A timely primer on the conflict between the United States and Iran by scholars of Middle Eastern politics who advocate diplomacy and de-escalation.
The United States and Iran seem to be permanently locked in a dangerous cycle of brinkmanship and violence. Both countries have staged cyber attacks and recently shot down one another's aircrafts. Why do both countries seem intent on escalation? Why did the U.S. abandon the nuclear deal (which, according to the UN, was working)? Where can Washington and Tehran find common ground? To address these questions and the political and historical forces at play, David Barsamian presents the perspectives of Iran scholars Ervand Abrahamian, Noam Chomsky, Nader Hashemi, Azadeh Moaveni, and Trita Parsi. A follow-up to the previously published Targeting Iran, this timely book continues to affirm the goodwill between Iranian and American people, even as their respective governments clash on the international stage.
Praise for ReTargeting Iran:
"In a Q&A format about the continued demonization of Iran by the U.S., [David] Barsamian gets at the key to the deterioration of the relationship between the two nations. ... [T]he discussion is astute and relevant."—Kirkus Reviews
"A necessary and timely education on one of the most politically fraught and historically significant relationships of our time. I devoured these smart, insightful interviews with five important Iran scholars, about the struggle between two countries that have both been our home."—Dina Nayeri, author of The Ungrateful Refugee: What Immigrants Never Tell You
"This little book contains more wisdom about Iran than exists in the White House, Congress, the State Department, and the Pentagon combined. Anyone who wants to understand the world's most misunderstood country will find no better source."—Stephen Kinzer, Author of All the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror
"Many journalists and academics have written books about Iran. But ReTargeting Iran fills an important gap, a book sharply critical of U.S. policy and the Iranian government. David Barsamian provides timely interviews with major analysts that sets the record straight. It's a highly accessible read and a great introduction to the U.S.-Iran conflict."—Reese Erlich, author of The Iran Agenda Today: The Real Story Inside Iran and What's Wrong with U.S. Policy.
"ReTargeting Iran is a facts-only objective account of where America has gone wrong, stupidly wrong—yet again—in its foreign policy, dominated by a mythical belief that Iran has an active nuclear weapons program. All one needs to know about the threat is this: as of mid-2020, the United States had no less than thirty-five military bases, manned by 65,000 soldiers, ready go to war in the nations immediately surrounding our feared adversary."—Seymour M. Hersh, author of Reporter: A Memoir
Industry Reviews
PRAISE FOR TARGETING IRAN (2007)
“This slim book is heavy with historical and cultural background that doesn't often find its way into news accounts; it's a great primer on a simmering conflict.”—Publishers Weekly
“Targeting Iran feels like sitting in on a series of riveting seminars by top experts. . . . You will find profound insight into the complex Republic of Iran in a conversational and easy-to-read format. I finished the book enlightened - which is more than I can say after watching the news.”—Feminist Review
“Insightful, timely, and laced with rich historical perspective, Targeting Iran presents a bracing exploration of Iran's current place in the world, and its tangled relationship with the West. These fascinating interviews capture Iran’s complexity and illuminate the morning’s headlines.”—Azadeh Moaveni, author of Lipstick Jihad: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America And American in Iran
“A valuable book in that it covers, in less than 200 pages, many of the essential questions regarding the geopolitics of the Islamic Republic and the ominous specter of a U.S. military attack on Iran.”—Fellowship of Reconciliation
“David Barsamian is widely known in progressive circles for his interviews with prominent intellectuals on a wide range of political issues. In this volume, he presents three 2007 interviews with longstanding critic of US foreign policy Noam Chomsky and two Iranian- born professors of Middle Eastern history, Ervand Abrahamian and Nahid Mozaffari, on US-Iranian relations and the possibility that the US government may attack Iran over its nuclear energy program or on some other grounds. Barsamian and his interlocutors aim to provide critical background omitted from the US media when policy towards Iran is discussed, such as the decades-long support for the hated dictatorship of Shah Reza Pahlevi, and to introduce a more nuanced picture of Iranian society than typically understood by the average American.”—Book News
PRAISE FOR GLOBAL DISCONTENTS
"Every page of this lively, probing, and sharp collection delivers a searing observation from linguist and political-thinker Chomsky"—Publishers Weekly
"Well-informed salvos to please or enrage, depending on one’s politics."—Kirkus Reviews
