Shiite banana
n.— «Iran is heading toward—and it seems unstoppable—acquiring nuclear weapons. Talk in the Middle East is about the “Shiite Crescent” (some refer to it as the “Shiite Banana”). Iran is trying to to create a geographically connected zone extending from Iran to its Shiite allies in Iraq—and via the pro-Iranian regime in Syria, controlled by the Alwaites (which is a minority and ruling Asad family is part of it)—all the way to Lebanon.» —“Post Global: Iran Cannot Dominate” by Yossi Melman Washington Post Dec. 8, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
When a teenager went a week without talking as part of a school project, he noticed a surprising side effect: Instead of rehearsing a response to what other people were saying to him, he was focused on listening — and feeling smarter as a result...
We tend to take the index of a book for granted, but centuries ago, these helpful lists were viewed with suspicion. Some even worried that indexes would harm reading comprehension! A witty new book tells the story. Plus, the Latin term bona fides...