The Iran Factor

When I visited Iran a few years ago, my favorite question was, "Who runs this country?" The response often was nervous laughter, followed by a raised eyebrow, a shrug and a stage whisper: "The dark forces." My next question—"The dark forces?"—would elicit the weaving of my interlocutor's own fabulously intricate conspiracy theory. "It's very Persian," a young businessman told me. "We're very conspiracy-minded." So let's indulge ourselves and think like Persians about recent events in the Middle East. Here's my conspiracy theory: It...