Diamond Jubilee Photo
This is the best 60th Jubilee photo I have seen.
Hat-tip: Peter Ould, who writes an Exercise in the Fundamentals of Orthodoxy.
If you are looking for something fairly solid to chew on today, try Peter’s post from May 30th comparing two papers from several years ago researching into ‘Sexual Orientation Change Efforts (SOCE)”. This is ‘therapy’ designed to help people as who seek to change their sexual orientation, and is a current political demon-poster-child. Peter Ould’s perspective is different and thoughtful.
Follow the links and an hour will vanish.
Two Important Papers – Ten Years On
Back at the start of the “noughties” two papers were published that explored issues around Sexual Orientation Change Efforts (SOCE). The first, by Robert Spitzer who was part of the Task Force on the APA that removed homosexuality from the DSM was finally published in 2003, but was researched earlier. The second by Shidlo and Schroeder was released in 2002 and sees its tenth anniversary this year.
Spitzer’s paper has recently been in the news as he has sought todistance himself from his original conclusion. It’s interesting to note that many of the criticisms raised by Spitzer now about his conclusions then were highlighted a decade ago by activists such as Daniel Gonzalez, who has recently published a re-edited version of his original film looking at the Spitzer study. It’s worth ten minutes or so of your time watching what Gonzalez had to say then in the light of what Spitzer has said now.
My view on this subject is that views on SOCE have unfortunately entered the territory of dogma rather than argument, but I think that it may well be a good deal more ambiguous than we are told by campaigners who need views to justify political positions.
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