]
I just found this picture on Facebook and it irritated me to know end. To me a person that young is incapable of fully comprehending anything as complex as physical and emotional interactions. I think that they understand what they like and what they are comfortable with, but not the differences between liking someone and loving them, in an intimate way.
I think that girls are much more mature about their attractions, but boys are a different story altogether. OI think they see girls as being sob different that they are repelled by them at a emotional level and they stick together because they are comfortable within their own group.
I think that there are those out there on both sides of the political spectrum, that are so into showing just how fervent they are to their ideals that they will use anyone or anything to further their agenda. I think, at times these people are so aggressive in their tactics that those, who are effected by the blow back from these incidents would rather these people shut up and go away. Such people cause controversy that they, themselves don’t have to deal with, so they are uncaring except for they way they perceive themselves. themselves.
Two examples of these overstepping fanatics are The Westborough Baptist church and PETA. They both make a mockery of the ideals of others and give their opposition cover to make unfair blanket statements about either side.
I don’t know. I was probably 8 or 9, as I recall, when I first started thinking of girls as attractive (despite knowing next to nothing about sexuality), but some kids are more precocious than others. And kids, in general, these days are probably more precocious (in respect to sexuality) than in my day. If I had started thinking of other boys as attractive, at age 7, I think that I would like to have known that there is nothing wrong with that.
Who knows? Maybe this little guy, as he matures, will develop different feelings re: his attraction to others with respect to gender. (Probably not.) But either way, I think that he should be able to feel okay about what he is experiencing now.
Also, just from the picture, I don’t think that we know the dad’s motivation for posting it with the accompanying message. I don’t think that we can safely assume that the dad is an ideologue on the level of those in Westboro Baptist or PETA. For all we know, he could just be a father resolving his own sense of discomfort with homosexuality with his love and his protective paternal instincts for his son.
Also, just from the picture, I don't think that we know the dad's motivation for posting it with the accompanying message. I don't think that we can safely assume that the dad is an ideologue on the level of those in Westboro Baptist or PETA. For all we know, he could just be a father resolving his own sense of discomfort with homosexuality with his love and his protective paternal instincts for his son.......That posts his kids face all over the internet, which would ensure a complete and total lack of privacy for his son, based on a 7 year olds assumption of his own feelings. A parent should protect his son from the idiocy of the world, not put him on display to a world filled with prejudicial bigotry. Somehow I don't think the parent is thoughtful of anything but the accolades of those who agree with his ideology. The kids just a pawn is his political games. Kids can be very cruel to each other and especially to one that stands out. We have a bullying issue in many of our schools and I'm sure this kid is going to find all of them where he attends class.
I find it irritating as well. I think people start to become aware of their sexuality around the start of puberty, but it’s probably an ongoing thing for a few years, for many.
A seven year old is not gay or straight in the “functional” sense, but it’s possible the boy recognizes certain effeminate traits in himself as being “gay”. His parent may have helped him recognize, however.
Here is a story about a boy (in the UK), at age 3, wanting to be a girl. This is purportedly an example of “gender identity disorder” rather than homosexuality. But he/she is remarkably young. The UK National Health system backed the child and parents’ decision for the boy to live as a girl, when he was 4. She is now 5.
Here is a story about a boy (in the UK), at age 3, wanting to be a girl. This is purportedly an example of "gender identity disorder" rather than homosexuality. But he/she is remarkably young. The UK National Health system backed the child and parents' decision for the boy to live as a girl, when he was 4. She is now 5. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9093108/Five-year-old-boy-lives-as-girl-in-youngest-case-of-Gender-Identity-Disorder.htmlWhat has that to do with what we are talking about. The analyzing of relationships with others is different than what a person feels it right about themselves. Many adults can't decide on how they feel about others and can still wear the clothes that they are comfortable in.
Here is a story about a boy (in the UK), at age 3, wanting to be a girl. This is purportedly an example of "gender identity disorder" rather than homosexuality. But he/she is remarkably young. The UK National Health system backed the child and parents' decision for the boy to live as a girl, when he was 4. She is now 5. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9093108/Five-year-old-boy-lives-as-girl-in-youngest-case-of-Gender-Identity-Disorder.htmlWhat has that to do with what we are talking about. The analyzing of relationships with others is different than what a person feels it right about themselves. Many adults can't decide on how they feel about others and can still wear the clothes that they are comfortable in. Wu, the topic that you started is titled "At what age is a person aware of their sexuality". I just offered an article that seemed to be at least partially relevant to that topic. If a person feels that they are of the opposite gender, I assume they will be attracted to members of their own gender, at some point. Perhaps that is not always a safe assumption, e.g. as if someone were to feel that they are a lesbian trapped in a man's body. (I always thought that line was a joke. But who knows?)
Also, just from the picture, I don't think that we know the dad's motivation for posting it with the accompanying message. I don't think that we can safely assume that the dad is an ideologue on the level of those in Westboro Baptist or PETA. For all we know, he could just be a father resolving his own sense of discomfort with homosexuality with his love and his protective paternal instincts for his son.I think someone posted that with the nefarious intent. I don't know what it is yet, but I can't imagine that an actual parent would have posted a picture of his child with those words. I smell a rat. Lois
Also, just from the picture, I don't think that we know the dad's motivation for posting it with the accompanying message. I don't think that we can safely assume that the dad is an ideologue on the level of those in Westboro Baptist or PETA. For all we know, he could just be a father resolving his own sense of discomfort with homosexuality with his love and his protective paternal instincts for his son.I think someone posted that with the nefarious intent. I don't know what it is yet, but I can't imagine that an actual parent would have posted a picture of his child with those words. I smell a rat. Lois If you smell a rat, perhaps there is one. (I don't know what a rat smell's like.) But I can imagine a Bubba who has always had underlying homophobic feelings, upon being told by his 7 year old son, that he (the son) is gay, going overboard in his reactions, in trying to relieve the cognitive dissonance of loving his son who, he has just learned, or thinks he has just learned, is gay. (Who knows if the kid is really mature enough to know if he really is gay.) Hence, he (the father) highlights his son's self confidence as his own (the father's) accomplishment, and can then feel okay about his son's "gayness", and yet can still resolve any underlying anger by kicking the ass of anyone who says anything bad about his son. Just a hypothesis.
Or, the father truly thinks that this is a way to express his feelings about his son’s perceived homosexuality in a way that will promote society’s acceptance of homosexuality, in general, and in particular, acceptance of his son’s homosexuality.
Just another hypothesis.
Or as Wu suggests, the father is an ideologue using his son as a pawn to promote the issue of society’s acceptance of homosexuality.
Also a hypothesis. Not my first hypothesis, as it is also difficult for me to conceive of a parent that loves an ideological agenda more than his own son.
Or, as Lois implies another hypothesis, someone got a picture of some anonymous little kid, put the caption on it, and posted it on the internet, to promote their own agenda.
It’s a mystery. Will we ever truly know?
Here is a story about a boy (in the UK), at age 3, wanting to be a girl. This is purportedly an example of "gender identity disorder" rather than homosexuality. But he/she is remarkably young. The UK National Health system backed the child and parents' decision for the boy to live as a girl, when he was 4. She is now 5. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9093108/Five-year-old-boy-lives-as-girl-in-youngest-case-of-Gender-Identity-Disorder.htmlWhat has that to do with what we are talking about. The analyzing of relationships with others is different than what a person feels it right about themselves. Many adults can't decide on how they feel about others and can still wear the clothes that they are comfortable in. Wu, the topic that you started is titled "At what age is a person aware of their sexuality". I just offered an article that seemed to be at least partially relevant to that topic. If a person feels that they are of the opposite gender, I assume they will be attracted to members of their own gender, at some point. Perhaps that is not always a safe assumption, e.g. as if someone were to feel that they are a lesbian trapped in a man's body. (I always thought that line was a joke. But who knows?) Dude I thank you for the effort but I've wanted to be female all my life and have never thought about even hugging another guy. What you feel about yourself is internal. What you feel about others is external. I wish my parents would have let me try out of existence of being female. It would have lead me more quickly to the decision of who I really am. I use the term existence because when you feel internally not the way you look externally both sexes are with you, but they feel more like a disembodied soul that you can put on and take off. As for men, I don't know if I've ever had any genuine feelings for any man. It's like they are just there and you have to deal with their imbecilic macho persona. Some are alright, but they have the communicative skills of a quadriplegic deaf mute. I can ask a women a question and get more information on everything about the subject in 5 seconds than I can in a man in 5 hours. I guess if I'd went the way of the scalpel I could have had myself carved and injected myself into the image of a women, but that, to me would constitute being a fraud. Being a women is much more than just the looks. It is the experience of growing up a little girl and having that relationship with your dad as so many born into that status. It's the precious years of building up friendships with other little girls that would last a lifetime and allow the experiences of a girls night out. As you can see I know a little about the scenario you've posted to address my topic. I'm fairly certain I can honestly say that the personal desire to be something you weren't born as and the art of affection to others are fairly far apart.
Good point! There's no good using kids to your advantage. And a seven-year old probably doesn't know whether or not he's gay (although he might). ... I don't like the "I will hurt" mention on the picture. Pretty freaky actually. Westborough Baptist and PETA are nice examples. Well, the former are total lunatics, but PETA, although good in principle I think, also goes way overboard. Makes loving animals into a silly semi-erotic self-destruction of hating humans it almost seems. Do kids know though? I really think it depends upon the kid. I didn't "know" what went on with me, but it certainly was there even before puberty. Sexuality is not a fixed thing, it's very morphable, even later. To bring kids into discussion I think is plain wrong and stupid, but to disregard them is not all that good either. Genius is most able during the teenage years; just because we have structured ourselves differently now doesn't mean that's the best thing.] I just found this picture on Facebook and it irritated me to know end. To me a person that young is incapable of fully comprehending anything as complex as physical and emotional interactions. I think that they understand what they like and what they are comfortable with, but not the differences between liking someone and loving them, in an intimate way. I think that girls are much more mature about their attractions, but boys are a different story altogether. OI think they see girls as being sob different that they are repelled by them at a emotional level and they stick together because they are comfortable within their own group. I think that there are those out there on both sides of the political spectrum, that are so into showing just how fervent they are to their ideals that they will use anyone or anything to further their agenda. I think, at times these people are so aggressive in their tactics that those, who are effected by the blow back from these incidents would rather these people shut up and go away. Such people cause controversy that they, themselves don't have to deal with, so they are uncaring except for they way they perceive themselves. themselves. Two examples of these overstepping fanatics are The Westborough Baptist church and PETA. They both make a mockery of the ideals of others and give their opposition cover to make unfair blanket statements about either side.
Here is a story about a boy (in the UK), at age 3, wanting to be a girl. This is purportedly an example of "gender identity disorder" rather than homosexuality. But he/she is remarkably young. The UK National Health system backed the child and parents' decision for the boy to live as a girl, when he was 4. She is now 5. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9093108/Five-year-old-boy-lives-as-girl-in-youngest-case-of-Gender-Identity-Disorder.htmlWhat has that to do with what we are talking about. The analyzing of relationships with others is different than what a person feels it right about themselves. Many adults can't decide on how they feel about others and can still wear the clothes that they are comfortable in. Wu, the topic that you started is titled "At what age is a person aware of their sexuality". I just offered an article that seemed to be at least partially relevant to that topic. If a person feels that they are of the opposite gender, I assume they will be attracted to members of their own gender, at some point. Perhaps that is not always a safe assumption, e.g. as if someone were to feel that they are a lesbian trapped in a man's body. (I always thought that line was a joke. But who knows?) Dude I thank you for the effort but I've wanted to be female all my life and have never thought about even hugging another guy. What you feel about yourself is internal. What you feel about others is external. I wish my parents would have let me try out of existence of being female. It would have lead me more quickly to the decision of who I really am. I use the term existence because when you feel internally not the way you look externally both sexes are with you, but they feel more like a disembodied soul that you can put on and take off. As for men, I don't know if I've ever had any genuine feelings for any man. It's like they are just there and you have to deal with their imbecilic macho persona. Some are alright, but they have the communicative skills of a quadriplegic deaf mute. I can ask a women a question and get more information on everything about the subject in 5 seconds than I can in a man in 5 hours. I guess if I'd went the way of the scalpel I could have had myself carved and injected myself into the image of a women, but that, to me would constitute being a fraud. Being a women is much more than just the looks. It is the experience of growing up a little girl and having that relationship with your dad as so many born into that status. It's the precious years of building up friendships with other little girls that would last a lifetime and allow the experiences of a girls night out. As you can see I know a little about the scenario you've posted to address my topic. I'm fairly certain I can honestly say that the personal desire to be something you weren't born as and the art of affection to others are fairly far apart. Well, that's quite interesting. Not having experienced gender identity issues, having had very little conversations with someone who has, nor having read up on it, I have had little clue as to what it entails.
Feeling like you are the opposite gender is not the same as being attracted to the same gender. Gender identity and gender attraction are separate. David Reimer, an unfortunate young man whose penis was cut off in a circumcision accident (don’t get me started on circumcision!) after which his parents were advised to raise him as a girl, which turned into an unmitigated disaster. According to him, from his earliest memories, he felt like he was a boy. Unfortunately he eventually committed suicide.
http://open.salon.com/blog/xylocopa/2011/01/11/in_memory_of_david_reimer_1
Yeah, I am aware of the David Reimer case. And I am aware that Transvestites are often (but not necessarily) heterosexuals who enjoy dressing in women’s clothes. I’m not sure whether there are female transvestites. Now I learn that one’s Gender Identity does not mean you will necessarily be sexually attracted to the sex opposite of your sense of gender identity. They could eventually be gay, lesbian, heterosexual or bisexual. Then we also have persons who change gender. (I presume that transgender persons had a gender identity issue that motivated their gender change. But I’m sure I could be wrong about that. Maybe some have different motivations for gender change.) Then, the transgender person can also be either gay, lesbian, heterosexual, or bisexual with regard to their original or eventual gender. Then we also have your more mundane homosexuals, bisexuals, and heterosexuals. Taken all together these gender/sexuality issues are surprisingly complex.
It’s all desire man. Everyone has it but for different things. I have met several who feel the way that I do and focus on living the life and looking the part, no mater how long it takes. I was, personally bitter about my situation. Mine was made more complex by the fact that my dad was a red neck and my mom was and still is a Jehovah’s Witness. You can imagine how pleased they were when they caught me in a one piece bathing suit with toilet paper breasts.
I’m lucky they didn’t burn me at the stake.
I agree that the preference to be one or the other sex is quite different from being attracted to one or the other sex. I had no interest to the point of zero awareness of the sexuality of my companions until I was about fourteen. I was only interested in science and chose my friends who had similar proclivities. It happened that most but not all of them were male. It was only when I was fifteen that a female member of our group who was both far more mature and more intelligent than I, jolted me out of my innocence. I could probably have gone another two or three years of not seeing sexual attractiveness in anyone if it hadn’t been for her. 
As such, I find that picture incription to be that of an adult interpretation of both a kid’s liking his friends who happen to be male, and the kid’s trying to make sense of the adult converstions his parents and their friends have.
Occam
I think we need to understand that the answer will be different for different people. In all likelihood there is a standard bell curve distribution for the age at which a person realizes their sexual preferences. What you really want to know is the youngest age at which someone might already know their preference.
Already the answers from several people on this thread show a scattering of ages. I think I must be a bit of an early bloomer because i remember having impure thoughts about Annette Funicello when I was watching the Mickey Mouse show around age 5. I also remember tripping and falling on purpose the following year in kindergarten when the girls would chase the boys and try to kiss them. Of course I pretended to hate it and fight them off when I got caught and just assumed the other guys were pretending as well but who knows.
At any rate, the lower limit is at least 5 yrs old but possibly lower unless I’m the extreme end of the spectrum.
I remember being much more interested in the rough and tumble toys of the boys. We used to play ‘war games’, baseball, basketball. football etc with me usually organizing the games. I had no interest in dolls, I thought they were a waste of time, but I was also aware I was a girl, and had no desire to be a boy. I was also not a lesbian although i can’t remember being interested in boys until I hit my teens. I still liked to play ball with them rather than the girls, and all through high school, I had many more male friends than female friends.