Arab Gulf states vastly outspend Iran on military http://t.co/9Aq2RBpSJm—
ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) July 29, 2015
Arab Gulf states vastly outspend Iran on military
01 Aug 2015 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economic history, war and peace Tags: arms races, Gulf States, Iran, Middle-East politics, Saudi Arabia
Some of our enemies are fighting our other enemies, whom we want to lose
26 Jul 2015 1 Comment
in war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Iran, Iraq, ISIS, Israel, Middle-East politics, Syria, war against terror
"Some of our enemies are fighting our other enemies, whom we want to lose." http://t.co/JDP1UbyZWr—
William Easterly (@bill_easterly) September 25, 2014
Tehran students, 1971
10 Jun 2015 Leave a comment
in liberalism Tags: Iran
Tehran students, Iran, 1971 http://t.co/sJEZQbwlD2—
History In Pictures (@ClassicInPics) June 09, 2015
100 years of female beauty in one video in Iran
20 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of media and culture, economics of religion, liberalism Tags: Iran, women's liberation
Divorce Iranian Style
18 Mar 2014 Leave a comment
in development economics, economics of marriage, law and economics, Ronald Coase Tags: bride price, Coasian bargaining, divorce, doweries, dowry, economics of marriage, Iran, offsetting behaviour
Divorce Iranian Style is a great documentary about three Iranian couples seeking a divorce. The camera crew sat next to the judge and he often chats with them. Those before the court also talk direct to the camera and are interviewed at home too.
Divorce is frowned upon and the judge is always urging them to reconcile.
Women can bargain for a divorce from their husband by agreeing to return their dowry or not demanding the outstanding amount be paid by their now unwanted husband. The dowries were large: $10,000 for a taxi driver in a poor country. They act as a bond for good behaviour and as insurance against a divorce. The unpaid portion of the dowry hangs over the head of a would be miscreant husband. The film makers found that:
“The women are assertive, demanding, and persistent to a degree that confounds stereotypes of oppression. They challenge the judge, badger the uncooperative clerk for misplaced files, chew out their husbands and their husbands’ families.”
UPDATE: the correct name for what the documentary makers called a dowry is the mahriyeh (bridal treasures): This sum is usually not paid to the bride at the time of the marriage.
The marriage contract provides that the mahriyeh (bridal treasures) is to be paid in the event of divorce or is to be deducted from the husband’s estate before the inheritance is divided according to religious law. The bride-price is a separate up-front payment to the family of the bride to cover the cost of the wedding.
Update 2: see A Separation. This is a 2011 Iranian film about a divorce. HT: FleetwoodMacNCheese
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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