What is gay?

So, I feel like I need to outline this destinction I have been thinking about.  To start, I will need to define some things.

order - a condition of logical arrangement among the seperate elements of a group. or in my own words, the way something should go based on logical deduction.

natural - conforming to the usual course of nature; free from affectation or inhibitions.

disorder – a lack of order; confusion

mental – of the mind

So, now on to the distinction I have been thinking about.  The natural order of sexuality is heterosexuality.  That is, it is the usual course of nature and makes logical sense since it leads to reproduction of the species.  So, with that in mind, what is homosexuality?  Well, if the natural order is heterosexuality, then anything not conforming to this by definition is disorder.  This is interesting since one of the definitions of disorder is confusion and we already use the word confused to describe people struggling with their sexuality. How should this be classified from here?  Well, sexual arousal is a result of either physical stimuli (such as stimulation of erogenous zones) or mental stimuli (such as visual or olfactory stimulation, or personal attraction).  The former can take place regardless of source (person, inanimate object, it doesn’t matter) but the latter only occurs in the brain.  All the differences between the ability for arousal from a specific sex or person versus from anything regardless of object occur in the brain.  Furthermore in Singer’s model of sexual arousal, the first stage of the process is an emotional reaction, also a mental response. So the difference in the capacity for physical attraction occur in the brain.  What about “Emotional Attraction?”  I don’t like this term because it can mean anything from a friendship attraction to a lover.  The lover is a combination of a strong emotional attraction and a physical attraction. To disregard one, is to ignore a level of attraction impossible without the other.  A sexual relationship (remember sexual arousal can be triggered even by inanimate objects) with somebody based solely on an emotional attraction is a perverted (incorrectly interpretted or misused) reaction to that emotion.  Also, again we are back to improper function in the brain.  This leads me to classify homosexuality as a mental disorder.  That being said, I cannot see this as a reason to treat these people any differently then anybody else, but it does help to understand what these people are dealing with. On that same note, this would be the only mental disorder that has a pride associated with it.  People are not proud of OCD, PTSD, social anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder.  I personally am slightly OCD.  I think homosexuality should be viewed no differently.  The next note to make after that is that at its “worst” (or people that are most affected), homosexuality poses no risk to those around the affected or even to themself.  The only case which would warrant special treatment is if the person posed a threat to themself or those around them and there just isn’t that case here.

Thoughts From the Office

So, I had an unfortunate almost embarrassing incident just a few moments ago and offer up what I have learned from said incident as advice for others moving forward.  If you work in an open office setting, anything where you can talk to other people while all sitting at your own desks, it would be a good idea to remove the headphones before trying to judge how loudly you are passing gas.  I may have just lucked out, as my coworkers were not at their desks, but I will definitely need to be more careful moving forward.   This may seem like a pretty obvious rule, however, you can never underestimate a person’s forgetfulness when sleepy.

God’s Food

So, I’ve recently come to the realization that God’s food is barbecue.

 

I love the stuff, but here is why I think this.  Is there any kind of meat that is not at its best when smoked or grilled?  There may be similarly good ways to prepare different types of meats however for each of these, none is better than when smoked.  And the best part is simple salt and pepper is plenty of seasoning to have great flavor when cooked this way. This makes it God’s food because these happen to be the most basic ways to cook and somehow still the best.  All you need is some wood to start a fire and some rock to heat up in the fire or something to suspend the meat a proper distance above the fire to cook this way.  So by my awesomely infallible logic that makes the most basic preparations of food the most tasty versions.  Almost no human advancement/ technology is needed to prepare these foods.  God put them here to be cooked in such a fashion so it must be His food.

 

I said all this to say that barbecue is my favorite food and I love it.

 

-Joey