I've mostly enjoyed your substacks this year - I haven't yet bothered to listen to your You Tube videos which seem to be a recent thing. Based on your comments viz Iran etc I suggest you stick to politics closer to home. I really can't understand why the overwhelming majority of NZ commentators are essentially echo chambers of the neoconservative agenda. We seem to be caught up in Western exceptionalism...
Thanks for the comment, Malcolm. I admit to getting bored with NZ pols at the moment, and wanted to collaborate with Morteza. But yes, it lost me viewer numbers. What's your preferred line on Iran?
I haven't listened to your collaboration with Morteza so I can't say too much right now. In broad strokes I'm over (as are the 80% world's population that aren't in the west) with the idea/myth that western, liberal democracy is superior culturally, economically and politically to the "hordes" and we ought to promote it throughout the world (including through regime change operations). I find it ironic that the nation state concept is essentially that each nation's government evolves over time according to the will of the people (that's essentially "natural") whereas we think we can interfere in other countries affairs. How's that respecting the will of the people (and understanding that democracy is an evolving process not an attribute that is "true"or "false"?
To Iran, as you know Persia has an extraordinarily rich history and is of a size that it is regionally important and influential. The UK and the US have massively interfered in that country historically and in fact overthrew the democratically, leftist government of Mosaddegh in 1953 and installed the Shah. While Islamism was growing back then I'd argue that their interference was in large part a cause of the acceleration of that rise and that western governments are somewhat responsible for the situation there since that time. I'll say no more for now but there is lot's more to this story. I'll continue to follow you in 2025 and respond as appropriate. Keep up the good work.
Thanks for the analysis, Malcolm. I largely support that critique. In our discussion of the UN HR framework, Morteza questioned the whole arrangement, and I adopted a defence, for sake of argument. On balance, I'm reluctant to come down too hard, for fear that people use that critique as reason to deny people their rights. And you're right to raise the 1953 coup in Iran, which was orchestrated by CIA and MI6. The current theocratic regime, however, can't last, I'm sure of it. Thanks again for the comments. Cheers.
It's not just Musk, it's also Bezos, Koch, Murdoch, & a host of many other like minded neo-feudalists. They're all living examples of the need for monopoly-busting laws to be enforced.
I've mostly enjoyed your substacks this year - I haven't yet bothered to listen to your You Tube videos which seem to be a recent thing. Based on your comments viz Iran etc I suggest you stick to politics closer to home. I really can't understand why the overwhelming majority of NZ commentators are essentially echo chambers of the neoconservative agenda. We seem to be caught up in Western exceptionalism...
Thanks for the comment, Malcolm. I admit to getting bored with NZ pols at the moment, and wanted to collaborate with Morteza. But yes, it lost me viewer numbers. What's your preferred line on Iran?
I haven't listened to your collaboration with Morteza so I can't say too much right now. In broad strokes I'm over (as are the 80% world's population that aren't in the west) with the idea/myth that western, liberal democracy is superior culturally, economically and politically to the "hordes" and we ought to promote it throughout the world (including through regime change operations). I find it ironic that the nation state concept is essentially that each nation's government evolves over time according to the will of the people (that's essentially "natural") whereas we think we can interfere in other countries affairs. How's that respecting the will of the people (and understanding that democracy is an evolving process not an attribute that is "true"or "false"?
To Iran, as you know Persia has an extraordinarily rich history and is of a size that it is regionally important and influential. The UK and the US have massively interfered in that country historically and in fact overthrew the democratically, leftist government of Mosaddegh in 1953 and installed the Shah. While Islamism was growing back then I'd argue that their interference was in large part a cause of the acceleration of that rise and that western governments are somewhat responsible for the situation there since that time. I'll say no more for now but there is lot's more to this story. I'll continue to follow you in 2025 and respond as appropriate. Keep up the good work.
Thanks for the analysis, Malcolm. I largely support that critique. In our discussion of the UN HR framework, Morteza questioned the whole arrangement, and I adopted a defence, for sake of argument. On balance, I'm reluctant to come down too hard, for fear that people use that critique as reason to deny people their rights. And you're right to raise the 1953 coup in Iran, which was orchestrated by CIA and MI6. The current theocratic regime, however, can't last, I'm sure of it. Thanks again for the comments. Cheers.
It's not just Musk, it's also Bezos, Koch, Murdoch, & a host of many other like minded neo-feudalists. They're all living examples of the need for monopoly-busting laws to be enforced.
Out of interest are you from Kumara?
No, my handle is a play on "banana republic".
lol
The oligarch AND his patron.