Iran's President a holocaust denier

[Gatekeeper]

Hmm ... I always thought it was Babylon and Egypt that initially did in Israel in ancient times. Nazi Germany was merely fourth in line (after the Roman Empire).

Israel is right where it should be, by those standards.

Gatekeeper

[Az]

to Israel, this is probably the most hostile persian government in recorded history.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Sava


True freedom of speech does not exist anywhere I don't think.

Germany just has more limits than other countries. Which is understandable due to their history.

In general I don't agree with restricting hate speech, but I can understand why Germany has done so. I don't blame them for it.

I ... agree .... with Sava.

[Edan]

Originally posted by Pekka
"We do have freedom of speech, but it is limited"
QFT

Isn't that true of all freedoms? eg, yelling fire in a theater.

[Dr Strangelove]

So what would happen if someone pointed out that there are more than 10 times as many Muslim immigrants living in Europe than there are Jews living in the Middle East and then denied their right to live there?

Someone might also point out that if the Jews didn't originate in the Middle East then the Koran is in deep error.

[Berzerker]

"If you [Europeans] committed this big crime, then why should the oppressed Palestinian nation pay the price?

He's right

[Cyclotron]

Originally posted by Dr Strangelove
So what would happen if someone pointed out that there are more than 10 times as many Muslim immigrants living in Europe than there are Jews living in the Middle East and then denied their right to live there?

Methinks it would be a different matter if those Muslim immigrants were attempting to carve their own state out of Europe.

[Dr Strangelove]

They're voting and taking part in the governments aren't they? In principle they could legally take control of a European country if their population surpassed the "native" population. Current trends indicate that just might happen someday in some European country, yet Europeans are just going about their business as if that is perfectly OK with them. The Palestinians could have stayed where they were and would probably have outnumbered the Jews, giving them dominance in the government. The leaders of the Arab League who advised them to leave in 1948 are largely responsible for their misery.

[Pekka]

Edan, yeah, but that would be a case of false alarm, not a case of freedom of speech and opinion.

For example, denying holocaust is illegal in some countries, and I view this as weird. Why sohuld this be illegal? I don't see why.

Well anyway, we know Germany will be destroyed in the WWIII, something that should have been done long time ago. Then again it worries me since they would be our allies for sures, so.. but then again who cares. No more Sauerkraut!!

[Sikander]

Originally posted by Whaleboy


I missed a decent fireworks show back in November. I demand carnage!

Well then come on down to Uncle Sikander's Great Chili Cookoff and Nuclear Cataclysm and we promise that you'll get something even more delicious...chili con carnage.

[Cyclotron]

Originally posted by Dr Strangelove
The Palestinians could have stayed where they were and would probably have outnumbered the Jews, giving them dominance in the government. The leaders of the Arab League who advised them to leave in 1948 are largely responsible for their misery.

It is likely that their misery would have been very temporary, had Israel then allowed those refugees to return to their homes. Not surprisingly, they chose to appropriate their land instead of returning it to its rightful owners. The history of Israel has been a very exclusionary one from the start; if anything, the countries of Europe have been incredibly inclusionary, to the point where people are wondering if they should be more confrontational. It seems like a poor analogy to compare muslim immigration to Europe with Jewish immigration to Palestine.

[Last Conformist]

Of everything that's messed up with Mr Ahamdinejad in particular and the Iranian regime in general, surely holocaust-denial comes pretty far down on the list?

[lord of the mark]

'Also Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang pointedly rejected Ahmadinejad's comments.

"We are not in favor of any remarks detrimental to stability and peace," he said. "Israel is a sovereign state."'

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Cyclotron


It is likely that their misery would have been very temporary, had Israel then allowed those refugees to return to their homes. Not surprisingly, they chose to appropriate their land instead of returning it to its rightful owners. .

The homes were largely given to the hundreds of thousands of Jews who fled arab countries at the same time - who did not receive compensation for their homes, land, or businesses.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Last Conformist
Of everything that's messed up with Mr Ahamdinejad in particular and the Iranian regime in general, surely holocaust-denial comes pretty far down on the list?

Youve got a point. On the whole, I must agree.

See the following, for ex (Telegraph):

'Iran's hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has packed his government with former security and intelligence officials responsible for serious human rights abuses, including the killing of thousands of dissidents in Iranian jails, a leading human rights group said yesterday.

After Mr Ahmadinejad caused renewed international outrage by calling the Nazi Holocaust of Jews a "myth", a report by Human Rights Watch, based in New York, took aim at his hardline cabinet - in particular the new interior minister, Mustafa Pour-Mohammadi.

Mr Pour-Mohammadi, a notorious former deputy intelligence minister, held the post from 1987 to 1999 at a time when his agents "systematically engaged in extra-judicial killings of opposition figures, political activists and intellectuals", HRW said.

The report, entitled Ministers of Murder: Iran's New Security Cabinet, links him to the murder of thousands of political prisoners in Iranian jails in 1988.

"The deliberate and systematic manner in which these extra-judicial executions took place may constitute a crime against humanity under international law," said HRW.

Mr Pour-Mohammadi was in charge of foreign intelligence operations from 1990 to 1999, a time when dozens of opposition figures were assassinated abroad.

"In some of these cases the hand of the Iranian government has been well established, while in others there are credible allegations of government involvement. Pour-Mohammadi is at the centre of strong allegations of direct involvement in orchestrating these assassinations," the campaign group said.

The minister was also implicated in a series of political murders of intellectuals in Iran in the 1990s, HRW said.'