(no subject)

Interesting article about Iran in today's Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,1998047,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=12

If a reasonable analysis, what are we doing/thinking about it. We should be doing deals with Rafsanjani, or at least putting the structures together to offer deals when he takes over again. There is lots of leverage here if we can only work out how best to use it. There may be ways of getting our troops out or replacing them with a UN force, or consolidating them with, for example, border co-operation with Iran. And Iran will be going through a privatisation programme if/when Rafsanjani comes back to power.
Economics changes politics, as always.
We need to be smart. Someone keep GWB occupied and let an American equivalent of a senior Civil Servant do the thinking.

(no subject)

Amazon have two second hand copies of Sinfest for sale at £128 each. And that's it. I eventually found three copies on ABE Books for £20-25 and I also found a copy of 'Life is my Bitch' for about the same. Thank the gods I got them when I could. I bought the third one, 'Dance of the Gods', from Tatsuya's website. His hard copy stuff is all first edition at the moment. Buy while you can, you know it's going up, and you know these are things you will want. I went back and bought the two other copies of Sinfest on ABE - they'll make good presents.
I've become a fan.