love_not_war_75 I'm a straight guy but I'd comment on the attractiveness of another guy and would answer these picks if they weren't marked with "girls only".

germany123 i think it happens for the same reason people put: "for us users only" its just to prevent the "none of the above" option. or smart ass remarks by people :P well thats the reason i would put it if i ever made a pick with that phrasing. i once made a pick where the first line was: only for people who have trouble with seeing their images (since i KNEW not eveyone was having trouble) and [i] whaddaya know[/i] 5 minutes later the first user added an option: "i dont have trouble seeing the images" :( Sometimes it might also be oot of real interest (how many guys watch XYZ)!? i dont think its any conscious form of any -ism...

Cinders That's a logical conclusion, and I appreciate that. At the same time, I feel like it's still being a little close minded. Actually, I have seen a couple picks that say "For girls and gay guys only" (yeah, in my search, believe it or not). Which made me smile. I understand taking polls like "How many guys watch this TV show" but those aren't the questions I"m talking about. I'm talking about the questions that strictly deal with sexual attraction. And most of the picks I see don't have the option to add. Do you see where I'm coming from, though? It's like saying that only girls like guys, or all girls SHOULD like guys. That's all. Heterosexism is just showing a preference for that lifestyle, it's not hating or fear of homosexuals. It's the assumption that everyone just basically IS heterosexual.

misanthrope86 I totally agree with you 100%! I hate picks like the House one (I just used that one as an example because the House Spot is my favourite spot). The assumptions are very, very strong, but that is a reflection of everyday life. Heterosexuality is priviledged. Like germany123 said, its not conscious, its just society in general. And I'm not saying that in, like, a bad way. Its just the way that the world works. People don't realise that they are assuming things and therefore excluding people. I guess if I were to shove myself in a box, it would be a heterosexual box, but I am a firm believer that sexuality is fluid. So, rest assured, you are not alone on this issue.

harold I take it as a demographics concern, though I do agree with germany123's take, too (you know I hate the lamer "all of the above", "none of the above" picks). If they're interested in hearing the opinion of just a certain group of users, who am I to judge the reasons for that? I don't take it that it's their assumption, but rather that that's the data set they're curious about at the time they made the pick question. I should also say that when I feel slighted by a question, I go and make one that I think is phrased better. Usually I can do this in such a way that it is clearly not a duplicate, albeit fairly similar. In the cases of demographics questions, the hypothetical question "GUYS ONLY!!! Do you believe in sex with your girlfriend before marriage?" is a different one than "GIRLS AGED BETWEEN 14-22 ONLY!!! Do you believe in sex with your girlfriend before marriage?", which itself is still different from "Do you believe in sex with your girlfriend before marriage?" These questions yield three different sets of data, which can all be interesting. To me, it's the same as asking the same question in different clubs, which is often an interesting exercise in observing the different demographics in different clubs, or asking the same question - with a close date for each pick - at different times in the same club, which shows how the demographics and/or prevailing opinions of the fan base change over time. But I know that many others would feel that these examples would all be too similar and should be reported as duplicates. That said, maybe the people asking such questions ARE part of the categories they specify, and they're only interested in tabulating responses from people in that category/demographic. So? I don't think that means that they are necessarily putting a value judgment on other categories/demographics, just that, for that question, they're interested in those data. Interest equates value, but it does not mean the thing without interest is not valued. Presented logically: A = interest B = value C = heterosexual girls' opinions If (A implies B) and (A = C) are both true, we still cannot conclude that (not-B) = (not-C). Thus, users who are interested in seeing the opinions of users who aren't heterosexual girls (continuing the example above) should make a separate pick!

Cinders Ah you are quite the logician, harold, as usual. And I really do appreciate the demographic argument. But I'm not sure that all of these picks (of which I have seen many) are necessarily considering that (sometimes, maybe they are). Similarly, I rarely see (but do see) picks that target gay men and women, and (interestingly) mostly in the anime spots (I like talking in parenthesis). I have seen questions in these spots like "FOR GIRLS: Which guy is hotter?" and then right after that "FOR GUYS: Which guy is hotter?" But most of the time, there is generally just one pick "for girls/guys" only. See, as far as I'm concerned, regardless of your sexual orientation, you can comment on the attractiveness of anyone. My gay friend comments on women all the time, and he's not interested in them in the slightest. If you are looking for demographics, a clever anthropologist would do a series of picks, like you suggest. But in general, I think the intention of these stipulations is to ensure that the person answering the question is attracted to the people being asked about, and assume that only the opposite sex will be attracted to them. A great example of a pick that I think provides a clever take on this issue is johnminh's pick. Sure, dear john was being silly in the pick, but the facts stands that he did consider all audiences answering. Even more amusing, I am fairly sure one or two straight men answered that they would "get it on with him! (for the guys)" just to be silly themselves. The more I discuss this the more I really feel like I'm making a mountain out of a mole hill. This is just something that always pops up in the back of my mind when I see a new pick with this theme, and I just finally decided to say something about it. I don't mean to complain, or to accuse anyone of being antigay or homophobic. I hope nobody thinks that. :S

vider69 When I put up fan pick question they are for everybody, that's my take on the subject, I'm pretty easy going and if someone 'likes' the pick I don't care who it is or what gender.

oneshyguy46 I agree with you 100%

Vikitoria I know what you mean, and I totally agree with you. Fair enough, tereotypically some girls should prefer certain clubs and vice versa, but tbh in this day and age fanpicks or clubs should be made fairly and not so much discriminatey. Btw, you're totally not crazy Cinders, I have all these ethical arguements with myself on a daily basis :P But nice point, you should join the Debate club, if you haven't already =D

Cinders Thanks Vikitoria... and chuckles at the recommendation to join the debate club. Yes, I am a member. Thanks a lot, really, you've made me smile today.

Laurencia7 whether you are bi, gay, or straight we can all appreciate the attractiveness of another human being. I personally think many people are very attractive, whether they are men or women. I think it is all apart of choice, what qualities we like, and what qualities we would want to emulate that attract us to other people. As if that isn't vague enough. But I can say, even though it shouldn't be an issue, that personally as a straight gal, I can appreciate and comment on what I think is attractive about another girl, probably because I wish I had that quality.

ladycroft totally agree with you, it's about opinions and things you are interested in, without caring what gender they are, wheter you are gay straight bi or an alien another exaple of this, it's not abour heterosexism but it is some kind of discrimination, in the boxing spot, the motto (or wherever is it called XD) says ''When real men make decisions in the ring'' hum ok, i am a girl and i do box, what is this line supposed to mean? girls can do this kind of sport? i think the world itself is being closeminded and most of the ppl just follow the multitude

Cammie I see where you're coming from, Cinders,but I don't see an issue in these so worded picks. I myself have done several picks that read FOR THE GIRLS/FOR THE GUYS. I don't think I've ever actually added the word ONLY but I might be wrong ... I'd have to go through the picks. I don't feel like I either have to make an apology for the way I word my picks or that I now have to word my picks to suit other people. Whenever I've worded the picks GIRLS/GUYS it's because I feel that in general I'm addressing either sex. Now I did say "in general," which means that some people are going to come along and resent the way it's been worded. That's their problem! I'm sorry, it's not my intent to be offensive here but to ME these picks are appropriately worded. If someone from the same sex chooses to answer the pick that is absolutely fine by me but I get pissed when smart-arse comments are added like "I'm a girl you know, and I can still pick that I find a girl hot. so why have you got guys only?" That attitude I just ignore. I don't give a hoot that you might be a girl and like girls or be a guy and like guys but I don't believe that I should customize my picks just to please a fair few. If you don't like the way someone has worded a pick and want to make a personal issue out of it, then don't answer it. That's what I'd do.

Cinders The thing is, though, doesn't it go without saying? Why do you need the addendum? That's all I'm asking. If you don't care if a gay guy or lesbian answers or doesn't answer the question, then why bother putting the specification? I'm not upset about it. I wasn't even really upset about it when I wrote the article, I just thought I'd bring it up, as the poll over at the LGBT spot showed that others were bothered by this wording.

Cammie I hear ya,hunny.I certainly admire and respect the fact that if it was on your mind that you've questioned it. Can I really answer why I've added (on a couple of picks) for guy/girls? I don't know know that I can answer that to everyone's satisfaction. Why? Because it's something that I have not done deliberately or with the intent of excluding anyone. To me (and I do emphasis ME)it was just a natural way of addressing both sexes individually. That's the best explanation I can give - although to some it might sound lame. It has never been with the intent of discriminating against anyone. I always leave the option for add-ons in most of my picks so if someone was to come along and,say, add: "I'm a guy but I like guys" then that's fine by me. All I'm saying is that I really hate the feeling of being pressured to word something in a different way (unless the way I've done it is either offensive or intimidating) because some people might misinterpret. That's it -nothing more nothing less.

Cinders I stated that I wasn't trying to promote political correctness, I just wanted people to be aware. The pick I linked above showed that people think that these things were "an unintentional form of heterosexism," meaning that few people believe these things are done on purpose. No one means to pressure you to do anything, we just want people to think about it and be aware of it, that's all. And I don't go around reporting picks like this, in fact, I rarely even comment on the pick itself because I know that wasn't the intention. But the facts remain...

Cammie Well,I'm aware and respect each and every person's view point. I've actually chosen to add my opinion but I do realize that the links and examples are not about MY picks. However, I wanted to make some comments for the sheer fact that I recognize that I have made similar picks to the ones being addressed. But I'll say it again ... I personally see nothing wrong with these picks or their wording -whether they're my picks or someone else's.

hou0060 people talk a lot. But yes, i very much agree. It's that childish view of 'boys don't like boys, thats silly' (i watched little miss sunshine yesterday) and i think this is an obvious form of unintentional heterosexism. It's only showing people's inner opinion of gayness (incl lesbians) or even that they just forget that people of the same sex can be sexually atrracted to each other, and I think that that is what the whole anti-heterosexism movement is all about.

mycrownofjewels I understand that offending people is not always intentional, but if you can word the question without having to worry about offending anyone, why not do that? Moreover, I completely understand what harold was saying about trying to figure out differing opinions of different demographics, but at least clarify after you post the pick, so that people understand your intentions. I think that would be ideal, and I'm not trying to make a rule on any of this. It's just a suggestion to hopefully resolve some of these issues.