First of all, let me say that I was a little embarrassed when the head of Columbia University likened Iran’s president to a cruel and petty dictator. I mean, of course he’s petty—he’s a professional politician. But he’s not particularly cruel by world standards and he’s an elected official with heavy oversight, so not exactly a dictator either. If our “intellectual elite” want to resort to name-calling, they should at least try to get the facts straight.

Don’t get me wrong, Ahmadinejad is the worst kind of populist—a man who panders to his electorate’s basest instincts with half-truths and sound bites. But talk is cheap and I began to try to remember exactly what Iran has done to us to warrant so many comparisons to the Third Reich. Have they indeed unleashed a holocaust on the American people?

Decide for yourself. A brief history of our relationship with Iran:

1951: The Iranian government nationalizes British Petroleum’s holdings in Iran.

1953: CIA-led Operation Ajax deposes Iran’s democratically elected prime minister, Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh. He is replaced by the U.S.-friendly dictator, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who solidifies his position by using his intelligence agency, SAVAK, to crush political rivals.

Late 1950s-Present: Iran supports an intermittent nuclear power program, initially supported by America’s Atoms for Peace initiative. More recently, the U.S. has accused the Iranians of having a nuclear weapons program, which they deny. The truth is unclear, but Iran has been widely criticized for not being forthcoming with information and inspections. It seems likely that they have designs on becoming a nuclear power.

Late 1970s-Present: Iran supports Hezbollah, which has carried out numerous terrorist acts, including ones against Americans. It’s hard to calculate exactly how many Americans Hezbollah has killed, but I can’t find support for any number over 500—significantly less if you take them at their word that they were not involved in the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing.

1979: The American-supported Shah is overthrown by the Iranian Revolution and the country is converted to an Islamic Republic under Ayatollah Khomeini.

1979: Iranian students take over the U.S. embassy, accusing personnel of plotting to overthrow Khomeini like they did Mossadegh. They release most of the women and African-Americans in the first few months but continue to hold a significant number of hostages.

1980: The U.S. mounts a failed rescue attempt in which eight soldiers die in a plane crash.

1980: Iraq invades Iran.

1981: U.S. embassy hostages are released unharmed after the U.S. caves in on a few points, including no further interference in Iranian internal affairs and the unfreezing of Iranian assets.

1980-1988: The U.S. publicly provides technological and financial support, as well as intelligence and equipment, to Iraq in its fight with Iran. An estimated 500,000 Iranians are killed. This is nearly 1% of their current population, or the equivalent of a war that kills 2,250,000 Americans.

Having said that, the Iranians probably could have avoided many of their casualties by taking an entirely defensive attitude and not attempting to press their advantage.

1987: The U.S. attacks Iranian oil platforms in retaliation for an Iranian attack on a U.S.- flagged Kuwaiti tanker. America is later criticized for this attack by the International Court of Justice. No American casualties. Iranian casualties unknown.

1988: The U.S. begins Operation Praying Mantis in response to the USS Samuel Roberts hitting an Iranian mine (four Americans seriously injured). Two Iranian warships, as well as six speedboats, are sunk during this operation. Iranian casualties are not known. Two U.S. marines are killed when their helicopter crashes. The cause of the crash is unclear.

1988: The USS Vincennes shoots down an Iranian airliner killing all 290 people aboard. The U.S. says it’s an accident, but the Iranians believe it to be intentional. Then Vice President Bush reacts by saying: “I will never apologize for the United States of America—I don’t care what the facts are.” The U.S. pays $6,180,000 in reparations to settle a suit brought by Iran in the International Court of Justice.

2002-Present: G.W. Bush identifies Iran as a member of the Axis of Evil. Numerous threats are made by various U.S. politicians including the refusal to rule out a nuclear first strike against Iran.

2003: The U.S. invades Iraq primarily because of the now discredited belief that Saddam Hussein had a dangerous WMD program.

Circa 2005-Present: G.W. Bush accuses Iran of supporting attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq. Evidence is scant, but it is probably true on some level.

2005-Present: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vomits a flood of obnoxious political bluster, including support for the idea of destroying Israel, denying the holocaust, and your customarily vague “Death to America” rhetoric.

2006: Iran announces that it has enriched uranium, though to nowhere near weapons grade.

So there you have it. Based on my best estimate, the U.S. is directly responsible for around a thousand Iranian dead and indirectly responsible for over a hundred thousand, as well as for replacing their democracy with a dictator.

As for the Iranian side, realistically they’ve been directly responsible for no American deaths and indirectly responsible for somewhere between 100 and 1,000 (depending on the truth behind the Beirut barracks bombing and their level of support for Iraqi insurgents).

You may think this is a defense of Iran’s government. It’s not. I believe them to be repressive, theocratic, and prone to violence against their own people. What I’m trying to say is that it’s a bit ridiculous for Americans to act like the innocent victims of Iran’s evil. Maybe it’s time to forget the past and concentrate on creating a productive future.

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