The Politics of Showering

Or America's Hysterical Homophobic Far Right

I signed up a while back to the American Family Association (AFA) mailing list, I had to sign up to comment negatively on one of their forums a while back. Well this morning I received their latest hysterical mailing, it includes the phrase.

"If President Obama, congressional Democrats, and homosexual activists get their wish, your son or daughter may be forced to share military showers and barracks with active and open homosexuals who may very well view them with sexual interest."

Oh dear, better go the whole hog AFA. Best not let them fight alongside Army's such as the British that allow homosexuals to be open about their sexuality. Better have segregated University Campuses, can't have America's straight young students getting barracked up with open and active homosexuals in halls. Worse they need to vet their sports teams, or just stop the homosexual sportsmen and women taking part in sport.

• Martina Navratilova should not have been allowed in the women's locker room at Wimbledon
• Greg Louganis, who famously banged his head off the springboard on the way to defending his Olympic gold, should not have been allowed to get out of his speedos next to the Olympic pool.
• As for sending a team to the Winter Olympics starting later this week. Well you know those gay magazines advertise skiing holidays, can't be too careful.
  

Are you going to protest and been consistent that these openly gay American sports stars hand back their achievements in the name of your country. Here is the news, from my personal experience, not all gay sportsmen view their straight team mates or competitors as sexual objects in the showers after the event. Fact is some of the straight guys show signs of arousal in the showers, but we won't ask and won't tell. So why should the military be different?

As a former footballer, rugby player and runner, and someone who still works out at the gym who happens to be gay I have seen plenty of naked straight guys in the showers. If I'd view each of those as a sexual interest and decided to follow through on it, I'd never be able to get anything done, either compete at the level I competed at or do any work.

In this months Gay Times magazine there is an article about gay men in the British army. Unlike in the USA where they exist but in a closeted way, in the British Army ten years after we changed our policy. One serving gay soldier said:

"Because the armed forces consist of such close-knit teams, I didn't want to hide anything, so it was important to be to be honest. That doesn't mean being camp though, it just means I don't have to put up a facade.

"That said, my sexuality is only as relevant as a straight guys. I wouldn't say it's part of my experience in the forces, in any other way than it's part of my experience of life. I suspect other gay soldiers feel the same."

Another tells of his coming out to his comrades:

"It wasn't planned. People found out by accident. However, everyone has been really understanding and supportive. The people I work with are like my extended family so we all know each other really well. They may make a joke of certain situations but nothing more that that. We are all serving in a conflict and that is the priority."

That joking about being one of the lads is something that I encountered when I came out to my team mates. It was an acceptance of me and who I was. They would be joking about each other and it was inclusion of me.

The AFA email concludes:

"If we do not insist that the ban on homosexual military service be retained*, our military will no longer be the place America's families want to send their best and brightest young men and women."

Personally I think that if they can't be confident enough with their own sexuality, confident enough to stand up for it, capable of saying no to unwanted advances they can't really be the best and the brightest that America has to offer. But if they are, heaven help the free world, we're being run and protected by simpletons.

* It doesn't exist they just can't tell.