Sunday, November 22, 2009
This is just a quick link to follow -- an "aside." These are links to interesting things that, for one reason or another, I didn't place into a full posting. Go to the blog index for a regular listing of posts.
Mamoun Fandy: The real reason Iran can't be trusted - '...Should the West trust Iranian promises? The short answer is "no." But the underlying question is "Why not?" The answer lies in Iranian belief systems – notably the doctrine of taqiyya, a difficult concept for many non-Muslims to grasp. Taqiyya is the Shiite religious rationale for concealment or dissimulation in political or worldly affairs. At one level it means that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his regime can tell themselves that they are obliged by their faith not to tell the truth. This doctrine has not been discussed much in the West, but it should be...'
, p.44
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