Vote No: The Upcoming Election, and Homosexuality.

Today is election day. That being the case, I'm going to take the opportunity to talk about a hot-button issue that's been flaring up -- gay marriage (and homosexuality in general). The anti-gay movement is one that has its roots in ignorance and religious zealotry, and is something we should have moved past long ago as a country.

Let's start with the roots of marriage. Contrary to what a lot of Christians believe, marriage is not a Christian thing. The idea of finding a spouse and  committing to one another is something that predates reliably recorded history, let alone a two thousand year old myth. So to the people who are saying that this "Christian" institution should follow the precepts of Christianity (thereby excluding same-sex marriage): check your facts. You people didn't create marriage.

Another laughable argument that I hear far too frequently is that "America was founded as a Christian nation, and should therefor follow the bible!" I'm sorry, but bullshit. This country wasn't founded on Christianity in any way. Our forefathers left England to escape a government that was built on religion; they sure as hell didn't leave that to create the exact same thing. Let me toss out an excerpt from the eleventh article of the Treaty of Tripoli:

"The Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion."

But yeah, we're a Christian nation, right? No. Not at all. And I'm personally disgusted that people find that assumption so credible.
So when you're voting, regardless of whether or not you think homosexuality is right or wrong, vote no on the anti-gay marriage amendment. Because a law based on Christian superstition and bigotry has no place in the legislature of a country created on the principles of freedom of religion, as well as freedom from religion.

Politics aside, let's turn to some of the arguments raised against Christianity in general. "You're born gay" and "you choose to be gay" are two viewpoints that butt heads a lot. But what irks me is the fact that the people who say these things usually don't have a clue what they're talking about. They haven't studied the necessary psychoanalytical psychology, neurology, or behavioral psychology to even begin to make an informed decision. The fact of the matter is, neither of those viewpoints is very credible. Studies show that it's more likely that a person isn't born homosexual, but through the influence of life events in early childhood, they become inclined toward homosexuality through no choice of their own. 

In a neurological study done by Laura S. Allen and Roger A. Gorski, it's shown that the anterior commissure in homosexual males is, on average, 34% larger than the anterior commissure of a heterosexual man. The anterior commissure in our brain has many functions; relating to memory, emotion, speech, hearing, and instinct, but one of its fundamental roles is regulating sexual behavior. Now, how can someone who has an actual anatomical difference in their brain in the area that regulates sexual behavior be "making a choice" to be gay? It seems unlikely. People really need to get their information from an unbiased source. A church pamphlet is not a peer reviewed scientific article; neither is a testimony on a pro-gay forum. Science people -- it works.

None of this really matters though. If it's a choice or not, we need to respect and love everyone -- regardless of their differences. Only when we learn to do that can we begin to move toward brighter horizons as a country, and as a species.