What sexuality would you choose?

[Sara27]

What sexuality would you choose? Why?

Do you believe a person's sexuality is based more on genetic predisposition or environmental influences?

[Homini Lupus]

Having no sexual desire would have many advantages since it woul mean being more independant. But it would also deprive life of something I presume. Given the value of sexual drive then the most common (heterosexual) is the best; it's already quite difficult to find a potential partner when you are introverted, reducing the number of partners would make choices more forced making more difficult to find a person who truly deserves your attention.

Personally I never made many research about the reasons of sexuality since I don't see it as a problem to be solved. I know there are many points of view, mainly trying to explain omosexuality. The problem is that it's a kind of research very difficult (as any research tryng to understand men) and very close to political problems.

[Sara27]

Why didn't you take the poll? I hope you do. I don't see sexuality as a problem. It is an issue where people have wildly different views. This isn't ment to be a discussion on continuing the species, just to see what people think about sexuality.

I'm straight, but would choose to be bi becasue increasing the population of suitable partners sounds good to me. More choices. Choices are always good.

[Vivid]

No sexuality would be my first choice. Second to that, I would choose bisexual since, like you said, there's more choices. I would rather not be gay, though. It makes things too complicated.

[Sara27]

Why no sexuality? Too much of a hassle?

[Vivid]

Why no sexuality? Too much of a hassle?

Yep. Why sexuality? I can't say there's anything logically good that comes from it.

[kriss]

Genetic. I'd still be straight. I like girls too much.

[Elfrun]

I'm female... after that I don't like any of the choices ;D

I believe genetics have a role, I think environment is a bigger factor though.

[Danisty]

I'm female, and bisexual (actually, I'd say I'm pansexual, but that wasn't a choice). Sexuality is not a choice, but if it was, I'd choose to be bisexual. I don't see any reason to limit my options.

[Beery Swine]

Male, hetero, not a choice, bi.

I chose "not a choice" but I think choice is a factor, maybe not all the time, but assuredly some of the time. For all intents and purposes though, it's not a choice.





Beery Swine added to this post, 1 minutes and 52 seconds later...

Do you believe a person's sexuality is based more on genetic predisposition or environmental influences?
Hmm...I guess I'm Agnostic on that. More research needed.

[thegnat]

Why would you choose to be gay in this day and age unless you already were?

I think genetics plays a larger role than environment, but that environment plays a decent sized role. I suppose it depends on the person, too. I think its been said that bisexuality is a natural state among animals, which....homo sapiens aren't separate from. I've read that there are some homo-sexual couples in the animal kingdom and they aren't incredibly rare. But it serves a function (to help offspring survive, socially, etc).

[notoppings]

Male, Gay with a slight tendency to Bi.

Sexuality is not a choice if it was, depending on the age of the person, I believe most people would choose to be straight. As we all know they are not. No one would choose to go through the awkward time of youth, standing outside of the group, far easier to be straight.

As for me, if it was a choice, and keeping my knowledge, and being past that awkward younger version of myself, I would choose to be Gay. The ease of sexual gratification, little to no legal commitments, no child support.

I always here my friends complain about not getting any, think about it, men are always on the prowl or are serious when they go looking for it, they don't want to play games they just want some, women are a different breed. So if you take out that female equation and you are left with two guys hunting for gratification, life becomes easier, people may think it's harder if you are gay but reality, you get laid more if you are.

I would go with a woman, but only if they were as aggressive as men.

[Danisty]

Why would you choose to be gay in this day and age unless you already were?I can't answer that, but I would choose to be bi because it seems more logical...more options.

[thegnat]

I can't answer that, but I would choose to be bi because it seems more logical...more options.

I completely understand bi. It's not socially frowned upon by as many people as gay-ness is. Personally, I don't care what your sexuality is. But I know some people who do.

There's of course the logic that homosexuality can be advantageous in some situations like it is with the animal kingdom. But I dunno. I really think it's mostly genetic.

[szaxazs]

Asexual. There is no use for sexual drive. It's just something that occupies your brain all the time, and then you have to masturbate when this drive hits the red lights, or go crazy by retaining even from masturbation. I'm talking about teens here, since that's the time when hormones are like crazy.

If people were asexual, life would be easier. We would still have sex with the opposite sex to go on with evolution, but that would not be a problem. It would be like a job rather that a fuss. People would marry an asexual opposite sex partner and they would make some asexual kids. Then these kids would do the same. All people would have goals targeted toward science then, and not sex. Today, everything 9/10 (if not 10/10) people do is done in order for them to get laid. I despise this. Such a fuss about sex, such a fuss about hot chicks, such a fuss about homosexuals who want their rights ( I have nothing with homosexuals, for your information. I mind my own business, and couldn't care less about who you sleep with. To be honest, I don't give a fuck ) , no, I am sick of it. Sexuality just adds more problems for the unconscious to solve, and no one needs extra problems.

They bombard us with their sexual shit all the time and we have to take it. They advertise a product and they must have some hot porno chick there, otherwise the ad won't be any good. Then I would want to bang the chick as I couldn't care less about the product. But the ad was successful, my subconscious already connected the hot porno chick with the product, and because I liked the chick I like the product too, without even me knowing it. My subconscious will make me want to buy the product, and there are more chances now for me to buy it, all because of the fucked chick. That was one of the reasons the last ad I saw at my TV was like three years ago. I absolutely hate TV.

No, asexual all the way. And no feelings if possible too, please. I would like to be a robot. Humans have way too many weaknesses, and they live with these weaknesses and they think that instead of weaknesses they are what defines their nature, which I find utterly stupid. Their subconscious is usually their worst enemy, but most of them do not want to accept that. And asexuality would be a step closer to a robot, so yes, I would choose it. Why the hell not. I have nothing to lose that I care of at least.

[Monte314]

I lay in bed in the darkened room last night, listening to the quite breathing of my wife as she slept. We've been together over 30 years now, and I thought back over the many ways that she has served me, blessed me, overlooked my faults, loving me as I am...

... I cannot imagine wanting anything else.

[AutisticCuckoo]

Male, hetero, not a choice, bi.
Ditto.

I chose "not a choice" but I think choice is a factor, maybe not all the time, but assuredly some of the time. For all intents and purposes though, it's not a choice.
Agreed. I don't think it's much of a choice, but I do believe it is dependent on culture. There are and have been cultures where homosexuality has been more accepted than it is in the Western world today. Of course there are and have been cultures where it's been less accepted, too.

I suppose being brought up in a culture where heterosexuality was the absolute norm, I became conditioned to think along those lines. The idea of physical intimacy with another man is repulsive to me. That doesn't mean I find gay men repulsive; it just means that I can't imagine doing it myself.

If I could lose the cultural straightjacket and make a free choice, I think it's possible that I'd choose bi. Not only would it increase my 'opportunities' (although any number multiplied by zero is still zero :)), but it would also offer more variety.

On the other hand, I'd happily settle for one single likeable woman, too.

[TheLastMohican]

I lay in bed in the darkened room last night, listening to the quite breathing of my wife as she slept. We've been together over 30 years now, and I thought back over the many ways that she has served me, blessed me, overlooked my faults, loving me as I am...

... I cannot imagine wanting anything else.

Now that is a winner. Dr. Phil would approve.

[Uberfuhrer]

To be honest, I'd rather be a hermaphrodite. That way, I could have the best (and worst) of both worlds.

EDIT: Oh, damn, I thought you meant which gender we would choose. :bomb:

I'm male and I'm straight...although I'm willing to experiment (after I try it the traditional way first).

[True Rune]

I'm good with what I have, asexuality. I don't mind it, but asexuality ftw.

[kevintr]

I'm a straight male but I wolden't mind seeing what its like to be female. I read in a book on surperstition that if you kiss your elbow it will cause a sex change ... ugh! can't reach. Maybe praticing yoga will help.

[Dreamer]

Male,hetero. I like it that way.

Sexuality doesn't look like a choice. I see no one who suddenly choose to want to have sex at 13,whether it is with a man,woman,shemale, or whatnot.

[Beery Swine]

I'm a straight male but I wolden't mind seeing what its like to be female. I read in a book on surperstition that if you kiss your elbow it will cause a sex change ... ugh! can't reach. Maybe praticing yoga will help.

It's all true, sweetie. You're readin a reply by a male-to-female-to-male trans...trans something or other. To revert to male form you have to kiss the inside back of your knee. :thumbsup:

[Eric86]

Heterosexual is the only way for me. :)

[Seppuku Savant]

I guess I'd be considered Pansexual. There are certain people I've been attracted to that didn't fit into the typical gender binary. However, I'm still interested in people rooted in being completely male or female as well.

Sexuality isn't usually a choice. I'd say 95% of the time, it's not. The other 5% would be people that had such traumatic experiences with a certain sex that they choose to be homosexual because those are the only people they can emotionally connect with. Your basically asking nature versus nurture.

[ElstonGunn]

Second to that, I would choose bisexual since, like you said, there's more choices.

That's why I'd rather not be bisexual. I've got enough problems as it is, just with liking women. Maybe choices are opportunities to some people, but for me, they're more like burdens.

[Ehanah]

I am a female and straight. I cannot find any sexual (or mental, by the way) interest in women, so I would not "choose" to be bisexual or lesbian...

[Sara27]

Ehanah: Why no mental interest in women? Haven't you met any interesting women? Not even on this site? There are plenty out there.

[szaxazs]

That's why I'd rather not be bisexual. I've got enough problems as it is, just with liking women. Maybe choices are opportunities to some people, but for me, they're more like burdens.

And that's what I mean too. No choice is an opportunity when it comes to relationships for me; those who see choices as opportunities when it comes to things like relationships, sexual or not, they are delusioned, and that's my personal opinion. The subconscious solves problems, and more relationships = more problems for the subconscious to solve.

Thus, relationships add more problems, and most people want to get rid of their problems or at least most people want no more problems to be added to their subconscious. Prove me wrong if you can. Tell me a reasonable, sensible human being wants additional problems.

{[Asexual] = [No Choices]}
{[No Choices] = [No Problems]}
{[Asexual] = [No Problems]}

Or at least, less problems.

My opinion is that for a human being reasonable enough, asexual would not simply be the best choice; it would be the ONLY choice, if we accept that reasonable human beings want to minimize their problems.

[manger]

For men, sexuality is almost exclusively genetic and/or set in early childhood. For women, it is more frequently shaped by choice and social factors than genetics.

[Sara27]

Please expand. Sources?

[manger]

Please expand. Sources?

I learned a lot about this in a human sexuality course I took a while ago. The source that sticks out in my mind the most is the following survey that The Advocate, an LGBT magazine, conducted of its readers about 10-15 years ago. They asked what each reader believed their sexuality was attributed to, and received the following results:

Gay men
biological: 92
social: 4
choice: 4

Gay women
biological: 56
social: 16
choice: 28

This is of course by no means a truly scholarly study, simply a poll in a magazine, but you can see that there is a considerable difference between how the sexes perceive their sexuality. A study I like to bring up is one conducted at Northwestern by Michael Bailey et al. They measured both subjective and objective arousal in gay, straight and trans people in response to videos of heterosexual, gay male, or lesbian sex. Subjective arousal was determined by the subject - he/she pressed a button when they felt they were aroused. Objective arousal was determined by an apparatus that measured blood flow to the genitals. The data they got was very interesting and controversial. Essentially they found that straight men are aroused much more by f/m and f/f porn and gay men mostly by m/m porn. All women, regardless of how they identified sexually, were evenly and consistently aroused by all three types of porn. Women, who according to this study show capacity to be aroused by all types of sexual arrangements, may be more likely to enter heterosexual relationships simply because of how femininity and women in general are seen in our society as weaker and less desirable. You can read the Bailey study here (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. r%2Fsex_difference.pdf&ei=XuFtSNCxCorQiAGurLyDAQ&usg=AFQjCNHd_AcKcXpZSC39UFVtZyeO0Sl3eg&sig2=iQG69Oa3ux6uRwa8YF97kQ)

Apart from these two examples, the overwhelming majority of conclusive scientific research on sexuality has shed light on males only. Females have been historically much more difficult to work with when looking for trends or correlations in sexual orientation. A few (very rare) hormonal disorders that are a result of genetics or perinatally introduced drugs have been positively identified as having a definite correlation with sexual orientation, but few other definite biological links have been found. There seems to be a much higher potential for sexual fluidity among women in general. What's also interesting about the Bailey study is that it suggests that there is no such thing as male bisexuality. In the experiment, males who identified themselves as bisexuals showed bisexual preference in the subjective part of the test, but exhibited genital arousal only when watching m/m porn.

Examples of conclusive studies on males include

pheromone studies: gay men respond to male pheromones while lesbians show no discernable difference between exposure to male or female pheromones

functional brain differences: fMRI's show that gay men's brains look like female brains when asked to perform a mental rotation task (rotating image of a 3d shape in their minds)

LeVay's study on the INAH3 area of the hypothalamus: INAH3 is involved with typical male sexual behavior. In gay males, it was 2-3x smaller than in heterosexual males. This is comparable to the size of this area in females.

[Rafael]

I lay in bed in the darkened room last night, listening to the quite breathing of my wife as she slept. We've been together over 30 years now, and I thought back over the many ways that she has served me, blessed me, overlooked my faults, loving me as I am...

... I cannot imagine wanting anything else.

:speechless: *Agrees*

[iceberg]

I'm male, I'm gay, I'd choose to be gay. I'll admit that I am a bit of a misogynist but femininity repulses me. Logically it makes sense for me to be gay. Women's thought processes and actions don't make sense to me at all. Men I understand how they will respond and behave but women I never know. That makes them impossible to trust. By being gay I'm not societally forced to marry and support some chick and her spawn in a pickett fence house in a suburban wasteland. I don't really have to play by any of societies rules and thus I get to make my own and I like that. I get to treat sex like a social activity like going out to eat or drink with friends. One thing I do regret is not being able to have kids. I would like children(of my own) but I feel a baby needs its mother and two men can't provide what a mom can. Two men could raise a child but not a baby. Though the manlier a woman behaves the more I like them.

[Sara27]

Manger: Thanks for all the great info and references.

[Tabemashoo]

I'm male, I'm gay, I'd choose to be gay. I'll admit that I am a bit of a misogynist but femininity repulses me. Logically it makes sense for me to be gay. Women's thought processes and actions don't make sense to me at all. Men I understand how they will respond and behave but women I never know. That makes them impossible to trust. By being gay I'm not societally forced to marry and support some chick and her spawn in a pickett fence house in a suburban wasteland. I don't really have to play by any of societies rules and thus I get to make my own and I like that. I get to treat sex like a social activity like going out to eat or drink with friends. One thing I do regret is not being able to have kids. I would like children(of my own) but I feel a baby needs its mother and two men can't provide what a mom can. Two men could raise a child but not a baby. Though the manlier a woman behaves the more I like them.

Ditto. Creepy how much I agree with you on women. Though I disagree with you on whether a child needs a mother or not. Kids will find "other mothers" with other female relatives or older friends if theirs is absent. Both my brother and I are proof of this, as our Mother was either emotionally or physically absent for most all of our lives, and our grandmother basically became our mother figure.

EDIT: I should probably put in--it would make sense that kids would also do this with absent fathers. Mine was/is awesome though, so no personal experience there.

[ShadowWeaver44]

I firmly believe that your gender is a product of conditions as u are developing, such as temp and pressure of the body. This has been proven true in other species such as chickens and mice. Scientists can alter the gender my manipulating certain variables.

[enWTFp]

What sexuality would you choose?I'm pretty happy with what nature has gracefully chosen for me already, thank you.

And I'm just a little concerned that sometimes in their attempts to manipulate nature, humans more likely end up manipulating only themselves.

By the way, I believe beauty is terribly misunderstood since we started wearing clothes. Introducing makeup was quite possibly the end of it.

[Colette]

I'm male, I'm gay, I'd choose to be gay. I'll admit that I am a bit of a misogynist but femininity repulses me. Logically it makes sense for me to be gay. Women's thought processes and actions don't make sense to me at all. Men I understand how they will respond and behave but women I never know. That makes them impossible to trust. By being gay I'm not societally forced to marry and support some chick and her spawn in a pickett fence house in a suburban wasteland. I don't really have to play by any of societies rules and thus I get to make my own and I like that. I get to treat sex like a social activity like going out to eat or drink with friends. One thing I do regret is not being able to have kids. I would like children(of my own) but I feel a baby needs its mother and two men can't provide what a mom can. Two men could raise a child but not a baby. Though the manlier a woman behaves the more I like them.

Since when were all "women" the same (in terms of mental processes, motivations etc)? Have you considered that by adopting this blanket kind of prejudice towards interacting with women, you close yourself off to the possibility of ever discovering the huge diversity that exists within the female gender? I regard myself as more rational, more consistent in my thinking and behaviour, and less emotion-driven, than many men. According to your view however I would qualify as a "chick with spawn", incapable of being understood, and living in a "suburban wasteland". With all due respect to your sexual preference (which is not something I believe people can choose), I think you're doing women a great disservice, and are yourself missing out on the good things we have to offer.

[PeterBristolUK]

This is a loopy poll, how can you have options of if your male or femal and if you gay or straight???

[NephilimAzrael]

I am bi-sexual.. Though I highly doubt absolute grounding for an individual's sexuality lies in genetics OR environment, but a matter of both. And pan sexuality is a ridiculous concept considering it would insinuate attraction to inter-species as well as gender.

[misgolasrapax]

I have been a heterosexual my whole life but now I am starting to notice the delicate/soft/wanting need in woman that has started to intrigue me to no end. This surprises me because I have always held the belief that a person sorts out thier sexual orientation in thier teens. I am attracted to heterosexual woman and it amazes me, how much they welcome my touch.

[Aeroscoper]

Interesting pattern. All the gays respond that it's definitely not a choice, yet they would all choose to be gay if they had the choice. One came close and said that others would obviously choose not to be gay, yet he'd choose gay, though all the other gays said they'd choose to be gay. All my gay friends say it'd be ridiculous to choose to be gay in today's world, yet they all say they'd choose to be gay if they could...what a co-ink-a-dink. :)

[rocksteady]

I like to think of myself as polysexual, meaning my sexuality isn't hard-coded. I make an attempt to let my logic function carry more weight than my natural impulses. I believe for some sexuality is a choice, for others, they may never consider they have a choice.

I've never had any homosexual experiences, but i find certain men attractive, and i'm comfortable with that. I guess i read too many science fiction novels set in the far future where puritan values are pushed aside, and sexual deviance is commonplace...living the dream I guess...

[LexR]

I don't see what's the issue with it being a "choice" or not anyways.

Put it bluntly, there's nothing wrong with homosexuality (unless you're some... yeah we'll leave it at that. another story). So either way it doesn't matter one bit.

If it is a lifestyle choice, cool. They know what they are getting into. They choose to live that way. Doesn't hurt anyone. Fully legitimate. So what if it IS a choice? Yeah you might not approve, but you still can't discriminate just because that person now hads some control over his/her sexuality, just like many other things that IS a choice and controllable, yet you STILL can not discriminate based on those factors.

If not a choice? Well, be good humans (you know the rest...)

So any combination in any different composition (70%-30%, 50%-50%), I don't think it matters one bit, honestly. I mean, why try to "rationalise" homosexuality anyways? I understand if it is somehow for "scientific enrichment" or "educational purposes" but I think it's one of those things that doesn't much have an impact nor use nor purpose, not to say sometimes distasteful. (or better, disrespectful)

:)

[Snail]

I'm a female.

I'm straight.

Sometimes sexual orientation is a choice, and sometimes it is not, depending on whether it is a product of natural biological factors such as brain chemistry/hormones, or psychological trauma/conditioning.

I don't want to be completely non-sexual like some of you robots :p but I think I'd like to be less sexually focused than I am. I have fantasies all the time about intimacy and how it would feel to be close to someone. It would be nice if I didn't care so much about having that kind of connection, because it's depressing to want something I don't have.

I can't imagine being anything but straight, so I don't long for something I have never experienced. The idea of being sexually attracted to other females creeps me out a bit, even though I have had several lesbian friends and even lived with one as a roommate for a while. It's okay for other people, but it wouldn't be authentic for me.

[Sliderule]

I'm a hetero male, but if I could choose I think I might choose gay simply for the fact that guys give much better back massages. (I highly value back rubs) Girls generally tire out or quit early because their hands cramp, whereas I find I can give a back rub for a half an hour. I expect that most guys could do about the same.

Although I guess I could just hire someone to do this for me, which wouldn't require a change in sexual orientation.

Oh and gay or strait is no choice for men, but for women they seem to have one. I really wish I could dig up the study I read on this so that I had something to back up my statement.

[punkyplatypus]

I'm a straight male. I did not choose to be straight and from what I've experienced, no one else has chosen their sexuality. This isn't to say someone can't choose who they have sex with someone they're not sexually attracted to. A lesbian woman in need of money could have sex with men for money. This doesn't make her straight. It's called sexual preference because it describes who you'd prefer to have sex with, not who you do have sex with. A bisexual can choose to have sex with just men or women, however he/she is still a bisexual. The physical choice doesn't nullify the mental preference.

Now if sexuality was a choice, I think I'd still choose to be straight. This is because I want kids of my own. Plus in my current state of being straight, my brain tells me that sex with women is more enjoyable than the thought of being with a man. So I guess I'd also choose being straight because it's more enjoyable.

Is sexuality based on the inner or outer environment?
I want to start off by saying I don't think there's a gay gene.
Now, I think as a child the outer environment affects the inner environment, possibly changing it. As the child grows into an adult, the outer environment plays less of a role. So basically, sexuality comes from inside though it can be modified by the outside at early ages. How long is the phase in which this modification can take place? Do infants have a sexuality? Or do sexual instincts kick in some time between prepubescence to young adulthood?
I think for every person there's a unique answer to these questions.

EDIT: I said that the inner environment is mainly affected by outer environment as a child, but I guess this assumption is not true. I remember in a human sexual behavior course I took that sexuality can change over time. I was reminded of this as I went back to read the other posts. So I guess that the affect the inner or outer environment has on sexuality depends on the individual. However from my observations, I still think my assumption is true for most cases.

[Kisai]

Male, my sexuality flows with my tastes, which change every so often. Right now its mostly hetero, but I still am attracted to some men. Mostly I'll hit on women, though.

Besides cuteness, I'm attracted to personality, mostly smart or willful people. I don't really see very many, though. :(

For me, sexuality is a choice, just like deciding where to eat and what to eat is a choice. Inhibitions can be challenged, though many people choose to see them as absolute.

[Nanashi]

For men, sexuality is almost exclusively genetic and/or set in early childhood. For women, it is more frequently shaped by choice and social factors than genetics.

Blanket statements are the only statement that are ever made. (blanket statement)
there are some unsupported statements (unsupported statement)

...I'm in a weird mood...but you get my point..





Nanashi added to this post, 5 minutes and 19 seconds later...

I am bi-sexual.. Though I highly doubt absolute grounding for an individual's sexuality lies in genetics OR environment, but a matter of both. And pan sexuality is a ridiculous concept considering it would insinuate attraction to inter-species as well as gender.

The root word 'pan' is derived from a word meaning 'all.' I would think that could have strictly the meaning of all human bisexual, homosexual, and heterosexual females and males.

Application of 'pan' to 'everything' could be made in the context you describe.