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LGBT News Man with "eyeborg" compares his struggles to LGBQT

Discussion in 'Current Events, World News, & LGBT News' started by transnerd, Sep 4, 2014.

  1. transnerd

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    I got sort of irritated today while reading this article--I mean, it's sort of interesting, although by this guy's definition, anyone with a heart device, or what have you, could be considered a cyborg. So why does he get to be the "first"?

    Also, it more so bothers me that he compares "cyborg rights" to the struggles of the LGBQT community. Here's the article:

    http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/02/tech/innovation/cyborg-neil-harbisson-implant-antenna/

    From the article:

    "For Harbisson, physically acclimating to the technology was the easy part. Acceptance from others has been the real challenge. He frequently compares the obstacles he faces on a daily basis to what transsexuals and transvestites experienced half a century ago."

    Half a century ago? Try right now. People are still getting kicked out of places, disowned, etc. etc.

    Thooghts anyone?
     
  2. Kai LD

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    I'll give this some more thought but while there are similarities this really does seem like an apples and oranges deal. Hmmm.
     
  3. kageshiro

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    Judging from that quote whoever wrote the article is clearly uneducated about lgbt matters and possibly homophobic. The link for me was broken though which is a shame cause I'd love to see what an eyborg looks like. Anyway if the guy is catching heat for something about him ~looking, acting, being~ "different" then its the same as what we deal with.
     
  4. GrumpyOldLady

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    Here's a link:

    World's first cyborg wants to hack your body - CNN.com

    Found this article, which is more telling:
    Neil Harbisson: the world's first cyborg artist | Art and design | The Guardian

    He's provoking the issue because he's an artist, and that's what artists do. He did this to himself, by admission, as an artistic statement:

    I'm not saying that Cyborg rights might not be an issue some time in the future, but he's comparing the treatment of people wearing Google Glass to the treatment of transsexuals and transvestites. Seriously? People are concerned about things like Google Glass because they are concerned about their own privacy. I don't think it's the same thing at all, and quite frankly I find the comparison a bit insulting. But maybe I'm just a luddite.
     
  5. IS92

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    To be frank, the comparison is rather insulting to me, mostly for one particular reason.

    This guy's done this to himself by choice.

    It's a lot closer to the struggles someone who has a lot of piercings or tattoos would face than someone in the LGBTQ community faces; being stared at or given weird looks, maybe influencing getting a job. It's only similar in that both would be considered "weird" or "abnormal" to the "normal" people.

    As far as I can tell, I've never seen being LGBTQ as being a choice.
     
  6. Jinkies

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    Unpopular opinion time: I actually support the idea, even if it is choice. Of course, it only reiterates to us what we already know: People don't want change or anything they don't know already. They don't want to spend their time to focus on feeding whatever small curiosity they have and research and use trial-and-error on what to do with it, so they find the easy route: Hate it, and hate it even more if they're shown a picture of it that they don't like.

    He can also sense infrared and ultraviolet, which could be really useful in the future, especially in cases where people need to know if they're being exposed to too much of either.
     
  7. Wuggums47

    Wuggums47 Guest

    Having pirate hooks for hands is a lot like being LGBT.
    [​IMG]
     
  8. Candace

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    This article really was like comparing apples to oranges. The author doesn't know what struggles the LGBQT has gone through :dry:...so yeah...try again