The government of Iran has asked its authors to censor themselves, presumably to cut down on the workload at the top. Should work. I mean, considering it comes from a pack of religious nuts in charge of a nigh-nuclear state, it’s almost a reasonable request.

Saying that publishers and writers “are aware of the vetting code” in Iran, Safar Harandi urged self-censorship.

Literature should reflect the country’s “religious, moral and national sensitivities,” steer clear of “an excessive portrayal of a man and woman’s private relationships” and not “subject our youth and adults to descriptions of intercourse,” he added.

Safar Harandi also said the country “should not allow opposition to God to be reflected in the media.”

All publications in Iran must be first approved by the government, but the industry has increasingly complained of tightening censorship under the rule of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad since 2005.