Now they're all talking about it

As soon as I wrote about the Vatican hating gay men much more than lesbians, the world began to talk about this very subject. (And no, of course I don't think I had anything to do with it. Wingnuts think like that, not liberals.) Though they don't mention the Vatican, the idea being put forward in these articles is that gay men face discrimination more often than lesbians. This is true. Ask any gay man or lesbian and they'll confirm it.

The question is "why". I don't think it's mysterious. It's because straight men (and a huge number of women) think having a penis and being "manly" is what life is all about. Women are hangers-on, according to these folks. They're just not important when compared with the ever-popular, let's-all-sing-songs-about-him straight man, the creature to whom god gifted the universe.

Hatred enters the equation because a gay man, particularly an effeminate gay man, is seen as throwing away this "god-given gift" of straight manhood. How dare they?!

Of course, being gay isn't a choice any more than heterosexuality is. It's just the way you were born. But it's also true that a gay man who is comfortable with his sexuality doesn't care about being a straight man. It's not appealing in any way. Again, how dare they not want to be straight?!

The bad reactions are all about male privilege and a misunderstanding of sexual orientation -- that it's a choice rather than a fact. Straight men believe they are the only important creatures on this planet -- and deserving of respect simply for being straight men. To think that any males throw this gift away causes a testosterone rage to explode in their heads. "He doesn't want to be like me?! How dare this gay guy insult me like that?" Sigh.

So that's why gay men suffer discrimination: because our gayness is seen as purposely pissing raining on the fabulous, straight male parade. Oy.

The hijab: not just for Muslims?

This morning, I read an article in the NYT about Amra Babic, the hijab-wearing mayor of central Bosnian town of Visoko. This led me to read about the hijab in Wikipedia:

The Arabic word literally means curtain or cover (noun). Most Islamic legal systems define this type of modest dressing as covering everything except the face and hands in public. Some interpretations say that a veil is not compulsory in front of blind, asexual or gay men.

I found that last bit amusing. But it also made me think of Christian priests because the concept of hijab applies to men as well as women. The article states that "For men, hijab includes the wearing of modest clothing (not very attractive)." Combine this with the prescription to hide all but the face and hands in public, and you end up with a priest's cassock. Priests in hijab. This idea will stick with me.