bossel said:Why should it be a dead end? Homosexuality is a continuum, it's not as if there could be drawn a definite line where it starts or ends. Lots of homosexuals had & have sexual contacts with the opposite sex, not too seldomly resulting in kids.
Furthermore, it's probably not only genetic but there is more to it.
Well you can draw a line between whether you are turned on by men, or women.
Well, in science there is a little something called theory. Having a theory doesn't mean that you know something exactly, but that you have an idea how it might work (or where it comes from, etc.) & research has to be done to verify this idea.
I am aware of that, but you didn't mention what the theory was.
One theory is that homosexuality evolved for social reasons.
You can read more on homosexuality & evolution here:
http://wiki.cotch.net/wiki.phtml?title=Evolution_doesn't_explain_homosexuality
Quote:
"# Sexual orientation is not an either-or trait, but exists as a continuum [Haynes, 1995]. Those with some heterosexual orientation can still contribute homosexual genes (to the extent it is genetic; see above). And even the most extreme homosexuals sometimes have children.
The most extreme heterosexuals may have homosexual tendencies, too. Homophobic male heterosexuals showed more arousal to homosexual images than did non-homophobic heterosexuals [Adams et al., 1996]. Societal condemnation of homosexuality may contribute to its genes being propogated.
# Genes for homosexuality could be beneficial on the whole. In bonobo chimpanzees, homosexual interactions are a form of social cement. It is possible that homosexuality evolved to serve social functions in humans, too [Kirkpatrick et al., 2000]. After all, social cohesion is still a main function of sex in humans. "
Those studies don't really prove anything we don't already know. Of course gays can still contribute homosexual genes, because they can physically have sex with women, if they aren't heterosexual. But that's only because we've evolved to be so clever. It still doesn't answer the simple question - why do homosexuals exist, and why is it only 2-3% of the population?
The second study means nothing either, it's a well known fact that many extremely homophobic males are homophobic because they are in fact struggling to come to terms with being gay (to any extent) themselves.
The chimp study is not forthcoming either. The fact that a chimp species uses homosexuality has a social cement has nothing to do with whether the genes in humans are useful or not. It seems very flawed to me, because;
It's one chimp species being studied
The chimps may be heterosexual but exhibit homosexial behaviour as a form of bonding
The chimps may have homosexuality as a mental abnormality yet use it as a form of social cement anyway (the social cement is a consequence of the homosexuality, not the cause)
If it had 'evolved' to serve a purpose of social cement, why only 2-3% of humans are homosexual
To be honest virtually all the research on homosexuality that is propogated by gay rights groups is incredibly flawed and inconclusive, but it's worded in a way that liberal groups and gay rights people will lap it up because it's exactly what the public like to hear.
Similiarly, some of the research on homosexuality which concludes things the people *don't* want to hear are funded and spread by typically Christian groups who consider homosexuality a 'sin' so I'm very wary of either side of the research.
I prefer to stick to biology and scientific theory rather than case studies.
What makes you think, that thousands of years ago homosexual males didn't have kids?
Several reasons. If you go far back enough, humans probably weren't clever enough to actually overcome to attraction to males, and to force themselves to have sex with women. These days we have a clear understanding of reproduction, and can physically do it with the opposite sex, that is based on intelligence and not instinct.
Also, I can imagine that civilisations were much more strict on homosexuals back then.
I could be wrong on that account. But I'm pretty much certain homosexualit is tolerated a lot better now that it was in previous times.