The Emperor has no clothes

By John Bertosa

Those who advocate changing society to accommodate those who embrace the homosexual lifestyle connect it to skin color and the 1960s civil rights movement and gender and the feminist movement.



But making that emotional connection is taking the simplistic, easy way out just like labeling every politician you hate "Hitler" or every war "another Vietnam."



Homosexuality is not hereditary (like skin color) nor is it a basic of nature (like gender is). But it also is not morally wrong. Homosexuality simply is a biological defect.



The human body was intelligently designed or evolved -- depending on whether you are a Bible-clutching conservative or enlightened liberal -- to function at certain levels in nature, and the genetic aspects of an individual which hinder that function are defects. Some are as profound as Down's Syndrome, others pose just minor obstacles, like nearsightedness.



Homosexuality is a defect because people are biochemically attracted to their own gender which limits the continuation of the species. A defect, that is all it is.



There are social aspects to homosexuality separate fromthe biological ones and those are the ones that concern this discussion of gay marriage, but the problem with supporters of gay rights is they cite biology to defend the social aspects. When an opponent of the cultural aspects brings up a point, the proponent alludes to the biological aspect and declares "It's not a choice!!"



But that simplistic outlook is wrong. So, to clearly differentiate, let's draw a black solid line in which everything discussed afterward will be just about the cultural aspects of sexuality, both homo and hetero.

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There, now I dress in button-down shirts and wear Dockers because that's the societal group I choose to associate with just as other heterosexuals choose to wear black concert t-shirts and ripped blue jeans because that is the group they choose to associate with. If dress was based on sexual urges then all heteros would dress alike.



Therefore, since the only difference between homos and heteros is our sexual urges,the physical appearances homosexuals adopt must also be a choice. The hairstyles, clothing and amount of make-up or lack there of are choices made to associate with a social group. Not genetics.



Now, while my biochemistry pushes me to want sex with women, it does not compel me to marry one. While sexual compatibility is a component, there are numerous other considerations, ranging from intellectual to financial compatibilities. And all of these lead to us having to make a choice of who we marry.



Actually, we don't even have to make such a choice as more and more people are co-habitating without being married. If our sexuality compelled us to marry, then how can this be possible?



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I didn't really need the black line there but I liked it so much as a literary tool that I thought I'd use it again to start my summation.



Our society believes we should be judged and accept the rewards and consequences of our choices -- not simply because of who we are. Society should be able to set up laws that push back at people who are 30 years old and choose to go against society norms and try to marry a 10-year-old sheep -- not because these people are black or women but because of the choices they make in our society.



And that is exactly what our society is doing when it decides what parameters need to be met in order to marry. The homosexuality that society addresses is not the biology that takes place in the bedroom but the social choices that bring people to City Hall. .



Our society has accepted those embracing the gay culture as much as it has those embracing the evangelical culture, the Goth culture and the Urban culture.



But on Election Day, the most liberal diverse state (as opposed to Vermont where everyone thinks and looks the same), decided that in the case of changing a pillar of society, it was better to stop pretending that homosexuality in society is the same as race or gender.



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I had a little space left so I thought I'd make one side comment, and that's on the rhetorical question "Why would anyone choose to be homosexual?"



There are young people out there who feel completely, utterly alone perceiving a world that persecutes them at every turn. Some are drawn to the military as a way of being part of a supportive group, others join a gang while others commit suicide or lead a self-destructive life. Others see the support that homosexuals get from members of their own social group and they want to join it and not feel so alone any more. They either don't see the real-life persecutions (homosexuals are treated nicely on TV all the time) or they believe it can't be any worse than what they're going through now. I believe this is only a small percentage of the gay community, but a percentage nonetheless.