|
EVERYONE READ THE COMPLETE POST BEFORE VOTING!
I was gone for the past few days, damned modem broke, but anyways, I was curious about this. First things first, I want everyone to examine themselves first, before they vote, it may take a while, that's OK, but its something that could be useful for an accurate poll, at least accurate by Internet standards. :)
The first thing I want to clear up is what is a sexual orientation. Many folks on this board seem confused on this matter, so I thought to clear things up. Having a sexual orientation is about being attracted to a group of people, not about the sexual acts themselves. Basically there are four orientations, one of which is relatively unique, and may be one of the most repressed, but let me list them:
Homosexuality: The Orientation of people who are ONLY attracted to people of the same sex.
Bisexuality: The Orientation of people who are attracted to people of the both sexes.
Heterosexuality: The Orientation of people who are ONLY attracted to people of the opposite sex.
Asexuality: The Orientation of people who are not attracted to people of either sex.
The last one is interesting, and mostly ignored, though people with this Orientation, if that's the proper word, do exist. There is also the question of Transsexuals and intersexed people. Technically speaking, intersexed people cannot, by definition, be either Homosexual or Heterosexual, being that they carry traits of both sexes, and are neither exclusively male or female, if there are any DUers who are intersexed, if I have room, I will try to include it. Same for transsexuals, who identify with the sex opposite of the one they are born with.
This is complicated, would a male-born transsexual who is attracted to males be a homosexual or heterosexual? This is something I do not know, so I'm inclined to see if I can include the options, and let them answer for themselves.
I thought to bring this up, because, examining myself, I found that I'm bisexual in orientation. I know that I identified as straight, but, when examining my own feelings on the matter, certain males who have certain characteristics, its hard to describe, so some famous examples might help, Johnny Depp, Antonio Banderias, Orlando Bloom, etc. I'm attracted to, and might have a sexual relationship with if given a chance.
However, saying this, it doesn't diminish my attraction to women. At the same time, I also don't have a strong inclination to seek out relationships with other men, nor have I ever acted on it. I don't know why, to be frank about it, but, generally speaking, women make me happy(one in particular right now), and I'm to be more attracted to them. If I offend anyone by stating this, I don't mean to, but I can't honestly create this poll without being completely honest with myself and honest with the rest of you about my feelings.
As I said earlier, try to be as honest as you can about yourself, even if you have never had a relationship with people of certain sexes doesn't mean you aren't attracted to them. With the limitations of ten choices, I can't rightfully include the entire breadth of human sexuality and relationships, all I can do is try, with sensitivity and inclusiveness as the goal, along with increased understanding about ourselves and our fellow friends on DU. Also, yes I'm aware of the Kinsey scale, though I'm not familiar with the work itself. To be honest, I'm not interested in some scientific debate on this subject, but the feelings of fellow members of DU about their own sexuality.
I decided against having an "Other" option, mostly because I believe I covered almost everything, anyone who feels none of these options accurately reflect their own sexuality or gender identity can of course complain, but, for accuracy's sake, I most likely won't edit the options below. If you are comfortable about talking about it, I welcome it, this is a post for increasing this much needed dialog on DU, I feel its important, so that we can see where others are coming from.
I also have a different motive for this poll, and that is to disabuse people of the notion that sexuality is about the actual act, and not the attraction. I view this as a fallacy, if I were to, someday, fall in love with a man and live with him for the rest of my life, would that make me Homosexual? I don't think so, I would still be attracted to women, even though, out of loyalty, I wouldn't act on it while in that relationship. Damn I type for too long, so vote away!
|
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
