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crossposted on Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters
There are times when I loathe having to cover the religious right's attacks on lgbt America.
And this moment is at least 12 of those times.
Believe it or not, discredited researcher Paul Cameron (and head of the anti-gay hate group the Family Research Institute) has come out with a new study which (like so much of his earlier inaccurate work) denigrates the lgbt community. He talks about it here on Midweek Politics Radio.
No I don't have a transcript but I am sure one will be forthcoming.
To make a long story short, Cameron claims that the data he “compiled” shows that gays are four to seven more times likely to rape their fellow servicemen. He even says that some perpetrators of heterosexual sex assaults can be termed as gay because apparently some gay men “like women too.” (that piece starts at 1:30).
Among other things in the interview, Cameron also addresses (i.e. dances around) his dismissal from the American Psychological Association. Too bad he didn't discuss his censures and rebukes from the American Sociological Association, Nebraska Psychological Association, and Canadian Psychological Association. Or the complaints about his work from others such as A. Nicholas Groth. Or the story he made up about a gay man castrating a child in 1982.
My guess is that other than a few crackpot bloggers, no one on the right will overtly agree with Cameron's assessment or cite the newest monstrosity he calls a study. But we've already heard covert twinges of Cameron's lies, i.e. the talking point that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly will “sexualize” the military.
And after the anti-gay conference going on at Liberty University today, I am sure we will hear more sly references to Cameron's discredited work.
The irony is that when the issue of gays in the military was discussed after Bill Clinton's election, the opposition paraded Cameron's lies front and center. Now very few people will touch him, at least not openly.
It's progress for sure, but still can't someone put this man's lies to final rest before any more guillible people believe them?
Hat tip to People for the American Way's Right Wing Watch
Related posts:
Homophobic 'researcher' Paul Cameron in all of his repulsive glory
20 Comments
InterestingSo, from what he is saying, “shows that gays are four to seven more times likely to rape their fellow servicemen”, gay men are these HUGE STRONG MEN that can hold down these huge service men and rape them? Wow. Interesting. Maybe that is just Paulies wet dream or something… LOL.. I really can’t see us giving this guy a platform to spew his hate. It’s funny to watch them pull at straws to try to discredit the lgbt community though.
What a …I served 20 years in the military.
During that time nearly every command I was in had male on female rape issues. Often it came to light that the person who was the perpetrator had prior arrests (sometimes even convictions) in the civilian sector.
I think I was the only ‘male’ that had to deal with serious sexual harassment bordering on sexual assault. The individuals behind that were hetrosexual identified.
I heard of male on male sexual assaults, but only in training settings. ….thinking on it, I only ever heard of one rumor of male on male sexual assault. One rumor in 20 years of service. If you know the military in any way, you know the rumor mill conflates everything.
This guy has no clue as to what he’s talking about. Sounds like its par for the course.
But giving him a platform helps usThe thing you have to remember about Cameron is that over two decades ago, he was THE go-to guy for the religious right when it came to anti-gay studies. They did that even though they knew of his errors. As our community have gotten smarter in calling out their lies, religious right groups have covertly distanced themselves from him. Every time he opens his mouth is a boon for us because we remind people of his association with groups like Concerned Women for America, the Family Research Council, etc. etc.
But apparently,During that time nearly every command I was in had male on female rape issues.
… the men who do that are gay too, what the fuck?
“some gay men “like women too.” Umm, wouldn’t that be bisexual?
Bad statisticsEssentially what he is doing is taking the percentage of men charged with male on male assault who are discharged under DADT (a miniscule percentage of them) and mapping it on to the estimated number of gay men in the military and successfully in the closet. Then comparing that to the number of men charged with heterosexual assault.
First, it assumes that there are huge numbers of unreported male on male assault, where it is far more likely that almost 100% of any actual assaults are already in the group being discharged.
Second, since you don’t have to actually prove assault or rape in order to discharge someone for being gay – the mere accusation is enough to start the process, and it essentially becomes “Admit you are gay and we will discharge you, or face court-martial for assault and even if you are acquitted, we will still discharge you just for being gay, so you might as well give up now” while straight servicemen have the full force of the law on their side as well as the good old boy network happy to buy “she was asking for it.”
There is absolutely no reason to believe that there is any social pressure on straight male victims to keep any incidents quiet, or to help cover them up if their gay buddies are raping people.
So far from showing that gay men are more likely to rape, what this shows is that gay men are more likely to get railroaded out and if they do assault, harass or rape, they are guaranteed to get thrown out.
But we knew that already.
MeanwhileYou have to feel sorry for poor Willy Nilly. He’s having a rough time of it.
Wily-NilyWell, c’mon, have you seen Wily-Nily’s ass? He’s so hot.
Gay men are just like straight men. We think about sex all the time. We notice hot men. But in places like the military, prison, high schoool, sports teams, etc we feel the extraordinary pressure to “pass,” to conform. That will not change. Most military gays will not come out still, but if they are outed they needn’t fear for their job.
But also, they can report male-on-male sexual harrassment that occurs from supposedly straight superiors. Now, sufferers of harassment are afraid to report it for fear of expulsion.
Sexual harassement of all kind will continue to be an issue in the military. It is an overwhelming heterosexual problem now, but I don’t hear Cameron suggesting we keep straights out of the military.
99% of gays have a lifetme of experience knowing how to act appropriately and coming out when its the right moment. With the younger generation, it’s overwhelmingly no big thing. The older military and fundie homophobes like Cameron are projecting and may have latency issues themselves. Men confident in their heterosexuality generally don’t give a shit, many are flattered by anyone at all being attracted to them.
Extended information about Paul CameronForgive me for posting this link yet again, but in case anyone does not have this bookmarked:
http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/…
For a while nowI’ve suspected this was at the core of the reluctance to allow homosexuals to serve openly; they would lose that “I’ll tell them you’re a dyke” threat against women that lets them rape with damn near impunity.
who wouldn’t like to kick his ass?I know I would.
but to some, it also legitimizes himThis is the problem with point/counterpoint media. Blacks, women, every other disempowered group has had to deal with the same crap. Respected scholar/ activist/ etc. “A” delivers a reasoned, unassailable argument why people from some demographic group are human beings deserving of civil rights. Then, for counterpoint, they’ll let some discredited, bigoted, religionist, deeply disturbed turd explain why this same group is subhuman, as if there is some legitimacy to that view. Presto! Media fairness!
Over time, race bigots and misogynists and their ilk are showing up on respected news shows with decreasing frequency. They’re not completely gone – even MSNBC shows still have Pat Buchanan on from time to time. But it is still open season on teh gayz.
It is time for media to stop giving a forum to people whose only credentials are religionist arguments and personal bigotry, when biology, psychology, and sociology all refute their puny, destructive bile.
You can’t hide historyYou can’t put history under a bushel. Bringing a liar to public attention doesn’t legitimize him any more than bringing a murderer to public attention. Because there has been a reluctance to trace the lies he told about us back to him, the religious right have been able to exploit them continuously.
Mosquito’s He is the same idiot who claimed mosquito’s pass around the AIDS virus. Anytime we talk or post about cameron, throw that little tidbit in there and his credibility will just be tossed right out the window.
excepthe has not credibility in the first place, except to stupid people…of which there are plenty.
That makes depressing sense
DSM V Chapter Titled Paul Cameron CrazyHe creates garbage. If he believes his own poo than he deserves a chapter to himself in the upcoming DSM.
AlvinI’ve mentioned it once before here, but I met Paul Cameron when I was in high school. That was about 35 years ago, the guy must be in his early 80′s. He was quite aloof, considering I was his son’s debate partner, and we spent quite alot of time together. I guess he has good gaydar and knew I was str8. Guess it made everything OK. His stats researcher is my former debate partner, makes me barf a bit in my mouth anytime Dr. Paul is mentioned.
there is a videocalled 3 Sovereigns for Sarah about the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts which clearly shows the accusations of those who called their neighbors witches and the truth was they were not even or ever that and the assignations of the accusers and their want of power. Even when the accused were proven innocent they came back with other accusations sometimes the same and the declarations of innocent proof were overturned. The emotions and religious fervor stirred up kept the public who were religious and feared sorcery at a high state of agitation and the authorities kept siding with the accusers. The truth was finally brought forth after 19 people were hanged and one crushed to death under weight of stones. Years later a woman by the name of Sarah went to clear her sisters names and showed that the accusers wanted to settle feuds and scores politically and showed it on a map. The map showed that the accused all lived on one side of a disputed line and the accusers all lived on the other side of the disputed line. The feud and bad blood had inheritance issues, property issues as the reality of why folks had been accused and those hollering wanted the land power etc.
The work of the religious Right is still using the same tactics today, yelling lies, insults, using things, reports which have been debunked as false to keep it in the public to sway opinion. The reality of those who speak against LGBT rights is that they do not want LGBTQ to have the same respect, rights as them.
There is no real religious reality to these rights as is shown in Brittany Spears’ wedding and annulment. We talk about her as bad news but she proves a point. Marriage is a contract between two people and can be broken.No religious motive. The protest in NYC this weekend when two lesbians went to get a license to marry and were refused then one of the lesbian couple asked if any man in the crowd would marry her the one guy stepped up and the license paperwork was issued no problem. The religious right have no real grounds for their arguments but sentiments. Ignorance, inflammatory accusations cover the truth they just don’t want us to have the same privileges as they enjoy. Religion doesn’t have any bearing on the truth. it is political
Does any reputable person or organization use this man’s vile, unscientific, obviously rigged “studies” any longer? He’s been proven a liar and unprofessional. Why would anyone listen to this nutbag?