The I-sign

The sight of the newly-elected Iranian president making a V-sign with the fingers of his right hand shows how easily symbols can be detached from their original cultural context.  Luckily, our word for winning at the polling station or on the battlefield does not begin with S or B.  Consult your Persian-English dictionary to see why they don't use their own word for it.  No point in crippling yourself right after your victory.  The letter V does lend itself to the middle and index fingers; the letter I to either, although the middle is preferred.