No subject

ned himself with the U.S. and Israel. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ir=
an brutally repressed its own people and broke its alliance with the U.S. a=
nd Israel. That apparently causes confusion for some on the left.=20



I have written numerous articles and books criticizing U.S. policy on Iran,=
 including Bush administration efforts to overthrow the Islamic government.=
 The U.S. raises a series of phony issues, or exaggerates problems, in an e=
ffort to impose its domination on Iran. (Examples include Iran's nuclear po=
wer program, support for Hamas and Hezbollah, and support for Shiite groups=
 in Iraq.)=20



During his past four years in office, Ahmadinejad has ramped up Iran's anti=
-imperialist rhetoric and posed himself as a leader of the Islamic world. T=
hat accounts for his fiery rhetoric against Israel and his denial of the Ho=
locaust. (Officially, Ahmadinejad "questions" the Holocaust and says "more =
study is necessary." That reminds me of the creationists who say there need=
s to be more study because evolution is only a theory.) As pointed out by t=
he opposition candidates, Ahmadinejad's rhetoric about Israel and Jews has =
only alienated people around the world and made it more difficult for the P=
alestinians.=20



But in the real world, Ahmadinejad has done nothing to support the Palestin=
ians other than sending some funds to Hamas. Despite rhetoric from the U.S.=
 and Israel, Iran has little impact on a struggle that must be resolved by =
Palestinians and Israelis themselves.=20



So comparing Ahmadinejad with Chavez or Evo Morales is absurd. I have repor=
ted from both Venezuela and Bolivia numerous times. Those countries have ge=
nuine mass movements that elected and kept those leaders in power. They hav=
e implemented significant reforms that benefitted workers and farmers. Ahma=
dinejad has introduced 24% annual inflation and high unemployment.=20



As for the position of Venezuela and President Hugo Chavez, they are simply=
 wrong. On a diplomatic level, Venezuela and Iran share some things in comm=
on. Both are under attack from the U.S., including past efforts at "regime =
change." Venezuela and other governments around the world will have to deal=
 with Ahmadinejad as the de facto president, so questioning the election co=
uld cause diplomatic problems.=20



But that's no excuse. Chavez has got it exactly backward. The popular movem=
ent in the streets will make Iran stronger as it rejects outside interferen=
ce from the U.S. or anyone else.=C2=A0 =C2=A0=20



This is no academic debate or simply fodder for bored bloggers. Real lives =
are at stake. A repressive government has killed at least 17 Iranians and i=
njured hundreds. The mass movement may not be strong enough to topple the s=
ystem today but is sowing the seeds for future struggles.=20



The leftist critics must answer the question: Whose side are you on?=C2=A0=
=20



Freelance foreign correspondent Reese Erlich covered the recent elections i=
n Iran and their aftermath. He is the author of The Iran Agenda: the Real S=
tory of U.S. Policy and the Middle East Crisis [9] . (Polipoint Press)