Val

It makes for an interesting argument. I can see how some people might make the comparison considering the long history of prejudice and oppression towards symbols of the left . My thoughts on this is that the history of bigotry perpetrated against both groups is not wholly based on the idea that it is "foreign" to the perpetrators, rather it is based on pure bigotry. Let's call it what it is. The Catholic church used to call left handed people "servants of the devil" and the negative traditions carried out against lefties are as varied as the cultures that practice them. There are positive connotations associated with the left, wisdom being one(and of course the Sacred Feminine).

Sean

You are always going to run into complications when you assign positions to a whole group of people. I don't accept the premise that all straight people have a repugnance for gay people. Certainly many do and for a whole myriad of different reasons. My feeling is that any person who holds another whole group of people to a specific standard is both simple minded and probably allergic to logic and common sense. That is why I don't generally engage people in arguments about being gay. I feel that the type of people you are talking about aren't usually open to ideas that are new or foreign to them. However, there are those who argue that gay people are not "normal" because most people are straight, who would agree that you would not refer to left-handed people as abnormal, simply because they belong to a statistically smaller category on that one issue. It is not logical to extrapolate that a person is not "normal" because they don't share a particular characteristic with the greatest number of people. Otherwise you'd have a problem figuring out if a straight left handed person was abnormal, compared to a right handed gay person. I would suggest that gay people are not a deviation from the norm, but a variation of the norm.

Justin

The position that has been put forth to you makes no sense to me.

It is a generalized statement about all heterosexuals. Generalized statements about any particular group are invalid - including heterosexuals. No one should be demonizing heterosexuals as a group. It is imperative that we treat everyone as we would want to be treated. The Golden Rule applies universally.

It would be intellectually dishonest to say that all heterosexuals are mean or all heterosexuals are nice. It simply isn't so. Some are nice; some are mean just as it is true with any group of people based on some randomly selected category or label.

I'm sure somewhere in the world there are some heterosexuals who have feelings described by the position you mentioned - a repulsion against homosexuality on the basis that it is as unnatural to their being as, say, left-handedness. Personally, I don't know any. I'm comfortable on every level with each individual heterosexual who moves in my universe. I don't feel mistreated by any of them.

I think it is best to avoid generalizations or stereotypes whether they are positive or negative.

It is much more advisable to judge each person on an individual basis.

I certainly hope that I would never judge you on the basis of what any other heterosexual has done or said. You are not solely defined by your heterosexuality. You are your own, complete person who is more than just his sexuality. You deserve to have me treat you as such. I have human frailties as everyone does. I can fall short of my intentions, but I am always clear about the behavior for which I strive to achieve. May divine Love always be my guide.

Thank you much for your interesting question that piqued my interest greatly. I can tell that it has been weighing on your mind terribly, and I hope I have been able to alleviate any unsettling worry you needlessly may have had. It was very interesting to me that the position you and I both find very troubling derides left-handedness as an example. Personally, I have always found left-handedness on a man to be a very appealing physical characteristic that strongly draws me to a man. I very much pine for the pulchritude of a left-handed man. Ten extra points for all left-handed men!

Pax vobiscum, my dear reader.