US rhetoric about Islam contradicted its own arming of Islamists

Evidence

The United States ratcheted up the negative “Islam” frame. “Bad” Muslims had overthrown the “good” secular Shah. Nevertheless, the Reagan administration armed Iran during its war with Iraq, in what came to be known as the Iran-Contra scandal. … Thus began a period of contradiction when “Islam” was both a positive and negative construct depending on whether actors supported or militated against US imperial aims. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 395

Categorization

• CANDY: The irony that Reagan denounced ‘bad’ Iran while secretly arming it, and celebrated the mujahideen who later became al-Qaeda, is a compact jaw-dropper for conversation.
• XREF: connects to: The US once allied with Islamist forces before treating them as enemies; The US held contradictory Islamist allies and enemies simultaneously — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 214; US hostility to Islamism depended on whether it served US interests — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 233 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Bush’s inclusive rhetoric on Islam directly contradicted his militaristic Middle East policy. #exemplifies (0.95) — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim, 718
• The US held contradictory Islamist allies and enemies simultaneously #contradicts (0.92) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 214
• The US alternately armed and opposed Islamist forces to preserve its regional domination. #expands (0.90) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 29
• US hostility to Islamism depended on whether it served US interests #expands (0.85) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 233