November26, 2006: A foreigner taking in Iranian mass media would be struck by the pervasive use of Israel as the cause of all things bad in the world. Wherever anything bad happens, the Iranian media seems obsessed with attributing Israeli agents or influence as the cause. This sort of thing has gotten worse in the last few years, as the clerical dictatorship has shut down all of the anti-government media. Editors, who want to keep publishing, know what the government wants, and thus delivers lots of anti-Israeli material.

November 25, 2006: Russian Tor-M1 missile systems have begun arriving, and are being installed around some cities and defense establishments. The Tor-M1 is a short range missile, capable of hitting aircraft up to twelve kilometers away. The government is expected to use the Tor-M1 systems to defend nuclear weapons development sites.

November 24, 2006: Iran has agreed to provide economic and military support to the dictatorship running Zimbabwe. Iran gains allies wherever it can.

November 21, 2006: Iranian made ATGMs (Anti-Tank Guided Missiles) have shown up in Gaza, apparently smuggled in by Hamas terrorists. The missiles are Iranian copies of the Russian 9M113 Konkurs (AT-5). This is a 32 pound, wire guided missile design from the 1970s. It was used in Lebanon last Summer by Hizbollah.

November 19, 2006: The U.S. State Department has established a "listening station" in Dubai (part of the United Arab Emirates, and for centuries a port brokering trade between Iran and Arabia). Iranian (Farsi) speaking American officials will establish relationships with the many Iranian businessmen who work out of Dubai, or visit frequently. This sort of intelligence gathering operation is common when you have a country that does not allow your officials to move freely about. In Iran, the secret police keep close watch on foreigners, and any Iranians who they talk to. But in Dubai, the Iranian secret police are much less effective (but they are there, discretely) and it's easier for foreigners to mix with the Iranian business community. The CIA has had similar Iranian listening post operations operating for years, but these operations were more clandestine.

November 18, 2006: The government has successfully manipulated international media and the UN to prevent any more economic sanctions. So successful has that campaign been, that Iran is being more aggressive supporting Lebanese Shia attempts to take control of the Lebanese government. The Shia are only a third of the population, but Syrian troops and Iranian money, weapons and radical ideology make it possible for a pro-Syria/Iran government to be established in Lebanon.

November 17, 2006: After practically no activity for over twenty years, exports to Iraq are growing rapidly. Currently, goods valued at over $100 million are being shipped to Iraq each month. That's up 19 percent from last year and still growing. While news reports concentrate on violence in Iraq, most of the country is peaceful, with a booming economy.