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Wallop Iran Where It Hurts: Oil Revenues

Two 'green' revolutions could bring down regime: Friedman

By Jason Farago, Newser Staff

Posted Jun 24, 2009 7:58 AM CDT

(Newser) – Pundits and politicians are wasting their time telling Barack Obama what he should be saying about the growing "green revolution" in Iran, writes Thomas L. Friedman. The country's reformers and protesters don't need American encouragement; they need a weakened theocracy—which will only happen when oil prices go into freefall. "Launching a real green revolution in America," writes the New York Times columnist, "would be the best way to support the Green Revolution in Iran."

Iran's "turbaned shahs" will not change because of international encouragement of well-reasoned argument, but when collapsing crude forces them to give up their nuclear program and listen to the West. Oil has transformed Khamenei and Ahmadinejad into "petro-dictators," and Obama should hit them where it hurts: with a buck-a-gallon "Freedom Tax" on gasoline. "With oil at $70 a barrel, our economic sanctions on Iran are an annoyance," Friedman writes. "At $25, they really hurt."

[Images (5)]

[Quotes (1)]

Iran's former Revolutionary Guards commander Yahya Rahim Safavi, left, accompanies President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as they attend a parade near Tehran, Iran, on Sunday Nov. 26, 2006. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, file)

A section of an oil refinery in Iran. Oil is the main source of revenue for Iran's regime. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, file)

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a Friday prayer ceremony in Tehran. (AP photo/Hasan Sarbakhshian/file)

Mir Hossein Mousavi addresses supporters at a demonstration in Tehran. (AP Photo/Ghalam News, File)

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks during a meeting with lawmakers at in Tehran yesterday. (AP Photo/ISNA, Alireza Sotakbar)

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Ahmadinejad presides over an economy that makes nothing the world wants. Trust me, at $25 a barrel, he won’t be declaring that the Holocaust was a myth anymore. - Thomas L. Friedman

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 3 comments

ack

Jun 24, 2009 6:50 AM CDT

Bingo. Some more nukes, a major investment in solar and wind, and *real* electric cars would be incredible. Of course, an economically unstable Middle East will present a new set of problems, but if we can convert from oil to electricity... wow.

dax

Jun 24, 2009 3:32 AM CDT

US energy self-sufficiency addresses many different problems on many different levels. Undermining the Iranian Oil-tollas is just one benefit. Without those revenues, the populist sentiment being expressed on the streets of Tehran today, might be enough to unseat the theocratic dictators. Clearly, the economic tipping point has added impetus to the current political revolt. Moreover, the motivation of the Iranian people differs greatly from the North Koreans.

BennKenn

Jun 24, 2009 1:03 AM CDT

This is a brilliant idea.

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Iran • Barack Obama • oil • Mahmoud Ahmadinejad • green technology • oil price • Thomas Friedman • Ayatollah Ali Khamenei • green revolution • Iranian election

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Wallop Iran Where It Hurts: Oil Revenues