# Why is Ahmidinejad doing so many interviews? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 24, 2007, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326 "2007-09-24T16:58:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![steadierfooting](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@steadierfooting](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steadierfooting)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/1 "2007-09-24T16:58:00Z")
What does the president of Iran have to gain by being interviewed by the US press? Is this the standard SOP for foreign heads of state, it’s just that he is more of a high interest person now? I’m also curious about what people think of the interviews, do you feel he is answering the questions satisfactorily? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/2 "2007-09-24T17:18:42Z")
His hope is that he will appear rational to some large pecentage on the American and world populace so that when Bush attempts to initiate the next crusade, it will be more difficult for Bush to gather more domestic support or international alliances. The fact that Ahmidinejad is _possibly_ even crazier than Bush with the same sort of monomaniacal interests and tunnel vision hemmed in by blind prejudices is not a factor in his desire to sway public opinion against Bush. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/3 "2007-09-24T17:41:39Z")
> [@](#): > > What does the president of Iran have to gain by being interviewed by the US press? A couple of things is my guess. One, he’s hoping to divert attention from the actions of his country wrt things like support of terrorist groups in Lebanon, Iran’s nuclear program and their covert actions in Iraq. He wants the focus to be on what the US is doing or perhaps planning to do wrt Iran…in case the US and/or Israel attacks Iran and their nuclear program. Also, as Tom said, he’s hoping to portray himself as rational and sane. He also is trying to handwave away some of the statements he’s made in the past about various things when he was talking to his target audience…things that obviously play well to the locals but perhaps don’t sit well with folks in the west. > [@](#): > > Is this the standard SOP for foreign heads of state, it’s just that he is more of a high interest person now? Not really standard SOP as most foreign heads of state hostile to the US aren’t exactly given a forum to speak from. It’s pretty SOP what he’s saying and doing though…he’s taking a page right out of Saddam’s book IMHO. Or Bush’s if you like that analogy better. > [@](#): > > I’m also curious about what people think of the interviews, do you feel he is answering the questions satisfactorily? I think its pretty much bullshit. The process favors him and allows him a lot of leeway to shuck and jive. He gets to give a 30+ minute speech in a free form format and then he takes student questions that are hand written and selected by others to present to him. I’d rather see a more open discussion with live question/answer/followup format. But then he probably wouldn’t have agreed to that format…with good reason. -XT ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/4 "2007-09-24T18:07:04Z")
[QUOTE=xtisme] It’s pretty SOP what he’s saying and doing though…he’s taking a page right out of Saddam’s book IMHO. [/QUOTE] Eh? What did Hussein do that was analogous to what Ahmadinejad is doing? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/5 "2007-09-24T18:13:02Z")
My guess is that he’s got a book coming out. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/6 "2007-09-24T18:13:19Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] Eh? What did Hussein do that was analogous to what Ahmadinejad is doing? [/QUOTE] You know hating the US and speaking out of turn. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/7 "2007-09-24T18:13:24Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] Eh? What did Hussein do that was analogous to what Ahmadinejad is doing? [/QUOTE] Talking out of both sides of his mouth depending on who his target audience is. Making promisses on one hand and dragging his feet on the other. I’d say the analogy is pretty good myself. YMMV. -XT ---
**Author:** ![Gorgon\_Heap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f475e1/32.png) [@Gorgon\_Heap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorgon_Heap)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/8 "2007-09-24T18:26:51Z")
**xtisme** , I’m not at all sure I can agree with that. Talking out of both sides of the mouth is one thing, but Hussein never flew over here and took advantage of our own free media to show himself off and make headlines. Nobody likes this guy and he’s said nothing interesting so far to my mind (I’m watching it right now) except to compound his hypocracy. “Scholars and scientists are loved by God and will hopefully one day rule the world.” Is as close to a direct quote of what I just heard. This from a man tossing scientists and diplomats in prison. WHile whatc hge says is complete nonsense, using our own time, money and media to cause an uproar one way or the other is pretty smart and gutsy if you ask me. ---
**Author:** ![Gorgon\_Heap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f475e1/32.png) [@Gorgon\_Heap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorgon_Heap)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/9 "2007-09-24T18:28:04Z")
**xtisme** , I’m not at all sure I can agree with that. Talking out of both sides of the mouth is one thing, but Hussein never flew over here and took advantage of our own free media to show himself off and make headlines. Nobody likes this guy and he’s said nothing interesting so far to my mind (I’m watching it right now) except to compound his hypocracy. “Scholars and scientists are loved by God and will hopefully one day rule the world.” Is as close to a direct quote of what I just heard. This from a man tossing scientists and diplomats in prison. While what he says is complete nonsense, using our own time, money and media to cause an uproar one way or the other is pretty smart and gutsy if you ask me. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/10 "2007-09-24T18:47:46Z")
[QUOTE=tomndebb] The fact that Ahmidinejad is _possibly_ even crazier than Bush with the same sort of monomaniacal interests and tunnel vision hemmed in by blind prejudices is not a factor in his desire to sway public opinion against Bush. [/QUOTE] Whether or not he’s crazier than Bush, he’s a hell of a lot [smarter and more perceptive](http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/09/21/60minutes/main3286706_page2.shtml): > [@](#): > > PELLEY: What trait do you admire in President Bush? > > AHMADINEJAD: Again, I have a very frank tone. I think that President Bush needs to correct his ways. > > PELLEY: What do you admire about him? > > AHMADEINEJAD: He should respect the American people. > > PELLEY: Is there anything? Any trait? > > AHMADINEJAD: As an American citizen, tell me what trait do you admire? > > PELLEY: Well, Mr. Bush is, without question, a very religious man, for example, as you are. I wonder if there’s anything that you’ve seen in President Bush that you admire. > > AHMADEINEJAD: Well, is Mr. Bush a religious man? > > PELLEY: Very much so. As you are. > > AHMADEINEJAD: What religion, please tell me, tells you as a follower of that religion to occupy another country and kill its people? Please tell me. Does Christianity tell its followers to do that? Judaism, for that matter? Islam, for that matter? What prophet tells you to send 160,000 troops to another country, kill men, women, and children? You just can’t wear your religion on your sleeve or just go to church. You should be truthfully religious. Religion tells us all that you should respect the property, the life of different people. Respect human rights. Love your fellow man. And once you hear that a person has been killed, you should be saddened. You shouldn’t sit in a room, a dark room, and hatch plots. And because of your plots, many thousands of people are killed. Having said that, we respect the American people. And because of our respect for the American people, we respectfully talk with President Bush. We have a respectful tone. But having said that, I don’t think that that is a good definition of religion. Religion is love for your fellow man, brotherhood, telling the truth. [Or](http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/09/21/60minutes/main3286706_page4.shtml): > [@](#): > > AHMADEINEJAD: I think Mr. Bush, if he wants his party to win the next election, there are cheaper ways and ways to go about this. I can very well give him a few ideas so that the people vote for him. He should respect the American people. They should not bug the telephone conversations of their citizens. They should not kill the sons and daughters of the American nation. They should not squander the taxpayers’ money and give them to weapons companies. And also help the people, the victims of Katrina. People will vote for them if they do these things. But if they insist on what they are saying right now, this will not help them. Of course, he wouldn’t have the opportunity to look so perceptive, so easily, if we hadn’t completely ceded the moral high ground as a nation over the past several years. Like that college paper said, Fuck Bush. (And the pols in both parties in Congress that have enabled him.) Because of him, a bad actor like Ahmadinejad gets to shift the focus from how things are in Iran by taking easy - and deserved - shots at us. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/11 "2007-09-24T18:50:55Z")
I think one of his motivations is to allay future guilt or culpability for the future acts of terrorism fomented by his regime. He has made repeated efforts to reach out and invite, for example, our mass religious conversion to Islam (presumably, he means Shiite Islam). He can rationalize that he has tried to “reason” with us and our leaders and by our rebuffing him, invite and deserve any future suffering. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/12 "2007-09-24T19:26:28Z")
He needs a date. He just said there are no homosexuals in Iran, so clearly, he’s got a lot of ground to cover to find one. ---
**Author:** ![sqweels](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@sqweels](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sqweels)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/13 "2007-09-24T19:31:26Z")
I just don’t understand why we couldn’t have gone on the diplomatic offensive with Iran _before_ they elected this guy and started up their nuclear program. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/14 "2007-09-24T19:50:15Z")
[QUOTE=Gorgon Heap] xtisme , I’m not at all sure I can agree with that. Talking out of both sides of the mouth is one thing, but Hussein never flew over here and took advantage of our own free media to show himself off and make headlines. [/QUOTE] Well, as I said in my first post its highly unusual for us to let a hostile foreign leader have such a forum. However, what they are saying and doing are very similar IMHO…the only difference is the soap box they are doing it from. I also seem to recall that one of the US shows like 60 minutes or 20/20 interviewed Saddam at one point over in Iraq. This is from memory but there were some similarities in the type and presentation of the message. [QUOTE=Gorgon Heap] what he says is complete nonsense, using our own time, money and media to cause an uproar one way or the other is pretty smart and gutsy if you ask me. [/QUOTE] I don’t think its particularly smart or gutsy to be honest. Its a golden opportunity that only a complete moron would squander. I’m sure if Saddam had been given a similar opportunity he would have leaped at the chance as well. -XT ---
**Author:** ![Ring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Ring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ring)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/15 "2007-09-24T21:35:46Z")
He was asked why Iran executes homosexuals, and he said something to the effect: _I don’t know where you heard that. Unlike the US we don’t have any homosexuals in Iran._ The whole audience burst into laughter and so did I. This guy’s a riot. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/16 "2007-09-24T21:50:38Z")
Yeah, [here](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070924/ap_on_re_us/iran_us) is the article on it with that quote from Ring. It sounds like he was not a happy camper. I have to admit it looks like the mod of the interview really busted his chops. -XT ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/17 "2007-09-24T22:16:47Z")
[QUOTE=Ring] He was asked why Iran executes homosexuals, and he said something to the effect: _I don’t know where you heard that. Unlike the US we don’t have any homosexuals in Iran._ The whole audience burst into laughter and so did I. This guy’s a riot. [/QUOTE] From what I’ve heard, that’s actually the more-or-less-official position in China. I read that once, when Queen Victoria was about to sign an act of Parliament criminalizing sodomy, one of her ministers suggested it should be amended to include lesbians. The queen asked, “Lesbians? What are they?” When it was explained, she snorted, “Nonsense! There are no such women!” And signed the bill as it was. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/18 "2007-09-24T22:31:27Z")
Ahmadinejad? What next, are we going to be making fun of the Queen of England? As for his part, he probably wants street cred for being so brave as to go into the belly of the beast. I am sure he would be delighted to be hunkering in his bunker as the missiles rain down over Tehran. He’d be able to play his own bit role in the neo-crusade, alongside his great and wise Supreme Leader and puffed up, Very Serious council members. [QUOTE=BrainGlutton] I read that once, when Queen Victoria was about to sign an act of Parliament criminalizing sodomy, one of her ministers suggested it should be amended to include lesbians. The queen asked, “Lesbians? What are they?” When it was explained, she snorted, “Nonsense! There are no such women!” And signed the bill as it was. [/QUOTE] The lady doth protest too much, methinks. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/19 "2007-09-24T22:36:29Z")
Only on the SDMB can you start a thread about a person who denies the Holocaust, believes that homosexuals should be killed (even if they don’t exist) and winds up his meetings by threatening the US, and the inevitable response is > [@](#): > > Like that college paper said, Fuck Bush. How completely idiotic. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326/20 "2007-09-24T22:48:37Z")
[QUOTE=sqweels] I just don’t understand why we couldn’t have gone on the diplomatic offensive with Iran _before_ they elected this guy and started up their nuclear program. [/QUOTE] We did. President Bush called them part of the “Axis of Evil”. Offensive enough, I think. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ahmidinejad-doing-so-many-interviews/420326.md?page=2)