The Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, which oversees the nation’s media, has issued a warning to the various media outlets inside Iran not to cover the economic impact of Western sanctions against the regime.
The statement warned that Iran is “not in a position to allow the media to publish news or analysis which is not compatible with the regime’s and national interests.” It further promised to meet with media officials to inform them of what the party line is supposed to be.
Of course, this is an extremely poorly kept state secret, because the sanctions are already widely reported to have done major harm to the country’s private sector, as well as slowed their oil exports.
An honest assessment of the impact of the sanctions might indeed be more damaging to the West than the Iranian regime, as the indications are that the sanctions have mostly crippled private companies in Iran while forcing the public to be ever more reliant on the state-run industries, which are the only ones with the clout needed to bypass the sanctions and trade abroad. Inflation is rising and the average Iranian is feeling a serious bite from the sanctions, while the government officials supposedly targeted have been all but immune.
Interesting! I will be sure to check the kids gift section. Thanks!
Ahmadinejad, just block the Strait of Hormoz and put the United States of Israel back in its place!
There are talks of them doing that. Not closing it but stopping and seizing tankers that are in compliance with the EU US sanctions.
According to the US, the aim of the sanctions is to force the people to call for changing the government. This is a psychological war, and Iranian officials should not be blamed to prevent the news that sanctions are effective.
There’s no denial that sanction are hard on the population, especially the poor people. One of the US officials who had recently visited Iran is quoted to have said to people, and I paraphrase as I don’t recall the exact quote, “I thank you for your hospitality, but unfortunately we have to do the sanctions to get rid of your government.”
As everyone knows by now the sanctions in Iraq resulted in death of about half a million kids, to which another “humanitarian” Zionist, a Nobel Prize laureate at that, said that it was worth it.
“sanctions in Iraq resulted in death of about half a million kids”
But, Iraq was a rich nobility dictatorship that had absolutely no love for its uneducated laboring-class. For even before the sanctions a great many kids were dying of hunger.
Whereas, Iran is a Muslim democracy and to this day their laboring-class is earning a living wage. Which highlights the stark difference between Iran and Empire USA, for even though our High Society owns a forth of all the wealth on earth, still 25% of American children suffer malnutrition. .
JohnElliso2,
Did you intend your post as a response to mine? I don't see the connection.
I take it that the press in the west is free to report as it it wishes?
The Western news media works on the "free press" concept. Which means that individual reporters are free to send in reports on anything they desire, while mainsteam editors and news directors (all of who answer to the same power structure) are free to edit or delete reports and free to decide which version or story gets out to the general public. Once you understand how effective the "free press" actually is, (no one wants to lose their job) you begin to understand why most Americans are so ignorant of what is actually happening in the world.
With all the back door policies used to destabilize countries by US, NATO and of course Israel I personally do not blame the Iranian gov. for being suspicious.
Crippling sanctions – hurt the average civilian, the small businesses etc.. It causes businesses to shut down, unemployment to increase, prices of food and other basic goods to increase. It causes frustration among the masses. They instill a feeling in the people of being cut-off from the world – "your government is the cause, not us"!!
The Stuxnet virus, Flame, political assassination of scientists – is another method to instill fear, vulnerability and demoralization.
These sanctions are not about a potential nuclear threat by Iran, but it is about regime change!! It is not about promoting democracy and freedom, but to create civil wars and unrest among the population. It is not about helping the suffering it is about ensuring that the people suffer!
Mr. Ditz, you wrote:
"An honest assessment of the impact of the sanctions might indeed be more damaging to the West than the Iranian regime, as the indications are that the sanctions have mostly crippled private companies in Iran while forcing the public to be ever more reliant on the state-run industries"
I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but: upon reflection and after taking your advise and doing "an honest assessment", I have concluded that you are a complete ''faker" and 'saboteur'… I don't mean that in a "bad" way…of course…
Be that as it may, I will put this question back to you so you can prove me wrong…because I hope I am…
Why does it matter to you what the distinction is between where money comes from in Iran? Would you take a 'moral' stand on this–meaning would you take less money in a private firm over more money at a 'state-run industry' out of principle? If so, why?
Wealth — A gift from heaven or hell?
Just think if we play our cards right we get all the rights to Iran’s natural resources, namely the world’s largest natural gas reserves and world’s third largest oil reserves. Well, actually they will go back to British Petroleum which owned them before being nationalized by Iran.
But, so be it as Venezuela is next, the world’s largest oil reserves is there for us to plunder and when gas at our pumps is back down to $1 a gallon, the world will wonder at how heaven has so blessed us exceptional Americans.
Reporting the effect of the sanctions is like reporting on bomb damage. The attackers know they're hitting something, but they can't refine the aiming point or change the target if they don't know what and how hard.