Numerous Exgays Support Ohio Ban on Gay Partnerships

2 Comments

1. 
   Jayelle on November 22, 2003

   Banning same-gender partnerships period, or benefits for same-gender partnerships? It’s an important difference.

   Wow, they listed some truly hateful people. Linda Harvey would scare me if she had the power and influence she wanted.

   Reply
2. 
   Bose on December 4, 2003

   Dr. Throckmorton posted a response to the above piece by Eric Resnick at his new site. You can read the full text, or these excerpts:

   [Resnick] noted that I was published in journals of the American Mental Health Counselors Association but omitted my publications in American Psychological Association (APA) journals.

   …He never mentioned the 6 peer reviewed reports that made up the bulk of my remarks…

   …Mr. Resnick also misquoted me… Resnick wrote that in answer to one of the legislator’s questions, I “revealed that the film crew was composed of ‘ex-gays.’”…

   I never said that. In fact, the crew was from one of the Dutch public television networks that was simply interested in researching the issue of sexual identity change. I must say they were quite thorough… But to my knowledge they were not ex-gay. Was Mr. Resnick deliberately trying to undermine the credibility of the film crew?

   I’m perplexed by Dr. Throckmorton’s suggestion that the film crew’s credibility would be undermined if it turned out they were ex-gay themselves. Throckmorton’s career is focused on asserting that the lives of ex-gays are authentic and healthy — what would preclude his clients from being credible?

   Dr. Throckmorton has also posted the full text of his testimony before the Juvenile and Family Law Committee of the Ohio House of Representatives.

   Earlier on the same page, he noted that an observer at the hearing had shouted “Seig Heil” after each person’s testimony and later called him a “jesus nazi”. Dr. Throckmorton closes his response with:

   After giving my testimony and then reading Mr. Resnick’s account in the gay press, I can understand how many of those people who rely on such sources can be so ill informed. Mr. Resnick’s account was then picked up by the Ex-Gay Watch website and presented as gospel. If sources such as these are where many gay identified folks get their news or information, no wonder some show up at public events screaming, “Sieg Heil.”

   I would think those who frequent such “news” sources would demand accurate reporting and objective analysis. And you can quote me on that.

   I sent Dr. Throckmorton a friendly email pointing out that XGW had linked to and excerpted the Resnick piece without analyzing, qualifying, or affirming it, and that we disagreed that trusting our readers to judge the credibility of our sources for themselves amounts to being “presented as gospel.” I mentioned my disappointment with the observer’s use of Nazi metaphors given that they are generally the result of lazy, uncritical thinking.

   He replied affably, sticking pretty closely to his initial point: “If the gay press as represented by the Gay Peoples Chronicle is the main place people get their information, there is next to no chance they will form accurate perceptions.”

   Even if the good doctor doesn’t, we trust you, dear readers, to think critically, question sources (including ours), and not take everything you read as gospel.

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