[flv:http://cbstv.vo.llnwd.net/e2/0019/flash/20100503165800_91770_001427p8001647p8.flv https://queerty-prodweb.s3.amazonaws.com/wp/docs-null/2010/05/softballlg930.jpg 650 400]
How come San Francisco’s gay softball team D2 (now renamed The Hitmen) was so adamant about yanking non-gay players? Because the 10,000-member league North American Gay Amateur Athletic Association took back the team’s trophy for violating its “no more than two non-homos” rule after other teams starting complaining. Yes, gay players were upset a bunch of heteros had infiltrated their league — nevermind that quizzing somebody about their sexuality, CBS 5 reports, is illegal.
Kieran
Obviously there should be a rule that if you want to play on the gay league you must wear a pink uniform with the word “GAY” in big black letters on the front and back of the shirt.
Andy
And since when are bi men non-homos?
Aaron Rowland
The one thing we demand is that we not be treated differently on the basis of our sexual orientation, and then we do the exact same thing in reverse.
Between the Lamba’s excluding straight writers and NAGAAA excluding straight players, it’s becoming hard to ignore the painful irony.
D'oh, The Magnificent
So , filtering this through your bias, this sounds like a case of ringers, but you are calling it “winning.” A few years ago, there was a big deal because little league would not allow older players above 12 onto teams as I remember in NYC. The ringers came in by lying about their age. By increasing the pool of players beyond gay, you are going to find more players who can play better- not because of sexual orientation but because there are more straights than gays, and thus, you can do the math accordingly. A ringer is a ringer is a ringer.
Mike (@tazz602)
The rules helps make sure the gay softball players of any caliber have a safe playing environment.
And to be fair – they don’t start looking at someone’s status unless someone complains. Every team is on their honor to uphold the rules. So yes, if a team is winning, and you have wives and kids of players who traveled with them in the stands rooting for the players on the field by name and as “Daddy” (as did happen there in Seattle with this team, few people are mentioning that) – SOMEONE is going to start asking questions.
alan brickman
Gays can’t play nice…..big surprise….
james
I see we can discriminate against straights but they can’t discriminate against us. We have become one of the biggest jokes in history. We talk equality but our actions are saying discrimination
Hilarious
So we get upset when straight teams don’t allow or discriminate against us but then we refuse to allow bisexual men to play on our teams?
What?
And how exactly is having “straight” men on a team “cheating”?
So now we’re stereotyping ourselves and weak on top of that.
Good show, fellas, keep up the idiotic work. Two steps forward, ten steps back, that’ll show em.
Kieran
Well said Hillarious. So now we’ve actually got gays apparently admitting/believing that straight men have an unfair athletic advantage over gay men. You know what, why don’t they just put on dresses to play their segregated games?
hephaestion
This is so stupid. What a waste of time to harrass a team for having bisexuals on the team. Jesus Christ! Grow up!
DR (the real one, not the guy who made post #12)
What this comes down to is a team crying sour grapes, just like player Rod White said in the news clip. D2 took second in the world series. The team which lost to D2 filed a complaint after they lost. It would appear that no complaints were filed prior to that loss. Then NAGAAA enables these guys by grilling men on the D2 team in a humiliating fashion.
Several of you got it in one…. When straight orgs keep gay men out, we cry “discrimination”, but gay orgs like to think that when they do it, they’re “creating a safe space” when what they’re really doing is reverse discrimination against bisexuals and straight men.
Frozen North
Again. If it’s because they’re straight, then it’s wrong. If it’s because they’re ringers, then the whole team deserves to get kicked out.
I wonder though about those who complain about not allowing str8s on the softball field: are you also okay when you’re local gay bar is taken over by fag hags, hen parties, and str8 guys cruising for easy girls?
DR (the real one, not the guy who made post #12)
@Frozen North:
“I wonder though about those who complain about not allowing str8s on the softball field: are you also okay when you’re local gay bar is taken over by fag hags, hen parties, and str8 guys cruising for easy girls?”
As long as they’re polite and respectful, I don’t care WHO shows up to the party. *shrug*
adman
Isn’t this about being inclusive to anyone who’s GLBT friendly? As mentioned above, the “hen party” in a gay bar phenomenon doesn’t exclude anyone…maybe you should focus on the girl’s wish to party, then focus on the fact they are in a bar, where people go to party….You can probably work the rest out for yourself.
As long as the league is inclusive, it’s gay positive, let the straight allies play.
Judd
@D’oh, The Magnificent:
Get a fucking clue. No intelligent person could see a parallel between excluding kids over 12 from little league and this. Generally 14 year olds are bigger, stronger, faster than 12 year olds. Compared to gay guys, straights are of course bigger, stronger, fas…. oh wait. They’re not.
You know what makes a ringer? A player that competes against teams at a lower skill level. Emphasis being SKILL. And NAGAAA has an extremely detailed ratings system (which by the way, makes no mention of sexual orientation) to assess the skill level of individual players. If you think by virtue of being straight makes one a better athlete, you have a serious inferiority complex.
softballerforlife
I think it is time to FIRE Roy Melani and the rest of the current board. With the exception of one Board Member, these guys have all been part of leadership for at least ten years. They don’t change their way of thinking, they don’t change their close minded mentality and they continue to do things to make sure that, although the league has grown to nearly 10,000 members, the SAME people keep ruling the roost. You wanna see a Hen Party, try going to the NAGAAA meetings. Their are some real options. There are some younger, open, and better suited people to lead NAGAAA out of the DARK AGES. Paula Cline from Denver, The Minneapolis Commissioner, John Russels from Dallas, Orlando’s Commisioner, Phoenix’s NAGAAA REP, these men and women could really make a difference. The problem is that no one wants to Dare take on the powerful Roy Melani. The only way we can stop the below from happening again is to make these changes. Stop electing our Board at meetings where only the Commissioners Vote. Give every player a ballot at the Gay World Series. Regardless of if they play in the actual series or not, if you are a NAGAAA member listed on any NAGAAA cities roster then you should be given a ballot each year and let the actual members vote. If this were so then better people would be leading this damaged but AWESOME organization.
One of the questions asked by a Delegate from Virginia/MidAtlantic “if you walk into the Eagle and piss at the stall, do you look at the guy next to you’s cock”? One of the questions asked by a Delegate from Orlando, “Do you suck cock or eat pussy”? One of the questions asked by a Delegate from Houston “Are you a top or a bottom”. One of the questions asked by a Delegate from Atlanta “Do you and your wife enjoy sex with other men together”?
I’m sorry, I know the rules and they knew the rules but these questions should never have been asked. Pretty soon NAGAAA is going to become like the state of Arizona, you are going to have to carry around a picture of you engaged in a SAME SEX act to be declared “gay enough” To the Atlanta Venom player, I agree with you that they knew the rules before hand and should not have broken them BUT the only way that Rosa Parks could be the hero she was today would be to have said yes I know the rule but I broke it because it is an unfair rule. I am not saying that you are wrong but I do think that this rule has had its time. We of the younger generation forget all the gay men and women who came before us and created this league so that we would have a place to play. It was through all of their hard work and sacrifice that we are now ABLE to play without the fear of being attacked and bombarded with hateful slurs and threats. NAGAAA expects 174 teams to be at the Gay World Series in Columbus. If each of these teams had 4 straight players that would be about 750 straight (most likely gay friendly) players out of nearly 7000 athletes, friends and family. I really don’t think that any of these 750 atheletes would dare say a hurtful, homophobic, or anti gay slur at an event so obviously outnumbered and even if one or two did, I bet the other 748 straight players would be one of the first ones to say “dude you picked the wrong place to do this and get ready for an ass whoopin”. The rule was necessary at one time but it is outdated. NAGAAA should not be penalized for following the rule as stated but they should rethink the rule going forward and end it. That being said, if NAGAAA drops the rule I would hope that these three men would be okay with an apology and maybe some money to reimburse them for their travel expenses.