Ahmadinejad is off to South America.

[oblivious]

President Ahmadinejad to set off on Latin American tour on Friday
IRAN'S President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will fly to Latin America this weekend in search of new allies as three of the region's most anti-American leaders are sworn into power.

On a four-day trip, Mr Ahmadinejad will call on the presidents of Venezuela, Ecuador and Nicaragua — who are being sworn in within days of each other after recent election victories.

He will also meet Evo Morales, the left-wing President of Bolivia who took office a year ago.

The visit is certain to alarm the Bush Administration, which will look on as one of its biggest global foes — who is suspected of wanting nuclear weapons — courts Washington's regional opponents in its own backyard.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/iran-leader-woos-latin-america/2007/01/11/1168105116534.html

President of Iran woos allies in Latin America
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, is to fly to Latin America this weekend in search of new international allies as three of the region's most anti-American leaders are sworn into power.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/01/11/wiran11.xml

Iran's president to visit Latin America
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is to kick off a four-day tour Saturday to Ecuador, Nicaragua and Venezuela, whose leaders share his defiance towards the United States, media said on Wednesday.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10418697

President Ahmadinejad Leaves Tehran for Venezuela, Ecuador and Nicaragua
ISNA - Tehran
Service: Foreign Policy

TEHRAN, Jan. 09 (ISNA)-President Ahmadinejad is to leave Tehran on Friday, January 12nd for a three day trip to the three South American Countries, Venezuela, Ecuador and Nicaragua.

The President according to the trip schedule after entering the Caracas airport on the 13th will be officially welcomed by the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez.

Sunday morning the president will depart Caracas for Managua and will visit Nicaragua for one day. In this short visit which is coincided with the initiation of the Nicaraguan President, Daniel Ortega after a official welcome both sides will talk on similar interest.

Ahmadinejad then is to leave Managua for the Ecuadorian capital so to participate in the presidential oath taking ceremony of Rafael Correa.

Iran's President at the side line of this ceremony is to meet some of the participant officials such as the President of Bolivia, Evo Morales.
http://www.isna.ir/Main/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-858516&Lang=E

President Ahmadinejad to set off on Latin American tour on Friday
http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-236/0701093854185033.htm

Ahmadinejad to visit Caracas - Venezuela at a glance
IRI President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will depart Tehran for a regional tour of three Latin American countries, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Ecuador, on Friday night, January 12th.

President Ahmadinejad would on Saturday morning, January 13th, local time, arrive in Caracas Air Port, where the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez would officially receive him.

He would later on the same day hold his first round of talks with President Chavez, while members of his high ranking accompanying delegation would attend meetings with their Venezuelan counterparts.
http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/line-22/0701110673090445.htm

Ahmadinejad to visit Quito - Ecuador at a glance
... President Ahmadinejad would attend the swearing in ceremony of the new Ecuadorian President Elect Rafael Correa on Monday, that would be held in the presence of a number of world leaders.

The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran would in addition to his meetings and talks with his Ecuadorian counterpart during that state visit, will meet and confer with a number of other presidents, including Bolivia's President Evo Morales.
http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/line-22/0701116444090729.htm

Ahmadinejad to visit Managua - Nicaragua at a glance
... President Ahmadinejad is scheduled to depart Venezuelan capital, Karacas for Managua, Nicaragua, after meeting Venezuelan officials.

Ahmadinejad's short visit of Nicaragua is scheduled to coincide with the swearing in of the new Nicaraguan President-elect Daniel Ortega.

Private talks of the two countries' presidents and talks between the members of the high ranking delegations accompanying the Iranian president with their Nicaraguan counterparts are among the programs of this state visit.

Ahmadinejad would depart Nicaragua on Sunday evening, local time, to take part at swearing in ceremony of Ecuador's President Elect Rafael Correa in that country's capital city, Quito.
http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/line-22/0701111669090859.htm

[EdwardM]

1. This is not good at all.

What have we started?

[stillcool]

2. He needs to high-tail it...

to Russia, grab some nukes, and drop in on China before he heads home.

[EdwardM]

3. I hope that was sarcastic.

I hope you do not want that madman to have nukes.

[stillcool]

5. what I'd like is for these wars of ...

aggression for exploitation of resources to stop. I don't really see a difference between myself and my counterpart in the middle-east. Life and death are kind of universal..no?

[EdwardM]

6. But Mahmoud is worse than Bush.

He has called for the destruction of Israel, and he has absolutely no respect for human rights, especially women's rights. Nothing good could come from him having nukes. He very well could be stupid enough to use them. Just because he is against Bush does not mean he is our ally, he is even worse. If he had as much power as Bush does, I guarantee he would do even more "wars of aggression" than Bush. I wish for the Iranian people to have freedom, but giving Mahmoud even more power is not the way to do it.

[stillcool]

7. I do not agree...

it is not..to me...about Mr. Bush or Mr. Ahmadinejad. What it is about is resources, on top of which sits the human beings that inhabit the middle-east. And...my understanding of the government structure in Iran, is that the power to make decisions lies with the mullahs. And...as far as freedom...the word is highly over-rated...ask an Iraqi.

[EdwardM]

9. "freedom is overated"

Comeon, you can't be serious. Try telling that to a women who is punished by the government for being raped, or a homosexual who is hanged just for being gay. I'm sure they would highly disagree with that statement.

[stillcool]

10. actually...I need only look in my back-yard...

there is more than enough government funded abuse to keep me angry for a very long time.

[oblivious]

14. I thought the they were hung for raping 13-year-old boy at knifepoint.

I reject the death penalty for any crime, but that's a pretty important fact that is usually left out of the story.

I guess it sounds better to say they were hung for being gay when you want to demonize the enemy.

[AlienGirl]

22. According to what source? I am highly skeptical of the prosecution's account in this case.

http://www.365gay.com/newscon05/07/072105iran.htm

The English language Iran In Focus also reported the executions, saying the teens were hanged in public in the city square. It quotes sources as saying the teens were executed for having sex with another minor but this could not be confirmed. The report does not name the victim. Under Sharia law the victim of a sexual assault must also be executed.

Both news services say that prior to their execution, the teenagers were held in prison for 14 months, severely beaten and given the lash 228 times.

[oblivious]

28. Iranian teens were hanged for rape, not gay sex, reports Human Rights Watch

It's certainly reasonable to be sceptical and you may indeed be right, but I don't think it's fair to just state outright that they were hung for being gay.


Iranian teens were hanged for rape, not gay sex, reports Human Rights Watch

The two male teenagers hanged in Mashad, Iran, Jul 19 were executed not for having sex with each other, as has been reported, but for raping a 13-year-old boy, Human Rights Watch is claiming.

The New York Times and the Times of London separately reported the same thing.
http://www.xtra.ca/public/viewstory.aspx?SESSIONID=b9888130-641c-440b-8e5e-42265498208d&AFF_TYPE=1&STORY_ID=790&PUB_TEMPLATE_ID=2

Witnesses to an Execution

...The dispute hinges on one question: Did Asgari and Marhoni engage in consensual sex (either with each other or with others), or did they gang rape at knifepoint (along with several other participants whose fates are undetermined) an unidentified 13-year-old boy?
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20050815/kim

[AlienGirl]

12. "Freedom is over-rated?" Ask Ben Franklin.

[stillcool]

13. What does Ben Franklin...

have to do with imposing freedom through death and destruction? I am disgusted with any mention of superior American qualities and the 'buzz word's' that are associated. Dredging up the founding fathers from their graves does nothing to illuminate the corruption, deceit, and blatant disregard for human life, that is performed on a daily basis by the American government, but I guess that's not your concern.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

15. Is he? How?

Bush has killed 700,000 human beings.

As far as you or I know, Ahmadinejad's never harmed a fly.

[AlienGirl]

18. Never hurt a fly...except to have bloggers tortured and gays publically hanged.

Obviously a bastion of civil rights compared to Shrub-monkey. :eyes:

Tucker

[oblivious]

20. One more time, they were hung for raping a 13-year-old at knifepoint, not for being gay.

Or do you have other information.

[AlienGirl]

23. I have other information, see above, one more time.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

25. Hmmm.

Now imagine how many bloggers and homosexuals Bush has killed.

[EdwardM]

29. There's a difference here.

Bush is by far the world's most powerful man. Mahmoud is probably not even in the top 25 of most powerful people in the world. If he controlled the world's most powerful army and had access to thousands of nukes like Bush does, then you know damn well he would kill more than 600,000 people when he orders a nuclear strike on Israel. Mahmoud is pure evil, and the only thing stopping him from mass atrocities, is that he isn't very powerful. And to say he hasn't "harmed a fly" is BS. Plenty of people have been tortured and killed in his country. Also women have no rights in his country and get blamed for raped, and he has done nothing about it. Iran sends support to terrorists in other countries. Comeon, just because Mahmoud is anti-Bush, doesn't mean that he isn't a piece of shit. Mahmoud is far worse than even the worst Neo-Con, he just doesn't have as much power as the Neo-cons, so it isn't noticed how evil he is.

[C_U_L8R]

4. He should consider Paraguay

perhaps even buy a house next to Chimpie's
and the two of them can throw rocks at each
other all day long

[donkeyotay]

8. Now that makes sense. Paraquay. Get some dogs that bark all night

and throw rocks at each other all day long. Cheap beer. That's a job bush could handle.

[oblivious]

11. Bush'd likely just hurl insults with a bullhorn. It's safer that way.

[Lord Byron]

16. Iran gains influence, America loses it

We've lost our influence in Latin America under Bush while chasing imaginary WMDs in Iraq. Now we're detested by the world, and allowing Russia and China to win this political battle.

[roamer65]

17. It is very likely that if we attack Iran...

Venezuela will stop shipping oil to the US. I remember seeing Chavez and Ahmadinejad holding hands in Tehran and pledging suppport for each other.

[Strelnikov_]

24. Yes, there were rumblings of this a while back

And they would have no shortage of buyers, considering that an attack on Iran will most likely disrupt Persian Gulf oil exports.

[Roland99]

19. Note on the 1st article, why is a leader not in the pocket of Corp. America considered anti-America?

[LSK]

21. notice all the foreign press links you have

[oblivious]

26. Right. I couldn't find one US or Canadian link.

[madeline_con]

27. So, DUH-bya sends some CIA guys to off him, right?

I mean, wouldn't that save a lot of time, blood and money! :shrug:

[UTUSN]

30. Let me guess, can Hugo-Evita be far behind? Can Hugo be embalmed? n/t