Take Us Out of the Closet, Mr. Sulu - Warp Factor Two
Well, whaddya know - George Takei is gay.
(Okay, the picture is a little obvious, but the guy did prance around shirtless on Star Trek, so what do you want from me?)
This is as good a time as any to reiterate something I've been saying for a while. As an observant Jew, I find homosexuality troubling, but at the end of the day I figure someone else's sexuality is none of my damn business. On the one hand, the constant obsession of the religious right regarding the so-called homosexual "agenda" appeals very much to my sense of humor; on the other hand, there are times when I wonder why the gay community insists on making me know that they're gay. Other than they themselves and the people they love, who cares? (There are lots of answers to that question, of course, but we'll get to that some other time.)
Having said all that, I must admit that I was surprised at this news about George Takei. I never would have guessed in a million years. My next reaction was to ask "Why am I surprised? Do I think I can tell who's gay just by watching them?"
Well, yeah, sometimes.
Regardless, I can understand why Takei decided not to come out for all those years. In his Frontiers interview, he points out that he spent quite a long time in a Japanese interment camp during World War II, and an experience like that could easily give a child the idea that any difference is shameful, whether one is Asian, gay or both. Perhaps his coming out means that he has gotten some peace for himself.
It's a pity for us Trekkies, though, that he didn't get the chance to deal with his sexuality on the show itself. Maybe it was a little early for television to feature a gay character - apparently it still is - but since the whole point of Star Trek was to demonstrate the possibility of tolerance and differences in humanity's future, a gay helmsman would have been a nice touch. Like Spock said, life consists of "infinite diversity in infinite combinations".
Oh well, better late than never. Congratulations, Mr. Takei.
Benshlomo says, Looks like someone turned off my "gay-dar," and that's just fine with me.
(Okay, the picture is a little obvious, but the guy did prance around shirtless on Star Trek, so what do you want from me?)
This is as good a time as any to reiterate something I've been saying for a while. As an observant Jew, I find homosexuality troubling, but at the end of the day I figure someone else's sexuality is none of my damn business. On the one hand, the constant obsession of the religious right regarding the so-called homosexual "agenda" appeals very much to my sense of humor; on the other hand, there are times when I wonder why the gay community insists on making me know that they're gay. Other than they themselves and the people they love, who cares? (There are lots of answers to that question, of course, but we'll get to that some other time.)
Having said all that, I must admit that I was surprised at this news about George Takei. I never would have guessed in a million years. My next reaction was to ask "Why am I surprised? Do I think I can tell who's gay just by watching them?"
Well, yeah, sometimes.
Regardless, I can understand why Takei decided not to come out for all those years. In his Frontiers interview, he points out that he spent quite a long time in a Japanese interment camp during World War II, and an experience like that could easily give a child the idea that any difference is shameful, whether one is Asian, gay or both. Perhaps his coming out means that he has gotten some peace for himself.
It's a pity for us Trekkies, though, that he didn't get the chance to deal with his sexuality on the show itself. Maybe it was a little early for television to feature a gay character - apparently it still is - but since the whole point of Star Trek was to demonstrate the possibility of tolerance and differences in humanity's future, a gay helmsman would have been a nice touch. Like Spock said, life consists of "infinite diversity in infinite combinations".
Oh well, better late than never. Congratulations, Mr. Takei.
Benshlomo says, Looks like someone turned off my "gay-dar," and that's just fine with me.
posted by benshlomo at 11:40 AM
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