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[Heron TSG]

Spoiler: Relevant (click to show/hide)

Social commentary on politicians and the media at the same time!

[MetalSlimeHunt]

I've never gotten the "can't explain teh gays to children" thing. The big fallacy is that you'd also have to explain sex to them, which is just silly. I cannot even recall how long it took me to pull apart the ideas of "tell children gay people exist" and "tell children the exact manner in which gay sex is performed" in the minds of some people. I've met progressives who couldn't even make that distinction until I verbally beat it into them.

I'll hopefully never be a father, but this shit is not difficult even in theory.

How to explain homosexuality to children, by MetalSlimeHunt:

"You see, [son/daughter], [insert name of homosexual] is a person who loves other [men/women] like men and women love each other. There are lots of people like that. Now, returning to the Big Bang and stellar nucleosynthesis..."

It's like I have to do everything for these people. Jesus.

[Reelya]

I think Iceland is, or was, run by a lesbian.

Also, that whole "How would I explain it to my kids?" thing always kind of infuriated me. You know, because of the whole "Because you don't want to talk to your punk for 5 minutes, I can't marry the person I love?" Or whatever they're exclaiming that in response to.

Yeah, it's ridiculous, it's not that they can't explain it, it's that they don't want to explain it. If you can explain a "mummy and a daddy" love each other and get married without cluing in your child to sex details, you can explain that two mummies or two daddies can love each other, actually, probably with less need to explain about sex, because you don't need to explain "where do babies come from?"

[Phmcw]

I don't know how much you have to repress a child to be able to let him reach ten and never talk to him about sex.

And homosexuality is easy to explain : some men loves women, some men love men. There.

[Euld]

There's also the fallacy where they say that children will start imitating homosexual couples if they see too many homosexuals.  I'm pretty sure the straight little boys aren't going to start holding hands with other straight boys and suddenly turn gay   Pretty sure the only boys holding hands with boys are the gay ones.

[kaijyuu]

Holding hands = gay now?


There are a million ridiculous excuses but they all have the same root: the idea that homosexuality is bad. If it's not bad, then even if someone can "turn gay," it's not a problem.

What needs to be done is to destroy the notion that homosexuality is in any way, shape, or form inferior to any other romantic relationship. Then all these stupid excuses crumble to dust.

[Truean]

I don't know how much you have to repress a child to be able to let him reach ten and never talk to him about sex.

And homosexuality is easy to explain : some men loves women, some men love men. There.

The answer would be: a whole lot of repression.

There's also the fallacy where they say that children will start imitating homosexual couples if they see too many homosexuals.  I'm pretty sure the straight little boys aren't going to start holding hands with other straight boys and suddenly turn gay   Pretty sure the only boys holding hands with boys are the gay ones.

Pretty much yeah, but between the attitudes of a.) "I don't wanna see it," and b.) then I would actually have to accept my kid might be gay and who are we kidding that ain't happening easily if at all," it doesn't look awesome.

[RedKing]

I think there's a sea change coming in the United States with regard to homosexuality. It just feels like we've hit a tipping point where it's now mainstream enough that when anybody notable comes out, it's meh. (Just look at the Anderson Cooper non-event.)
And you have major corporations embracing gay marriage as a marketing gimmick (see General Mills, Google, et al). (Okay, maybe they actually are doing it out of a sense of humanitarianism, but I'm cynical enough to think they've done their homework and realized that it's a winning issue and a good long-term sell). The demographics are that homosexuality is just not a big deal to most people under 30 or so.

It's kinda funny with my kids. The other day my daughter just said, apropros of nothing, "Some days I just feel like a boy, even though when I look in the mirror I'm a girl."

And then you have my 2-year old son, who likes to have his hair tied up in a topknot, pushes dolls around in a stroller and gives his best friends at daycare a goodbye hug and kiss...including other boys. The teachers always have a nervous laugh and say things like, "Oh he's so...nurturing!"

Yeah, you totally think my kid is going to be gay. Frankly, could care less. Gender identity is completely unfixed at this age, and I'm glad he's not overly aggressive and physical. It's a nice balance for all those other times when he's pretending to be a dinosaur or what have you, and wreaking utter havoc.

[penguinofhonor]

I'm pretty sure it was meh with Anderson Cooper because everyone already knew.

[Aequor]

And then you have my 2-year old son, who likes to have his hair tied up in a topknot, pushes dolls around in a stroller and gives his best friends at daycare a goodbye hug and kiss...including other boys. The teachers always have a nervous laugh and say things like, "Oh he's so...nurturing!"

It's even funnier when you realise that kissing family and close friends (on the cheek) when meeting or leaving them is commonplace in many parts of the world. Always a fun thing to explain to friends; "Wait, you kiss your male cousins on the cheek? Eeeeeeeeeeewwww." or when I explained that yes, I had never met my cousin's fiancé, but that we did give each other a peck on the cheek (although since both people are trying to do it, it always ends up more of a cheek-nuzzle) when meeting for the first time, because he was considered family.

People just need to calm down about physical contact as a whole. Not all physical contact comes from sexual attraction. Two people holding hands =/= Proof they want to do each other like animals on the floor right now, oh god, someone get the local priest to save us from this debauchery that is obviously happening before our very eyes.

[Descan]

I'm pretty sure it was meh with Anderson Cooper because everyone already knew.

My mum didn't.

Then again, she didn't catch on that Jim Parsons was gay, so there you go.

[RedKing]

I didn't either, but then my gaydar is a pretty obsolete model.

[penguinofhonor]

You're telling me you didn't think this guy was gay?



Also any time he's ever laughed ever.

[Truean]

You're telling me you didn't think this guy was gay?



Also any time he's ever laughed ever.

I have to admit I always thought he was, but couldn't quite be sure. "Is on national TV a lot" could explain a good deal of his stuff.

[scriver]

I haven't seen very much of him, but I hadn't considered it.