Honestly, what straight 6 yo boy gets despondent because he can't have the pretty flowers.

Wow

IF (a fact not remotely evidenced by the anecdote) the boy is gay then yay for mom not caring.

Regardless of whether the boy is gay, boo for mom teaching him that nagging will get him what he wants (a fact only slightly more evidenced by the anecdote).

Unbelievable. :rolleyes:

Do I really have to explain how fvcked up your statement is? How reinforcing idiotic stereotypes harms our society? And, most importantly, how untrue it is?

I'm using a good deal of restraint here. You've just demonstrated one of the worst examples of prejudice that exist today. Just.....horrifying.

I was not there, but I think the most reasonable diagnosis is that the boy may be straight, and he may be gay. He may like flowers, and he may not like flowers. What he definitely does not like is being left out of the present giving.

I've told this story to several of my gay male friends. Every single one of them had the same reaction. "Gay!"

You know nothing of being a gay man or of growing up as one. I would never presume to attack you for observations you make about growing up as a straight woman or how little straight girls think. I will kindly ask you to keep your hateful comments to yourself.

And you know nothing about growing up as a straight male and having your sexuality questioned any time you made the fatal error of not acting properly machismo. You're showing empathy? GAY! You like something that isn't blue? GAY! You like flowers. GAY!

And then everyone wonders why straight male culture is so destructively chauvinist, machismo, and vilifies any display of caring or sensitivity. Either you fit into the perfect little box of being a straight dude who doesn't cry and doesn't have empathy, or you like dick.

The exact same argument happened a year or two ago, prompted by pretty much the exact same thing. I imagine we'll all say pretty much the exact same things.

My (hopefully, I didn't go look for it) echo of myself:

I fail to see how shouting "you're gay!" at anybody who deviates from oddly defined gender norms has somehow become a sign of enlightened empathy as opposed to the ignorant conformism it really is.

Now, the kid may be gay. I have no idea. Maybe you have more information you haven't shared here (like he was wearing a "Nathan Lane speaks for me!" or "Daddy says it is ok that I like ****" pin). But you haven't shared any compelling information with the rest of us (well, not compelling information about the kid).

But I do wonder, is there an age when it is possible for a male to like flowers without it also meaning he is gay? Is every male florist in the world gay? Were all those retired bromeliad and orchid enthusiasts I used to have to deal with in Hawaii gay and after 75 years they just hadn't realized it yet? My great-grandfather put his roses in competition at the county fair every year. Is this, despite any other corroborating evidence, proof he was actually gay?

Also, I'm curious, is sexual orientation a matter of popular election. Does getting seven queens around a table to all pronounce that So-and-So is gay make them gay?

What if a male has "gay" interests as well as "straight" interests? Is it like being black back in the day? One rotten apple spoils the bunch so to speak and one gay behavior overwhelms all other straight behaviors? A boy who like flowers, muscle cars, football, lingerie models, and eating pussy is gay? Or is there a more complex calculus done? Honestly, I'm curious about the details of the burgeoning field of gayometrics.

Or how about we go back a dozen posts and state it thusly:

Bless you young mother. I hope you'll always be as supportive to your little boy when he strays from gender norms, even if proclaiming it loudly in a store for all to hear, and not try to force him back in that box.

Duly quoted. All hail Alex!

It's a Gay thing, you wouldn't understand...