"... when all Muslim and Christian believers extend best wishes to each other on the onset of the new year, ..."

Since when? Somehow, the Christian term "good will toward men" doesn't seem to translate directly to "Muslim and Christian believers extend best wishes to each other". And all this talk about how Muslims just adore Jesus is just that - talk. They give you a half truth there because they consider Jesus a Muslim, a prophet of Allah. As a matter of fact, if one reads the Quran and Hadith, Adam is considered to be the first Muslim.

"... which surprised every individual in Iran ."

Surprised? Did they just wake up from a three year slumber?

"...all Iranian nuclear sites are under (the) supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)."

Right. Here, pull my other leg. IAEA reports often seem to contain these two lines:

At the beginning they say that [insert country here] is cooperating fully. At the end they say however, there are indications that [insert country here] is not cooperating fully.

Wow, all that in just two paragraphs.

Posted by Oyster at December 27, 2006 07:20 AM

Actually, it's my understanding that the Muslim new year is different each year. 2007's new year should start around Jan 20. The Muslim calendar is about 12 days short of ours.

Posted by Oyster at December 27, 2006 07:25 AM

I have a Muslim client in Syria who sent an email to me along with others wishing us all a Merry Christmas. There is no doubt in my mind that he is sincere. However, I don't give Iranian state media the same benefit of doubt. Next, are they going to be concerned that the U.N. ruined my birthday?

Posted by Woody at December 27, 2006 08:27 AM