From Insight Mag:
Regime change in the air
By Claude Salhani
WASHINGTON, Oct. 24 (UPI)
There is something circulating in Washington these days that is far more contagious than avian flu: it's called regime change.
Since President George W. Bush first addressed the issue of regime change by introducing it in Iraq, courtesy of the U.S. military, the syndrome has become quite contagious. The notion of regime change has affected more than the neo-conservatives who would like to see a repeat performance of the Iraq scenario play itself out (minus, of course, the insurgency, the roadside bombs and the prolongation of the conflict) in Iran, Syria and other countries where the concept of free elections remains an abnormality.
The idea has now ingrained itself among a certain segment of Washington's expatriate community. While dining with a group of friends in a trendy and popular watering hole in Georgetown last week, regime change was the prominent item of the day.
On this particular evening, even my three dinner companions were heavy into the regime change frenzy. Two of them want to bring about regime change in Iran. He is a former official who served in the Reagan administration. She is a former spy who worked undercover in Eastern Europe back when that part of the world was behind the Iron Curtain. Neither of them is Iranian. In fact they are both very red, white and blue.
What motivates them? Their belief that threats emanating from the Islamic republic is of grave concern to the security of the United States and should merit the immediate attention of the Bush administration. They feel so strongly about the issue that they have devoted much of their free time and resources to their adopted cause.
The third dinner guest was a journalist whose target is broader that just Iran. He works for a satellite television network promoting the idea of democracy and regime change across the entire Middle East. The very name of the media he works for reflects the U.S. vision of "freedom" that all nations should enjoy.
I was there to meet a contact that I hoped could shed some light on what, specifically, was going on in another Middle East country high on the U.S. regime change menu. Particularly after the publication of a U.N. report into the assassination of a former prime minister of a neighboring country, and the Bush administration raising the pressure, accusing that country of complicity in the crime, as well as aiding and abetting insurgents making their way to Iraq.
As the evening progressed, the place began to fill up rapidly. The crowd was mostly young, ethno-chic with a touch of exotic. About a half-dozen languages and even more distinctive accents could be heard above the music -- itself mostly foreign. English was spoken with Farsi, Turkish and heavy Arabic accents. In turn, Arabic was spoken with a plethora of dialects -- from North African to the Middle East -- from Libya, Egypt, Lebanon, and other countries.
The atmosphere in the restaurant was reminiscent of scenes right out of "Casablanca," the classic movie starring Humphrey Bogart in which émigrés escaping Nazi-occupied Europe congregated nightly at Rick's Café Americain, biding their time while plotting regime change in their native lands, then under German occupation.
I mentioned the couple "working" on Iran. But there were others. There was the handsome young Libyan who is just as hopeful to bring about a change of regime in his native land. Unlike a number of American politicians who visited Libya in recent months, he is not buying into Moammar Gadhafi's sudden change of heart and mind for one minute. He knows better, having lived under the Libyan strongman's dictatorial whims, before escaping to a better life for himself in the United States, or "in America," as the émigrés in "Casablanca" would say.
But the fact that he found his way to America does not mean he forgot about Libya. Quite the contrary, he too, devotes much time and energy in bringing Gadhafi's shortcomings -- and his impediment to democracy -- to the attention of the U.S. government and the U.S. media.
Then there was the slightly older gentleman from Egypt, with white hair and the looks of a sage. He also finds the notion of regime change very appealing. Much like the others, he too, would like to see a different regime come about in Cairo. This gentleman knows well the inner workings of the Egyptian government having at one time, many years ago now, been involved in government when Anwar Sadat was president. Now, after 24 years of Hosni Mubarak's unabated presidency, and with no end in sight, he is more than glad to discuss regime change in Egypt.
Yes, regime change is definitely on the menu this time of year in Washington, but with one important caveat. The changes in their countries should not come about as a result of U.S. military intervention, but as a result of political pressure and comprehensive diplomacy.--
(Comments may be sent to Claude@upi.com.)
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