You are, of course, welcome to your opinions. I would caution, however, that there does not seem to be any evidence that orientation is mutable to any measurable extent.

Two evangelical therapists, Stanton Jones and Mark Yarhouse, attempted to determine whether orientation could change through religious ministries. Although they showed that individuals are capable of changing what they call themselves (a much trumpeted result), they also found that on average there was little to no measurable change in attraction for their prospective sample.

Those who champion reorientation loudly broadcast stories about those few individuals who reported themselves as having changed. But when you look at the details, these “heterosexuals” were still plagued with wandering eyes, sex dreams, lustful thoughts and other indications that “heterosexual” was perhaps not a completely honest word choice. And they certainly don’t mention that one of those few persons later told the coordinators that his reported “change” had been born of a desire to please the researchers and to meet his earnest efforts but had in reality been nothing other than wishful thinking.

Sadly, the evidence, such as it is, argues that very few – if any – persons ever change the direction of their attractions.

That isn’t to say that they cannot craft a happy life either celibate or within an opposite sex marriage. We all deal with what we are given and sometimes we can find happiness by compromising personal fulfillment to meet our religious values.

But it is to say that so far, unless we are presented with evidence that is yet unknown, I’d have to say that for the vast majority of same-sex attracted individuals, the direction of their attractions (sexual, affectionate, romantic) will not change.

It was this, I believe, that Dr. Laura came to recognize.

I’d suggest that you might consider the problem of basing a theory covering every gay person on the planet on the experiences of two close friends. You migjht be surprised that not everyone shares their experience. In fact, it’s quite rare.

The best evidence is that there are likely many different factors or combinatins of factors for different people. To suggest that it is always one cause or always another cause, and that this answer applies exactly the same to everyone, is not borne out by science.

Oh, going all religious ‘n’ rigid was a kind of fad in the late Nineties. After all, the Unbelievable had happened: a powerful man had gotten a couple of blowjobs from a younger woman.

I think the Orthodox Jewish thing was a way for “Doctor” Laura to put being part Italian Catholic and part Jewish together- in a retrograde way, or simply the worst parts of both worlds. (Or maybe it was just all Dennis Prager’s fault. :) )

After a couple of years she apparently got a clue that Jewish Menshlichkeyt and tough Italian femininity were in fact a better mix than Catholic severity plus strict Jewish cultural forms.

Dr. Laura is pretty free about dispensing attitude, so she should be able to receive as well as give. Okay, not a very nice attitude on my part… sigh.

I am glad to here of her deconversion from Orthodoxy. Orthodoxy, fundamentalism with the oft accompanied notion that one can speak for “GOD” with all the incumbent authority, has done more damage than any number of doctors touting their particular cure. Add the two together and, in short you have a ghastly mess!

And I don’t think the idea that children might benefit from having both a strong male and female presence in their life is out of the bounds of reasonable discussion.

The good “doctor” told her that if she couldn’t find a friend or relative to leave the child with — if it came to finding a daycare facility — to just go on welfare and forget about school and job training. “You can always do that later,” she advised. Right.

There’s no telling how much harm this woman has managed to do in her career, and changing her religion and attitudes more often than she changes her hairdo doesn’t cancel that out. Nor do coy references to her “bluntness” and “honesty.” WTF???