Men should prefer gays to lesbians

1. I look forward to an entertaining round and I hope all those reading this debate enjoy the things expressed herein. For clarity I will not be arguing that men in general should lesbians to gays, I will instead be arguing for a 'balanced neg'. meaning that I intend to argue that both gays and lesbians should be preferred on the same level. I will first present a few arguments of my own and then move on to refute the arguments presented by my opponent. 2. Framework- Con's opening framwork which pits the terms 'homosexual, bisexual, lesbian and gay' against one another is absurd and needs to be rejected. Sexual orientation is something not scientifically classified but chosen by each individual as a term of identity; I'll get into this point further during my discussion of the Kinsey Scale, but the point is that sexuality isn't as black and white as Pro lays it out to be, and there is no binding clause which I should accept such a semantic interpretation since it wasn't clarified prior to my acceptance. 3. Constructive- The first thing we need to do is look at the Kinsey scale[1] which classifies human sexuality on a sliding scale between 0 and 6, with 0 being exclusively heterosexual and 6 being exclusively homosexual. The classic interpretation of gay and straigh is quite simply false dichotomy, 0s and 6s are very, very rare as human beings are at least 1 or 5 for the most part. Actual attraction, and admitted attraction are two very different things. If one identifies themselves as a heterosexual, but is even incidentally homosexual (such as having an emotional attraction, or a mental attraction) then they are bisexual according to the Kinsey scale. So on the issue of persons identifying themselves as gay or lesbian, it's not a matter of that person being a total 6 on the Kinsey scale, but that they identify as more homosexual than heterosexual. [1] . http://www.kinseyinstitute.org... Next we see that emotional attraction plays a bigger role in forming relationships than does physical attraction[2]. This may not be the case in split moment physical relations *cough cough*, but in the long run it's the emotional attraction that counts. That's the very reason that long term-relationships endure in the first place, partners don't just run off with the most attractive person they see, as a conscientious adherence to natural selection isn't actively present in human relationships. [2] . http://en.darkq.net... So with the sexuality issue out of the way, the question is what should we base preference one? The answer is that we place preference on individuals and choose who we spend time with based on a person, not their sexuality. Men shouldn't prefer gay men over lesbians out of a fear that lesbian might 'steal their woman', they should get to know each person personally and make their decision who they choose to let in their life based on the person's ethics and beliefs. Prejudice forms and takes shape when we make shallow decision such as this, and it leads to a culture of fear where we keep those unlike us at bay, just like segregation[3] following the emancipation proclamation. [3] . http://www.archives.gov... Furthermore I attest that if Pro insists on following his current line of argumentation, then he must also prove that given the same conditions that straight men should prefer straight women over other straight men. 4. Refutations- Concerning my opponent's contention 1, I extend across my Kinsey scale argument; spoken sexual attraction doesn't mean that one may not stray outside of their preferences. Furthermore Gay men may choose to interact with lesbians as they would be able to relate to them about being persecuted for being gay better than a straight person would. Those who identify their sexuality outside of being straight tend to gravitate towards one another for that very reason[4]. They know other LGBT persons will be able to empathize with them better than straight persons. [4] . http://www.gaycenter.org... Concerning my opponent's contention 2, First I make a direct extension of my refutation on contention 1 as all of the aforementioned arguments are still applicable. But more so the issue of emotional attraction can be expanded upon here. While it's true that bisexual men and lesbians are unlikely to get together, it's not impossible[1]. Beyond that we see that bisexual men can not only relate to lesbians on the problems facing them as gay persons, but that their unlikeliness to form a relations makes a safe ground for them to form a deep friendship. You don't have to make decision on who you interact with based solely on your libido. You can interact with a person because of their personality. Concerning my opponent's contention 3, This argument is riddled with false assumptions from the get-go. Being attracted to men doesn't give a man insight into what women want, it gives them insight into what other men want; if you want to know how to improve your relationship with a women, or to get in a relationship with a women, then a gay man isn't your best friend. A woman is. Furthermore, not only are Lesbians women, but they have relationships with other women; they'll be able to give a man better advice than a gay man could. In other words, you're going to ask a mechanic how to fix a car because they know what they're doing. Not a carpenter just because you happen to be the same gender. Concerning my opponent's contention 4, Two things here; gay men also reduce the amount of men seeking a female partner, so the fact that lesbians also want to hook up with other women is a pretty mute point. As for my opponent's lion and zebra analogy, if you buy that analogy then this argument isn't really that big of a problem since straight men are going to have an advantage over lesbians in the first place. Furthermore, we see that the social stigma that still exists concerning homosexuality is a deterrent for women who swing both ways from getting with a woman. 5.