Same-Sex Marriage General Discussion Thread

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I watched a program about the Stonewall riots a few nights ago, it was quite interesting. Those people had real courage - unlike the preening narcissist that is the typical modern day gay celebrity.
 
financeguy said:
I watched a program about the Stonewall riots a few nights ago, it was quite interesting. Those people had real courage - unlike the preening narcissist that is the typical modern day gay celebrity.

Like? And who's the typical straight celebrity?

You've become a caricature.
 
The Irish Mel Gibson, ladies and gentlemen. I just assume he's half in the bag when he makes posts like that one
 
So I post about my admiration for the Stonewall protestors and also mention in passing that I find some modern day gay celebrities narcisstic and all of a sudden I'm the Irish Mel Gibson, a caricature. Jesus, gay people themselves - outside of this absurdly uber-PC forum at least - frequently criticise the narcissism of some gay public figures and the "scene" that surrounds them, precisely because it leads to unfair stereotypes.

How about Perez Hilton for a start. Surely it cannot be denied that he has a preening and narcisstic persona. Travolta too - he's always struck me as very self-absorbed.
 
Can I ask why the distinction was made in the first place? Why are we differentiating between gay and straight people? There are narcissistic people of all stripes, particularly celebrities. Nothing new there. :shrug:
 
Because his whole world view is structured around categorizing people. Otherwise it would be too complicated to come to any conclusions about anything
 
Why even bring celebrity into it?

The Stonewall demonstrators were fighting for gay people to be able to live their lives freely, and that includes everyone from mild-mannered non-celebrities, all the way up to obnoxious assholes like Perez Hilton.
 
Because his whole world view is structured around categorizing people. Otherwise it would be too complicated to come to any conclusions about anything

It's the left that are always categorising people, because of their obsession with identity/gender politics.
 
So I post about my admiration for the Stonewall protestors and also mention in passing that I find some modern day gay celebrities narcisstic and all of a sudden I'm the Irish Mel Gibson, a caricature. Jesus, gay people themselves - outside of this absurdly uber-PC forum at least - frequently criticise the narcissism of some gay public figures and the "scene" that surrounds them, precisely because it leads to unfair stereotypes.

How about Perez Hilton for a start. Surely it cannot be denied that he has a preening and narcisstic persona. Travolta too - he's always struck me as very self-absorbed.

Yep, there's self-absorbed people out there. In other news, water is wet.

I might also add that we don't need the Stonewall situation as much today because homosexuality is becoming more and more accepted in today's world. Back in the days of Stonewall just saying you were gay was a big deal. That was in the days when homosexuality was still considered a mental illness. The attitudes have drastically changed since then, therefore, so has the means of fighting.
 
financeguy said:
It's the left that are always categorising people, because of their obsession with identity/gender politics.

It's a nice little trick to claim every accusation is simply politics instead of actually taking a look at the way you are carrying yourself.
 
It's the left that are always categorising people, because of their obsession with identity/gender politics.

If an independent outsider came into FYM and was asked to take a look at the last 10 years of regular posters and rank the top ten posters who posted about identity/ gender politics; you my friend would fall into the top 3, if not number 1. It's mindblowing that you are oblivious to this.
 
The human brain enjoys finding order where there is none. Categorizing is merely our brains way of trying to make sense of something and break it down into something easier for us to understand. We all do it.
 
The human brain enjoys finding order where there is none. Categorizing is merely our brains way of trying to make sense of something and break it down into something easier for us to understand. We all do it.

Racists do it too. It doesn't mean we're all racists
 
Anderson Cooper officially comes out. i'd be all snarky but it's so dead-on and perfect that i'll just post without comment:

2 Jul 2012 11:01 AM
Anderson Cooper: "The Fact Is, I'm Gay."



Last week, Entertainment Weekly ran a story on an emerging trend: gay people in public life who come out in a much more restrained and matter-of-fact way than in the past. In many ways, it's a great development: we're evolved enough not to be gob-smacked when we find out someone's gay. But it does matter nonetheless, it seems to me, that this is on the record. We still have pastors calling for the death of gay people, bullying incidents and suicides among gay kids, and one major political party dedicated to ending the basic civil right to marry the person you love. So these "non-events" are still also events of a kind; and they matter. The visibility of gay people is one of the core means for our equality.

All of which is a prelude to my saying that I've known Anderson Cooper as a friend for more than two decades. I asked him for his feedback on this subject, for reasons that are probably obvious to most. Here's his email in response which he has given me permission to post here:

Andrew, as you know, the issue you raise is one that I've thought about for years. Even though my job puts me in the public eye, I have tried to maintain some level of privacy in my life. Part of that has been for purely personal reasons. I think most people want some privacy for themselves and the people they are close to.

But I've also wanted to retain some privacy for professional reasons. Since I started as a reporter in war zones 20 years ago, I've often found myself in some very dangerous places. For my safety and the safety of those I work with, I try to blend in as much as possible, and prefer to stick to my job of telling other people’s stories, and not my own. I have found that sometimes the less an interview subject knows about me, the better I can safely and effectively do my job as a journalist.

I've always believed that who a reporter votes for, what religion they are, who they love, should not be something they have to discuss publicly. As long as a journalist shows fairness and honesty in his or her work, their private life shouldn't matter. I’ve stuck to those principles for my entire professional career, even when I’ve been directly asked “the gay question,” which happens occasionally. I did not address my sexual orientation in the memoir I wrote several years ago because it was a book focused on war, disasters, loss and survival. I didn't set out to write about other aspects of my life.

Recently, however, I’ve begun to consider whether the unintended outcomes of maintaining my privacy outweigh personal and professional principle. It’s become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long, I have given some the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something - something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing because it is simply not true.

I’ve also been reminded recently that while as a society we are moving toward greater inclusion and equality for all people, the tide of history only advances when people make themselves fully visible. There continue to be far too many incidences of bullying of young people, as well as discrimination and violence against people of all ages, based on their sexual orientation, and I believe there is value in making clear where I stand.

The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud.


I have always been very open and honest about this part of my life with my friends, my family, and my colleagues. In a perfect world, I don't think it's anyone else's business, but I do think there is value in standing up and being counted. I’m not an activist, but I am a human being and I don't give that up by being a journalist.

Since my early days as a reporter, I have worked hard to accurately and fairly portray gay and lesbian people in the media - and to fairly and accurately portray those who for whatever reason disapprove of them. It is not part of my job to push an agenda, but rather to be relentlessly honest in everything I see, say and do. I’ve never wanted to be any kind of reporter other than a good one, and I do not desire to promote any cause other than the truth.

Being a journalist, traveling to remote places, trying to understand people from all walks of life, telling their stories, has been the greatest joy of my professional career, and I hope to continue doing it for a long time to come. But while I feel very blessed to have had so many opportunities as a journalist, I am also blessed far beyond having a great career.

I love, and I am loved.

In my opinion, the ability to love another person is one of God’s greatest gifts, and I thank God every day for enabling me to give and share love with the people in my life. I appreciate your asking me to weigh in on this, and I would be happy for you to share my thoughts with your readers. I still consider myself a reserved person and I hope this doesn’t mean an end to a small amount of personal space. But I do think visibility is important, more important than preserving my reporter’s shield of privacy.

Me too.

Anderson Cooper: "The Fact Is, I'm Gay." - The Dish | By Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Beast
 
The human brain enjoys finding order where there is none. Categorizing is merely our brains way of trying to make sense of something and break it down into something easier for us to understand. We all do it.

Absolutely we all do it, but the difference is how we approach that categorization.
 
Came here to post that.

Been following the reaction on Twitter. So far, this is my favourite tweet:

What's all this about Anderson Cooper revealing that there is a news network called CNN?
Here's another one from a writer at Modern Family, probably in reference to last week's Supreme Court health care decision (among other gaffes):

CNN still reporting Anderson Cooper is straight.


:wink:
 
I've been following the reaction on Twitter, too. The best tweets are those who wonder if it is a coincidence that Anderson came out the same week Tom Cruise became single :hmm: :wink:

Seriously though, I'm glad he's out.
 
It was, but he'd never talked about it publicly and "officially," despite being seen in public with his partner.
 
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