Subject: Re: The unthinkable subject-again
Date: Sat, 7 Dec 1996 16:33:05 -0500 (102 lines of text)
From: Facpat at aol.com

James Hogan wrote: 

 I have a question for Fred.

 Why is a speculation that you can have too much of a good thing
interpreted as being anti-gay?  

 Come to that, why is it felt to be "anti" anything? 

Dear James, 
You are a good and honest man and we have had many good conversations in the
past, so I will try, in all sincerity,to answer this question.  

First of all, I believe that all these theories about gay men becoming sick
from too much anal intercourse were dreamed up by the scientists involved
based on their false notions of what it is we do in bed (and sometimes NOT in
bed, too).  It was actually Mel Gibson who said that he did not like gay men
because they "take it up the ass."  Well, if that is the case he would have
to hate millions, if not billions of people around the globe--most of them
STRAIGHT, as I have pointed out.  So we have established that this is a
widespread practice, both historically and geographically.  

The next question that arises then is FREQUENCY.  I did not go into that in
my paper because there really are NO studies on the frequency of anal sex.
 All the ideas about frequency of anal sex in the gay community are based on
anecdotal evidence, and everybody KNOWS that gay men are given to hyperbole.
 The single most important document relating to frequency of SEX is from
Michael Callen, and he is not referring specifically to ANAL sex, but just to
SEX.  Even if you are a bottom, as Michael Callen was or professed to be,
"You don't always get what you want." as the Rolling STones sing.  So all
this talk about high frequency of anal sex and "pig bottoms" is just
nonsense.  In over 20 years spent in the S.F. bathhouses, which were some of
the wildest in the world, I saw only ONCE an attempt at a willing "gang
bang."  The person wanting it did not really fulfill his fantacies because,
as I have said, "Who wants sloppy seconds?"  Gay men have some taste in sex
also.  We are not all sex maniacs ready to climb on anything that comes along
like a male poodle.  Come on.  This is the stereotype that has been built of
of us and what most of these theories have been based on.  Like the
persecuted blacks before us, we are supposed to be endlessly drowning
ourselves in sex.  It is more unfullfilled fantasy than anything else.  Sure,
much of the blame for this distortion comes from the gay community, itself,
because of our explicit sexual material, which is used largely for visual
stimulation for masturbation.   

Furthermore, those who take a lot of drugs are often rendered impotent by
those drugs, poppers excepted, and drugs are epdidemic in the gay community
and have been for a long time.  I suppose for two basic reasons: (1) In an
attempt to heighten sexual pleasure, and (2) to make us forget the hostile
world we live in--much for the same reason that Blacks do it.  Of course, it
solves neither of these problems with the exception of the very few who learn
to master the technique and get into it and out again with their lives and
health intact.  I was one of those lucky ones.  

Now about this current situation we are in.  It all started when I challenged
Paul who had been dwelling on this subject for what I thought was an
unnecessarily long period of time.  It WAS thoroughly discussed for months,
and months.  Like Christine, I finally said, "Enough, already!  I have never
tried to totally suppress discussion to it.  I HAVE tried to point out the
dangers of dwelling on it for political reasons, namely that it gives ammo to
the right wing to declare us felons again.  Nobody seems to give a damn about
THAT, but it is a real danger.  As I have said, some right wing groups are
now referring to us as "sodomites" rather than homosexuals or gay, thus
emphasizing this stereotype again that we practice mainly anal sex.  Those
who are not gay do not know how we feel about all this, and some on this
reflector not only don't give a damn, but also seem to want to rub salt into
the wounds.  What to do about it?  

I have written my paper, it was read by Peter Duesberg and approved, and it
is now coming out in Continuum and has been posted here, but these zealots
continue to attack.  What is the basis for this attack?  I can only see it as
a wanton disregard for gay sensibilities, fears, phobias and all the rest of
it.  I am not saying that I am "Mr. Gay" and speak for the whole gay
community--far from it--but I have been around a long time and have read and
experienced a lot, living mainly in that gay community.  I know all our
foibles, weaknesses, etc., and I am still trying to figure out who we are and
where we fit into society.  

These are the things that should be discussed because they are the genesis of
the "AIDS epidemic."  Those who would restrict the discussion to a strict
scientific line would, therefore, be doing us a great injustice and NOT
getting to the root of the problem.  As I have said over and over again, I
want to end this "epidemic" and liberate gays at the same time.  I don't know
if that is possible

Have I answered any of your questions?

Best regards, 
Fred Cline, San Francisco
P.S.
It looks as if they are trying to engineer their way out of the mess right
now.  I heard on the radio this AM that the vaccine will not kill the virus,
but will cause it to go dormant for 40 years, thus causing the victims to die
from "natural" causes.  They said that if it became activated again after
forty years that the incubation period was 10 to 15 years so that you would
be so old you wouldn't care.  Now, is this science?  They are going to take
their profits and run, engineer their way out of the mess, and throw gay men
back to the hostile society that has always been there.  And what will be the
next thing that they dream up to control us?  I can only shudder to think.
Gay men have been sheep in a sea of hungry tigers.  They do not, for the most
part, realize that they have been eaten alive for greed and profit. 
F.C.