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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 29-Jan-2017
29-Jan-17 World View -- Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration

Web Log - January, 2017

29-Jan-17 World View -- Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration

Iran promises retaliation against Americans

by John J. Xenakis

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration
Iran promises retaliation against Americans

Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration

Protests at San Francisco International Airport on Friday (Getty)

Protests at San Francisco International Airport on Friday (Getty)

President Donald Trump on Friday fulfilled some of his campaign promises by signing an executive order to limit immigration. In brief, the terms of the executive order are:

Blocked all people from seven "terror-prone" countries from entering the United States for at least 90 days. The countries named in the order are: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

Ordered a review of all other countries to determine which of them do not provide "adequate information" for its citizens to be issued visas to enter the US.

Stopped the admission of all refugees to the United States for four months. Also, cut in half the number of refugees that will be admitted to 50,000 from the 110,000 cap established by former president Barack Obama.

Ordered that refugees should be prioritized for entry on the basis of religious persecution, "provided that the religion of the individual is a minority religion." It's expected that this order will favor Christian refugees.

Permanently barred Syrian nationals from entering.

Ordered the implementation of "extreme vetting" new immigration screening procedures.

Those opposing the executive order made the following points:

By singling out Muslim countries, the order makes religious distinctions that are unconstitutional.

The order was poorly prepared and issued, since it's causing chaos in airports around the world.

People who have green cards and visas and who have already been fully vetted are being prevented from reentering the country.

Foreign national students who returned home for winter break are unable to reenter the country.

Families are being split up arbitrarily, depending on whether one family member just happens to be out of the country on business or vacation.

There have been growing anti-American government protests, particularly at international airports around the world, where chaos is at a maximum since no one is sure who's going to be admitted to the US. Late on Saturday, a federal judge issued an order blocking the federal government from deporting people detained at the airports because of the executive order.

From the point of view of Generational Dynamics, America is joining a worldwide trend that I've been writing about for years. In this generational Crisis era, nationalism and xenophobia have been increasing in countries around the world, and the same is true in America. Those who blame Trump for this have it backwards. As regular readers know, it's a core principle of generational theory that even in a dictatorship, major policies and events are determined by masses of people, entire generations of people, and not by politicians. The growth of nationalism and xenophobia around the world is not caused by Trump or by any politician; it's driven by the current generations of people, now that the survivors of World War II are gone. CNN - Full text of executive order and Saudi Gazette and CNN

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Iran promises retaliation against Americans

A statement by Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs promises retaliation against American nationals for the effects of Trumps executive order on Iranian nationals. According to the statement:

"The decision of the Government of the United States to impose restrictions on the travel of Muslims to the United States – though temporarily for three months – is a clear insult to the Islamic world, and especially the great nation of Iran; and despite claims of being made to combat terrorism and protecting the people of the United States, it will be recorded in history as a great gift to extremists and their supporters. ...
The decision of the Government of the United States to target the people of Iran and clearly insult all sections of this great nation has put on clear display the baselessness of the U.S. claims of friendship with the Iranian people while only having issues with the Government of Iran. It also shows the rancor and enmity of some in the US government and influential circles both within the United States and abroad towards all Iranians around the world: The Iranian nation who, benefiting from an ancient and rich civilization and religious beliefs founded on humanitarian values, has always promoted the message of constructive engagement, not only resisted domination but also the temptations to dominate others, and fought extremism and violence; a resilient nation which has stood firm in the face of extremist terrorists and which was among the first victims of organized terrorism; a great people which has had no presence in any extremist terrorist operation, but instead in all societies in which it has traveled or resided as scientists, students, entrepreneurs, tourists or immigrants, has been known as one of the most law abiding, cultured, educated and successful communities, thus representing its Iranian and Islamic culture and civilization in the most dignified and peace-loving manner.
To ensure respect for the dignity of all members of the great Iranian nation at home and abroad, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran will engage in a careful assessment of the short and medium-term impact of the decision of the U.S. Government on Iranian nationals, and will take proportionate legal, consular and political action and while respecting the American people and differentiating between them and the hostile policies of the U.S. Government – will take reciprocal measures in order to safeguard the rights of its citizens until the time of the removal of the insulting restrictions of the Government of the United States against Iranian nationals."

This is the usual delusional stuff you hear from Iran. They say that Iranians are "a great people which has had no presence in any extremist terrorist operation," but they ignore their massive funding of terrorist organizations, including Hezbollah and Hamas, and their own sponsored terrorism in countries like Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, Iran is a terrorist country to its own people -- peaceful student protests are met with murder, torture and jailings of innocent civilians.

The most delusional of the Iranians are the old geezers left over from the Great Islamic Revolution of 1979, still dreaming of the erotic days of the revolution when they could torture or rape or kill anyone they want with impunity, and see nothing wrong with the same thing today. This includes the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei. On Friday, another old geezer Iranian cleric Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Movahedi Kermani said that "those individuals who defend their lives, honor, and country are not terrorists." To these people, an innocent girl peacefully holding up a protest sign in Tehran's "Freedom Square" is an enemy that the security police can torture, rape or kill because doing so defends the country's honor.

One thing that really infuriates hardline Iranian officials is any equivalencing of Sunni jihadist terror to Iranian terror. We saw this particularly a year ago when Saudi Arabia executed 47 people on charges of terrorism. 46 of them were Sunni jihadists, and the 47th was Mohammad Baqir Nimr al-Nimr, a Shia terrorist from Iran. In response, there were widespread riots in Iran, including burning down the Saudi embassy in Tehran.

There is one additional significant quote from the Foreign Ministry statement:

"The decision of the Government of the United States incorporates certain requests that are illegal, illogical and contrary to international law. Considering the absence of relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States, those requests are not applicable to and cannot be accommodated by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran."

It's possible that these "certain requests" refer to the need for countries to provide "adequate information" for its citizens to be issued visas to enter the US, as stated in Trump's executive order. If that is what is being referred to, then it's possible that Iran will refuse to provide "adequate information," and the ban on Iranian's entering the US could become permanent. Obviously that situation will not be sustainable, and one side or the other will have to back down. Tasnim News (Tehran) and Pro Publica and Tasnim News (Tehran) and Fars News (Tehran - trans)

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(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the 29-Jan-17 World View -- Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (29-Jan-2017) Permanent Link
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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 29-Jan-2017 29-Jan-17 World View -- Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration

Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration

Iran promises retaliation against Americans

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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 29-Jan-2017
29-Jan-17 World View -- Protests grow over Trump's executive order to restrict immigration