COLUMN: Acceptance of perversion is wrong
Gay marriage has become quite a hot topic. One side screams about the moral issue, the other side pleading for open-mindedness. Points are made from one side to the other, and yet reading either side’s point of view, there is a feeling that something is missing from both arguments. The question is, what is homosexuality?
I am married. My wife is my best friend in the world. I would do anything for her. I enjoy doing many of the things she enjoys. We like to laugh together, be strong for each other, and help each other in times of need. We are also physically intimate with each other.
I have a friend who I grew up with who is my best friend in the world. I would do anything for him. I enjoy many of the things he enjoys. We like to laugh together, be strong for each other, and help each other in times of need. In fact, my emotional and mental feelings for him are strikingly similar to my feelings for my wife. Not the same, but very similar. A large difference is that I have no interest in being physically intimate with him.
Forget religion and morals (which I fear most of us have), nature has given to every species the appropriate tools and instincts to assist in the perpetuation of that species. Man and woman is the only combination, no matter how we justify it otherwise, whose intimate union will lead to the continuation of the human race. No matter what system of beliefs we affiliate with, that is a fact of nature. The question then remains, where does homosexuality fit in?
For thousands of years terms have been used for various forms of sexual perversion. Sodomy is one of those terms. It has become politically incorrect to call sodomy wrong, or to even call it sodomy. We use more “appropriate” words like homosexual, queer, or gay. But when it all comes down to it, sodomy is nothing more than sexual perversion. It is a way that is unusual or out of the ordinary to sexually stimulate. It is no different from other sexual fetishes in the sense that it is a non-traditional form of sexual stimulation.
Stating whether or not these acts are wrong is unnecessary. We are discussing the issue of gay marriage. The point is, just because a certain branch of society has tried to convince us with increasing aggressiveness that sodomy is OK, that does not mean people who perform this sexual act should be allowed marriage rights.
I am against gay marriage, not because I hate sodomy or sodomites, but because I do believe in the sanctity of marriage, and I see no justification for compromising that sanctity. Furthermore, just because I dislike an act that I personally believe to be wrong, that does not mean that I dislike the people who perform this act, which is a common misconception. I presume no influence or control over what happens behind closed doors. It becomes my right to speak out, however, when certain groups try to legalize something that the majority and I see clearly and reasonably as illegal.
The views expressed are those of Doug Chambers, a senior majoring in international studies. Comments can be sent to dfchambers@cc.usu.edu.