Customer Reviews

An Ounce of Prevention: Preventing the Homosexual Condition in Today's Youth

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I found this book to be very helpful. For many years I have sought to verbalize what this author says about homosexuality. I agree with his concept of what homosexuality is. I feel this book is a refreshing look that puts responsiblity on the individual rather than taking no responsibility for who or what the individual is.

I read this one several years ago. My copy is well marked and I have used it to help teens find answers to their questions... Schmierer gives excellent advice on prevention. Having lived through encounters with an aggressive older man who served time for molesting boys... I can confidently say "I wish more people knew what this book explains."

This is a great book! I'm glad I bought this book and decided for myself (after reading some of the negative reviews) what the underlying causes of homosexuality could be. If you child is confused about his/her gender, this is a "must read." Not only did I gain insight on the probable causes of homosexuality but I felt it also was helpful in pointing out changes that needed to be made in our family life to help my child.

Given the obvious fact that people don't choose their sexual orientation, this book results in some downright silly suggestions. If you don't believe me on this, try the following thought experiment (sorry, it doesn't work for bisexual folks):

If you are straight, try to fantasize about someone of the same sex. Try your hardest to become homosexual just for a moment. If you are gay, try to become aroused by someone of the opposite sex. Both of you will, by now, have found you're not having much success. Alas, you've both failed to choose a different sexual orientation.

Returning to the book itself, the author's main suggestion is to repeatedly tell your children that people choose to be gay. For straight kids, this just ends up training them in intolerance (already quite likely fostered in an evangelical Christian household). For gay kids, this just results in bad relationships with their parents (and possibly years of therapy...).

The other advice the author suggests is a paranoid monitoring of gender role development of your children. This is where the book is at its most humorous. The essential suggestion is to be VERY wary of boys playing with dolls or girls playing too much softball.

Finally, I would offer an alternation suggestion. Thanks to folks like the author, our society can make life hard for gay folks. If your child appears to be gay, try to be nice to them; they need an understanding parent. Be the accepting, understanding parent. If you insist on being the dogmatic fundamentalist parent that the author asks you to be, the price you'll pay for it is the love of your child.

At least 95% of youth will grow up heterosexual anyway - that's the way it always has been and always will be. Can you prevent the rest from growing up homosexual (or bisexual)? The trouble is that it's impossible to demonstrate with anything even approaching probability that you have ever succeeded in preventing anyone from growing up homosexual who would otherwise have done so; all that you can sometimes prove is that you haven't.

The most extensively documented case of an attempt to "head off" homosexuality in a boy - which was undertaken because he was gender-nonconformist as an infant - was that of the boy known in the literature variously as Craig, Kraig or Kyle. The good news is that the attempt was a failure; the bad news is that the "treatment" that he was given did him serious psychological harm. You can read about it in Chapter 4 of Simon Levay's book "Queer Science".

Don't bother with this book: you'll just find a recycling of the tired old anti-gay myths about the alleged causes of homosexuality. If you are the parent of a gay child, or if you are concerned about the possibility that your child may turn out to be gay, then I would advise you to take to heart what a well-known Irish priest said: "You must be very special parents to know and to have a gay son. God does not give gay children to everybody. What a unique privilege for you."

UPDATE: I've periodically wondered what became of poor Craig/Kyle. I'd like to think that he eventually recovered from the appalling damage that had been done to him and that he's perhaps now in a loving gay relationship, but I have no means of knowing. However, if you're interested in the latest adventures of the anti-gay psychologist who prescribed the abusive "treatment" for him, try googling Rekers +rentboy.

Answers many questions. The question of whether homosexuality can be prevented is a crucial one. The answer is a resounding YES! Many gay rights extremists will be upset, but they just don't want to face the truth.

Thank God someone is willing to tell the truth about the fact that there really is no "third gender," pointing out instead the tragic family dynamics, childhood cruelties and sexual abuses that can play such a significant part in gender confusion. The author of An Ounce Of Prevention has gently and graciously pointed out specific ways parents and other concerned people can, with both spiritual wisdom and common sense, help direct struggling young people toward hope and healing.

It is sad that so many individuals still buy into the long ago discredited "research" that supposedly "proves" that homosexuality is genetically based and therefore can't change. Unfortunately, gay activists continue to peddle bad, old research and deny the methodologically sound recent research. The new research (see Robert Spitzer), contradicts their position. Don Schmierer offers good insight and practical advice. If you're worried about your child's gender identity and their future, then read this book!

This book completely overlooks the outcome of scientific research in regards to homosexuality, but what's worst it overlooks your teenager's REAL emotions.
In this world full of homophobia it is already difficult for a teenager to survive, the worst thing that can be done is for the parent to become part of this homophobia, who critices, disapproves and doesn't accept the person the child really is.
Don't feed into bigotry against your own child.

Not well informed. A great wish, but this is a work with a lot of scientific problems. I recommend the readers to take a parsimonious look of this work.