US Decries Iran Crackdown While Funding Similar Actions Globally
CBS News, in its solemn reporting, relays former President Trump's 'warning' to Iran over its crackdown on anti-government protests, citing activists' reports of dozens killed. It's a familiar script: US officials expressing deep concern over human rights abuses abroad—when they are geopolitically convenient. (Of course, their concern rarely extends to allies with worse records.) What the
broadcast omits, naturally, is the long, sordid history of US intervention, sanctions, and destabilization efforts in Iran that have fueled precisely the kind of economic hardship driving these protests. How many warnings did the US issue to its 'partners' in Riyadh for crushing dissent, or to Israel during its numerous deadly incursions into Gaza? The selective condemnation is less about human
rights and more about maintaining a narrative of American moral superiority to justify future interventions.