Christie Wrong about Homosexuality & Genetics

Fact Checking Alert!New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie claimed recently that homosexuality is genetic. Buying into ignorance, he said homosexuals are born that way. A Catholic, Gov. Christie also said homosexuals are not sinners.But there is no evidence supporting claims of genetic causes, and it’s a sign of intellectual dishonesty to claim otherwise. And according to the divinely-inspired, inerrant Word of God, all men and women are sinners. And that’s because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. In today’s politically correct, topsy-turvy, upside-down world, even homosexuals are sinners -- like heterosexuals.To clear the air, here’s the truth about the lack of evidence for genetic homosexuality:Masters and Johnson reported that homosexuality is entirely a learned phenomenon without any physiological basis. They propose that persons are born with no particular predisposition toward either homosexuality or heterosexuality but simply with an undirected sexual potential, which then becomes channeled by various learning experiences in either a homosexual or a heterosexual direction.William Masters and Virginia Johnson, "Homosexuality in Perspective," (Little, Brown and Co.: Boston, 1979); Cited by: A. P. Bell, M. S. Weinberg, and S. K. Hammersmith, Sexual Preference (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1981).The Human Genome Project identified all the genes in human DNA and found no homosexual gene. Evan Balaban, a neurobiologist at the Neurosciences Institute in San Diego, noted that the search for the biological underpinnings of complex human traits has a sorry history. In recent years, researchers and the media have proclaimed the “discovery” of genes linked to alcoholism and mental illness as well as to homosexuality. None of the claims has been confirmed (as quoted in Horgan, 1995). It is not scientifically accurate to refer to a “gay gene” as the causative agent in homosexuality.Dr. Brad Harrub, Dr. Bert Thompson and Dr. Dave Miller, "A Scientific Examination of Homosexuality and the 'Gay Gene,'” The True Origin Archive, (2003).There is no evidence at present to substantiate a biologic theory. Critical review shows biological theory to be lacking.W. Byne and B.Parsons, “Human Sexual Orientation: The Biological Theories Reappraised,” Archives of General Psychiatry 50 (3): 228-239. Cited by: Jeffrey Satinover, Homosexuality and the Politics of Truth (Grand Rapids: Baker Books,1996), p. 114.Dr. Simon LeVay’s research (1991) centered on finding the difference between homosexual and heterosexual brains. The brains studied were from 41 cadavers; 26 of these men who had died from AIDS related diseases (19 homosexual men, six heterosexual men and one bisexual man). LeVay acknowledged that his results could be considered speculative and that sexual orientation may not be related to the difference in the size of the anterior hypothalamus of the cadavers. Simon LeVay, "A Difference in Hypothalamic Structure Between Heterosexual and Homosexual Men," Science 253 (1991): 1,034-1036. LeVay said: "My study doesn’t actually even address whether one is ’born that way.’ I didn’t look at these people’s brains before they were born." He also admitted that he co-founded the Gay and Lesbian Education organization in order to bring about change. Karen Oslund interview with Simon LeVay, “Of Brain Structures and Sexual Politics,” Harvard Gay and Lesbian Review, (1997, Winter), p. 21.Dr. Bill Byne, a neuroanatomist and psychiatrist on the faculty at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York, was unable to verify LeVay’s research. LeVay said he was disappointed at the lack of a resounding confirmation of a “gay gene.”Keay Davidson, "No Easy Link Between Genes, Behavior DNA Studies Dash Quest for Easy Answers Genome's link to behavior hard to prove," San Francisco Chronicle, (2001, 13 February).Dr. Simon LeVay said: “It’s important to stress what I didn’t find. I did not prove that homosexuality is genetic, or find a genetic cause for being gay. I didn’t show that gay men are born that way, the most common mistake people make in interpreting my work. Nor did I locate a gay center in the brain.” Furthermore, Dr. Dean Hamer said, "Homosexuality is not purely genetic ... environmental factors play a role. There is not a single master gene that makes people gay.”Dean Byrd, Shirley Cox and Jeffrey Robinson, “Homosexuality: The Innate-Immutability Argument Finds No Basis in Science,” The Salt LakeTribune, (2001, 27 May). Dr. Brad Harrub, Dr. Bert Thompson and Dr. Dave Miller, A Scientific Examination of Homosexuality and the “Gay Gene,” The True Origin Archive, (2003).No single gene determines a particular behavior.Joseph McInerney and Mark Rothstein, "What is Behavioral Genetics?", Human Genome Project Information.Established researchers Byne and Parsons and Friedman and Downey reviewed the studies linking biology and homosexual attraction. They concluded that there was no evidence to support an innate, biological theory. They claimed, rather, that homosexuality is best explained by a model where "tempera¬mental and personality traits interact with the familial and social milieu as the individual's sexuali¬ty emerges.James V. Heidinger II, "Thinking Clearly About Homosexuality," Good News.The homosexual advocacy group PFLAG ("Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays") acknowledges that there is not a "gay gene": "To date, no researcher has claimed that genes can determine sexual orientation. At best, researchers believe that there may be a genetic component. No human behavior, let alone sexual behavior, has been connected to genetic markers to date...sexuality, like every other behavior, is undoubtedly influenced by both biological and societal factors."Why Ask Why," Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), 1995 Pamphlet addressing research on Homosexuality and Biology. Cited by: Dr. Nadia El-Awady. (2003). Homosexuality in a Changing World: Are We Being Misinformed? IslamOnlineWhen the claims of a “gay gene” were refuted scientifically, large publications buried the story. The New York Times ran the story on page 19: “Underscoring the difficulty scientists face in finding genes that underlie complex human behaviors, a team of researchers are reporting Friday that they have been unable to confirm a widely publicized study linking male homosexuality to a small region of one chromosome.”Ericka Goode, “Study Questions Gene Influence on Male Homosexuality,” The New York Times (1999, 23 April).Virtually none of the research projects dealing with a genetic basis for sexual orientation are without serious design or methodological deficits. Simon LeVay’s research does not establish whether possible brain differences are the result of genetically induced differences or behavior induced biological changes.Dr. Donald Gabard, "Homosexuality and the Human Genome Project: Private and Public Choices," Journal of Homosexuality 37 (1), (1999): 28, 29.