The Forlorn Hope Toward Iran

Editor, The Herald:
   For a number of weeks now both our printed and electronic news media have been bombarding us with the unfolding saga of the Iranian presidential elections and its aftermath. A large section of our political elites are of the opinion that if the protests engender a mass popular uprising the political scene in that country will gradually transform from one ruled by the Mullahs into one ruled by democratically elected representatives. What a forlorn hope! They feel that the situation in Iran could be comparable to the conditions that existed in the former Soviet Union before its collapse twenty years ago. The two scenarios do not even come close. The Soviet empire collapsed under the weight of its inertia and incompetence which condition prevailed when the ordinary man was denied the opportunity to earn and retain wealth commensurate with his ability and creative enterprise.
   The Iranians are governed by dictators and so were and are those living under Communist rule. Therein begins and ends their similarity. The current Iranian culture and tradition dates back several hundred years. And those core beliefs and customs handed down through the centuries are still observed to the letter in much of West Asia and parts of North Africa that borders on the Mediterranean Sea. By contrast Karl Marx’s ideology, expressed in Das Kapital and put into practice by Lenin only prevailed for about seventy years behind the Iron Curtain although it still exists in various forms in China (where free enterprise is now flourishing), North Korea, Cuba and Vietnam.
   The spontaneous support shown by Americans of Iranian descent for the protestors in their old country is both commendable and relevant. However, what is perplexing is their failure to oppose the visit of Iranian president Ahmadinejad to Columbia University in the Fall of 2007, or their silence when Iranian made IEDs were killing and maiming our soldiers in Iraq. One can only conclude that a lack of fervor in the second instance is attributable to their ingrained culture and tradition.
   It will take much more than our military intervention (although such action and numerous other subsequent initiatives have prevented further attacks on our interests worldwide till now) in Afghanistan to persuade the custodians of centuries old customs that believe in the legitimacy of treating women and infidels in an inferior manner to adhere to the United Nations Charter on Human Rights that was proclaimed as long ago as 1948. There is no question that other civilizations too have been guilty of perpetrating inhuman acts upon their fellow human beings in recorded history; such as the barbaric practice of enslaving people, or the perpetual condemnation of the weak and vulnerable of society into various sub-classes for severe exploitation. Fortunately for us such cruel and inhuman practices have all but disappeared for well over six decades from most parts of the planet that consider Human Rights sacrosanct.
   It is also unfortunate that xenophobia based upon other people’s belief systems and way of life is still practiced by a large section of the human race both individually and through their authoritarian governments. Their destructive behavior sans borders leads one to conclude that they are bent on erasing from the face of the Earth all progressive civilizations that have contributed in no small measure to improving man’s quality of life by leaps and bounds over the last century or so. Ideas and belief systems that are deeply imbedded into one’s bones are not easily removed or altered even when the adherents move from one continent to another in search of greener pastures. Accordingly we must be ever vigilant against the very real threat of such a violent ideology permeating into our society and turning the lives of our children and our children’s children upside down.
Mat Mathews
Farmville

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We Need Dedicated Statesmen

Editor, The Herald:
   In your June 17, 2009, paper, Rep. Perriello wrote an article in which he applauded the PAYGO concept as “just common sense.” Yes, the concept of “paying-as–you-go” does make sense. However, do the following actions by Rep. Perriello reflect such “common sense”?
   It was Rep. Perriello who supported Pres. Obama’s stimulus package and voted, in conference, for Congress to borrow some $800 billion, not including interest. Every dime of the $800 billion stimulus package is either borrowed or printed. Is this what Rep. Perriello calls “pay–as-you-go”?
   Several days ago “Cap and Trade” was voted on and passed by the House of Representatives. According to The Heritage Foundation (an independent and reliable source for cost projections) this bill will cost American families “nearly $3,000 per year” in higher energy costs. This cost will hurt senior citizens and the poor, especially. The President promised that there would be no tax increase for those making under $250,000 per year. If this energy tax becomes law, it will be one of the greatest tax burdens that Americans have experienced.
   Did Rep. Perriello vote against this oppressive tax bill and show that he is protecting the poor and elderly? No. He voted for it, along with four other Virginia Democrats: Robert Scott, James Moran, Frederick Boucher, and Gerald Connolly.
   We Virginians need dedicated statesmen who vote principle, whose actions agree with their rhetoric.
Fillmer Hevener
Farmville

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