Science or Pseudo-Science?

While female sexuality appears to be more fluid, research suggests that male gayness is an inborn, unalterable, strongly genetically influenced trait. But considering that the trait discourages the type of sex that leads to procreation — that is, sex with women — and would therefore seem to thwart its own chances of being genetically passed on to the next generation, why are there gay men at all? Put differently, why haven't gay man genes driven themselves extinct? This longstanding question is finally being answered by new and ongoing research. For several years, studies led by Andrea Camperio Ciani at the University of Padova in Italy and others have found that mothers and maternal aunts of gay men tend to have significantly more offspring than the maternal relatives of straight men. The results show strong support for the "balancing selection hypothesis," which is fast becoming the accepted theory of the genetic basis of male homosexuality. The theory holds that the same genetic factors that induce gayness in males also promote fecundity (high reproductive success) in those males' female maternal relatives. Through this trade-off, the maternal relatives' "gay man genes," though they aren't expressed as such, tend to get passed to future generations in spite of their tendency to make their male inheritors gay.

At the Crossroads

You took flight quietly.
Under the glassy veils,
I was still seeing sandy grits tucked

Between two clasped hands: uneven,
Yet seeking. Not a word or careful phrasings,
Just a crease beside my space.

An open sea quietly filled
With solitary windsong.
Sparrows, meeting only briefly, leaving at crossroads.

My Cousin Luke....

There are stories that can often feel too personal to share. We remember them but we keep them closed off, deep in the bowels of memories. But they linger, the emotions fester at the edge. Knocking at your wakefulness, asking to be granted freedom. Asking for leave to sing their tales.


I remember him.

Lukas Black from GND

Shh, don't ask....

Don't ask, baby. Don't tell the boys. Shh....

from Church Cat

The problem with dreams is that, sometimes, you believe they will come true. That's the consequence of falling.



"Boys break down each other’s walls. It’s an exercise in patience, getting a man to surrender to you, but when they do, their body explodes with feelings. They lock themselves up and when someone finally opens the floodgates, a whole lot of everything comes out. They’re a piñata and you’re carrying the bat.

People always seem to marvel at men who unravel and show their sensitive sides. A woman delights at seeing such a change. It’s such a victory to see a male become unchained to their machismo. When it happens between two men, however, it’s truly magnificent. The sight of two boys loving each other like they’ve been taught not to do is a revelation.

We know what you think of us. We know that there’s this image of gay men just being detached and hungry for sex. There is that. There is a lot of that. But there’s also thoughtfulness, concern, monogamy, Sunday afternoons in bed, I love you babe, I love you a lot, and you make me so happy. There’s so much of that and it’s never really talked about. It’s the secret lives of boys who love boys. Let’s blow the lid off of it, okay? Let’s expose every sweet moment, every kissed neck, every intense hand holding session." (Secret Lives....)

16. Pinoy, Gay and Illegal

From Washingtonian

A triple whammy, if one were to ask.


His story tells us of how much it takes---courage, hard work, persistence, support of family and friends, luck and God only knows what else.
----------------------------------------
My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant


Jose Antonio Vargas is a former reporter for The Washington Post and shared a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the Virginia Tech shootings. He founded Define American, which seeks to change the conversation on immigration reform

15. Coupled Up

Green Eyed Hunk from Who's that!

When Love Takes Over: A Celebration of SGL Couples of Color is based on the popular Coupled Up series from loldarian.com and exclusively profiles eighteen African-American gay couples who are in committed long-term relationships. The couples detail how they met, their journey towards self-acceptance, liberation and ultimately how they fell in love and maintain their relationships. All the while defying the myth that two black men are incapable of loving each other for a lifetime.

More from Living Out Loud

9. If you only knew….

flickeflu

 I love this video. After watching it, it had me thinking and, by necessity, writing lines again.