Words weightier than Stones

Words have weight. And, they give insight into how we think, as human beings.

'Gay' and 'Homosexual'. Two words, same meaning... or they would be 'scientifically' but- a world of difference. I am gay, or a homosexual. But, I have learnt to identify as gay, because the word 'homosexual' is used as a perjorative.

No, it is not really an issue of language... using English, being westernized. My mother tongue does have a word for my sexual orientation. [Duh, do not believe the nonsense that it is a 'western' import!]. What I find funny is the fact that, I do sense the negative connotation whenever anyone uses it to talk about me and my partner. And, of course we call ourselves 'kuchus'. Most direct translation would be 'Queers'.

Why the play on words?

Because, words have meanings, and weight. And, a community, whatever community of human beings it is, would not feel proud condemning themselves in the words of 'others'. Of course, words can be liberated. 'Queer' was liberated. Seems no longer to carry the same weight as 'faggot' does it?

I have noted in Google searches that the search for 'gay' gives significantly different results from 'homosexual'. Good Right wing Christians cannot find it in their hearts to call us gay. According to them, because we are homosexual, we cannot be gay. During the anti-homosexuality bill campaign, Ssempa was using lots of other words. Sodomites, Homosexualites. And others. Oh, I am not lying. Not at all.

But of course, in this 'cultural war' where a war can be a war, truth is usually an early casualty. Makes me laugh, to find that good old proffessional Christians are not averse to embracing hate, but also lies, as long as the hate and lies are directed towards homosexuals.

There is a website, the person editing it is called David Virtue. And, he calls it Virtue online. Website is definitely anti-gay. What is most interesting is how a person who is proffesionally a believer in Christ wallows in hate. Don't believe me? Well, you can check it out and make a table of the positives vs the negatives about a particular class of people that he calls 'homosexuals'

I can throw stones at Christians.

When one point out that to me, I am too happy to point out that I am no Christian. You are a Christian? Then walk the talk. If you don't, why, I will point out the logs in your eyes....

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Some good news, and thanks to some good, old fashioned, righteous outrage, Castor Semenya is not too much of a man, nor too little of a woman.

The African runner Caster Semenya has been given the all-clear by the IAAF over her gender tests and will compete this month, her agent says.

The 19-year-old has been out of the sport for 11 months after her gender came under scrutiny at the World Championships in Berlin last August,

Rumours spread about her masculine appearance and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) demanded she undergo gender tests after she won the 800m in 1min 55.45sec.

She was banned from competing by Athletics South Africa until her results came back.

Although she has been cleared, the IAAF will reportedly not release any more details of her results, which would have included physical and chromosomal checks.

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So, Castor does not fall in the good old boxes of male, or female. She hasnt for the whole of her life. But, she has to fit. Who will it benefit? Certainly not Castor. But, her competition. And, why the hell would an international body even think of releasing the 'results' of a person's gender tests? Asinine. Because we are different, are we not human enough to warrant privacy? No wonder Bahati in Uganda warranted forcing doctors, counsellors to report us to the 'authorities' anytime that we came out to someone... on pain of a fine and imprisonment.

That is why we gays, and lesbians, and queers so completely identify with intersex people. They are different, as we are different. And, sadly, the world would like to force us into its own concept of what is 'normal'. Whether it in our interest as human beings or not.

gug