# The story of the phone who loved other phones **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 12, 2003, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943 "2003-10-12T02:05:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Stephi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Stephi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephi)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2003, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/81 "2003-10-20T20:14:34Z")
I think I’m going to start switching the meanings of my adjectives. From now on, I’m going to use the word “gay” as in “awesome, different or unique.” “My new cell phone has so many features and many different ring tones. It’s so **gay**!” “Look at those **gay** flowers! I’ve never seen their type before!” And then “straight” will mean “plain, ordinary, or mediocre.” “My friend Peter is such a boring, **straight** singer; he sings with no feeling whatsoever.” Do you think this will catch on? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2003, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/82 "2003-10-20T20:54:47Z")
**fushj00mang** , I’ve got some questions for you: One, you say > [@](#): > > My personhood, my self image, my ego if you will, says that I am 1: a male, 2: straight, 3: military oriented, and 4: willing to crack heads on command. That’s the bare bones of it … Using your heterosexuality as one of the four defining characteristics of who you are. Sounds like sexuality is very very integral to your ego and person. But then you go on to say: > [@](#): > > The only gays I ever see getting harassed are the pink-triangle, rainbow sticker activist crowd, who constantly scream at the tops of their collective lungs how they’re queer, they’re here, and we (the rest of America) needs to get used to it. **Fine. You’re gay, you’re my neighbor, but goddamn, there has to be something more to you than you being gay! I’m much more interested if you go fishing than if you’re gay. I’m much more interested if you play paintball than if you’re gay. I’m much more interested in your literary prefrences than your sexual ones.** It is ludicrous (SIC) for a ‘straight-pride’ rally. So what makes a ‘gay-pride’ rally less silly? (bolding mine) So, which is it? Is sexuality important, or is it not? If its so important to you, it makes sense that it might be very important to other people as well, no? > [@](#): > > If you stop bringing it up, then people will leave you alone about it! And if its a birthpattern, then really, what the fuck are you going on about? Its the same as being proud that you’ve been born with ten fingers, ten toes, and two eyes. Big fucking woop. I’m born straight, and choose to be straight. Where’s my medal? You seem to think you deserve one for being gay, so I want one for being straight! Again, big fucking whoop that you’re straight. You were born that way, so who cares. So why is calling you a fag such a big deal? Sounds like you want to wear your ‘straight’ medal loud and proud for all the world to see, but _we don’t care_. Another point: You said to **Exprix** , > [@](#): > > Also, rereading your post, you are quite defensive about being a member of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered community. Why is that? Are you ashamed of it? If not, then why are you taking offense at it? Please tell me. I have yet to single you out, but I am doing so now. I haven’t clustered all gays into one pot and lit a fire under it. So what’s the big deal? If you are so easily offended at such a thing then there HAS to be something wrong with it. But, there’s nothing wrong with being gay. So this points to some sort of a personal issue. Please share with the group. You offer him nothing but a catch-22. You insult the GLBTY community, then tell him that if he is offended it _proves_ that he has something to be ashamed about? The fact is, he is offended because he is a smart guy, and perceives that he has been insulted, and insulted because of his sexuality (which you both do and do not seem to hold in very high importance). So, he can either not be offended and affirm insults through lack of objection (didn’t you tell **LaurAnge** she should have said something if it really bothered her?), or he can affirm those insults by the very act of speaking against them. Please explain. ---
**Author:** ![foostav](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/258eb7/32.png) [@foostav](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foostav)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2003, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/83 "2003-10-20T22:08:09Z")
how do u know a phone is lesbian? It gets really angry at anonymous ppl on the internet lol ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2003, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/84 "2003-10-20T23:18:39Z")
**foostav** , I have not, in this thread, disclosed what my sexual orientation is. Nor will I admit to the baseless allegation that I am a phone. ---
**Author:** ![Stephi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Stephi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephi)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2003, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/85 "2003-10-20T23:49:29Z")
**LaurAnge** claims to be a cellular device, but she’s may or may not be telling the truth. She’s such a **phony**! Ow! Ow! Stop kicking me! Ow! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/86 "2003-10-21T16:31:54Z")
I wonder if we’ll be seeing **fushj00mang** back in this thread again. I also wonder if we made a difference. Esprix ---
**Author:** ![fushj00mang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d26b3c/32.png) [@fushj00mang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fushj00mang)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/87 "2003-10-22T03:15:29Z")
Sorry about taking a bit to get back to this thread. The base is entertaining guests (some guys from the 156th FW, Vermont ANG) and I’ve been helping intergrate their SF staff into ours. Esprix, > [@](#): > > And using the term “gay” or “lesbian” to describe something negatively isn’t a “potential or perceived insult,” it is an insult. Can you understand why, or has that point eluded you? It does so elude me. Please spread your pearls of homosexual wisdom! Please enlighten me with this gay knowledge. Your queer information will be welcome. Ok, now, tell me what was the intent behind my use of homosexual, gay, and queer. Can you? From how I read it, it could be derogatory and edged. Or, they could be simple descriptive adjectives indicating that the information is about homosexuals. See the problem here? You may take these terms as insulting, when the ‘offending’ party means nothing. The frank problem is that you don’t know, and thus simply jump to the defensive. You perceive an insult where there is none. My rifle was gay as fuck two weeks ago when it misfired, nearly costing me my requal. So, how do I mean gay? > [@](#): > > Wow. As long as we act just like you we won’t get our heads beaten in. As long as we just shut up already we’ll (maybe, eventually) get equal rights in this country. As long as we keep to ourselves and not be proud of the accomplishments of ourselves and our communties we’ll be just fine. Martin Luther King, Jr. would be proud. Well, yea. Would you perfer we rewind to 1973, when homosexuality was a mental illness? I mean, I’ve got a copy of the DMSD-IIa around here somewhere. Your group keeps reaching for more, and more, and more, when there is no more to be had. Prejudices exist, and you’re not going to stop that by marching and making general asses of yourselves. Are you proud of the accomplishments that you and your community have made? If you are, then who cares if I don’t give a rats ass about Lawrence v. Texas, or the removal of homosexuality from the Diagnostic manual of Mental and Social Disorders? I accept my gay friends for who they are, and tolerate you. Why? They’re content that they can vote, cohabitate, and engage in all the other guarenteed rights of Americans. They can’t be committed for being gay any more than I can for being straight. You’ve reached the goddamned plateau. Stop looking for a mountain to climb. There isn’t one. Get over it. > [@](#): > > You’re equating the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the pre-eminent LGBT rights organization of this country, to the KKK? Yes, we’re so terroristic, asking to be treated the same as everyone else, working towards mutual understanding for a long-disparaged and hated community, and demanding equal rights and protection under the laws. How uppity of us! Quite. Thanks for supplying the name, as I’d forgotten it. Both groups seek to segregate themselves from the general American population by forcing policy into their camps. The comparison between your groups isn’t based on your group’s mission statements, so much as it is on your aims, ways, and means. You bully ‘anti-gay’ companies into creating ‘pro-gay’ policy, browbeat governments into supporting gays, and the idea of ‘mutual understanding’ is a load of bullshit. You’re not looking for mutual understanding, you’re looking for advancement. I don’t accept every straight person I meet, so why should I accept every gay person? Is being homosexual a positive which puts you above all straight people? And, if its mutual understanding you want, then why not have some sort of dialogue between the leaders of the gay and lesbian communtiy and the leaders of the straight community? Oh wait, its because we don’t have ‘straight community leaders.’ If we were to do that, you’d scream that we now have poster children for anti-gay descrimination! You’re looking for an edge in your being gay, and its stupid. What ‘rights’ are you being denied? Tell me. You have the right to free speech, religion, assembly, press, the right to bear arms, the right to protection from unwarrented search and seizure, the right against self incrimination, the right against cruel and unusual punishments. You can vote at 18, you can own property, you have all the same rights as I do. And you have MORE legal protection. If I was to be killed right now by an act of supreme violence, the police would investigate. If you, being homosexual, were to be killed in an act of violence, then it would be investigated more thouroughly (SIC) than my death would, because you’re homosexual. You want equal rights? You’ve got 'em. You want equal protection? Well, then we have to remove any and all hate crime legislation from the books. Sorry bub, but that shit doesn’t fly. > [@](#): > > Your in-depth understanding of minority issues continues to astound me. Truly, I stand in awe of your insight. You mis-spoke. Its not a minority issue here, but an issue within your own community. If it were a minority issue, then I’d have to know it because I am one. Since you seem to want to equate the issue of sexual prefrence to race, lets play! I’m half-asian. If I were to apply into the UC system, I’d face a harder time getting in than a white, a black, or an indian applicant. We’re ‘overrepresented’ in California colleges, so we’re discriminated against. Just because my mother is Korean. Now you, being gay, get an edge. Its considered ‘overcoming an obsticle’ in your growth and development. So, you being a minority (gay) means you are more deserving of that college slot than me, because I’m a minority (asian)? Again, bub, that shit doesn’t fly. > [@](#): > > You know, you’re absolutely right. And to be fair, I’ll ask all my straight friends and co-workers to stop talking about their wives and husbands, take off their wedding rings, remove all pictures of spouses and children from their desks, and in general live a loveless public life. After all, I certainly don’t want to hear about their “dirty laundry.” Really, they way they flaunt it in the streets, it’s just disgusting! Why can’t you heterosexuals leave it in the bedroom where it belongs? No one wants to hear about it! Sheesh! How can you equate straight marrage to being gay? You’ve got a boyfriend/girlfriend/whatever. So, do you ever talk about it in a rational matter? When someone pops up with a story about their children, or their husband/wife/signifigant other, do you then bandy about another one about your boyfriend/girlfriend/signifigant other? I doubt it. That would be too easy, or simple. Hell, it may just get you a bit of that acceptance thing you so crave. But…then you couldn’t sit on your pity-pot anymore. No, you must remain hostile, because that gives you meaning in life! You have to look at those wedding bands and loathe the gems and gold, knowing that they are a status symbol of the facist straight system. Oh, and those children! Those disgusting larvae! No more of them to be coddled over in photographs and stories. Nay, because you (being homosexual) cannot have one by your partner, they must be done away with! _pause_ I’m just acting retarded, what’s your excuse? I may not have been clear earlier. When I said “In the street” I meant IN THE STREET. I haven’t seen a ‘straight pride rally,’ ever. Not once. Why? Because its a stupid concept. So why the fuck should you be allowed to march because of your sexual prefrence? Oh yea…its because you (by shouting, banner waving, and bullying legitimate governments) want to have a mutual understanding with straight people. Silly me. Or would it be ‘gay’ me? > [@](#): > > Bottom line, this seems to me to still be so much Sturm und Drang about a simple request - please stop using the term “gay” (or, in this case, “lesbian”) as a derogatory adjective. It’s offensive to the gay and lesbian community. Really. I wouldn’t lie about a thing like this. Is that so difficult? Tell ME why I should change MY speech patterns and slang usage to satisfy YOU. You find it insulting. I don’t. I avoid the term ‘fag’ because its derogatory. I avoid the term ‘queer’ because it has been derogatory. I use the term ‘gay’ because it means to me what it means to me (I’ve already defined it, so yea, there ya’ go.) I didn’t say “Fucking homo rifle” or “Goddamned queer rifle.” I said “That was gay.” I SAY “That’s gay.” You give me a reason, and I’ll consider it. ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/88 "2003-10-22T15:13:54Z")
Once again, Humpty Dumpty would be proud. ---
**Author:** ![Svt4Him](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@Svt4Him](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svt4Him)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/89 "2003-10-22T16:01:49Z")
> [@](#): > > Oh, and just so there’s no confusion (and we’ve only had this conversation about twelve thousand times): > > ## quote: > > Main Entry: ho·mo·pho·bia > Pronunciation: "hO-m&-'fO-bE-& > Function: noun > Date: 1969 > : irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals > > - ho·mo·pho·bic /-'fO-bik/ adjective > > * * * > > Please note the “aversion to or discrimination against” part. Etymologically speaking, I do not think that word only means what you think it does. > > Esprix Now if you do the same thing for the word gay, you’ll see gay (g) adj., -er, -est, n., adv.— adj.1. having or showing a merry, lively mood: gay spirits. 2. bright or showy: gay colors. 3. given to or abounding in social or other pleasures: a gay social season. 4. licentious; dissipated; wanton: a wild, gay life. 5. homosexual. 6. indicating or pertaining to homosexual interests or issues: a gay organization. — n.7. a homosexual person, esp. a male. But we all know the way gay is used makes it offensive, and it is my opinion that when homophobia is used, it is not in the context of aversion to. And discrimination against is fairly vague. ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/90 "2003-10-22T18:50:54Z")
Wow. So many justifications for prejudice. My work is never done. _{sigh}_☹ Esprix ---
**Author:** ![fushj00mang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d26b3c/32.png) [@fushj00mang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fushj00mang)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/91 "2003-10-23T03:16:49Z")
Esprix, You still didn’t answer my question. Which rights are you denied? Grab your copy of the Constitution, and point. ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/92 "2003-10-23T05:17:19Z")
Let’s start with marriage. Esprix ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/93 "2003-10-23T15:12:45Z")
Well, let’s see. Discrimination in housing and employment. Discrimination in family law - not just marriage, but also adoption, natural filiation, next-of-kin status, and wills. Discrimination in police response both in crimes Queer people commit and crimes they are victims of. Social discrimination, prejudice, exclusion, hatred, intimidation, and violence. To say nothing of the multiple countries in the world where the penalty for homosexual sex ranges from a prison term to death. > [@](#): > > From how I read it, it could be derogatory and edged. Or, they could be simple descriptive adjectives indicating that the information is about homosexuals. See the problem here? You may take these terms as insulting, when the ‘offending’ party means nothing. The frank problem is that you don’t know, and thus simply jump to the defensive. You perceive an insult where there is none. That is _such_ a black argument. (No, really, I’m using “black” to mean “worthless and stupid.” It doesn’t mean anything about black _people._ Of course it doesn’t! This has been closed-captioned for the sarcasm impaired.) > [@](#): > > . You bully ‘anti-gay’ companies into creating ‘pro-gay’ policy, browbeat governments into supporting gays, and the idea of ‘mutual understanding’ is a load of bullshit. You’re not looking for mutual understanding, you’re looking for advancement. Christ, would you like some seltzer with that paranoia? You’re beginning from the basis that everything for Queer people is hunky dory, and therefore our attempts to bring ourselves up to baseline are unacceptable advancements. > [@](#): > > When someone pops up with a story about their children, or their husband/wife/signifigant other, do you then bandy about another one about your boyfriend/girlfriend/signifigant other? I doubt it. That would be too easy, or simple. Well, actually, it’s because that’s somehow considered “flaunting” when I talk about my boyfriend in the same way that straight people talk about their s.o.'s. Reminds me of the time I was chatting with some co-workers, and Remi told a funny story, and I had a similar one, which I began, “Well, my boyfriend…” Sam leapt up from the table, growled “I don’t want to hear this,” and scattered to the back of the store. > [@](#): > > But…then you couldn’t sit on your pity-pot anymore. No, you must remain hostile, because that gives you meaning in life! You have to look at those wedding bands and loathe the gems and gold, knowing that they are a status symbol of the facist straight system. Oh, sweet goddess. When we say “closed-captioned for the sarcasm impaired,” it’s fucking not a joke anymore. > [@](#): > > I haven’t seen a ‘straight pride rally,’ ever. Not once. Why? Because its a stupid concept. So why the fuck should you be allowed to march because of your sexual prefrence? 1. It’s my party, and I’ll throw a parade if I want to. 2. Remember when you were a kid, and you asked your mommy and daddy, “If they have a Mother’s Day and a Father’s Day, why don’t they have a Kids’ Day?” Remember what their answer was? _"Every_ day is Kids’ Day." > [@](#): > > Tell ME why I should change MY speech patterns and slang usage to satisfy YOU. You find it insulting. Nobody’s forcing you to do anything. I give you the benefit of the doubt that you don’t mean to insult people; so I let you know if you say something insulting, presuming you didn’t mean it. If you persist, I can only assume that you mean to insult me. ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/94 "2003-10-23T16:05:50Z")
Gay Boi: What I object to is that you automatically treat me like an inferior! fushj00mang: Well, I am straight! (And a violent sociopath at that.) Gay Boi: Oh, Straight, eh, very nice. And how d’you get that, eh? By introducing the homos’ faces to the wall! By 'anging on to outdated homophobic tripe which perpetuates the economic and social differences in our society. If there’s ever going to be any progress … [snip] fushj00mang: Shut up, will you? Shut up! Gay Boi: Ah, now we see the violence inherent in the system. fushj00mang: Shut up! Gee, it’s amazing how little rework that needed. ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/95 "2003-10-23T16:10:04Z")
Hooray for the cavalry. 🙂 Esprix ---
**Author:** ![fushj00mang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d26b3c/32.png) [@fushj00mang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fushj00mang)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/96 "2003-10-23T17:32:30Z")
matt\_mcl, Welcome to the conversation. > [@](#): > > Well, let’s see. Discrimination in housing and employment. Discrimination in family law - not just marriage, but also adoption, natural filiation, next-of-kin status, and wills. Discrimination in police response both in crimes Queer people commit and crimes they are victims of. Social discrimination, prejudice, exclusion, hatred, intimidation, and violence. To say nothing of the multiple countries in the world where the penalty for homosexual sex ranges from a prison term to death. Well, tell me this. When you’re being discriminated against with housing and employment, how do you know its about your sexual orientation? Is there a question on the application asking ‘A: Straight B: Gay C:Other’? As far as social discrimination, prejudice, exclusion, hatred, intimidation, and violence, the only thing you can do anything about is the violence and intimidation parts. The rest are not going to be changed, no matter how many times y’all march. Its sad, yes, but it doesn’t change that people don’t often change. And as far as the ‘other countries,’ unless you’re living in one of those ‘other countries,’ its a moot argument. > [@](#): > > Well, actually, it’s because that’s somehow considered “flaunting” when I talk about my boyfriend in the same way that straight people talk about their s.o.'s. Reminds me of the time I was chatting with some co-workers, and Remi told a funny story, and I had a similar one, which I began, “Well, my boyfriend…” Sam leapt up from the table, growled “I don’t want to hear this,” and scattered to the back of the store. Well, you did all you could. Kudos. Just because ‘Sam’ is an ass, doesn’t mean you did the wrong thing, as you seem to have done so in an even manner. Homebrew, Cute, real cute. I guess that makes me king? Esprix, Point to me, in the Constitution, where ‘marriage’ is a right. Uh huh. Thought so. ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/97 "2003-10-23T18:09:53Z")
Right - because things _won’t_ change, we shouldn’t bother to _try_. And you have no problems with same-sex couples being given the same rights as opposite-sex couples regarding equal treatment under the law? Esprix ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/98 "2003-10-23T18:18:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by fushj00mang \* > \*\* > Point to me, in the Constitution, where ‘marriage’ is a right. Uh huh. Thought so. \*\* LOVING v. VIRGINIA, 388 U.S. 1 (1967) > [@](#): > > These statutes also deprive the Lovings of liberty without due process of law in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men. > > Marriage is one of the “basic civil rights of man,” fundamental to our very existence and survival. Skinner v. Oklahoma, 316 U.S. 535, 541 (1942). See also Maynard v. Hill, 125 U.S. 190 (1888). To deny this fundamental freedom on so unsupportable a basis as the racial classifications embodied in these statutes, classifications so directly subversive of the principle of equality at the heart of the Fourteenth Amendment, is surely to deprive all the State’s citizens of liberty without due process of law. The Fourteenth Amendment requires that the freedom of choice to marry not be restricted by invidious racial discriminations. Under our Constitution, the freedom to marry, or not marry, a person of another race resides with the individual and cannot be infringed by the State. There’s more to our Rights than just the words written in the Constitution. ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/99 "2003-10-23T20:11:26Z")
And just because I love **matt\_mcl** so much, I’m going to steal a relevant quote from [his quote page](http://www.metrodemontreal.com/matt/quotes/index.html) > [@](#): > > It’s you straights who have all the special rights. You straights have the special right to marry. You straights have the special right to be in the military, go out on a date with the person you love, talk about it the next day, and not get kicked out for it. You straights have the special right not to be prevented from visiting your loved one in the hospital… To say that gays and lesbians are asking for special rights is the height of lunacy. > > - Elijah Elders And I’ll throw in this oldie but goodie for good measure: > [@](#): > > Because Gay men and Lesbians are discriminated against in housing and employment and because how we act is more important than who we are and if we get harassed it’s our problem and if we get attacked we provoked it and if we raise our voices we’re flaunting ourselves and if we enjoy sex we’re perverts and if we have AIDS it’s our fault and if we march with pride we’re recruiting children and if we stand up for our rights we’re overstepping our boundaries and because we are forced to constantly question our worth as human beings and if we don’t have a relationship with a person of the opposite sex we haven’t given it a chance and if we have a relationship with a person of the same sex it is not recognized and we are told our love is not “real” and if we come out of the closet we are just going through a phase and because Lesbian and Gay her/history is virtually absent from literature and because homophobia is sanctioned by the Supreme Court and…for lots and lots of other reasons, I am part of the Lesbian/Gay liberation movement. Amen. Esprix ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2003, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943/100 "2003-10-23T23:32:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by fushj00mang \* > \*\*Esprix, > > It does so elude me. Please spread your pearls of homosexual wisdom!\*\* Is it just me, or does it sound like he’s asking you for a necklace? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-story-of-the-phone-who-loved-other-phones/206943.md?page=6)