The Big Man Can't Shoot

Mob mentality, group effect, bystander effect. All three concepts come along with the same talk about the peer pressure and how people as a group can act differently from how they would as an individual. The mere presence of people, regardless of whether or not you are close to them, impact one's behavior. Although it is not exactly the same concept at hand, threshold is the external factor which influences the behavior as portrayed in the podcast episode. The idea is that those with high thresholds keep their 'identity' or the way they act, whereas those with low thresholds are often highly influenced by the people around. A common example can be that students smoke, bully, or do dumb things in school just because all the 'cool kids' do. 

People are social beings - regardless of them feeling inclined to do as others say, they simply are affected by others. The level of impact may differ, yet how they are seen by others, the way their actions are put, often directly and indirectly influence the behavior. Wilt Chamberlain couldn't shoot not because he lacked of his skills, but because he wanted to look 'good' and be liked rather than right. Same thing happens on and on in the world, although not as severe as this scenario. People conceal their political ideas, their gender, sexuality, personality, etc. We live in a democratic society, and according to the United Declaration of Human Rights, article 2, everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, or other status. However, many, in fact, are actually discriminated by such status that is clearly stated above.

The most prevailing discrimination at hand includes sexuality. It is a issue at hand which many are focused on. Religious issues, most dominantly Christianity, is criticized for their attitude upon these gender queers, denouncing them and projecting them as sinners. As a Christian, I have had a dilemma on what was truly right and why should these gender minorities be portrayed as wrong. The Bible includes several verses which boldly states that homosexuality is a sin - although I don't clearly remember, there was a verse saying "not to lie on the same bed with the same sex", and many insist that homosexuality and gay sex were one of the reasons why Sodom and Gomorrah collapsed. That is where the word "sodomy" comes from - a sexual intercourse involving anal or oral copulation. Personally I think that these are one of the most mistranslated words in English - the reasons for the downfall of Sodom and Gomorrah is clearly listed in the Bible, and none of these sins include homosexuality. The raping act itself was what is morally incorrect, not specifically the relationship between same sex.

In church, I am often afraid to openly state that I support homosexuality and that their rights should be respected, and that the judgement on them should not be put by us but solely on God. Many don't understand, or partially agree that they should be respected but they are sinners. I am still quite unsure on my grounds of reasoning, and because of my lack of information about the issue, I am more often unable to provide a logical background but be quite emotional, as many of my friends are gender minorities who face such everyday discriminations and are hurt by the so-called social norms. Yet, I hope that many of these gender minorities would be more confident and have a higher threshold unaffected by others and be able to meet the ones who respect and love them as who they are.

Leviticus 18:23 "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination."

http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/