Tim Cook: "I'm Proud To Be Gay" 764
An anonymous reader writes Apple CEO Tim Cook has publicly come out as gay. While he never hid his sexuality from friends, family, and close co-workers, Cook decided it was time to make it publicly known in the hopes that the information will help others who don't feel comfortable to do so. He said, "I don't consider myself an activist, but I realize how much I've benefited from the sacrifice of others. So if hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it's worth the trade-off with my own privacy."
Cook added that while the U.S. has made progress in recent years toward marriage equality, there is still work to be done. "[T]here are laws on the books in a majority of states that allow employers to fire people based solely on their sexual orientation. There are many places where landlords can evict tenants for being gay, or where we can be barred from visiting sick partners and sharing in their legacies. Countless people, particularly kids, face fear and abuse every day because of their sexual orientation."
Cook added that while the U.S. has made progress in recent years toward marriage equality, there is still work to be done. "[T]here are laws on the books in a majority of states that allow employers to fire people based solely on their sexual orientation. There are many places where landlords can evict tenants for being gay, or where we can be barred from visiting sick partners and sharing in their legacies. Countless people, particularly kids, face fear and abuse every day because of their sexual orientation."
Gay? (Score:3, Funny)
So he isn't sad?
Neither would I be with that income stream and position of power.
Re: (Score:2, Insightful)
he's sad he can't poach more couture company VPs. Apple has become a jewelry company for the 3-percenters. and indentures as many H1-B holders as possible to do it.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Interesting)
You can grouse if you want, but the fact is that the whole "proud" strategy has gotten them pretty damn far. Eventually it will be anachronistic, but it's been pretty successful to date. It wasn't so long ago that it was socially acceptable to beat the holy hell of them, and now most states recognize their marriage. Amazing.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Informative)
In the UK homosexual sex was a crime punishable by imprisonment up until the 1960s. Even those who refrained from sex were often forced to take medication or undergo "procedures" to "correct" their behaviour.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
In the UK homosexual sex was a crime punishable by imprisonment up until the 1960s. Even those who refrained from sex were often forced to take medication or undergo "procedures" to "correct" their behaviour.
Notably including Alan Turing [wikipedia.org], who was chemically castrated with synthetic estrogen, and eventually committed suicide. I am glad to read that he was formally (royally) pardoned at the end of last year. I cannot imagine who thought castration was an appropriate response, especially given the long traditions of "rum, sodomy, and the lash" in the British Navy, but I suppose one must make allowances for the past, even if it is within living memory.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
Not sure where you live, but I wasn't brought up to think it was acceptable to "beat the holy hell" out of anyone. Well, maybe in self-defense.
Not sure where you live, but you might want to look into the history of gay rights and the general abuse meted out.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
You know, I guess the movies might say otherwise, but it was never okay to beat up sissies, once you've grown up.
Take it from somebody who was there, deep in the south, long ago.
It's not pandering -- it's rejection. (Score:5, Insightful)
You're entirely missing the point. There are many people who feel that gay == shameful, the direct implication being that they want gay folk to feel ashamed. Proud is an in-their-face declaration that they are not ashamed.
That's all it is.
It's the same for any aspect of life for which there are detractors; some people think geekery is a bad thing; hence "geek and proud." Some people think prostitution is a bad thing; hence "sex worker and proud", and so on for a long list of "your prejudices do not define me" issues.
It's a very natural -- and correct -- reaction to a society where people are encouraged to coerce others into specific behavioral channels without regard for the consent or interest of those others.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
In an enlightened, equal world, people who say things like "I'm proud to be gay" as if an accident of birth was something of note would get the exactly same reaction as people who say things like "I'm proud to be white" or "I'm proud to be male".
I'm pretty sure we're not quite there yet.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Interesting)
No, but we're getting there. Like with race: The true end of that campaign can be declared not when the country has a black president, but when no-one notices.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
Half black president. He was raised by his white mother. To call him black is just wrong on many levels. I don't care, I voted for him because I hated Sarah Palin not be cause I wanted a 'black' president.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
Being Gay is still technically "abnormal" (Score:3, Insightful)
So approximately 10% of the population is homosexual, therefore, "abnormal" is a proper term to use to describe people that are homosexuals.
Note that mensa members are abnormal, so are people that make more than $100,000 year. It's not a necessarily a derogatory term, it actually a proper factual description.
Yeah, posting to slashdot is definitely "abnormal" too since most people don't even know what slashdot is.
Re: (Score:3)
If you look up the definition of abnormal in a dictionary, such as this one [merriam-webster.com] or this one [thefreedictionary.com]. You get definitions like: ": different from what is normal or average : unusual especially in a way that causes problems" or "Not typical, usual, or regular; not normal; deviant. odd in behaviour or appearance; strange". So even if the word has a sense as you indicate, other senses of the word are pejorative.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Interesting)
Says the guy who's plainly never been part of a despised minority treated as second-class citizens simply because of how you were born.
Well. I say that and then remember that some black folks old enough to remember Jim Crow still think that it's OK to treat gays like second-class citizens, because religion.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
He's saying he's "proud" rather than "ashamed" -- because unfortunately, many people still think that being gay is something to be ashamed of. They believe that being gay is somehow a sign of moral failing as opposed to what it is: a normal human characteristic.
"Gay Pride" parades are about that very idea, and have been for decades. When you see someone wearing a shirt on St. Patrick's Day that says, "Proud to be Irish", do you assume they're claiming superiority to you in some way? Of course not. It's the same thing.
Clearly you do care, or you wouldn't have bothered to post. Unfortunately, all you did with your post is attempt to frame his use of the word "proud" in an incorrect and unflattering light. I'm not sure why that was so important to you.
To me, it's still amazing that a person can declare their *hatred* for certain religions or ethnicities and many people will feel that it's socially acceptable, but declaring your *love* for another adult can still have serious social and financial repercussions. So in my book he's doing something brave, and that's something to be proud of too.
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't see why it should be a reason to be "proud". Gay is the way he is rather than something he has chosen but it does not confer some form of superiority on him. If he was a paedeophile though, that definitely *would* be a reason to be "unproud".
Whatever, see if I care.
Well you do seem to care enough to make a point about not caring.
You also manage to put the words 'gay' and 'paedeophile' close together in your comment, which is a glib and common association make by people who at best, are ill-informed. There are so many things one could be 'not proud of' and you picked one likely to cause offense to gay men..
For me, 'gay pride' is a reaction to the predudices of others. I was told, as a kid, I should be ashamed of myself for being gay. I was physically intimidated and attacked, because the physical, sexual love I wanted to experience was different to most. I was bullied at school. My parents were fearful of stigma which would be attached to them for having a gay child. I felt noone I knew approved of me and I was ashamed.
My 'gay pride' comes from mostly getting through all that and becoming a successful human being, and for helping others by campaigning and lobbying for change to make life better for similar poeple. Standing up and saying something helps other people overcome their fears. Tim Cook, is heard around the world, in Kenya, perhaps, where recent regressive laws are resulting in violence and murder of gay men.
-R
Re:Gay? (Score:5, Interesting)
There is nothing wrong with having a sexual orientation, no matter what it is.
Acting upon it can be bad.
Btw, Pedophiliacs are the only one of those three which is a sexual orientation, and a very sad one at that.
You can only romantically love pre-pubescents.
That is terribly sad.
Raping children is horrible though and is entirely separate.
Bestiality is the act of having sex with animals.
I believe you are looking for the term zoofiliacs, which is, just like Pedophiles, very sad.
And raping animals is a complex issue, especially since we do it with insemination.
Defining exactly why it feels worse when we enjoy raping them then when we do it to kill and eat their children is for me impossible, but, hey, not really the topic here?
Incest is not something which is related to sexual preference.
It's not like people who have sex with their family have no ability to be attracted or romantically involved with other people.
The issue is two-folded:
1: High risk for problematic offpsring, explaining why almost all humans have an aversion to the behaviour.
2: There is a high risk of problematic situations occuring when children have sex with parents or siblings.
It's not so much that homosexuality is different from any other sexual orientation, it's just that there is no logical reason to argue against it being a perfectly fine way to live your life.
Most sexual orientations barring hetero or BTQ are way less easy to incorporate into a decent life.
Re:Gay? (Score:4, Insightful)
Animals can't give consent.
Absolute nonsense. Were that true, all sex between animals (humans are animals, too) would be rape. Animals might not all be able to consent through speech (since non-human animals can't speak human language), but their actions may imply consent. There are other kinds of consent than just speech, and that applies even to humans. Legal fiction.
Children can't give consent (and shouldn't need to be asked).
Depends on the individual. It is certainly not impossible. This is just a legal fiction, as usual.
Consensual sex is key. We go successfully from "consensual".
Now, if only people would stop creating arbitrary, nonsensical definitions of what qualifies as consent... These things should be determined on a case-by-case basis, not a black-and-white "Group X can't ever consent because we said so."
Re:Gay? (Score:4, Informative)
being homosexual is indeed a behaviour that happens quite naturally in a small minority of people.
As far as we understand it, so is being a pedophile. But I think you are confused. Pedophilia is a medical condition. Child molestation is a crime. They are not the same thing. You can be a pedophile without being a child molester. Pedophilia means you are sexually attracted to per-pubescent children. It does NOT necessarily mean that you act on that attraction. You can also be a child molester without being a pedophile, say, by having sex with a 16 year old (legally, but not biologically, a child).
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
I wouldn't consider that a homophobic asshole comment. I mean do people think their statements exist in a void where they only apply to some things but not all that they would otherwise fit generally tight with?
If you were born that way, others can be born "their" way too. If it is unconstitutional to ban gay marriage because of equal rights, it is also unconstitutional to ban polygamy, incest (without intent to reproduce) and possibly several other things. The arguments made simply are not limited to the t
Re: (Score:3)
So what? (Score:5, Funny)
He should be more concerned with what he does with his Apple than what he does with his banana.
So what? (Score:3, Insightful)
He is. Did you even read his statement? He quite clearly didn't personally want to make his private life so public, but felt that it's in the public's best interest to know as it might help fight bigotry and intolerance.
Re:So what? (Score:5, Insightful)
"didn't personally want to make his private life so public" somehow clashes with "I'm so proud ..."
Re:So what? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:So what? (Score:5, Informative)
Saying, "I went to the beach with my husband this weekend" in casual conversation is quite different than having a press conference to say, "I'm heterosexual!" And yes, talking about your sexual orientation is talking about your sex life.
Re:So what? (Score:4, Insightful)
"Talking about your sex life," to me, implies that you are talking about the specific details of what you do in the bedroom with someone. Talking about your partner, or what kind of people you like to date, is not talking about your sex life, no matter how much you want it to be.
And nobody would have a press conference to say that they were heterosexual because being heterosexual is not punishable by death anywhere in the world ... homosexuality is still punishable by death in some countries.
Re: (Score:3)
So by that reasoning celibate people have no sexual orientation?
Yawn (Score:4, Insightful)
who cares?
Re: (Score:2)
Once I've made my company a household name, renowned for selling products easily categorised as manly, I'm going to come out as straight.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Yawn (Score:4, Insightful)
It's funny I think that this is the way it should be and it makes me mad that people cry "victim" as much as they do but the reality is that until people stop getting beat up/killed/arrested/harassed just for being gay (as a whole, not individuals who also happen to be assholes) then it does matter when people publicly come out.
The problem is that we non-homosexual folks talk about our lives with our heterosexual partners we're not considered to be "wearing our sexual orientation on our sleeves" but when a gay person does, they are. When society no longer considers discussing your partner in casual conversation as "wearing your orientation on your sleeves" then people won't have press conferences to come out as gay. Until then, get used to it because it's going to happen more and more. Because it should.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Informative)
According to Tim Cook, a gay person who is "struggling to come to terms with who he or she is" or who feels alone.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
who cares?
It's actually quite historical for a CEO of a highly successful publicly-traded company to come out as gay.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Funny)
Congrats, your gay.
My gay?
Re:Yawn (Score:4, Funny)
that would be a MSproduct
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Funny)
Indeed.
This is about Tim Cook's new "iGay", which he claims to be very proud of.
News for Nerds? (Score:5, Insightful)
Gays are equal to straights and should have the same rights. I find it sad that announcements like this still make headlines. It shouldn't matter nor should anyone really care (unless they are looking to hook up).
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:5, Insightful)
Gays are equal to straights and should have the same rights. I find it sad that announcements like this still make headlines. It shouldn't matter nor should anyone really care (unless they are looking to hook up).
True enough. But considering just how straight white male oriented the tech industry is, it's good to point out that occasionally we have other possibilities.
It truly won't be an issue when the tech industry is more aligned with the general population. We're not there yet.
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:5, Interesting)
But considering just how straight white male oriented the tech industry is
You mean demographic-wise or acceptance-wise? If the former, maybe, I haven't really taken a statistical sample. But if you mean the latter, where have you been working? I mean, when I was working in NYC and SF, and even Seattle, I suppose it would be expected that most of my fellow geeks didn't care about sexual orientation and were vocally pro gay rights, but even now in Phoenix almost all of my geek friends feel the same. I've always assumed it was a natural result of being future-oriented and of geekiness being an outsider culture. If your geek friends are homophobes, they'd strike me as statistically rare. Maybe you just need new friends.
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:4, Insightful)
I have been in many situations where it seemed like the transgendered person was trying to trap people into saying something they consider offensive, using the wrong pronoun or what not, just so they can act out. This has made many, including me, grow tired of the constantly changing politically correct vocabulary associated with these people -- as well as the over-the-top dramatic defensive attitudes.
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:5, Insightful)
Gays are equal to straights and should have the same rights.
That's the whole problem. They do not have the same rights everywhere. I think it's important for GLBT to allow themselves to be seem for who they are to continue to ease their acceptance in society.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:5, Insightful)
Actually it most certainly is.
Not only is it a right, but it is a requirement for a functioning and stable society.
Lack of acceptance leads to ostracism, being invisible, and even violence.
All of which weve seen concerning -every- minority, racial religious gender/sexual identity or otherwise, in this country's history.
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:5, Insightful)
While it's been rumored for sometime, and even a bit of an open secret, he did officially for a specific reason.
Namely that he IS in a high profile position, a public one, and a considerable amount of power and leverage.
He is basically offering himself up as a role model for people who dont enjoy his level of acceptance or tolerance.
There are people who deal with and put up with abuse constantly because of who they are. They percieve a lack of support, from families, friends, and hte world in general.
Some turn to suicide or other self harm. So he by doing this is offering hope and inspiration to those poeple.
In fact, you yourself gave the key phrase: "SHOULD have the same rights". Currently they dont. Currently they suffer considerable abuse and stigma, even in society at large. And as long as that's true, actions like his today will be needful.
And for that he is to be commended. It does take a certain amount of courage to do so.
Re:News for Nerds? (Score:4, Insightful)
And we immediately found the reason why such a statement is necessary. Right on cue.
Re:marriage is about children? (Score:5, Insightful)
Because lots of people don't share your ludicrously stupid idea of what marriage is.
Re:marriage is about children? (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
Your impression is flawed, because marriage ISNT about making babies.
Marriage also confers certain legal rights, priviledges, and protections.
Re: (Score:3)
I was under the impression that 'marriage' was involved in stable child creation, and raising.
Less than half of all marriages result in kids. Far less than end up in divorce. Marriage is all about making divorce attorneys rich, not about kids.
Silly (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Silly (Score:5, Insightful)
Yeah, let's totally just ignore the history behind the use of the word 'pride' in this context. It'll totally make us look smart, edgy, and witty.
Re: (Score:3)
Oh do so fuck off wanting to change the English vocabulary and then claiming history is on your side
Do you think the French say "gay orgueil" or "gay fierté"? They don't. They have two words for pride and neither matches. So they say "gay pride".
Which means what?
It means "gay pride" is a cliché. Jeez, talk about not doing oneself any favours.
I don't have a problem with people's sexual orientation, but is it too much to ask to leave the language alone.
Invent your own frigging word if "proud" (as it
Silly (Score:4, Insightful)
Did you get beat up in high school for being 5'10"? Have you ever been told that you're only legally allowed to marry people within a particular height range?
I thought not.
It's not so much as being proud of being gay - but standing up to bigotry an intolerance is something to be proud of.
Re: (Score:3)
What, you've never heard of people being bullied for being short or too tall? You've never heard of someone not wanting to date another person because they were too short or tall either? Where the hell have you been?
Re: (Score:3)
Yes, that's just the same as being told by the government and society that you can't marry that cute redhead in Accounts Receivables because she's 5'2", or being told you're going to burn in Hell for eternity because you're over 6' tall, or being beaten up because you're exactly 5'9".
Re:Silly (Score:4, Insightful)
as a cisgender (god I hate that this term even exists), middle class, right handed, white male I've suffered more bigotry and intolerance over the last 20 years than any homosexual...and from the exact people who's stake-in-claim in politics is purpotedly omnitolerance.
Speaking as a straight white middle class right-handed male, I think I can state with authority that you're completely full of shit.
Re: (Score:3)
To those modding it a troll...give me a break. No straight white male has suffered more bigotry and intolerance than "any homosexual". Worst case this twit lost out on a scholarship or a job due to some sort of affirmative action, and thinks that injustice somehow not only equals but outweighs what gays face routinely.
As for the crowbar incident I mentioned.
http://www.omaha.com/news/man-... [omaha.com]
That's not exactly an isolated event.
If this guy has really been discriminated on that scale, its an extraordinary clai
Re:Silly (Score:5, Funny)
No, liberals did.
Beat you with a crowbar? And rammed your car for being a straight white male? And this was done by liberals?
I seriously doubt it.
Or more accurately, even if you were beaten with a crowbar by "liberals" it was probably nothing to do with you being white/straight/male/middleclass and everything to with you being an asshole.
And your final sentence is indicative of just the oppression I've been first to suffer for being born this way.
I'm white/straight/middleclass/male too... but I'm left handed -- lucky for me right? I must be the only thing that keeps me safe from the liberal crowbar beatings.
Silly (Score:5, Insightful)
It's not proud as in "I am proud that I have successfully accomplished gayness." It's proud as in the opposite of "I'm ashamed that I am gay and/or feel that I have to hide it."
Re:Silly (Score:5, Insightful)
Possibly proud means "not ashamed" in this context.
Re: (Score:3)
Proud because in his lifetime it's gone from being something people were ashamed of and could be fired for to something he can openly state as a matter of fact.
Re:Silly (Score:5, Insightful)
Sort of like, "I'm proud to be 5'10"", or, "I'm proud to be male" or something. We have exactly nothing to do with creating these conditions so why would we be proud of them? Things to be proud of would be, "I wrote some amazing code." Or perhaps, "I ran five miles and made my personal best time." You aren't supposed to be proud of things you had no control of...
The idea of "gay pride" isn't a statement of "this is how I am", it's about taking a stand against oppression. People are routinely killed in the United States due solely to their sexual orientation [wikipedia.org]. Killed. Do you fucking hear me? KILLED. And the US being one of the safest places in the world to be gay! You're a lot worse off if you're in Russia, Africa, eastern Europe, many parts of India, pretty much all of Central America, the Phillipines, etc.etc., and publicly came out.
Do people get routinely killed (or are denied access to their sick partner in a hospital, or tax breaks, etc.) for being 5'10 or being a good programmer? Emphatically no. So sit your ass down and keep your "being proud of being gay is the same as being proud of being 5'10" nonsense to yourself.
Re: (Score:3)
Sort of like, "I'm proud to be 5'10"", or, "I'm proud to be male" or something.
If being 5'10" had -- in recent memory -- been the source of shame and/or discrimination at the hands of others, than you would have a workable analogy. Since that is *not* in fact the case, you got nuthin'.
Re:Silly (Score:5, Insightful)
On the one hand, yes. Who cares? But we're not the target audience then are we. The fact that so many of us say *yawn* when folks like this come out means we have moved beyond caring, and that's great really. Folks shouldn't think twice about it, but as a society we're not there yet, and maybe it will matter just a little to someone struggling or just figuring things out.
Wait, this wasn't common knowledge already? (Score:2, Insightful)
Who _didn't_ already know he was gay? Show of hands...
Re:Wait, this wasn't common knowledge already? (Score:5, Informative)
Valleywag, Jan. 2011: Meet Apple's New Boss, The Most Powerful Gay Man in Silicon Valley [gawker.com]
Re: (Score:2)
I didn't know. I knew he was the CEO of Apple and that's it. If you asked random people on the street "Who is Tim Cook?" and even if you gave them hints like, "He's a business man" a lot of them wouldn't know he is CEO. A good number of those people would be holding iPhones. It's not something that matters to them. I knew who he was because I care about the direction of technology. I didn't know his orientation because I don't care.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
So it's true what I hear, that gays have more spare cash to spend and a better sense for aesthetics?
Then where's my share of the cake and why do I prefer to dress in black?
I hate to say this (Score:4, Funny)
Reusing old logo? (Score:4, Funny)
#1, not really news and #2, yeah, about marketing (Score:3, Interesting)
Honestly, I'm glad to hear the guy is proud to be gay. He should be. We should ALL be proud of who we are, instead of regretting it or wasting time wishing we were different.
The world would be a really boring place if all of us were "wired" exactly the same, with the exact same interests, habits and tendencies.
But his sexual orientation was published years ago, and came up again some time earlier this year in news articles. So I'm not sure exactly how THIS time around is supposed to mean anything special?
I hate to say it, but I do think all of this is at least partially motivated by a marketing angle for Apple. The company has long been known to be relatively "gay friendly" in hiring practices and in loyal user-base. (Perhaps some of that simply stems from a tendency for the gay community to care more than others about product attributes like style, design or elegance .... all areas not so often associated with computer technology but embraced by Apple since early on?) Perhaps it's just that Tim Cook feels it's a good "climate" to promote Apple as a very equal-opportunity company to work for? I don't know ... but it doesn't seem relevant to bother mentioning it (especially if he's serious about valuing his privacy like he claims), otherwise?
Quite a bit of tone deafness in the responses here (Score:3, Insightful)
To all those saying "who cares?" it matters precisely for the reasons Cooks give. Not everyone enjoys the same benefits as straight people in our society due to bigotry and ignorance enshrined in various State laws. If Cook can help bring attention to this, more power to him.
Courage (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Got a picture of your wife on your desk? Ever mention her in offhand conversation? Sure would be nice if gay people were free to do that too without being fired, which isn't true in a lot of places.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Got a picture of your wife on your desk? Ever mention her in offhand conversation? Sure would be nice if gay people were free to do that too without being fired, which isn't true in a lot of places.
Where? These days, what you suggest is pretty much illegal (in the USA) so I suggest that when you see such things take place, make a point to take such cases to COURT.
Everyplace I've worked in the last 15 years, firing for the things you suggest would be grounds for a lawsuit, not to mention run afoul of company policy in which we where usually trained annually. There are complaint processes and a whole department of Human Resources people who's job it is to make sure this kind of thing doesn't happen.
W
Re: (Score:3)
Got a picture of your wife on your desk? Ever mention her in offhand conversation? Sure would be nice if gay people were free to do that too without being fired, which isn't true in a lot of places.
...Everyplace I've worked in the last 15 years, firing for the things you suggest would be grounds for a lawsuit, not to mention run afoul of company policy in which we where usually trained annually...
you obviously don't work on Duck Dynasty
Right, and you obviously didn't actually read what Phil said in the context of the questions being asked him, you just read the news reports about what his detractors said about it. Phil may be a bit abrupt and not very delicate about how he worded things, but he was asked for his opinion.
As I understand it, a number of the crew working to film the DD shows profess to be homosexuals and not one of them has complained about how the Duck guys treat them. But that doesn't fit the picture so nobody reads that i
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Right, so the next time someone makes a joke starting with, "Hey, did you hear the one about the guy with 10-fingers?" Or the next time some demi-celebrity tweets, "@SoAndSo, That's so 10-toed." Or political figures build entire platforms on saying people with 10-fingers can't be legally married to other people with 10-fingers or adopt kids. Or a employer say, "Yeah, Mr. 10-fingers, we don't like people working here who have 10-fingers, so we're firing you." Or a landlord says, "I saw you bring that 10-
Re:LBGT marketing? (Score:5, Insightful)
However, outside of the tech world, I've had to deal with plenty of people who are still disgusted by gays or get angry about the whole gay marriage thing. Let's not even get into what happen to that gay kid in high school when you live in a small rural towns. I've seen it when I was in high school, I still hear about it from younger teen, I've recently seen a father disavow his kid because he was gay. I could go on and on and I'm not gay, so I can't imagine the horror stories a gay person would've to tell, of growing up in a small rural town.
Re:LBGT marketing? (Score:5, Insightful)
However, outside of the tech world, I've had to deal with plenty of people who are still disgusted by gays or get angry about the whole gay marriage thing
I work in tech in a very liberal Canadian city and have a bunch of gay friends, and sometimes get lulled into thinking the world is a big happy accepting place.
Then I step outside the downtown bubble, just by a few miles, and I'm stunned by what I sometimes encounter. I do a little writing for a group that makes short films, and we had a shoot where one of the actors didn't show up. He was part of a couple, and I suggested we recast the part using a woman who didn't have a part yet, so the couple would be gay but everything else would be the same. The film was about relationships and this couple was fighting about stuff. There might be a hug at the end, but nothing more overtly affectionate than that.
The young, professional woman I suggested this too looked at me with her eyes literally wide with horror and said, "I'm sorry, I can't do that. I'm really straight."
In that situation it wasn't my place to berate her for her bigotry, particularly as I didn't think until much later of the correct come-back: "You're really earthbound, too, but I bet you'd play an astronaut if I asked you to."
So yeah, while to so many of us this is a done deal, our gay friends and family still have to walk around every day wondering when they are going to encounter that kind of horrified rejection, and while at least they don't get beat up as often as they used to it still has to be pretty awful for them.
If anyone wants people like Tim Cook to stop making a big deal about being gay (and really, don't we all want that?) they should make sure to be accepting and matter-of-fact about the gay people all around us, whose much-talked-about "agenda" involves living happy, fulfilling lives.
Re: (Score:2)
8 is so hated, maybe they should do like a certain other company and skip to 10.
Re:More important (Score:4, Insightful)
Would posting a message like that make you look homophobic?
Re: (Score:2)
Still to this day I can't fathom why anyone pays so much for a name
And some stylish (if overpriced) hardware, and the most user-friendly OS out there.
Re:Gay: The gift that keeps on giving... (Score:4)
So... the reason why the top infection rates for HIV [cia.gov] seem like they're reserved for Africa is because Africa is a paradise for gays [wikipedia.org].
Yeah. You're making a lot of sense.
Re: (Score:3)
Believing in God does not necessarily entail believing in his ground crew.
Personally, I'm not sure God has any faith in them anymore.
Re:He believes in God? (Score:4, Interesting)
Getting back to Tim Cook's "letter to..." someones and the quote therein: "I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me". ok, probably unfortunate to drag a deity in this; but does this imply that being gifted with non-gayness isn't a gift? i'll leave the sophistry to others.
Re:He believes in God? (Score:5, Insightful)
Jesus never commented on homosexuality in the New Testament. What the Bible does say about homosexuality comes from the Old Testament and Paul the Apostle in the New Testament. If the Son of God has nothing to say about homosexuality, it probably doesn't matter as long as sexual relations is kept within a marriage.
Your 99 cent theology sucks. Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh and as such, he was the one who created man and woman as part of the created order. Therefore, the OT stated exactly how strongly God felt about homosexuality and Jesus never redefined that. In fact, Jesus didn't redefine sin; he redefined the punishment for sin because he was to bear that punishment himself on behalf and in place of mankind. Jesus called out the woman at the well for adultery, which was also condemned in the OT, and he told the prostitute to go and sin no more. Paul spoke about unnatural relations which was understood at the time to include homosexuality, bestiality, incest, et al.
As for my opinion of Mr. Cook, it didn't change a bit. It's between him and God. He had big shoes to fill and I hope he continues to run the company well. Wish I had bought when the stock tanked into the $400's.
Re: (Score:3)
Your 99 cent theology sucks. Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh
So did David Koresh. So maybe we have to take some bits of our $.99 theology fries with some salt.
Re: (Score:3)
Re:He believes in God? (Score:5, Insightful)
You're not free to tell the rest of the world how to live.
Yet just told me to STFU expressing an opinion concerning religion after expresing your own opinion concerning religion. Now that's hypocrisy.
Re: (Score:3)
Wow. I've known LGTB individual for years, and the lifestyle that you describe is completely new to me. I've don't know a single person that is being a pervert, anal sex, drugs, rape, life constantly centered around sex, acting crazy, misoginy, low morals, irresponsibility, polyamory, huge vector of STDs, generally distrustful, known to play the victim, and the worst of all pederasty. Where did you get this from?
tl;dr: citation, please.
Re:He believes in God? (Score:5, Insightful)
People aren't opposed to homosexuals, they are opposed to homosexual lifestyle: being a pervert, anal sex, drugs, rape, life constantly centered around sex, acting (and most of times being) crazy, misoginy, low morals, irresponsibility, polyamory, huge vector of STDs, generally distrustful, known to play the victim, and the worst of all pederasty (40% or more of gay people are pedophiles, which is why they are barred from adoption).
I know quite a few straight people who done most, if not everything, on your list. Some of them even called themselves Christians. Homosexual are sinners like the rest of us. It's not our place to judge and condemn them. God will decide everyone's fate.
Re: (Score:3)
Except that they do make news. You would never have even heard of this story if it weren't news and weren't of interest to a lot of people. Maybe you don't think it's important and you treat gays exactly the same way you treat anyone else, yawning if someone announces being either gay or straight. But the world itself is not as comfortable with it as you are, and the world still feels it's unusual, there are places where it's still illegal to be gay.