I found a great article on Shift about an Iranian guy living in Canada who started a blog, and has brought the revolution of blogging to Iranians across the world. He was a columnist in Iran before moving, so he already had a readership, who quickly became interested in the potential of this new medium.

So Hoder set up a bunch of FAQs in Farsi, and they all seem to have gone wild with their newfound ability to express their views. He says he is now aware of over 600 Iranian blogs, and they're (of course) still growing.

I found his site extremely interesting: I've always felt that Iran was quite different, more thoughtful a country than its neighbors, and this seems to have its root in Shiite Islam and its particular philosophies with regard to discussion and argument.

Shiites believe that argument over interpretations of the Koran and Sharia law are essential. Unlike in the madrassas promoted by the Saudis, in Iranian religious schools and institutions you find healthy debate of a variety of issues, curtailed only by the current Islamic Republic... But the tradition seems to run extremely deep.

There has also been a stark demographic shift in Iran since the Iran-Iraq war in the '80s in which millions were killed — the vast majority of the population is under 25 years old. I think that if the right events come to pass, Iran could eventually become a real modern dynamo, equal to or greater in strength than Turkey at present.