Good post, Jim. It's a complicated issue, like racism. I'm gay and very sensitive to homophobia, and felt Joni's comment attested to homophobia or, at the very least, misinformation) in the world, not her own. Others, both straight and gay, either agreed or disagreed. I've met you and would never consider you homophobic, nor anyone else I've ever met through the list. That doesn't mean someone might make a casual remark that someone might take as insensitive or homophobic. But I'm a big believer in intent. And if there is no purposeful intent to hurt then I don't believe there is homophobia.
Jerry -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:owner-joni@;jmdl.com]On Behalf Of Jim L'Hommedieu (Lama) Sent: Monday, October 28, 2002 1:33 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Joniphobic?, njc now Not that my opinion is going to sway the future of the Western World or anything, but.... Joni's soliloqy on the pitch of female voices has a what "passes" as the vague character of homophobia. I get that "homophobia" charge all the time. Over the weekend, my girlfriend asked her nephew if I looked a little like a little boy, like an older Harry Potter. Michael hesitated, then said, "See, there's this unspoken code if you're......." "Straight," I said. "Right," he said. Then he & I laughed nervous laughs. He continued: "If you're straight, you don't comment in any way about another guy's looks." Anna upbraided both of us for being homophobic. It's also an unspoken code, which I had broken, that if you're straight, you never discuss other lifestyles in anyway. If I say, "It's a perfectly valid choice," it's my understanding that I'm offensive on 2 counts: 1. Sexuality is not a choice. and 2. No one, of any orientation, needs *permission* from a straight white man to be what they are. It's not up to me to confer permission. I get it. I see the points. It's not really fair to me, as an outspoken, mildly political person, but it's a resonably small thing to ask of straights: "Stay out of the politics." Or have I missed the point? (Again?) :) Lama np: Monk, the jazz pianist on CD
