Posted on 01/05/2009 10:19:40 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Normally, Michael Ledeen wouldn’t qualify as an optimist, especially on Iran. That’s what makes his column today on the mullahcracy’s fortunes interesting reading, as Ledeen sees the regime teetering after its proxies have lost ground. But is Ledeen a little too hopeful?
First of all, the dramatic drop in oil prices is devastating to the mullahs, who had planned to be able to fund terrorist proxies throughout the Middle East, Europe and the Americas. Suddenly their bottom line is tinged with red, and this carries over onto their domestic balance sheets, which were already demonstrably shaky (they were forced to cancel proposed new taxes when the merchant class staged nation-wide protests). No wonder they seize on any international event to call for petroleum export reductions. Just today they called for a [2] drastic reduction of oil shipments to all countries that supported the Israeli military incursion into Gaza.
No doubt, the Iranians believe the fall in oil prices is the result of satanic will, rather than the shock to demand produced by the runup to $140/barrel. Not for them the subtleties of the free market; given the way they view the world, they must be convinced that the same strategy that beggared the Soviet Union–Saudi cooperation with America to hold down prices–is now deployed against them. This belief was no doubt reinforced when the recent official cut in petroleum production did not lead to markedly higher prices.
(Excerpt) Read more at hotair.com ...
fyi
Offer them a bailout from TARP II.
Drill ....
LOL....I was going to say Fat Chance...but there is a new guy taking over the White House.
Ping, gotta read this one tomorrow.
They should have hedged their oil against Gold about 5 years ago.
The best strategy for the US is to pursue low international oil prices over the next few years by aggressively expanding domestic oil production. Starving the Iranians of the funds for terrorism doesn’t require bombs or invasions, and it will be much more effective at weakening the mullahcracy enough to foment an organic overthrow by the Iranian people — as well as securing our own economic standing and keeping American capital in America, creating jobs and cutting back sharply on our trade deficit.
The best weapon against Iran is Sarah Palin, ANWR, and the new Manhattan Project: Drill Here, Drill Now, Squash Ahmadinejad Like the Cockroach He Is.
Hussein is a crypto-Islamo-Commie with a tire guage fetish--
He can't stop polluting his lungs with 3,000 toxins but is an anti-auto mujahadeen because of his tender passion for the environment.
Opposition to drilling is treason.
believe me there are 2nd,3rd,& even young 4th generations of Iranians born since the revolution of 1979.
There is the still burgeoning business(bazaari) class that has taken the brunt of this revolution,yet all the kids are up-to-date socially&financially(kids of boomers+).There’s the leftover intelligentsia and most of them are Iranian boomers if not having preserved their wealth in diff places even offshore other than direct financial investment in the revolution it’s invested and land & property it’s tough to sell because l&p sales are strictly controlled by the gov’t without nepotism-you gotta’ pay to play and these mullahs like the pay and they DO play;all these big profile mullahs are on the take,too, and you’ll find with a bit of investigation many have Swiss bank accounts.These a**h**** have been bleeding the country dry since 1979.In actuality they are to a high degree the same types of personalities the late Shah had cultivated around himself.
I don’t believe his son the prince Reza will succeed in re-establishing a monarchy without total anarchy.
Thank you President Bush !
Oil is up to $50 this morning. IIRC the price just last month was around $36. Anyone know the reason for the run up? I read recently that oil was being withheld from the market by speculators.
I know the price per gallon here in NE TX jumped 20¢ over the weekend.
Drilling at home is like running a stake into the enemies heart. Not only the mullahs, but also Venezuela, Russia and the Saudis.
Israel...
Israel...
It would be ironic if Iran profited from Israel’s attack on Hamas by seeing the price of oil go up.
Interesting read.
W weighed the issues and decided to fight a war against our several enemies. He determined that an economic war was the best course. It will be conducted from behind the curtain. There will be pain and casualties but little death or permanent injury.
He had his treasury secretary scare the hell out of America and the world. He then secured the funds to prop up the vulnerable corporations required to be maintained. Hw brought into the open the corruption of the Democrats and the fact their policies of loans to all with no conditions on ability to repay. Their inability to manage cities and states under their control was exposed in glaring light. Michigan and California are shown to be failed.
His enemies were taken by surprise at the assault and are more or less powerless to respond. The major recession that increased the depth of the one in process wrecked the plans of the Democrat majority. They were instantly on defense.
Iran, Russia, Venezuela and Mexico are thrown into disarray as their source of $$$ and operating income disappears.
The USA goes into deep recession and unemployment rate increases substantially. The new housing business in overheated markets declines precipitously. The illegals who provide the edge when employment is full suddenly find they are no longer required. The illegal Mexican problem is substantially mitigated as they become unemployed and there are no jobs and must return to Mexico.
Meanwhile, the war in Iraq is won and the military effort can be directed elsewhere...Afghanistan. The middle east is totally different than before. It is now obvious that Gaza has been written off. There is a visible split between Hamas and Fatah. The west bank has a new security force trained by an American General in Jordan. Leaders announced at Christmas where there record numbers of tourists this year, that there were plans for the development of hotels and other tourist attractions. That means someone came up with a plan to find, develop and implement Bethlehem as a jobs center. This effort is a wedge between Hamas and the new face of the West Bank.
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