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Prince of Darkness & MKO

I am sure you all know who Richard Perle is by now. The man often referred to as "Prince of Darkness" is credited as the head Neo-Conservative in charge of Whitehouse' foreign policy and Middle East in particular. He was recently accused of being more concerned with what benefits the state of Israel ahead of taking care of his own country's interest. Although some may argue those two are the same, I subscribe to a different point of view.

As far as Iran is concerned, it is rumored for a long time that he has been the prime supporter of Mojahedine-Khalq Organization (MKO or MEK) within the administration, but now the support seems less clandestine. On January 24th, he was a speaker at "A Night of Solidarity", a fundraiser for "the Iranian Resistance" (one of pseudonyms for MKO) combined with a concert by the Gypsy Kings and Iranian performers. Notice the clever way of using "Earthquake Victims" in the official program brochure. You could be forgiven for thinking perhaps some of the events proceeds will be helping the Bam sufferers, but that's another story for another time.

In the past, I have expressed my position on MKO and its leadership, as well as their tactics, even their links to the Neo-Cons. However, as a supposedly leftist and progressive entity, the original founders of the organization must be turning in their graves when Ashcroft is your main endorser and Perle a guest of honor at your events. After all, aren't we often judged by the company we keep? And all of it despite the "terrorist" label put on the group by U.S. government too.

Posted by Pedram at January 28, 2004 11:56 PM