"ALL CAPS IN DEFENSE OF LIBERTY IS NO VICE."

Monday, August 17, 2015

NO MATTER HOW SEEMINGLY HARMLESS AN INVESTMENT, IT'LL STILL WIND UP WITH IRAN'S AUTOCRATS

Two writers for the Weekly Standard warn why it's dangerous to invest in Iran, even if it's non-political on the surface:
Proponents of the Iran nuclear agreement say assisting Iran out of its economic isolation could help prop up more moderate elements within the Islamic Republic. By any standard, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, or IRGC, fails the moderation test: it is Tehran’s ideological vanguard, responsible for exporting the revolution abroad and enforcing its rule at home. Nonetheless, the Iranian Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC)’s clout in Iran’s economy means that post-deal, even those projects which those proponents deem innocuous – such as building dams and roads – will serve mainly to fill the guard’s coffers.

The Obama administration is adamant that the IRGC “hates the deal,” because it supposedly opens up market previously cornered by the Guards to competition. The truth is rather different: the deal delists many companies that aided the IRGC in its proliferation efforts, its support for terrorism, and its involvement in the Syrian civil war. Though the deal keeps in place U.S. sanctions against the IRGC, it removes sectoral bans against areas of Iran’s economy that the IRGC dominates. The Guards, as Iran’s economic “gatekeeper,” will have ultimate say on how the country’s post-deal windfall will be spent.
No one who cares about their money should invest in any part of Iran's infrastructure if it ends up in the pockets the IRGC, let alone the overlords in the premier's fortress themselves. All that'll do is give them more money to buy and build additional weapons for jihad. It's the same with the PLO.

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