Haaretz – Israel News – I’ll blog your house down Story of an Iranian blogger who is using a new language to prompt young Iranians to get involved in politics, and angering the government at the same time. He recently visited Israel (risking Iranian authorities’ ire yet again), and spoke there about the need to avoid the demonization of each other’s countries, a task for which he feels blogs are particularly apt:

“I am trying to show Israelis that there are lots of people like myself living in Iran, with the same moderate ideas about Israel and the world. Most Iranians want normal relations with Israel, and do not view Israelis as bloodthirsty Jews who want to kill all Muslims, which is how the regime tries to portray them.” As expected, one of the common subjects in Derakhshan’s conversations with Israelis is fear of the moment Iran completes the development of nuclear weapons. Derakhshan denounces and opposes any idea of an external attack in an attempt to destroy nuclear weapons. “When the world focused on stopping Iran’s development of nuclear arms, it led to the electoral defeat of a moderate president and the rise to power of a more radical president,” explains Derakhshan. “I understand the fear of nuclear arms, but the focus has to be on democratic means and not on halting nuclear development. If the bomb is in the right hands, it won’t be dangerous at all.”