Why do people disapprove of homosexuality?

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Specific examples, please? Don't say 'Rome'.

Interesting, I always thought the anti anal thing was Roman, not Greek.

For Romans any "submissive" sexual act was shameful for a male... That would include all forms of oral sex.

However, it was fine for a Roman male to penetrate anyone, including non-Roman males.

As an example, Hadrian had a male lover, but he was Greek so it was not an issue.

In Africa, it's officially illegal in...

Algeria; Angola; Botswana; Burundi; Cameroon; Comoros; Egypt; Eritrea; Ethopia; Gambia; Ghana; Guinea; Kenya; Lesotho; Liberia; Libya; Malawi; Mauritania; Mauritius; Morocco; Namibia (although apparently it isn't enforced there); Nigeria; Senegal; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Sudan; Sudan; Swaziland; São Tomé and Príncipe (though it's going to become legal there); Tanzania; Togo; Tunisia; Uganda; Zambia and Zimbabwe.

(As well as the unrecognised states of Somaliland and Western Sahara.)

And that is for Africa alone.

So they're not a threat to them when they're in a relationship? Rightly or wrongly, bi women can have a reputation for promiscuity and fancying both sexes will often leave men feeling a bit threatened...

WooHOO! Even Mississippi has places to feel superior to!

It was both of them. It was shameful in Athenian society for a male citizen to be penetrated. This is why the ideal was intercrural sex (which was the ideal that Oscar Wilde held because of his love of Ancient Greece). I only know that this is true for Athens though - Greece being a collection of city-states, and all.

puddingmouse: Did you ever watch that series called Rome? The uncut version, not the emasculated version that appeared on Al-Beeb? Great, wasn't it?

I voted other, because I feel that people that are against it are worried that the fabric of society would tear apart if it was fully embraced.

I thought the Beeb version was scandalous enough?

The Beeb version cut out a lot of the narrative as well as some of the sex scenes as well I believe. Well worth watching the full thing. It really brings that part of history alive, even though some dramatic license was taken.

You guys sound really well-informed, please keep us up to date in future

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjnrLt3VuSM[/youtube]

Didn't you know that every gay person indulges in coprophagia?

You're terribly misinformed. You should be ashamed of yourself.

Hmm, that is interesting... I bet that was fairly widespread among the Greeks.

I'm also betting that would have been unacceptable between Romans. They weren't very considerate lovers.

My choice is "all of the above" but it wasn't an option in the poll. Though I think the weakest of those reasons is the whole "cannot produce children". Knowing the "be fruitful and multiply" verse from the Bible, I always saw that verse more as mere words of encouragement but some people are using this argument to death that they make it sound like it's the 11th commandment or something...that if you don't produce tons children and overpopulate the earth, you'll go to hell for sure.

This point might be debatable, but I don't think societies have had as much of an issue with lesbianism as they've had for male homosexuality. That would have much to do with gender roles, but whenever some political pundit is giving some kind of tirade against gays, he almost always talks exclusively about male homosexuals.

Otherwise, disapproval of homosexuality would have a lot of to do with our natural inclination to fear and distrust that which we do not understand. People who are better educated, or are acquainted with gay individuals, are more likely to be accepting of them. People who are not educated nor do they know of any gay individuals have to rely on what they're told about them, which is often negative stereotypes and ignorant notions of them.

What is the primary reason for disapproval of homosexuality?

Other: I've met some fantastic women that were interested in me as "just a friend", and who had romantic interest only in other women.