And we’d put his odds of success at well above 50 percent. This has always been how Ahmadinejad does his disgusting work. It’s the same trick that he successfully pulled with his Holocaust denial. Simply say the same thing over and over again until it becomes just another point – albeit an extreme one – on the spectrum of legitimate debate. Some people will say that Israel should be destroyed, some people will say that they’re wrong – who could possibly possibly object to more debate? Ahmadinejad’s raw intelligence is somewhat less than intimidating, but he has a cheap populist’s instinct for helping weary and disgruntled mobs find their way to a scapegoat.
First example was his not at all subtle rhetorical strategy was during his Columbia speech:
For the duration of his speech, Ahmadinejad produced a televised illusion: It is not Iran versus the world, but Iran versus Israel. If he manages to convince enough people of this, the mirage would become reality and Israel would be isolated. And that is exactly what Ahmadinejad is trying to accomplish… Ahmadinejad aimed precisely for that. “It’s the Israelis, stupid” was his primary message. Forget about the “Palestinian problem,” Ahmadinejad was telling his listeners. “Instead, we need to solve the Israeli problem – and finally bring peace to the Middle East.” While he did not explicitly reiterate his calls for Israel’s destruction, in practice, the message could not have been clearer… But the average American is not familiar with the regional complexities.He is tired of the region’s fighting. To him, Ahmadinejad’s idea may sound tempting.
And the man certainly knows how to stay on message. After the jump, the impressive message discipline of his UN speech.
Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to unveil a vision of a world without Israel, in which America and Europe would be freed of what he said was Zionist oppression….The world was “nearing the sunset of the time of empires,” he said, and urged the dominant world powers to eschew their “obedience to Satan” and “submit to the will of god.” If they did so, “they will be saved.” If not, “calamities will befall them.” But whether or not these powers chose to reform themselves, he said, the day was fast approaching when “occupied lands will be freed. Palestine and Iraq will be liberated from the domination of the occupiers.” And the people of America and Europe would be liberated from Zionist oppression. “This is the promise of god,” he said. “Therefore it will be fulfilled.”… Ahmadinejad accused Israel of terrorism and castigated “the brutal Zionists” for carrying out targeted assassinations.
Presumably he prefers the totally untargeted mass killings perpetuated by Palestinians in Israeli schools and on Israeli buses. But don’t underestimate the attraction of Ahmadinejad’s “all we want to destroy is Israel – after that we’ll be satisfied” rhetoric. Europe has historically shown something less than reticence to hand over small countries to genocidal lunatics.
And just like that other guy who told the world that he wanted just a little appeasement, Ahmadinejad is actually very open about his ultimate goal: the West’s “submission to the will of god.” Where have we heard that distinctive phrase before? Ah yes. Not that any of this will make it into the “balanced” coverage of this totally unbalanced bigot.
References:
* British Journalists Put Holocaust Denial On The Spectrum Of Respectable Positions [MR]
* Ahmadinejad in America / Israel is the big loser [Ha'aretz]
* Ahmadinejad sets out his vision of a world without Israel [JPost]
* Yes, the Pope Is Catholic – Juan Cole As a Study In Pro-Jihadist Faux Liberal Sophistication (Updated) [MR]
Previously:
* Hey Gals, Check This Out – Ahmadinejad Secretly A Pervert?
* Ahmadinejad: Israel "Cannot Continue Its Life"
* Ahmadinejad Still Threatening To Nuke Israel, UN Still Not Caring
Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit
