Special Project of Economy Connection:
Political Economy of the Iran Crisis
During the spring of 2006, URPE sponsored a panel called "Oil, Nukes, Mullahs, Democracy and U.S. Hegemony: The Political Economy of Iran" at the 2006 Left Forum, and another panel of the same name at the Brecht Forum, both in NYC. The 2006LF panel was videotaped, and both panels were audiotaped. The audiotapes have been used to produce radio programs on WBAI. These panels also led to the creation of this web page. URPE followed up with Left Forum panels on Iran in both 2007 and 2008. URPE member Reza Ghorashi organized the 2009 panel, "Obama and Iran: A New Beginning?"
All opinions expressed in the talks, articles and books on this page are those of the authors and do not represent positions of URPE as an organization. There is also a great variety of opinion among the authors listed on this page.
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Speakers
If you need a speaker on Iran for your educational or activist event, call Economy Connection at (201) 792-7459 or send an email to Economy Connection.
NEW!
2011 Left Forum Panel:
Iran: Current State of Affairs
2011 LEFT FORUM, March 19, 2011
Speakers: Reza Ghorashi, Tom O'Donnell, Hamideh Sedghi, Hamid Zangeneh
MP3 recordings, in order of presentation:
Ghorashi O'Donnell Audience Discussion
Four panelists will discuss economic (emphasis on sanctions and government subsidies), political (emphasis on the Green Movement), social (emphasis on women's struggles), and foreign policy (emphasis on the nuclear issue) of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Bios of speakers
2010 Left Forum Panel:
Iran: Current State of Affairs
2010 LEFT FORUM, March 20, 2010
Speakers: Reza Ghorashi, Tom O'Donnell, Hamideh Sedghi, Hamid Zangeneh
MP3 recordings, in order of presentation:
Ghorashi O'Donnell Zangeneh Audience Discussion
PDF of Reza's Talk, updated: What is the Green Movement all about?
Topics discussed by the panelists were:
Reza Ghorashi: “What Is Happening in Iran? A Social revolution!”
Thomas O’Donnell "Obama's 'Crippling' Sanctions: Nukes Aren't the Fundamental Issue"
Hamideh Sedghi: "Are Women Threats to Iran's National Security?"
Hamid Zangeneh: “Iranian Economy After Thirty Years”
Bios of speakers
2009 Left Forum Panel:
Obama and Iran: A New Beginning
2009 LEFT FORUM, April 18, 2009
Speakers: Reza Ghorashi, Tom O'Donnell, Ervand Abrahamian, Manijeh Saba, Ruth Indeck (chair)
MP3 recordings, in order of presentation:
Indeck (Intro) Ghorashi O'Donnell Abrahamian Saba Audience Discussion
Left Forum video of panel
Reza Ghorashi talked about the real interests of the people of Iran, who would benefit from peace and democracy, as opposed to the perceived interests of the current regime, which depends for its survival on continued hostilities with the US. He also talked about other countries in the area, many of which benefit politically from these hostilities. He discussed the complexities of politics in Iran.
Tom O'Donnell discussed the economic basis of the US/Iranian conflict. Middle Eastern oil and its further development are important to those in power in the US, and they are fearful of disruptions to their plans that could result from a hostile and powerful Iran. The US would prefer to operate among a group of protectorates that would not challenge US power or plans.
Ervand Abrahamian talked about various scenarios for post-Bush relations between the US and Iran. Bush's negotiating positions were non-starters (regime change and stopping nuclear enrichment before any discussions), and Obama had given indications of being more flexible. Ervand talked about balancing power relations among the US, Iran and Russia, and about the pros and cons for the Iranian regime of negotiating with the US (help with development vs. losing the US as an enemy that unites support for the regime). He also talked about the range of political opinion in Iran on nuclear power and on nuclear weapons.
Manijeh talked about her experiences seeking better US relations with Iran by lobbying in Congress, where many members had already been influenced by the powerful AIPAC lobby. She also described participating in direct actions with Code Pink.
Bios of speakers
URPE 2008 Left Forum Panel:
The Iran Crisis:
Continuing Threat of War,
Post-National Intelligence Estimate
2008 LEFT FORUM, March 10, 2008
Speakers: Faramarz Farbod, Reza Ghorashi, Tom O'Donnell, Ruth Indeck (chair)
MP3 recordings, in order of presentation:
Indeck (Intro) Ghorashi Farbod O'Donnell
Reza Ghorashi focuses on Iran's political and economic motivations.
Faramarz Farbod looks at the US neocon imperial vision.
Tom O'Donnell discusses US designs on Iran's oil.
Flyer for URPE at 2008 Left Forum, with panel description and speaker bios
URPE 2007 Left Forum Panel:
US, Iran and Israel: What's Ahead?
2007 LEFT FORUM, March 10, 2007
Speakers: Reza Ghorashi, Tom O'Donnell, Evan Siegel, Leili Kashani (chair and discussant)
MP3 recordings, in order of presentation:
Kashani/Indeck (Intro) O'Donnell Ghorashi Siegel Kashani
Tom O'Donnell discusses the relationship of oil to the current US/Iran crisis.
Reza Ghorashi focuses on the connection between Iran's internal political/economic situation and its international relations.
Evan Siegel traces the historical ups and downs of Israeli/Iranian relations.
Leili Kashani comments on the other presentations.
Flyer for URPE at 2007 Left Forum, with panel description and speaker bios
URPE 2006 Panels:
Oil, Nukes, Mullahs, Democracy and U.S. Hegemony:
The Political Economy of Iran
1. 2006 LEFT FORUM, March 12, 2006
Speakers: Ervand Abrahamian, Tom O'Donnell, Fatemeh Moghadam (chair)
Radio show, produced for WBAI's Global Movements, Urban Struggles by Leili Kashani and Anjali Kamat, and broadcast on March 21
Flyer for URPE at 2006 Left Forum, with panel description and speaker bios
Purchase Z Magazine video of panel, "Oil & Nukes"
2. BRECHT FORUM, May 16, 2006Radio show
Speakers: Faramarz Farbod, Reza Ghorashi, Fatemeh Moghadam, Tom O'Donnell, Leili Kashani (chair)
MP3 recordings, in order of presentation:
Indeck/Kashani (Intro) O'Donnell Ghorashi Farbod Moghadam
A radio s how was also produced for WBAI's Global Movements, Urban Struggles by Anjali Kamat, and broadcast on June 27, combining Tom O'Donnell's Brecht talk with a Judson Church talk by Timothy Mitchell to produce a friendly debate about the relative importance of oil and nukes as a cause of the current crisis.
Flyer for this panel, with panel description and speaker bios
Bios for Ruth Indeck and Leili Kashani
Articles on Iran, oil, and related topics
Cyrus Bina
Many articles and book chapters; see website
The first two articles, focusing on declining US hegemony and changes in global oil markets, were originally written in the context of the Iraq war. The third links the above themes to a possible invasion of Iran:
The American Tragedy: The Quagmire of War, Rhetoric of Oil, and the Conundrum of Hegemony
Is It the Oil, Stupid?
New in 2007 America's Bleeding 'Cakewalk'
New in 2009 Petroleum and Energy Policy in Iran
New in 2008 Oil, war, lies and bulls**t
1999 The Hot Summer of Defiance
New in 2009 Post-Election Iran: Crossroads of History and a Critique of Prevailing Political Perspectives
New in 2010, with Hamid Zangeneh Para-militarization of Universities in Iran
New in 2010 An Open Letter to President Obama: U.S. Foreign Policy and Post-Election Iran
Faramarz Farbod
Of Real and Manufactured Crisis: Iran in the Eye of the Storm
New in 2008 Threats of War Hurt Democratic Aspirations of Iranians
New in 2008 More Than Just Another Overthrow: Let's Not Forget Mossadeq in Iran
New in 2009 Iran's Dilemma with Obama: Of New Hopes and Old Dangers
New in 2009 Iran Between Militarism and Democracy
Reza Ghorashi
Motives of the Islamic Regime's Nuclear Policy
New in 2009 Making Sense of Recent Events in Iran
Ismael Hossein-zadeh
Behind the Plan to Bomb Iran
US Iran Policy Irks Senior Commanders:
The Military vs. Militaristic Civilian Leadership
New in 2009 Reflecting on Iran's Presidential Election: A Political Economy Perspective
Michael Klare
The Tripolar Chessboard: Putting Iran in Great Power Context
Kamran Nayeri
Tehran Bus Drivers Strike Marks Revival of Iranian Labor Movement
New in 2009 Two YouTube videos of London protests in solidarity with Iranian workers:
Iranian Embassy protest, London 6 March 2008
Justice for Iranian Workers, London Iranian Embassy Protest, June 26, 2009
2000 Student Protests Resume in Iran
2006 The Rise and Fall of the 1979 Iranian Revolution: Its Lessons for Today
Tom O'Donnell
The Political Economy of the U.S.-Iran Crisis:
Oil Hegemony, not Nukes, is the Real Issue
New in 2009 The Political Economy of Oil in the U.S.-Iran Crisis:
U.S. globalized oil interests vs. Iranian regional interests
New in 2009 Obama's Iran Nuclear Deadline:
A Grand Bargain is Still Possible if Both Sides Honestly Define Their Interests
RRPE (Review of Radical Political Economics)
Over the years, URPE's journal has published many articles on Iran. Search the RRPE page on the Sage website for abstracts of articles on Iran, and purchase articles there, or find them in a library or in your own collection. URPE members can download articles free.
Hamideh Sedghi
Click here for bio, additional references, and full citations.
Global Feminism, Local Agendas and Actions
Muslims in the West’s Imagination: Myth or Reality?
Representation and Reality: Age and Gender in International Political Economy
Feminist Movements in the Pahlavi Period
Gender and ageing: problems, perceptions and policies
Women, the State, and Development: A Comparative Appraisal of Secular and Religious Gender Politics in Iran
Third World Women’s Perspectives on World Politics
The Persian Gulf War: The New International Order or Disorder?”
Behzad Yaghmaian
Bonded at Birth: How a CIA coup d'etat in Iran and my life became one
Books
Cyrus Bina
Modern Capitalism and Islamic Ideology in Iran (ed. with H. Zangeneh)
The Economics of the Oil Crisis
Ervand Abrahamian
Iran Between Two Revolutions
The Iranian Mojahedin
Khomeinism
Tortured Confessions
Inventing the Axis of Evil
Fatemeh Moghadam
From Land Reform to Revolution:
The Political Economy of Agrarian Relations in Iran, 1962-1979
Hamideh Sedghi
The following books are forthcoming. Click here for bio and full citations.
Women and Politics in Iran: Veiling, Unveiling and Reveiling
Gender and Globalization (Sedghi, et. al.)
Christian Fundamentalism and Neoconservativism in the Making of American Foreign Policy in the Middle East, 2000-2008 (Sedghi, et. al.)
Behzad Yaghmaian
Social Change in Iran
Embracing the Infidel
Websites of URPE members and friends with expertise on Iran or Iran's connection to oil
Links to organizations with information on Iran
CASMII: Campaign Against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran
Thanks to Action Wednesdays Against War (NYC) for their list of LINKS, including government document
