http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/michaelledeen/ en-us Tue, 8 Jul 2008 14:57:14 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2042401/posts Winning Hearts and Minds July 7th, 2008 Way back at the beginning of this war, and continuing through tomorrow, we have debated how to win the hearts and minds of the people of the Middle East. I have always viewed this discussion as important, but perhaps ultimately unknowable, because as Machiavelli loves to remind us, these things are all about winning and losing. The war, not the debate. During the Cold War there was an endless discussion about our enemy, just as there is today. Back then, the main question was: are we fighting a global movement (international communism), and... Pajamasmedia/Faster Please http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2042401/posts#comment Tue, 8 Jul 2008 14:57:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035451/posts Iran, Friend of the Sunni Terrorists (Surprise!) [Michael Ledeen] I guess I've been saying and writing this for more than seven years, but it's always nice to have support, especially when, as in this case, it comes from the general manager of al Arabiya TV, and a columnist in several publications in the Middle East. That is to say, not a neocon. Abdul Rahman al-Rashed states quite categorically: ...Iran, an extremist theocratic Shiite regime with Ahmadinejad at its helm, is orchestrating and funding the activities of extremist Sunnis in the region. The paradox is most striking in the case of... Asharq Alawsat http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035451/posts#comment Tue, 24 Jun 2008 03:51:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2027542/posts Ever since World War II, we have been driven by a passionate desire to understand how mass genocide, terror states and global war came about – and how we can prevent them in the future. Above all, we have sought answers to several basic questions: Why did the West fail to see the coming of the catastrophe? Why were there so few efforts to thwart the fascist tide, and why did virtually all Western leaders, and so many Western intellectuals, treat the fascists as if they were normal political leaders, instead of the virulent revolutionaries they really were? Why did... THE WALL STREET JOURNAL http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2027542/posts#comment Sat, 7 Jun 2008 13:34:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2010902/posts The Italian Revolution May 1st, 2008 We are in Italy. Sicily, actually. And we are watching something amazing: an Italian revolution. The new Parliament, sworn in yesterday, does not have a single member who calls himself “communist.” That’s the first time since World War II. Gianfranco Fini, the new speaker of the House, announced that the post-war era was over, and he was entirely right. No one knows it better than he, because for most of his adult life he has been called a “fascist,” and scorned by most of the writers, salon hangers-on, and politicians in the country, even... Pajamasmedia.com/Ledeen http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2010902/posts#comment Sun, 4 May 2008 02:33:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2001151/posts The Odd Vision of the NY Times Michael Ledeen April 13, 2008 In one of its periodic seizures of narcissism, the New York Times now claims that the American government is working very hard to convince the Iraqi government that Iran is supporting terrorism inside Iraq. As if the Iraqis had not known that. But the Times goes further, arguing that until very recently, Iraqi leaders were actually pro-Iranian. This is like saying that businesses paying protection money to the Mafia are pro-Mafia. It's not only silly, but it flies in the face of recent events, which saw the Iraqi... NRO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2001151/posts#comment Mon, 14 Apr 2008 03:33:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1999765/posts Talking Cure Obama’s flawed thinking. By Michael Ledeen April 10, 2008, Senator Barack Obama wants to talk to our Middle Eastern enemies, notably Iran. He can’t imagine a happy resolution of the war without such talks. And he seems to think this desire is something new, maybe even revolutionary. He apparently does not know that it is not at all new, and certainly not revolutionary. It is instead the fully tested “policy” of the United States for the past thirty years, ever since the seizure of power by the mullahs in 1979. We have had high-level and low-level talks, public... NRO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1999765/posts#comment Thu, 10 Apr 2008 23:07:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1999531/posts Senator Barack Obama wants to talk to our Middle Eastern enemies, notably Iran. He can’t imagine a happy resolution of the war without such talks. And he seems to think this desire is something new, maybe even revolutionary. He apparently does not know that it is not at all new, and certainly not revolutionary. It is instead the fully tested “policy” of the United States for the past thirty years, ever since the seizure of power by the mullahs in 1979. We have had high-level and low-level talks, public and private talks, talks conducted by diplomats, by spooks, and by... National Review http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1999531/posts#comment Thu, 10 Apr 2008 15:52:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1998275/posts The Continuing Iran-American War April 5, 2008 Those many pundits and politicians who have insisted on talking about “civil war” in Iraq imagined a sectarian clash, Sunni against Shi’ite, not the recent sort of conflict of radical Shi’ite militias against government troops and police. Meanwhile, on the other side of the sectarian divide, Sunni tribesmen banded together to defeat Sunni terrorists from al Qaeda in Anbar Province, again a seemingly counter-intuitive event. Sunnis and Shi’ites are fighting enemies of their own sects, not one another. What is one to make of it? A big clue to understanding this apparent mystery... Pajamasmedia.com/Ledeen http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1998275/posts#comment Tue, 8 Apr 2008 03:33:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1992757/posts Khamenei is Shooting Craps... Michael Ledeen March 27, 2008 The Shi’ites are killing one another all over Iraq, most notably in Basra. Jules Crittendon, as always, has a fine roundup of the (mis)coverage from the MSM, delivers all the right insults (I particularly enjoyed watching the back of his hand slap the unctious Tony Cordesman) and asks all the right questions. What kicked this off? Who’s fighting whom? Who’s gonna win? Is it good for us or bad for us? The best way to understand these events is to take one little step back, and note that our people are... Pajamasmedia.com/Ledeen http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1992757/posts#comment Thu, 27 Mar 2008 22:22:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1991104/posts Magdi, Ayaan, Salman, and Us. Michael Ledeen March 23, 2008 My friend Magdi Allam, the deputy editor of the Italian newspaper il Corriere della Sera, has converted from Islam to Catholicism and was baptized the night before Easter in a service conducted by the pope in St. Peter’s in Rome. It’s a courageous act, but then Magdi Allam is a brave man. His outspoken criticism of Italian Muslim radicals–especially their support for the Muslim Brotherhood and for Hamas–had already produced threats to his life several years ago, and, ever since, the Italian Government has protected him, his home, and his... Pajamasmedia/Faster Please http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1991104/posts#comment Tue, 25 Mar 2008 04:13:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1989207/posts The Circus Is in Tehran Search for meaning in non-elections. March 20, 2008 By Michael Ledeen There were no elections in Iran last Friday, whatever you may read. The “turnout” was shockingly low, even by past standards, as is demonstrated by the obvious panic in Tehran, where the mullahs kept the polls open an extra five hours. This was not, as they said, to make sure the patriotic citizens of the capital could drop their ballots in the box, but because they had to bus the reluctant faithful and the subservient government employees to the election offices, so as to... National Review Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1989207/posts#comment Fri, 21 Mar 2008 03:18:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1964262/posts Tehran University Demonstrations Michael Ledeen Here is an account of the anti-regime demonstrations in Tehran last week, written by a democracy activist on the ground. I don't know if they have entirely stopped yet. Please note the last lines, the plea that the rest of the world report these events and pay attention to the cause of Iranian people, workers, students, and women. I so wish I had a government that did that, or a candidate who spoke out on their behalf. Here you go: Sunday, Jan. 27, was marked by the third day of protest by Tehran University students... NRO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1964262/posts#comment Sun, 3 Feb 2008 17:36:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1770140/posts Vindicating Larry Franklin ELI LAKE January 16, 2007 When President Bush announced the new Iraq strategy Wednesday evening, acknowledging that Iran was effectively at war with us in Iraq by supplying terrorists with advanced improvised explosives, my thoughts turned to Lawrence Franklin. Nearly a year ago, Judge T.S. Ellis III, sentenced this Pentagon Iran analyst to almost 13 years in a federal prison after he pleaded guilty to discussing classified information with two former lobbyists from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. The case, which is thus far the Bush administration's only successful anti-leaking prosecution, illustrates the strategic confusion of... N.Y. Sun http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1770140/posts#comment Fri, 19 Jan 2007 14:25:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1950910/posts The Straits of Hormuz January 9, 2008 So now the Iranians have denied “buzzing” American warships. No surprise there; the mullahs always deny any aggressive acts, even when they are caught red-handed. They deny arming, training and guiding terrorists in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon. They deny EVER carrying out belligerent acts, even though their armed forces, in uniform, attempted to capture American Special Forces in Iraq in September, 2006. And on and on. The most surprising thing about the Straits of Hormuz event is that anyone is surprised. After all, they’ve been attacking us for nearly 30 years. But that... pajamasmedia.com/Ledeen http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1950910/posts#comment Wed, 9 Jan 2008 18:57:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1945891/posts At the Foggy Bottom of the Iraq Story December 27, 2007 Michael A. Ledeen The Washington Post provided a luminously clear picture last week of the ongoing, enormously important, battle over the "meaning" of events in the Middle East war, including its own efforts. On Wednesday, December 19 tucked away on the fourteenth page of the front sections, the Post reported the Pentagon's analysis of the recent stunning decrease in attacks against Coalition Forces and Iraqis. Did it mean that Iran--widely viewed as a prime mover in support of terrorist groups in Iraq--had voluntarily cut back on its aggressive role... AEI http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1945891/posts#comment Sun, 30 Dec 2007 14:23:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1941948/posts The Chinese Economy Hoax and Other Economists' Fables Michael Ledeen A few years ago, when I was a member of something called “The U.S.-China Strategic Review Commission” (or so I remember it), we issued reports on China’s economy, military strategy, and political situation. In each of the first two such reports (I left the Commission before the third came out, and confess that I haven’t kept up with them) we took pains to state that the “official” data issued by the Chinese Government were totally unreliable. Indeed, we stated explicitly that the numbers were simply made up. Now the World... Pajamasmedia/Faster Please http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1941948/posts#comment Wed, 19 Dec 2007 23:07:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1916317/posts October 25, 2007, 7:45 a.m. Red Army DreamsYouÂ’re getting colder. By Michael Ledeen If you were Vladimir Putin, what would you think of Iran? You’d worry a lot about it, that’s what. Your own Russia is losing Russians, due to the usual grim demography that characterizes most of Europe. And, like the others, you’ve got a Muslim problem, with surging birthrates both within Russia and all along its borders, from Chechnya to the ‘stans. Lots of those Muslims are under Iranian sway. You know that well, having been trained in, and elevated by, the KGB, which was horrified to... National Review Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1916317/posts#comment Thu, 25 Oct 2007 17:24:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1914918/posts Why Did Larijani Resign? October 22, 2007 National Review Online Michael Ledeen The mullahologists are all atwitter over the “meaning” of the surprise resignation of one of Iran’s most public officials, chief nuclear negotiator and national-security council chief Ali Larijani. It must mean something, mustn’t it? This is a major figure in the Islamic Republic, who has long harbored presidential ambitions, and has played a key role in some of the regime’s most important policies. He was minister of culture, then head of state broadcasting, then secretary of the Supreme National Security Council. If such a powerful figure steps down... National Review Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1914918/posts#comment Tue, 23 Oct 2007 02:36:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1895932/posts Dennis Prager show Sep 12, 2007 Half hour interview of Michael Ledeen about Iran. **The single most important thing is for the President and Secretary of State to stand up and say that we are in favor of regime change in Iran. Also - Ledeen says we need to provide: * strike funds for Iranian workers * technological support - laptops, phones, etc so Iranians can communicate with one another and us without censorship and jamming by the regime * we need to broadcast on radio (VOA, etc) as we have done in past with soviets and other countries,: 1)How... Dennis Prager http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1895932/posts#comment Thu, 13 Sep 2007 16:39:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1893299/posts 'The Iranian Time Bomb' September 07, 2007 WSJ Book Excerpt Chapter One: The Torture Masters - "At the very least, you could have given me a glass of water. Animals are slaughtered more humanely than this." --Atefeh Rajabi, sixteen years of age, about to be hanged for "adultery," August 15, 2004 "Absolutely, we do have political prisoners. There are those who are in prison for their beliefs." --"Reformist" president Mohammed Khatami, April 28, 2004 In the months following his successful revolution against the shah, the Ayatollah Khomeini consolidated his domestic power through the use of four basic techniques: –The first,... Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1893299/posts#comment Sun, 9 Sep 2007 00:29:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1891505/posts Tick, Tock, Michael Ledeen on The Iranian Time Bomb September 05, 2007 National Review Online An NRO Q&A Most people…do not realize that, for nearly thirty years, the Iranians continuously attacked us, and, aside from some harsh rhetoric from time to time, we never responded.” So writes NRO contributor and American Enterprise Institute scholar Michael Ledeen in his new book The Iranian Time Bomb. The book is an analysis of Iran’s ongoing war with “the Great Satan” and a blueprint for finally fighting back. Ledeen took a few questions on the book and the current scene from National Review Online... NRO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1891505/posts#comment Wed, 5 Sep 2007 16:10:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1890926/posts The Iranian Time Bomb - The Mullah Zealots' Quest for Destruction By Michael A. Ledeen The first salvo was the attack on the American Embassy in Tehran in the fall of 1979, leading to the seizure of American hostages, a crisis that lasted 444 days. The war continued with the assassination of American diplomats and military personnel in Europe and North Africa. The latest fronts in that war are in Afghanistan, Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq. Iran arms, funds, trains, and directs a variety of terror groups, numbering tens of thousands of terrorists, regardless of their religious or ethnic makeup. It... AEI http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1890926/posts#comment Tue, 4 Sep 2007 15:05:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1809006/posts Biden and Hagel...in 2002 Every U.S. Senator believes he or she should be president. Just listen to them talk, and watch the way they walk; it?s obvious. They?re rarely called to account, but every now and then they write something, and it goes into the record, and then someone googles it out. So take a look at this very statesmanlike op-ed that Biden and Hagel wrote four and a half years ago. Notice they had no clue what would happen after the overthrow of Saddam. Notice that they bought into the Saudi view of life, namely that nothing of merit... pajamasmedia http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1809006/posts#comment Fri, 30 Mar 2007 01:07:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1807873/posts Just Like the Mullahs Taking hostages is just standard operating procedure for Iran. March 27, 2007 National Review Online Michael Ledeen The deep thinkers now torturing themselves for an explanation of the Iranian seizure of 15 British hostages should reread the ancient wisdom contained in the fable of the scorpion and the crocodile. The scorpion is desperate to cross the river, but can?t swim, so he begs the croc to give him a ride. The croc is afraid the scorpion will sting him. The scorpion promises he won?t. The croc gives him the ride. As they get to the far... National Review Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1807873/posts#comment Wed, 28 Mar 2007 03:38:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1799726/posts The Way We Dealt with the Soviets Is the Way To Deal with Iran By Michael A. Ledeen Posted: Monday, March 12, 2007 ARTICLES Parliamentary Brief (March 2007) Publication Date: March 9, 2007 Of the many errors committed by Western governments and their intelligence services in the run-up to Operation Iraqi Freedom, none was so grave as a fundamental error of strategic vision: the failure to recognize we would automatically be involved in a regional war, not simply a battle against the regime of Saddam Hussein. We imagined that Afghanistan was secure and that we could deal with Iraq all... AEI http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1799726/posts#comment Mon, 12 Mar 2007 22:35:57 GMT