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timothy leary View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 04 2015 at 19:18
RayRo, welcome to the site. This site has it all, including warts. Probably we have folks on here who do not like gays. I would bet good money if someone stated they did not like gays on this thread they would be taken to task, even before you started the thread. PA is not some big family singing "We are the world" and PA is not the Westboro Baptist Church. Before we are a group we are individuals, so as one individual to another, welcome to PA, the best prog rock site on planet earth.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 04 2015 at 19:26
Originally posted by Triceratopsoil Triceratopsoil wrote:

In dozens of anonymous studies? no


Why does it matter to you what percentage of people are homosexuals anyway?  Surely it doesn't affect your own sexuality in the slightest.


Originally posted by GKR GKR wrote:

^ and this matters.... why...?


Because he asked.


You would be surprised. It actually matters a lot if such a study is done with face-to-face questioning or online questioning; in the latter case the percentages tend to be higher.

It doesn't matter to me at all. But I know that in Cologne, where I live, about 10% of the population is homosexual. Granted that Cologne is a city that attracts homosexuals because it is much more tolerated here. But if 2% of the German population is homosexual that is about 1.6 million people. And 100,000 of them live in Cologne? And  Berlin has a similar percentage, which means about 350,000 are homosexual there.. So if there really are only 1.6 million homosexual in Germany it would mean about 28% of them live in Berlin or Cologne. I sincerely doubt that.


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 04 2015 at 22:19
Originally posted by BaldFriede BaldFriede wrote:

Originally posted by Triceratopsoil Triceratopsoil wrote:

In dozens of anonymous studies? no


Why does it matter to you what percentage of people are homosexuals anyway?  Surely it doesn't affect your own sexuality in the slightest.


Originally posted by GKR GKR wrote:

^ and this matters.... why...?


Because he asked.


You would be surprised. It actually matters a lot if such a study is done with face-to-face questioning or online questioning; in the latter case the percentages tend to be higher.

It doesn't matter to me at all. But I know that in Cologne, where I live, about 10% of the population is homosexual. Granted that Cologne is a city that attracts homosexuals because it is much more tolerated here. But if 2% of the German population is homosexual that is about 1.6 million people. And 100,000 of them live in Cologne? And  Berlin has a similar percentage, which means about 350,000 are homosexual there.. So if there really are only 1.6 million homosexual in Germany it would mean about 28% of them live in Berlin or Cologne. I sincerely doubt that.


I mean, what we have is many many formal studies VS 1 person (ok, 2 people) saying that they definitely know better than everybody else who actually researched it

And actually it doesn't sound that outrageous to have a third of the adult homosexual population moving to the most gay-friendly cities in the country.  Why would they stay somewhere less tolerant?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 04 2015 at 23:25
Originally posted by Triceratopsoil Triceratopsoil wrote:

Originally posted by BaldFriede BaldFriede wrote:

Originally posted by Triceratopsoil Triceratopsoil wrote:

In dozens of anonymous studies? no


Why does it matter to you what percentage of people are homosexuals anyway?  Surely it doesn't affect your own sexuality in the slightest.


Originally posted by GKR GKR wrote:

^ and this matters.... why...?


Because he asked.


You would be surprised. It actually matters a lot if such a study is done with face-to-face questioning or online questioning; in the latter case the percentages tend to be higher.

It doesn't matter to me at all. But I know that in Cologne, where I live, about 10% of the population is homosexual. Granted that Cologne is a city that attracts homosexuals because it is much more tolerated here. But if 2% of the German population is homosexual that is about 1.6 million people. And 100,000 of them live in Cologne? And  Berlin has a similar percentage, which means about 350,000 are homosexual there.. So if there really are only 1.6 million homosexual in Germany it would mean about 28% of them live in Berlin or Cologne. I sincerely doubt that.


I mean, what we have is many many formal studies VS 1 person (ok, 2 people) saying that they definitely know better than everybody else who actually researched it

And actually it doesn't sound that outrageous to have a third of the adult homosexual population moving to the most gay-friendly cities in the country.  Why would they stay somewhere less tolerant?

You contradict yourself a bit, my friend. You say it does not surprise you that homosexuals would move to areas where homosexuality is more tolerated. This does of course mean that there are areas where it is not that tolerated.

This is exactly were socially desirable responding enters. People who live in areas where it is less tolerated are much less prone to answer truthfully to such a question. So there is always a number of unreported cases, a dunkelziffer. How big this dunkelziffer is can only be estimated.

It is the same when you ask women about being beaten up by their husbands, only in that case it is more obvious why they would not answer truthfully. Many homosexuals have still not come out of the closet yet because they fear disadvantages of some kind.

You may argue they need not fear in an anonymous study. But if you constantly live with that fear it becomes an automatism to deny it when you are asked about it. This is why I don't take any of these studies to hit the mark.

Interestingly female homosexuality seems to be somewhat more socially respected than male homosexuality these days. This has not always been the case. Back in the time when the church had much more influence male homosexuality was a very bad thing, but female homosexuality was absolutely unthinkable. A woman enjoying her sexuality without participation of a man was absolutely not de rigueur.


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 04 2015 at 23:59
Oh dear. This thread went south in a fu*king hurry. 

The thing about equality is ... everyone gets treated the same. That's kinda the point, the whole point and nothing but the point.
What?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 00:00
^ Nice try, Dean, but our RayRo won't have any of that.
"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought."   -- John F. Kennedy
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 00:04
It's clear to me now that we should all prepare our anoos(es) for a very long haul.
"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought."   -- John F. Kennedy
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 01:19
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Despite the many wonderful welcomes and encouraging answers I received in my other post asking if Gays and Lesbians are welcome in PA, as an openly gay man, I would have to say that I do not feel welcome.

Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
There were some glaring red flags that cropped up both within that post and externally.
Aside from the usual comedians (myself included) making jokes, the only eye-brow raising post I saw was from *someone* who gave the impression he only supported LGBT rights for political and anti-religious reasons but that was simply a case of "lost in translation". Until people support equality for all regardless of their own political or religious ideology then there never will be equality. LGBT rights should never have been a political issue nor should it ever be a religious issue, it is an apolitical, areligious issue. 
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
For example, there was not  a single mention of a LGBT discussion group existing in any of the peripheral Prog Archives "non music" forums. There were "threads" that discussed everything from the 2015 NFL season to a non ending "thread" on Libertarianism. But no "thread" discussing Gay and Lesbian rights and their political concerns. Why?
There is now, and the comedians will rip the piss out of it for a while because that's what we do. Not because we don't take the subject seriously, but because we cannot resist the humour in it.
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
There was also an instance of a longtime "collaborator" who mentioned that he was gay and was surprised that my question even came up. Again, I ask why?
Because that is not what defines who he is perhaps?
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
There also seemed, by the person's site name, of either an anonymous transsexual or transgender person. I could be wrong about this, but as an LGBTQ advocate, I have a lot of experience in these matters and have to go by an educated guess. And this broad based posture of anonymity is paramount to me.
Erm, do you mean Queen-by-tor? She's female, that is the be all and end all of it. That is not anonymity, quite the opposite. 

All people here are accepted as the gender they declare themselves to be.
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Prog Archives is not some bigoted discussion forum, but I feel that cultural norms and practices of the 20th Century, such welcoming gays but not actually discussing the "who, what, where and why's" is what is still dominant in the 21st Century for this site.
"Welcome Ray, why are you gay?" seems an awfully rude welcome to me.Tongue We discuss these things when they come up, if they come up, but frankly - when practically everyone here supports equality for all then what is there to discuss?

Try this: Yeah, I just got out of jail. We showed our support but what is there to discuss there? If Erin wanted to discuss LGBTQ rights there she could have, but she chose not to.
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

If PA wants to welcome Gays and Lesbians, it has to show more tolerance that simply saying we're welcome.
Positive discrimination (which is in essence what you are asking for) is only necessary to redress an imbalance caused by negative discrimination - the proper solution is to remove the negative, which is what we do here.



Edited by Dean - November 05 2015 at 01:21
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 04:24
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Despite the many wonderful welcomes and encouraging answers I received in my other post asking if Gays and Lesbians are welcome in PA, as an openly gay man, I would have to say that I do not feel welcome.
 
There were some glaring red flags that cropped up both within that post and externally.
 
For example, there was not  a single mention of a LGBT discussion group existing in any of the peripheral Prog Archives "non music" forums. There were "threads" that discussed everything from the 2015 NFL season to a non ending "thread" on Libertarianism. But no "thread" discussing Gay and Lesbian rights and their political concerns. Why?
 
There was also an instance of a longtime "collaborator" who mentioned that he was gay and was surprised that my question even came up. Again, I ask why?
 
There also seemed, by the person's site name, of either an anonymous transsexual or transgender person. I could be wrong about this, but as an LGBTQ advocate, I have a lot of experience in these matters and have to go by an educated guess. And this broad based posture of anonymity is paramount to me.
 
Prog Archives is not some bigoted discussion forum, but I feel that cultural norms and practices of the 20th Century, such welcoming gays but not actually discussing the "who, what, where and why's" is what is still dominant in the 21st Century for this site.
 
If PA wants to welcome Gays and Lesbians, it has to show more tolerance that simply saying we're welcome.
 
  
 
Hey SteveG,
 
is that your latest ploy to get around your suspension on this site??
 
To come back in through the back door (pun intendedWink) and camp as a gay dude?? Confused
 
That's lacking much classDead.... even wondering if this is not disrespectful to the LGBT community Angry
 
Even Svetonio wouldn't stoop that low!!! (hopefully)
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 05:39
Steve are suspended from the site?
- From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 06:07
Lets not take something so positive and change it into identity politics. Unhappy 
Music is what got us all together on here :) wit and humour is a bonus.
I enjoy it here, also talking to people with funny names and superhero avatar's. Big smile
 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 06:33
Originally posted by Kati Kati wrote:

identity politics. Unhappy


I agree that ALL THE TIME, it become boring, but LGBT as a political identity is important, even to adquire the basic rights.
- From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 06:34
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Despite the many wonderful welcomes and encouraging answers I received in my other post asking if Gays and Lesbians are welcome in PA, as an openly gay man, I would have to say that I do not feel welcome.
 
There were some glaring red flags that cropped up both within that post and externally.
 
For example, there was not  a single mention of a LGBT discussion group existing in any of the peripheral Prog Archives "non music" forums. There were "threads" that discussed everything from the 2015 NFL season to a non ending "thread" on Libertarianism. But no "thread" discussing Gay and Lesbian rights and their political concerns. Why?
 
There was also an instance of a longtime "collaborator" who mentioned that he was gay and was surprised that my question even came up. Again, I ask why?
 
There also seemed, by the person's site name, of either an anonymous transsexual or transgender person. I could be wrong about this, but as an LGBTQ advocate, I have a lot of experience in these matters and have to go by an educated guess. And this broad based posture of anonymity is paramount to me.
 
Prog Archives is not some bigoted discussion forum, but I feel that cultural norms and practices of the 20th Century, such welcoming gays but not actually discussing the "who, what, where and why's" is what is still dominant in the 21st Century for this site.
 
If PA wants to welcome Gays and Lesbians, it has to show more tolerance that simply saying we're welcome.


I find this whole thing rather pathetic and annoying. This is a site about progressive rock and I don't care for the sexual orientation of any of its forum members. If no one feels the need to discuss this, then let it be so ... and keep it that way. If you don't feel welcome because of this then there is a strange twist in your way of thinking, unless this is a way of pushing.
Moreover, some cultural norms and practises are not bad even though they can be dated to a century which ended a short 15 years ago.

Let me finish this off with an example of prog 'cause that's what this site is about:




Edited by someone_else - November 05 2015 at 06:36
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:04
Originally posted by Sean Trane Sean Trane wrote:

Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Despite the many wonderful welcomes and encouraging answers I received in my other post asking if Gays and Lesbians are welcome in PA, as an openly gay man, I would have to say that I do not feel welcome.
 
There were some glaring red flags that cropped up both within that post and externally.
 
For example, there was not  a single mention of a LGBT discussion group existing in any of the peripheral Prog Archives "non music" forums. There were "threads" that discussed everything from the 2015 NFL season to a non ending "thread" on Libertarianism. But no "thread" discussing Gay and Lesbian rights and their political concerns. Why?
 
There was also an instance of a longtime "collaborator" who mentioned that he was gay and was surprised that my question even came up. Again, I ask why?
 
There also seemed, by the person's site name, of either an anonymous transsexual or transgender person. I could be wrong about this, but as an LGBTQ advocate, I have a lot of experience in these matters and have to go by an educated guess. And this broad based posture of anonymity is paramount to me.
 
Prog Archives is not some bigoted discussion forum, but I feel that cultural norms and practices of the 20th Century, such welcoming gays but not actually discussing the "who, what, where and why's" is what is still dominant in the 21st Century for this site.
 
If PA wants to welcome Gays and Lesbians, it has to show more tolerance that simply saying we're welcome.
 
  
 
Hey SteveG,
 
is that your latest ploy to get around your suspension on this site??
 
To come back in through the back door (pun intendedWink) and camp as a gay dude?? Confused
 
That's lacking much classDead.... even wondering if this is not disrespectful to the LGBT community Angry
 
Even Svetonio wouldn't stoop that low!!! (hopefully)
I wondered if this might be the case.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:04
Originally posted by GKR GKR wrote:

Originally posted by Kati Kati wrote:

identity politics. Unhappy


I agree that ALL THE TIME, it become boring, but LGBT as a political identity is important, even to adquire the basic rights.
 
Yes it is a serious matter, these are basic human rights, equal rights for all, it's so frustrating and incomprehensible the injustice done to particular social groups.
People should stop imposing onto others their beliefs and instead mind their own business, we know this.
 
What I said earlier was not meant in an insensitive way, quite the contrary.
I don't want anyone to end up feeling alienated or others uncomfortable, made to feel like they need to walk on eggshells around here, thus our gender identity should not matter here.
 
Sexual orientation, on-the-other-hand now that's an interesting topic to me Big smileThumbs Up
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:13
Originally posted by Kati Kati wrote:

Originally posted by GKR GKR wrote:

Originally posted by Kati Kati wrote:

identity politics. Unhappy


I agree that ALL THE TIME, it become boring, but LGBT as a political identity is important, even to adquire the basic rights.
 
Yes it is a serious matter, these are basic human rights, equal rights for all, it's so frustrating and incomprehensible the injustice done to particular social groups.
People should stop imposing onto others their beliefs and instead mind their own business, we know this.
 
What I said earlier was not meant in an insensitive way, quite the contrary.
I don't want anyone to end up feeling alienated or others uncomfortable, made to feel like they need to walk on eggshells around here, thus our gender identity should not matter here.
 
Sexual orientation, on-the-other-hand now that's an interesting topic to me Big smileThumbs Up

you are welcome to visit us any time, Kati


A shot of me as High Priestess of Gaia during our fall festival. Ceterum censeo principiis obsta
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:20
I identify as unfathomably uncomfortable with myself.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:21
Originally posted by BaldJean BaldJean wrote:

Originally posted by Kati Kati wrote:

[QUOTE=GKR][QUOTE=Kati]

you are welcome to visit us any time, Kati
 
Thank you very much, BaldJean Heart Hug
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:27
Originally posted by Smurph Smurph wrote:

I identify as unfathomably uncomfortable with myself.
 
uncomfortable exploring yourself LOL you're funny.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: November 05 2015 at 07:45
Originally posted by Dean Dean wrote:

Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Despite the many wonderful welcomes and encouraging answers I received in my other post asking if Gays and Lesbians are welcome in PA, as an openly gay man, I would have to say that I do not feel welcome.

Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
There were some glaring red flags that cropped up both within that post and externally.
Aside from the usual comedians (myself included) making jokes, the only eye-brow raising post I saw was from *someone* who gave the impression he only supported LGBT rights for political and anti-religious reasons but that was simply a case of "lost in translation". Until people support equality for all regardless of their own political or religious ideology then there never will be equality. LGBT rights should never have been a political issue nor should it ever be a religious issue, it is an apolitical, areligious issue. 
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
For example, there was not  a single mention of a LGBT discussion group existing in any of the peripheral Prog Archives "non music" forums. There were "threads" that discussed everything from the 2015 NFL season to a non ending "thread" on Libertarianism. But no "thread" discussing Gay and Lesbian rights and their political concerns. Why?
There is now, and the comedians will rip the piss out of it for a while because that's what we do. Not because we don't take the subject seriously, but because we cannot resist the humour in it.
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
There was also an instance of a longtime "collaborator" who mentioned that he was gay and was surprised that my question even came up. Again, I ask why?
Because that is not what defines who he is perhaps?
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

 
There also seemed, by the person's site name, of either an anonymous transsexual or transgender person. I could be wrong about this, but as an LGBTQ advocate, I have a lot of experience in these matters and have to go by an educated guess. And this broad based posture of anonymity is paramount to me.
Erm, do you mean Queen-by-tor? She's female, that is the be all and end all of it. That is not anonymity, quite the opposite. 

All people here are accepted as the gender they declare themselves to be.
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

Prog Archives is not some bigoted discussion forum, but I feel that cultural norms and practices of the 20th Century, such welcoming gays but not actually discussing the "who, what, where and why's" is what is still dominant in the 21st Century for this site.
"Welcome Ray, why are you gay?" seems an awfully rude welcome to me.Tongue We discuss these things when they come up, if they come up, but frankly - when practically everyone here supports equality for all then what is there to discuss?

Try this: Yeah, I just got out of jail. We showed our support but what is there to discuss there? If Erin wanted to discuss LGBTQ rights there she could have, but she chose not to.
Originally posted by RayRo RayRo wrote:

If PA wants to welcome Gays and Lesbians, it has to show more tolerance that simply saying we're welcome.
Positive discrimination (which is in essence what you are asking for) is only necessary to redress an imbalance caused by negative discrimination - the proper solution is to remove the negative, which is what we do here.

nice try mister Dean, but my countryman wrote THIS [@topic "Are gays and lesbians are welcome at PA?" page2]:
 
Quote Svetonio wrote:
 
I am a heterosexual who, due to humanitarian, political and anti-religious reasons, strongly supports all of the demands of the LGBT community as well as giving the rights of gay couples to adopt children; actually, I support LGBT demands way strongly than many gays which I meet in the real life.
 
have a nice day!


Edited by Komandant Shamal - November 05 2015 at 07:48
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