[lentulusgracchus]

Parliament has cut the budget for gasoline imports in the year to March 2007, prompting the oil minister to say Tehran would have to stop buying in gasoline shipments and start petrol rationing on September 23.

Let the price rise a little -- oh, say, to $.40/liter -- and watch a lot of those problems clear up by themselves. People who need gas to get around will still have it available, and the black-market cross-border trade goes away, so availability improves dramatically.

But I suppose that's beyond guys stuck in the ninth century.

[CougarGA7]

Ironic that a country that has such a large oil supply has to import gasoline. It seems to be an ongoing theme with these despots. The tend to run their country into ruin on their own. Unfortunately, we may not have the luxury of waiting them out this time.