Thanks to Jonah for noticing the editorial in the Washington Times, quoting some of the remarkable statements coming out of Tehran, claiming that the insurrection against the regime is masterminded by me, Mark Palmer, and Abbas Milani.

And thanks to Michael Rubin, whose daily brief (Iran News Round-Up at IranTracker.org, done with Ali Alfoneh) on things Iranian is one of the most important sources for those who try to follow events in Persia. A couple of days ago (see the August 15–17 edition of the Round-Up), it carried a column from Kayhan, a daily that serves as Supreme Leader Khamenei’s mouthpiece, with this cheery news:

Just before the election and two days before that we reported of the decision of claimants of reform to organize incidents and street fights. Some friends criticized us of making allegations of revolt against the reformists. We answered that revolt and incidents were one of the steps of the CIA’s gradual plan. When they asked us how come you know that the reformists are following the CIA’s plan we answered that we hope that God forbid, this is not the case, but all the evidence and proof tell us they do…But from the very beginning it was clear that people like Richard Rorty, Michael Ledeen, and the like had planned the next move which is establishment of a movement called Organization of the Green Path of Hope [Mousavi’s new party], which is void of real identity. Also this prediction became reality last Friday. . . .

In case you’re interested, so far as I know no employee of the Central Intelligence Agency will even talk to me. I haven’t been one of the Agency’s greatest admirers, after all. But the really interesting point is the claim that I’m working closely with Richard Rorty. And here I think the supreme leader may have missed the point of one of my running gags, namely my stories about a ouija board that enables me to talk to the dead (most notably James Jesus Angleton, the late head of CIA counterintelligence). Richard Rorty was a distinguished philosopher at Stanford University, who died more than two years ago. To make the story even more tittilating, he was a solid citizen of the Left, a contributor to The Nation, no less.

So let’s say it’s an unlikely partnership, especially during the last couple of years. However, I’m not going to deny it, for fear of undermining the gag. I might hear some harsh words from Angleton . . .