Juan Cole deflates the Iranian threat
Illuminating piece by Juan Cole in Salon, in which he debunks the "top 10" myths about Iran. This one is my favorite, debunking the right's notion that Iran is "a growing threat to world peace":
Iran's military budget is a little over $6 billion annually. Sweden, Singapore and Greece all have larger military budgets. Moreover, Iran is a country of 70 million, so that its per capita spending on defense is tiny compared to these others, since they are much smaller countries with regard to population. Iran spends less per capita on its military than any other country in the Persian Gulf region with the exception of the United Arab Emirates.
Of course, this just identifies an additional set of foreign threats: The Swedes, Singaporeans (?), and the Greeks. Time to increase military spending.
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