Cyprus-Forum.com

[Get Real!]

What I'm saying is that sexual attraction isn't as simple as on and off, 1 and 0, right or wrong in other words a simple two state system but rather has a very wide range of values from straight through bisexuality to gay and it's down to each individual to choose where they lie on that line and they must be able to make that choice without societal pressures.

Naturally, someone like GR lies on the far left (straight side) of that continuum and that is where probably most people claim to feel they comfortably belong.

Aaahh ... is it a choice? Nature or nurture?

I think a gene has been isolated which is predominant in gay men ....

I heard about that! Wasn’t that isolated as the… Fagouras Kollaras gene?

[bill cobbett]

What I'm saying is that sexual attraction isn't as simple as on and off, 1 and 0, right or wrong in other words a simple two state system but rather has a very wide range of values from straight through bisexuality to gay and it's down to each individual to choose where they lie on that line and they must be able to make that choice without societal pressures.

Naturally, someone like GR lies on the far left (straight side) of that continuum and that is where probably most people claim to feel they comfortably belong.

Aaahh ... is it a choice? Nature or nurture?

I think a gene has been isolated which is predominant in gay men ....

I heard of some controversial genetic research a few years ago by a group which was presenting ( according to the frenzy in the papers ) their findings as a first step in a "cure for gayness".

Nature/nurture I don't know, but where human choice certainly does come in to it is when people have the courage to choose to make a public declaration of thier sexuality. Very brave (imo).

[Oracle]

"Is There a 'Gay Gene'?

New Genetic Regions Associated With Male Sexual Orientation Found

WebMD Health NewsJan. 28, 2005

- The genes a man gets from his mother and father may play an important role in determining whether he is gay or not, according to a new study likely to reignite the "gay gene" debate.

Researchers say it's the first time the entire human genetic makeup has been scanned in search of possible genetic determinants of male sexual orientation. The results suggest that several genetic regions may influence homosexuality.

"It builds on previous studies that have consistently found evidence of genetic influence on sexual orientation, but our study is the first to look at exactly where those genes are located," says researcher Brian Mustanski, PhD, a psychologist at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Those previous studies looked only at the genes located on the X chromosome. Genes on this chromosome are only passed to a son from his mother. But this study examined genetic information on all chromosomes, including genes from the father.

The findings show that identical stretches of DNA on three chromosomes were shared by about 60% of gay brothers in the study compared to the about 50% normally expected by chance.

Gay Gene Debate
A heated debate over the existence of a "gay gene" emerged from a 1993 report published in the journal Science by then-NIH researcher Dean Hamer, PhD. That study linked DNA markers on the X chromosome to male sexual orientation.

Since then, questions arose regarding the validity of those results. Other researchers are attempting to replicate and verify Hamer's findings. Hamer is also senior author of the current study, which appears in the March issue of Human Genetics.

But researchers say this study takes a different approach. Its goal was not to replicate those findings but to search for new genetic markers associated with male sexual orientation.

"Since sexual orientation is such a complex trait, we're never going to find any one gene that determines whether someone is gay or not," says Mustanski. "It's going to be a combination of various genes acting together as well as possibly interacting with environmental influences."

Previous studies in male twins have suggested that between 40%-60% of the variability in sexual orientation is due to genes. The rest is thought to be due to environment and possibly other biologic but nongenetic causes.

Search for Gay Genes
In the study, researchers analyzed the genetic makeup of 456 men from 146 families with two or more gay brothers.

The genetic scans showed a clustering of the same genetic pattern among the gay men on three chromosomes -- chromosomes 7, 8, and 10. These common genetic patterns were shared by 60% of the gay men in the study. This is slightly more than the 50% expected by chance alone.

The regions on chromosome 7 and 8 were associated with male sexual orientation regardless of whether the man got them from his mother or father. The regions on chromosome 10 were only associated with male sexual orientation if they were inherited from the mother."

I don't think finding a gene for reflecting "gayness" should be viewed merely as a "curative" ... it's like saying finding the gene for brown eyes can be used to cure you so that you can have blue eyes ....

[bill cobbett]

I would join with anyone who condemns the ideas that homosexuality is an illness and further that it is treatable. Outrageous views.

[Oracle]

I would join with anyone who condemns the ideas that homosexuality is an illness and further that it is treatable. Outrageous views.

I agree completely with you bill c.

I think there must be a gene for "logic" which we have as the dominant form ....

[bill cobbett]

I would join with anyone who condemns the ideas that homosexuality is an illness and further that it is treatable. Outrageous views.

I agree completely with you bill c.

I think there must be a gene for "logic" which we have as the dominant form ....

Simple logic is telling me that tomorrow's another day. Where the hell are those bleeding trs? It's so boring without them.

[Eliko]

Naturally, someone like GR lies on the far left (straight side) of that continuum and that is where probably most people claim to feel they comfortably belong.

Therefore, as a 'Democracy' may we have a little less clamour from the minority ?.

Not really I'm afraid Eliko. We have to be wary of what I have heard called the tyranny of the majority. Some people would add that a democracy is best assessed by the way it treats its minorities.

Taking note of what you say regarding the treatment of minorities in a democracy and relying on the fact that the 'Halls of Power' are known to be well represented by those with homosexual tendencies, I would suggest that they are being very well treated.

More worrying, is the fact that homosexuality is seemingly being encouraged (for lack of a finer description) to such an extent that even the literal translation of 'Marriage' is being distorted in order to accommodate their feelings.

Homosexuality exists, we ALL know it, MOST have come to accept it, what do those who practice it's tenets seek to achieve further than that which they already have ?.

I have no problem with dealing with THEIR preferences, it seems that the crux uf the matter now lies with THEIR inability (or unwillingness) to deal with OURS.

I just wish it was not so 'In the face' all the time (as I have said previously).

[Agios Ionas]

it's like saying finding the gene for brown eyes can be used to cure you so that you can have blue eyes ....

Blue eyes are actually the result of a genetic mutation. So I guess those of us with blue/green/grey eyes are the ones who need to be cured. Not the healthy brown eyed people.

[Feisty]

I agree with Eliko and Get Real who both appear to me to accept that gays exist and accept their right to make a civil union?
Neither agree that they should be married in the traditional sense of the word which I wholeheartedly agree too. If marriage protects children as some say then as it is impossible for a gay partnership to have children naturally it therefore follows no need for marriage.
Basic religious principles should not be changed to accomodate such. In my opinion.

[Eliko]

For example today I was reading about a case of a 29 year old Syrian who had sex with a 15 year old, with her consent. The Syrian is considered a criminal now. I remember several years ago I was listening the radio and they announced the marriage of two enclaved people from Rizokarpaso. The man was 30 and his wife was 15. How could that marriage, a life long commitment, be acceptable and even blessed by the church, but the case of the Syrian and the 15 year old girl be considered a crime?

Piratis, I think the above is rather a poor case for comparison and I will explain why (if I may make so bold).

In the case of the Syrian, it may well be that he fell foul of the law, in that, regardless of the matter of consent, he should not have taken advantage (if that is how the laws of Syria view the matter) of one below the age of consent (again, if that BE the law) of that nation.

If he broke the law and it is considered a criminal offence, then he is rightly described as a criminal.

In the case of the marriage, if the ceremony was conducted in accordance with the laws governing civil and ecclesiastical conduct (I suspect parental consent would be a consideration here) then no law has been broken and the marriage is deserving of the blessings it received.

Whether or not we may have opinions outside of the two examples is a moot point, I personally think that whereas one can sympathize with the Syrian (which I do) one cannot condemn the marriage (which I do not).

In my humble opinion of course.