On 29 June an IRIB2 news announcer proudly proclaimed that an Iranian design student at a college of painting and fine arts in the Republic of Azerbaijan had introduced a line of hijab designs for women that "eclipsed" Western styles. She exhibited her line of veils in the city of Baku; the announcer said the garments had been inspired by old Safavid and Timurid illustrations.

I couldn't help noticing that none of the women in the Baku audience was wearing a head cover of any kind, let alone one with a revised 14th century design. We know what would happen if the women in the Islamic Republic had the same freedom to choose as the ones in Baku, don't we?

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Incredibly, a reader actually wrote to me and said no, I don't know what would happen if the women in Iran had the same freedom to choose as the ones in Baku. I rarely feel as confident about predicting a future event as I do in this case.

If the women in Iran could choose to wear or not wear a chador, we'd see a situation similar to the one in Egypt. In Egypt, not every woman wears a head cover, not even every Muslim woman. Moreover, the ones who wear them are much more likely to choose a color other than black. If the women of Iran could choose what to wear without any religious restrictions, Iran would look a little more like Egypt (and Baku) than it does now. There would be less regimentation in female attire on the streets of Tehran. There, I've stated the obvious!