Iran’s leader, Mahmood Ahmadinejad, Monday sent a letter to President Bush in some sort of effort to communicate with him, and to halt potential action over Iran’s nuclear program.

It has a weird bloggerly quality to it, mulling over events, ranting and raving here, whining about always being a victim there, and it’s sort of interesting to read.

But the most interesting part (to me) is Ahmadinejad’s clear reference to Venezuela’s dictator, Hugo Chavez. It’s obvious he watches the Chavista soap opera going on in the Western hemisphere, and clearly has discussed the paranoias of Chavez. They fill his thoughts. What an interesting window into the mind of the Middle East’s craziest and most malevolent leader, now seeking sympathy. He writes:

Mr President, Don????????t Latin Americans have the right to ask, why their elected governments are being opposed and coup leaders supported? Or, why must they constantly be threatened and live in fear? The people of Africa are hardworking, creative and talented.

They can play an important and valuable role in providing for the needs of humanity and contribute to its material and spiritual progress.

Poverty and hardship in large parts of Africa are preventing this from happening.

Don????????t they have the right to ask why their enormous wealth ???????? including minerals ???????? is being looted, despite the fact that they need it more than others? Again, do such actions correspond to the teachings of Christ and the tenets of human rights? The brave and faithful people of Iran too have many questions and grievances, including: the coup d????????etat of 1953 and the subsequent toppling of the legal government of the day, opposition to the Islamic revolution, transformation of an Embassy into a headquarters supporting, the activities of those opposing the Islamic Republic (many thousands of pages of documents corroborates this claim), support for Saddam in the war waged against Iran, the shooting down of the Iranian passenger plane, freezing the assets of the Iranian nation, increasing threats, anger and displeasure vis-????-vis the scientific and nuclear progress of the Iranian nation (just when all Iranians are jubilant and collaborating their country????????s progress), and many other grievances that I will not refer to in this letter.

Washington Post has the whole thing here.