Reactions To The Gay Post

Posted on April 21, 2007
Filed Under General Thoughts, Sex/Sexuality |

I’m talking about this one. The comments were interesting to read. I especially liked this one by Rihab:

We regard things as normal depending on how accustomed we have become to them, for example, in a Muslim country the notion of a man having more than one wife is regarded as normal, whereas in a non-Muslim country it is regarded as abnormal. Straight men holding hands is normal in many Arab countries, in many non-Arab countries it would be odd if they aren’t gay. So “normality” is simply whatever you got used to over time in which case “normal” is a very relative term.

This one by Jina at Mideast Youth was also interesting to read:

Normal is when majority agree on one thing. Being black in white man’s land was abnormal, being white in black man’s land was abnormal. Cowboys dueling with each other was normal at one time, it’s not now. Blacks taking the back of the bus in the States were normal at one time, it’s not today. A noble killing a commoner was treated as nothing but a commoner killing a nobel was a crime.

I read my post again and I now realize how crazy it must have seemed to many readers. I’d say that a lot of what I wrote was emotional. I guess I don’t need to provide reasons for that. I’m sure most of you can tell where I’m coming from. I can pretend to be a wise ass and give you some fake opinion to seem all smart and intellectual but at the end of the day, it won’t benefit me. After one year of blogging, I have noticed that it’s mostly the seemingly “loony” posts such as this one, that trigger the most thought provoking comments. So yes, it’s pretty much worth it, even if it results in the following:

Sudanese Thinker goes on yet another anti-gay rant with the proviso that “he doesn’t mean to offend anyone”. Of course ST is entitled to his own opinion but the whole piece is full of misinformation and plain bigotry. He ends up telling us of an encounter with “2 gay dues and a transsexual” and concludes that you cant judge people on the basis of their sexuality. And he even has some friends who are atheist as well! God what a relief on both counts.

Oh no, the dreaded ‘B’ word. Cool! I’m now officially a bigot! Yaaaay! Oh well, at least Nominally Challenged (who’s gay) is cool with my post me. I’ve exchanged some private emails with him. Thanks man! Whether we agree or not is something, but the fact that we can have a decent, calm and honest cyber conversation is another different thing that I greatly value. More food for thought.

Comments

10 Responses to “Reactions To The Gay Post”

  1. nominally challenged on April 21st, 2007 1:32 pm

    heh,

    Before I get myself vilified, I’m not so cool with the content of your post, and I made that clear in my emails to you. But I am cool with the fact that you’re challenging and tackling your own prejudices.

    And that you were able to listen to my rants without evoking some sort of heavenly punishment :)

    That can only be a good thing.

    :)

  2. Drima on April 21st, 2007 1:56 pm

    Ops, my bad! A correction has been made. :)

  3. Andrew Brehm on April 21st, 2007 3:05 pm

    It’s funny how the world changed so quickly. Today, if you are not toally and absolutely in favour of changing every single law that might treat a homosexual couple differently from a child-producing^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hhetero-sexual couple, you are a bigot.

    And oddly enough this is the same same society that still supports the notion of not drafting girls into military service, that still supports affirmative action (treating races differently), and that still produces people who paint swastikas on synagogues and burn Israeli flags in demonstrations.

    Perhaps society is not quite as enlightened as some think, and perhaps sometimes total liberalisation in one sector just seems odd to those who do not experience society as ready for it (yet or ever).

    And when you notice, as a conservative, that those who are against homosexual marriage are those that support you in the areas where you yourself are the target of discrimination, why would you not want to be a bigot?

    I’d rather support Drima’s position on homosexuality, even though I disagree with it (to some degree), then the left-wingers in Europe who treat the issue as already decided in their favour.

  4. PeacefulVanguard on April 21st, 2007 3:11 pm

    For whatever it’s worth, Drima …

    I don’t agree with your opinion about, or even your attitude toward, gay people. But here’s what I think is cool about you. You have an open mind. So the way I interpret your post(s) is that these happen to be your opinions today, but they may not always be that way. Since we’re all shaped by our experiences, education, and culture, it makes sense (however frustrating) for you to hold your opinions given where you come from and live and blah blah … today … It’s not an excuse, and I don’t have to like it, but anyone who is open to dialogue and willing to let his future experiences continue to shape him clearly is not stuck in a mental tar pit and gets major props from me.

    I’ve read your blog for awhile. I remember when you wrote about your trip to the USA and how you saw a gay pride parade or something, and you were all freaked out and talked smack. I thought that was lame on your part — coming to our (foreign to you) country and then talking shit about aspects of our culture where there are no victims. But … fast forward the tape to the discussion you’re having now. You’re not telling the same story. I still do not like your current story all that much, but I like it a lot better than the last one, you know? Coming from my angle … gotta love progress. I feel like the people who rip on you are missing the bigger picture.

    I don’t care if you’re not perfectly aligned with my views on life or people. (although once you hang with me, you will be. LOL) You’ve got an open mind, an open heart, and a willness to change. That makes you the very opposite of a true bigot. It means you’re a work in progress like the rest of us, but fortunate enough to be sitting on a primordial stew of being very cool, so welcome to a world with a whole variety of new experiences. It seriously feels awesome just to show people love, amigo, so let’s rock with that open mind of yours. Besides, you never know where you might wind up a few years down the road, heheh.

    http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a91/mommadrama/October06/tlee1.jpg

  5. Drima on April 21st, 2007 5:44 pm

    “It’s funny how the world changed so quickly.”

    Actually Andrew, it’s funny how *Europe and the West* changed so quickly in regards to homosexuality. ;)

    PeacefulVanguard, Awwwwww. Thanks gurl! And I’m glad you’ve been reading my blog for THAT long :)

  6. Roman Kalik on April 21st, 2007 6:29 pm

    Drima, if you are the poster child of bigotry then the world we live in must be a *veeery* different place from what I have seen. Lighten up, dude, it’s folks like you who make the world a better place, and not the mentally rigid and too quick to judge.

  7. Andrew Brehm on April 21st, 2007 9:16 pm

    “Actually Andrew, it’s funny how *Europe and the West* changed so quickly in regards to homosexuality.”

    Ok, you have a point.

    When I think world, I primarily think “English-speaking world”. Next I’d include Israel, then continental Europe (usually eastern Europe first these days).

    Before western Europe I usually count Turkey and Morocco.

    And that “world” has indeed changed very quickly. Not all of the countries in my list, but most of them.

    I can assure you that I personally have not changed quite as quickly, and I now look to “slower”, more conservative people like you for guidance. I don’t want fast changes because often fast changes are just a symptom of an excuse, not really an educated change of attitude.

  8. Nizo on April 22nd, 2007 1:50 pm

    Drima,
    I’m happy that you shared your feelings towards homosexuals in the way you did because it does show an intention to at least be introspective about it. I personally value such behaviour more than fake political correctness by people who just repress whatever bigotry they have instead of dealing with it.

    The reality of homosexuality in the Arab world is that you have probably dealt with many more gays that you actually realize, because most people are too scared to come out of the closet for fear of being beaten up or worse.

    I particularly liked Raccoon’s comment about orientation being compared to choice of food. Indeed, many gay people go about their daily lives in the same way that straight people do, the only difference being who they share their bed with.

    Furthermore, if sex only had procreation as end result then married straight couples should only engage in sex to procreate and couples who can’t have children should all abstain and become monks.

  9. Roman Kalik on April 22nd, 2007 10:27 pm

    I think the last bit was the view of the Catholic Church once, Nizo.

    As for PC, I believe it prevents debate on important issues and instead sweeps them under the rug. Where they only grow. I prefer an honest insult to a smiley-facade. I know where I stand with insults.

  10. Nizo on April 23rd, 2007 12:34 am

    “I think the last bit was the view of the Catholic Church once, Nizo.”

    and it still is albeit not as overtly.

Leave a Reply