Iran's President Looking To Get Shot At Again

This is actually positive news. Push hard enough, make people's lives as dreary and miserable as possible, and you will one day find them pushing back:

Hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has banned Western music from Iran's radio and TV stations, reviving one of the harshest cultural decrees from the early days of 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Songs such as George Michael's "Careless Whisper," Eric Clapton's "Rush" and the Eagles'"Hotel California" have regularly accompanied Iranian broadcasts, as do tunes by saxophonist Kenny G.

But the official IRAN Persian daily reported Monday that Ahmadinejad, as head of Iran's Supreme Cultural Revolutionary Council, ordered the enactment of an October ruling by the council to ban Western music.

"Blocking indecent and Western music from the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting is required," according to a statement on the council's official Web site.

Trivial? Not really. Let's face it, most of our days are pretty uneventful; say what you will about pop culture, but it's a small diversion from the tedium and stress of life.

And it's the young who care most passionately about that.

Ahmadinejad has violated the second most basic rule of Machiavelli. The first, of course, is that the Prince must make warfare his constant study.

The second is: don't take from the people their cheesy Wham! pop-ballads.

posted by Ace at 02:32 PM

| Access Comments