Boy Scouts Voting Yes or No on Gays

[J epworth]

Originally Posted by T@T

A far as I know boy scouts are aged 11-13 years old, tell me again why a kid that age has to proclaim his sexuality, most aren't even threw puberty yet...do they even know their gay?

When did you know you were straight?

[T@T]

Originally Posted by J epworth kendal

When did you know you were straight?

To be honest I was with girls before I even knew what Gay was. I remember hating girls until about 12 or so I guess around puberty, but I grew up in a place and time where I never heard of it and being gay wouldn't have been a good option to go public with. The first gay I met was a pedophile who tried his stuff on me at about 15...I didn't turn out well for him.

Next time I met a gay guy was at 19 when I moved to Calgary.

Long story short, Over the years I went from "hate", to "yuk", to "whatever", to "trying to understand" about people being gay.

After this last year of gay this/gay that I think I'm reverting back to "whatever" floats your boat man I will treat everyone the same.

Let me ask a serious question, when does a gay person know their gay? Am I wrong in assuming it's about the time your sexual hormones kick in?

[MRCboicgy]

Originally Posted by T@T

Long story short, Over the years I went from "hate", to "yuk", to "whatever", to "trying to understand" about people being gay.

After this last year of gay this/gay that I think I'm reverting back to "whatever" floats your boat man I will treat everyone the same.

Let me ask a serious question, when does a gay person know their gay? Am I wrong in assuming it's about the time your sexual hormones kick in?

It's different, I mean look at Jason Collins (NBA) he really didn't realize it until after he graduated college, and didn't accept it until he was into his 30s. With me, I don't remember not being gay, it's just always been there and when it came time to start dating people, I only had eyes for guys and never considered even for one second doing anything with a girl.
I can't speak for the rest of the millions out there, but since hormones, environment, etc. make life confusing for even the most down to earth kid, so really it's never the same for anyone.

One thing I envy about a lot of the teenagers nowadays is that they can be much more open at school than I could have 10 years ago.

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by T@T

Let me ask a serious question, when does a gay person know their gay? Am I wrong in assuming it's about the time your sexual hormones kick in?

You already asked that and it's a useless question to answer, the answer changes for different people.

And I'd definitely say you're wrong in your assumption; case in point: me knowing when I was heterosexual. From the age of four or five years old, I chased girls, and when that whole "girls are stupid" part of growing up came around, I really wasn't a big fan of it. Did I know whether I was "gay" or "straight"? I had no concept of what the words meant, but I knew I liked girls and that's all that really matters. For some people, it's just a feeling that they're "different" that inevitably leads to them discovering their sexual orientation is different than others.

The important thing here is that it doesn't matter when they know. If they know, that should be fine and that's no reason to treat them any differently. Asking why a kid needs to proclaim their sexuality is an attempt to distract from the fact that - if their sexuality becomes known for any reason - they are discriminated against.

[OffsideSpecialist]

I've known I was gay since grade 5. I don't know how I remember that, but I just know it was grade 5, that's what, 10 years old I think?

The first time a person other than me knew was shortly after grade 12, when I was 18

[puckluck2]

Originally Posted by T@T

How many would know before puberty kicks in?

What does puberty have to do with knowing which sex you are attracted to?

[Devils'Advocate]

Originally Posted by T@T

A far as I know boy scouts are aged 11-13 years old, tell me again why a kid that age has to proclaim his sexuality, most aren't even threw puberty yet...do they even know their gay?

The "Boy Scouts Program" covers ALL subgroups including beavers, cubs, scouts and venture scouts (14 to 17). I would think many teens would know their sexual orientation before 17.

[chemgear]

Boy Scouts' Repeal Of Gay Ban Mirrors Its Approach To Racial Integration

http://www.npr.org/2013/01/30/170585...al-integration

For much of the early 20th century, the Scouts' national leadership did not endorse segregation or discrimination but still gave wide discretion to councils to set their own racial policies. Unsurprisingly, many chapters — especially in the segregated South — opted not to admit black Scouts. Some troops imposed long waiting periods before letting blacks join, while others allowed black boys to join but prohibited them from wearing uniforms. (Boy Scout officials in Richmond, Va., once even threatened to stage a public burning of Scout uniforms if black boys were permitted to wear them.) And while the first black troop was formed in 1911, just a year after the Boy Scouts' founding, it wasn't until decades later that many troops eased their rules on segregation, and not until 1974 when the aforementioned Old Hickory council — one of the last segregated Boy Scout councils — finally integrated.

[ben voyonsdonc]

Originally Posted by T@T

A far as I know boy scouts are aged 11-13 years old, tell me again why a kid that age has to proclaim his sexuality, most aren't even threw puberty yet...do they even know their gay?

I know a few people have jumped on T@T for this but it is a fair question. I didn't really know if I was gay at that age. I knew that I had some form of attraction towards guys but I really didn't know. I also had a pretty serious crush on a girl at that age. I haven't had one since though.

On the other hand, I've met a lot of guys who came out at super young ages (13-15).

Sexuality is pretty complex and everyone has a different experience.

[ben voyonsdonc]

BTW, I was a Cub. Now apparently...I'm more of an otter. At least that is what the gays say.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by gargamel

I think there would be the same concern about putting young teen homosexual boys in a tent together.

Totally. If they allow gays to join the Boy Scouts they might as well just change their name to "Gay Forest Orgy Club of America".

God forbid they start letting gay kids play hockey... they'll never get them out of the locker room and onto the ice!

[PsYcNeT]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

Totally. If they allow gays to join the Boy Scouts they might as well just change their name to "Gay Forest Orgy Club of America".

What if they're not attracted to each other? Gay dudes have standards too.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by PsYcNeT

What if they're not attracted to each other? Gay dudes have standards too.

I was hoping it was over the top enough to show I was being sarcastic.

Most situations that have left me alone with someone of the opposite sex my age haven't led to sexual encounters. I'm pretty sure the kids can make it through a few camping trips having a good time without boning each other.

[PsYcNeT]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

I was hoping it was over the top enough to show I was being sarcastic.

Most situations that have left me alone with someone of the opposite sex my age haven't led to sexual encounters. I'm pretty sure the kids can make it through a few camping trips having a good time without boning each other.

Poe's law man. There are people on this forum that truly believe that gay people have no self control.

[YYC in LAX]

Question:

Is referring to homosexuals as "gays" politically incorrect?

[gargamel]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

Most situations that have left me alone with someone of the opposite sex my age haven't led to sexual encounters.

How often were you allowed to spend unsupervised nights with your preferred gender when you were a teen? Maybe my parents were just prudes, but I never was allowed to.

Originally Posted by PsYcNeT

Poe's law man. There are people on this forum that truly believe that gay people have no self control.

I hope you're not referring to me, because self-control has nothing to do with what I'm talking about. Two 13 year olds who are attracted to each other would have nothing that they would need to control, but their parents may wish to stop them from doing anything out of a belief that 13 is too young for anyone to be sexually active, whether they're straight or not.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by gargamel

How often were you allowed to spend unsupervised nights with your preferred gender when you were a teen? Maybe my parents were just prudes, but I never was.

How do you know they are unsupervised? Maybe they are in 8 man tents and a leader is in each tent.

You know that gay doesn't equal promiscuous, right?

[gargamel]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

How do you know they are unsupervised? Maybe they are in 8 man tents and a leader is in each tent.

You're right, I don't know, and I did say earlier in this thread that it wouldn't be an issue if there is an adult in every tent. I was just trying to make the point that allowing unsupervised teens who may be attracted to each other to spend the night together could be a concern of any parent, and that we're better off trying to have a dialog to address legitimite concerns rather that just talking down to our opponents.

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

You know that gay doesn't equal promiscuous, right?

Of course, but the fact that not all straight people are promiscuous either doesn't mean that parents should allow straight teenage boys and girls to sleep together.

[Street Pharmacist]

I think it's absurd to ban gays from the Scouts, but Gargamels concern is valid. There is an additional concern by allowing cosleeping at camp outs. It's a minor one, but valid.

The proof is in this question:

Would the scouts be allowed by their parents to cosleep with brownies?

I would strongly suspect no

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by gargamel

How often were you allowed to spend unsupervised nights with your preferred gender when you were a teen? Maybe my parents were just prudes, but I never was allowed to.

You sound like my mom who assumed sex could only happen at night. There were always plenty of opportunities to be alone with girls after school, during the day on weekends when your parents were out, that isn't what keeps most kids from getting down to business.

It's the lack of booze.