"Slap America in the Face"
You've gotta admit, it's a catchy slogan–and it's the message that Iranian clerics want to send in the disputed elections going on there.
Whatever the outcome of these contests–in which reformist, liberal pols either refused to run and/or were barred from standing for office in the first place–it still seems likely that Iran may well be place in the Middle East where true democracy blooms. One hopes.
Some noteworthy recent Reason pieces about the current unrest and history of that Allah-forsaken land:
Subversive Style
Resisting the mullahs with nail polish, rock music, and great novels
Where the Shah Went Alone
Meditations on a life under tyranny
Liberal Martyrdom in Iran
An academic takes on the ayatollahs
In Praise of Vulgarity
How commercial culture liberates Islam—and the West