Homosexuality in Today's Society

[space_oddity]

( just to let you know, I'm not homophobic, and I think it's up to the person if they want to be homosexual or not).

So you believe sexuality is a choice, if i am reading you correctly?

 

[Rolling Thunder]

I can't date out of fear of Bad Things happening

Come on, you can't tell lovers from friends (especially both female) if you're not kissing. Make yourself and some other girl happy, the whole Escapist is with you

And post some pictures.


DAMN! I couldn't help myself. Apologies abound, as logician says.

 

[blindey]

Hoookay, so just to point out this simple fact, gay used to mean happy/cool, so don't always breathe down our necks whenever we say it. Also, blame the media. They've made it main stream ( just to let you know, I'm not homophobic, and I think it's up to the person if they want to be homosexual or not).

Don't blame me for using the N word every other sentence, the media does it all the time! [/sarcasm] It's the same thing. It meant homosexual back in theeee 60/70s? Somwehere around there and then it shifted its use to mean bad/uncool/stupid or what have you back in the early 90s and stuck there. Also a big no on your second part - It's not a choice whether to be gay or not. I didn't (and neither did anyone else here) wake up one day and say: oh I wanna have teh cawk instead of a girl, and live a life that a lot of people disagree with, some to the point of violence and INSTITUTIONALIZED discrimination and prejudice in a lot of areas. What does that mean? I'll tell you, in a few lines down.

i dont think its hard for gay people to "come out" anymore unless you live in a complete conservative town, its almost natural. and seeing as a majority of businesses comply to the anti-discrimination acts, finding a job or career isnt difficult either. do i support gay people? meh, i dont really care. I do find it hypocritical that they are not allowed to marry in the united states [with the exception of a few states], you know, the land of the free, where every man woman and child have rights? side note, a domestic partnership [what gay people are able to recieve in most states] does not carry the same rights as a marriage [insurance, tax return, divorces, ect.]

Indeed, there's I think 2500 benefits a man and a woman get upon being married, a variety of state and federal laws, namely tax, health, and social incentives (though the last part isn't coded into the...well I guess you could argue either way, but I digress)


Human Rights Coalition. I mentioned them before. Nifty stats from them as follows

This resource isn't just for gay, it's the whole GLBT (gay lesbian bisexual transgender) community and supporters/allies.

Read them yourself, I'm not spoonfeeding you.

Health - http://www.hrc.org/issues/hei.asp
*things like patient non-discrimination
*cultural competency
*hospital visitation

Big page 1 is page 7, the criteria with which hospitals were rated
Big page 2 is page 18, the appendix where a they have a big chart detailing all the hospitals and whatnot that participated and rating them on what they have, etc.
Workplace - http://www.hrc.org/issues/workplace.asp
*non-discrimination
*support (in whatever form, groups, counseling, etc.)
*medical benefits

Hate Crimes - http://www.hrc.org/issues/hate_crimes/state_laws.asp
*state laws

 

[Smashking]

Hey, I only brought up the skin because we rarely see any coloured people over here.
But before you bite my head off, don't defend Christianity. It's anti-gay, just because you aren't doesn't mean that your religion isn't. And besides, house colour and sexual orientation isn't different, it's just a personal choice that nobody has the right to criticise.

 

[blindey]

Except you can't choose to be gay or straight, you can to your house colour.

Hey, I only brought up the skin because we rarely see any coloured people over here.
But before you bite my head off, don't defend Christianity. It's anti-gay, just because you aren't doesn't mean that your religion isn't. And besides, house colour and sexual orientation isn't different, it's just a personal choice that nobody has the right to criticise.

 

[Hunde Des Krieg]

I have a gay uncle [yea yea, make all the jokes you want], and it snot really that hard for him in this day in age because of his personality. he was a hospice till he went into insurance. honestly the only thing hard that was for him was when he met his partner, they were going to meet at a local bar but never saw each other because they had completly different ideas of what the other would look like.

i dont think its hard for gay people to "come out" anymore unless you live in a complete conservative town, its almost natural. and seeing as a majority of businesses comply to the anti-discrimination acts, finding a job or career isnt difficult either. do i support gay people? meh, i dont really care. I do find it hypocritical that they are not allowed to marry in the united states [with the exception of a few states], you know, the land of the free, where every man woman and child have rights? side note, a domestic partnership [what gay people are able to recieve in most states] does not carry the same rights as a marriage [insurance, tax return, divorces, ect.]

I thought uncle jokes revolved around peadophilia...

 

[Dark-Dreymer]

I'm very lucky, my parents and friends all accepted that I'm gay very quickly and with minimal fuss. My older brother was the main problem, he never really liked me and being gay was another reason for him to insult me and on one occasion he physically attacked me and tried to suffocate me.

Other than that life's been good to me. A lot of people at school know I'm gay and the news spread pretty fast, I've been out for two years but I still get approached by complete strangers in the corridor who want to know if it's true and the usual response is to giggle as if it's the world's best joke or to call me 'gay boy'.

Being gay isn't something I think about consciously, I'll often stop and realise that being gay isn't the norm but to me it is which is why it feels so odd to realise I'm part of a minority.

Again I have to repeat, I'm lucky. I hear all sorts of horror stories about people beaten to death because of their sexual orientation or living lives repressing their true nature every day, but I'd like to think there are more people out there like me with people who support them and who just live their lives not thinking 'I'm different' every day, just being themselves.

 

[AlphaOmega]

Im straight, not even bi-interested like some people are.

I really dont mind gay people, its as some of them say "How can something that makes me feel so right be wrong" and thats that I say.

Its not "natural" in a biologival way, but I dont see it as a defect just as different but equal.

 

[Smashking]

Except you can't choose to be gay or straight, you can to your house colour.

Hey, I only brought up the skin because we rarely see any coloured people over here.
But before you bite my head off, don't defend Christianity. It's anti-gay, just because you aren't doesn't mean that your religion isn't. And besides, house colour and sexual orientation isn't different, it's just a personal choice that nobody has the right to criticise.

Who cares? A blue house is blue, and a homosexual is a homosexual. Don't nit pick just because I don't make a big deal out of someone having different taste to me.

 

[Spacelord]

"men are more than welcome to come into my house and admit they are cock hunters, I'll even help them in the cause and help hold up the pretty flag. the problem is when the genitals you fiddle with become less of a preference and more so a characteristic."

carlos de la rosa/NRA trainer/gunsmith/uncle/role model

As if the quote wasn't enough, the man is named Carlos de la Rosa and is a gunsmith.

*testicles shrivel in submission*

 

[SecretTacoNinja]

Honestly, I think my mum would be happier if I was a lesbian. XD

Putting aside all the cow-brained chavs here calling each other 'faggots' all the time, I think people are accepting gays fine in Gloucester (not sure about the rest of Britain...). Hell I am, I see nothing wrong with homosexuality because someone's sexual preference is none of my damn business (and to be honest... it's kinda sexy (apologies)).

I'm open to the idea of kissing other girls, but I think I can safely say I'm a raging heterosexual.

GAY= BAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you are serious then we don't like or need your types around here.

SHOO.

 

[SharPhoe]

As one of the aformentioned gays, I'd say the issue is definitely more on the up-and-up nowadays. I'm not totally open about it, but I have told my friends and (most of) my family. They've all had absolutely no problem with it, save for my mother, who has it engrained in her head that I could just "stop" if I felt like it. (Needless to say, I didn't look her in the eye for the rest of the week.) Still, After being out since the age of 16, I've learned to accept and live with whatever comes my way.

 

[SharPhoe]

I'm very lucky, my parents and friends all accepted that I'm gay very quickly and with minimal fuss. My older brother was the main problem, he never really liked me and being gay was another reason for him to insult me and on one occasion he physically attacked me and tried to suffocate me.

Oh, SHIT. Sorry to hear about that...

 

[TheTygerfire]

I'm a "normal" guy, I just happen to be into other guys. I've also noticed less Flamers over the last couple years. Maybe because the other gays have finally realized it makes you look really, really dumb.

 

[toniworld]

I'm a "normal" guy, I just happen to be into other guys. I've also noticed less Flamers over the last couple years. Maybe because the other gays have finally realized it makes you look really, really dumb.

And another "normal" gay guy here, except maybe for being a total nerd (and in a relationship with another nerd).
Luckily my outing was more boring than I could ever imagine, neither anyone from my family nor any of my friends went crazy. I even have a straight friend who is more metrosexual than I am gay...
Anyway, here in Germany it's not much of a matter nowadays I guess, as long as you're not living in too small town with narrow minded conservatives. Not even gay politicians make it to any news any more. Though I imagine it could be different in Bavaria since there are more Christians than in all other parts of Germany.

So being gay here is almost boring...

 

[Talendra]

I can't date out of fear of Bad Things happening

Come on, you can't tell lovers from friends (especially both female) if you're not kissing. Make yourself and some other girl happy, the whole Escapist is with you

You have no idea how much you made me smile with that Kukul.
I too came from a small rural town and found it very hard to be open in public knowing how people could be.
I was careful about kissing my partner in front of anyone I didn't trust until eventually we both got tired of hiding who we are and did started being more open. It mostly got alot of bad looks, some unkind words, seemed the guys in my class were all obsessed with lesbians until somebody they knew was one, then they are a slut.. But eventually they came round and most people learned to live with it.
Of course there are still some assholes but really it's not so bad.
There were some completely horrible parts of being openly gay. For example some of the more senior members of my extended family hardly talk to me, and turn their eyes in disgust when I cuddle up at family functions, but I have learned to not care, my partner is more important than them.
By far the hardest thing though was my partners parents reactions, her mother particularly. I swear that if she could have killed me and got away with it she would not of hesitated. They cut my partner off, and hardly talked to her for almost a year, it was extremely hard seeing her go through this and I felt guilty for loving her.
Luckily though they have realized if they want their daughter in their life they must accept her how she is, and its amazing how with a bit of effort people can get along, and I even feel safe sleeping under the same roof as her parents now
In summary their are still alot of sucky things about being openly gay in society today, and alot of things to overcome, but really you can't please everyone, and if you don't please yourself and those you love you will never really be happy, so stuff all the small minded people!
Edit: please note I am pointing out the bad here there are also alot of supportive and great people here, the jerks are the minority. Also I find it far more acceptable in the city than rural areas, but honestly you need to do what makes you happy.

 

[Duh]

one thing i know about fags (aka ME) is that there stereotypes screw up theyr (me again) lives, there are the awkward ones (Read: ME) that laught at racist jokes and goes around being totaly not fabulous and noone knows about

no i am not joking
enjoy your jaw that has just droped and is now hanging somewhere around your balls

 

[Duh]

cool got the 100th post

 

[Gamine]

The thing i hate about this whole Homosexuality fracas, is how they are made to seem like some sort of special people. .pleeeeaasse, i dont care about what you do in your bedroom, keep it to yourself thank you!

Everyone was made a Man or a Woman, dont come and tell me you were born that way, does that even make sense, yeh! i was also born liking RPGs, it isnt my fault.sure! You chose the way you want to live, why blame nature?

And I think it?s interesting that being < 100% accepting of homosexuality automatically gets you branded as being a knuckle-dragging, closed-minded, unintelligent person. Isn?t that a little? closed-minded? Can?t a person disagree with the lifestyle as the result of sincere conviction or a thorough chain of thinking, not out of stupidity or bigotry? Consider the possibility.