Reader comments
Summit County to give gay couples benefits

How sad. Sexual orientation is not a perspective, it is a perversion, and legitimizing it only harms the deeply confused homosexual.

Gender identity is likewise not a perspective but a sickness, one that can and should be treated.

I know, I know, you 'progressives' (an oxymoron if I ever heard one) think I'm a hater, but I am not. It is not hateful to wish the sick to go see a doctor. It might be considered hateful, however, or at least ignorant, to tell the sick that they're not sick and prevent them from getting any help at all.

Anonymous, I will not call you a hater, but I will call you very un-educated. Most gays are not confused. Usually, there is a period in their lives when they deal with their different sexual orientation. When this thorough examination is complete, most gays are content with who they are and what they are.

BYU tried for decades to change gay volunteer students to be heterosexual. It failed miserably. In spite of diligent efforts by both the volunteers and administrators, less than .04% were changed. More students tried to commit suicide than changed.

You need to get to know some gays. Do not think that you can know or understand what they have experienced, nor what they now feel.

Come from a place of learning, rather than preaching. Try to see if your statements are true for the vast majority of gays. From my experience, they are not true.

Anonymous | 3:57 p.m:

I know that you believe that you are right, but I do not understand where you got the notion that your beliefs should deprive another law-abiding citizens of the United States the same privileges that you enjoy. Can you help me understand?

Are for the most part geared towards promoting family development. Benefits to spouses allows one parent (in most cases the mother) to stay home and take care of the children. Most if not all of the other "priveleges" you are supposedly denied are also somewhat geared towards helping protect and promote the traditional family. As homo-sexuals are in no way capable of having a traditional family, why should the be granted those benefits intended to benefit traditional families.

Call it what you will nature, god, evolution whatever. Human reproduction takes a male and a female. The concept of "family" and "marriage" centered on a male and a female banding together to create offspring and raising them together. As that is the primary means for human existence to continue it is deserving of special benefits and privileges. For those who choose to deviate from this path, I don't feel the need the same benefits. As their actions are no longer contributing to the continued existence of our species.

Anonymous | 3:57 p.m. June 4, 2009

Gays are not confused heterosexuals.

In fact, the only time I was confused is when people tried telling me that I was a heterosexual. That sends people with a message to go recover what's not to be gotten. It's not there.

However, it is people that hold to the notion that gays are confused heterosexuals that keeps the issue from being resolved.

I quote from NARTH, (The National Association for Research
and Therapy of Homosexuality,

"Homosexuality is probably the most misunderstood "sexual disorder."
Effective scientific study of homosexuality has been eroded by the gay/lesbian movement.
Human sexuality researchers have been intimidated into silence by a conspiracy.
"Social-activist groups...have portrayed sexual deviancy as an normal way of life."

There is no such thing as a homosexual person. We are all heterosexuals. Homosexuality is a description of a condition. It is not a description of the intrinsic nature of the person."
"Everyone is heterosexual. Some of you may have a homosexual problem. But you are still a heterosexual. 'Homosexual' is simply a description of a psychological disorder, prompted by an inner sense of emptiness.

Further,

NARTH continues,

"This, by the way, is non-religious, non-political information. This is scientific information."

Homosexuality "works against society's essential male-female design and family unit."
Homosexuality is caused by incompetent parenting an/or child sexual abuse: "The development of the male homosexual is basically someone who did not develop that strong sense of masculine identity and he is trying to fulfill that sense of masculine deficit by connecting with a man. But the only way he knows how to do it is sexually. What feels right and natural is the sex drive that is being displaced onto a person of the same sex for emotional needs."
Homosexuality is often caused by early sexual abuse.

Homosexuality is preventable in childhood and treatable in adulthood.
Most gays and lesbians can successfully convert to heterosexuality through reparative therapy."

These are the beliefs advanced by such people such as Dr. Nicolosi

On all these claims, the APA and numerous other agencies do not hold validity to any of them.

Running contrary to continued research through thirty years in this field, however, people that hold to the belief that reparative therapy can cure "problem" are actually creating a bigger problem.

The privileges we enjoy

You wrote,

"As homosexuals are in no way capable of having a traditional family, why should they be granted those benefits intended to benefit traditional families."

Are you saying that only traditional families are the intended beneficiaries of marriage benefits?

If so, you are badly mistaken, at so many levels.

Legal benefits extend beyond "traditional families" if you define a "traditional family" as a father, a mother, who never get divorced, and have children.

How many of those are there?

24% of families were traditional, according to that definition, in 2000.

The other 76%, never mind the gay population, was non-traditional, by those standards, and reaping benefits.

For example:

* single parents
* divorced parents
* foster parents
* relatives working as parents

At that, you have different scenarios following divorces ---

* parents remarrying and adopting the children of prior marriages, etc. etc.

Further, gays do have children, make believe a gay man marries a straight woman, they divorce, and gay man marries another man, you have children. Or the same for lesbian woman marrying straight man, etc.

Further, adoption and surrogacy --- the same as infertile heterosexual couples. And those couples reap benefits as well.

Re: The privileges we enjoy

Further, gays do not pose a threat to the extinction of the human species. Please look around.

6.7 billion of us in the world.

The human species has been around, depending on what spin you take, the scientific or the religious, either a few thousands years, or 200,000 years - take your pick.

For as long the human race has been around, the gay population has not stopped the human species not put a stop to the "traditional role of marriage."

I agree with Vince. Speaking of NARTH and their discredited reparative therapy doctrine....Its going to be interesting when Dr Nicolosi presents at the Evergreen International Conference at the Joseph Smith Building this September.

Can't wait to see the official media releases sanitizing that presentation.