4 ms·

Being gay in the US is about as blackmail worthy as being left handed.

cm2187 7y ago
Though Grindr is also a treasure trove of dick pics!
thaumasiotes 7y ago
Blackmail isn't just about embarrassment in public. It's more commonly about embarrassment in front of someone in particular.
onetimemanytime 7y ago
Not if you have 4 kids, are an "upstanding community member" etc etc etc. Not all outings are the same....
nxc18 7y ago
Not the best journalism, but a good overview: http://www.newnownext.com/19-republican-politicians-gay-sex/12/2016/ http://www.newnownext.com/19-republican-politicians-gay-sex/... Seems like a big scandal happens every few years. This is career-ruining if you’ve built your career on hypocrisy and self-hate, as at least a handful of politicians have.
pawelmurias 7y ago
If Trump was caught paying of Ron Jeremy instead of Stormy Daniels wouldn't he loose more popularity?
kache_ 7y ago
There is a large amount of stigma associated with homosexuality. You are incorrectly assuming that the rest of the population has the same world view as you do. For example, being outwardly homosexual is a great way to lose the muslim vote - a sizeable portion of the Canadian population.
- GhettoMaestro 7y ago
  > For example, being outwardly homosexual is a great way to lose the muslim vote - a sizeable portion of the Canadian population. That's amazing. We should keep importing more of these wonderful folks. (/s obviously)
microcolonel 7y ago
There are some places in the U.S. where it's still a big deal, parts of Utah come to mind as places where I know people have been mistreated routinely, and in some cases, been in serious danger. And of course there are individuals who would rather not make that preference public because they have business elsewhere. If you had intended to do business in the middle east, it is a real material loss to be outed, or to be selectively/privately outed with just the right people to make your life difficult. Of course, activists tend to choose the most useless and counterproductive ways to promote safety and tolerance for homosexuals, so something tells me things will tend to get worse when they could've gotten better. You could expect things to get worse, especially as the zoomers are exposed to these activists rather than to the truth.
pbhjpbhj 7y ago
Is there no stigma around being promiscuous, or taking part in risky sexual practices?
hobs 7y ago
Not if you are a republican congressman whose famously come out as anti-homosexual. https://www.metroweekly.com/2019/04/former-anti-gay-gop-rep-aaron-schock-allegedly-had-his-hand-down-a-mans-pants-at-coachella/ https://www.metroweekly.com/2019/04/former-anti-gay-gop-rep-... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Craig_scandal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Craig_scandal
davinic 7y ago
It's not just about "being gay". There are also private photos and private chats, as well as full location history.
rdtsc 7y ago
Any information that someone is afraid of becoming exposed about them to someone else - the public, their religious organization, their employer, their family is good for blackmail.

Though Grindr is also a treasure trove of dick pics!

Blackmail isn't just about embarrassment in public. It's more commonly about embarrassment in front of someone in particular.

onetimemanytime 7y ago

Not if you have 4 kids, are an "upstanding community member" etc etc etc. Not all outings are the same....

nxc18 7y ago

Not the best journalism, but a good overview: http://www.newnownext.com/19-republican-politicians-gay-sex/12/2016/ http://www.newnownext.com/19-republican-politicians-gay-sex/... Seems like a big scandal happens every few years. This is career-ruining if you’ve built your career on hypocrisy and self-hate, as at least a handful of politicians have.

pawelmurias 7y ago

If Trump was caught paying of Ron Jeremy instead of Stormy Daniels wouldn't he loose more popularity?

kache_ 7y ago

There is a large amount of stigma associated with homosexuality. You are incorrectly assuming that the rest of the population has the same world view as you do. For example, being outwardly homosexual is a great way to lose the muslim vote - a sizeable portion of the Canadian population.

GhettoMaestro 7y ago
> For example, being outwardly homosexual is a great way to lose the muslim vote - a sizeable portion of the Canadian population. That's amazing. We should keep importing more of these wonderful folks. (/s obviously)

microcolonel 7y ago

There are some places in the U.S. where it's still a big deal, parts of Utah come to mind as places where I know people have been mistreated routinely, and in some cases, been in serious danger. And of course there are individuals who would rather not make that preference public because they have business elsewhere. If you had intended to do business in the middle east, it is a real material loss to be outed, or to be selectively/privately outed with just the right people to make your life difficult. Of course, activists tend to choose the most useless and counterproductive ways to promote safety and tolerance for homosexuals, so something tells me things will tend to get worse when they could've gotten better. You could expect things to get worse, especially as the zoomers are exposed to these activists rather than to the truth.

pbhjpbhj 7y ago

Is there no stigma around being promiscuous, or taking part in risky sexual practices?

hobs 7y ago

Not if you are a republican congressman whose famously come out as anti-homosexual. https://www.metroweekly.com/2019/04/former-anti-gay-gop-rep-aaron-schock-allegedly-had-his-hand-down-a-mans-pants-at-coachella/ https://www.metroweekly.com/2019/04/former-anti-gay-gop-rep-... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Craig_scandal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Craig_scandal

davinic 7y ago

It's not just about "being gay". There are also private photos and private chats, as well as full location history.

rdtsc 7y ago

Any information that someone is afraid of becoming exposed about them to someone else - the public, their religious organization, their employer, their family is good for blackmail.