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Martian · 06-06-2006, 01:35 AM

I don't know what causes someone to 'turn gay,' as the saying goes. Frankly, I've never put much effort into researching the root issues here and my first suspicion is that there is no one cause for every individual. Some folks might have a genetic predisposition or something, it could be environmental or caused by trauma, it could be some other unknown environmental or biological factor. What seems most probable to me is that it's all of the above, but I've never really felt the need to look into it.

I do know that I didn't choose to be heterosexual. I like girls. I like their shapes, their mannerisms, their voices. I happen to be a male. A female who shares my appreciation or a male who doesn't isn't really that big a deal. I'm fairly certain that no healthy individual would choose that path for themself; as has been pointed out, it's one fraught with doubt and discrimination.

Certainly one can choose to engage in acts of homosexuality without being homosexual, or vice versa. I know that I've heard of such things happening in the past. I have no interest in it; if you do, knock yourself out. But can one choose one's overall preference? I don't know, but somehow I doubt it.

My thinking is that the idea of homosexuality as a choice relates back to the perceived wrongness of it. One might presume that a homosexual individual is going against the natural order of things; if one were to further presuppose that each individual is normally inclined to follow said natural order, then one would assume that a person must make the conscious decision to defy it. This is flawed, of course, in that it assumes that nature is bound by our perceptions of the rules. No evidence of any such thing exists; indeed, it seems the opposite is true. We're bound by the rules of nature and we expend a great deal of time and energy in the attempt of discerning just what those rules are. Should something come along that doesn't fit our understanding, it seems to be the better option to assume that our understanding is wrong and modify it accordingly, rather than assume the rules themselves are wrong.

Of course, if someone is choosing to be gay said someone can choose not to be gay anymore, which would doubtless be a comfort to those in the conflicted position of believing homosexuality to be wrong but finding out a loved one is batting for the other team.

06-06-2006, 01:35 AM	#43 (permalink)
Martian Young Crumudgeon Location: Canada	I don't know what causes someone to 'turn gay,' as the saying goes. Frankly, I've never put much effort into researching the root issues here and my first suspicion is that there is no one cause for every individual. Some folks might have a genetic predisposition or something, it could be environmental or caused by trauma, it could be some other unknown environmental or biological factor. What seems most probable to me is that it's all of the above, but I've never really felt the need to look into it. I do know that I didn't choose to be heterosexual. I like girls. I like their shapes, their mannerisms, their voices. I happen to be a male. A female who shares my appreciation or a male who doesn't isn't really that big a deal. I'm fairly certain that no healthy individual would choose that path for themself; as has been pointed out, it's one fraught with doubt and discrimination. Certainly one can choose to engage in acts of homosexuality without being homosexual, or vice versa. I know that I've heard of such things happening in the past. I have no interest in it; if you do, knock yourself out. But can one choose one's overall preference? I don't know, but somehow I doubt it. My thinking is that the idea of homosexuality as a choice relates back to the perceived wrongness of it. One might presume that a homosexual individual is going against the natural order of things; if one were to further presuppose that each individual is normally inclined to follow said natural order, then one would assume that a person must make the conscious decision to defy it. This is flawed, of course, in that it assumes that nature is bound by our perceptions of the rules. No evidence of any such thing exists; indeed, it seems the opposite is true. We're bound by the rules of nature and we expend a great deal of time and energy in the attempt of discerning just what those rules are. Should something come along that doesn't fit our understanding, it seems to be the better option to assume that our understanding is wrong and modify it accordingly, rather than assume the rules themselves are wrong. Of course, if someone is choosing to be gay said someone can choose not to be gay anymore, which would doubtless be a comfort to those in the conflicted position of believing homosexuality to be wrong but finding out a loved one is batting for the other team. __________________ I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said - Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame