Friday, Apr 8, 2011 15:45 ET
The "gay caveman" media mystery
A 5,000-year-old man sets off sensational coverage -- and shows how far we haven't come in gender awareness
By Mary Elizabeth Williams
http://www.salon.com/entertainment/tv/feature/2011/04/08/gay_caveman_absurdity/index.html (http://www.salon.com/entertainment/tv/feature/2011/04/08/gay_caveman_absurdity/index.html)
When news broke yesterday that archaeologists had uncovered the remains of a 5,000-year-old man in the suburbs outside of Prague, the big surprise, proclaimed in headlines around, was that it was of a "gay caveman." (The Daily News, as if referring to a caveman senator caught on the down low, described him reservedly as just a "suspected gay caveman.")
[...]
I'm no archaeologist, but there's a lot to be skeptical about any person who studies human culture for a living -- and any newspaper that writes on it -- who can't differentiate between being gay, transgendered, intersexed or "third gendered." So let me help out here: They're not the same things. They don't all ride the same float at Pride. Being transgendered is not interchangeable with being gay. Not every gay man is feminine. And not every feminine man is gayer than a "Glee" marathon. Seriously, they're called metrosexuals; where have you been for the past decade, USA Today? Jeez, a guy makes one comment about the wild boar being a little overdone and he's labeled for eternity.
Just more media fodder for that same Prague skeleton multi-mentioned this past week here on Susan's.
Joelene
I love the way the headline ignores the trans possibility...and the way the spokeswoman calls transsexuality a sexual orientation, like homosexuality.
Anyway, the whole thing is mere speculation.
But it was in the Press, it must be true!!