Going to Tehran Co-authors Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett Predicted the Iran War Back in 2013.
Posted by Jerry Alatalo | April 16, 2026
Iranian Professor Seyed Marandi has become well-known in America and worldwide after appearing numerous times on independent and traditional media programs. Professor Marandi has made it a point to (repeatedly) recommend that viewers read the book “Going to Tehran”, co-authored by American academics Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett.
“Going to Tehran” is a book by Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann Leverett, published in 2013, arguing that the United States must develop a strategic partnership with Iran similar to its relationship with China in the 1970s. The authors contend that engaging with Iran is essential to stabilize the Middle East and avoid conflict.
After listening closely to an in-depth March 2013 interview of the Leveretts to talk about their (subsequent -increasingly) important 2013 book (interview below), it becomes crystal clear as to why Professor Marandi recommends reading the book time and again during his many public appearances.
Amazon review by Dave: 5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read for Anti-War Activists
Reviewed in the United States on 18 June 2013
Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
“The dogs of war in the U.S. media bark and, in true Don Quixote fashion, it’s a sign that authors Hillary and Flynt Leverett are on the move. In their electrifying new book, Going to Tehran: Why the United States Must Come to Terms with the Islamic Republic of Iran, the former National Security Council experts – who were forced out of their positions for their opposition to Washington’s war-mongering and occupation – take on the growing myths told by the U.S. government about Iran.
Liberals, conservatives and centrists in the U.S. media hysterically attacked Going to Tehran as soon as it came out. The Wall Street Journal derided the Leveretts as “Washington’s most outspoken defenders of the mullahs,” in a particularly nasty hit-piece called “I Heart Khomenei.” Laura Secor of the New York Times called the book “one-sided” and a “mirror image” of the anti-Iran propaganda churned out by the U.S. government. Foreign Affairs claims they “overargue” their case for ending U.S. hostilities. The Weekly Standard accused them of “paranoid dogmatism,” and The New Republic called the book “an act of ventriloquism,” presumably with the Iranian government as the puppet master.
When I see a book receive universal condemnation from the corporate-owned media, I take it as a sign that I need to read it. And ultimately every anti-war activist in the U.S. owes it to the people of Iran to check out this well-researched, persuasive and highly readable case against war with Iran. After all, we live in a country where Argo, a ludicrous xenophobic hit-piece on the Iranian Revolution, wins the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 2012 Oscars. As the Leveretts show in their book, the U.S. government and the corporate media work hand-in-glove to dominate the narrative on Iran, telling and repeating all sorts of myths and falsehoods to build the case for war against a large, independent, oil-producing country in the Middle East. Going to Tehran sets the record straight.
The book focuses on dispelling three elements of the U.S. mythology around Iran, breaking each into three-chapter parts. First, it challenges the myth that Iran is an irrational state “incapable of thinking about its foreign policy interests,” arguing instead that the Islamic Republic is incredibly rational in its fight for survival as a revolutionary state in a region historically dominated by U.S. imperialism and Israeli militarism. Second, it unravels the myth of Iran as an illegitimate state, by showing the overwhelming popularity of the Iranian government and refuting the unsubstantiated claims of electoral fraud in 2009. Finally, it challenges the myth that the U.S. can – or should – topple Iran through sanctions, diplomatic isolation and the threat of war.
Going to Tehran is written primarily to persuade policy-makers to abandon the current U.S. strategy of toppling the government of Iran. Throughout the whole book, the Leveretts seem frustrated at the very likely possibility that their well-researched case against war with Iran will go unread by politicians. However, the primary audience that will benefit from Going to Tehran is not lawmakers, but rather anti-war activists. Anti-war organizers could use the book as a starting point for reading groups and teach-ins about the nature of U.S. aggression.
The disorganized response by the U.S. anti-war movement to NATO’s attack on Libya proves the need for a unified, principled, anti-imperialist opposition to war that seeks to build meaningful international solidarity. And in 2013, Going to Tehran is an important contribution to that struggle.”
*
(Screenshot: Amazon.com)
Please share this information far and wide. Please feel free to share your response(s) in the comments. Thank you very much. Peace.
https://youtu.be/8Mlk7sXRsPc?si=_yEb2i6mPru5VP5q
Description of discussion: 6,469 views May 24, 2013 Foreign Policy and International Politics (Visit: http://www.uctv.tv/) Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett for a discussion of their new book, Going to Tehran. In the conversation, the Leveretts analyze the Islamic Republic of Iran’s strategic goals and domestic politics. After analyzing the biases embedded in U.S. perceptions of Iran, they conclude with a proposal for changing U.S. relations with Iran by emulating Nixon’s breakthrough with China Series: “Conversations with History” [5/2013] [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 25083]
*
Amazon: About the Author
Flynt Leverett served at the National Security Council, State Department, and CIA, and is currently a professor of international affairs and law at Penn State.Hillary Mann Leverett served at the National Security Council and State Department and negotiated for the U.S. government with Iranian officials; she is now senior professorial lecturer at American University.Their writing has also appeared in the New York Times, Politico, Foreign Policy, and Washington Monthly, among other publications. They live in Northern Virginia.
#Books #DonaldTrump #History #Iran #Philosophy #PoliticalScience #Religion
Hacker News
Susan Hodges
THE ONENESS of HUMANITY
(Roughly) Daily
Paul Houle
Susan Ville
✨ Bibliolater 📚 📜 🖋
John Tinker
1bluebass