National Coming Out Day

Having never been "in", I never had to "come out". But I do encourage any gay person who's in the closet to step out and nail the door shut behind him.

But of course, you're never out to the whole world. For this reason, I always tell each new person that I'm gay. I look at it this way: if you're going to reject me, I want you to do it before I develop a relationship with you. This way when I walk away -- which I'll do immediately -- it won't hurt. After all, I hardly know you (and you're a stupid twit). It's a protective mechanism.

Today I saw an article on John Aravosis' blog. It's by Mark Thoma, MD, and it's about the importance of coming out to your doctor. (I always do that, too.) Thoma said this:

When it did happen to me, [i.e., a doctor had a bad reaction when Thoma, the patient, said he was gay] I felt angry and hurt. But a few minutes later, I felt relieved. Relieved that I hadn’t continued to see that doctor, built a professional relationship with him and then found out a few years later that he was “uncomfortable” with gays. Then I’d have had to move on. Instead, I found out during the first exam and just left and got a new doctor.

Good advice, and that's just the way I operate. Tell 'em on the first visit -- in fact, within the first minute of the visit. If the doctor can't handle this information, he or she is not worth going to. I see a doctor who's totally fine with having gay patients. I wouldn't go to any other kind of medical professional. 

Any coming out stories you'd like to share? Do tell.

It begins

So NBA center Jason Collins came out as gay -- on the cover of Sports Illustrated, no less. I love the quotes in this article. He's seems like a terrific representative for gay people.

And where I've made fun of "brave" people like Hillary Clinton for coming out for gay marriage only after it's perfectly safe to do so, this guy is out there all alone. He is the first active, professional player to come out. Very cool. And truly brave.

Gay NFL player to come out

There's a good story at CNN about this. It seems homophobia has had its day in professional sports, and a new era is coming. Dang, you can't even call a sports show to share your anti-gay feelings anymore!

A few weeks ago I heard a caller on local sports talk radio—I know, not always the bastion of level-headedness—tell the host he hopes no player comes out because he, the caller, didn't want to have to deal with it.

He didn't want to have to explain what that meant to his family, or deal with the issue of that gay player, perhaps, being on a team for which he likes to cheer. He was, pardon the expression, undressed by the host, pilloried for his antiquated viewpoints and lampooned for even daring to make someone else's struggle with their hidden sexuality about them.

You have to remember, this is a story at CNN rather than at a gay site. I think it would great if a popular, talented football player came out (and of course, I wonder who they're talking about). From the story, I take it the team is fine with him being gay. He's worried about the reaction of fans -- and that's understandable. No matter how well things are going for gay people, there are still a lot of people out there who hate us. Still, the time seems right. I hope he finds the courage to come out.

I'm mostly a baseball fan and I often find myself hoping that a baseball player will come out. We aren't going away, and that's a fact. Soon we'll be everywhere, openly. That's so great and it'll help young gay kids to feel better about themselves. Enough with the homophobia. It's a new day.

Not impressed

I am so not impressed with Anderson Cooper's decision to come out now that it's perfectly safe to do so. I suppose he'll be called a "hero" for this. After all, Americans call just about anyone a hero these days.

When I was a teenager in the 1950s, I made sure everyone knew I was gay. I was educating them. Now, that was coming out. Just saying.