Iran and the "gay problem. (warning graphic intensive in both senses of the term.

[seriousstan]

http://vwt.d2g.com:8081/gay_hanging_iran.jpg



According to Iranian human rights campaigners, over 4,000 lesbians and gay men have been executed since the Ayatollahs seized power in 1979. Altogether, an estimated 100,000 Iranians have been put to death over the last 26 years of clerical rule.�

[Kelly Rupert]

1. But he says mean things about Bush, and says he wants peace!

Clearly he has to be a good guy! Those lynchings are simply mistranslations. The enemy of my political enemy is my friend, right?

...right?

[Clintonista2]

2. Don't you dare question him, or that means that you want war with Iran!!!!!

:sarcasm:

[cigsandcoffee]

3. Sickening. Just sickening.

It would be nice to think those large crowds in the photos were protesting, instead of cheering it on. What a gruesome culture is bred by religious fundamentalism.

[paparush]

4. There are people in America who have committed similar acts against Gays.

Hell, they did it to blacks for years.

Religious Fundamentalism at it worst.

[seriousstan]

5. And when they are caught, we make them rot in prison....we don't make them the heads of State.

There is a big difference between crime and State policy. This is not decades ago in the deep south, this is current law of the land in Iran.

[ruggerson]

6. The Ahmadinejad fan club here does not care about dead gays

they only care that their little tyrant hates Bush. Thus he must be idolized.

[youthere]

7. Don't let the fundies see this...

Or Bob Jones U will be hosting Ahmedinejad soon.


Absolutely sickening and disgusting, how anyone can defend a government or a representative of a government that condones this. This is NOT someone we want dialog with, IMO.

[ruggerson]

8. Kick

[Colobo]

9. I'm glad this has been posted. When you think things are bad here...

[ericgtr]

10. So "choosing" to be gay comes with a death sentence

and I am sure they believe it's a choice. Regardless, it shows just how they fear what they don't understand and that does not make for a stable country.

[Clark2008]

12. Ironically enough, that sounds like the majority of the United States.

Or haven't you noticed how often gay rights issues get shot down by the electorate when they're on the ballot.

Not much difference, I'd say, sadly.

[seriousstan]

13. Really, how many gays have our government hung?

All the tertiary deaths you might attribute to the US surely ALSO happen in Iraq. I figure the only difference are the 4000 government killed gays. Or are you saying the US has as many non-government inspired deaths here because the government DOESN'T kill gays.

[ruggerson]

11. Kick

[DrFunkenstein]

14. We Need to Find Ways of Engaging Iran to Bolster A Moderate Middle Class

There are no short-term answers to this problem. However, there are ways that we can tweak trade in the region to create some economic stability and education. In some instances, we can provide both covert and direct aid to the moderate reformists.

This is not the kind of issue that, say, Adam Nagourney would write about, but Sen. Kerry spoke rather convincingly about long-term strategies for the Middle East.

His ideas followed along the lines that Richard Clarke suggested for winning the war on terror largely by transforming the agents of hope in the region and strengthening the moderates (in part, simply by not acting like a cowboy who doesn't mind killing hundreds of thousands of Muslim civilians for geo-political control of the region's resources).

Could you imagine if the NYTimes did write about, you know, the issues? Instead of the usual pony-race gossip that is their norm...

There are alot of issues in the current race, but this issue really pushes me to believe that Obama is the person to really transform the war on terror into something based on hope. The fact that his background is connected to the Muslim world only adds to that sense of transformational possibility.

[dailykoff]

15. These men were hanged for "forcible rape of an underage boy"

and that's according to a wardrum-beating article by Fox News:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,297982,00.html

[seriousstan]

16. Only a fool would come away from the article you quoted with that idea.

You are being ridiculous.

"Iranian officials insisted the two were guilty of not just homosexuality, but the forcible rape of an underage boy. Gay rights supporters say those charges are often applied to homosexuals who engage in consensual relations.

Parsi said initial Iranian news reports said the two young men were executed because they were gay. But as reports and pictures of the case became more widely disseminated, Iranian officials only later included information about additional criminal charges.

According to Iranian law, consensual gay sex in any form is punishable by death. Violators are reportedly given a choice of four methods of execution: hanging, stoning, halving by sword — or being dropped from the highest perch."

You really are laughable when you try to defend the Iranian position on homosexuality.

[dailykoff]

17. Link to AP article reporting even more serious charges:

"On Sunday Iranian media reported that a 16 year old was among two teenagers sentenced to death for raping and killing two young boys earlier this year."

http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=12445

Why would anybody with even the faintest interest in human rights hop on this exceedingly dangerous bandwagon? :shrug:

[seriousstan]

18. You are quoting Iranian news? Are you serious? I guess you also believe there are no gays in Iran.

I now see that you are puposely ignoring and denying the death of gays in Iran. I can only guess at your agenda.

[dailykoff]

19. It's an Associated Press article posted on an anti-Iran website.

And my agenda is prevent yet another unconscionable US massacre of innocents under the false pretense of ginned-up human rights violations.

[seriousstan]

20. Of course, your little crazy said there are no gays in Iraq....so this couldn't have happened.