Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site hocda.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!houxm!hocda!explore From: explore@hocda.UUCP (J.H.SCHERER) Newsgroups: net.motss Subject: Re: Gay Rights (Brunson idea of same) Message-ID: <465@hocda.UUCP> Date: Sun, 23-Sep-84 19:57:40 EDT Article-I.D.: hocda.465 Posted: Sun Sep 23 19:57:40 1984 Date-Received: Wed, 26-Sep-84 08:27:46 EDT References: <174@usfbobo.UUCP>, <1136@pyuxn.UUCP>, <180@usfbobo.UUCP>, <2796@allegra.UUCP>, <183@usfbobo.UUCP> Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Holmdel, NJ Lines: 26 In reply to Dave Brunson's latest posting: No, I don't think that gays SHOULD be a specially protested minority group. Nor do I think that women, blacks, etc. SHOULD be either. What SHOULD happen is that that in "public" acitvities (that's not the right word but I don't know what is) such as jobs, housing, use of public facilities etc., everyone SHOULD be color blind, sex blind, and should not spend sleepless nights worrying about how someone else MIGHT be spending theirs. Jobs should be based on ability, housing on the ability to afford it, use of facilities on the fact that one is a citizen (or resident, or whatever). (In "private" activities, such as who ones friends are, who one shares an apartment with, etc, a person is free to discriminate in any way they like.) Unfortunately, that's not how things happen. I remember well when blacks had to sit in the back of the bus and use black restrooms (and I'll admit that I didn't see anything wrong with it at the time). I remember when straight sex was limited by law (in most states) to the missionary position and not much else - anything else was, of course, unnatural and disgusting (Playboy ran an article 12 - 14 years ago on the laws in each state and listed cases of those laws being enforced). Since people can be pretty intolarant (sorry, I can't spell) at times, and may be in positions to deny others basic rights, laws are needed to guarantee those rights. Note that I don't say "special" rights that other people don't have, just the basic things that everyone should have. I'll leave it to Brunson to figure out whether he's part of the problem or part of the solution. John Scherer AT&T Bell Labs