Mizzou's Michael Sam comes out

[Gothamite]

So get on it, Mississippi. Show us the stereotypes are wrong.

[illwauk]

My new boss is a gay man and I never think about it and it never gets in the way of the work we do. I don't see why a locker room would be any different. It's amazing how much sexual orientation doesn't matter. I mean that in a good way.

Your new mayor is gay; so too is a big chunk of the Seattle City Council. These are things you may not know, because they don't matter in Seattle. Or, that is, they matter, but in a way that people were able to accept and get over a long, long time ago. Homo/heterosexual equality is the expectation in cities like Seattle with more people than cows, and -- on the whole -- it's pretty awesome. You get to save your civil unrest over more important things (like, say, bike lanes and parking rates).

Really though, the only thing that makes some cities better than others for LBGT people is whether or not they're in a state where the urban residents are outnumbered by backwoods rubes who are willing to vote for anti-gay politicians.

Hooray for stereotyping!

How am I stereotyping? I never said that anyone who chooses not to live in a city is a rube. But anyone who supports anti-gay politicians in 2014 IS a rube... we know way too much at this point for ignorance to be an excuse.

Besides, even cities in the Bible Belt are experiencing an influx of LGBT residents from small towns because they're still seen as more tolerant.

[The_Admiral]

We haven't made enough progress as a society yet, because I read the beginning of DG's post and chuckled:


YOUR NEW MAYOR IS GAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!

[WSU151]

My new boss is a gay man and I never think about it and it never gets in the way of the work we do. I don't see why a locker room would be any different. It's amazing how much sexual orientation doesn't matter. I mean that in a good way.

Your new mayor is gay; so too is a big chunk of the Seattle City Council. These are things you may not know, because they don't matter in Seattle. Or, that is, they matter, but in a way that people were able to accept and get over a long, long time ago. Homo/heterosexual equality is the expectation in cities like Seattle with more people than cows, and -- on the whole -- it's pretty awesome. You get to save your civil unrest over more important things (like, say, bike lanes and parking rates).

Really though, the only thing that makes some cities better than others for LBGT people is whether or not they're in a state where the urban residents are outnumbered by backwoods rubes who are willing to vote for anti-gay politicians.

Hooray for stereotyping!

How am I stereotyping? I never said that anyone who chooses not to live in a city is a rube. But anyone who supports anti-gay politicians in 2014 IS a rube... we know way too much at this point for ignorance to be an excuse.

Besides, even cities in the Bible Belt are experiencing an influx of LGBT residents from small towns because they're still seen as more tolerant.

Is the National Black Church Initiative nothing but a bunch of "backwoods rubes"?

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2012/May/Black-Churches-Denounce-NAACP-Gay-Marriage-Stance/ (though acknowledged this is from 2012).

[illwauk]

Is the National Black Church Initiative nothing but a bunch of "backwoods rubes"?

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2012/May/Black-Churches-Denounce-NAACP-Gay-Marriage-Stance/ (though acknowledged this is from 2012).

If that is still their stance, then yes, they are. Being part of a marginalized group yourself is no excuse to marginalize someone else.

Any other questions?

[illwauk]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

[McCall]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

[Soarindude]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

Other than the fact that the first openly gay athlete (in the big 4) got his first sack, I see nothing wrong with discussing his statistics and if it leads to him getting a spot on the team.

[McCall]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

Other than the fact that the first openly gay athlete (in the big 4) got his first sack, I see nothing wrong with discussing his statistics and if it leads to him getting a spot on the team.

First of all, Jason Collins was the first openly gay player in the big 4, and second, you totally missed the point of my comment.

[illwauk]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

I thought something Michael Sam did was relevant to a thread about Michael Sam, but if a backseat moderator says it's not.......

[McCall]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

I thought something Michael Sam did was relevant to a thread about Michael Sam, but if a backseat moderator says it's not.......

Like Soarindude, you missed the point of my comment.

[Soarindude]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

Other than the fact that the first openly gay athlete (in the big 4) got his first sack, I see nothing wrong with discussing his statistics and if it leads to him getting a spot on the team.

First of all, Jason Collins was the first openly gay player in the big 4, and second, you totally missed the point of my comment.

I said first openly gay player to get a sack-- Jason Collins didn't get any sacks. And I didn't miss the point of your comment. I don't see a point in discouraging posters from posting statistics related to Michael Sam. I would be fine somebody posting the statistics of Sam's competitors for a spot on backup special teams.

[McCall]

It was a half-serious comment that his on-field performance has nothing to do with him being gay. And then why did you even mention the big 4 if it was clearly meant for football only?

[illwauk]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

I thought something Michael Sam did was relevant to a thread about Michael Sam, but if a backseat moderator says it's not.......

Like Soarindude, you missed the point of my comment.

I understood your point, I just think you're being petty. Michael Sam is trying to become the first openly gay player to make an NFL team's opening day roster. Getting sacks in preseason helps him get closer to that goal.

[St Louis Cardinals]

Hey... guess who just wrapped up Matt Flynn for his first NFL sack!

This belongs in the NFL Season thread, as it has nothing to do with him being gay.

Other than the fact that the first openly gay athlete (in the big 4) got his first sack, I see nothing wrong with discussing his statistics and if it leads to him getting a spot on the team.

First of all, Jason Collins was the first openly gay player in the big 4, and second, you totally missed the point of my comment.

I said first openly gay player to get a sack-- Jason Collins didn't get any sacks.

"I said first openly gay player to get a sack-- Jason Collins didn't get any sacks."

"Other than the fact that the first openly gay athlete (in the big 4) got his first sack"

[IceCap]

Ok. Calm down people. Stuff about Michael Sam being posted in the Michael Sam thread is fine. ESPECIALLY considering that there are some who are rooting for him to fail because of his sexual orientation. Hopefully it gets to a point where him proven his competency on the football field won't require a bump. Now though? It's fine.

But then California in 2008 happened so I don't know.

Not sure how relevant that is in 2014. The same happened in here in 2006, now 55% of Wisconsin is for marriage equality.

Not relevant per say. Just still shocked that it went the way that it did.

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2012/May/Black-Churches-Denounce-NAACP-Gay-Marriage-Stance

"We love our gay brothers and sisters, but the black church will never support gay marriage," Evans said.

[slapshot]

So today, I was reading an article about Brittany Griner's engagement. She is engaged to a fellow WNBA player, but one who plays on a different team (insert joke here), and it brings up an interesting thought.

Suppose another player in the NFL comes out, and ends up dating Michael Sam. And they get married. But he plays for someone other than St. Louis.

Are there any sports where spouses compete directly against each other? We've seen siblings and parents/children compete and coach for different teams, but what about spouses?

I think a marriage would have to be super strong to survive both spouses not being able to spend much time together during the season. Even off-nights wouldn't always match up, someone is almost always on the road.

Just food for discussion.

[AHcreative]

So today, I was reading an article about Brittany Griner's engagement. She is engaged to a fellow WNBA player, but one who plays on a different team (insert joke here), and it brings up an interesting thought.

Suppose another player in the NFL comes out, and ends up dating Michael Sam. And they get married. But he plays for someone other than St. Louis.

Are there any sports where spouses compete directly against each other? We've seen siblings and parents/children compete and coach for different teams, but what about spouses?

I think a marriage would have to be super strong to survive both spouses not being able to spend much time together during the season. Even off-nights wouldn't always match up, someone is almost always on the road.

Just food for discussion.

That would be very, very interesting. I'm pretty sure Sam has a boyfriend right now, and from what I've read they seem quite happy and committed to each other so I'm not sure it would happen in Sam's case. I'm not even sure when the next openly homosexual player will play in the NFL, it still seems quite taboo as indicated by the ignorance of some people. However, it would be pretty interesting to see spouses play against each other. It would add a lot of stress to the relationship though, I'm sure.

[McCall]

Well Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr are dating and race against each other and for different teams. So from that aspect, it's happened. However since racers are always in the same location, that part wouldn't be the same as the other sports.

[The_Admiral]

Are there any sports where spouses compete directly against each other? We've seen siblings and parents/children compete and coach for different teams, but what about spouses?

Battle of the Network Stars, I'm pretty sure.