Iran’s worrisome prominence in world events can’t help but cross your mind while viewing “Ardeshir Mohassess; Art and Satire in Iran,” an exhibition on view at the Asia Society. And not only because Mr. Mohassess hails from Iran. His brand of satire is, to put it mildly, skeptical of his home country’s political convolutions. Would Mahmoud Ahmadinejad suffer Mr. Mohassess’ uncompromising art gladly?  read more »

Beneath the bluster—Iranian patrol boats reportedly playing chicken with U.S. warships; President Bush’s statements about “containing” Iran—there’s a significant shift under way in the relationship between Iran and the United States. And nearly everyone is missing it.  read more »

In response to this week's news that, according to the National Intelligence Estimate, Iran halted its nuclear-weapons program four years ago, CNN has tabled its forthcoming documentary We Were Warned -- Iran Goes Nuclear.

Variety reports: "The two-hour spec, which was slated for Dec. 12 under the 'CNN Presents' banner, was 'set partially in the future,' featuring a what-if scenario as former government officials -- playing fictional cabinet members -- debate how to deal with the Iranian threat."  read more »

More from Hillary Clinton on Iraq and Iran:

She writes in a new essay in Foreign Affairs magazine that she lays out a tough diplomatic approach on Iran and says that she would start bringing troops home from Iraq "within the first 60 days of [her] administration," but that she could also foresee an American presence in and around the country to help maintain stability and keep pressure on al Qaeda.

In a conference call with reporters that just ended, her campaign's national security director, Lee Feinstein, said that while "a commander and chief does not take options off the table and neither does Senator Clinton," she also "makes it very very clear that the best approach, the preferred approach right now, is to pursue...diplomacy and economic pressure."

Feinstein was asked about whether a bill supported by Clinton asking the Bush administration to declare Iran's 125,000-member Revolutionary Guard Corps a foreign terrorist organization paved the way to open conflict with Iran.

"No," said Feinstein. "There is nothing whatsoever which gives any authorization of the kind."

He said that the Guards "are indisputably an odious outfit," and that "some people want to rush to war. Some people think that doing nothing is the answer." But the bill, he said, was part of a robust diplomatic effort to put pressure on Iran.  read more »

It can often to seem to rank-and-file Democrats as if the Republicans are still in charge of Congress: Nearly a year after their party picked up 31 House and six Senate seats, the war in Iraq still rages, with tens of thousands of more troops deployed now than then. This failure to force even a beginning to the end of the war accounts for the painfully poor poll standing of the Democratic-led Congress, with the party faithful even more restless and frustrated than independent voters.  read more »

Observer contributor Niall Stanage, who is currently on assignment in Iran, sends an email for our "general amusement" to say that it is possible where he is to access the sites of the New York Times, Washington Post, the Guardian and the Times of London, but that attempts to get to the New York Post, the Sun, Gawker or Wonkette are met with "a disappointingly literal 'Access to this Site is Denied' together with some Farsi script presumably saying the same thing."

   read more »

1) England - 77.9 (78.9)

3) Israel - 66.5 (68.2)

12) Venezuela - 30.3 (30.9)

14) Palestinian Government - 24.3 (23.8)

16) Cuba - 21.8 (24.1)

18) Iran - 13.5 (15.5)  read more »