[ExI] Balance or truth/was Re: Iran's plan for their gay population

[Dan]

--- On Wed, 6/3/09, Stefano Vaj <stefano.vaj at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, Jun 3, 2009 at 4:03 PM, Dan
> <dan_ust at yahoo.com>
> wrote:
>> While I agree that many in the West, including in the
>> Western elites, are trying to demonize Iran, I don't think
>> every last report about Iran is false.  The threat (to the
>> West, especially to the US), I think, is inflated*, but Iran
>> is not a society where no oppression ever occurs above the
>> normal background level we've come to accept.  (That said,
>> I'm not sure where to rate it -- probably far less
>> oppressive than many other states in the region, such as
>> Saudi Arabia.)
> 
> I think this is a reasonably balanced attitude...

To me, it just seems to be the view that makes the most sense -- given what I know about Iran, previous demonizations, and history.  I'm not aiming at balance per se -- just truth.  In this case, I think we'll see, yet again, people who demonize Iran as the worst evil ever to exist and an immediate threat to the US on one side and those who completely downplay the character of the current Iranian regime on the other.  Both sides seem, to me, to be missing something.  The Iranian state is bad, but that doesn't necessarily make it a threat to either the US or the West; it can be contained by regional players if necessary.

And to counter the demonization that's taking place, one should never adopt the equally flawed position of either making the target look like a complete victim or denying its actual bad traits.  (This doesn't mean the truth is in the middle either.  It just means taking the opposite in a dyad is not necessarily a path to truth.)

Put another way: I fear the US nation state much more than any foreign state.  It is a more immediate threat to my life and freedom than Iran.  It actually continues to steal directly from me and regulates my peaceful actions -- evne prohibiting many peaceful actions I might take.  Yeah, were I living in Iran, I might be in worse shape, but I do NOT live in Iran.  And the argument that things are worse there than here -- and they certainly are - is kind of, to me, telling someone being bashed in rural Wyoming, "Well, be glad you're not being beaten and forced to have a sex change in Iran." and then telling that same person, "The Iranian threat is so much more relevant to your life than worrying about your problems here."*

Regards,

Dan

*  No offense to rural Wyoming.