QotD

Why do gay people require special announcement?

I was listening to NPR this morning on the way to work and one of the reporters in Berlin was doing a story of how Berlin has reclaimed an olympic stadium from its Nazi past. This nice story of how Berlin has rebuilt and reopened the stadium used in the '36 olympics is to redefine to the world what the post war Germany has become. So the reporter goes into this story of how Nazi paraphernalia has been left to show Germany that it can't escape its evil past, but can teach it a lesson on how to better the world and live thru something like the Nazi era. He continues with discussion of games and then tacts on to the end of the sentence of how there are even gay and lesbian events going on. Not until now (my mind moves very slowly) did it occur to me that anything in this world that may include someone who is gay has, for some reason, been announced especially to inform us all that we haven't left out these sexually repressed people. And this just amazes me.

I have no problem with someone of a different sexual orientation than i. I'll admit that it was an issue at one time, but i'm beyond that now. I have friends that are gay, i work with people that are gay, i even go to church with peo . . . (wait, no i don't). My question here, is why should people with a sexual orientation, regardless of whether it meets with or is approved by society's beliefs, have a special place in our world. These people aren't any different than you and i. They just have a different preference in one small category. So, why do they feel it's necessary to announce that "yes, we even have gay and lesbian events", or feel the need to create a gay/lesbian checkbox on life insurance forms?

Joe and Mary Bob want to be treated normally, like the rest of us, so why do they get up in arms when there isn't a specially held lesbian discus throw in the olympics? Why do we feel the need to make light of their sexual preferences?

I don't go out on a friday night and meet my buddies at the hetero-bar or feel the need to announce to the world that i'm hetero and proud, get used to it. So why should we do the same for someone who's really no different than I, but she happens to think my girlfriend is cuter than me? I won't even discuss religion or government and this issue, because i actually have to get something done here at work today, but can someone logically explain this to me?