By James North
"Orientalism" is much more than just prejudice against Arabs and Muslims. Edward Said, who did more than anyone to explore the ideology, explained that Orientalism can include a genuine interest in the languages and (ancient) history of the Arab and Muslim Other. But Orientalists assume that Arabs and Muslims have a largely unchanging Essence, which has persisted for many centuries. You can discover this Essence by reading their ancient texts, the Quran, the Hadiths and others. Said pointed out that it is no mistake that the leading Orientalists – Bernard Lewis is a major surviving example – specialized in philology, the study of words and languages.
Ervand Abrahamian, a professor at Baruch College and the Graduate Center at CUNY, is the opposite of an Orientalist. He was born in Iran, of Armenian extraction, and he has spent decades analyzing his homeland not by burying himself in Sunni/Shi’ite theology, but by looking at Iranian political parties, class formations, the distribution of income, and government budget allocations. The indispensable Middle East Report has just published his latest findings as part of its valuable Spring 2009 issue on "Iran: The Islamic Revolution at 30."
His article is titled "Why the Islamic Republic Has Survived." An Orientalist would answer that question with a few words: Islamic zeal and fanaticism. Abrahamian includes militant Shi’ism among his list of the four frequently-used explanations for the Islamic Republic’s longevity – the others are "a reign of terror," the intense nationalism promoted during the Iran-Iraq war, and rising oil revenues. He looks closely at all four explanations, and finds all either wrong or far from sufficient.
"If these stock explanations do not suffice, then what does?" he asks. "The real answer lies not in religion, but in economic and social populism." He reports that the Islamic Republic has over 30 years given "priority to social rather than military expenditures," "dramatically expanding the Ministries of Health, Agriculture, Labor, Housing, Welfare and Social Security." He adds: "The military consumed as much as 18 per cent of the gross domestic product in the last years of the shah. Now it takes up as little as 4 per cent."
If Iran were, say, Paraguay, a detailed account of its internal life would unfortunately not matter much to the rest of the world. But the Bush administration and the Likud Lobby have turned Iran into a potential flashpoint. In an earlier book that Abrahamian co-authored (Inventing the Axis of Evil, The New Press, 2004), he showed how Bush’s harsh rhetoric undercut reformers within Iran and destroyed the growing movement toward detente with the United States.
Abrahamian’s work is no apologia for the Islamic Republic; he recognizes it is not a genuine democracy, and it continues to violate human rights. But by coolly analyzing the sources of its strength and longevity today – instead of invoking the dusty texts of Shi’ite theology – he helps us see how the outside world can reduce the risk of war, which, some day, could even include a Mideast nuclear confrontation.
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"The military consumed as much as 18 per cent of the gross domestic product in the last years of the shah. Now it takes up as little as 4 per cent."
The U.S. consumed 59% in 2008. Revolution, anyone?
One would think that, given the pack of lies (more than a few coming from Israel) used to justify an attack on Iraq, people would be skeptical of the Iran as threat fraud. I remember calling Orientalist Richard Frye, emeritus professor at Harvard, and asking him when Iran last attacked even a neighboring country. During the reign of Nadir Shah, he said, some 240 years ago.
Iran is no threat whatsoever. Iran seeks to protect itself from the real threat: Israel and its handmaidens in the U.S. When Shimon Peres claimed that Iran aims to rule the Middle East, he was, as usual, projecting.
But simple and gullible Americans who view events as if from the passenger seat of a moving car, seem rarely if ever able to make connections.
Its survived for a combination of effective revolutionary installation (Why has Cuba's revolution survived?) and the absence of an attractive alternative.
No one has an attractive alternative.
I spent the morning interviewing for a job in the suburbs of Hartford, very affluent, corporate suites.
There is too much money there. Houses are too big, cars are too big, there is too little open space, too little natural commons, too little public commons.
The US does not offer a real alternative, even as much as China, India, and even Iran aspire to urban grandeur.
I read this about a month ago and I found it very insightful and highly informative.
Richard, some would say that the Islamic revolution WAS the alternative (unattractive or attractive) to the other form that was enforced for so long (and which so manny are trying to revert it back to its glory monarchial days). Others would say that the US does in fact offer a "real alternative" especially since so many factions are being pumped up full of USAID cash, not only in Iran but other Central Asia republics.
The revolution is an ever changing process that has seen it survive through its adversity. It can be describe as an attempt of confluence between the Islamic altruism and its progressiveness towards Western thinking. In fact, more Iranians read Hegel than Westerners these days.
With the collapse of other structures built upon Westernised-models, many are looking to Eastern thinking and the Islamic Republic provides a living example of an alternative to outright capitalism that is bankrupting other developing nations (re: India).
Abrahamian is great. Truly knowledgeable, honest, rational, and articulate. Hmmm. I guess that's why we don't see HIM on the MSM.
"One would think that, given the pack of lies (more than a few coming from Israel) used to justify an attack on Iraq, people would be skeptical of the Iran as threat fraud."
But they're buying it hook, line, and sinker! One of my acquaintances, a typical naive American, but atypical in that she is more thoughtful, open minded and eager to examine new information than most, came to me wide-eyed one day a year or more ago and told me she had just seen a program on TV that showed all the terrible weapons Iran was stockpiling, and wasn't it just scary as can be. She was quite taken aback when I told her that Iran was one of the last countries in the world to worry about, that it had not attacked another country in more than 200 years, spent very little on its military and showed no signs of changing that policy. That seemed to calm her down. Then, months later when Iran did that missile test she came running to me breathlessly announcing that Iran was testing nuclear weapons. Ann, I said, Iran does not even have the materials necessary to build nuclear weapons, so how can they possibly be testing them?
What is frightening and appalling is that Ann, unlike most Americans, will listen, and question her assumptions, and seek more information, and has someone like me to set her straight.
Agree with you 100% on everything you wrote, Vera.
Both new and conventional explanations are fairly true. Iran is a fairly totalitarian social welfare state. Saddam's Iraq was one too. Radical Islam is providing various degrees of social services all over the Islamic world; in Turkey, Lebanon, Algeria, Gaza etc.
Neocons (and Zionists) have a solution for this. Holocaust. This is what they have done in Iraq. Iraqi children also had education, nutrition, clean water, and clean teeth. If you can bomb all those things out of them to wipe out the political gains, then a slow holocaust becomes an option.
Zionists fear holocaust because they have experienced one already. But they have delivered one too, in Iraq. And have a few others planned.
Jawad
The USA accounts for nearly half of all the world's spending on military "defense""
link to globalissues.org
Most Americans never even think about that–perhaps they would if, instead of "national defense" it was called "interventions around the world."
Of course they also never think about the I-P situation, nor where the largest share of our foreign aid goes.
Nor do they wonder about the role of Goldman Sach's as number one fund raiser for Obama, the GS network running the US government, beginning in with Reich, now topped by Geithner, etc.
Americans deserve what they get.
Shiites are not only a passive people, but they think a nation's wealth ought to be used for the benefit of all its people, not just big corporations and the elites. The Shiites of Iraq and Lebanon are the majority, but have historically accepted domination by minorities. Iranians have been mostly passive as well. Iran has not sought to spread its revolution with military aggression, but has only lent defensive support to the historically oppressed Lebanese Shiites and to the under siege Palestinians. But the most salient reason Iran's Islamic regime has lasted so long is the US has not invaded to reestablish its Persian colony.
The revolution endured because there was a brain drain exodus right after the revolution–and anybody who thinks of introducing anything other than sharia into law is thrown into jail before they hit the age of 25.
A lovely place… ask Roxana Saberi. Let's hope she doesn't get her brains splattered on the walls of the interrogation room.
Anybody on this blog planning on moving to Iran? :-)
BTW–looks like the Taliban is trying to topple Pakistan. Anybody think the US is going to let that happen?
Ah…Suzanne!
Back from your "exterminate all the ragheads" tupperware party?
Say….since you have conclusive proof that Roxana Saberi is innocent of the charge of spying, I why not present it here, so this thing can be speedily cleared up?
Spying! A ridiculous charge! The US spy on Iran?? The US meddle in Iranian affairs? Absurd! That's as crazy as the idea that we'd use our CIA goons to overthrow their secular democracy!
Oh wait.
We DID do that.
Never mind.
I want to thank James for a very relevant open question.
It hasn't been answered, and won't be for a long time.
Noone here knows Iran sufficiently to make an informed position on the question. The best we could form is subsequent questions.
On the questions of US or Israeli policy towards dealing with Iran, and the "gullibility" of common Americans, citizens.
The relevant fact that I'm aware of is that I, nor anyone that I've ever met or seen present, has any confident knowledge of what Iran's current intentions, or prospective conditional intentions are with its nuclear programs.
Periodically, Iranian officials defend their right to enrich uranium for non-weapons purposes, and extend that currently legal right to the illegal side, "what right do you have to tell us what we can and can't do, even with weapons?"
Sure. But, Israel and the US and Saudi Arabia CAN rationally and legitimately say, "In the absence of certainty, we must consider preparing for the worst, or consider preparing to stop or delay the worst by military means".
The fear is exagerated by the history of relations between Iran and Israel, including Iran's CURRENT support for militants in Lebanon, Gaza, now Hezbollah cells in Egypt.
They are angering a great many, and in ways that might be humblie pie for them, but could be chosen differently.
I strongly prefer non-military means to resolve differences, and I hope Obama is successful in engaging Iran sufficiently for them to relax their aggressions.
Certainly, if Israel signaled that it was interested in doing the same, it would help the world greatly.
Thats not happening. The TWO are now saber-rattling (sometimes complaining, sometimes testing weapons systems.)
"The fear is exagerated by the history of relations between Iran and Israel, including Iran's CURRENT support for militants in Lebanon, Gaza, now Hezbollah cells in Egypt."
They are also funding the Taliban in its aggression against Pakistan and Afghanistan.
It's Islamist expansionism plain and simple–no matter how some here clench their jaws and deny it.
In that context, who cares about how much we know regarding their nuclear warfare intentions?
relax their aggressions
Iran has made no aggressive, revolutionary or acquisitive acts to demonstrate its intentions to dominate any nation. All of Iran's acts have been defensive, including its support for Palestine and Hezbollah. The aggressors have been the US and Israel, and there is plenty of evidence for that. Fears of what Iran might do if it develops an atomic weapon have no more legitimacy than fears about what Israel might do with its already existing atomic weapons arsenal. The difference is media repetition, and the gullible have no defense against that.
"In the absence of certainty, we must consider preparing for the worst, or consider preparing to stop or delay the worst by military means".
Israel and the US and Saudi Arabia have become vicious.
How is supporting a militia that initiates violence on a sovereign state's civilians, self-defense for Iran?
Suzanne,
They are also funding the Taliban in its aggression against Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Huh? Are you sure about that? Iranians hate the Taliban (and vice versa), where did you get this piece of info?
Aid from Iran is for the defense of Lebanese Shiites and Palestinians, just like aid from the US to Israel is purported to be. US military aid to Israel has been used to initiate much violence on Lebanese and Palestinian civilians, and is what motivated Iran to aid them. Israel also uses its military aid from the US for offensive warfare, which has viciously killed many more civilians, whether they are members of a sovereign state or not.
The American congress and successive White House regimes are to blame. Goys populating those
institutions are whores, thanks to the USA's campaign financing program. It used to be said that money is more equitable than other forms of sustaining government. We now know know that
is only true when the Fourth Estate is not biased; unfortunately, money has made it biased–along with tribal networking.