No Homo

From the Times live-blog of the Iranian President's speech today at Columbia University:

Updated, 2:53 p.m. | Asked what he hoped to achieve when he expressed a desire to visit the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan, Mr. Ahmadinejad said he wanted to “show my respect.”

He added: “Regretfully, some groups had very strong reactions, very bad reactions. It’s bad to prevent someone from showing sympathy to the families of the victims of the 9/11 event, a tragic event.” He added that he was puzzled when told that some viewed his desire to visit ground zero as an insult. “This is my way of showing my respect,” he said. “Why would you think that?”

Updated, 2:51 p.m. | In response to a question about the treatment of homosexuals in Iran, Mr. Ahmadinejad was initially evasive, instead talking about the death penalty, which, he pointed out, exists in the United States. “People who violate the laws by using guns, creating insecurity selling guns, distributing guns at a high level are sentenced to execution in Iran,” he said. “Very few of these punishments are carried out in the public eye.”

Pressed by Dean Coatsworth on the original question about the rights of gay men and lesbians in Iran, Mr. Ahmadinejad said: “In Iran, we don’t have homosexuals like in your country. We don’t have that in our country.”

The audience booed and hissed loudly. Some laughed, uncomfortably.

“In Iran, we do not have this phenomenon,” Mr. Ahmadinejad continued, undeterred. “I do not know who has told you that we have it. But as for women, maybe you think that maybe being a woman is a crime. It’s not a crime to be a woman. Women are the best creatures created by God. They represent the kindness, the beauty that God instills in them. Women are respected in Iran.”

Zach's take via Gchat:

Zachary: right. yea "we don't have that problem here. end of story" i think that might give people in kansas a new argument [sic]