From: kane@buast7.bu.edu (Hot Young Star)
Newsgroups: ca.politics
Subject: Re: Why "Child Abuse Causes Homosexuality" Really Doesn't Fly
Date: 15 Oct 92 18:34:48 GMT
Organization: Astronomy Department, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA

In article <195921@ipl.jpl.nasa.gov>
pdb059@ipl.jpl.nasa.gov (Paul Bartholomew) writes:

[...]
>Bagley & King--"Abuse of both males and females was overwhelmingly at the
>hands of males, so the abuse of of boys was usually homosexual in nature."

>Faller--"The encounters with female victims were usually heterosexual (94%),
>whereas for males they were usually homosexual (84%)."

>Please read these excerpts carefully.  They do not say what you claim they
>do.  In fact, all they say is that the majority of molestations are done
>by men (no surprise there).  They say nothing about the adult sexual
>orientation of the molester.
[...]
>If the studies Brian cites support his claim, then I'd say the balance of
>evidence is on his side.  Note that I said "if"; Brian hasn't posted the
>relevant statements from his sources, either.

The upshot is that psychologists seem to still disagree whether pedophilia
is indicative of sexual preference or of, rather, an arrested sexual de-
velopment. Why do boy-molesters remark of the "feminine" qualities of their
victims?

Suppose one day the evidence falls conclusively on Clayton's side: that
married men who molest boys really are closeted homosexuals.

That alone would be reason for ENCOURAGING the equal validity of adult
homosexual expression in our society, if only to keep give these men an
opportunity to express themselves sexually without needing children.

>You do realize that you are implying that all homosexuals were molested as
>children, don't you?  If that's what you intend to imply, why don't you just
>come right out and say it?

What he implies is that most have pushed memories of molestation out of
their minds. Too traumatic to deal with, you know.

I wasn't going to bring this up, since it is very personal, but I may as
well, just to show you that all gay men have not been molested.

When I was very young, my parents were EXTREMELY concerned about my
unnatural shyness. In addition, I avoided at all cost any rough-and-
tumble play and all sports (which are solid indicators in themselves
that a boy is more likely to become a gay man). At the time, shyness
was not appreciated as having an organic basis. I was eight years
old, and I had already recognized that men were more attractive to me
than women. Of course it wasn't sexual---not until puberty.

Anyhow, shyness at that time was thought to be caused by some traumatic
experience, and that this/these experience(s) could be brought out by
hypnosis, and thus cure the child of shyness eventually. So in short,
I went under hypnosis.

One would think that such a traumatic event as a molestation would surface
under hypnosis. But NOTHING. Nothing at all surfaced. I'm just naturally
shy. I've managed to overcome most of it, but I still HATE talking to
strangers on the telephone, talking in front of people, and playing team
sports.

So my parents shrugged it off. They came to believe that shyness was a
natural, inborn variation of social behavior. Even before researchers
started finding organic clues to shyness.

Of course, both my parents were shy in childhood, so the apparent genetic
reasons were apparent.

Brian