The Foreign Service Journal, September 2003

Energy has a useful country analysis brief on Iran ( http://www.eia.doe. gov/emeu/cabs/iran.html ). Strategic news on Iran from all sources is presented every day, cate- gorized by issue and updated con- stantly, at the Iran Expert Web site ( www.iranexpert.com ). A more freewheeling site for news on Iran from the world press in English is Iran News ( http://payvand.com/ news ). F or the Iranian government view, the Iran Daily , an English-lan- guage paper in Tehran, is useful ( www.iran-daily.com ). F or an inde- pendent Iranian view, there is the Iran Press Service ( www.iran-press- service.com ). For policy discussion and analysis, click on “Iran” at the home page of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy Web site ( www.washington institute.org ). Or, look in “Policy Briefs” at the Web site of the Middle East Institute ( www.mideasti.org/ html/briefs.html ). F ounded in 1946 with the view that the Middle East would become key to the U.S., the Middle East Institute is the oldest organization of its kind. The Middle East News and Information Center at the University of Texas has a Web site containing a variety of links to Iran- related resources ( http://menic. utexas.edu/menic/Countries_and_ Regions/Iran ). Detailed and authoritative informa- tion on Iran’s weapons of mass destruction programs can be found at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies’ Web site ( http://cns.miis. edu/research/wmdme/iran.htm ). The Arms Control Association also maintains updated documentary material, news and analysis of WMD issues ( www.armscontrol. org/country/Iran ). When it comes to tapping into the Iranian democratic movements, both within Iran and elsewhere, sources are more chaotic and less reliable. The Iran Online “Newsroom,” for example, has an impressive list of links to political parties in Iran, but many sites are outdated or links are broken ( http://www.iranonline. com ). Th e Foundation for Democracy in Iran Web site is lively, but clearly offers only one piece of the puzzle ( www.iran.org ). A ctive in Washing- ton and California, but with an uncer- tain presence in Iran, monarchist Reza Pahlavi, son of the deposed shah, has his own Web site ( www.rezapahlavi.org ). S imilarly, the militant and controversial group operating until recently out of Iraq, the People’s Mojahedin of Iran, or MEK, has its own Web site ( http://www.iran.mojahedin.org ). More Selfless Surfing You can give money to charity for free, just by visiting a Web site and clicking on a link. Several nonprofit organizations have found a way to harness the power of advertising to turn empty Web space into funding for good causes. When you click the link, advertisements pop up; that would normally be annoying, but these ads have a purpose. As with most Web sites, the revenue generat- ed from the advertising is based on the number of people who see the ads. In this case, that revenue goes to the good cause of your choice. The pioneer of the “free donation” strategy was The Hunger Site ( www. thehungersite.com ), la unched in 1999. Today, in addition to fighting hunger, it hosts similar links support- ing free mammograms for underpriv- ileged women, pet adoption, pur- chase of rain-forest land for conserva- tion, and donations to child health. FreeDonation.com ( www.freedon ation.com ) let s you donate to chari- ties fighting cancer, hunger, home- lessness, AIDS, and environmental degradation, and supporting the arts and education. A click on The Birth S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 3 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 11 C YBERNOTES 50 Years Ago... Even though the legislative body is assigned the important fields of regulating foreign commerce, declaring war and raising and supporting armies, a strong president can usually force and direct its action even in these areas. — Graham H. Stewart,“Who Makes Our Foreign Policy?,” FSJ , September 1953.