First published at 365gay.com on July 3, 2009 “What do you think about my having sex with an 18-year-old?” a thirtysomething friend asked. What do I think? Tread carefully. Notice I said “Tread carefully,” not “Run in the other direction,” which was my initial gut reaction. So let me fill in some background. The legal… Continue reading Dangerous Campsite?
Tag: family and relationships
Growing Older, Gratefully
First published at Between the Lines News on May 21, 2009 This column hits the internet on the eve of my fortieth birthday. Forgive a middle-aged columnist for indulging in some reminiscing. Little reminders of my age keep creeping up, like the fact that I had to re-word the last sentence after initially writing “This… Continue reading Growing Older, Gratefully
Hoping for a Warmer Mother’s Day
First published at 365gay.com on May 9, 2009 Sunday will be Mother’s Day, and I’ll be thinking about various mothers in my life. My own mother, with whom I have a great relationship. She and my father live in another state and will be coming to visit me several days later. My two grandmothers, who… Continue reading Hoping for a Warmer Mother’s Day
Why Not Plural Marriage?
First published at 365gay.com on March 23, 2009 Recent discussions of various civil-union proposals have revived some familiar questions, including “Why limit such recognition to couples, as opposed to larger groups?” and “Why limit it to romantic/sexual couples, as opposed to other interdependent relationships?” Such questions come from various quarters, including both friends and foes… Continue reading Why Not Plural Marriage?
Strange Bedfellows
First published at Between The Lines News on March 12, 2009 Recently I wrote about a proposed compromise by David Blankenhorn, who opposes gay marriage, and Jonathan Rauch, who supports it. On the Blankenhorn/Rauch proposal, the federal government would recognize individual states’ same-sex marriages or civil unions (under the name “civil unions”) and grant them… Continue reading Strange Bedfellows
The Power of Words
First published at 365gay.com on February 13, 2009 Two decades ago, when I first came out of the closet, my mother had an irritating habit of referring to my boyfriend as my “friend.” You could almost hear the scare-quotes around the word as she would speak it. “This is John’s, um, ‘friend.’” When I complained… Continue reading The Power of Words
Hospitality, not Homosexuality
First published at 365gay.com on February 6, 2009 I’ve written in this column of my friendship with Glenn Stanton [http://www.365gay.com/opinion/corvino-friends-with-the-enemy/], a Focus on the Family employee whom I regularly debate on same-sex marriage. There are different kinds of friendship, of course, not to mention different levels and layers. We’re not “best buds,” but we’re not… Continue reading Hospitality, not Homosexuality
What’s Best for Children
First published at 365gay.com on January 30, 2009 I don’t have children, I don’t want children, and I don’t “get” children. Some of my friends have children. I like their children best at two stages of their lives: (1) When they’re small enough that they come in their own special carrying cases and stay put… Continue reading What’s Best for Children
Gay Sex Isn’t Weird. Sex Is.
First published at 365gay.com on January 16, 2009 Why are our opponents so obsessed with butt sex? I’ve personally pondered this question more times than is probably healthy. It occurred to me a few weeks ago when a poster on a conservative blog complained that gays “expect us to approve of butt sex and call… Continue reading Gay Sex Isn’t Weird. Sex Is.
The Odd Couple
First published at Between the Lines News on December 18, 2008 Glenn Stanton is a friend of mine. He’s also badly wrong about same-sex marriage, and I tell him so—frequently, publicly, and sharply. Glenn works at Focus on the Family, a premier organization of the religious right. He and I regularly debate same-sex marriage at… Continue reading The Odd Couple