OT: Science Closer to Finding the Gay Gene

[Thomas Rogers]

Or if you want an alternate message title, how about:



"Proof that God Makes Gays"



TJR



(link update...still, it works for me):

 

[Bill V]

Dead link. Goes to a generic AP site.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

The link works for me, Bill V...can you (and others) try it (again).



TJR

 

[Tom Schindler]

TJR,



This is the link that comes up.



http://news.wired.com/specials/bluepage.html



I hope they find an abnormality in a gay person. That way, it can be proven that homosexuality is not a choice of life, rather a fact of life for someone that is gay.



That will make life easier for a gay person, including being treated like a human being.





Tom

 

[Jake Levin]

Tom, it comes up with a link that asks you for the state and reporter you want to read. link below

 

[Kevin Palmer]

Tom, I fully understand where you are going with your comment.



If it is proven to be a gene type driven event, it will literally change the world.



The rights gained will be astronomical and virtually never ending for years to come....

 

[Woppy V]

I dont care what race, color, sex, etc you are as long as you are a decent person. But what I DONT want to come out of this and what I have been told might arise from pinpointing a gay gene is an excuse for Pedophiles to state that they are genetically born to be that way also. Not sure if anyone else has heard of this arguement but from what I remember there are gay groups wanting to ride the 'gay gene' wave to justify their lust for underage children. And that it could eventaully flood over to non gay pedophiles. I know this isn't where the thread was heading but it's a concern related to it.

 

[Bill V]

Edited link now works for me.



First of all, regardless of whether there is a genetic link or not, and regardless of whether they ever find such a link (if it exists) or prove there isn't such a link (if it doesn't exist) or not, this is a subject where there will always be people opposing it who claim that the research is flawed, that the conclusion attained was based on who was doing the tests, etc. etc. etc. There will always be deniers on both sides. It will be like the current status with global warming, only 100 fold.



Secondly, even if they prove there is a genetic link, that'll be a double-edged sword. Instead of gaining rights, it may lead to gayness (probably the wrong term, but I'm not sure what the right term is) being treated like having Down's Syndrome--viewed by most as a "genetic abnormality". We'd have people doing in utero genetic testing that would allow parents to abort potentially-gay babies. We'd have people trying to find ways to alter or replace the genes as a "treatment". In the long run, proving such a link may be the worst thing to ever happen to the gay community.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

WoppyV,



No, I haven't heard about that.



I can only assume it's part of the "slippery slope" mentality. You know how it goes. Well if gays are okay, then next polygamy is okay. If polygamy becomes okay then pedophilia acceptance is next.



Also, you draw the distinction between gay and non-gay pedophiles. The overwhelming majority of pedophiles are heterosexual.



Assuming that homosexuality acceptance would lead to pedophilia acceptance when the majority of pedophiles are heterosexual is simply illogical.



TJR

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Bill V,



Yes, the article says that...that gay rights advocates worry that if a gene is found that a "cure" might then be sought...and found.



TJR

 

[Bill V]

TJR, I don't think that's what WoppyV's saying. It's not that homosexuality acceptance would lead to pedophilia acceptance. It's that the potential discovery (legitimate or otherwise) of a genetic basis for homosexuality may also lead to the discovery (legitimate or otherwise) of a genetic basis for pedophilia. And that has a whole lot of possible implications.



It could lead some people to mentally link the two together, both as genetic abnormalities, and therefore homosexuals should be treated as being just as 'defective' as pedophiles. To others, it will lead to a justification of pedophilia in both a moral and legal sense, as it's something that can't be helped, "it's in my genes", and that if it's OK for gays to act on what's in their genes, why can't the pedophiles? And there are many more--almost all of which have poor end results for the gay community.



Yes, the article did say what I had posted--but it was barely a blip in the article, and hadn't even been mentioned on this thread here. And I really feel that's underselling it--from my perspective, the potential negative ramifications of such a discovery are the biggest part of the story.

 

[Woppy V]

TJR - 100% agree.



The only reason I mentioned it is because it was a concern when I heard it.



Apparently, by finding this gene there would be proof that some sexual tendencies were uncontrollable. For some reason gay pehophiles were next in the sequence of events followed by heterosexual pedophiles that lead to an acceptance of their behavior. Even though I fail to remember the entire arguement I had heard I do recall it was told in an overhelmingly conviencing way.









Edit:



Bill in the post above is headin the the right direction with it! And caps it off the same way I should have...

almost all of which have poor end results for the gay community.

 

[Kevin Palmer]

Keeping a very open mind on this, you all have very good points. I was not thinking about the potential "cure" issue.



Could get to be pretty interesting... Hmmmm

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Woppy, Bill, though there might very well be a "gay gene", I wonder at which point the variants and degrees we are talking about (e.g. pedophilia) cross over from being a uncontrollable predisposition to a mere fetish.



There are straight guys, for example, that prefer sex a certain way, with a certain type of girl with certain attributes. I'll keep it tame...maybe favoring redheads, or Asian girls, or girls with large breasts. But these guys can, will and do have sex with other "types" and that sex is typically satisfying. A gay man having sex with a women is often not satisfying, and likewise to many can be downright repulsive (so I am told).



I think a large part of our main problem is that we long ago defined what is "normal sexuality", and we made everything else have some stigma and shame associated with it. Masters and Johnson studies from the 60s proved there is no such thing as normal, just a wide curve of varying preferences and predispositions.



TJR

 

[Tom Schindler]

I highly doubt there could be a "cure" for a gene. It would be like saying you could take a pill and no longer have red hair or be overweight.





Tom

 

[Nelson Atwell]

I'm not sure that the gay and lesbian community would like to think they have a genetic disorder. I believe most would like to think that they just made a choice in their lifestyle. Though for some, they could use this research to make a disability claim against the Social Security Administration or State government. All they would have to do is prove that their "condition" makes them less employable than "normal" people.

 

[Woppy V]

'Uh oh', I say, as I cautiously step out onto the thin ice.



Bill-



I think the 'pedophilia groups' are trying to ride the coat tails of the gay community via the 'gay gene.' They want to claim that it isn't just a fetish, as you described, but that they are genetically inclined to only desire the young. With that in their arsenal they could, with a heck of a lot of word twisting, present a semi understandable arguement. Even though I don't believe such acts will ever be acceptable I can see the delimas it could cause. That all being said I think that finding the gay gene can be a good/bad thing. I'm hoping for good but think that some bad is inevitable, unfortunately.





edit: had to change some typos

 

[A K]

After the Wal-Mart fiasco, I'm not touching this one.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Caymen said:

I highly doubt there could be a "cure" for a gene. It would be like saying you could take a pill and no longer have red hair or be overweight.

The theory is that there are some conditions that can be avoided if the gene that is associated with them is zapped or altered.



For example, there is a theory that there is a "fat gene", that somehow makes the metabolism (storage and useage of fat) of an overweight person work differently then that of a "normal" person.



If that theory holds true, and that gene can be altered, obesity for many could be "cured".

 

[Bill V]

The gene wouldn't even necessarily need to be altered. All you have to do is be able to detect it in utero, and make abort/birth decisions based on this. Like it or not, it happens all the time with Down's Syndrome. Those that advocate this view that system as a "cure" to Down's. (Clearly there is also strong disagreement with that stance.)



WoppyV--I agree with you completely that the pedophiles are trying to ride the coattails of the gay community in this regard. And in doing so, regardless of whether the science ultimately supports them or not, they're going to have a strong negative effect on the gay community, as some of the straight community will view that coattail hanging as justification for them to continue to view homosexuality in much the same light as pedophilia.



Nelson--That's the crux of the matter. For at least decades, the gay community has been trying to say that it's not a choice--it's who they are genetically, they can't choose to be gay or not be gay. But if science proves that it is genetic, the negative ramifications may be worse than the current situation where some people try to claim it's their choice.