New Baby Wishes Greetings

And the winner is .... Happy Nowruz

Once is not custom, I will do in the news. As you probably know the Iranians will choose a new president on June 12 this year. This president has the nation's destiny in the hands for the next 4 years ... well .... not only in his own hands.

is that the power here, is dissolved in the many political, military and religious leaders. The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran has, for example, no or little control over the defense or the court system, these two parts of the system are the prerogatives of the "Supreme Guide of the Revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei.

But back to our candidates ...

Little chance of having a candidate wacky (although Mahmoud, ...), a "Council of Guardians" (religious body appointed by the Supreme Leader) validates each record , and removes the most doubtful cases (football player, or the village idiot ... more unreasonable: women or reformers, ...). Briefly about 450 cases, only 4 were selected.
They were much more likely 4 years ago, which thoroughly split the vote and led to the surprise election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (perhaps a limited number of candidates this year.)

The contenders are:

• A religious reformer (but not too much), Mehdi Karroubi

• A moderate conservative, Mir Hossein Mousavi (probably the main opponent of 'Ahmadinejad)
• An ultraconservative, Mohsen Rezaie (former home of the "Pasdaran" religious police, a whole program ...)

• A conservative fundamentalist Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, himself, who is seeking a second term.

short, you see, a panel of the largest ....

Come on, I'll play a little apprentice forecasters: Who will the next president of the Islamic Republic of Iran?

Bein unfortunatly, I think it will. ... More Mahmoud!

Although reviled in intellectual circles in Tehran, it is extremely magnified in rural Iran with its hyper populist politics. Casually, in 4 years, he managed to squander all the oil money in direct subsidies to small farmers, ... regardless of whether the country is now short of liquidity, and inflation is one of the largest in the world. With this policy, it has around 50% of voting intentions in the first round of the polls (but I doubt the veracity of some Iranian polls).

Besides the "Supreme Guide" supports almost officially, so ... .. the sermon is written (so to speak).