Gay Marriage

"My third source shows Homosexuals are more likely to carry a bacteria that causes Septicemia and Meningitis." Once again, homosexaul men are NOT more likely to carry meningococcus. Infection with the meningococcus can affect anyone, but those most at risk are children aged under 5 years (especially babies under a year), teenagers and young adults under the age of 25. This has nothing to do with homosexual men in particular because anyone can be infected or carry the bacteria. Look at my source below for more information... http://www.patient.co.uk... The sources you provided do not in any way state that homosexual men are somehow more likely to carry these infections. It was a single breakout that affected homosexual men in particular due to unfortunate circumstance in one particular location, which was British Columbia. Just as a group of children in a school would measles or chickenpox. This does not somehow make them more likely to catch it because they are homosexual, it was because of the condition in which they were exposed to that influenced their likelihood of infection. They just so happen to be homosexual, but that was not the main cause. But you are applying this outbreak to ALL gay men when there were only ten people involved in the case. This is why I called you biased (even though liar is more appropriate). That is like saying all heterosexuals everywhere are more likely to carry the HPV (Human Papilloma Virus) because of an outbreak of HPV amongst ten heterosexuals in New York City. Do you see how biased that sounds? That is exactly what you were implying. You are associating a bacterial infection to ALL gay men because of an outbreak that occurred in ONE place, that had absolutely nothing to do with their sexual activity because apparently you forgot to include that "at least five cases (56%) were known to have smoked marijuana or shared joints in the week prior to onset of illness" which was the likely cause of infection. It is a bacterial infection, not an STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease) and like all bacterial infections, this can be prevented with routine vaccinations, proper hygiene and avoiding contact with surfaces with bacteria that may expose one to infection. Anyone can be affected by it. Now that we have gotten that out of the way, that does not prove that homosexual couples are somehow a "danger to children". You claim "My opponent says homosexual marriage and pedophilic marriage are different because pedophilia results in a severe trauma to the child, but provides no source evidence that child marriage causes such a trauma." Pedophilia causes severe physical and psychological harm to children, as it is classified as sexual abuse. The majority of sexual abuse cases occur during childhood, and incest is the most common form of sexual abuse towards children. The impact or overall effects of child sexual abuse varies from person to person, case to case, some effects being worse than others depending on how much an impact it had or how severe the abuse was. Children who have been sexually abuse exhibit cases of increased anxiety and almost always develop some form of depression. In almost all cases, victims of child sexual abuse experience higher levels of guilt, shame, self-blame, eating disorders, social developmental issues, dissociative patterns, and repression. These issues almost never go away and remain until adulthood requiring long hours of therapy to recover. It affects future relationships and causes sexual problems including low sex drive, sex addiction, and risky behavior as an adult. It disrupts sleeping patterns and eating patterns. Many who experience child abuse exhibit violent and suicidal behavior. It also increases the likelihood of drug addiction and repeated abuse. People who experience child sexual abuse also have feelings of confusion, feelings of disorientation, nightmares, flashbacks, and difficulty experiencing feelings. As for physical trauma, depending on the severity of he abuse and whether or not the child is too underdeveloped, sexual activity can lead to severe physical damage to the vagina or rectum and in many cases this results in death. Sexually transmitted infections are also a risk and if contracted, can cause sterility or even death. If a girl gets pregnant too early in development, she can die or suffer miscarriage. Is this evidence enough for you? http://www.counseling.org... THIS is why it is illegal. Children cannot consent to marriage because marriage is an agreement between consenting adults. You cannot force children to consent to something they are not able to consent to and expect it not to result in severe consequences for the child. You also cannot compare child sexual abuse to a relationship or agreement between consenting adults of the same sex either. This comparison is illogical. It also has nothing to do with 'morals' or what our society says. It's about the physical and psychological development of children. Some societies encourage child marriage and pedophilia, does that make it okay? No, it doesn't because you cannot always establish laws because of the majority agrees. If society as a whole agreed with the legalization of gay marriage, would you still be in agreement? I doubt it. But according to the most recent polls the majority of Americans are for gay marriage by over 60% and that number is rising. And you claim "until that opinion is held by society as a whole, it will, and should remain illegal." So only your opinions determine what should and should not be legal until everyone disagrees? That's not how the legal system works, sorry. If it did, women would still not be allowed to vote or hold office and African American students would probably still be prohibited by law from attending educational establishments with White American students. You claim "Homosexual men engage in anal sex." Not all homosexual men practice anal intercourse, this is another biased claim. You also claim "The anus is not naturally able to handle such a load (no pun intended). Increased rectal tearing allows more bacteria into the system, and causes infections." All forms of sexual contact, whether it be anal, oral or vaginal is at risk of infection and tearing. This is why people who engage in receptive anal and sometimes vaginal intercourse use lubrication. Anal tearing (called 'anal fissure') is very rarely caused by anal sex. It affects people of any age, sex or sexual orientation equally. You don't even have to be penetrated to be affected by anal tearing. Anal tearing does not automatically result in infection either. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com... "My opponent implies I may be biased, but the only evidence he offers is that I make an argument he doesn't like." Actually I called you biased because you were making biased claims about gay men without any valid evidence to support your claims. It has nothing to do with what I like or don't like. The evidence is the biased claims and biased sources in your argument. What I do not like is when people clearly do not thoroughly read information before using it as a source and trying to pass it off as something it is not. For example... "Helicobacter cinaedi has been most frequently isolated from rectal swabs of homosexual men with proctocolitis." This source is not valid because you failed to include the fact that the rectal swabs were taken from homosexual men who died from AIDS, again not normal, healthy homosexual men. It's funny how you conveniently forget to include that. The bacteria Helicobacter cinaedi was also found on the rectal swabs of heterosexuals who suffered from AIDS as well. But you conveniently forget to include that too... Like I said, you are being biased. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...