Iran's Connections in the Western Hemisphere

Rob Taylor has written an excellent article on NewsReal Blog entitled "7 Reasons Mexico is the Biggest Threat to American Security" (1). For the purposes of the New Knighthood, reason #4 is perhaps the most startling: Hezbollah's growing involvement with the cartels. Just to remind everyone, Hezbollah is a puppet of the clerics in Iran and was actually the first Islamic group to use a truck bomb against the United States embassy in Beirut in 1983. More recently, a propaganda booklet called "In Memory of Our Martyrs" which praises suicide bombers was recently found by United States Border Patrol agents in Mexico (2). The booklet was published in Iran.

In addition, Hugo Chavez's increasingly close relationship with the Iranian regime should be a source of concern (3). Both Iran and Venezuela are members of OPEC and have significant influence over the world's energy sector. Furthermore, Venezuela has now expressed interest in starting a nuclear program and follow in Iran's footsteps.

The politicians and mainstream media need to take the Iranian threat more seriously. It is a country led by men with totalitarian designs on the world that they believe come directly from Allah. The similarities between Chavez's socialism and the Iranian theocracy go deeper than one may assume. Most specifically, both regimes are dedicated to protecting "the revolution," viewing any conflicting opinions as threats to their very existence. But these regimes are also fundamentally brittle. Opposition groups within these countries should be encouraged. After all, any opposition is going to be accused of being "orchastrated by the United States," so why not give them the benefits of communications technology and political support?

References:
1. Taylor, Rob. "7 Reasons Mexico is the Biggest Threat to American Security." NewsReal Blog; February 27, 2011. http://www.newsrealblog.com/2011/02/27/7-reasons-mexico-is-the-biggest-threat-to-american-security; accessed February 27, 2011
2. La Jeunesse, William. "Iranian Book Celebrating Suicide Bombers Found in Arizona Desert." Fox News; January 27, 2011.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/01/27/iranian-book-celebrating-suicide-bombers-arizona-desert; accessed February 27, 2011
3. Pomeroy, Robin. "Chavez and Ahmadinejad say united to change world order." Reuters; October 20, 2010. http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/10/20/us-iran-venezuela; accessed February 27, 2011