The Strait of Hormuz is Not a Lake

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

A Statement on Iranian Sovereignty and the Legacy of the October Surprise

COSTA RICA — As the United States continues to posture as the moral arbiter of the Middle East, one American expatriate is calling for an end to the interventionist theater and a long-overdue recognition of Iranian sovereignty.

For those of us old enough to remember the 1979 Iran Hostage Crisis, the narrative was set early. I was seven years old, watching the television as 52 Americans were held for 444 days—a crisis that "magically" evaporated the very moment Ronald Reagan took the oath of office on January 20, 1981. Even as a child, the timing felt scripted. To an adult who has seen the gears of the American machine turn, it looks less like a miracle and more like a calculated betrayal.

The evidence for the October Surprise theory—that the Reagan campaign, led by William Casey, cut a backroom deal with Iranian hardliners to delay the release of the hostages to sabotage Jimmy Carter’s re-election—is no longer the "fringe conspiracy" the Western press once claimed. With recent admissions from figures like Ben Barnes, who traveled to the Middle East with John Connally to deliver that very message to Tehran, the truth is clear: American citizens were used as political pawns for months just to ensure a specific election outcome.

Since that moment, the Western press has treated Iran not as the cradle of civilization, which it is, but as a monolithic villain. We are fed a single story designed to justify the next round of embargoes and the next billion-dollar shipment of military hardware to those who wish to see Iran erased.

The truth is simple, if uncomfortable:

• Iran has its own issues, but they are their issues to resolve. The people of Iran are more than capable of determining their own destiny without the "help" of a nation that has spent decades propping up dictators only to act surprised when the blowback hits.
• Citizens of the United States should keep their traps shut regarding Iran and Islam. We are never given the full story. We are given the version that serves the military-industrial complex and the interests of Israel.
• The "War" is an Impossibility. This hostility will likely come to a quick, crushing end because of Iran’s complete domination of the Strait of Hormuz. No other country is truly willing or able to help the United States safeguard it because it is an impossible task. Any continued aggression will lead to the total closure of the Strait, causing a global economic collapse that will make the Great Recession look like a minor blip.
• The people of Iran deserve peace. They deserve a life free from constant war, suffocating sanctions, and the relentless propaganda machine fueled by Washington and its allies.

I loathe the way my home country operates on the world stage—the arrogance of assuming we know what is best for a culture that was thriving while our ancestors were still figuring out how to cast iron. We have no moral standing to lecture anyone on human rights or democracy while we ignore our own industrial and social decay.

It is time to stop the interference. It is time to let Iran be Iran.