Lowri Turner on... homosexual politicians.

[marksi]

http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news ... _page.html

However much I love my gay friends, I don't want them running the country

Jan 27 2006

Lowri Turner, Western Mail

THIS week, not one but two candidates for the post of Lib-Dem leader have been revealed to bat for their own side.

First Mark Oaten, who has a head not unlike a well-polished cricket ball, was outed for decidedly dodgy goings-on with a 23-year-old rent boy, sometimes joined by his mate.

Now, Simon Hughes has admitted he is gay too. Hughes's statement is a bit mealy mouthed. He announced, "I am perfectly willing to say that I have had both homosexual and heterosexual relationships in the past."

That's a bit like telling people you once had a joint, but now stick to G&Ts, except that a person's sexual orientation is a little more fixed than their taste in end-of-the-day pick-me-ups.

Frankly, I don't trust a man who says he swings both ways, unless he is a spotty teenager who hasn't sorted himself out yet. Oaten is 41 and Hughes is 54. If they think they are old enough to run the country then surely they are old enough to work out which gender they fancy?

Those who claim to be bisexual are simply trying to fudge the truth. Well, have you ever heard of a chap with a public boyfriend who has women on the side? Of course not. Too many gay men have wives and girlfriends as window dressing and keep the boys hidden in the shadows. This is both miserable for them and devastating to the women involved. Belinda Oaten is so traumatised is said to want to end their 13-year marriage.

The reason Oaten and Hughes kept their true leanings secret is they believed that we, the public, wouldn't vote for them if we knew the truth. And, there is indeed a great deal of homophobia in this country. Simon Hughes went as far as to use his supposed heterosexuality to fight a vicious by-election campaign against gay rights activist Peter Tatchell. Twenty years ago, his party material told South London voters he was the "straight choice".

Even earlier this week, when asked if he was gay, Simon Hughes said, "The answer is no". How his tune has changed. Now that he is, um, sort of, maybe, a long time ago, gay, all of sudden it is not an issue. Peter Tatchell could have been forgiven for choking on his tea when he heard Hughes bleat, "I hope that does not disqualify me from doing a good job in public life".

That is the million-dollar question and the answer is pretty much up to us. If Hughes does still scoop the Lib-Dem leadership he will go before the nation and one of the factors (apart from the fact he lied) will be his sexuality. This is not something that will go away, as Michael Portillo found out.

Personally, I have to say that I don't think gay men make good party leaders or Prime Ministers. This has nothing to do with what they do in bed but everything to do with their lives in general.

Before I am accused of prejudice, I should say that not only are some of my best friends gay, but probably most of them are. I work in the media, for goodness sake. It is precisely because I know such a lot of gay men that I can say that I don't think many of them are capable of representing the interests of the vast majority of people.

Their lifestyles are too divorced from the norm. They are not better or worse, but they are different.

Gay men face challenges of their own, but they do not face those associated with having children which is the way most of us live. I have gay friends whose biggest headache is whether to have a black sofa or a cream one. If they have a child it is a dog.

My gay friends have not sat in accident and emergency with a small child. They have not had to make the decision over whether to give them MMR. They have not struggled to get their child statemented or gone through the schools' appeals process.

Without these experiences at the sharp end of our public services, they do not know how they function. This makes them completely out of their depth in administering them. In the same way that career politicians, those who have never had a real job but climbed the greasy pole by way of think-tanks and speech writing, are not equipped to make laws for the rest of us, so I think gay men are ill-suited to representing the interests of the population in general. However much I love my gay friends, I don't want them running the country.

As an aside, I should say that Lowri Turner is the smallest fully-grown woman I have ever met.

[Snu]

That’s an interesting article. Not least because she uses the same argument other bigots in the community frequently use; "some of my best friends are gay..." So what? That’s justification for saying that someone isn't capable of something solely down to their sexuality? I'm not on the defensive as such because I KNOW I could run the country if I had the right stuff and the fact that I probably never well has NOTHING to do with my sexuality. More you could say to do with my personality and intelligence which whether I lead a life gay or straight, would determine on what I achieve. Does Ms Turner, who it has to be said seems to spend her life permanently pregnant, seriously believe that some bodies sexuality determines their perspective on life and forces you to focus on the trivial aspects like the color of your sofa? She does a feckin do it yourself programme so who the hell is she to take the moral high ground?

At any rate, the woman is a bigot and I’m only happy in these circumstances that people as thick as her display their true colours to a wider audience.

The issue over the Simon Hughes story as far as I can tell and as far as the vast majority of people are concerned is that he lied. The sexuality aspect of the story is merely an aside, the fact remains if he could lie about this, what else would he be prepared to lie about?

[marksi]

Actually what she appears to be saying isn't that she doesn't want gay politicians (which is what she thinks she thinks) but that you can't be a politican unless you have children. Her mind is clearly in proportion to the rest of her body.

[Dr Lobster*]

a quick question, i read on the news of the world website that mark oaten "was very specific about something special he wanted [ done to him ]. It's a gross act of humiliation which only a few punters ask for. It's quite revolting really."

anybody know what this is? it's been alluded to in a couple of tabloids... what it is that's supposed to be so "revolting"?

[Snu]

Actually what she appears to be saying isn't that she doesn't want gay politicians (which is what she thinks she thinks) but that you can't be a politican unless you have children. Her mind is clearly in proportion to the rest of her body.

Well I don't know, her obsession with child care is just one of the things to come through, she seems to also think that gay men have little more to think about than the colour of their underwear. On that basis, does she equally think that women cannot make politicians? Since all they care about is a clean sofa.

[marksi]

The Popbitch mailing a couple of weeks ago mentioned an unnamed candidate for the LD leadership, underwear and poo. Though maybe they were thinking of another Liberal Democrat entirely*.

*there is nothing currently in the public domain that I am aware of to suggest any of the Popbitch story is true. M'lud.

[Dr Lobster*]

Ah yes... here it is in the Lobster Archive:

Which Lib Dem wannabe leader used to be
a regular visitor to a brothel in Paddington
where he used to pay girls to shit in their
knickers for him, and would then put the
dirty pants in his briefcase and take them home?

[cdd]

Speaking of which that new avatar really brings out your character better!

[This and That]

She forgot to mention that Gay men don't have the luxury of taking dependency days or parental leave from work because childcare plans don't work out. That's the biggest con ever that one.

I am shocked that she should say something so absurd.Why is it that idiots like that short fat little woman always tend to think that gay men are interested in sofas clothes and crap like that we are not all like that.

I work in the media and most of my friends are gay oh please how insulting.

That would be like me saying shouldn't women like her be tied to the kichen sink looking after her kids instead of pamming them off to some stranger to look after day in day out .Oh but she is a perfect mother out all day working with her gay friends in the media.

[russnet]

All this from a former DIY SOS presenter eh!