(July 6, 2015 at 5:06 pm)emjay Wrote:(July 6, 2015 at 4:55 pm)Pyrrho Wrote: Well, I never flirt with gay men. The only men I ever "flirt" with are friends and acquaintances who are a little bit homophobic, and then it is to make them squirm a bit and try to get them to see how silly they are being.
I can just picture that But seriously, if people are genuinely homophobic - as in a fear like any other rather than homo-hating if it's different - I'd rather not make them feel uncomfortable, just as I'd rather not wave a spider in front of an arachnophobic person. That's what I wanna know about with this thread.
Well, I think it is good for them to squirm a bit. We are talking about a potential source of discrimination. They should come to terms with their own sexuality, and not be bothered by what other people are doing regarding this.
By the way, if you are a straight man and want to do this, you put your hand on your guy friend's upper arm or shoulder, smile at him, and say he looks nice or has beautiful eyes or some such thing. You then laugh at him when he squirms. Very easy, as well as fun and educational!
It also illustrates the fact that actual gay guys are not doing this, and so they are worrying about nothing. Nothing, unless they are secretly gay and wish that gay guys were coming on to them. That is, of course, a very real possibility. But whatever their issues, they should come to terms with this and not discriminate against gay people.
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.