(Guest Contribution from CBA’s Finance Club)

It has been 43 years since The Shah of Iran was deposed. Looking back I would have never thought a 6 minute interview taken back then would have been applicable to life now. The Shah shocked me not only with his eloquence and timidness, but with intellect rarely seen by presidents, monarchs, and Kings like himself.

The host, the ever British David Frost, starts off with a big question. Has the Shah been able to assure the British government that whatever they spend on oil from Iran will be reinvested in Britain? The Shah replies matter of factly “Sure, in the next ten years we will be what you are today. In the next 25 years we will be, people are saying, one of the 5 most prosperous countries in the world. When you become something like that, you start to act accordingly”.

The host prods along “The increasing price of oil is going to hit our balance of payments hard, and maybe stop our economy from growing for a year or two. Is this what you want”? With subtlety the Shah replies “Just the opposite, that is why we have made decisions that will alleviate your balance of payments. I know that you will make the same kind of deal with other oil producing countries.” He unconsciously reassures the host, “Don’t forget in three years time you will be a big oil producer yourself, you might be a member of our club. You might have some difficulties for a year or two but I’m sure you will overcome it.”

David, as all hosts do, suddenly turns to a whole new page, in hopes of gaining an interview worthy reply “Many cold and poor people ask themselves what it is that you and certainly some of your Arab counterparts, sheikhs and rulers and government, have against them. Does it in anyway serve your interest to hurt the British economy?

Shah Pahlavi retaliates with facts, “If you want to say anything it should be the world economy, and this is not against, we are just defending our chips. Because for such a long time, we have been exploited. Why don’t you say that when the price of wheat was augmented by 300%, they had something against us, we had to buy it, or Soya beans or still products or petrochemical products that at one point were augmented by 30%, so did you have anything against us when you augmented those prices? Even weapons, the price you are charging today is not what you were charging two months ago, it’s increasing, have you anything against us?”

The host predictably sensed that he was going nowhere and moved along, “Have you anything in principle against the system in Britain and other Western countries?” This prompts my favorite response from the Shah, “Not really, but I must tell you my opinion. If you continue this way, this permissive undisciplined society, you are going to blow up.” When asked to clarify what he meant by blow up, his reply which was chilling to look back and hear was “You will go bankrupt. You work not enough, and try to get too much money for the little work. It might continue for a couple of months or a year but it will not continue like this forever.”

The host then asks whether the Shah sees oil as a weapon to correct them or their system (the British). The Shah in all calmness replies “Not really, but it is serving this cause and shock you, for you to realize that for you to face the future, you will have to change your ways.” When asked to specify, his reply is blunt “Discipline, more work”.

Lastly David pokes around some more and asks “Do you think with prosperity you might have to restrain the demands of your people for democracy?” With his head held as high as a King rightly should hold his head, he replies “Who says that my people are demanding the democracy you have in Britain. Because our tradition, the people and the King are so close, that they feel as the member of the same family. They have the respect that families and children used to have for their father.”

Not only does the Shah manage to predict The West’s Bankruptcy, and Iran’s prominent rise, but he also understood the difference in society, and acknowledged that the difference was to their advantage. If you think about it he asks for three things: discipline, more work, and respect. The simple and effective way of life, meant to consistently help you grow. Oh what I would do to have a modern day Shah predict the future for me. What do you think he would tell us now?

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