One of these countries is not like the others....

[Tim Partlett]

...one of these countries just doesn't belong.

Condi Rice has announced (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4187361.stm) her new axis of evil, or now renamed to "Outposts of Tyranny".

So we have:

Cuba... yeah Franco's not the most evil leader, but he's an unabashed dictator who doesn't want to have anything to do with democracy or reform. I guess he's on the list because he's not friends with the US, and the big Cuban voting bloc.

Belarus... no arguments here. Belarus is the black hole in the democratic Europe; the last bastion of despotism in the region.

Zimbabwe ... Mugabe is one of the worst tyrants on the planet and it is about time he got singled out.

Burma... North Korea.... the peoples of these countries have long suffered the worst tyrannies.

And.... Iran?

Now don't get me wrong, I'm no fan of Iran, and they are far from being a fully functioning democracy, but in a world of dictators and despots, they aren't actually all that bad. Their inclusion on this list is bizarre, when it means the exclusion of countries like Uzbekistan (where the tin pot dictator boils his political opponents alive), Turkmenistan (where it is now illegal to grow a beard), Saudi Arabia (where foreign nationals need a permit to *leave* the country) or Pakistan (a military dictatorship where women are put on trial and punished for having the audacity to be raped).

Oh, but these countries are allies of America. And Iran is the enemy of Israel. Damn, should have known :).

[Nellie]

I dont uderstand Cuba's inclusion on the list to be perfectly honest. Aside from it having had the audacity to not want to be the US's private playground, overthrow Batista (not the nicest of leaders despite full US backing himself) and then resolutely refuse to kowtow the US for the next 40odd years what has it done? Given the US's record with the place both before and after the revolution could it not be suggested that Castro has very good cause to not especially want US backed Opposition hovering around out in the open for very long?

I dont suppose for a second that its considered remotely ironic that this is the same island that the US has a few hundred people locked up on without trial or access to legal representation?

[John Many Jars]

Franco?

[Pace]

You misunderstand. These are the places where OUR outposts of tyranny will be constructed. Massive structures of bone and stripped flesh, where our leaders can perform their dark rituals away from the prying eyes of their constituency.

You know, that was a lot funnier before I started writing it. Ah well.

[Jason McCullough]

Cuba's just this thing US conservatives have. No idea why.

Zimbabwe is funny. Like we're going to even touch that.

[Houngan]

More accurately, American-Cubans are the thing that they love. Cubans are generally conservative in opposition of their previously-communist oppressors, and conveniently they guarantee Florida for the right. Ergo, conservatives love them, Dems don't.

H.

[VegasRobb]

Pretty good chance that a shift in policy on Cuba means that Florida goes democrat next election so it has to be there. Doesn't seem like anyone is courageous enough to just take the first step and open up relations.

As for Iran, could be that it's just the beginning beats of the war drum. Gotta start the message someplace.

[Tim Partlett]

That's what I was thinking, VegasRobb. I seem to remember something like this some years back, when the "Axis of Evil" was mentioned. I remember laughing that people like Zimbabwe and Uzbekistan weren't mentioned, but Iraq and Iran were. Little did I know that was simply a precursor to a ramping of propaganda and lies that led to the Iraq invasion. I was wondering if this was a similar thing. First you throw Iran in with a bunch of known tyrants, and then you start cranking up the propaganda machine until everyone is gagging for a fight with the evil Iranians.

[Linoleum]

Zimbabwe isn't going to get The Bomb. Mugabe will just continue to run the country into the ground causing regional unrest since there will be no food.

No arguments on omitted countries, but Iran has serious meddling capability and isn't afraid to use it. Unlike Turkmenistan.

[Tim Partlett]

Is Iran a greater threat than Turkmenistan? Sure. But clearly these countries aren't listed here on the basis of threat, otherwise they wouldn't be labeled "Outposts of Tyranny", and include miltarily useless nations like Myanmar.

[Toddy]

Um, Hezbollah ring any bells? World's biggest state sponsor of terrorism?

Note: I'm not in favor of this cowboy crap from Rice, but saying that Iran isn't "actually all that bad" is pretty off-base.

[Jason McCullough]

Has Hezbollah attacked the US in the last 20 years? And don't pull that "we're fighting all terrorists" crap....

[Bren]

Maybe not, but I'm sure they're thinking about attacking some time in the imminent future!

[shift6]

Has Hezbollah attacked the US in the last 20 years? And don't pull that "we're fighting all terrorists" crap....
They've attacked US interests.

[Jason McCullough]

Has Hezbollah attacked the US in the last 20 years? And don't pull that "we're fighting all terrorists" crap....
They've attacked US interests.

So has virtually every country short of France. Thin reed to hang on. If you're using that criteria, might want to look into Israel and what happened to the USS Liberty.

[Tim Partlett]

Um, Hezbollah ring any bells? World's biggest state sponsor of terrorism?

Note: I'm not in favor of this cowboy crap from Rice, but saying that Iran isn't "actually all that bad" is pretty off-base.

I am going to explain this once more: these are Rice's "Outposts of Tyranny".

tyr·an·ny
n. pl. tyr·an·nies

1. A government in which a single ruler is vested with absolute power.
2. The office, authority, or jurisdiction of an absolute ruler.
3. Absolute power, especially when exercised unjustly or cruelly: “I have sworn... eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man” (Thomas Jefferson).
4.
1. Use of absolute power.
2. A tyrannical act.
5. Extreme harshness or severity; rigor.

When I say that Iran isn't actually all that bad, I'm not talking about its sponsorship of terrorism, or its nuclear research, I am talking about its government and the relative freedom of its people. While I don't think the people of Iran are very free, it is hardly worthy of inclusion on this list when compared to the likes of Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

[Winterrain]

The question is still, by which authority they claim to call those countries "Outposts of Tyranny".

[shift6]

Has Hezbollah attacked the US in the last 20 years? And don't pull that "we're fighting all terrorists" crap....
They've attacked US interests.
So has virtually every country short of France. Thin reed to hang on. If you're using that criteria, might want to look into Israel and what happened to the USS Liberty.
You asked what they've done, I told you. I am not otherwise equating them with anything or anyone else mentioned in this thread.

[Bren]

You asked what they've done, I told you. I am not otherwise equating them with anything or anyone else mentioned in this thread.

Maybe you should.

[DaveC]

You are low on soldiers, please build more Outposts of Tyranny before proceeding.

[Prodigy]

So has virtually every country short of France.

Well, some lefties did destroy a McDonald's...