Sorry.
Atheism is a choice.
Homosexuality is a choice.
Atheism is a choice, though it's not usually something that someone decides in an instant. Therefore, I can see why some would think it is not a choice.
But I've got to take issue with you on homosexuality. I don't know how many gay people you personally know, but it is absolutely not a choice. To many, it comes as a realization.
I know several homosexuals who stayed locked up in the closet for years; they had girlfriends, they went on dates, they had straight sex - they pretended to be heterosexual, all the while knowing that they weren't. One friend of mine knew how he felt about men and women since he was five years old. At that age, he wasn't choosing a lifestyle - he was realizing what he was attracted to on a level deeper than choice.
My question to you is this: why would anyone choose to be gay? Not being gay myself, I can't speak for the sexual pleasure aspect of homosexuality (which seems to be the reason why most right-wingers think gays are gay), but there are so many negatives. How will the family react? What about friends? If you're openly gay, you're a target, open to all sorts of discrimination and hatred. So why would anyone choose that?
The truth is, they wouldn't. Being gay is something deeper than a choice. It's not like deciding what to wear or what to eat. The only choice is choosing to reveal one's homosexuality. Republicans usually say they champion individuality, right? Well, we'd hate for one not to be themselves, now wouldn't we?
J-Mann, I agree with you. I think it's wrong for people to say that homosexuality is a choice. The choice is whether to act on it, or reveal it.
Having said that, I can't really say that I think homosexuality is as desirable as heterosexuality. I know it's politically incorrect to say that, but I think that most people, even those who are publicly tolerant of homosexuality, believe that deep down. Of all the non-gay people who are sympathetic to the gay agenda, how many would actually want one of their kids to be gay? They may accept it if it happened, but the vast majority would prefer otherwise. Almost nobody would choose it.
I am glad that we have reached the point where we don't unquestioningly discriminate against gays for something that they didn't choose. As I said, I would vote for a gay candidate provided that his/her sexuality was not the centerpiece of the campaign, but I think that outside of San Francisco and Greenwich Village, homosexuality would be a major political liability.
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