After World War II, dozens of nations throughout Africa, Asia and Latin America broke free from the shackles of colonialism and neo-colonialism.  From Ghana and Algeria to India and Cuba, the Global South sought to liberate itself from centuries of European theft and underdevelopment.  Much of the newly decolonized world rejected capitalism and recognized that an alliance with the United States necessitated joining the peripheries of its growing empire.  In response to this wave of resistance, the United States, which up until then had been a successful settler colonial power but a relatively weak imperial one, embraced the Truman Doctrine and engaged in hybrid warfare with nations that rejected U.S. imperialism or embraced socialism.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has occupied a rarefied position in the American political imagination for more than four decades. The mid-sized West Asian country has played the role of chief boogeyman of US foreign policy debates. Despite its relatively tiny defense budget Iran somehow looms over every military conflict in the region: Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and Palestine. The country is a seemingly permanent cast member in the at-once extremely sophisticated and incredibly stupid soap opera of global Anglophone news.