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It was broke, but we shouldn't have "fixed" it

Reader comment on item: Nasser Died Fifty Years Ago: He Lives on in Egypt

Submitted by Dave (United States), Sep 27, 2020 at 22:05

In 1952, the CIA was concerned that King Farouk, the corrupt British puppet, was stirring up discontent with his lavish lifestyle. In addition, the loss of the 48 war to destroy Israel had undermined the regime's prestige, so Communist subversion was feared. The CIA then launched operation FF (Fat F***er) which resulted in a coup, ultimately bringing Nasser to power. It was thought that a shiny new "democratic dictatorship" would be more "amenable" to American interests. Wrong on all counts. Nasser was a socialist who welcomed an alliance with the Soviets.
Then, in 1953, the CIA, persuaded by Britain's MI6, engineered a coup in Iran to bring down the democratically elected Mossadegh because he wanted to nationalize British oil interests. The coup was meant to kill two birds: protect British oil and abort an alleged foray by Mossadegh into Socialism, and possibly Communism. Another debacle. Thanks to the coup, Soviet involvement in the Mideast, which had hitherto been absent, began as a way to counter Western influence. Plus, Iranians so resented the interference in their country, that the coup helped fuel the Islamic revolution of 1979.
It's hardly surprising that the Times lamented Nasser's death. It's just one more example of the Western ignorance which had done so much to bollix up the situation in the first place. And the blinkered actions continued in Iraq and Afghanistan with our democratization efforts.
It's very hard to constructively channel history as it evolves in the Mideast. It's easy to overestimate the people's desire for honest and representative government, but don't underestimate their resentment at being played.

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Reader comments (14) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
Nasser's lessons apply to America today [45 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Timothy HadleySep 29, 2020 12:00260737
Gamal 'Abd el-Nasser 50 years ago: el-Hegab and بديعة مصبني [287 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
dhimmi no moreSep 29, 2020 10:42260735
Both ببلاش and بلاش are correct in this context [58 words]dhimmi no moreSep 29, 2020 15:34260735
Rare videos of Nasser's address of June 9/1967 [60 words]dhimmi no moreSep 30, 2020 09:06260735
Gamal 'Abd el-Nasser 50 years ago: Rare interview in English and Nasser's correspondence with Moshe Sharett [107 words]dhimmi no moreOct 2, 2020 11:09260735
Brilliant, but 50 year prediction? [175 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
MalcolmSep 29, 2020 03:38260725
An Altered Egyptian Legacy [186 words]M ToveySep 29, 2020 18:03260725
The downfall of Nasser [49 words]Karl BaumgartenSep 28, 2020 23:23260718
Nasser suffered from Hemochromatosis and the "suicide" of عبد الحكيم عامر [146 words]dhimmi no moreSep 29, 2020 14:44260718
Nasserist usage [27 words]bernardZSep 28, 2020 21:39260716
1Nasser's Egypt - A Westerner's Revisionist's View [395 words]M ToveySep 28, 2020 13:01260703
Nasser's Egyptian Legacy Still in the Details - Even in Civilian Perceptions; Military Still Holds Power [120 words]M ToveyNov 2, 2021 17:28260703
1As usual, I will point out that "anti-Zionism" is vague and incomprehensible to many [35 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
AnonSep 28, 2020 10:09260700
4It was broke, but we shouldn't have "fixed" it [264 words]DaveSep 27, 2020 22:05260691

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