4 ms·

It should be pointed out that a lot of people believe the hostage crisis was not just mismanagement or bad luck, but collusion between the Reagan campaign and I

It should be pointed out that a lot of people believe the hostage crisis was not just mismanagement or bad luck, but collusion between the Reagan campaign and Iranian leadership to delay resolving the crisis until after the election. I think it's now widely agreed that Iran wanted Reagan to win and extended the hostage crisis for that reason, and that Reagan's campaign had back-channel communication with the Iranian leadership; what's not known is whether he promised them anything. Congress investigated and concluded that there was no collusion, i.e. that Reagan's illegal arms sales to Iran were unrelated, but unsurprisingly, many are not convinced. More info here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_Surprise_conspiracy_theory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_Surprise_conspiracy_th... and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_hostage_crisis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_hostage_crisis.

buildbot 4y ago
Kissinger 100% committed treason by being the back channel here.
- flandish 4y ago
  It’s a sure bet to assume anything Kissinger did was treason, murderous, or a war crime. Pissing on his grave, when nature takes its (slow) course, will be a goal for plenty, I am sure. In short: fuck that guy.
  - monetus 4y ago
    A podcast for those without context - https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-behind-the-bastards-29236323/episode/part-one-kissinger-94160733/ https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-behind-the-bastards-29236...
    - flandish 4y ago
      Yes! Such a great production! Got me into that show.
    - buildbot 4y ago
      100% Recommend this and his other work. Excellent journalism.
    - hulitu 4y ago
      National Geographic's Kissinger is also a great one. And i think that Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove was a good parody of him.
cpleppert 4y ago
There is really no evidence to support such a contention. Iran had no reason to help out Carter by releasing the hostages. On the flip side if they weren't going to drag out the situation it was better to resolve it and get some goodwill with the next administration, which they did. It would have been strange if the US did not supply Iran with weapons given the geopolitical situation. Iran was surrounded by Soviet friendly countries and an Iranian loss to Iraq would have been a disaster for both the US and Israel. Israel, not coincidentally, served as a backchannel for the Iranian US relationship during that time period.

buildbot 4y ago

Kissinger 100% committed treason by being the back channel here.

flandish 4y ago
It’s a sure bet to assume anything Kissinger did was treason, murderous, or a war crime. Pissing on his grave, when nature takes its (slow) course, will be a goal for plenty, I am sure. In short: fuck that guy.
- monetus 4y ago
  A podcast for those without context - https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-behind-the-bastards-29236323/episode/part-one-kissinger-94160733/ https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-behind-the-bastards-29236...
  - flandish 4y ago
    Yes! Such a great production! Got me into that show.
  - buildbot 4y ago
    100% Recommend this and his other work. Excellent journalism.
  - hulitu 4y ago
    National Geographic's Kissinger is also a great one. And i think that Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove was a good parody of him.

cpleppert 4y ago

There is really no evidence to support such a contention. Iran had no reason to help out Carter by releasing the hostages. On the flip side if they weren't going to drag out the situation it was better to resolve it and get some goodwill with the next administration, which they did. It would have been strange if the US did not supply Iran with weapons given the geopolitical situation. Iran was surrounded by Soviet friendly countries and an Iranian loss to Iraq would have been a disaster for both the US and Israel. Israel, not coincidentally, served as a backchannel for the Iranian US relationship during that time period.