Tyranny of numbers

“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.” Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
“رقم مغلطه بر دفتر دانش نزنیم” — Hafez

This weblog is dedicated to Iranian economic issues, especially in areas that I know something about–employment, education, poverty, and income distribution.  My original motive to start this weblog was to correct misleading accounts of Iran’s economy in the press, either because the facts were not easily available or the writers (often journalists) did not have the time to find them.  There has been plenty to do in this area, from hawkish accounts of economic collapse or hyperinflation in Iran, often in support of military action.  But more recently I have been dabbling in Iran’s domestic economic policy arena, which is no less confusing or ideological.

I am a great believer in giving facts and logical economic analysis a chance when debating policy, and not bending them to suit a particular political or ideological position.  My hope is that this weblog will contribute in a small way to a more informed and balanced discussion of policy issues related to Iran’s economy.

There is a vast amount of data available on Iran’s economy on the web (the best sites belong to the Statistical Center of Iran and the Central Bank).  There are also extensive survey data (less easily accessible) that I and a few other economists have used in our research.  There are also international source of data, such as the World Bank’s World Development Indicators data bank.