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Why don't you look at your local craigslist "men seeking men" and tell me what you think...there's a lot of risky behavior out there that exists in smaller amounts among heteros....I don't think this is an inherent flaw in homosexuals but rather a function of the shame and ostracizing and condemnation from these hypocritical "highroaders" who hide behind their religion to justify themselves. Low self-esteem leads to risky behaviors, sexual and otherwise.
CraigsList m4m personals ARE NOT AT ALL representative of how the majority of gay men hookup in their spare time. At best, CraigsList personals are like the trashy truckstop adult bookstore from 1984... And yeah I would bet a lot of them are closeted.
Gay men have hundreds of options when it comes to legitimate websites (for dating, hooking up, fetishes, whatever). But for every one gay personals ad that appears to be off the wall, I would bet that there are at least 20 comparable ads on comparable sites placed by straight people.
Ever hear of AdultFriendFinder.com ??? How about the hundreds of other straight swingers websites ??? Gays might be a lot more open about sex, but they by no means have a monopoly on risky behavior.
I do agree that low self esteem leads to risky behavior, gay or straight. HIV infection rates are increasingly the fastest among black and hispanic heterosexuals though, so I think risky behavior is universal in our culture.
I'm not in favor of it because it alters one of the key institutions of our society. I am in favor of civil unions that grant all rights and privileges.
Gay Marriage does NOTHING to alter the "key institutions of our society." Sorry, but that's just a bogus statement. Heterosexual marriages will still continue as always, and a bunch of gays or lesbians getting married to each will in no way impose anything on anyone else's marriage.
Civil Unions are not equal, and they do not afford the same rights and priviledges of heterosexual marriage. The following link will provide a rundown of all the issues that everybody debates when it comes to gay marriage: HRC | Marriage & Relationship Recognition
Eh, I don't care. I don't really much care whether gays marry or not, either-- I'm just commenting on the social changes that have led us to this point, and wondering whether they're really fantastic ones. Childless, or single-child, marriages becoming commonplace really, IMO, set the stage for the whole thing.
It just seems to me that people who can afford to tinker with something as basic as marriage sometimes strike those of us who really rely on it to survive as rather... hmm, incautious about the whole thing, by comparison.
"What's the big deal? Free love, divorce if you want to, stay married if you feel like it, isn't gay marriage the same thing? Isn't it all just love? What's it to you if two guys dress up in tuxes and buy rings?"
I can't really afford to have marriage redefined to the point where it is a bit of silly inconsequential romantic frippery... and I think that's where the bottom line in the gay marriage opposition comes in.
1. Gays have to survive too. Gays are human beings, and their relationships are just as binding if not moreso than everybody else's relationships.
2. Nobody wants to "redefine marriage" by allowing gays to marry. The very idea of this is a bogus idea invented by right wingers.
3. As to your quote, "I can't really afford to have marriage redefined to the point where it is a bit of silly inconsequential romantic frippery..."
Explain shotgun marriage, Las Vegas Wedding Chapels, Reality Show Weddings, immature teenagers getting married at age 18... ...people getting married at Wal-Mart, McDonalds, or theme parks... ...how about the 50%+ divorce rate??? How about people who marry for money or sex???
The idea that marriage is sooooooo sacred just doesn't jive with me. Marriage is different things to different people, and while some people are in fact very religious minded about it... ...MOST ARE NOT.
I think homosexuality is something people are born with. They should have every right to pursue happiness like the heterosexuals. That being said, a country with strong families is critical to the success of America. A child needs a mother and a father. 2 men or 2 women can't give that. There are many terrible heterosexual parents and many great homosexual couples who would make great parents. But you have to go with the whole. As a whole, a man and a woman as parents don't confuse a child.
I have no problem with gay marriage, just gay couples adopting children.
* Gay parents DO NOT confuse children. Any source that suggests otherwise was created by religious wackos that make big bucks off the anti-gay hype.
* Way too many straight, unmarried, POOR people pop out babies like it's their job... ...and their children's lives are miserable as a result.
* MOST KIDS DO NOT HAVE BOTH A MOM AND DAD ACTIVELY RAISING THEM. Rationalizing that gays shouldn't be able to adopt because kids need a mom and a dad is simply irrelevant to the reality of today's households.
* I think I speak for a lot of people when I say "most people who have kids should not..."
* Children need responsible, mature, EDUCATED, and financially responsible parents whether they be gay or straight.
I don't see anything wrong with it. But just consider this:
1) Gay marriage being legal will not wipe away homophobia, nor would it necessarily normalize gay relationships in society at large and make anybody's attitude change. All it would do is give legal rights to gay couples.
2) marriage is a highly loaded term that traditionally implies some kind of religious ceremony and acceptance by a particular community. Today we live in a pluralistic society full of people who do not necessarily accept each other into their "tribe". We've got what sociologists would call mechanistic cohesion, not organic cohesion: people don't have to subscribe to the same values for society to work. However, people still hold those values and still belong to communities that share these values, and still believe they are important for themselves.
3) Gay marriage may not be politicly realistic now, or in the near future in the US. Only a small handful of countries in the world have any kind of gay partnership laws, and a minority of those actually could be considered marriage, most are closer to being "civil unions" with most of the benefits of marriage. And these are fairly left-leaning European countries.
Which of the "benefits of marriage" are those which are or should be withheld in defining "civil unions"? Which are these things that we can safely entrust to these two people, but not to those two people?
My mom married my step father because I "needed" a father around. I suppose she could have chosen someone more suitable than a self obssesed violent drunk but she did not. Fortunately, I have managed to untwist most of the personality that resulted with the help of fourty years of therapy from my wife. Without her I would have probably gone the twisted violent drunk route. Kids do not "need" a father but a good one could help.
Either gay couples recieve the same legal benefits of marrage as straight couples or we can just throw away the concept of "equal protection under the Law".
the same thing that is wrong with gays in general. Marriage is ment to be between a man and a woman. Relationships are ment to be between a man and a woman. Is there anything rigth about gay marriage? No, theres not.
says who? the imaginary man in the sky? the all seeing, all knowing entity who says he loves you but will send you to hell if you violate his rules? The one who can't get a handle on money and needs you for that?
That clown?
I'll support gay marrages when they figure out how to reproduce on their own. Until then, its just not natural.
You heard it here first, ladies and gentlemen. Marriages between any two people who can't reproduce on their own is just not natural. Infertile? Need in vitro fertilization? Impotent? Had a vasectomy or tied tubes? Heck, just prefer to adopt or not have kids at all? UNNATURAL!
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