TetRefine

Yeah, I think its safe to assume LGBT culture in Norway has a much different way of relating to the larger overall culture than the way it happens here in the United States, even in the liberal Northeast.

I am really uncomfortable with the term "queer". To me it has such a negative and 'outsider status' connotation to it, and has a history of being used pejoratively toward LGBT people. Somehow though gay people have tried to re-empower the word by turning it into a socially acceptable bit of language that is only acceptable for LGBT people to use. Its like how black people call each other "nigga", and to them its perfectly socially acceptable despite it's very negative history. But if a white person were to use the word, he'd be crucified for it. The same goes for "queer". How would you react if, say, some straight, white frat boy called you queer. You'd probably be offended, regardless of the context. But somehow its perfectly acceptable for gay people to call and refer to each other with the word. If it isn't acceptable for all, it shouldn't be acceptable at all. Besides, haven't we come up with more educated, non-offensive, neutral terms to use instead of outdated hate words? As for bisexuality, I find that among straight people, its easier for them to accept you as that than if you came out as 100% gay. In my experience, they can still view you as like them, and you retain your masculinity in their minds because you still have some interest in wanting to get with other women. When I first came out to my friends, I told them I was bisexual because I knew it would make it easier for them to accept, even though I have almost no sexual interest in women. As time went on and they had time to think it over and get to know me better, I told them that I pretty much identified as gay if I had to choose a label. By then, they had known me long enough for it not to matter, but I think waiting and doing it in increments, so to speak, made them view me in a more positive light then if I had come out as gay right off the bat.

True. Americans pretend to be prudish in public, but we're just as wild and crazy when others aren't looking. Europeans have gotten past the whole thing of being ashamed of sex, which means its lightyears ahead of America's public attitude toward sex. But all in all, both Europe and America are far more liberalized sexually when compared to most other corners of the world.

Working with privileged kids is a cake walk compared to working with kids from tough backgrounds. The chief difference between the kids I work with during the winter (I've been teaching skiing to kids now for 8 years), and the kids I work with during the summer is how they were raised. The well off kids from the suburbs who I teach skiing to I rarely have problems with, and have far less behavioral issues than the kids from the city who come over the summer. Whats the chief and glaring difference? Parental support and involvement. The parents who's kids I teach skiing to are always visibly involved in their kid's lives, evidenced by the fact that drop them off, pick them up, and ask me how they did every single week. Its clear that to me that these kids get far more attention and support from their parents as compared to the summer kids, who's parents can often care less, and therefor leads to more behavioral problems. Before the kids arrive for the summer camp, we get a briefing from the social worker and psychologist on each kid and their situation. Almost every single kid had no father in the picture. Over half of the 15 boys we had this previous summer had some family member in jail. If I remember right, 3 were in foster care because of abuse/neglect, and one kid was living with relatives because mom had died of an overdose and dad was a gang-banger. This is all anecdotal evidence so believe me if you like, or not. I've realized I'm not going to change anyone's mind with us. To me, parental failures cause the vast majority of kid's failures, and I've seen way too much evidence in working with kids to support this for anyone to change my mind.

Psychopathy and other mental disorders make up such a small slice of the "bad kid" population because it is so rare in the general population. I can remember most of the "bad kids" from when I was growing up were kids who came from abused and neglected homes. Alcoholism, drug use, physical/mental/sexual abuse, abandonment, homelessness, etc. were all part of these kids every-day lives, and they were all caused by their parents (if they even deserve to be called that). When all you see around you is negative influences, to you that is normal and socially acceptable. It's all learned from the parents. Are there exceptions? Yes, but parents are still ultimately responsible for the way their kids are raised. Try working with a group of 7-9 year old boys who come from the most drug-riddled, violent neighborhoods of New York City. They aren't old enough to properly express emotions, often have learning disabilities, almost always come from broken homes, and are very defensive and guarded because of the violence and turmoil they have witnessed at home and on their streets. Now take that same group of "troubled boys" out of that environment for a week and put them into a summer camp setting where they are surrounded by encouraging adults who they can look up to. The difference is absolutely night and day simply because they know they have someone there to support them and someone they know who cares about them. When they get that level of support that every kid deserves, it can completely change them. I've been a part of this now for over three years and every year my theory on parental support only grows stronger because of what I witness. Nurture makes the difference 99% of the time.

You can't compare American/European sexual culture with that of India. Of course it is going to be different because the two cultures are radically different overall. And obviously Indians has far more pressing issues to face (like preventing males from almost always getting away with rape, and blaming women for getting raped). Granted the "ugly stick and socially awkward" comment could have been put more tactfully on my part.

I didn't say whether this was a good or a bad thing. I simply said that most 19 years olds I know/knew had lost their V card by that point. If this guy was getting so worked up about losing it, he should have just downloaded Grindr (or picked up a hooker), not make a live sex show out of it and hide the fact of what it really is in the name of "art".

Theres exceptions to every rule. But if you have patience, you have a pretty good chance for success. And no, I don't have some ridiculously over thought out academic study. But I've got a decent amount of experience working with difficult kids from god-awful backgrounds that counts for more than just saying "oh these poor parents got a difficult kid so they decided to ship him back after nine years". They are parental failures just for that reason alone.

No wonder it was so unseasonably warm this whole weekend. Must have been in honor of No Pants Friday!

Abandoning a young child like that is a special kind of low. I've worked with very difficult kids with a range of emotional/anger issues at summer camps over the past couple years. Granted, I haven't lived with them for extended periods, but I've learned that there is no such thing as a bad kid, only a bad parent/adult. If you spend enough time getting down to the root of the problem, you can almost always fix it. Abandoning this kid at a crucial stage in his life will only scar him and fuck him up even more. Great job parents.

I think because finding like-minded and similar looking people increases our chances for survival because you have a chance of fitting in, and therefor, surviving and thriving. Its an internal instinct that social liberalism can break only so much. Think about why for the most part, white people marry white people, black people marry black people, etc. Most likely they share similar cultures, similar upbringings, and similar values.

I've yet to meet one (or at least one who wasn't beaten with the ugly stick or was socially retarded).

The amount of people and resources that went into this to make it happen was truly remarkable. One of the best 'feel good' stories of 2013.

Here's the thing. The way I was raised, when you decide to make a kid or adopt one, you make a moral contract to raise and nurture that kid for better or worse. As an adult getting ready to have a kid, you know that kid could come out fucked up, either physically or psychologically. Its a gamble you take and a risk you must be willing to accept as part of it all. I have no sympathy for these people and they are total scumbags for all I'm concerned.

I used to think gay culture really only consisted of gay bars, gay clubs, or bathhouses. So basically anything centered around hooking up and getting laid. But then after moving to a big city, it definitely consists of much more than just places that will get you laid. For example, there is a restaurant here in Philly called Tavern on Comac, that caters almost exclusively to gay people/couples. It was nice to know that my boyfriend and I were not the only gay couple there (as it usually is when we go out to dinner), and we didn't have to worry about getting glances from everyone else. Theres also entire sports leagues here in the city that are catered toward gay men that foster a sense of community and friendship that don't involve banging each other. Theres an entire neighborhood here called the 'Gayborhood' that has a wide variety of shops and restaurants, many of which don't involve hooking up but are still populated by mostly gay people. Even if you have nothing in common with the other people around you, its still nice to get that feeling of normalcy and inclusion that I often feel partly left out of in a heterosexual-dominated society. Its one of the reasons I try to avoid straight bars/clubs despite the fact that I have more in common with the people who populate those places as opposed to gay ones. I'll always feel somewhat left on the fringes in places like that.

Yet another topic on gay culture where not a single masculine, "straight acting" gay guy was interviewed. I wonder if they even remember we exist? *pukes*

I thought girls just didn't fart…...

Lets all hope he cleans out his hole before he does this. Could you imagine the look on the audience's faces if this turns messy on stage?

To call this art is an insult to real art. The people going to this only want to see some cute, tight (in many ways) young boy get fucked on stage and get off while watching. I doubt any of them are going for the "artistic value". How is this really any different than a back room of a club where you have a group of old guys ogling two young guys getting it on in the corner? Now, looks like I'll be booking my flight to London soon.

Thank you to all those who have served.

I once walked into my shed, only to walk face first into the web of a giant barn spider. The thing crawled all on my face before I finally flicked it off. I was 7, and I've hated spiders ever since.

When theres ten of millions of dollars on the line, it's bound to get freakin' ugly. And I agree, A-Rod needs to pack his bags and disappear into obscurity.

My German grandmother would of gotten a kick out of this.