I thought we were finally past this, but it seems that the idea that LGBTQ people are LGBTQ by choice is still alive and well. I must admit, I am astonished at the level of ignorance it takes to believe that, with everything we now know about the natural world. In the year 2015, you have to deliberately deny truth in order to believe that people choose to be ridiculed, disowned, and marginalized. After all, that’s what LGBTQ people go through daily, and I would question the mental health of anybody who would choose to be treated in such a way. No, my fundamentalist friends, LGBTQ people have not chosen their orientations or identities, nor are they disordered or broken, nor are they spiritually corrupt. They were born, and they are just fine the way they are. Your cries to the contrary do nothing but cause hurt, suffering, and death.
We see same-sex pairings in virtually every mammalian species, and many non-mammalian species on this planet. The population numbers generally stay under 10%, and they carry characteristics of sexual attraction, romantic attachment, and monogamous commitment, depending on the social structure of the species. To say that homosexuality is unnatural, or not biological – what you must say, if you believe it’s a choice – is just factually incorrect. As for gender identity, the same applies. Sex is biological, gender is cultural. They don’t always match up, and that’s not at all surprising. People are just too varied to fit into boxes. You can’t say “boys must be this way, girls must be that way, and we are all unique,” and then be surprised when a person comes along who is physically male but identifies as female. This idea of choice is just a non-starter, and those who believe it have bought into the weakest argument, against anything, I have ever heard.
Enter religion. I have said before that every argument against LGBTQ people can be traced back to a religious origin, and the more research I do, the more I find that to be true. In the Western world, that origin is Christianity. The problem with Christian opposition is that it falls flat before it even begins. You see, to use the Bible as an authority, you must first accept the presupposition that it’s true. That’s asking a lot for many of us, and it’s troubling that most people who quote the Bible as the reason for their opposition, don’t know the first thing about biblical times, what the book actually says and why, or where it goes wrong. They just believe because they were told to, and you know what? That belief has made a lot of good people do a lot of terrible things. If you think “it’s a choice” is a benign belief, perhaps even insignificant, perhaps an opinion, you are sadly mistaken. That’s where it starts. From “it’s a choice,” to “look at them flaunting themselves,” to “they’re destroying society,” to “they’re oppressing us,” to “we have to take action” … to DEATH … this is how it happens, and this is why it matters.
No, LGBTQ people are not LGBTQ by choice. Yes, they have every right to live openly, as themselves, with the same rights and privileges as the rest of us; and NO, your religious belief does NOT entitle you to persecute them. If you think that an LGBTQ life is less valuable than a non-LGBTQ one, and particularly if you think that an LGBTQ person can be “converted” back to your version of normalcy, I hope you someday open your eyes. In my 26 years as a fundamentalist evangelical, I did a lot of damage to some wonderful people, and I did it because I believed what I was told in church. Years later, when I found out how much death and sorrow those views have caused, I felt sick to my stomach. I was lied to (as were my parents, and their parents, and so on), and if you still think it’s a choice, the difference between you and I is that I no longer believe that lie. I choose love. I choose truth. I choose honesty. I choose equality. I stand for humanity because it’s the right thing to do. If you stand against people who are different from you, and if you you believe you will get an eternal reward for doing so … if you “love the sinner, hate the sin” … if you think it’s a choice … I feel sorry for you.
Josh Osborne 
Are you a doctor, a biologist, a geneticist, a scientist? There are hundreds of doctors and scientists doing years of reaserch on this matter in many countries of the world. They have individualy come to the same conclution that no one is born gay, they make a choice or are coersed into becoming gay! So this whole article of blabber you wrote means nothing but is only your media infused, brainwashed opinion. You are entitled to it, but that does not mean you are correct by any means. So I feel sorry for you if you think your opinion trumps the reaserch of many peole smarter then you!
It’s a shame that you have bought into the misinformed and false claims of the religious community. There is not one credible peer-reviewed study that supports what you have just said. I suppose you also believe the claims of Michael Brown, Scott Lively, and the African “scientist” who claims that homosexuality is a choice because magnets oppose each other?
You dont seem to have any evidence to prove me wrong, just your opinion! Lots of research is being done on this, you just have to open your eyes and not be blind! Latest research on identical twins proves you wrong. The term born gay is from a lady gaga song the gays started to use as their moto. Sorry to blow your bubble, you have no foundation to stand on, but the Bible, Gods word is true, it is a sin!
LOL. That study you’re referring to – debunked, and the ad for it featured two photos of the same model – not twins, and the model is an out gay man. Seriously, I feel really bad for you, you’re making an ass of yourself. As for my credentials. I hold a degree in Cultural Anthropology with a specialization in Forensics and Human Evolution, minors in Religious Studies and World History, 26 years as an evangelical Christian, and an ongoing schedule of speaking engagements talking about this stuff. Learn who you’re attacking before you pick these fights.
Lol, im not attacking anyone. You are proving more and more to me how pathetic your reasoning is. You call yourself a leaned man, but you are just confused. That study was never debunked, it is not the only one and many more like it are still ongoing. I feel sorry for you. I hope that one day God can open your eyes to see the real truth. All your fancy degrees dont mean anything if you believe in a bunch of lies. And again, you never gave me any proof that gay people are born gay, cause there is none, its just made up to support their sinful, discusting, unnatural, God hating lifestyle. You should check yourself, maybe you were born gay and dont know it yet!?
Are you also any of those professions? If we are talking numbers, there are thousands of actual people living as LGTBQ in every country of the world. They have individualy come to the same conclusion that they are gay. No one asked them to read a book which tricked them into choosing their sexuality. Maybe your scientists are conducting research on the wrong people? In real science you’re supposed to use a control group as well as a group of LGTBQ people, not just the control.
There is research being done on identical twins, one is gay, one is straight! They prove that it is an individual choice, yes you even said, they each come to a conclusion that they want to be gay! It is a choice. The term born gay came from a lady gaga song and the gays made it their moto! The scientists are not mine even secular scientists are coming to the same conclusion! Sorry, face the facts!
You mean this study?
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26572-largest-study-of-gay-brothers-homes-in-on-gay-genes.html#.VMOMnsqCOSN
“It erodes the notion that sexual orientation is a choice,” says study leader Alan Sanders of the NorthShore Research Institute in Evanston, Illinois.
Sure, good way to prove your point…
I would like to see the studies where these “smart” people came to conclusions that people choose or are coerced in to being gay. Please provide examples instead of making broad statements.
I also have a hard time taking anyone seriously when they imply that the author of this blog is not intelligent, especially someone who has so many spelling mistakes and grammatical errors in his post.