a fact, before the fed.gov begins lecturing the Iranian regime on human rights, they best be looking in their own back yard. Where is that front door?
Iran is a sovereign nation. The leaders can do to their people whatever they think they can get away with, and they can justify it anyway they feel like, which they have.
Moreover, they can tell any nation that they want to to piss off. Pointing out the USA’s hypocrisy helps them feel better. Whether they have a leg to stand on or not, if they get away with it, they have both legs to stand on.
I’m sure you agree with that.
“...if they get away with it...”
The intent was to silence criticism. Did they get away with it?
No.
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