What To Do When Your 7-Year-Old Son Says "i'm Gay"

[EmilyAnn]

[quote name='FuturePriest387' timestamp='1333313880' post='2411582']
Well, I wouldn't know. I haven't looked into the subject much. I have studied the morality of it, not the science of it. This is simply what I was told and I thought it was right. It may not be.
[/quote]

I'm a psychology student. It's my degree subject.

It's not right. Very bad science. Science is surprisingly political.

[PhuturePriest]

[quote name='EmilyAnn' timestamp='1333313976' post='2411583']
I'm a psychology student. It's my degree subject.

It's not right. Very bad science. Science is surprisingly political.
[/quote]

Oh sweet. I love psychology. If it hadn't been for the fact that college costs so much and I want to join the Religious life in the first place, I would probably major in psychology. I have a funny psychology story to tell you in a private message if you like.

But yeah, this wouldn't surprise me. I've always thought it was completely psychological, but I thought it was proven that chromosomes have some weight in it in certain circumstances.

[EmilyAnn]

[quote name='FuturePriest387' timestamp='1333314235' post='2411585']
Oh sweet. I love psychology. If it hadn't been for the fact that college costs so much and I want to join the Religious life in the first place, I would probably major in psychology. I have a funny psychology story to tell you in a private message if you like.

But yeah, this wouldn't surprise me. I've always thought it was completely psychological, but I thought it was proven that chromosomes have some weight in it in certain circumstances.
[/quote]



People have a bizarre delusion that our genes are like blueprints for who we are and everything we do. That's totally wrong.

These studies (not just of homosexuality but other supposed genetic links) often forget that genes are affected by the environment. Something in our genes can be entirely dormant unless an environmental factor triggers it so these studies often completely ignore that.

Data can also be very, very easily misrepresented. I was reading a study a while ago that claimed it had proved that ADHD is caused by brain anomalies. Statistically speaking, a significantly higher number of children with ADHD had brain anomalies than children without ADHD. Sounds reliable right? 7% of non-ADHD children had these anomalies, 15% of ADHD children had them. Not looking so good now, right? Statistical significance often means absolutely nothing and just because something is statistically significant doesn't make it meaningful. But most researchers absolutely fail to realise this. Sigh.

[MissScripture]

[quote name='EmilyAnn' timestamp='1333315489' post='2411592']
People have a bizarre delusion that our genes are like blueprints for who we are and everything we do. That's totally wrong.

These studies (not just of homosexuality but other supposed genetic links) often forget that genes are affected by the environment. Something in our genes can be entirely dormant unless an environmental factor triggers it so these studies often completely ignore that.

Data can also be very, very easily misrepresented. I was reading a study a while ago that claimed it had proved that ADHD is caused by brain anomalies. Statistically speaking, a significantly higher number of children with ADHD had brain anomalies than children without ADHD. Sounds reliable right? 7% of non-ADHD children had these anomalies, 15% of ADHD children had them. Not looking so good now, right? Statistical significance often means absolutely nothing and just because something is statistically significant doesn't make it meaningful. But most researchers absolutely fail to realise this. Sigh.
[/quote]
There are also so many studies that don't get published for one reason or another (sometimes just because of politics) that would contradict the other studies, or studies that have such a poor design that DO get published and quoted ad nauseum when the results are meaningless because of how poorly designed the study was. It's definitely not just psychology that has this problem, either.

[Ice_nine]

[quote name='EmilyAnn' timestamp='1333313976' post='2411583']
I'm a psychology student. It's my degree subject.

It's not right. Very bad science. Science is surprisingly political.
[/quote]

Not all science. It seems to be those fluffy social sciences (I'm a psych major too, but I think there's much more ambiguity in the social sciences than the hard sciences imo).

[PhuturePriest]

[quote name='Ice_nine' timestamp='1333322433' post='2411642']
Not all science. It seems to be those fluffy social sciences (I'm a psych major too, but I think there's much more ambiguity in the social sciences than the hard sciences imo).
[/quote]

Wow. I am surrounded by smart college people.

[MissScripture]

[quote name='Ice_nine' timestamp='1333322433' post='2411642']
Not all science. It seems to be those fluffy social sciences (I'm a psych major too, but I think there's much more ambiguity in the social sciences than the hard sciences imo).
[/quote]
Maybe more politics in the social sciences, but there is in the hard sciences, as well.

[HopefulBride]

RIDIKULOUS!!!!

[Tony]

7 year old gets a "girlfriend": "lol silly kids, they don't know the meaning of a girlfriend"
7 year old announces hes gay "Oh I'm so proud of you!"


...yeah....

[Lil'Monster]

[quote name='FuturePriest387' timestamp='1333322684' post='2411643']
Wow. I am surrounded by smart college people.
[/quote]


I am afraid that I am not one of them.

[4588686]

[quote name='Ice_nine' timestamp='1333169754' post='2411009']
I once responded to a comment on facebook, an argument against gay marriage that was entirely secular and made no appeals to religion or morality in anyway.

Some chick told me I was a remnant of a bygone age and that she hoped I enjoyed extinction, along with other hysterical accusations about what a horrible, evil bigot I was.

It bothers me, as a human who genuinely does care about people, genuinely wants the best for them (eternal happiness, not just happiness in this world) that quite a large number of folks assume off the bat without even knowing me that I'm a hateful bigot. I mean why does that have to be the first leap? I'd feel a little bit better if my opponents thought I was hopelessly naive, but when so many people automatically assume you have the very worst motives for everything you say and do . . . [/QUOTE]

Why would people jump to the assumption that you're a bigot just because you've thrown your hat in with the people who want to use the power of the state to make being in a gay relationship as difficult as possible? Probably because so many of your political compatriots are, in fact, bigots. It's sort of like getting pissy because people assume you're a racist just because you have a Wallace sicker on your bumper. Is it fair? Am I saying that that's right? No. I'm just answering the question as best I can.

[QUOTE] I wish I could be more of an arse portal (does Winchester give lessons?), and just wave off these people as a bunch of liberal nutjobs, but in all honesty I guess I'm just tired and hurt by all of this. It's overwhelming to me, that you need to believe homosexuals are disgusting people, or give unwavering support to every GLBT group that pops up. Almost everyone I know in the real world seems to think this way. [/QUOTE]

Hm, well I go to a liberal school and I've never been typecast as a homophone because I publicly mention that I think certain LGBTQ issues, movements et cetera are stupid. So I would say maybe you're hanging out with a narrow group of people if this has been your near universal experience in the real world. Not if you actively advocate for political measures that opress gay couples, teach that you think that homosexuality is intrinsically disordered, and announce that individuals who engage in homosexual acts are bringing their own damnation upon them, then most people again will assume that you are kind of a bigot, even though you may assure then that you really love gay people, you just hate their lifestyle.

[QUOTE] When I start to talk about how, I think, sexual-orientation is a relatively new social-construct and that I refuse to accept the idea that it's an inherent facet of human nature (like race for example, there's nothing essential or innate about blackness or whiteness etc) . . . people look at me like I'm talking Klingon. I mean, I thought it was supposed to be religious zealots like me who blindly accept things as they are. Why are they? Why does everything so obvious? Am I missing something? Is my opinion on this topic really less sophisticated than the average bear's? genuine questions. [/QUOTE]

If you're saying that you think that sexual categories are social constructions people will probably look at you funny as that's a pretty leftist assertion, at least historically. You'll probably get the same look if you announce that the inherent contradiction in capital accumulation will eventually bring down the tyranny of the bourgeoisie and in its place will emerge a proletarian dictatorship.

[QUOTE] I'm venting I guess.
[/quote]

We all do, from time to time.

[4588686]

[quote name='Nola Seminarian' timestamp='1333173150' post='2411041']
i'll be praying for this kid
[/quote]

Yes. Hopefully he'll be able to turn it off, like a light switch

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8uAYcLYEFI"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8uAYcLYEFI[/url]


(I DON'T THINK THERE IS ANY PROFANITY IN THAT VIDEO BUT I'M NOT SURE SO PLEASE BE WARNED!)


Maybe someday he can be a vigorous, heterosexual, christian man like Marcus Bachman:

[url="http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-july-13-2011/field-of-dongs"]http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-july-13-2011/field-of-dongs[/url]

THIS VIDEO HAS BASIC CABLE CENSORSHIP. THERE IS, HOWEVER, SOME PHALLIC IMAGERY.

[filius_angelorum]

Hasan, your "light switch" comment is mere ad populum fluff. Wrong populus, though.

We teach a particular lifestyle to be disordered because it is disordered. You call us bigots or worse because we believe this to be true. Life's tough all over. Here's the difference. When I say that someone is tempted by a disordered affection, I still love them, just like I love my students who have disordered affections for desert over their vegetables. Does the word 'bigot' contain any love? But if you have the right, because I believe something and act on it, or because I love men and want them to fulfill their purpose in life (which is holiness, not procreation or sex), then I would as soon be called a bigot by you as a friend. I pity the people for whom you are advocating here.

As for making relationships difficult, all it takes is a conversation with a practicing Catholic couple, or a Catholic whose wife or husband has abandoned them, and you realize that the indissolubility of marriage does not make things easy for anyone.

[4588686]

[quote name='filius_angelorum' timestamp='1333349409' post='2411753']
Hasan, your "light switch" comment is mere ad populum fluff. Wrong populus, though. [/QUOTE]







[size=4][i]Salus populi suprema lex esto[/i][/size]


[QUOTE] We teach a particular lifestyle to be disordered because it is disordered. You call us bigots or worse because we believe this to be true. Life's tough all over. Here's the difference. When I say that someone is tempted by a disordered affection, I still love them, just like I love my students who have disordered affections for desert over their vegetables. Does the word 'bigot' contain any love? But if you have the right, because I believe something and act on it, or because I love men and want them to fulfill their purpose in life (which is holiness, not procreation or sex), then I would as soon be called a bigot by you as a friend. I pity the people for whom you are advocating here.

[/QUOTE]

I didn't say you were a bigot. But being a 'bigot' as it is commonly (albeit, incorrectly) used is not antithetical to 'loving' the individuals towards whom the bigotry is directed. Go look up the National Review's defense of the institutionalized racism of the South under Jim Crow and I think you'll see what I'm talking about.

[QUOTE] As for making relationships difficult, all it takes is a conversation with a practicing Catholic couple, or a Catholic whose wife or husband has abandoned them, and you realize that the indissolubility of marriage does not make things easy for anyone.
[/quote]

Hm?

[XIX]

[quote name='Hasan' timestamp='1333341853' post='2411742']
If you're saying that you think that sexual categories are social constructions people will probably look at you funny as that's a pretty leftist assertion, at least historically. You'll probably get the same look if you announce that the inherent contradiction in capital accumulation will eventually bring down the tyranny of the bourgeoisie and in its place will emerge a proletarian dictatorship.
[/quote]
Anytime I mix "left" and "right," people usually look all confused. They look like dogs being shown a card trick.

For example, if I'm speaking with a Democrat, I might bring up torture as an example of another evil that's commonly accepted by many, even for the same reasons that abortion is accepted. Torture is still wrong, no matter how you rationalize it or what you call it. But by that time, people are confused that I agreed with conservatives and sided against conservatives in the same rant. At least, sometimes they are.

Edited April 2, 2012 by XIX