Because any form that asks for your sexual orientation--not biological sex, but your bedroom preferences--deserves no other answer.
I do not know what got into the heads of those that run admissions in the University of California, but I think I can safely say that it's not a legal question to ask. I mean, if employers can't ask it, what right does a university have to ask?
So, anyone want to bet that the individuals in that system's administration won't mandate that straight, white males must wear a symbol warning women that this individual may commit a sex crime against them, and warning gay men about possible homophobic hate crimes?
What do you think the symbol will be? Maybe a triangle colored depending on political/religious views?
In case you can't tell, the whole idea seriously irritates me. First off, what business is it of a state university who sleeps with whom? Second, doesn't anybody fucking study history anymore? How can people not see that this is step one to "re-educating" undesirables in "special camps"?
I'm really beginning to be afraid for my profession. If universities keep doing things that offend the people who pay for their services, those people are going to look at the crap their kids are being spoon-fed, look at the tuition and fees they pay for their kids' constitutionally protected rights to be violated (while they're brainwashed to believe it's for the best), and decide that it's seriously not worth it.
And, in the larger, research-based institutions that rest on their reputations without making sure they're still deserved, I can't say that it is worth it. The problem is that most of the smaller, teaching- and student-focused colleges and universities are undeservedly tarred with the same brush.
14 minutes ago
Wanna know something scary? Sexual orientation isn't a "prohibited basis" in some federal regs. Regs regarding what you can ask in regards to a loan application do not prohibit that question. I was shocked by that and had to check it over and over. I'm not sure about employment apps and it might be a state law, but it's surprisingly not federal law in some situations.
ReplyDeleteScary indeed...what happens when the gay lobby quits being a power base, and starts being an embarrassment for the fascists that are currently in Washington, D.C.?
DeleteIf I recall my history correctly, Hitler's Nazi party actually used Germany's homosexuals before trying to eradicate them.
I think our current government is relying on that lack of historical knowledge in most Americans. I can almost see labels/colored patches being used for anyone who isn't a transnational progressive liberal. And then, I see us following some of the same general trends that Germany did after Hitler got into power: certain groups barred from certain professions, and forced to live in walled communities.
Jesus, HH...
ReplyDeleteYou're scaring the shit out of me.
Odysseus had me adding an extra layer to the foil hat just last week, now I fear it's just not enough.
That's it! I want my triangle to be foil-colored...shiny side out, so you can see it from a distance.
Don't you know, MSgt B, that you're already amongst the "marked?" You're a potential terrorist, according to DHS's checklists.
DeleteFrankly, you're in good company--a lot of my friends, both in real life and in the blog world--meet one or more criteria on that list: veterans, conservatives/libertarians, second amendment rights believers, first amendment rights believers, those who believe the government should be limited to what the constitution says it can do....
AND THE GOVERNMENT WINS!
Delete.....You NOW have nothing to fear but your own paranoia......
http://oldcatman-xxx.com/?p=5145
OCM--It's not paranoia when they really are out to get you.
DeleteCould this be for roommate assignment? So maybe they avoid a case of, say, a gay student being harassed and bullied by a straight roommate? I'm trying to look at this in the least-creepy way possible.
ReplyDelete(And I'm guessing asking "Are you a jerk who likes to bully people" wouldn't get useful responses for them.)
Still, it's creepy, and if I were applying to college now, I'd probably want to say "none of your beeswax" on the form. (I think now how lucky I was to get a single the one year I lived in the dorm; I remember people getting "sexiled" and having to spend most of the night in the crummy student lounge...)
The article said it was for statistical purposes, even while it admitted that the stats might be skewed by people saying "none of your beeswax" or flat out lying.
DeleteAs for dorms...a good camera with a flash might solve a lot of the "sexiled" problem.
If they're doing it solely for statistical purposes, they need to have it be an anonymous thing...some people will claim stuff that's not true if their name's attached to it.
DeleteOr, heck, not collect the data at all, why does it really matter? Unless there's some coming mandate that schools with more than a certain percentage of gay or bi students get Federal money or something.
Bears repeating.......
DeleteAND THE GOVERNMENT WINS!
.....You NOW have nothing to fear but your own paranoia......
http://oldcatman-xxx.com/?p=5145
Ricki--agreed. I'm betting there may well be some serious funding attached in some way. Bribery always works.
DeleteOCM--it's not paranoia if the government is a complete tyranny that doesn't permit behavior that harms no one because it fits someone's moral definition of "wrong" (i.e., criminalizing marijuana production, possession, and use, while treating alcohol as a cash cow. Pot should be treated just like alcohol is--beer and wine, not whiskey).