Notations From the Grid (Special Tuesday Edition): #RandomThoughts on #Iran On the Eve of 41 Years of Islamic Government

Iran is in the midst of celebrating the 41st Anniversary of the Revolution--and also shortly thereafter having parliamentary elections.    The twelve people above--appointed by the Supreme Guide (Supreme Leader) have vetted candidates and have disqualified some 9,000 of them--including 90 sitting members of Parliament.   They are the members of the Guardian Council.   

Many have noted that this is not going to be an Election, but an appointment in effect.  The head of the Guardian Council, 95-year old Ayatollah Janati, has said that it is going to very competitive.   When our team saw that comment, we found it to be laughable--and State Media itself published a poll underscoring the digust by the people on the upcoming Elections.   The caption above, by the academic Sadegh Zibakalam of Tehran University, condemns the actions by the Guardian 

On the eve of the 41st Anniversary of the Revolution, the Iranian President hosted an event attended by Ambassadors as he touted Iran's Economic Achievements in spite of the sanctions and the reality of life exemplified by the homeless in the Capital, Tehran:

The true realities is otherwise exemplified by the collapse of the Rial, Iran's Official Exchange Rate and a severe recession.    It is also 40 day since the assassination of the Quds Force Commander, Qasem Sulemaini.   They are elevating his status as exemplified by this released to Social Media: 

His role in crushing internal dissent is starting to be evident--as his role in Syria and Iraq has been evident as well.

As we went to press,  preparations have been going on and the State Media has been busy as exemplified by the following:

We also found it unfortunate how this image captured by the Guardian of London on the extent of the publicity stunts by the Regime in trying to convey its' messages: 

As we also went to press, our team reviewed a letter written by one of the leading opposition figures and Nobel Prize Winner, Shirin Ebadi, who wrote a letter of apology to her daughter and the new generation on how her generation betrayed them.    

Iran also tried to, again, send a satellite into space--and it failed miserably: 

Notations From the Grid (Special Tuesday Edition): On The US Political Scene.....

Out & About on the US Political Scene...

It has been quite an eventful week yet again on the US Political Scene.   As we went to press with this special edition of Notations, we note that the Impeachment Trial is coming to a close.   The Democrats were dealing with the aftermath of the Iowa Caucus Fiasco--although the Former Mayor of Indianapolis seemed to have taken a lead with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders in second place.

The President of the United States is due to be before a live session of the US Congress to deliver his State of the Union that would be live streamed by the White House:

US Media will have live post-debate coverage of the analysis of #SOTU (State of the Union) that can be available by visiting CNN, MSNBC and FoxNews throughout the Night.

Notations From the Grid (Special Thursday Edition): Out & About on the US Political Scene

It was election day this past Tuesday in America and there was some interesting developments with a harbinger of developments to be forthcoming as 2020 looms.    Wednesday, though, saw a celebration at the White House on the occasion of confirming over 158 Federal Judges over the course of the Trump Administration.    Meanwhile, on the impeachment front, Public Testimonies will be commencing as transcripts are being released.

We leave you with a snapshot of election results courtesy of the Team at CityLab: 

Nov 06, 2019

What We’re Following

Ballot box: It’s the day after America’s off-year election, and some of the results are in. Here’s a rundown of some of the key outcomes so far:

• Pete Buttigieg’s hand-picked successor, James Mueller, won the election for mayor of South Bend, signaling a continuation of Buttigieg’s legacy. (Vox)
• Danica Roem, who campaigned on traffic congestion improvements that haven’t yet come to fruition, won re-election in Virginia’s 13th district. (Daily Beast)
• Meanwhile, Democrats flipped the Virginia state legislature for the first time in more than two decades. (PBS NewsHour)
• Washington voters seem poised to restrict the price of “car tab” taxes, leaving cities scrambling for transportation funding. (Seattle Times)
• Jersey City voted to restrict home-sharing, delivering a loss to Airbnb, which spent $4.2 million campaigning against the regulation. (Bloomberg)
• Denver will likely get a separate department of transportation for the first time, in a move designed to emphasize the city’s increased investment. (Denverite)
• New York City approved ranked-choice voting, the biggest U.S. city to adopt the reform. (Vox)
• Kansas City voters decided to remove Martin Luther King Jr.’s name from a recently rechristened boulevard. (NBC News)
• Democrats won control of Delaware County, a suburban county outside Philadelphia that Republicans have controlled since before the Civil War. (Philadelphia Inquirer)

—Andrew Small