"There are no homosexuals in Iran" Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Postscript: When I wrote the opinion piece below, it was only in response to the
speech Ahmadinejad gave as I tuned in after the President of Columbia had given his introductory talk to the audience about his opinion of the President of Iran. I only had tuned in as Ahmadinejad began his speech; did not hear the Chancellor Bollinger's
derogatory descriptions of his guest. Leave it to say that I do not think this was a wise decision on the part of Bollinger but much has already been said about the stance of the University President in the media. It was obvious this prelude to the speech was done as a result of pressure from certain patrons of Columbia and no doubt
incensed members of the general community who are very pro Israel and anti- Ahmandinejad. The end result was to give Ahmadinejad the moral edge as he was the one who had been verbally attacked. In any case, here are my remarks below in response to the actual speech at Columbia given by Ahmandinjad not Bollinger.

My opinion and reaction to the Ahmadinjad talk at Columbia:

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaking at Columbia University today Sept. 24th. spoke to the students and faculty at Columbia University. When asked why he encouraged (I am paraphrasing) research on the "facts" of The Holocaust when the "facts' are already in evidence, Ahmadinejad scoffed at the idea that any research on any subject can be legitimately declared ended at any time. He had a point there although I vehemently disagree with his motives and his known anti-Semitic opinions on Jews, The Holocaust, and Israel. When asked why his country executed homosexuals (reference to the two teenagers in his country executed for purportedly engaging in homosexual behavior) , he responded after not answering the question and focusing on drug offenders in his country that "There are no homosexuals in Iran" and implied at one point that homosexuals and others are microbes that need to be gotten rid of which was met by boos and general disbelief from the audience.

My thinking on the wisdom of bringing the President of Iran to Columbia is a mixed response. On one level, I can see bringing Ahmadinejad to Columbia as almost as bad as inviting Hitler to come speak if he was still alive. On the other hand, I do not want the USA to go to war with Iran and any possibility of decreasing tensions between the countries might prove to be useful to the goal of keeping us from going to war with another country. Ahmadinejad after all does represent Iran, one of the most powerful nations if not the most powerful state in the Middle East. I also feel that the USA has not been fair minded when it comes to the the issue of the Palestinian people and the injustices they have endured, although I am not willing to lay all the blame on Israel or on the Israeli people. The USA and most of the world has some blame to bear here too and so do the Arab nations and Muslim countries that often accerbate the problems in the Middle East trying to divert their own peoples from their real economic plight and political grievances within their own states by focusing on the Jews and Israel.

I also do feel that we are brainwashed in the USA and do not understand the thinking of many people from Islamic nations including the leaders of these nations. Having Ahmadinejad does provide another view that we seldom get. We should be more familiar with not only the major issues we feel are important but also the more subtle issues and beliefs that the Iranian people have. It is true Ahmadinejad with whatever powers he has in his own coutry helps to continue the historic oppression of women in Iran. His views on Gay people are horrific. He along with the clerics of Iran who really rule the country also represents a form of radical religious tyranny in Iran that began or should I say was reintroduced with the overthrow of the Shah of Iran, who also had a lot faults, for one he was a pawn of the USA. but at the least was moving the state toward secularism similar to deceased Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

The other big issue that came up in the Ahmadinejad talk had to do with whether Iran should have nuclear power capabilities and how should they be used or regulated. An issue many do not understand is that Israel is the only country in the Middle East that is allowed by the USA and other great powers to have nuclear weapons and nuclear capability. My personal belief is that Israel should not have nuclear weapons and neither should Iran nor should we the United States of America. But that is not the way it is and a more pragmatic approach is necessary if we want to face reality and not try to have a world that is make believe. The fact of the matter is that the USA and Israel and some of our allies as well as Arab countries that fear a nuclear Iran do not want Iran to have nuclear capability and fear Iran is close to gaining the ability to drop nuclear bombs though most analysts say this is years from happening.
This issue is so important that I think it is one reason we need to engage in some kind of conversation with this very controversial individual, Ahmadinejad. He seems to like the spotlight. Let us hope he likes the spotlight more than he wants War and the ability to cause nuclear destruction on Israel and then in effect cause WWIII.

At the least people in USA need to know who this awful man is. And we need to know both his strengths and his weaknesses and both were evident during Ahmadinejad's talk
today at Columbia. His strength is he is not unintelligent and that he can make some points and has some legitimate ideas. His weaknesses are he is power hungry and dangerous and has already contributed to the deaths of innocents in his own country.
This was clear for all to see and hear.

Sharon Raphael
www.leftturnonrights.blogspot.com