For your viewing pleasure.

[Q3JR4]

A few oldie but goodies for your viewing enjoyment.

[catnhatnh]

1. Yep...you are absolutely right...

...I am a straight born in 53 and support gay /lesbian rights.Yet day to day I lose track of what is politically correct for a left winger like myself....Is there any position you would have me live in that lies any where between A.I want you dead and B.Yeah let's get even more in your face than gay pride protests and increased tv coverage for Queer eye for...I have seen your community make tremendous leaps and yet still cringe for my 80 year old parents who neither hate or denigrate gays but probably wish some of you would chill out some...So I will take queer advice if offered...Quo Vadis?
Edit:spelling. To late to to just duck,right?

[Q3JR4]

2. Some people, I'm sure,

do wish that some of us would get out of the limelight and let them live their lives without hearing about ours.

That's fine and dandy and I would be completely up for it, but straight people (no offense intended here) can't stop talking about their husband/wife/family. Why would that be any different for us?
(The only reason I'm covering both extremes is that different people have different ideas as to what constitutes "in your face"-ness).

I don't want to say that people should just live with us "in their face," but if we didn't say anything, if we didn't take the initiative and work for social change nothing will happen.

Gay pride rallies are a forum for our community to tell XYZ town in PDQ state that no matter what draconian measures they take to purge their community of our kind, that some of us won't leave. Some of us will fight to our last breath until changes begin to happen in our favor. By standing tall and parading through towns and streets in America we're letting everyone know that indeed we are still here, and we're not going anywhere. Some in straight and gay communities alike are uncomfortable with how visible some of the rest of us are, but until things start changing for the better, you won't see too big of a change.

Finally, some of us happen to believe that it's just fun to scare the "normals."

[catnhatnh]

3. My, you're incredibly honest and to a degree...

...fun.But I am also being honest.What do I say to an older generation whom obviously did not eradicate the gays of their generation? They have never paraded their obstensibly "normal" sexuality and come from a time when such things were seldom spoken of openly. And just for fun I've seen several queer eye guy's I would like to stuff back into SOMEONES closet...

[Q3JR4]

6. I think the,

as you say, "older" generation had a problem with sex period. Couple that with the strangeness of male-on-male (or female-on-female) attraction and you can see how that could work against them.

As for what you tell them, your guess is as good as mine. I've told you what my opinion on the matter is and where I stand when it comes to gay pride rallys and the like.

I'm sure there are gay men in the world who would like to stuff YOU into a closet as well. Quid pro quo, you know?

[kweerwolf]

8. This is a sentiment that really bothers me ...

They have never paraded their obstensibly "normal" sexuality and come from a time when such things were seldom spoken of openly.

I don't wish to pick on the poster, but I hear similar comments so often.

Look at it from our prospective and you'll see that it is heterosexuals who "flaunt" their sexual orientation. They wear their wedding rings in public. They place pictures of their spouse and chidren on their desks at work. They talk openly about what they did with their families over the weekend.

ALL of those activities (and so many more) wave a banner of heterosexuality. So if homosexuality is "the love that dare not speak its name," then I suppose heterosexuality could be described as the love that never shuts up. ;)

And, just like heterosexuality, homosexuality is not only about sexuality, one's choice of sexual partners or even what one chooses to do with his or her genitals. Unfortunately when the prefixes "hetero" and "homo" were affixed to "-sexuality" in the 19th century, it put the emphasis on sex. Sexual orientation - gay or straight - is about more than what someone does with his or her body parts. It's about a basic part of one's identity.

[BeeBee]

9. Thank you kweerwolf.

I can't count the number of times I've heard people say "I don't care what they do in the privacy of their bedroom, but they don't have to flaunt it."

What does "flaunt it" mean? Is it holding hands in public? Is it talking about what you did over the weekend? Is it hugging each other before one partner gets on an airplane?

There is a huge double standard here.

[Lisaben2619]

4. Just for kicks, try this exercise..

Everytime you think or hear a remark about the LGBT community "chilling" substitute the word "Jew(s)" for "Gay(s)". For example, "I don't care what they do at home, but do they have to act so "jewish" in public?" It's a form of bigotry that we all have to confront in ourselves and each other.

[mitchtv]

5. I am a 60 year old gay male who lives quietly

with his partner of 28 years. Sorry all this hate from strates annoys the shit out of me. I took part in several pro marriage demonstrations this year. I have been fighting those who think they are superior to me for years, yet think I should pay more taxes. I will never give or shut up.There is no half citizenship. Full rights will shut me up.

[hippiegranny]

10. you say your parents

"probably wish" some of us would just chill out? Sounds like you are projecting your own issues onto them. Maybe it feels safer to say "hey, I"M fine with it / some of my best friends are gay , etc. but my poor, innocent parents MIGHT be bothered." How do you know? From your description, it doesn't sound like they actually came right out and told you so. I could be wrong.

That is neither here nor there. Just understand that there is no political correctness required. You either believe that all human beings are equal under the law or you don't. And until we all are, those of us who are not aren't going to be less visible, quite the opposite. It is when people are forced to the back of the bus that you will hear about them.

When (not if) we finally become accepted in the mainstream we will no longer be newsworthy. So if you're really sick of hearing about it via "gay pride protests" (what is that anyway? gay pride is a festival/celebration; marriage and worker rights protests are events unto themselves) then help us to change things. Be part of the solution, as self proclaimed left winger.

Last point. I am sick of people defining the glbt community by what happens in their bedroom. Do straight people meet other straight people and immediately picture in their mind what happens when they are naked and alone? Why is it that one thing is the only thing many straight people can conjure up when thinking about gay people - what happens in private? It's obsessive, really. People who know me and my partner know us for being parents, grandparents, real estate investors, promoters of the arts, hikers, yoga enthusiasts, dog and cat lovers... the list goes on and on, but I think you get my point. What we do in private is JUST THAT. Same as any couple, in any situation. It is the very defining of us as nothing but perverts that makes us so needing to be heard as members of ordinary society. THAT is what we are bitching about.

I hope you posted here because you actually DO want to understand, and I hope I have been of some assistance.

[Q3JR4]

12. That's the problem with some straight people

you introduce them to your partner and right away they're thinking about what you do and what you've done.

I'm all for keeping bedroom activities in the bedroom, but why do some people have to force themselves in?

If they don't want to be there then they need to GET OUT!

[xchrom]

7. thank you!

they do give a giggle.

[sundog]

11. hahaha

:rofl:

thanks :toast:

[Ian David]

13. Thanks for sharing those! They're great!

Gay people are getting married! Crusade! Crusade!