Gay Adoption: Yay or Nay?

[TheOmegaCode]

As long as the environment was fruitfull for the kid, who cares? There are too many instances of kids being abandoned/orphaned.

 

[luv2chill]

All I can say is try really hard to put yourself in the place of some 8-year-old kid being tossed from foster home to foster home. You've been passed over for adoption by "normal" couples all your life because you aren't "cute" enough or you're black or have a disability. With each year that passes the chance that someone will want to love you grows smaller.

Say one day out of the blue your current foster parents tell you that a couple with two mommies/two daddies wants to adopt you as their own son/daughter. It's up to you though whether you want to be adopted by them or not. What do you choose?

If you honestly would choose to remain an orphan then there's something wrong with you. Who doesn't want to be loved? It's a basic human need for crying out loud.

The "but they'll be teased" argument is ludicrous.

If more kids are adopted by gay parents it will cease to be so unusual and the kids will find themselves with less motive to tease a kid--espeically when they figure out that having gay parents doesn't make a person gay. Notice how most of today's generation doesn't discriminate against black people anymore? It's because blacks were integrated into "white" culture some decades ago. Once something is familiar enough to people, they'll stop fearing it. And being the geeks that we are, we all know these famous words - "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering!"

You don't want kids of gay parents to be teased? Then make friends with a gay person. Teach your OWN children (not just in words but in actions) that it's NOT OK to put someone down because they're gay (or for any other reason). Do your part to help integrate gays in with society. Don't marginalize them--that's a hopeless battle because they're just aren't going away despite society's best efforts to put them out of sight and out of mind.

Meanwhile there are all these unadopted kids living life without parents.

Think about that next time your mom makes you dinner or your dad gives you your allowance.

Compare a little childhood taunting (who ISN'T a victim of that at some point in their life?) to a lifetime without parents.

l2c

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: ffmcobalt

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: ffmcobalt

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: Gr1mL0cK
Nay. Unfortunately, I am very very very stubborn and hold my beliefs until someone disproves it outright. Out of the gay people I've encountered in high school, trust me, you would vote nay also. There aren't many gay people in Orange County so that doesn't help either... Until I find a gay person who I can find reasonable and cool enough to me, I will have to vote nay. Not saying all gay people are like this... but until I meet one that changes my mind....

I feel the same way about black people.

Hey, I think I see Bruce Willis from Lethal Weapon 4

In LW4, Bruce Willis was required by the film's antagonist to stand naked on a street corner in Harlem wearing a sandwich board that said "I hate awesome people"

just a quick reference to see if anyone would pick it up. I guess it's not all that funny :-\

nik

It especially wasn't funny because it wasn't Lethal Weapon 4, it was Die Hard: With A Vengence.

That's what I get for being so tired. Man, I really screwed the pooch on this one, didn't I.

nik

 

[Dragnov]

Originally posted by: ffmcobalt

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: Gr1mL0cK
Nay. Unfortunately, I am very very very stubborn and hold my beliefs until someone disproves it outright. Out of the gay people I've encountered in high school, trust me, you would vote nay also. There aren't many gay people in Orange County so that doesn't help either... Until I find a gay person who I can find reasonable and cool enough to me, I will have to vote nay. Not saying all gay people are like this... but until I meet one that changes my mind....

I feel the same way about black people.

Hey, I think I see Bruce Willis from Lethal Weapon 4

Although I have no idea what you're talking about... are you suggesting that I hate gay people? Are you suggesting that I want to ship them off to an island? The answers to those questions is "no". However, I'm still uncomfortable with gay people and therefore still uncomfortable with them adopting children. Why? Because of my experiences with gay people so far... LIke I said, I highly doubt every single gay person is like the people I have met so far, but until I become more comfortable with the notion, its a nay for me...

Geez, I forgot how unsucessfully witty/funny some ATOT members try to be.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Gr1mL0cK

Although I have no idea what you're talking about... are you suggesting that I hate gay people? Are you suggesting that I want to ship them off to an island? The answers to those questions is "no". However, I'm still uncomfortable with gay people and therefore still uncomfortable with them adopting children. Why? Because of my experiences with gay people so far... LIke I said, I highly doubt every single gay person is like the people I have met so far, but until I become more comfortable with the notion, its a nay for me...

Geez, I forgot how unsucessfully witty/funny some ATOT members try to be.

Think about this for a second. You would think to limit the freedom of others, because you are unfamilar or uncomfortable with them?

Finally, each time we have this debate, I ask for a valid, reproduced and peer reviewed study showing ANY increased incidence of mental or physical illness in children raised by gay parents. There has not been a single one. How can you limit a freedom, if you can't even prove harm?

 

[dszd0g]

Strong yay. I believe there is still way too much predjudice in this country. I was shocked when I saw that the current vote is even [Edit, now 43 yay, 45 nay -- even worse]. I would have thought that geeks would be more educated than the average population. Most of the gays I know are the nicer people I know. A good friend of mine had a very difficult time telling us that he was gay, because he thought we would shun him or something. When he told us, we all said, so?

I think if the parents provide a loving environment, then that is just what this child needs. In addition, I believe that a child raised by gay parents should have less predjudice then the average child, which is a good thing. I think that a child with gay parents may get teased. However, Jewish kids experience predjudice in schools. African American kids experience predjudice in schools. Do we claim that these groups should not be able to have kids (If you say yes, you really need to take some councelling over your predjudice)? The more diversity our children grow up with the more they will accept it as adults.

These anti-gay laws are tearing families aparts. A gay friend of mine forwarded Let Him Stay to me a few weeks ago.

Those of us in California need to keep an eye on Bill Simon, he seems heavily backed by the right wing. I listened to him on the radio earlier this week and his stand against gay rights makes me sick. Gray Davis (while quite corrupt overall) has done a good job many things.

The person that posted that he does not believe that many gays exist in Orange county is living in his own world, and it isn't the real one. He might even has some friends that are gay, but don't tell him because they think he will hate them for it.

We need to unconditionaly support our fellow Americans, no matter their race, religion, gender, or sexual preference. If you don't make the stand against another group's oppression, sooner or later you will be oppressed. That is the cycle of history. Our country is scaring me right now on their singling out of Muslims. John Ashcroft has been holding US citizens he labels "enemy combatants" without trial and has proposed before Congress that he and President Bush should be given the right to label any citizen an "enemy combatant" and have that person's Constitutional rights taken away. John Ashcroft has already started construction at a navy brig for holding 20 US citizens labeled "enemy combatants." Some media is calling the place a "camp" although I believe that is a slight stretch. Either way this Bush administration is really scaring me.

 

[Berxerkly]

Its dead even now. sad the bigotry that still exists in america.

I'm uncomfortable and a host of other unprovable or already disproven notions are sorry reasons for opposition.

 

[pulse8]

Originally posted by: Gr1mL0cK

Originally posted by: ffmcobalt

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: Gr1mL0cK
Nay. Unfortunately, I am very very very stubborn and hold my beliefs until someone disproves it outright. Out of the gay people I've encountered in high school, trust me, you would vote nay also. There aren't many gay people in Orange County so that doesn't help either... Until I find a gay person who I can find reasonable and cool enough to me, I will have to vote nay. Not saying all gay people are like this... but until I meet one that changes my mind....

I feel the same way about black people.

Hey, I think I see Bruce Willis from Lethal Weapon 4

Although I have no idea what you're talking about... are you suggesting that I hate gay people? Are you suggesting that I want to ship them off to an island? The answers to those questions is "no". However, I'm still uncomfortable with gay people and therefore still uncomfortable with them adopting children. Why? Because of my experiences with gay people so far... LIke I said, I highly doubt every single gay person is like the people I have met so far, but until I become more comfortable with the notion, its a nay for me...

Geez, I forgot how unsucessfully witty/funny some ATOT members try to be.

You want to limit the freedom of some people because you are ignorant? That has to be the lamest excuse against gay adoption I've ever heard. Even the religious reasons some use are more credible because at least they believe in something. You're completely unaware and rather than gain that knowledge or give gays the benefit of the doubt, you generalize and cast a shadow on an entire group of people because you're "uncomfortable." Why don't you tell that kid who doesn't have a family that the reason he doesn't have loving parents (regardless of their sex) is because YOU'RE uncomfortable.

 

[Jfur]

My friends (two women) adopted a son this year, and I assure you they are wonderful parents

 

[eplebnista]

Originally posted by: Spoooon
Yay.

 

[Rob9874]

I won't get into whether homosexuality is right or wrong. But I think when two homosexual parents raise a child, that is a very biased environment, which the child will undoubtedly have a different lifestyle than if he were adopted by heterosexual parents. He will be ridiculed by other children. He may have more confusion about his own sexuality, that will primarily stem from his exposure to homosexual parents, and may not have surfaced naturally. I think it's just a bad idea in general. Why put an innocent child through that when they have no choice?

 

[gopunk]

Originally posted by: Rob9874
I won't get into whether homosexuality is right or wrong. But I think when two homosexual parents raise a child, that is a very biased environment, which the child will undoubtedly have a different lifestyle than if he were adopted by heterosexual parents. He will be ridiculed by other children. He may have more confusion about his own sexuality, that will primarily stem from his exposure to homosexual parents, and may not have surfaced naturally. I think it's just a bad idea in general. Why put an innocent child through that when they have no choice?

may not have surfaced naturally?

you're not "putting" the child through anything... you're giving them a loving family that will support and take care of them.

all these "what ifs" are sort of silly. children from any background are at risk for the behavior you describe. i got ridiculed by other children for being chinese, should my parents not have had me? instead of focusing on the symptoms, perhaps we should focus on the cause of these problems. maybe we should teach children not to ridicule other children for having gay parents.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Rob9874
I won't get into whether homosexuality is right or wrong. But I think when two homosexual parents raise a child, that is a very biased environment, which the child will undoubtedly have a different lifestyle than if he were adopted by heterosexual parents. He will be ridiculed by other children. He may have more confusion about his own sexuality, that will primarily stem from his exposure to homosexual parents, and may not have surfaced naturally. I think it's just a bad idea in general. Why put an innocent child through that when they have no choice?

Nice fantasy, but it has no basis in fact. Not one valid, peer reviewed study has shown any mental or physical abnormalities in children raised by gay parents.

Until one does I see no reason to deny a freedom to a group of people, simply because you suffer from an "uncomfortable" feeling.

 

[dszd0g]

Originally posted by: AmusedOne

Originally posted by: Rob9874
I won't get into whether homosexuality is right or wrong. But I think when two homosexual parents raise a child, that is a very biased environment, which the child will undoubtedly have a different lifestyle than if he were adopted by heterosexual parents. He will be ridiculed by other children. He may have more confusion about his own sexuality, that will primarily stem from his exposure to homosexual parents, and may not have surfaced naturally. I think it's just a bad idea in general. Why put an innocent child through that when they have no choice?

Nice fantasy, but it has no basis in fact. Not one valid, peer reviewed study has shown any mental or physical abnormalities in children raised by gay parents.

Until one does I see no reason to deny a freedom to a group of people, simply because you suffer from an "uncomfortable" feeling.

Furthermore, Rob9874 is using the fallacy that gay people are somehow contagious. This has been shown to be false time and time again.

I would be much more concerned with children being raised biased in his household than in a gay couple's.

 

[BlueApple]

Those that say no because they would be teased and ridiculed are right. They will be teased and ridiculed by those that make this futile, unsupported argument.

And those that say it would be better not for them to be adopted because they might turn out ?bad? or ?messed up?, I gather many of you have never met one who grew up in an orphanage.

Last point here. I have a friend who was adopted by a lesbian coupe (interracial too) when he was five. Both from what I have observed from being at his house and school, in addition to talking to him about it, he has grown up as anyone else would have. He has had his girlfriend for almost a year ad a half now, just graduated valedictorian with a 4.06 GPA, and is at his second year at Penn State.

 

[Jfur]

I grew up near a gay bar (S.S. Friendship) and seeing those gay men dancing as I walked by each day made me CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAVE male flesh! I also like to play pool.