I believe you're born that way.

As a conservative , I assume that by "right wingers" you are referring to me and those who think like me. You also seem not to know as much about us as you think you do. When you state that we think that sexual orientation is a choice you are making a fallacious generalization. I, and a number of my conservative friends, think that sexual orientation is most likely a matter of chemistry and it's effect on the fetus.

As a matter of historical fact however, this was not always so. For example ,if you do a little reading about Classical Greece, you will find that homosexuality was an accepted social norm in many segments of the population. In that case it was not due to chemistry but rather to societal expectations and tradition. Other examples of choice would include ships in the days of sail, and prisons today.

The point that I am trying to make is that those who try to find a a one size fits all explanation for homosexuality are engaging in an exercise in futility. Far too many variables must be considered, starting with time, place, and circumstance.

1.  How many gay friends do you have?  What do they say?

2.  How much research have you done or schooling have you had on this matter?  Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?

Do you realize you contradict yourself?  First you say it is "chemistry" then you say in Ancient Greece it was accepted so people turned gay.  How much research has been done to determine the cause of homosexuality in Ancient Greece?  None.  Research studies weren't conducted on this in Ancient Greece.  They are for today however.

Prison? You can't compare the prison population to that of society.  Most prisoners are deviant in some manner and many of a sexual nature.  Hollywood also tends to sensationalize this which leads to misconceptions.

Do some research and make sure you look at what Dr's found when researching the hypothalamus.

You may want to do the same thing. 

The hypothalamus research was conducted by Simon Levay, who found a size difference in a specific area of neurons carried by heterosexual vs homosexual men.  His evidence purported to show that heterosexual females and homosexual males had very similar sizes of these hypothalamutic neurons. 

However, there were disparities in his results...several members of the control group had neuron bundles that were widely divergent from what would have been expected given his earlier findings, and several of the homosexual men had neuron bundles that were the same as the heterosexual men.  These results were enough to convince others that more study was necessary.

So several years later, a team led by Bill Byne tried to replicate the results.  They couldn't.  Their results showed that while there was a difference in the hypothalamutic neuron bundle between men the male and female groups, there wasn't a statistical difference between the homosexual and heterosexual subjects. 

The team then went a step further, by both counting the bundles of nuerons and measuring their mass.  Done both ways, the result was the same.  There was a wide difference between the male and female groups, but the homosexual group was not statistically dissimilar from either.

So what was learned?  There is a male and female difference in the hypothalamus that is incontrovertible.  The same cannot be said for a difference between homosexual and heterosexual subjects. 

There may be some other biological predisposition that isn't yet discovered.  But this one ain't it.

1.  How many gay friends do you have?  What do they say?

2.  How much research have you done or schooling have you had on this matter?  Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?

Do you realize you contradict yourself?  First you say it is "chemistry" then you say in Ancient Greece it was accepted so people turned gay.  How much research has been done to determine the cause of homosexuality in Ancient Greece?  None.  Research studies weren't conducted on this in Ancient Greece.  They are for today however.

Prison? You can't compare the prison population to that of society.  Most prisoners are deviant in some manner and many of a sexual nature.  Hollywood also tends to sensationalize this which leads to misconceptions.

Do some research and make sure you look at what Dr's found when researching the hypothalamus.

ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS

1 - I do not know how many of my friends are gay. It is none of my business and I do not care.

2 -  have a masters in history, with a concentration in ancient and medieval history. Which, I think , when added to 30 years of teaching and studying the subject lends more credence to my statements about Classical Greek society than that given to someone who is just voicing an opinion not based on empirical knowledge.

3 - I did not contradict myself. Re- read my last paragraph. In that paragraph I stress that there is no one explanation for homosexual activity. In some cases it could be inborn (perhaps due to chemistry) in other cases the historical record makes it plain that the cause was, at least in part, societal or situational. History has taught us that those who adhere to a theory of absolutism regarding any human activity are committing a cardinal error. Facts are pesky things,they will not go away, no matter how strongly one voices his opinions.

4 - If you want to continue a serious discussion on the subject as it relates to ancient Greece I would be willing to do so, if you would first read some books on the subject. I recommend Will and Ariel Durant's eleven volume Story of Western Civilization (volume II The Life of Greece). I ask you to become educated on the subject because I am interested in facts, not opinions.

Besides which, your thread title is all wrong. This is not a national issue, this is the voice of one person. It's rather bigoted of you to paint the entire GOP, conservatives and Christians the same way.

If Hastings can show me a study or research he's done that shows this empirically I'll eat crow.

Also show me a church that is for gay marriage...are you?

First off, I don't recall any particular location where I have ever claimed to be an "expert" on anything.  I know what I know, I study what I study, and that's as far as it goes.  I am glad to hear that you spend all day every day researching data...are you an analyst?  Or a student?

The information I posted above was derived from classroom learning, which is no doubt something you're familiar with.  If you'd like to know more, I provided names of the folks who conducted the actual studies (hence, my sources) and you are free to look further into their studies (as I did) and see for yourself.  There aren't 2 viewpoints, dear, there are two clearly contrasting results which came about in different studies.  The fact that two subsequent studies failed in their attempts to duplicate the initial results should tell you what you need to know.

But you don't want to hear that.  Why?  Because you've made up your mind.  And in your mind, it is only the opinion that matters...not fact or empirical evidence to the contrary.  A closed mind is a dangerous thing.

Also show me a church that is for gay marriage...are you?

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Why not,let gays be as miserable as the rest of us. OUCH! My wife just hit me.