Charles Bolden, call your office

In Iran the mullahs are getting ready to celebrate the Modesty and Veil Festival coming up later this month in a big way. In anticipation of the Modesty and Veil Festival, the mullahs have launched a campaign that ABC irreverently dubs “a holy war on haircuts.”
ABC reports that Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has issued a directive banning “decadent” hairstyles for men, restricting barber shops to certain kinds of cuts. The primary target is spiky, gelled hairdos associated with rebellious youths. The New York Daily News explains: Mullets are out. Persian Letters blogger Golnaz Esfandiari links to a set of photographs related to the official rollout of the ministry’s decree.
The Daily News helpfully reminds us that, earlier this year, an Iranian cleric blamed women who wear revealing clothing for causing earthquakes. The cleric also said promiscuity causes natural disasters. “Many women who do not dress modestly lead young men astray and spread adultery in society which increases earthquakes,” he said. The mullahcracy’s haircut edict should thus in its own way contribute to geographic stability if not to the battle against global warming.
Memo to Charles Bolden: President Obama will undoubtedly want you to take the occasion to salute another great Islamic contribution to civilization.