# "I'm proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 30, 2014, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996 "2014-10-30T12:48:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/41 "2014-10-31T09:33:01Z")
> [@Claverhouse](#): > > When you think about it, declaring one’s gayness is the only way am ultra-rich white male can achieve the coveted status of _ **minority** _ I wouldn’t call him a maginalised minority in San Francisco. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/42 "2014-10-31T09:42:04Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > Why do a husband and kids hold someone down less than a wife and kids? True. Some gays do have children adopted by both partners and in that case similar issues would apply like your spouses job and wanting to live in an area with good schools. However the person mentioned in the OP doesnt mention having this. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/43 "2014-10-31T12:14:53Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > The only “advantage” I can see being gay is a man doesnt have a wife and kids to hold him down so to speak and he can more easily move around to different jobs. That’s an advantage to being _single and child-free_, not to being gay. Gay folks can bear and raise children, and now that they can (in most states) marry, they are subject to the same challenges that married het couples have faced for a long time. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/44 "2014-10-31T13:34:25Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > You’re saying that gay men are feminine? That women can’t work in the oil industry? If gay women can’t bore a hole I don’t know who could. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/45 "2014-10-31T13:38:43Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > Being gay is nothing to be ashamed of, but it’s nothing to be particularly proud of, either (just like any other attribute you were born with). Absolutely wrong. I can take great pride in the struggles of the past (both external and internal), and how I and others worked to overcome them . . . and succeeded. I have grown in so many ways that I probably wouldn’t have if I’d been straight. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/46 "2014-10-31T13:43:19Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > The only “advantage” I can see being gay is a man doesnt have a wife and kids to hold him down so to speak and he can more easily move around to different jobs. Best argument against gay marriage ever! TV AD: [music: _Music Box Dancer_ played on music box pins, gradually slowing & flattening; lighting changing gradually from green to yellow and finally to umber; 10 second montage of young man progressing from high school football hero, prom king, college grad, marriage, energetic desk jockey and freeze: morph from young, trim & eager to old, fat, balding, & crushed. Fade in around him pictures of frumpy, beat-down wife, screeching babies, derisive teens. FADE TO BLACK – FADE IN WHITE BLOCK TEXT] “Don’t let this happen to you.” [FADE IN BELOW]“Gays against marriage” ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/47 "2014-10-31T13:59:09Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > But seriously, gays are about 3% of males and who would want to be in a position where one could only mate with 3% of your same gender? Best to go after the other 50% of humanity. “But seriously” . . . I can only “mate with” 105 million men? That’s not a disadvantage, it’s an impossibility. And it works both ways: I’m only competing with 3% of males, not half of humanity. But all I need is one man in my life, and I’ve got him. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2014, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/48 "2014-10-31T15:41:32Z")
> [@Claverhouse](#): > > When you think about it, declaring one’s gayness is the only way am ultra-rich white male can achieve the coveted status of _ **minority** _. > > Other than being super-rich, of course; but in my experience the ultra-rich don’t elaborate on being in this marginalized group. ‘\* We’re just a regular joe: money doesn’t change one: we put on our pants one leg at a time: we can’t take it with us\*.’ I don’t know what you’re implying but whatever it is, it’s incredibly offensive. Either you’re saying he’s a straight man who’s pretending to be gay to score some fabulous PC points with the media, which makes him a person who totally invalidates the gay experience. A heavy charge for a man who grew up in Alabama in the 1970s and must of seen and faced incredibly prejudice and stigmatization. Or, you’re saying he came out for purely narcissistic, self serving reasons which is the opposite of the truth given how late he’s coming out. Tim Cook has been like Anderson Cooper in that he’s been open about his sexuality in private for a long, long time but he’s also always been private about his personal life because he’s never felt it relevant to the job he’s doing. If he wanted to come out for self serving reasons, he would have done it a long time ago. He’s coming out now because he feels like it could do some good in the world, not because he has some perverse desire to be feted as a minority. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2014, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/49 "2014-11-01T04:14:07Z")
> [@Shalmanese](#): > > I don’t know what you’re implying but whatever it is, it’s incredibly offensive. > > Either you’re saying he’s a straight man who’s pretending to be gay to score some fabulous PC points with the media, which makes him a person who totally invalidates the gay experience. A heavy charge for a man who grew up in Alabama in the 1970s and must of seen and faced incredibly prejudice and stigmatization. > > Or, you’re saying he came out for purely narcissistic, self serving reasons which is the opposite of the truth given how late he’s coming out. Tim Cook has been like Anderson Cooper in that he’s been open about his sexuality in private for a long, long time but he’s also always been private about his personal life because he’s never felt it relevant to the job he’s doing. If he wanted to come out for self serving reasons, he would have done it a long time ago. He’s coming out now because he feels like it could do some good in the world, not because he has some perverse desire to be feted as a minority. Or, and this is more likely, they’re saying that being white and male means he’s never going to be a _true_ minority, and cannot possibly know what discrimination _really_ is, because “intersectionality” is what you practice at a four-way stop with no traffic lights. As we all know, power is always and forever held by certain groups, which are Privileged in any and all interactions, and they’re Wrong. Especially when they try to talk about the challenges they faced. The only response to that is denying and minimizing their experiences, because they’re not real minorities, after all, and therefore have achieved nothing on their own. (This is what’s left when a reasonable theory gets gutted and its skin gets worn by someone trying to pass as a caring human being.) ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2014, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/50 "2014-11-03T00:53:36Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > He said that he learned from it and knows what it’s like to be a minority and that that gave him the strength and drive to be successful and get the trillion dollar job. And I thought he couldn’t be any less jerky than Jobs. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2014, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/51 "2014-11-03T20:20:20Z")
In the news today they’re saying a memorial to Steve Jobs in a tech park in russia has been taken down because it violates their gay propaganda laws and endangers children. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2014, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/52 "2014-11-03T23:19:00Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > In the news today they’re saying a memorial to Steve Jobs in a tech park in russia has been taken down because it violates their gay propaganda laws and endangers children. I can’t wait till Putin gets busted fellating a circus clown in a public restroom. The phobia is so strong with him it’s just a matter of when, not if. ---
**Author:** ![Osiris\_the\_1st](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9de0a6/32.png) [@Osiris\_the\_1st](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Osiris_the_1st)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/53 "2014-11-04T16:58:09Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Didn’t Tim just finish saying that sucking is a gift from God? 😃 Kind of offensive. As far as Mr. Cook’s comments it looked bizare as an out of context headline, but in context I get what the is saying. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/54 "2014-11-04T17:11:09Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > I can’t wait till Putin gets busted fellating a circus clown in a public restroom. The phobia is so strong with him it’s just a matter of when, not if. I don’t know how much he really cares himself. He’s a weird bird. He’s definitely pandering to his conservatives, just like in the US. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/55 "2015-05-12T10:52:49Z")
> [@Cubsfan](#): > > “Greatest gifts God has given me”? Really? > > :smack: > > So Tim Cook officially came out, though I don’t think it’s much of a surprise but good for him. That’s a pretty powerful successful person to look up to for kids that are struggling with these things no doubt. > > But what the heck is he saying when he says his gayness is a gift from god? What a bizarre choice of words. I’d say his trillion dollar a year job is probably his greatest gift, if you’re into god. His sexuality though? Something about that statement makes me feel like he has no perspective or is a bit unstable. I dunno. I followed this from a link from another post, so have not read all the other comments. But as far as the greatest gift from God is being gay. I understand this as the gift is begin able to live as you were made to live, not having to hide who you are also to be accepted for who you are, not having to conform to who society insists you must be. So in that I can see a great deal of thankfulness expressed for God to place him in a land that allows him to be exactly who he is to be, thus the greatest gift, being himself and acceptance for that. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/56 "2015-05-12T13:06:47Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Tim Cook was born gay. He wasn’t born CEO of Apple. One was a gift from God, the other was the result of years of hardwork. Oh come on - it’s not _that_ hard to become gay. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/57 "2015-05-12T13:47:44Z")
Just wait until he outs himself as the one who was really pushing the Newton. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996/58 "2015-05-12T17:55:24Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Oh come on - it’s not _that_ hard to become gay. > > Regards, > Shodan Are you kidding me? The gym hours alone are practically a full time job! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-proud-to-be-gay-and-i-consider-being-gay-among-the-greatest-gifts-god-has-given-me/702996.md?page=2)