Originally Posted by Darian Rachal
James, do you find the sexual acts that homosexual men engage in repugnant? I've worked(in an institution for the mentally retarded) with homosexual men before that I have a great deal of admiration for because of the kindness they showed the patients and the conscientiousness they exhibited in regard to their work. I have no hostility toward any individuals that I am presently acquainted with that are homosexual.
As Richard and I both mentioned, it is the acts themselves that are repugnant. I simply can not imagine a normal man thinking otherwise.
Hi Darian:
I'm working through this long thread, top-down as is mandatory nowadays, so bear with me if I say something that has already been said.
The view that gay male sex is repugnant is commonplace among hetero males and probably hard wired into many from our caveman days. Do you consider female gay sex to be repugnant? How about if you were in the mix as a threesome? The typical male views along those lines are probably hard-wired too.
Same with gay male attraction. Although you can't experience gay male attraction, you ought to be able to acknowledge that it is a function of brain chemistry, plus maybe early development, and that gay attraction is just as real and just as normal as your own attraction patterns. The brain will not be denied.
So, if one desires to be a moral being, in my view, what matters most is that one, as a rational adult can look at another human being, another man or woman created by God, and then say to oneself,
"I recognize that this man's brain, plus his life experiences are different than mine." Therefore,
"Even though I may not understand why this man thinks the way he does, or is attracted to whom he is attracted to, I recognize that he probably has compelling reason to do so." Therefore,
"I will do my best to be understand and accept this man." This is the essence of mature tolerant adult behavior in my view. The concept is not limited to sexual orientation, We would all do well to apply tolerance to all sorts of people who are unlike us in race, orientation, nationality or even political point of view. Some people are incapable of this.
Richard will no doubt misconstrue my post and state that I am advocating a moral-less society where anyone gets to do as he pleases. That is not my point at all. Men who harm children should be imprisoned no matter what their mental state may be. Blacks who bomb shop windows should be imprisoned, even if their life experiences leave profound resentment. Criminal behavior can be defined by the Golden Rule or the Ten Commandments or the laws of our nation quite well without resorting to ancient prejudice. Maybe I have headed off one red-herring, maybe not.
For what it's worth, my opinion of David has skyrocketed based upon this thread so far. My opinion of Richard is a bit lower. I find his denials of homophobia unpersuasive in view of his posts. I did not call in Herb. I have called in Herb before - and recently. Some newbie was posting really ghastly stuff on this forum right after the format change. I called in a nuclear strike and
boom.... newbie-be-gone. I'll try not to let the power go to my head! I'll chime in again when I am done with the thread.
Jim
