Michael Sams

So, Sams, the Missouri football player about to be a high draft choice in the NFL, has come out that he is gay.  I've been listening all day to pundits and athletes giving their opinions about how it may effect locker rooms, team unity, and even fan reaction.  I've always been of the opinion that this whole deal of "coming out" is ridiculous, because who cares?  I think I'm starting to see it differently.  I'm starting to think that if high profile gay athletes, and gay people in other high profile positions don't publically come out, we'll just be stuck where we are.....basically "don't ask don't tell"....which is starting to seem stupid to me because who wants to live like that?  I don't want anyone to have to, and if it takes these people in the headlines to hurry that along......so be it.

I'm STILL a Michael Sams fan!

So, Sams, the Missouri football player about to be a high draft choice in the NFL, has come out that he is gay.  I've been listening all day to pundits and athletes giving their opinions about how it may effect locker rooms, team unity, and even fan reaction.  I've always been of the opinion that this whole deal of "coming out" is ridiculous, because who cares?  I think I'm starting to see it differently.  I'm starting to think that if high profile gay athletes, and gay people in other high profile positions don't publically come out, we'll just be stuck where we are.....basically "don't ask don't tell"....which is starting to seem stupid to me because who wants to live like that?  I don't want anyone to have to, and if it takes these people in the headlines to hurry that along......so be it.

I'm STILL a Michael Sams fan!

I don't see why there has to be some big announcement. I don't announce to my family, friends and co-workers that I am hetero. If I was gay and someone at work asked about my weekend I would say my boyfriend and I did... I don't see why someone has to lie until they have some announcement party and then it is all okay.

So what the guy is gay, since when did sexual preference define a human being? I would hope there is more to people than what sex they are attracted to. Kinda like we expect there is more to people than skin color, or religious preference. 

The media is going to ruin this guys career for him. Him being gay should have been no big deal, now that the media has made it a big deal teams are going to have to think twice about drafting him. If he doesn't play well they will never be able to cut him because they will instantly be demonized as gay haters.

The media and everyone else should just get over it and leave it alone IMO. Making a spectacle out of it doesn't help him or anyone else.

I don't see why there has to be some big announcement. I don't announce to my family, friends and co-workers that I am hetero.

Making a big deal out of it defines a person by it. It has to stop somewhere otherwise you end up with the gay version of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, constantly making it a battle and creating the "us vs. them" mentality which is the original reason for the "coming out". 

I have had gay friends who defined themselves by being gay and I have had friends who were gay. Any discussion with the friends who let it define them led right back to us vs. them. My friends who happened to be gay but didn't let it define them didn't have that issue. 

If I were to have a coming out party as hetero and define myself only as a "straight man" and take the us vs. them mentality then I would likely be a Republican Senator and I would be ridiculed as such.

Yep I have. Most of us responded with "yep, that figures, so?" 

Making a big deal out of it defines a person by it. It has to stop somewhere otherwise you end up with the gay version of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, constantly making it a battle and creating the "us vs. them" mentality which is the original reason for the "coming out". 

I have had gay friends who defined themselves by being gay and I have had friends who were gay. Any discussion with the friends who let it define them led right back to us vs. them. My friends who happened to be gay but didn't let it define them didn't have that issue. 

If I were to have a coming out party as hetero and define myself only as a "straight man" and take the us vs. them mentality then I would likely be a Republican Senator and I would be ridiculed as such.

I don't see why there has to be some big announcement. I don't announce to my family, friends and co-workers that I am hetero. If I was gay and someone at work asked about my weekend I would say my boyfriend and I did... I don't see why someone has to lie until they have some announcement party and then it is all okay.

So what the guy is gay, since when did sexual preference define a human being? I would hope there is more to people than what sex they are attracted to. Kinda like we expect there is more to people than skin color, or religious preference. 

The media is going to ruin this guys career for him. Him being gay should have been no big deal, now that the media has made it a big deal teams are going to have to think twice about drafting him. If he doesn't play well they will never be able to cut him because they will instantly be demonized as gay haters.

The media and everyone else should just get over it and leave it alone IMO. Making a spectacle out of it doesn't help him or anyone else.

I guess I could say I'm of the same mindset.

IMHO the statement "it's who you are" or "it's who I am" is taking away from the real person that you are.  If anything it sets an individual apart more than the aspect of being gay IMHO.  It's not who you are.  You are a man or a woman who is great because of "who you really are" not because of who you like to look at when you are at the pool.  My identity is through my faith, family, and friends not that I'm attracted to women and it shouldn't be any different for someone who is gay.

Ya, I guess I don't get the "Official Proclamation" part. He came out to his team last year. So if his team knows, "everyone" knows. So it isn't a secret.

I also understand to some it is a big deal and if it helps them out, then that's cool. People with spotlights can help others with that spot light. Good for him.

I also understand that this is just one among many... and many of those "many" do exactly what we talk about... live their life open, no official proclamations... but we just don't hear about any of them... they just go on with their lives. so we only get to see this one event publicly.

And I do like "sacrifice" or "courage". To make this announcement right before the draft... some team will pass just because they do not want the distraction alone.

I didn't follow the whole story, but did he "make a proclamation" like a press release sort of thing recently or did the media just pick up on this in the last few days because he was openly gay and everyone knew it and heading into the draft?

Rather unfortunate that in our "drama news" society he had to "get out in front of it" and hope that he would do better in the draft if he got to put his own spin on it. If the media wasn't so desperate for something like this to latch onto and push an agenda, he could have told the people that matter (family, friends, teammates) then entered the draft based on, oh I don't know, his ability to play football, and the rest would have been a non issue. 

Rather unfortunate that in our "drama news" society he had to "get out in front of it" and hope that he would do better in the draft if he got to put his own spin on it. If the media wasn't so desperate for something like this to latch onto and push an agenda, he could have told the people that matter (family, friends, teammates) then entered the draft based on, oh I don't know, his ability to play football, and the rest would have been a non issue. 

I believe their agenda would be ratings. 

He'll still be drafted based on his ability to play football.....because he can PLAY.