Left I on the News

Secretary of State ("Foreign Minister" in the language of most countries) did some ranting and raving today on the subject of Iran:

"In the rise of an aggressive Iranian regime, we see that violent extremism is evolving in new and dangerous ways -- ways that make it a threat not only to the people of one nation or one race or one religion but to everyone in the Middle East. Increasingly the government of Iran is putting itself at the head of this violent extremism rising."

OK, let's hear from those "aggressive" "violent extremists" themselves. Remarkably, today's Miami Herald carries an op-ed by the Iranian Foreign Minister, Manouchehr (note: spellings vary) Mottaki. It's worth reading the entire thing, clearly the ravings of a lunatic and a violent extremist. A few excerpts:

"Consider my country, Iran, which has not invaded any country in the past 250 years. After decades of struggle against dictatorship and foreign domination, we secured our freedom and independence in 1979 by establishing a political system of our own choosing.

"Iran does not need nuclear weapons to protect its regional interests, and such weapons have no place in Iran's security strategy. It seeks to win the confidence of its neighbors and has remained within the confines of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

"With regard to international terrorism, Iran, as a victim of terrorism, condemns it in all its forms. But the same double standards are apparent here. The United States has used and is still using extremist organizations to promote its foreign policy goals.

"Iran has always considered regional stability to be in the vital interest of its own security and development."

Had enough of those rantings of a violent extremist yet? Wait, I think we've come to the part that has the U.S. ruling class so exercised:

"The world deserves better. A just global order must be defined in terms of peace and security, alleviation of poverty, a fairer distribution of wealth, better protection of the environment and respect for local cultural particularities. We can build a global order based on justice, one that negates the current unipolar order by developing tolerance for diversity instead of seeking imposition and assimilation. Such an order will be culturally inclusive and less hegemonic, encompassing states, nonstate actors and social groups to minimize violence and maximize economic well-being."

Now that's extremism, at least in the eyes of the ruling rich of the world.