Bush's final Iran blunder? Oct 7, 2008
These episodes demonstrate a structural US inability to reverse its unilateral decision of 28 years ago to break diplomatic relations with Iran in the aftermath of the Iranian revolution and seizure of US hostages. Much may have changed in global affairs since 1980, yet US-Iran diplomatic estrangement is one constant that belies the pretensions of "smart diplomacy" on the US's part. (Asia Times Online)
Muqtada reinvents himself Sep 19, 2008
The causes behind this organizational strategy are several, but one major factor is the likely influence of the Iranian regime, particularly the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), in taming Muqtadar's militia ... After the 1979 Iranian revolution, for instance, ayatollah Muhammad Kazem Shariatmadari (1904-1985), a senior Shi'ite cleric, publicly opposed ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who saw in his radical movement a deviation from true Shi'ism. (Asia Times Online)
ELECTION 2008: Fort Huachuca commander provides his perspective on what next president faces Sep 14, 2008
After that there have been three significant events in the 20th century since the first world war: the growing power of Saudi Arabia as an oil-producing state, the Iranian revolution and the breakup of the Soviet Union, all of which are impacting the current century, Custer said. I can t say if we (the United States) are at a seminal point yet, but those three things in the last century set up the 21st century and the next president will have on his desk decisions that will impact everyone in... (Sierra Vista Herald, AZ)
Consumers Spend More on Gasoline Than on Cars for First Time in 26 Years Aug 16, 2008
Updated: New York, Aug 16 03:49 London, Aug 16 08:49 Tokyo, Aug 16 16:49. Fuel Spending Tops Car Costs for 1st Time Since 1982 (Update2). (Bloomberg -- US)
Oil-addicted world faces crude awakening Aug 14, 2008
70 in April 1980, a year after the Iranian revolution. The simplified reason for the soaring price is that demand is increasing while there are concerns over supply (see "peak oil" box). (SwissInfo.org, Switzerland)
Who Cares: Maybe its time we listened to Jimmy Carter Aug 14, 2008
That crisis subsided, but six years later, in the wake of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, prices soared. In April 1980 prices peaked at $39. (Yarmouth Register, MA)
Bernanke wins a bit of time Aug 7, 2008
The 1973 oil shock that followed upon the Yom Kippur Arab-Israel War and the 1979 oil shock that followed upon the Iranian Revolution drove the price of oil up from around US$3 a barrel before 1973 to over $30 a barrel by the end of the decade. That fed through to the generalized price increases that marked that era's high inflation rates; when people couldn't pay the new, higher prices, consumption lagged, workers got laid off, and unemployment rose. (Asia Times Online)
A reminder for Iran on the revolution Aug 1, 2008
His Farsi-language book, Untold Aspects of the Iranian Revolution (Khazaran, 2008) is based on an extensive interview with Abbas Amir-Entezam, the spokesman and deputy prime minister in the interim cabinet of Mehdi Bazargan in 1979. Amir-Entezam, now Iran's longest-serving political prisoner, was an ambassador to Scandinavian countries during the hostage crisis at the US Embassy. (Asia Times Online)
Miles driven in May drop 3.7 pct: government Jul 29, 2008
The last time the United States had a big falloff in highway travel was in 1979, when pump prices spiked following the Iranian revolution. However, Peters said this time the driving decline was much longer and more severe. (Reuters)
Opinion: How Harvard students want to fight terrorism Jul 29, 2008
A journalist who covers the Middle East, he is writing a book on the third generation of the Iranian Revolution titled, "Children of the Revolution: Khomeini's Unintended Legacy.". Get Monitor stories by e-mail. (Christian Science Monitor)
Global pressures forge a new oil reality Jul 27, 2008
In 1979, prices soared again after the Iranian Revolution curtailed output and consumers and oil companies went on a spree of panic buying. Now, however, there is no one culprit and no single international crisis to blame. (Huntington WSAZ-TV, WV)
US sets nuclear deadline for Iran Jul 20, 2008
The US and Iran have had no diplomatic relations since the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the taking of hostages at the US embassy in Tehran. Formal contact between the two countries has been extremely limited, though last year they met at ambassadorial level to discuss security in Iraq. (BBC News)
A reality check on Iran Jul 19, 2008
Yet, ironically, the George W Bush administration, is, at least for the moment, ignoring the calls of the neo-conservatives, and is pushing forward with some of the highest-level diplomacy with Iran since the 1979 Iranian revolution. Bush is sending Under Secretary of State William Burns, third in line at the State Department, to talks this weekend aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear ambitions. (Asia Times Online)
Iran: US will seek green light to open base in Tehran Jul 18, 2008
The White House and the State Department refused to deny a Guardian report that a decision has been taken to set up a US-interests section in Tehran, marking the first return of its diplomats to the city since the 1979-81 Iranian revolution. A source familiar with the decision-making said the Bush administration has either already, or would over the next few days, lodge a formal request with the Iranian government to set up an interests section, a halfway-house to an embassy. (guardian.co.uk)
* US plans to set up envoy presence in Tehran Jul 18, 2008
The creation of a US interest section would see diplomats stationed in Tehran for the first time since the hostage crisis that began when hundreds of students, as part of the Iranian revolution that led to fall of the Shah, stormed the US embassy in 1979 and held the occupants until 1981. This story has been viewed 285 times. (Taipei Times, Taiwan)
Look Who's Talking Jul 18, 2008
While Iranians remember the manner in which the CIA toppled Mohammed Mossadeq, a democratically elected prime minister, Americans remember their diplomats being held hostage for 444 days in Tehran after the Iranian revolution. And the prospect of conflict between Iran on the one hand and Israel and the US on the other is roiling international oil markets today, contributing to a soaring price of crude. (India Times, India)
Energy reality starts to bite Jul 17, 2008
The previous oil shocks - in 1973-74, 1980 and 1990-91 - stemmed from specific interruptions of energy supplies from the Middle East due, respectively, to an Arab-Israeli war, the Iranian revolution, and Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. Once peace was restored, a post-revolutionary order established, or the invader expelled, vital Middle Eastern energy supplies returned to normal. (Asia Times Online)
US official to attend Iran talks Jul 16, 2008
The two nations have not had diplomatic relations since the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the taking of hostages at the US embassy in Tehran. Bookmark with. (BBC News -- Americas)
Iran-US: A study in misperceptions Jul 16, 2008
A major source of legitimacy for the regime in Tehran in the eyes of Iran's citizenry is the fact that it has stood up to the US. Had the shah been wise enough and had the backbone to stand up to Washington, we might never have witnessed an Iranian revolution. Iran's power structure Western observers of Iran invariably complain that, on top of everything else, it is difficult to have a meaningful dialogue with Iran because it is unclear who runs or speaks for the country. (Asia Times Online)
A last throw of the dice ...? Jul 13, 2008
US domination of Iran and its oil, together with its strategic partnership with Israel, enabled it to call the shots throughout the Middle East until the Iranian revolution left it without either a regional powerbase or direct control over Middle Eastern energy resources. The vacuum created by the Iranian revolution had to be filled by a new outpost guaranteeing US influence over the region and its vital energy resources. (Asia Times Online)
Iranian film hits raw Egyptian nerve Jul 13, 2008
Relations improved, however, in terms of bilateral trade and political coordination under Sadat, only to come to an abrupt end after the Iranian revolution of 1979 ... Twenty-four hours later, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps test-fired nine different long-range missiles, including Shahab 3. (Asia Times Online)
Today's economic crunch feels like the '70s Jul 13, 2008
Then: Iranian Revolution in 1979 overthrew a U.S. ally, led to a long hostage crisis and sent oil prices skyrocketing ... The second half of the '70s brought the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the Iranian Revolution ... Oil prices quadrupled in the mid-1970s, then soared again after the Iranian Revolution in 1979. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Help Iranian people change government, Shah's son urges Jul 13, 2008
Mr. Pahlavi has not returned to Iran since his father, the U.S.-backed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was toppled in the 1979 Iranian revolution. The son currently lives in Maryland. (Globe and Mail -- International)
India blows up a monsoon Jul 4, 2008
India has the world's second-largest Shi'ite population, but that apart, the Iranian revolution of 1979 caught the imagination of Indian Muslims and there is much outrage among them over the US's standoff with Iran. Under US (and Israeli) pressure, India was forced to mothball its ties with Iran in the recent years. (Asia Times Online)
What are you reading this summer? Residents, officials share book selections Jul 4, 2008
"Last night I just finished a very short, very-reader friendly biography of Teddy Roosevelt called 'Lion in the White House.' It's a political biography, but it's pretty light. Then the book that I started, upon finishing the T.R. biography, is called 'Guests of the Ayatollah.' It's by Mark Bowden. I read everything this guy writes. He wrote 'Black Hawk Down.' He wrote 'Killing Pablo,' about the hunting and killing of [Colombian drug king] Pablo Escabar. He's just a very, very colorful writer.... (Hoboken Reporter, NJ)
Will the U.S. open an office in Iran? Jul 2, 2008
The US has had no permanent presence in Tehran since the storming of the American embassy there and the taking of US diplomats as hostages during the 1979 Iranian revolution. The idea of now establishing a US office reflects other shifts in Bush's second term from confrontation and isolation of enemies to engagement and multilateralism. (Christian Science Monitor -- USA)
Oil supplies will remain tight, says IEA Jul 1, 2008
The second began in 1979 following the Iranian Revolution. This crisis is different, however, Tanaka said. (San Diego Union-Tribune -- Business)
Fed trying to avoid that '70s show Jun 26, 2008
Another price surge came later in the decade following the Iranian revolution, which pushed crude prices from around $14 a barrel in 1978 to above $30 two years later, according to Lehman Brothers. As inflation rose over that decade to almost a 12 percent annualized rate more than three times the annualized rate of 3. (MSNBC -- Race)
U.S. hotels pin hopes on business travel Jun 26, 2008
Americans reduced the number of miles they drove for the sixth straight month in April, resulting in the biggest six-month decline since the oil shock of the 1979-80 Iranian revolution, according to the U.S. Transportation Department. We are unenthusiastic about the U.S. economy, said Steve Weeple, head of U.S. equities at Standard Life Investments. (Globe and Mail -- Business)
Protecting the Oil Supply Jun 26, 2008
Their reasoning was straightforward: The Soviet Union was mired in its battle for Afghanistan, and the aftershock of the Iranian revolution was still fresh in the hearts and minds of everyone involved. Every couple of years, oil becomes Topic 1 for a while. (Slate)
White House Plays Down New Interests Section in Iran Jun 25, 2008
The U.S. and Iran cut diplomatic ties 30 years after the Iranian revolution resulted in the capture of 52 American hostages who were held at the U.S. embassy in Tehran for 444 days. The State Department also runs an interest section in Havana, Cuba, in an effort to give the U.S. a presence on the ground to reach out to students, dissidents and others instead of direct government contact. (Fox News -- Politics)
Stagflation fears challenge Fed Jun 25, 2008
Another price surge came later in the decade following the Iranian revolution, which pushed crude from about $14 a barrel in 1978 to above $30 two years later, according to Lehman Brothers investment bank. As inflation rose over that decade to an annualized rate of almost 12 percent - more than three times the rate of 3. (AZCentral -- Business)
Letter: Iran persecuting Baha'i members Jun 22, 2008
I remember in the Iranian revolution in the late 1970s it became a very dangerous place for Baha'is. A beautiful 16-year-old girl was executed. (Appeal Democrat, CA)
Oil steadies above $US132 Jun 20, 2008
Americans cut down on the number of miles they drove for the sixth straight month in April, resulting in the biggest six-month decline since the oil shock of the 1979-80 Iranian revolution. "Traders don't want to be short going into the weekend. There are just too many hotspots around the world now... There is more potential for bullish news than bearish news,'' Rigby said. Goldman Sachs on Thursday raised its oil price forecast further on expectations of continued supply tightness, predicting... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Business)
People driving less Jun 19, 2008
Americans drove 30 billion fewer miles from November through April than during the same period in 2006-07, the biggest such drop since the Iranian revolution led to gasoline supply shortages in 1979-80. The numbers released Wednesday may reflect more than a temporary attitude change in consumers toward high gas prices, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said. (AZCentral)
Drivers cut back by 30 billion miles Jun 19, 2008
By Larry Copeland and Paul Overberg, USA TODAY Americans drove 30 billion fewer miles from November through April than during the same period in 2006-07, the biggest such drop since the Iranian revolution led to gasoline supply shortages in 1979-80. The numbers released Wednesday may reflect more than a temporary attitude change in consumers toward high gas prices, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said. (USA Today)
The clerics and I Jun 18, 2008
He was given the position a few years after the Iranian revolution because he was seen as the co-leader of the revolution and as somebody who was instrumental in writing the country's new constitution ... Grand Ayatollah Sadeq Rouhani was one of the first senior clerics to be placed under house arrest under a direct order from Ayatollah Khomeini just a few years after the Iranian revolution. (BBC News -- Africa)
* Central banks facing contradictory pressures to avoid stagflation Jun 17, 2008
Stagflationary shocks led to global recession three times in the last 35 years: in 1973-1975, when oil prices spiked following the Yom Kippur War and OPEC embargo; in 1979-1980, following the Iranian Revolution; and in 1990-1991, following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Even the 2001 recession X mostly triggered by the bursting high-tech bubble X was accompanied by a doubling of oil prices, following the start of the second Palestinian intifada against Israel. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Japan sets the standardto cope with oil shocks Jun 12, 2008
The earlier oil shocks were caused by interruption of supplies from the Middle East, respectively due to the war between the Arabs and Israel, the Iranian revolution, and Iraq's invasion and occupation of Kuwait. Once peace returned, the new order. (Asia Times Online)
Peace prize winner attacks Calmy-Rey over Iran Jun 10, 2008
But laws ratified following the Iranian Revolution in 1979, which are contrary to women's freedoms, are still in place ... At the beginning of the Iranian Revolution, the Mullahs cited Islamic law to refuse according the guardianship of children to women. (SwissInfo.org, Switzerland)
Oil Shock and Awe Jun 10, 2008
Today's Oil Spike Doesn't Bode Return to '70s (Wachovia, Exxon Mobil, United States Gasoline Fund, United States Oil Fund) at SmartMoney (SmartMoney)
Transcript: Govs. Pawlenty, Kaine on 'FNS,' Part 2 Jun 9, 2008
We'll withdraw carefully, as carefully withdrawing as we carelessly went in, but we've got to refocus the effort and make it purely a war on terrorism," and that's what he'll do as president. WALLACE: Governor Pawlenty? PAWLENTY: Well, I think we agree on this. It is about judgment. But judgment is a derivative of a number of things, including experience and wisdom. Senator McCain has got actual national security and military experience. And this isn't limited to a slip on Jerusalem in the case... (Fox News)
IEA chief calls for 'energy revolution' Jun 3, 2008
In contrast, global consumption fell after the 1973 Arab oil embargo and the Iranian revolution of 1979 as countries turned to more energy efficient transportation and power plants. "We are in a third energy crisis," he said during the Reuters Energy Summit. (International Herald Tribune -- Business)
The reality situation May 31, 2008
You'll be reminded that the 1979 Iranian revolution is one of the signature events of modern history, akin to the 1917 Russian Revolution, and the United States has never figured out how to deal with it. You'll gather your intelligence experts to help you understand the Iranian threat. (International Herald Tribune)
US-made oil disaster has mileage May 29, 2008
While Iran's oil output was hovering around 6 million barrels per day at the time of the Iranian Revolution in 1979, today it stands at about 4. 3 million barrels per day. (Asia Times Online)
Economic downturn feels pretty bad ... May 29, 2008
During the energy crisis and recession that followed the Iranian Revolution, gas prices in 2007 dollars hit 3. 22 in April 1981, and it never got close to 3 during the oil embargo of the early 1970s. (Yreka Siskiyou Daily News, CA)
FACTBOX-Why oil prices hit a record high above $135 May 28, 2008
70 peak hit in April 1980, according to the International Energy Agency, a year after the Iranian revolution. The balance of demand and supply is tight with daily demand of roughly 86 million barrels per day, almost the same level as daily supply. (San Diego Union-Tribune -- Business)
San Francisco Chronicle Best-Sellers May 25 / May 26, 2008
95): A Jewish businessman in Tehran is arrested and accused of being a Zionist spy after the Iranian Revolution. 9. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Drilling off Florida's coast no solution to the oil crisis May 25, 2008
History reflects similar spikes in 1973 with an OPEC oil embargo related to the Yom Kippur War, 1979 with the Iranian revolution, 1990 with Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and the first Gulf War, and since 2003 with the war in Iraq, along with increasing Asian demand. More drilling along protected U.S. coasts and in bays and harbors won't stabilize Iraq or guarantee Saudi Arabia's long-term friendship. (Florida Times-Union)
Borrowing an idea from Los Angeles, 2091 May 23, 2008
The Iranian revolution changed that. He never went back. (International Herald Tribune -- Arts)
Tehran ponders the spoils of victory May 17, 2008
Is it an independent subfield, or does it fall under the broad battle against Khomeinism - the legacy of the leader of the Iranian revolution in 1979, ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ... Thinking they could turn Lebanon into another Iran by exporting the Iranian revolution is madness and nobody knows that better than the Iranians. (Asia Times Online)
Tell-tale travelers' tales May 17, 2008
After the Iranian revolution of 1979, the situation started to slowly change. While Iranian leaders saw the Soviets as evil, they were not as evil as the Americans. (Asia Times Online)
Father breaks silence to beg sons kidnappers in Iraq: let him go May 17, 2008
53 Americans working at the US Embassy in Tehran were taken hostage in 1979 during the Iranian Revolution. Despite diplomatic and military attempts to free them, they were held for over a year. (Times Online)
Mass. unemployment rate falls, despite job losses May 16, 2008
34 a gallon in April, about 7 cents more than the inflation-adjusted price of March 1981, when prices peaked in the aftermath of the Iranian revolution. But in 2008 dollars, unleaded regular cost $3. (Boston Globe)
Iranian group celebrates mothers May 12, 2008
Many of them come from upper-middle-class families who left Iran after the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Most are Muslim, but the community encompasses members of other faiths, including Jews, Christians and Bahais. (Fresno Bee -- Local)
Extraordinary final odyssey ends for Ireland's finest woman writer May 11, 2008
She was a graduate of Hull and Oxford universities and had worked for the BBC and in Tehran during the 1979 Iranian revolution. On becoming ill, she moved back to Ireland. (Guardian Unlimited -- World)
Q&A: Why oil prices keep rising May 7, 2008
70 peak hit in April 1980, a year after the Iranian revolution. Is the weak dollar one of the reasons. (Aljazeera.Net)
Turkey: An Islamic Radical Group Resurfaces, Striving to Embrace Peaceful Change May 2, 2008
Author of a book on the group, journalist Rusen Cakir agrees that the fading away of the two main causes of Hizbullah radicalism -- the Iranian Revolution and the PKK war -- reduce the chances of a second bout of brutality. Yet, while he believes the group s leaders are sincerely trying to keep it away from violence, he can t help feeling a little nervous. (EurasiaNet.org)
FedEx bets on the California sunshine Apr 23, 2008
We are living through the third great oil shock of modern times, easily ranking with the disruptions of 1973 (the Arab oil embargo) and 1979 (the Iranian revolution). But unlike the other two, which were caused by discrete phenomena that had beginnings, middles and ends, this time around, this narrative is open-ended. (Salon)
Deal Or No Deal Challenge No Deal Apr 22, 2008
An acclaimed black-and-white, French-language animated feature film about an Iranian girl coming of age amidst the Iranian revolution, nominated for an Oscar, is now out with a new English-language soundtrack. David Edelstein reviews the cult hit TV show, "Battlestar Galactica" and explains why it "frakin' rocks.". (KWTX.com, TX)
The Iranian Revolution, In Black-And-White Apr 21, 2008
(CBS) Thirty years after it began, the story of the Iranian revolution is now being retold in an intriguing way. It's a remarkable tale of surv 00000A01 ival from the perspective of one remarkably talented woman. (CBS News)
Oil tops $115 on U.S. supply worries Apr 18, 2008
53 reached in 1980 after the Iranian revolution. But jitters over the U.S. economy and the prospect of a looming recession are likely to hurt oil demand in coming months despite aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. (International Herald Tribune)
Introducing the other Guantanamo Apr 17, 2008
After the Iranian revolution and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan developed a "Rapid Deployment Force" (RDF) at bases in the region to respond to any future threats to US and Western oil supplies. As a main hub for the RDF, Diego Garcia saw the "most dramatic buildup of any location since the Vietnam War". (Asia Times Online)
CARTER'S TRUE COLORS Apr 16, 2008
Now the fellow who set in motion the chain of events that resulted in the Iranian revolution is still hard at work making a hash of the Middle East. He's succeeding, sad to say. (New York Post -- Opinions)
The people are speaking: democratic Islam is no contradiction Apr 15, 2008
The Guardian Council had banned huge numbers of reformist opposition candidates for being insufficiently loyal to the Iranian revolution and held the poll during New Year celebrations. Election rigging seems to be in global fashion, as recent developments in Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Kenya, Georgia and Russia demonstrate. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
