Stasisesque

Normal, the norm, that which is most common, what we are used to and accept as prevalent. Average, the same, normal.

This is a pet peeve of mine; normal is not bad, abnormal is not bad (unless specifically bad, such as "an abnormal tumour" but even a normal one would be a bad, so we're ignoring those) it's just a way of catagorising things. If someone was to say to me, "You're not normal," I'd automatically assume I was abnormal to them, but I'd not take offence until I was sure whether they meant it cruelly, or if it was just born from ignorance or naivety. It's just an easier way of going about life.

The term "straight acting" is a bit over my head. To me, it conjures images of blokes down the pub, talking about how many chicks/birds/"female dogs" and "gardening implements -e" they pulled last night. But to act "normally" just suggests behaving in a way that blends in with everyone else; and again, it goes both ways (hurr hurr).

That would be why I added the caveat, "personally".

You may have misunderstood the quote, I was indeed referring to anyone of any gender, sexuality, race, creed, age etc. Those (and I admit they are reasonably few, but fairly vocal) who do constantly go on, and on about their sexuality and show me no other interests tend to be defined by me as defining themselves by their sexuality; and that bores me to tears.

I don't believe I said sexuality is about just sex, and if my statement did come across that way, I apologise. I meant it can and does have a sexual element - the same way, to borrow your example, a straight couple announcing their marriage has an underlying sexual element. It is perfectly reasonable to suggest the couple have never and will never have sex, but it's much more common to assume they have and will. Same if that couple were gay. Sex makes (some) people uncomfortable, so I can understand why even the most accepting and open-minded of people can be a little "weirded out" by someone announcing their sexuality, unprompted.

I'm lucky enough to have been born and raised in London - there's very, very little that shocks me or even that I find outside the norm. As such, I find pride in who you are rather tedious. Good! But tedious. We all do it here, it's old hat. So it's not as easy to fathom the horror some go through, living in places they are not able to be themselves. Ditto goes for family, accepting open-minded family warps your view of others not lucky enough to experience the same.

And for the record, while my "going on about it" threshold is usually fairly high (i.e. mentioning your partner won't set me off), if I'm having a bad day it drops a fair amount.

Except me. *sniff*

Of course not. Unless, of course, for some reason working late shifts was a sexuality.

The reason there is controversy is because it covers sexuality, which covers sex, which is an uncomfortable topic for an awful lot of people. Especially in an MMO. No, you wouldn't necessarily have to be gay/bisexual/transgendered to join such an SG (how would you prove you were?), but in joining one, you are inadvertently announcing your sexual preferences. Personally, anyone who does that on the internet, outside of a dating/similar site, is going to encounter a very adamant, "And I care, why?"

As I may have said already, or has been said by someone else (it has been nearly a year since I read this thread through), I don't define a person by their sexuality. I do, however, define them by how much they go on about it.

Those would be my two pence (I will not be Americanised, damnit).

Nah. You're still here.

And no one's asking him to change his character's name. Just the forum name (or possibly as JD said, the combination of name + avatar, which, to be fair, sounds like it would be fairly offensive to anyone who knew and considered "spade" to be a derogatory term) - and it may very well have been offensive on the EU forums, just not in droves as it appears to be here.

It would be preferable if he didn't have to change, yes - but in the interests of all getting along? I was merely making a suggestion.

Well that ain't gonna work. Your sweet and savoury tastebuds are all over your tongue, same as all your other sensors.

I dislike beer also, find it tastes like the smell of petrol.

Oh god, this made me laugh. Does that make me a bad person?

Edit: To explain, it made me laugh because I couldn't think why on earth anyone could make that connection. Now I've re-read it, I can. The moral? Don't post when suffering from tea withdrawel symptoms.

I'm aware it's a discussion forum - and I am reading other threads. Unfortunately, there are so many of them, I'm getting quite lost.

It's not the discussion I have a problem with, it's the debate and attacking Cherokee for his/her opinion. In my experience, threads like these always turn into arguments - and often times for decent reasons. But this one looks like a bunch of people attacking one another for the slightest thing. If anyone had said anything derogatory, I'd understand - be upset, but understand. But no one has and that sort of makes this whole thing rather silly.