Yes, we have no Gaynanas

By James Lewis

Not since Queen Victoria was spared the sight of a Parliamentary bill aiming to erase Lesbian sex from the British Empire has a head of state sounded so weird -- at least on the issue of homosexuality. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad scored just one laugh line at Columbia University -- when he denied that Iran had any Gays at all.

Well, the web says otherwise. According to Globalgayz - Iran

"The Embassy of Iran in The Hague wrote in 1987 that "homosexuality in Iran, treated according to the Islamic law, is a sin in the eyes of God and a crime for society. ..."

" (A) Male homosexuality

"Sodomy is a crime, for which both partners are punished. The punishment is death if the participants are adults, of sound mind and consenting; the method of execution is for the Shari'a judge to decide. ... (Articles 108 -- 113)

"(C) Lesbianism

The punishment for lesbianism involving persons who are mature, of sound mind, and consenting, is 100 lashes. If the act is repeated three times and punishment is enforced each time, the death sentence will apply on the fourth occasion. (Articles 127, 129, 130)"

Dr. Payam Ghassemlou is a psychotherapist in Los Angeles who is gay and works with the Iranian homosexuals there. He blogs at http://www.iraniangaydoctors.com/

A Persian gay magazine has appeared under the name Cheragh Magazine, from the Persian Gay & Lesbian Organization

So there are no homosexuals in Iran?

In neighboring Afghanistan it is said that the migrating birds flying over Kabul use only one wing to fly -- because they need the other one to cover their backsides. That may be a joke, but there are numerous reports of homosexual sex among the Afghan mujahedeen fighting against the Soviets. Afghani and Iranian cultures overlap in many ways. Homosexuality may in fact be increased by the absolute separation between the sexes in Shari'a culture, after childhood.

I have persistent doubts about some Gay political activism, especially when it is aimed at children or teenagers who must not be pressured by adults into any sexual activity at all, but just left to develop naturally. Gay advocates sometimes stray over that delicate borderline.

But we stand for freedom and tolerance. For everybody, without exception.

The Columbia dupes who applauded Ahmadi-Nejad today surely included at least some GLAAD activists. At least they laughed at Ahmadi-Nejad's denial of Gays. Now if only they could learn about Holocaust denial, 9/11 denial, Stalin denial, and the denial of flagrant evil we see on the Left every day ...

James Lewis blogs at http://www.dangeroustimes.wordpress.com/