NY Times link…

There’s a difference between sensationalism and lying…and the above is a lie. The US has known that Iran had a second “secret” nuclear plant since at least 2002-2003.
Here’s more from The Policy Page:
The truth is that Iran only decided to reveal the existence of the uranium enrichment operation to the International Atomic Energy Agency [...]

About a month ago, when most of the unrest in Iran was happening, I wrote about the fact that Nokia Siemens seemed to be helping the Iranian government track down protesters.
Well, it looks like the Iranian people are doing something about it and protesting with their wallets. Perhaps you should too?
Not so fast…
More at [...]

Former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani openly questioned the validity of the elections today and this is the result…

(h/t: Daily Dish)

Because while today’s protests in memory of the 10th anniversary of the violence at Tehran University drew a lot of coverage from the Western media, it seems as if it didn’t draw very many Iranians.
More at True/Slant.

This is an incredibly significant step because it paves the way for an actual revolution.
From Times Online:
Iran’s biggest group of clerics has declared President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election to be illegitimate and condemned the subsequent crackdown.
The statement by the Association of Researchers and Teachers of Qom is an act of defiance against the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah [...]

Curious to learn more about Iran? Good.
Recently, I was sent 50 links to a bunch of great lectures on Iran, so I’ll share a few here and then send you over to True/Slant for more.

Islam and Modern Science:
“Many people feel that that in fact there is no such thing as the Islamic problem of science. [...]

The Basij have been pretty brutal the past few days so the protesters are resting, regrouping and planning the next phase.
In the meantime, the following video shows a brilliant, silent way for everybody to get involved in the protests.

How long before we hear that the Iranian government outlaws helium?
More as it develops…

The following video is simply heartbreaking…

What she’s describing apparently all happened in Baharestan Square today.
Some more details of what went on there via ThreatsWatch.org (spelling errors b/c an Iranian was liveblogging):

More than 10.000 Bassij Milittias get position in Central Tehran, including Baharestan Sq.

Army Helycopters flying over Baharestan and Vali Asr Sq.

The streets, squares and around [...]

Eye-opening updates via CNN:
TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) — Security forces wielding clubs and firing weapons beat back demonstrators who flocked to a Tehran square Wednesday to continue protests, with one witness saying security forces beat people like “animals.”At least two trusted sources described wild and violent conditions at a part of Tehran where protesters had planned [...]

A mind meld with that I expressed earlier today…

It really is disappointing to see McCain and Graham behave like this, especially when they haven’t filled in the blanks as to what Obama should say and why that would be more effective than the current course.
And, again, what’s the end game to tough talk? I’ll tell [...]

As I’ve said before, I think he’s striking the right balance between condemning the regime’s actions against their own citizens, while not getting the US involved in what’s already an incredibly messy struggle for power.
Why is this the right strategy?
Because Obama has to hedge his bets on Iran…and that means not trying to undermine [...]

This is even after election officials admitted that more votes came out of 50 cities than there were voters. Shameful stuff, but not much we can do at this point besides sit back and watch it all unfold.
From BBC:
Iran’s legislative body, the Guardian Council, has said there were no major polling irregularities in the 12 [...]

Truly horrifying…

As I stated earlier today, the government is making a big mistake by starting to kill people. Because that’s what lead to the last Iranian revolution and it’ll only embolden protesters to get more militant quicker.
More as it develops…

Hey all,
Just found out about this blog and it’s disturbing. Basically, Iranian authorities are using Blogger blogs to ID protestors so they can arrest them.
Here’s how you can help:

Visit the blog and at the very top there should be a button that says “Flag Blog.” Click that.

This will send you to a page that features [...]

“Today you are the media, it is your duty to report and keep the hope alive.”
- A recent Facebook status update by Mir Hossein Mousavi
Over the weekend, I touched on the significance social media is playing in this revolution, and Mashable has more details…
The status update, posted in Farsi and translated both in the Facebook [...]

This is pretty astonishing.
Apparently the number of votes exceeded the number of voters in over 50 cities, for a discrepancy of about 3 million votes.
But yeah…they don’t care:
The discrepancies, the most sweeping acknowledged so far by the authorities, could affect some three million ballots of what the government says was an 85 percent turnout [...]

Between the 2008 election and the current situation in Iran, social technologies have changed politics in very real, very meaningful ways.
Now, with these immediate, uncontrolled communication channels available (Twitter, YouTube, Facebook), citizens finally have the ability to share what’s really going on without the media filter.
Iranian leaders didn’t anticipate this, but other repressive regimes [...]